A/N: Ok, I'll admit that the wait was stupidly long for this chapter. I hit a massive case of writer's block and probably scrapped five different drafts before settling on this one. I suppose the biggest challenge of this fic is keeping from writing a big copy-pasta of the show, while adding certain things to keep it fresh. Hopefully this chapter doesn't come across as rushed; I had to knock it out quickly while my muse was still awake.
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum.
"Have all the charges been set?" asked Adam Taurus as he observed from atop a building, watching his little brother and merry band of intruders board the train.
"Yes my lord," answered a White Fang soldier, one of his lieutenants.
"Good. Inform the troops to evacuate and make their way to our base camp south of the city; we're advancing our schedule."
The lieutenant bowed stiffly as he took his leave, departing through a door that led to a surface access tunnel.
"Do you really have so little faith in dear Roman, my bull?" asked the sensual yet electronic voice of Cinder Fall, her holographic form shimmering into view from an airborne drone.
She was dressed in a black, high collared shirt and a plaid skirt of black and white; the uniform of a Haven Academy student. Adam snorted at her sudden appearance.
"Do not presume to speak to me with such familiarity. You continue to live by the whims of another, as does he. He is the lowest of human scum."
"He is our best ticket to gaining access to the city, unless you believe your power has grown so great that you could contend with the entire Atlesian Air Fleet on your own," corrected Cinder.
The seasoned White Fang captain and Fallen Guardian tensed his muscles as she "stood" behind him. Had his Mistress not specifically commanded him to cooperate, she would be a bloodstain on the floor the moment he met her, Fall Maiden powers or no. The very idea of assisting her in furthering her goals in order to further his own made him want to vomit. Still, cooperation with her was necessary to meet their ends; his Mistress demanded such things.
"My power is indeed a gift, but my strength lies in those who fight for my cause. Maiden's power or no, do not think your might is greater than my own," he sneered back.
"Then I wonder how your soldiers will think of you when they find out they are being sacrificed in this attack?" she continued.
"They already know. Each and every last one on that train had willingly volunteered for a suicide mission. Vale will feel pain today, not by your hand, but by theirs."
He turned to leave, pushing through her image, eager to be free of the pyromancer's presence regardless if it was real or projected.
"Beware Adam Taurus, as arrogance is what led to the downfall of the Guardians," she warned him cryptically as she turned to face him, but he had a retort waiting for such a jab.
"As will yours, Fall Maiden."
He slammed shut the door to the surface access tunnel as he grimaced. Now out of her sight, his right hand fell down to his abdomen. He could still feel phantom pains ripping through him from Raine's gun. As much as he hated to admit it, arrogance really did almost cost him his life atop that mountain. Only his Mistress' gift had saved him. His left hovered over the hilt of a new blade sheathed within Blush, Wilt having been lost in the mountain's collapse. His vengeance was now personal, but it would have to wait. Events have now been set in motion that took far greater importance than settling a personal score.
On the caboose of the train, a White Fang soldier was drawn to a clamor towards the back. Glancing out the side of the car, he barely caught sight of rose petals in the wind, prompting him to reach for his radio.
"I think they're on the tr-"
He didn't finish the sentence as Dr. Oobleck knocked him on the head with his torch, sending the soldier into unconsciousness. Behind him came his charges.
"Uh professor?" asked Weiss as she looked off to the side in the car.
"Doctor," Oobleck once again corrected.
"What's that?" she asked as she pointed to a large, metal cylinder with handles on both ends, numerous exposed wires and a timer display on its face.
"That my dear," replied Oobleck as he leaned down to take a closer look. "Would be a bomb."
"No use sitting around here then," commented Raine as he used Hurricane to blow off the hinges of the hatch above him.
"Get up top, people. We're headed straight for the engine," he yelled over the sudden noise in the tunnel.
They jumped up through the now open hatch and onto the roof of the caboose, wind whipping around them as the train gained speed. Soon after Dr. Oobleck climbed out of the car and joined his students, a low whirring sound echoed from inside as the bomb activated, its timer starting at the one minute mark.
"We got baddies!" added Ruby as she pointed ahead of them.
Numerous soldiers had climbed out of the cars and onto the roof, weapons drawn as they moved to confront their intruders. The numerous clicks of firearms echoed from their ranks.
"Get behind me!" yelled Raine as his sapphire glowed with power.
Drawing upon his reserves, Raine drew Tempest as its runes came to life and conjured a blue, hard-light shield in front of them as a barrage of gunfire erupted from the White Fang. He grit his teeth under the strain as he forced his legs to move forward, projecting the shield ahead a few meters so that it overlapped with the next car, rounds ricocheting sporadically around them.
"Get down below, now!" he yelled. "We're sitting ducks out here!"
They scrambled forward and jumped back down onto the car coupling. Oobleck wrenched open the door to the next car and ushered them inside when a mechanical clicking drew his attention to the coupling. Ruby noticed as well, her eyes widening.
"Raine! The car is detaching itself!"
Raine's eyes shot downwards as he felt the car lurch below his feet; the magnetic locks had disengaged, leaving the caboose to lag behind. Pooling his aura, Raine let loose a shockwave that shattered his shield, sending scores of soldiers flipping off of the train. He winced as he drowned out their screams. Now clear of most danger, he jumped forward across the ever widening gap as hard as he could, his feet landing on the edge of the next car. Arms flailing, he struggled to keep his balance until Ruby reached out and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. With a pull of her own, she yanked him to safety and the pair tumbled into the car.
"Are you ok?" she asked worriedly as they climbed back to their feet.
"Yeah... yeah I'm fine," he answered, adrenaline rushing through his veins.
They watched as the caboose steadily fell away from them, waiting with held breath until a brilliant explosion rocked the tunnel, tearing a hole open to the surface above. Heavy chunks of debris fell upon the tracks, allowing the first light of morning to shine through, but with it came the tell-tale snarls and distant, blotchy shapes of Grimm.
"Oh dear," said Dr. Oobleck as he looked into the tunnel with worry.
"Guys we got a problem!" said Yang as she drew their attention from the outside.
The car they had taken shelter in had also contained a bomb, its timer screen blinking an angry red.
"Ya know something? I really wish your uncle had been wrong," Raine muttered.
"Don't just stand there you idiots, we gotta move," Cyan said forcefully.
His yell broke them out of their stupor and prompted the group to continue on to the next car. Cyan was the first one through as he threw the door open, running into a surprised White Fang soldier. A single punch to the jaw sent the surprised Faunus collapsing to the ground. In this car, they found two more attempting to arm the third bomb, as well as numerous crates of dust. Blake moved quickly, phasing out of sight with her Semblance. The flat of Gambol Shroud found itself crashing upon their necks in quick succession.
As the two soldiers fell to the floor, the second car decoupled itself from the train. In a ball of fire, the car tore a second hole in the tunnel, allowing swarms of Creeps to rush in. Their screeches for blood chased after their prey. If they got into the city, it would be a complete massacre. Raine clenched his fist around the hilt of Tempest in anger.
"That sick bastard is going to get the city overrun; we're running out of time," he growled.
He stomped forward out of the compartment and into the rushing wind of the tunnel, finding himself on a large freight car lined with rows of Atlas mechs. It astounded him that they could steal so many. Did the White Fang intend to use these as well? Was Adam really insane enough to wage war in the middle of a kingdom? He shook his head of these questions; right now their only concern was to stop this train.
The group of Hunters had reached the door to the next car when the whirring of machinery drew their attention. Several White Fang soldiers had trailed them and were activating the mechs. Dr. Oobleck narrowed his eyes behind his spectacles; it was time he started fighting properly. Breaking away from the group, he turned to fight these new adversaries.
"All of you go on ahead and stop the train; I'll stay behind and cover for you," he told them confidently.
"By yourself?" questioned a skeptical Weiss.
"Come now, Miss Schnee; I am still quite the formidable Huntsman," he answered, his torch coming to life in a brilliant display of fire.
Zwei whined and looked at Ruby pitifully, causing her to smile in sympathy.
"Go on," she assured him.
He answered with a happy yip and rushed off to join the eccentric Huntsman, his master and her friends disappearing into the next car. Oobleck narrowed his eyes at the activated mechs, their guns training onto his form. As he prepared to let loose a torrent of flame, Zwei gave him a very peculiar bark. Glancing down at the mischievous canine, the bespectacled Huntsman soon smirked as the two shared a silent conversation; Oobleck brought his torch around as if he was about to swing a baseball bat.
Much to the shock of the White Fang pilots, Oobleck swung with all of his might as Zwei hopped up to receive the blow. With a brilliant explosion, the sixteen pounds of black and white fluff became a literal fireball, rocketing at them at high speed. Zwei's tongue lolled out of his mouth as he bounced between the mechs like a pinball, the incredible force behind his flight knocking them off the car and tumbling across the tracks. He impacted heavily against a fifth and final mech, knocking it upon its back in a shower of fire and shrapnel. Zwei on the other hand, was left completely unscathed; he panted happily with his landing.
Oobleck smiled and adjusted his spectacles as the happy canine returned to him, a few light wisps of smoke trailing from his body. Their victory was short-lived however as the remaining ten or so mechs powered up to challenge them.
"Ah well. I suppose I shouldn't have expected them to take it easy on us," Oobleck said to himself with a shrug.
Hefting his torch in both hands, he rushed forward with caffeine powered speed to meet his assailants.
Ruby hesitated as the door clanged shut in front of her. She knew that Dr. Oobleck was strong, but a part of her still felt they shouldn't have left him and Zwei behind.
"Ruby," said Raine as he put a hand on her shoulder.
She spared him a glance and nodded, briefly chastising herself internally for stalling. The next few cars lacked bombs, simply being empty compartments. Thankfully, none of these ended up detaching, probably because of the Atlas mechs that were in tow behind them. It wasn't until the fourth car that they had finally run into resistance.
The group slid to a stop as they were confronted by a diminutive young woman clad in a very striking contrast of colors. The closest thing Raine could think of to describe her was of a type of ice cream, as her hair was half pink, half brown with streaks of white throughout. Contrasting irises, one pink and one brown, stared tauntingly from beneath long eyelashes. She wore a white, long sleeved jacket with a pink interior, and a brown corset beneath that, curved in the middle and at the bottom to expose her hips. Brown pants were neatly tucked into white and black thigh-high boots with prominent heels, and a mess of beaded necklaces lay haphazardly around her neck. Hefted on her shoulder was a large, pink and white umbrella, weaved with lace in intricate patterns. Roman Torchwick's right hand, Neopolitan, had come to play.
She cocked a hip to the side in challenge, silently wagging a finger at them like a mother scolding a child. A confident smirk remained on her lips.
Yang clenched her fists as Neo's gaze seemed to settle on her, that ever present smirk widening ever so slightly. She had no idea who this pink thing was, but she seemed to know her quite well.
"You guys go ahead; this one is mine," growled the blonde, moving ahead of the group to accept the girl's challenge.
"She's stronger than she looks," interjected Cyan as he stepped forward to join her. "I will stay with you."
"Don't think I can handle myself, big guy?" she asked him haughtily.
"Vacuo is a safe haven for her kind; she'll use every little trick in the book to get the better of you," Cyan grunted in response as he extended Baal's claws.
"Don't do anything stupid, you two," said Arianna worriedly.
"Let's get moving, people!" announced Raine.
With that declaration, they were on the move once more, but this time Yang and Cyan made a beeline for their new opponent. The three combatants launched into their fight, Neo twisting at an odd angle as she nimbly dodged between both punches, Yang coming in towards her face and Cyan striking low at her legs. As she jumped between them, she countered towards them both, her legs lashing out to hit Yang in the stomach with a drop-kick, and her umbrella thrusting forwards and into Cyan's chin. Both fighters grunted from the impacts and stumbled backwards, giving their opponent some breathing space which she quickly capitalized on.
Neo moved in on Yang first, circling around her with a spring in her steps, egging the blonde into attacking. She promptly did just that, stepping forward and swinging her fists, Ember Celica letting loose an occasional blast, but each attack was quickly parried away by the more agile fighter, her umbrella opening briefly to shield her from the fiery rounds. She countered another hard jab to her face by rolling around the punch. Using her momentum to her advantage, the pink woman flowed into a roundhouse kick that caught Yang in the neck, sending her sprawling to the floor.
Cyan moved in to help, roaring as he cocked back Baal with a heavy punch, but Neo was waiting for him. As his fist sailed down, she leaned to the side and let it embed itself into the steel floor of the car, its claws mere inches from being snapped away in the tracks. Taking advantage of his immobilization, she vaulted up his arm to perch herself upon his shoulders, kicking nimbly at his head like an irritating wasp. When his free hand reached up to grab her, she performed a graceful back-flip into the air, his fingers grasping at thin air. On her return, she performed a rapid series of stomps upon his face, pushing him backwards onto the floor as his claws ripped out from their prison. He hit the ground with a groan as she vaulted off of him with a graceful flip and cocky smirk.
Yang forced herself back onto her feet, growling as she cocked a fresh round into Ember Celica's chamber. She fired wildly, the fiery bolts impacting harmlessly against Neo's opened umbrella. Yang burst forward, jumping over Cyan's form as she closed the distance. Yelling out in anger, she swung with ferocious abandon at the pink menace that danced around her blows, parrying with her umbrella with relative ease.
"Damn it!" the blonde thought as she felt herself beginning to tire. "I'm dead if this keeps up!"
Her diminutive opponent wasn't hitting her with the power she needed to activate her Semblance.
"Is this what Qrow meant about not being able to hit my opponent?" she thought to herself. "Is this why he had tried shoving practice and control down my throat?"
Her musings didn't last long in their duel, as her mute assailant twisted intricately around her body. In a dizzying and acrobatic display, the girl had perched herself upon Yang's shoulders, not unlike how she had done to Cyan earlier. Yang barely had time to get a sound out as the pinkette suddenly rolled off of her as she grabbed her by the arm, maneuvering in a manner to prop the blonde upon the soles of her feet. With a sudden and unexpected burst of strength, she launched Yang into the ceiling of the car with enough force to dent the wrought iron plates. The blonde dragon cried out in surprise and pain as she impacted heavily, dropping like dead weight back to the floor.
"Yang!" yelled Cyan as he resumed his attack.
Roaring out savagely, he charged forward, boots stomping heavily across the metal floor. Neo smirked and turned to face him, leaving Yang struggling to remain conscious on the floor. Boot heels clicking, she steadily backed away from the fallen blonde, sashaying her hips in a manner that sent his blood boiling. Cyan reared his gauntlet-clad fist back as he finally closed the distance, pouring every ounce of aura possible into his attack. For a split second, he felt triumphant as the fist sailed home, the blades plunging into her face, but suspicion soon overtook him as the ever present smirk remained. Her form suddenly shattered like glass, as if he had struck a mirror image. Stumbling forward, he looked around bewildered when he felt a lithe finger tap on his shoulder.
Spinning around to meet her, the giant caught sight of a small, cylindrical perfume bottle staring back at him. A press of her finger sent a misty cloud of pink into his face. Sputtering, he faltered backwards, clutching at his throat as it closed in on itself. Vicious coughs wracked themselves from his chest, his vision swimming as the poison worked itself quickly through his system. Cyan could feel his muscles becoming heavy, a faint numbness dancing across his skin. Whatever she had hit him with was shutting his body down. He fell to a knee, fighting his hardest to stay awake, but it was a losing battle. He was out before he even hit the floor.
Yang came to just in time to watch her burly companion collapse in a heap. Shock was soon replaced with rage at their half-sized opponent. Straightening to full height, she stared down the woman with burning malice. This prissy, infuriating little bitch was dancing circles around them this entire time; the whole experience was insulting. For a moment, Neo hesitated, her eerie confidence faltering under the blistering gaze of Team RRWBY's resident dragon.
With a bellow quite like the mythological creature she took after, Yang blasted forward with a shot from Ember Celica, her entire form wreathed in flame, eyes changing from a confident lilac to furious crimson. She had long known that the key to tapping into her Semblance was to take damage, which in turn she could dish back out twice as hard. That had led to a profoundly reckless style of fighting, much to her father's chagrin, in order to bring it out as quickly as possible, but it wasn't until her team had returned with a comatose Raine that she learned to temper it out thanks to Qrow's advice. During her training, she had discovered that her fiery aura was directly connected with her emotions, the subconscious activation with Cardin suddenly making more sense; battle damage only amplified it. Golden flames had always burned within her, and now she was learning to draw them out at will.
The pinkette backpedaled in alarm as her enemy barreled towards her. Gone was the smug, playful demeanor she exuded during their battle. Now she fought to survive, blocking and dodging desperately as Yang's aura burned at her simply from proximity, a blurring flurry of attacks pummeling mercilessly into her defense. Eyes widened in shock as a fist came dangerously close to her cheek, the golden and angry flames blistering her normally unblemished skin. Shock turned to pain as a spinning side kick soon found itself burying into her abdomen, sending her flying backwards into the car door. Throughout the exchange, her umbrella gained several scorch marks and smoldering holes.
A smoking boot slowly settled back down onto the floor as stray embers fell from Yang's body. She glowered at her opponent with contempt, the desire to kill dancing in her crimson eyes; it was time to end it.
The pink woman watched in terrified awe as the serpentine form of a golden dragon manifested behind her opponent, the blonde sinking low into a back-stance, her fist cocked back and vibrant with white-hot fire. It was clear to her now that she was sorely outmatched; her aura, even with the aid of her umbrella, would never be able to hold against an attack of that magnitude. Fear written plainly across her face, the woman performed a flourish with her umbrella, free hand held in front of her and jumping backwards, disappearing from view.
Yang's face broke out in confusion as her opponent seemed to vanish out of thin air. She swung her head left and right around the train car as her fire steadily faded away; no sign of her was left behind. Her rage dissipated, her irises returning to their normal lilac hue. Concern soon took over as she rushed over to Cyan's unconscious form.
"Come on big guy, wake up," she said as she dropped down to her knees to shake him. "Don't go dying on me now."
A quick check showed he was still breathing, but only barely. She hoped that the girl's poison was simply a paralysis type and not something more lethal. Worry etched into her face, she looked towards the front of the train as the echoes of battle muffled through the car.
"Come on guys, you need to hurry."
A particularly long cargo hold was all that now stood between Ruby, Raine, Weiss, Blake, and Arianna, and the engine car where Torchwick was supposedly waiting. They had reached the middle when the door on the far side suddenly banged open. The young Hunters looked on in awe as the towering form of a White Fang soldier lumbered forward to face them, a massive and menacing chainsaw buzzing in his hands, its chain specially serrated for tearing apart its victims. His sudden appearance was something out of a horror movie; the chainsaw, the full-face mask, and intricate black tattoos decorating his bare arms made for an unnerving sight.
"Keep going, I'll take care of this one," volunteered Weiss who stepped forward.
"Not alone you're not," replied Arianna.
"Stay alive, no heroics," answered Raine.
They rushed into action, with Ruby, Blake, and Raine splitting to the sides, twisting around the Lieutenant's bloodthirsty swipes, and disappearing through the door, while Arianna swung her chains forward, wrapping them around the brute's wrists as he raised his chainsaw above his head to challenge the remaining pair. He grunted in pain as the barbed tips dug into his skin, drawing deep-red blood. Arianna yelled out in exertion as she yanked Arachnae's Kiss down to her right, pulling him off balance. Weiss, picking up on the opening, cast a Glyph of Haste beneath her feet, the golden image of an accelerating clock appearing on the steel floor. She disappeared in a blur of speed, unnaturally so even for Ruby and Raine's standards. She raised her free hand mid stride, pointing towards her opponent as several more glyphs, white in color, formed around him in a dome.
She flashed out of sight, cutting deep with Myrtenaster as she ricocheted between the glyphs. Back and forth she went in a crossing motion, careful not to get caught in Arianna's chains, the strikes lifting the burly White Fang off of his feet. With each attack, a glyph disappeared until one was left. Perched upon its face, she spun upside-down with grace, sending a drilling strike into his stomach, forcibly knocking him into the floor. He gasped out in pain, the sparking of aura hinting at the damage he had taken. Capitalizing on the moment, Weiss created one more glyph upon her feet, giving her a surface to push from. She launched forward one more time, Myrtenaster poised to nail him to the floor, but the Lieutenant was able to roll backwards to safety.
As she landed, she was unprepared for a counter attack as he rushed forward with a shoulder tackle, barreling into her chest and driving the wind from her lungs. Growling out loud, he used his own brute strength to pull back against Arianna, spinning in a circle and dragging her through cargo, until finally the barbs came loose, sending her tumbling into her companion. Purple aura encased his hands as they repaired the damage, his earlier anger transforming into sadistic satisfaction.
"At last, I get to kill a Schnee," he sneered with a rumbling chuckle. "Say your prayers, Princess."
To Weiss' shock, his form became wreathed in purple energy.
"He... he has the same power as Adam..." she breathed as the oppressive presence settled over them.
"Is that bad...?" asked a panting Ari as her chains retracted back into her gauntlets.
"It's what put Raine into a coma."
"Yeah, that would be bad."
Weiss felt a profound sense of terror as he leisurely approached them.
"We can't beat him, not like this. We need to go find the others," she said as she tried in vain to control her trembling.
"We just need a plan," reasoned Ari as she swallowed the lump in her throat. "Or failing that, we'll just stall him until Yang and Cyan catch up."
"Enough talk!" bellowed the lieutenant as he charged them angrily, his chainsaw raised high.
Arianna spun on her heel as she whipped her chains with lethal accuracy. The squealing ring of metal upon metal rang out in the car as the chains lashed furiously against the toothed saw. She was relentless in her attacks, refusing to give the man any ground or rest, his advance slowed to a halt as his bulky form struggled to keep up with her far more dexterous style. A bead of sweat ran down her forehead as the sickly tendrils of miasma licked at her skin; they burned to the touch.
"Weiss, we need to immobilize him," she ground out between clenched teeth.
"How?" she asked as she regained her composure.
"Your ice dust. Get his legs first, then his arms. I'll take care of the rest."
The monkey faunus' muscles were starting to scream in protest from the constant activity. Her opponent must have noticed as well, since he was steadily gaining ground again.
"Now Weiss!"
The Heiress loaded the appropriate Dust vial and, with a pirouette, planted Myrtenaster into the floor. A sky blue glyph lit up beneath the Lieutenant's feet, his legs becoming encased with thick ice. He looked down at his feet in irritation when suddenly two more glyphs appeared both above and below his chainsaw. A second block of ice, this one even larger than the first, formed around the motor of the vicious weapon. It fell to the floor with a loud clank. Realizing the danger he was suddenly in, he let out a roar and released all of his aura at once, with waves upon waves of miasma washing over everything in the car. To the girls' astonishment, the ice started to rapidly melt away.
Weiss yelped in pain as the sickly energy hit her, the Heiress struggling to conjure a protection glyph to shield them from the coming onslaught, but its very presence seemed to eat away at her own aura. She collapsed to her knees as she felt her energy waning. Arianna, rather than shy away, charged head first through the pulsing mist. Her teeth ground together as she choked back her own gasps of pain, forcing her legs to carry her through to her target. With disgust in her eyes for this man that would bring ruin to all her species had fought so hard for, she whipped her chains forward with the intent to kill. A pair of wet thuds followed by an ear-splitting screech of pain broke through the steady hum of discharged energy. Behind his mask, the Lieutenant of Adam Taurus watched his life flash before his eyes as Arianna closed the gap at last.
She vaulted over his head with a back-flip, and as she passed, she reached forward and grasped both sides of his head. A loud crack soon followed as she fiercely twisted in mid air, breaking his neck. Like a switch, the miasma faded away as the man fell over, his body completely still. Arianna landed in a heap, rolling to a stop and gasping for air as she clutched at her wounds.
"You... you killed him..." whimpered a shocked Weiss.
"He wasn't the first, and he won't be the last," she gasped out in response.
Climbing back to her feet, Weiss hurried over, giving a wide berth to the lieutenant's body as a faint, purple smoke rolled off of the corpse. Turning back to Arianna, she gasped as she got a closer look at her wounds. The parts of her skin that were exposed sported first and second degree burns, and her clothing was singed and tattered.
"Why is it all of my friends have to be reckless?" the Heiress huffed with worry.
"Wow, we're friends now? That was quick," Arianna laughed through the pain.
"Shut up," Weiss replied flippantly as she transferred her own aura into Arianna, her wounds now healing at an accelerated rate.
Despite the situation they found themselves in, Weiss felt her expression soften.
"Blame Ruby and Raine; those two changed me for keeps..."
The final trio of Ruby, Raine, and Blake slid to a stop as the haughty form of Roman Torchwick sauntered away from the main controls of the engine car.
"Why oh why..." he began with exasperation, his cane swinging in his hands, "is it always you three?"
"End of the line, Torchwick," Raine said pointedly.
"You know what Blue? You're absolutely right!"
The thief spun on his heel and raised Melodic Cudgel, firing a flare into the controls, much to the alarm of his would-be captors. A loud blast and a sudden expulsion of smoke filled the compartment, sparks flying from the now ruined console.
"Oops, I think my trigger finger slipped," came Torchwick's sarcastic remark, followed by sadistic chortling.
It was abruptly cut off as Raine sent a vicious punch into his jaw, sending the thief sprawling upon the floor.
"How many lives did you just condemn?!" the guardian bellowed as he knelt down and grasped the man by the collar.
"I dunno, ten? Twenty? A hundred? The whole kingdom? That will all depend on your dear Headmaster. Kid, I'm doing this city a favor by showing them exactly where it is I can make them hurt."
Raine roared in anger as he sent another punch into the man's face, his eyes lighting up with silver fury. It was followed by a second, then a third. Upon the fourth, Torchwick's aura weakened and his nose broke out in a steady stream of blood. The crack of the soft cartilage upon Raine's knuckles felt immensely satisfying.
"Raine, stop!" cried Ruby as she grasped his arm, preventing him from pummeling Torchwick's face into a paste.
Blake rushed over to what was left of the cabin's console, hoping against hope there was a lever for an emergency brake. Finding what was left of one that was snapped away, she turned to her friends in panic.
"The whole cab has been sabotaged!"
"What?!" answered Ruby.
"And what about you, kitty cat?" continued Torchwick, focusing on Blake as he ignored the throbbing pain in his broken nose. "What are you even doing here? I saw you at the rally; we're on the same side and you know it!"
"Ignore him Blake," Raine told her forcefully, but the thief continued his speech.
"Do you honestly believe a little bow on top is going to make people forget what you are? What you've done?"
"I don't need to forget anything," she shot back. "The ones who matter already know."
"He's going to be coming for you, ya know," Torchwick chided her. "Both of you. You've pissed off the wrong person, fighting on the wrong side. I'd run while you still can."
Raine lifted the man up a few inches, then slammed his head back onto the steel plates. Torchwick coughed out in pain from the impact.
"How do we stop the train?" Raine demanded, hate burning in his eyes.
"How do you think, Blue? Boom."
Torchwick waved his hands for effect, reveling in the contempt Raine was radiating.
Blake had heard enough. With a swift kick to the jaw, she sent the thief into blissful oblivion. Silence overtook them, with the only sounds being the engine and the roar of the train barreling down the tracks. Raine let go of the sack of garbage lying unconscious in front of him. Burglary he could deal with, but a terrorist attack was different. It took every fiber of his being to not end the man right here and now. It could be so simple, so quick, so easy. His Guardian's blood burned through his veins, burned for justice, for retribution. He stifled it away.
"We gotta go back, find the others, get off the train," he said bitterly.
"There's gotta be something we can do..." Ruby said desperately.
"There's nothing else we can do here, Rubes," he told her forcefully. "All we can do now is regroup with the others and brace for the impact."
"What about him?" asked Blake as she nodded to Torchwick.
Raine gave the thief one last glare.
"What about him?"
A steel door clanged open loudly in the morning light settling upon Mountain Glenn as Winter emerged upon the surface once more, an unconscious Qrow slung over her shoulders. He had passed out shortly after the kids had left with Dr. Oobleck, his breathing becoming more labored by the minute. A light sheen of sweat glittered across her forehead and face; for such a skinny man, Qrow seemed surprisingly heavy, and this was without his ridiculous cleaver of a sword weighing him down. A fierce line of coughs wracked his lungs, blood splashing forth in light spatters.
"Don't you go dying on me now," she huffed as she lugged him back to camp, the journey difficult even with her aura enhanced speed. "Be a man and suck it up."
Winter's thoughts drifted to the debriefing she had received from Ironwood when she had arrived in Vale. The General had educated her extensively on the tainted miasma that they had extracted from the body of Cardin Winchester, one of Beacon's many students. It behaved much like a narcotic, lowering the brain's natural inhibitions and augmenting the body's physical abilities, though at the cost of extreme fatigue at best, neural and muscle corrosion at worst. In small doses, it could turn a common civilian into a an effective, albeit enraged fighter who could hold their own against first-year trainees. Unfortunately for Qrow's case, the sample in his bloodstream was far more potent, modified to attack as a slow-acting poison, and administered through an injection site in the left side of his neck, just above the collar bone. She had censored herself earlier just for Ruby's sake. It wasn't just suppressing his aura, but eating it away; the poison was literally attacking his life force.
Winter shuddered, an uncharacteristic expression of worry on her face. What kind of monster would develop a weapon so cruel and destructive? How did they even manage to do it? She winced as she remembered Ironwood's answers to these exact questions; it had originated from Atlas tech back during the Great War, designed to be used as a gas to flush out enemy combatants from their entrenchments. The very thought made her sick.
Her musings were broken when the sound of barking voices, groaning engines, gunfire, and screams of Grimm shattered the wasteland's silence. Ducking quickly into a building, she crouched low and laid Qrow flat on the ground, keeping as much of them out of sight as possible. Peeking through a break in the debris, she gazed upon the sight of a lumbering convoy of White Fang, the soldiers occasionally taking shots off at any stray Grimm that dared to approach them. Standing in the bed of a truck towards the center of the line was Adam Taurus, stoic and silent. His face, or at least the portion visible below the mask, was set in a frown.
Winter felt her sword arm twitch; the most wanted man in Atlas stood mere meters away from her, yet she forced down any feelings of recklessness. She had been there when it happened, part of the retrieval team sent to rescue the Schnee Company captives. She had failed that day, the only failure in her short yet prestigious career. She remembered how he gloated to the camera, sneered at her and her team as they were blasted back by a purple shockwave, the images of the five executives laying face-down in a pool of their own blood. Within moments of her intrusion and following a brief few words from the bull faunus, the murderers had disappeared through a crimson portal that ripped through dimensions, defying all established laws of physics in mere seconds. Her father, and by extension the Atlesian council, were furious that night; only her immaculate record and General Ironwood's good word had saved her and her men from the brig.
Suppressing unwelcome memories, the Specialist waited patiently until the rumbling of vehicles disappeared into the gloom of early dawn; then and only then did she dare to emerge from their hiding spot. Hefting Qrow upon her shoulders once more, Winter moved as quickly as possible as she retreated down the final stretch to their base camp. The climb to the roof was difficult, but thankfully uneventful. She set her elder colleague upon the concrete as she retrieved her scroll. The shimmering form of General Ironwood came into view a moment later.
"Report, Specialist," came his grainy address, the man already dressed in his uniform and seated at a personal console.
"Sir, we have located and retrieved Qrow Branwen from White Fang captivity, but his condition is critical and requires immediate medical evacuation," she explained. "He has been exposed to a lethal dosage of the miasma we extracted from Cardin Winchester. It's... it's eating away at his aura."
Ironwood's visage was silent as he typed in a few commands at his computer. He had feared this was the case, and had already prepared a bullhead in advance.
"Done; their ETA is fifteen minutes. Where is the rest of your team?"
"Sir, we are under Threat-Con Alpha; Vale is under imminent attack by a White Fang strike force. Doctor Oobleck has taken our teams to disable a train that is heavily laden with explosi-"
Winter Schnee's blood went as cold as her namesake when a distant but heavy explosion rang out across the valley. Ironwood had turned as well, facing out a window unseen in the projection.
"Gods..." she whispered as she turned to face Vale, a plume of smoke rising in the distance as the blaring of emergency sirens shattered the morning silence.
Ironwood had then decided to stand at his full height, crossing his arms as a frown marred his face.
"Specialist, your orders have changed; you will be boarding a second bullhead and will fall back to defend the city. Once you have made landfall, you will regroup with your squad and aid with stemming the White Fang's advance."
Winter hesitated a moment before addressing her superior officer.
"You are certain they will be combat ready despite the explosion?"
"Without a doubt. Guardians fight to the bitter end."
A/N: As I have said, this was by far the most difficult chapter to date that I have had to write. As you can see, Raine is also feeling a dip into the darker side of his heritage. I drew inspiration for that scene from interactions between Batman and the Joker, and felt that it could fit here. Granted, I'm well aware that Josh Grelle's performance as Tyrian Callows is far more Joker-esque than Torchwick ever was or will be, but I wasn't passing up the opportunity after slugging through this update.
ALSO: the poll is now live, so head on over to my profile to cast your votes! I selected the options by popularity in the reviews, as well potential story/humor material. Don't worry if the name you wanted doesn't get selected, as I can still use them for co'op attacks later on in the story.
Hope you guys enjoyed this installment of WWSE. Muse is back to work, so the next one shouldn't take as long. Thank you all for your patience and continued support!