Cr00cy, I think we're hitting the climax
Cr00cy: Yeah, I think we are.
Chapter 20
The Fall
W.S. Quote Book Says: "Only the dead have seen the end of war." - Plato
W.S. Playlist Says: A wise man once said, "We all dead, fuck it" - Run the Jewels, Close Your Eyes and Count to F*ck
"I'm telling you, he's gay." Corporal Cyan said again.
Sergeant Rose signed in exasperation. "He's not gay!"
"How do you know he's not?" He challenged.
"Because he's Spruce Fucking Willis!" She shouted.
"That doesn't mean anything!"
"Ok, how about this? He's been married three times!"
He tsked. "Beards."
Rose scoffed. "Where's your proof?"
He leaned back in his chair and smirked. "My cousin says he knows a guy."
He chuckled as he heard the thud of Rose's head against her terminal and her long groan.
He'd been lowkey bothering Rose for the past hour, trying to keep himself occupied from the tedium of the control tower. Not that he didn't have other things to do either. He had been tracking the large cargo aircraft approaching the base distractedly for the past few minutes since it'd shown up on the radar. It was another in the long, long line of aircraft that had come through in the past week or so, helping to supply the mass of humanity that had been deposited at the base since the fall of Banner. It didn't match his schedule, but it was a registered craft and honestly, he'd stopped paying attention to the manifest after about the dozenth emergency supply craft had come in.
'Vigilance,' Gods, but Atlas had some pretentious names.
"Hey, Rose." He called to the young woman busily typing away at the screen behind his.
"Fuck off." She answered lazily.
"Not this time. Got another one coming in."
"Maidens, already? Third one today."
He laughed. "Gotta feed the people."
She sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I forgot that's what I signed up for, the country's biggest soup kitchen."
"Want me to call up your recruiter? I'm sure I can convince him to let you go. You know, since it's not everything you dreamed it'd be." He teased.
"I want you to do your Gods damned job." She shot back. "Hail them and set them down on A7."
"Yes, ma'am!" He replied with a grin and mock salute, earning an eye roll from his partner before he keyed the radio. "Vigilance, this is control, how do you read me? Over."
"Control, this is Vigilance, I read you loud and clear." A feminine voice responded.
"I have you the same. State your purpose. Over."
"Control, we're bringing in humanitarian aid, requesting permission to land."
"Roger that, Vigilance, continue you your approach and we'll put you down on Alpha 7. Control, out."
"Copy. Thank you, control."
He leaned back in his chair for a moment before keying the mic again out of boredom.
"Hey, Vigilance, who you guys with, anyway?"
There was a brief pause on the other side of the line before the radio crackled back to life.
"The Leviathans, best in the business."
Cyan felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see a scowling Rose.
"Hey, aren't the Leviathans set up on the northern border? Why is she all the way out here?"
He shrugged as he watched the aircraft come into view through the tower window. "We're stretched pretty thin."
"Yeah, but you'd think it'd be the Wyverns, or somebody else coming from the capital."
He hummed. "Yeah, does seem a bit weird that they tasked them, I guess."
"Were they on the manifest?"
"No, but you know how it's been. Half these guys haven't been."
"Yeah, just seems weird. You don't know anybody from out there, do you?"
He nodded as the craft started its lazy circle toward Alpha. "Yeah, actually used to work up there."
"What's their chant?" She asked.
"It's.." He paused before keying the comm again. "Hey, Vigilance. Leviathans!" He waited for a moment as the shuttle's engines pointed down and it began its descent.
"…Rule!" A hesitant voice called back.
Rose raised an eyebrow. "Is that really it? That's some weak ass-"
"No." He cut her off as the craft turned to face the tower. "It's, 'size matters.' Hey, get Security Forces on the line, I think-" he gasped as aircraft's gun bays started to open. "Rose, hit the alarm!"
Emerald and Rose's hands found their respective triggers at the same time.
Qrow frowned as he pushed open the door to reveal the long, dark hallway of the command building.
"Hey, Jimmy, I thought you said that Tom would still be set up in here?"
The larger man hummed as he pushed past the Hunter, scanning the darkened corridor. "Markus said he'd be here. He's been pulling long nights for a while now."
"He doesn't look here now."
"No, he doesn't." He acknowledged slowly, before turning down the hall and shouting, "Tom, you here?" He was met with deafening silence.
"Maybe he had to take care of something." Oscar offered.
Ironwood scowled. "He would have told be if he was going to miss the meeting."
Qrow shrugged. "It's been a long day, Jimmy, the guy probably just stepped out for minute for a smoke. Not like he got much work done dealing with all the pomp and circumstance of you coming in."
The General groaned. "I didn't ask for any of that."
The Hunter snorted. "Yeah, I'm sure that's the first time it's ever happened."
"Maybe we don't need you for this meeting after all." Ironwood reasoned, earning a chuckle from Oscar. "You're clearly the weakest link in this team."
"Huh, that's traditionally been Raven's job." Qrow mussed as he started down the hallway towards the Colonel's office.
"Must run in the family." Oscar quipped as he fell into line behind the two men.
"You know, Oscar, I don't think it's technically child abuse anymore if you were to fall down some stairs in here." The Hunter shot back.
"Col Markus' office is on the first floor."
"Is it? These things slip my mind in my old age."
Ironwood chuckled. "You always were a softy for children, weren't you, Qrow?"
"Says the guy that's been trying to steal Jacques' kids out from under him."
"You're doing what now? Is Weiss staying with you?" Oscar asked with a raised eyebrow.
The larger man rolled his eyes. "I'm not trying to steal them."
Qrow scoffed as he reached the base commander's door. "Suuuurrree, Jimmy. Whatever you have to tell yourself." He smirked as his hand found the handle and turned. "You know, if I weren't such a classy guy, I might have to make a few seedy accusations about your motivations for-" He cut off as the door began to swing open. "Jimmy, get the kid," he snapped, reaching for his weapon and prompting the General to place a large, steel hand on the boy's chest, holding him in place.
"What is it?" The old soldier asked tensely.
"Markus." Qrow answered, slowly pushing the door the rest of the way open. "What's left of him."
"Son of a bitch." Ironwood hissed before his gaze flicked down to Oscar. "Stand back, son, we've got-"
The boy pushed down on the General's steel arm. "I can help."
"I don't think-"
"No." Qrow cut in. "He's right. Oscar, watch the hall. Jimmy, you're with me." The Hunter declared as he pulled his blade and fully stepped into the room, Ironwood following an instant later with his hand cannon drawn. The scene that greeted them beyond gruesome, with blood painting the walls, assorted body parts scattered along the floor, and sitting on the lone desk in the back of the darkened room, Col Markus' severed head.
"Gods, Tom…" Ironwood whispered as his weapon dipped down.
"Jimmy, stay with me." Qrow ordered, scanning the room with his blade held high as he tried to avoid stepping on body parts. "We clear out there, Oscar?"
"Yeah." A voice called back from the hall.
"Good. Jimmy, you got anything on your side of the room?" He asked without turning.
"No, we're clear. I'll call it in." The General answered, voice full of disgust, before reaching down to his hip and pulling the brick radio from his belt. He keyed it and held it up to his mouth. "Control, this is Odin Lead, we have-" he frowned at the lack of the telltale static emanating from the device and pressed the key down again, hearing nothing. "Shit."
"That doesn't sound reassuring." Qrow said.
"I've got nothing on the radio."
"Well, fuck." Qrow spat. "What's the move, Jimmy?"
The General straightened. "We head for the transmission tower for the Short-Range Transmit system. The repeaters for the radios on base and there as well as the system to reach back to Atlas. If that's down, we're effectively on our own."
The Hunter grunted. "Sounds like a plan. Oscar, we're moving out." At the lack of a response, he called again. "Oscar, you hear me?" He frowned and started towards the door. "Oscar, what the-" he froze when he heard a high-pitched giggle come from the hallway. A very familiar giggle. "Jim, step away from the door," he commanded as he brought his sword to bear. Oscar's face soon returned to the open doorway, a bladed gauntlet pressed against his neck, and a sharp, grinning face of a scorpion faunus following shortly after.
"Tyrian." Qrow growled.
The faunus giggled. "Oh yes, it's good to see you again too, Little Birdy. I just got so bored waiting for you to finish up I thought I'd play with this lovely toy you left for me in the hall."
"Qrow, I'm sorry. I-" Oscar started.
"Don't worry about it, kid. Just hang tight, we'll get you out." The older man comforted.
"Oooh! You hear that?" Tyrian whispered in the squirming boy's ear. "The Little Birdy is going to save you. Isn't that exciting?" His grin grew as his gaze returned to the Hunter. "How's that been working for you so far?"
"Did you kill Tom?" Ironwood growled, stepping towards the man. "I'll-"
"Ah ah ah." Tyrian chastised, digging his blade deeper into Oscar's neck, drawing a trickle of bright, red blood. "Let's all try to be civil. After all, we don't want someone to get hurt, now do we?" He cocked his head to the side for a moment, considering, before smiling again. "Well, anyone else."
"What do you want?" The General demanded.
"Oh, what a simple man like me wants matters little. Now, what my Queen wants, that's a different matter entirely."
"Salem." Ironwood spat.
The faunus' visage brightened. "Oh good, you know her." His grip on Oscar tightened. "Though, if you speak her name like that again, I can't promise what might happen to this young man. It upsets me, and I just get so jittery when I'm upset."
"Bullshit." Qrow said.
"You don't believe me?" Tyrian asked with mock hurt, before nodding towards the remains of Col Markus scattered around the room. "Are you sure?"
"Nah, I believe you're a sadistic son of a bitch, but you definitely want something."
"And what is that, Little Birdy?"
"Me."
The scorpion hummed. "And why is that?"
The Hunter tsked. "I took your tail. Though I see you got a replacement." He finished, eyeing the dark metal of the faunus' new appendage.
"You like it?" Tyrian asked, snaking his tail around Oscar. "My Queen has made me whole."
"Made you even uglier, you mean."
"So hurtful!" The faunus gasped. "And yet, I don't remember it being you that removed my beautiful tail. That was Little Red." He finished dangerously.
Qrow grinned. "Yeah, my niece. Taught her everything she knows. Sure fucked you up something good. That must…sting a little."
"Qrow…" Ironwood warned.
The Hunter held up a hand, silencing him. "Bet you want to do something about that, don't you?"
"The thought of dropping you at her feet is tempting." The scorpion admitted. "Well, pieces of you."
"I'm right here, big guy."
Tyrian sighed. "Yes, but that wouldn't be according to plan, now would-" he cut off as the sounds of the base alarm began blaring through the air, and flashing amber lights filled the room. The faunus grinned. "Well, looks like the fun's getting started!" He loosened his grip on Oscar and pushed him towards Ironwood. "You know what? I think I'll play with you, after all."
The General grunted as he caught the boy and pushed him behind him. "Qrow, we can take him together. I-"
"No, you gotta get to that tower." The Hunter instructed as he stepped towards Tyrian. "Leave this asshole to me."
"He's right, you know. I'm sure you have big, important people things to do after all." The faunus offered helpfully, before shifting back to Qrow. "Besides, the Little Birdy is right. I do want him, and I'm afraid things might get a bit…exciting here."
Ironwood shook his head. "Qrow, we can't leave you."
"Jimmy, get the kid out of here." He hissed. "I can't fight with him here." He winced as they heard an explosion rumble in the distance. "Get to the tower. Go get us some goddamn help."
The soldier's gaze shifted between his friend and the monster still standing in the door before finally nodding. "I'm going to need you to clear a path."
"Oh, am I in your way?" Tyrian asked apologetically before stepping out of the way. "Please, by all means."
"Qrow…"
"On it, Jimmy." The Hunter bit out, shooting forward with a swing of his blade, drawing Tyrian's bladed gauntlets up and driving the scorpion further back into the hall. "Go!" He shouted without looking over his shoulder and listening to the sounds of footfalls rush out the door.
"Hold on!" Ironwood shouted back at him. "We'll be back!"
"Not if I see you first!" Tyrian cried excitedly over their crossed blades. Qrow twisted his sword till the hilt pointed at the faunus' face and pulled the trigger. The scorpion jerked his head back in time to avoid the blast and hopped back, a wide smile on his face.
"Now, that was just plain mean!"
"Yeah, well, I'm a bit of an asshole. Or so my friends tell me."
"Awww, and you do care about your friends, don't you? You were so ready to throw yourself at me for them. Such a kind man." Tyrian complimented, his tail swaying slowly behind him. "I'll be sure to tell them how much you cared when I catch up them."
"Yeah, yeah. You ready to get this started? I've got places to be."
"Yes, your friends do too. Why else did you think I let them scamper off?"
Qrow tsked and shifted forward. "Gods, you're chatty. Let me help you out. You tell me which parts you want me to remove first this time, and we'll start there."
The scorpion shook his head and chuckled. "Gods, but I have been waiting for this."
Qrow sighed. "Do you ever shut the fu-" he grunted as the faunus slammed into him, blades angling for his eyes.
"Better?" Tyrian hissed.
"Fucking finally." Qrow growled back.
Jaune burst out of the tent behind Winter, still struggling to buckle his sword on. The Beowolf camp was an explosion of chaos and activity, men and women in various stages of dress stumbling out of their tents, hurriedly pulling on their armor and weapons. His head spun around as he scanned the area for Ren and Nora in a daze. Winter shouting down Chief Zane, wearing shorts and body armor, snapped him back to reality.
"Zane! What's going on?" She demanded as she caught faunus by the arm.
He shook his head. "No idea, First. I can't get anybody on the radio. Sounds like it's coming from the ramp though."
She cursed and turned back to Jaune. "Where are Ren and Nora?"
"I don't know, I can-"
"Right here!" Nora's voice cut in, before the pinkette pulled up beside them with Ren in tow, both dressed in sleep shirts and shorts. Winter nodded to the two.
"You ready to go?"
Ren nodded back as Nora hefted her Warhammer next to him. "Just tell us where."
"Good." She snapped out, rounding on the Chief again. "Who do we have?"
The older man held up a finger as he turned and shouted at two soldiers loading their weapons and checking their hastily thrown on equipment. "Sam, Rob, you two ready to move?"
The red-headed girl shot him a quick thumbs up. "We're good to go, Chief."
He grunted and looked to Winter. "Ready when you are, ma'am."
"Then let's get to the ramp. The rest of the unit can catch up when they're ready." She ordered, before taking off in a run towards the sounds of gunfire and a bright, orange glow in the distance. Jaune turned to Ren and Nora, getting nods of approval from them before following.
"You guys hear anything else?"
Ren shook his head. "No, just the alarm and what sounded like an explosion. Made our way out here and met up with you right after."
"Yeppers!" Nora agreed.
"Damn." Jaune cursed, before doubling his speed to catch up to the rest of the team, pulling up alongside Zane. "This is bad."
The faunus snorted. "No shit, Spec. Once somebody gets inside the base, things usually get pretty shitty."
The blond winced. "What do you need us to do?"
"The ramp is pretty much open space, if we can trap them on there, we can-" he broke off as he straightened and his ears began to twitch, followed shortly by his eyes widening. "First!" He shouted, making her head whip around and her to grind to a halt.
"Chief?" She said, nervously casting a glance back at the horizon. "We need to move."
"Not that way." He declared, nodding to the right of the aircraft ramp. "They're at the refugee camps." Jaune could swear he could see her pale even in the moonlight.
"You're sure?" She asked hoarsely.
He swallowed and nodded. "I can hear them."
Jaune shook his head. "The refugees? Why would they?" His eyes widened in understanding. "Fear…they're going to try to draw the Grimm here."
"But there's thousands of them there." Nora whispered. "It'll be just like Beacon."
Winter cursed and grabbed him by the shoulder, shaking him. "Jaune, you with me?"
He nodded numbly. "…Yeah, I'm here."
"Good. I'm going to go ahead, you're in charge here till you catch up."
He scowled. "We're not leaving you."
"I'm not asking, I'm telling." She said. "I'm the fastest one here and every second counts. I'm going to try to slow whoever it is down. I'm trusting you to handle the rest." She squeezed his shoulder. "Can I trust you, Jaune?"
"Yeah...yeah, you can trust me." He promised solemnly.
"Then get moving." She said softly, before pushing him back as a glyph formed around her feet, and moment later, she was rocketing off towards the camps.
"Gods, she's fast." Sam whispered behind him, stirring him back to life. He looked over his friends and teammates and nodded.
"Let's move." He commanded.
They took off in a sprint, weapons and ammo clanging off their bodies as they ran through the throughways between the tents, their breath appearing before them in wisps as they panted along. Jaune pumped his legs for all they were worth, feeling the familiar burn return to both them and his lungs as his boots slammed down into the hard earth. He was not now, nor would ever be a fast man, but the faint glow rising in the distance, and the memory of what it had meant for Banner, and for Anthem before it, drove him forward. He turned his head to look at Ren as the ninja began to pull ahead of him, his long legs devouring the ground as he ran. He grunted as he strained to keep up with the nimble warrior slipping around obstacles, listening to the sound of boots clomping down behind him, catching up. He silently cursed, if only he were-
"Up ahead." Ren's voice roused him from his thoughts, snapping his eyes forward. Sure enough, there was a small clump of forms, perhaps four or five, running through the darkness moving to intercept them. His right hand fell to his hilt of Crocea Mors as his left shot up, bringing their group to a halt and weapons to the ready as the other group did the same a dozen meters away, waiting. His gaze flicked back and forth between the silent forms and his friend for a moment, before he whispered.
"Think they're ours?"
Ren shrugged before replying softly. "I don't know."
Jaune sighed, his breath appearing before him. "Any ideas?"
"Ask them something." The raven-haired boy suggested.
"Ask them what?"
"That sounds like a team lead type question."
"Thanks." Jaune shot back sarcastically.
"Anytime."
The blond took a deep breath as his gaze returned to the group, watching as the shifted in place. He swallowed and held his free hand up to his mouth.
"Who you with?" He called into the night air.
"He's tall, blond, and scraggly. You seen him around?" A familiar voice called back.
He sighed as Ren shook his head beside him.
"Dammit, Yang."
"Blake says you look like shit. Long night, Ladykiller?"
He chuckled as he started forward, waving the group forward as weapons dropped back to their owners' sides. As they covered the distance, the warm gold of Yang's mane came into view, along with the familiar, if tired, faces of RWBY.
"You guys ok?" He asked.
Ruby shot him a tired smile. "Yeah, we're-"
"Of course we're not ok, you dolt! The base is under attack!" Weiss snapped.
"We're fine." Blake answered for her, elbowing the ex-heiress in the side. "You guys good?"
He shook his head. "We're still here at least. What's going on back that way?"
Ruby shrugged. "Nothing yet. We were with CFVY over at the Alert building when we heard the alarm go off."
"Are they-"
"Holding down the fort there, protecting the bullheads." She answered. "Jaune, do you know what's going on?"
He winced and nodded towards the glow on the horizon. "We think they're going after the refugees."
"Gods." Blake whispered.
"Bastards." Yang growled.
"Wait, where's Winter." Weiss asked, her voice full of worry.
"She took off ahead of us, trying to slow them down." He answered.
Blake bristled. "We've got to-"
"Ah, there you are, my love." An icy voice cut through the cool air. All eyes snapped over to its owner, a very familiar dark clad figure with striking red hair.
"Adam." Blake hissed.
"Asshole." Yang agreed.
The Fang leader chuckled as he tilted his head to the side. "Still so cold? And to think, I've been so looking forward to our reunion. We have so much to talk about."
Jaune's hand drifted to the hilt of Crocea Mors as he felt his blood start to run both hot and cold. This was the last thing they needed. They had to make it to the refugees, they had to stop the Grimm, they had to get to Winter.
"Hey, Spec." Chief Zane's voice brought him back to reality as the faunus' rifle popped up. "This the guy that hit us on the last run?"
"Yeah." A voice he suddenly realized was his own answered. "That's him."
"You mind if I put a few holes in him?"
"That didn't work out so well for your comrades, traitor." Adam shot back.
"Yeah? Well the way I see it, you're as dumb as you are sick. You're outnumbered, jackass." Zane spat back.
"Am I now?" The terrorist asked, nonplussed, as one Adam became two, then three, then four.
"What the fuck?" Sam shouted, shifting from one target to another as their numbers continued to grow.
"Neo." Yang answered, cocking her gauntlets and falling into stance. "Keep your eyes peeled for-" She yelped as a shot pinged off her shoulder, causing her Aura to flair a bright yellow.
"You're Raven's daughter, right?" Emerald asked as she materialized out of the darkness, her weapons drawn.
"It's complicated." Yang growled as her gaze flickered between their myriad of foes.
"She killed Cinder." The green-haired girl accused, eyes full of hate.
"Yeah, well, I guess even she can get things right from time to time."
"Bitch."
"Slut."
"Yang." Jaune warned, glancing behind them to make sure the Adam clones hadn't encircled them. "We need to focus."
"What's the move, Fearless Leader?" Nora piped up, hammer swaying gently and menacingly in her hands.
"We gotta get to the refugee camp." He finally decided. "We finish this, then-"
"Jaune." Ruby cut him off. "You need to go. The more time you stay here, the more people die, the more Grimm. They want to hold us up."
He scoffed. "We can't leave you guys."
She shot him a teasing smile. "You trying to say the Xiao-Long and Rose sisters can't take care of themselves? How'd that turn out for you last time?"
"So-so, I guess. Happy ending at least" Yang answered with a smirk.
He turned to his lover and started to protest before she placed a finger on his lips.
"You trust me, Ladykiller?" She asked.
He swallowed and nodded.
"Then you need to go." She whispered.
He held out his hand, offering the silent power there once more before she pushed it away and shook her head.
"Nuh-huh, Ladykiller, I've got a feeling you're going to need that."
"Yang…" He pleaded.
"Go." She said. "Those people need you, Jaune. We'll be right behind you."
"Promise?"
She smirked. "You ok if it's not Arc's word? I'm not sure how that exchange rate works."
"I trust you." He said, flashing a weak smile. "I love you."
"I know, babe."
He shook his head as he stared at her fondly. "You're impossible, you know that? Nora?"
"Yeah, FL?"
"Clear the way."
"Thought you'd never ask!" The orange-haired girl cheered as she shifted her weapon and fired into the collection of Adams in front of them.
"Move, Beowolves!" Jaune cried as he took the front of the column, shield held high as they rushed through the gap Nora created. He looked to the side in confusion as the many Adams just watched them pass before he put on an extra burst of speed and made a break for the refugee camp. RWBY watched them go, waiting for one their opponents to attempt to strike out at them before relaxing as they began to fade into the distance.
"Awful kind of you." Weiss bit out suspiciously.
The Adams shrugged in unison as they slowly began to crack and shatter. "It matters little."
"What do you mean by that?" The ex-heiress growled.
The dark man hummed as the real version stepped forward. "It means you were half-right. Delaying your friends was a bonus, but delaying you…" He locked his gaze onto Ruby. "Was the real objective." He rolled his shoulders and his hand found the hilt of Wilt. "I believe the agreement was I'd get the Belladonna and her partner and you can have the others?"
Emerald tsked. "Yeah, real generous of you."
"I should think so. I'm letting you have a Schnee, after all." The Fang leader said as he stepped forward. "Now, let us begin."
The two men thundered up the stairs of the control tower.
"We have to unscramble the comms, it's going to be the only way we can coordinate a response to this madness." Ironwood shouted over his shoulder. "If you can call up Ozpin, now's the time."
The farm boy flinched. "You know?"
"Suspected."
The boy cursed. "You think she's the one pulling the strings on all this?"
"Who else?" The General growled, as they crested the stairs and threw open the door to the control room.
"Well," a voice called from the dark. "I don't like to brag, but I think I might have had something to do with it."
Standing there, surrounded by the various control panels of the tower and illuminated by the soft glow of the monitors and moonlight coming through the tower's large windows, stood Arthur Watts.
"It's been such a long time, James." He greeted warmly.
"Bastard!" Ironwood cried out, stepping forward towards the man.
"Is that any way to talk to an old friend?" The doctor drawled.
"Look, it's not too late to stop this." Oscar started, "If you just let us-"
The once headmaster was cut off as Ironwood's right arm shot out and grabbed him by the throat, raising him into the air. The boy kicked and gurgled against the vice-like grip, eyes wide.
"Quiet, boy, the adults are talking." Watts said off-handedly.
James whipped around to face the doctor. "When?! How?!" He accused as he fought to regain control of his metallic arm.
"James," He said reproachfully, "you remember my Semblance, kinetic technomancy. Any machine I touch, I control." He chuckled. "Do you know how easy it was? To have one of the girls sneak me into your camp? To greet you as you came off the airship? Posing as a young soldier, so proud at the opportunity to shake THE General's hand?" He motioned back to Oscar, "I do believe you are crushing his windpipe."
The General's eyes snapped back to his old friend, his breaths slowing, and the arm holding him. He made the only choice he could. He drew his pistol from its holster, held it to the base of his arm, squeezed, and screamed.
Oscar, and the lifeless arm, fell to the floor.
James collapsed to his knees, his breaths coming ragged and labored, Oscar coughing and sputtering beside him.
Watts stepped forward and pointed a finger at him. "Ah, there we go. You broken, on your knees, and killing your friends. Now it's just like old times, eh, Jimmy?"
"I'm..." He struggled for breath. "I'm going to kill you." He struggled to raise his pistol towards Watts. It clicked when he pulled the trigger.
Watts shook his head ruefully. "Did you learn nothing from our time together? Battles are won or lost before they're fought." He turned his back to him, facing the various displays and terminals in the room. "Now, it is interesting that you mention death." He snapped his fingers, and more displays hummed to life. "Because yours and your soldiers' will be televised." He turned and grinned over his shoulder. "To all of Atlas."
He turned back towards the cameras and spread his arms theatrically. "Ladies and Gentlemen! We apologize for this interruption of your scheduled programing, but we have something special for you tonight! James Ironwood," He mock flexed his arms, "the Lion of Atlas, fighting to the death for your entertainment!"
He turned and smiled at James. "Now, why don't you come show your old partner what you've learned?" He cocked his head to the side and considered him for a moment. "Or maybe you'd prefer to tune in for a bit to see how your men are faring? I assure you, the answer is poorly."
Ironwood roared and surged forward.
Qrow whipped his head to the side as the cold, black metal of Tyrian's tail slammed into the wall next to him, sending plaster and stone flying in the air. The metallic appendage ripped back as a bladed gauntlet took it place, just catching on his hastily raised sword. The Hunter cursed as he heard the weapon start to cycle, slamming his palm into the faunus' elbow, barely pushing the barrel to the side before it roared into his ear. He felt something drive into his liver and the world go sideways as he was thrown to the ground. He scrambled to his feet in a rush, dragging his blade in front of him as a shield in anticipation of the next attack.
It didn't come.
The smug bastard was smiling at him, his hands on his waist as his tail twitched lazily behind him. His lips were moving, but all he could hear was the steady and deafening ringing in his ears.
"WHAT?" He shouted back.
The faunus scowled and started again, and was again drowned out by the persistent ring.
He shook his head to clear it as he pointed to his ear. "I don't think you understand how ears work. You remember the part where you damn near shot mine off? I can't hear you, asshole."
Tyrian huffed and cupped his hands around mouth, taking a deep breath and preparing to shout. Qrow wasn't sure which was more satisfying, the surprise of the man's face as he whipped Harbinger up and fired it at his head, forcing the faunus to cross his arms in front of his face to block, or the crunch he felt when his boot made contact with his newly exposed ribs. He made to press forward, but the now familiar gunmetal of Tyrian's tail sliced through the air again, forcing him to hop back.
"-was dirty!" Was the first thing that reached his ears as his hearing started to return. He sighed and shrugged.
"Just the way I am. Don't worry, I'll make sure you don't have to deal with it for long."
The faunus' grin returned as he cackled. "Is that so? Well, you know what I think?"
"Probably something that'd put you on a watch list."
"I think you're stalling." Tyrian pointed to the towards his sword. "I think you're having trouble using that big thing in these tight spaces." He finished, motioning to the hall around them.
"Not a problem you've ever had to deal with, huh?"
Harbinger just barely caught the barrage of gunfire that followed. It did not, unfortunately, catch the stinger that slammed into his shoulder, knocking him back as his Aura crackled around him. He cursed as the scorpion threw himself inside his guard, howling as his gauntlets slashed at the Hunter's face and chest. He hissed as he felt the blades bite into his forearms as he continued to retreat, bringing his blade to bear as often as he could, most often to be battered away as Tyrian continued his forward assault. He wanted to bring the faunus into a clinch, where he could use his knees and elbows, or at least slow the man down, but the dark tail whipping through the air threatened to stab him in the back if he tried. He hated to admit it, but Tyrian was right, the hallway they fought in was too narrow for him to fight effectively. The faunus had let himself be pushed back out of Markus' office when they'd started, drawing him in.
He'd been played.
"Aww, what's the matter, Little Birdy?" Tyrian asked with mock concern. "Not having fun anymore?"
Qrow tsked. "Just thinking about how I liked it better when I was deaf. Didn't have the listen to you run your damn mouth."
The faunus smiled evilly as he stepped forward again. "Well, as a man once said, you won't have to deal with it for long."
Qrow's mind raced as he stepped back again, eyes flicking back behind him to ensure that there was nothing to trip on the next time he was pushed back. His gaze caught on the only lit doorway in the long hallway. Markus' office. Markus' large office. His eyes snapped back into place as Tyrian stepped forward again, crushing glass underfoot as he giggled lowly.
Well, maybe he wasn't the only one that could be played.
"Are you ready, Little Birdy? I think-"
"Hey, let me ask you something." He cut the scorpion off. The other man blinked in surprise before answering.
"Yes?"
"What's Salem like?"
Tyrian's eyes immediately lit up. "My Queen!? Why, she is the epitome of grace and-"
"No, I mean like, on a scale of one to ten, what are we talking about?"
The faunus gasped in horror. "One does not refer to her majesty in such vulgar terms!"
Qrow scoffed. "Please, no guy keeps going on and on about a woman the way you do without wanting to sting her."
"You mongrel!" Tyrian screeched as he shot forward, blades catching on Qrow's own. "I would never-"
"Oh? So, you're saying she's single?"
He grunted as the faunus' foot buried itself in his stomach, sending him sailing back towards Markus' office. He started to scramble to his feet before he felt the cold steel of the scorpion's tail wrap itself around his throat and lift him into the air, before slamming him back into the wall, Tyrian's arm pinning his sword arm in place.
"You dare." Tyrian hissed.
He coughed as he felt the tail start to squeeze around his neck. "I just don't think she's that into you, man." He grunted as the faunus slammed him into the wall again, causing plaster and molding to fall down on him.
He was almost there, he just needed one last push.
"I will teach you respect." The scorpion promised, slowly raising his free gauntlet to meet Qrow's gaze.
"Yeah, I'm sure. But before that, I had one last question."
"What?" The man growled in his ear.
"Do you think she thinks you're unfuckable because you're an asshole, or because you have to use this strap on?" He whispered back.
The feeling of the wall giving way behind him as Tyrian's foot slammed into his stomach shouldn't have felt like a victory, but right now? He felt like he'd just won the goddamn lottery. If he'd had any air left in his lungs, he'd have laughed. He grunted as his back thudded against the stone floor and he skidded into the hardwood desk.
Marcus' desk.
"I'm going to enjoy watching you die." A low voice promised from the new hole in the wall.
Qrow chuckled as he found his blade and dug it into the ground, pushing himself wearily to his feet.
"Right back at you, Big Guy."
"You ready?" Blake asked, flicking a glance over to her partner as she shifted in place, her weapons pointed at the dark clad bull faunus facing them down.
"Let's do this." Yang answered, eyeing the man and cocking her gauntlets as she began to circle around to Adam's left.
"It's pointless, you know. You can't win this." He explained calmly. "The base has already begun to fall, and Atlas will follow shortly after."
"Jaune's got this."
"He has very little."
"You don't know anything about him." She snapped back.
"Yang, don't." Blake warned, slowly making her way around to her ex's left. "He likes to talk, he wants to-"
"Oh, but I know everything about him." Adam cut her off. "I've been in his head, as he has been in mine. Do you know what I saw there?"
"Is that Jaune's bigger than you? It's that Jaune's bigger than you, isn't it?" She smirked as she heard Blake snort from across the way.
The terrorist ignored her. "Did you know that he's broken? That he's on the edge, barely holding on?" His gaze shot over to Blake. "Not that I don't sympathize, losing one's true love can do that to a man."
"He's stronger than you, he's been able to move on."
"Take notes." Blake encouraged.
"Has he now? Is that what he's told you?" He asked.
"Well, I would know." She answered evenly.
"And how is that?"
She gave a casual shrug. "You said it yourself, the guy has been inside me. Kinda like he has with you, now that I think about it. How was it by the way? I'm always looking for peer reviews."
"Goddammit, Yang." Blake groaned.
The bull faunus shook his head, ignoring the bait. "Perhaps you're right. Perhaps he's stronger than I believe. I wonder however, if he's strong enough to survive the loss of one love, do you think he'll survive two?"
Yang froze mid-stride, gaze locking down on Adam.
"Blake?" She called out icily.
"Yeah?" Her partner answered carefully.
"I think I'm going to make you a widow."
"It definitely doesn't work like that."
"Fuck it, I tried. Shadowboxing?"
"Shadowboxing." Her friend agreed, digging the ball of her foot into the ground and pushing off, disappearing into a black blur. Adam grunted as he fell into stance, beginning to track his old flame before a round tore into his shoulder, stumbling back as his Aura crackled.
"Eyes front, cuck." Yang taunted as she rocketed forward, propelling herself along with perfectly timed blast from her gauntlets, closing impossibly fast.
The man tsked as his hand found his hilt again, lowering himself and watching the blonde close with him.
Five blade lengths. Four. Three. Two.
He flinched back as Blake appeared before him, slashing at girl on instinct, and cursing as she exploded into Dust. A curse cut short when Yang's gauntlet slammed home into his cheek, driving him back again. He was met with Blake's blade slicing along his back, forcing a gasp from his lips before the Xiao Long girl was on him again, landing a ferocious blow to his ribs. She hopped back, Blake taking her place again, and again exploding into nothingness as he struck her. So they danced, each seamlessly interchanging with the other, never providing him consistent target or style. He hissed as he felt Yang's boot buckle his knee.
"What's wrong, Addie? Seeing red yet?" She quipped, before disappearing behind a Blake shadow clone again. "Show me what you got."
It clicked. The hit and run style, so normal to Blake, but atypical for the blonde. They were trying to draw out his Semblance, to force him to waste it on a clone, lashing out blindly. He grit his teeth as he watched the young Huntress rocket forward again. Well, they weren't the only ones that could change up tactics. He lowered himself again, waiting till she was five blade lengths away.
Four. Three. Two.
He roared as he slashed at the ground in front of him, unleashing his Semblance and a wave of rock and earth into the Xiao-Long girl. He didn't have to look to know where Blake would be, spinning around to lock onto her widening eyes.
He smirked. "Hello again, my love."
Things could be going better, Ruby decided, slashing through a grinning Neo that shattered into glass-like fragments before she felt, then heard, Emerald's slug slam into her chest, dropping her to the ground.
Definitely better. A quick glance over to Weiss showed that she wasn't faring any better, fighting an invisible opponent as Neo stalked her from behind.
"Weiss, look out!" She yelled out, making the girl spin around in confusion, before disappearing altogether.
"Whatcha looking at?" A voice asked from behind her. She yelped and spun, swinging Crescent Rose in a wide and panicked arc, bravely slaying the empty air behind her.
"Almost had me that time." Emerald's disembodied voice comforted. "Maybe you should try shooting at me again." It suggested. "What's the worst that could happen?"
Ruby winced at the memory. She'd attempted to move through the illusions more quickly in the beginning by firing on them. They'd promptly angled Weiss, disguised as Neo, into her line of fire. She'd be hearing about that one later for sure. She cried out in shock as another round slammed into her knee, driving her to the ground once again.
"Too slow," Emerald chastised, appearing before her again. "Probably want to hurry up. You know, if you care about your friend." She finished, gesturing with her gun towards Weiss, desperately trying to fight off Neo. Or at least, appearing to.
"How do I even know that's real?" The reaper asked, pushing herself up to her feet with her scythe.
Emerald shrugged as she continued to watch Neo and Weiss duel. "You don't." The ex-heiress screamed in pain as the mute's thin blade pierced her side. "Wonder if that one was? Looked like it hurt."
"Why are you doing this?" The red-head shouted in desperation.
The green-haired girl laughed. "Are you for real?" Her eyes narrowed. "You know damn well."
The smaller girl shook her head. "But Cinder is-"
"Gone."
"But these people had nothing to do with-" She grunted as blow from behind drove her to her knees and the Emerald in front of her disappeared.
"You really don't get it, do you?" The thief scoffed as she walked back into view from behind her, bending down to meet her gaze. "Well, let me spell it out you, Red. I don't give a fuck about these people and neither do you."
She shook her head angrily. "You don't know anything about me."
"Think so, huh? Tell me, if one of those-" She gestured to another vision of Weiss getting cut down, "-turns out to be real, what do you think you're going to do? You think you're going to do the smart thing and get the hell out of here to try to link up with your friends and save those people you seem to care about so much? Or are you going to stay here and try your damnedest to try to murder us?"
"I-" A blade cutting across her stomach made her scream out in pain.
"Cause little miss Lolita murder machine over there, currently disemboweling your girlfriend? She could have done the smart thing. Could have gone and retired on a mountain of cash that she and old Roman had stashed away. But you know what she chose?" Ruby winced as Weiss screamed out in pain again, and Emerald smirked. "Spoiler, that one was real."
Ruby's eyes narrowed as she glared and the tanned woman. "We're not like you."
Emerald shook her head. "Maybe," another Weiss scream split the cold night air. "I guess we're about to find out." The taller woman found her feet and pointed her revolver to the Huntress' head. "You took something from me, Ruby. Maybe the only thing that's ever really mattered to me. Let me show you how that feels."
The smell. It was always the smell that struck him, that made it real. He didn't know if it was because the blood pounding in his ears drowned out the screams, or because that smell, that terrible, awful mix of burning wood, acrid plastic, and overcooked meat, was just that potent. That's not to say that the sound didn't bleed through. When they hit the edge of the refugee camp, it all came rushing in like someone had grabbed the dial of a radio and turned the volume to max.
The horrifying symphony of beast-like roars and panicked screams, the sporadic and uneven cracks of Atlesian rifles, and the impotent wail of the base's klaxon alarm providing the background of it all.
Carnage was the only word that he had that came close to describing the scene before him. The perimeter fence, hastily erected to keep the citizens of Banner contained, lay in trampled and tattered ruins on the ground. Whether from people trying to get out or things trying to get in, he didn't want to consider. The ground itself hadn't fared any better, gouged and furrowed in countless places from a stampede of claws, hooves, and feet. Spent brass laid in piles by the hundred surrounding the demolished guard shacks at the entrance to the camp. And of course, the blood. What seemed like impossible amounts of red and black blood mixed together on the cold, torn earth, leading in a clear trail further into the camp, where the screams were louder, the flames were brighter, the smell-
He let out a breath that he didn't realize he'd been holding when he felt a hand catch his arm. His eyes followed the hand down to Nora, eyes wide with worry and fear.
"Jauney." She whispered pleadingly as she glanced back towards the team, taking deep, hungry breaths as they scanned the horror in front of them, frozen in place.
He hadn't even realized they'd stopped.
Nora squeezed his arm, and it hit him. They were waiting for him. Waiting for him to make a call, to lead them through this. His pulse racing and ragged breathing suddenly didn't have anything to do with their sprint here. His foot started drift backwards of its own accord before he felt Ren come up on his left, purposely brushing against his shoulder.
"Jaune, it's your call. We'll follow your lead."
He swallowed and his mouth hung open.
You made a call and people got hurt…but people came home too.
"We're finding Winter," a voice he suddenly realized was his own said, "her Semblance is the only chance we're going to have of turning this around. I need to get to her and boost her. We don't stop till we find her."
"You heard the man." Chief Zane shouted behind him. "Let's fucking move, people!"
Just like he didn't remember stopping, he couldn't have told you when his legs started to carry him forward again, rushing forward towards the source of the screams.
It was the only place Winter would be.
Space.
Space was a beautiful thing, Qrow decided. Space allowed him to move, to swing, to dodge. To kick this guy's ass. He jerked back his head, narrowly avoiding the metallic stinger that buried itself in the wall behind him.
Not that the ass kicking thing was going as well as he would have liked.
"Sit still, Little Birdy." Tyrian hissed. "I've got something for you."
"Moved on from her already, huh? Good for you." He grunted as the scorpion slammed into him, his bladed gauntlets rushed towards the Hunter's face. Qrow caught the blades on his own, driving his knee into the faunus' stomach before slipping out from the wall and pushing off his opponent and stepping back into open space. "Can't say I'm interested though. I'll try to let you down easy."
The scorpion roared as he turned, lunging after the Hunter. Qrow brought his blade up in a rising arc, battering the faunus aside as stepped back and to the side, firing a few rounds into his flank for good measure. He let out a slow breath as Tyrian picked himself up off the floor, muttering all the while. The faunus was fast, too fast for the amount Aura he'd lost fighting in the hallway. The only thing that was keeping him in the game was just how furious the assassin was. If he lost that edge…
"Listen, buddy, I like seeing a guy strike out about as much the next guy. Maybe I can help you out. Tell me, was the ponytail an attempt to stay on theme with the whole tail thing, or do you just think it's cool? Cause either way, I've got some bad news."
He watched as the man's face split in a grimace and his shoulders started to tighten. He stepped back into stance, ready for the next blitz, before something very, very worrying began to happen.
Tyrian began to laugh.
"Oh my!" The faunus started, before devolving into giggles once more. "I see what you're doing now."
"Trying to help you realize this girl is out of your league?"
The scorpion shook his head with a smirk. "You're trying to upset me. Using the good name of my Queen in vain to try to make me slip." He bemoaned.
"See, you can't call her that. You're going to upset the balance in the relationship. Maybe throw in a 'dumb bit-" He cursed as the first round impacted his Aura, and he quickly brought his blade up to catch the rest. Tyrian darted to his left, coming up under his guard and unleashing a torrent of strikes with his bladed gauntlets. The two became a whirlwind of steel, sword and blades meeting again and again as the Hunter was forced back. He felt his Aura begin to peel away as the blades found their way through his defenses again and again. Harbinger found its mark just as often, but the faunus had a larger pool to draw from, glad to trade blows as they came down to the wire. He had to do something, anything, to turn the flow of the fight. He had to-
Qrow's eyes widened as he felt his foot catch of something and tumbled to the ground. He glanced down as his back met the ground, spying one of Marcus' liquor bottles.
"Son of a-" He screamed as Tyrian's stinger slammed down, piercing through his Aura and burying itself in his thigh.
"Now, you mentioned something about letting me pick which limb I wanted to remove first this time," the faunus said lowly, twisting his stinger with and drawing another scream from the Hunter. "I choose this one."
Ok, before you guys come to my house over this cliffhanger bullshit. I wrote out the whole climax, the problem was that it was looooonnnnngggg. So, we decided to split it, and now you get a chapter this week and another next week!
Fight Nerd: For those that care, have no fear, Cr00cy and I got into another fighting debate this chapter. The crux of it was about Qrow and Tyrian's fight in the hallway. Basically, how effective can you be with a larger weapon in close quarters. My own experience comes from mostly unarmed fighting, where you can maneuver someone that specializes in kicks against the cage or a wall/hall, where they're going to be more limited in what they can throw. Stepping into boxing range is also a great way to give long range fighters fits. Cr00cy rightly pointed out that this certainly doesn't mean that a fighter with a larger weapon is useless in close quarters. They still have options to thrust, perform overhead swings, and play a more defensive role. It's a complex struggle to get to your preferred range/space while still showing enough threats that your opponent doesn't feel that they have freedom to do whatever they want in theirs. Never fully concede an area of the fight to an opponent, or now they'll have somewhere to rest.
Because we're nerds, our debate involved measuring dimensions of halls, ceilings, weapons, YouTube videos, theorizing fighting styles, and eventually Berserk references and dragons...good talk.
Cr00cy: Yep. I was hesitant to point it out at first, because I knew like 99% people will not care, but hey, a bit of nerd talk never killed anyone. At least I never talked with anyone who died from it.
Anyway fighting in enclosed space with big sword. It looks simple - you have a big weapon, and not enough space to use it effectively. So, you are in trouble, right? Well, not really. First of all, it's important to determine how enclosed said space is. Is it only horizontally, or vertically too? Is your back against the wall, or you have space to maneuver? Finally, if it's a narrow corridor, how narrow is it? Can your opponent try to attack from the side, or is it so narrow that they have to come from the front?
Many people seem to overestimate how much space you need to throw a decent cut. In the worst case scenario, you can always use your sword as a discounted spear - even if you can't cut, it's still long, sharp piece of metal.