A/N: Happy New Year! Here's the first chapter of 2020!

Setting: Coliseum

Flames spread everywhere and the air was filled with smoke. The field was hazy, but Zinnia could see the Deathstalker come her way. She found it emerging through the fire that engulfed the arena. She aimed her whip-sword at it and extended the blade straight at the monster. She used Armaments, cloaking her weapon in her aura to increase its power. She knew this was enough. Her blade pierced right through the Grimm without resistance, slaying it with ease.

"This is so mundane. I must like you a lot if I'm helping you with this," she thought as she looked at the vanishing Grimm.

Suddenly, a spire of blue flames erupted in a corner of the Coliseum. Many Grimm were burnt to a crisp and at the center of the fire was Brenton, using Boost to wreak devastation. He no longer saw the Grimm. They were reduced to ash. The ground around him was severely scorched along with the corner of the arena behind him. Looking back, he could see his flames did some scarring damage to the seating. He sighed in satisfaction. It was exactly what he wanted.

The Grimm and the Coliseum were Royal's legacy. His first act as Corona's sovereign was to tear it all down and relieve his citizens of the past. He'll burn it all away.

Eight more Grimm were killed. Beowolves and Creepers bisected by Trois Reines. Ebony had a determined look as she fought. She was irritated. These flames and this heat was ridiculous. She couldn't stop herself from sweating all over her body and it was disgusting. A hard day's work was something she never shied away from, but Brenton was making the entire battle unbearable.

Was it really necessary to turn the whole Coliseum into a furnace? Brenton sure did love overkill.

Scanning the area, she couldn't see Zinnia or Brenton. They were fighting their own battles and she had hers. looking above, she found a Manticore trying to escape or attack the citizens. "I thought we took out all the flying ones,"

"Monochrome! Lift!" she shouted and her loyal Champion flew to her aid. It flew down to her side ungracefully but it stretched its arm so she could jump on it. With extraordinary strength, Monochrome hurled Ebony into the air, sending her straight toward the Manticore. She had her sword and her scabbard in both arms as she approached the backside of the unsuspecting Grimm.

Her blade ran deep into its back, causing the beast to howl in pain. Immediately after, she pointed her scabbard rifle next to her blade and pulled the trigger. Two shots and the Manticore's midsection was obliterated. Her work was done. She jumped off what remained of the Grimm as it disintegrated and fell back down to Remnant. The fall wasn't scary even if her back was to the ground and her silver eyes were on the smoky skies. There was nothing to worry about. A pair of cold metallic arms caught her and she saw the faceless visor of Monochrome.

Zinnia, Brenton, and Monochrome. She knew she could always rely on them.

The skirmish was over, though Zinnia preferred to call it a massacre. All the Grimm were wiped out with the Coliseum left in shambles. It still stood which was unacceptable to Brenton. She could see his scrunched up face once the smoke cleared.

He activated Boost a second time and grabbed Oathburner. An arm was raised in front of him and he turned to Ebony who stopped his advance. "Why?"

"That's a bit much even for you," she told him. Pulling out her scroll, she opened the command set for Monochrome. This wasn't an ordinary order. It required manual input. Luckily, it was simple.

Destroy the Coliseum.

Monochrome transformed both its arms into cannons and fired ten missiles from it. They projectiles collided with multiple sections of the Coliseum were destroyed. Stones were sent flying all around, inside and outside the structure. Brenton hoped his people listened to his command to stay far away from the Coliseum. He did not need to worry about any casualties.

"Give Chromy an hour and this place will be reduced to rubble," Ebony assured her royal friend. She wrapped her arms around his and pulled him away from the building that was going to be no more.

It has been several days since Ebony usurped the throne for him and he has been doing everything he could to change this place for the better. She's been helping every step of the way and he couldn't be more grateful, but something about her actions made him wonder.

What were her plans? After everything that happened and everything she worked for vanished, what was her next move?

"I have something in mind. Don't worry about me," she told him and he was completely thrown off. She knew what he was thinking.

"Do you mind if I ask what it is?" he dared to ask.

"Not at all. Zinnia, you listen too," she called out to her confidant who walked beside them.

"The new mission is to-"

"Your Majesty!" a voice called out. All three of them looked to find a young woman approach them.

Being called Majesty was still new to Brenton. He hadn't fully adjusted to his new position and it showed with his reactions. He stiffened his spine, bit his lower lip, and averted his gaze downward. Unbecoming attitude for a sovereign. Zinnia couldn't help but chuckle. Despite his appearance, she knew Brenton was a ball of nerves.

Ebony tilted her head to the citizen, telling her friend to speak with her first.

"Y-yes. What is it?" Brenton asked, taking the proper mantle of king.

"Are all the Grimm under the Coliseum gone?" she asked and he nodded. "Good, but there was something you should know. There are more Grimm out there."

"More? Where?"

"They're not in Corona, but they were Grimm Royal wanted to add to his collection. He just never got around to capturing them. I thought you should know," she informed him.

"Grimm Royal wanted…" Brenton pondered. "If there were Grimm he wanted for himself, then they're obviously dangerous."

"What are we going to do about it?" Ebony asked leaning against his shoulder. She was already involving herself.

"Sooner or later, those things will come to haunt us. Maybe we should do something about them," Brenton suggested then turned to the woman. "We'll take them down."

"As you wish, your Highness. Thank you, your Highness!" She walked away making Brenton feel even more uncomfortable.

Highness. Majesty. He was still not used to those titles.

Setting: Brenton's Chambers

Searching through what remained of Royal's things was more difficult than any of them imagined. The man didn't really keep a lot of things for practicality and many of his possessions were either kept by Alexandrite or discarded. Rifling through junk to find anything pertaining to the Grimm, Brenton was frustrated with his predecessor's lack of tidiness.

"He sighed deeply, "Find anything?"

"Nothing," Ebony answered.

"All I found were jewels and gems," Zinnia replied as she tossed them aside.

"So, Royal wasn't one for keeping notes or logging anything into a planner? " Ebony stated. "Guess there's only one thing we can do: ask around for any noteworthy Grimm."

"That's all we can do," Brenton said, pinching his nose in frustration. "I'll ask around and see who heard about any serious Grimm-related problems."

"I would think a king would order his followers to come to him," Zinnia wondered.

"I'm more of the 'hands-on' type of ruler. I'll ask around."

"We'll need to widen our circle. Zinnia and I will take the airship and go to other settlements. They might know something," Ebony told him and he nodded.

Both women walked to the airship and one of them had a question for the other. The Paragon was just as curious as Brenton on their leader's next move. She was all for helping, but she still wanted to know what she was helping with.

"You didn't finish telling us what your plan is," Zinnia told Ebony. The Charming Vantablack smiled at the question and that caused Zinnia to raise an eyebrow. What was so funny?

"Well, my desire to be a diplomat turned revolutionary hero didn't pan out." She could only laugh at her own statement, but Zinnia knew her well enough to know it hurts. Ebony put a lot of hard work and effort into her plans. "I have something else in mind, though you may be against it."

"What is it?" Zinnia had a more serious expression. The change in the atmosphere happened quickly.

"It's a very direct route. In order to make a permanent name for myself in Vacuo, I have to defeat the ones who stand at the top. Simple as that."

"Who stands at the top?"

"The ones in the mind of everyone in Vacuo right now."

Setting: Nexus

Remus stood at the top of a building with a grin on his face. He looked up to the sky, getting a glimpse of the sun in his gaze. The brightness of the blazing orb in the sky paled in comparison to the shine in Remus's soul. He was too happy to show off.

"Ready!?" he shouted and immediately used Checkpoint. He vanished in a puff of blue smoke and in his place was SIlver whose face was utterly shocked. In a panic, he looked at his surroundings and realized he was on a roof.

"What the f-" He looked down to see Remus standing where he once stood with the other members of VRSZ, Clair, and her Enforcers. Everyone looked rather impressed with what they saw. It was proof Violet and Remus's time at Shade Academy wasn't wasted.

"Holy shit! That was badass!" Silver shouted in excitement. He jumped off the roof and landed on the ground near everyone. "What else did you guys learn?"

"Besides Remus's Round Robin and my trick, nothing much. We just kept improving, meaning you two better not slow us down," she chuckled lightly.

"Please, we wouldn't slack off. Zelts and I have been doing our own thing while you were gone. Zelts and Bianca made sure of that," he commented, pointing to the two behind him.

"Being on my way, I got to make sure you guys can take care of yourselves," Zelts thought. He wanted to make sure VRSZ could function without their shield. It was a bittersweet wish.

"That's good to know. You're still reliable," Violet continued to joke.

"More reliable than you," Silver countered, lifting his scroll, showing a picture of her and Remus kissing. It was the same photo Sapphire took.

Her face turned a deep shade of red and her body stiffened. This picture. Seen. By. Everyone.

"Someone, kill me," she thought, mentally retreating to the far corners of her mind. She wanted to run away from everyone and pay Sapphire back for this.

"L-l-let's..." she tried to speak but she was too flustered to speak properly, much to Silver's delight. Clair kept her amusement under wraps. She didn't want to incur the inevitable wrath of Violet Tulipe. Silver made his glee known as he laughed in her face.

"He's dead," Zelts, Blood, Ghost, Bianca, and Azura thought at the same time. "There's no saving him,"

"Anyway!" Violet was finally able to say, "There's something we need to talk about. Theodore left Ebony in our hands," she addressed Clair. "She's in Corona where she and her group overthrew Alexandrite a few days ago. They've got full control."

The jovial atmosphere vanished.

"What are we going to do about her? She's your cousin and she's done a lot to all of us," Violet informed her friend.

The Lady of Nexus turned her gaze to the sand beneath their feet. She knew this was coming. Sooner or later, she and Ebony would have to clash one final time.

Manipulation and extortion were her crimes against them and the kingdom. Using VRSZ as her soldiers and the kingdom as her bodyguards, pitting them against each other. All so her dream could be realized. Her drive was unreal, yet so much like a Vantablack. This is what they're capable of when she stop hiding in the shadows and walk into the light. Despite everything she has done, Clair was impressed with her, but that didn't change the fact that Ebony needed to be stopped.

"We'll take care of her," Clair told Violet, everyone, in a very serious tone.

"How?" Violet asked.

"By any means necessary," she answered and walked away with her Enforcers trailing behind her.

"That was ominous," Zelts stated as he watched them leave.

"Fine by me," Silver added, "She's made our lives horrible. Let her get what she deserves."

Remus wasn't sure what needed to be done. Was there more they could do than just stop her plans? Witnessing everything she's done, he doesn't know if Ebony will stop.

"Hey, guys," Violet called her boys, "head back home. I need to talk to Clair about this whole thing."

She didn't give them a moment to respond as she walked to the Nexus council building. This was a matter that needed to be discussed between both parties. After all, Ebony has been involved in all of their lives.

Setting: Nexus Council Building

"Is VRSZ on a need-to-know basis about your plans with Ebony?" Violet asked Clair once she reached her office.

It was only the two of them inside with the Enforcers informing the council members about Ebony. Everyone needed to be prepared. Clair stood in front of her desk with her back to her best friend. She pinched the bridge of her nose in minor frustration, wanting to avoid this conversation. That was the reason she came here, but Violet pursued her anyway.

"You know it's not like that. It's just better to avoid the explicit details of what's going to happen in the future."

"But what are you going to do about her because there are only two options: stop her plans or kill her," Violet stated, bringing up the option Clair was doing her best not put into words.

Clair turned to Violet with sad eyes. The Scarred Flower could see her friend had no idea what to do. Having to look at Clair so troubled about a decision pained her because she knew what she was going through. Just like in Atlas. How can you confront family?

"I can't tell you what the right call is, but I can give you some advice," Violet started so Clair could pay attention, "My real- I mean my biological family rips each other to shreds on a daily basis. All so they can claim power for themselves. I kept my nose out of it for so long, and I thought I was better for it, but when I was left in a room with my father... I wanted to kill him. I was going to kill him, but a heart attack saved me from spilling his blood. Even if I didn't do it, the fact that I was going through with it still weighed on me."

The memory of that day flashed in her mind and she closed her eyes to make it go away.

"I hated him. From the bottom of my heart, I hated him. He was terrible. He let my mother die, saw me as nothing but a pawn, and did everything he could to crush my spirit, but the idea of killing a family member, even someone as despicable as him, didn't make me feel any better. Just numb. And when I came to realize what I was about to do, I felt like a monster."

She paused for a moment to stop herself from thinking about it. She sighed then looked at Clair who appeared more attentive. It seemed she was ready to support Violet if she was going to break down. Violet wondered how she looked when she shared her experience in Atlas.

"Whether it was right or wrong cannot be said, but that feeling will never go away. If you are going to go through with it, just be prepared to bear it," Violet finished.

Was her advice helpful? She didn't know. All she saw was Clair back into her desk and lean against it. Her head was down, but her face didn't seem confused anymore. If Violet had to guess, she believed Clair was contemplating a complex problem and was slowly reaching her answer. Clair raised her head and looked at Violet with eyes no longer clouded by doubt or fear.

Did she find her answer?

"Thank you, Vi. I think I know what I'm going to do," Clair told her with a sincere smile.

"Do you want to tell me what you're going to do?" Violet asked curiously. After all, Ebony was her enemy too.

"I'll let everyone know, during dinner. Head home. I'll be there shortly," she told Violet with a warm smile.

Even if she had to bear it for the rest of her life, Clair felt like her decision was the right one.

Setting: Ebony's Airship

There were rumors of Grimm causing more than their fair share of trouble in Vacuo. Ebony and Zinnia were able to gather intel about two of them after flying into a small town and conversing with some of the townsfolk. With new information, they return to Corona to add Brenton into their ranks and better themselves for a confrontation.

Usually, Ebony had the airship on autopilot. Brenton always volunteered to fly and she did so every now and then, but she wanted to test something she just thought of. She watched from the cockpit's door to see Monochrome piloting the airship. She added a new personalized command for him to operate her vehicle and it was working smoothly. All she needed to do was put in the command then the destination. Monochrome took care of everything else.

"I'm so glad I purchased you," she said fondly before walking away.

She wound up where everyone goes in this airship: the common area. There she saw Zinnia standing by the window with her back to her. She seemed to be focusing on the open desert around them. A devilish smile worked its way onto Ebony's face.

A war machine was flying their airship. That was insane in Zinnia's mind. Monochrome was only great at destroying, something she witnessed when the Coliseum was no more, and now it had complete control of their ride. She wasn't too happy about that and she kept close to the large windows in case she needed to make an emergency exit.

"This can't be safe... This can't be-"

She suddenly felt a hand on her thigh and felt it move up to her waist and a faint breath on her neck.

"You know you're lovely when you're focused," Ebony whispered into Zinnia's ear.

The Paragon couldn't take a step back with the windows and Ebony sandwiching her, so she quickly turned around to face her teasing liege. She was really close to her face, but Zinnia was not amused.

"This isn't funny,' Zinnia told her leader.

"It was to me and seeing you react like that was totally worth it," she retorted while giving her friend a wink.

Still not amused, Zinnia walked away to get some space, hearing Ebony giggle behind her back. It was harmless fun but at her expense. She needed to change the topic. "How's your new guest? Is she less likely to attack us once she's set free?"

"Alex hasn't seemed to calm down. If I let her go, this whole place will need to be remodeled. We'll have to be a bit more patient if we want her to be cooperative," Ebony answered.

That answered one question, but Zinnia had another. A more important question. "Ebony, you told me what your endgame was, but how does exterminating Grimm get you what you want?" She was tired of playing catch up to Ebony's plans.

"Simple. Our exploits will let them know where we are and they'll come to us. And we'll finish them for good."

"...Are you sure you want to go this route? Once you do, there's no going back." Zinnia warned and it caused Ebony to turn to her. Her playful air was gone.

"I'm okay with that. It's not like I could remain a diplomat forever. Sooner or later, I'd have to take aggressive actions to reach my dream. I'm ready to be a potential villain... or a villainess. Are you sure you want to go this route with me? As you said, there's no going back."

Zinnia approached Ebony and stood by her side. "I'm coming as insurance. Just to make sure you don't go too far off the deep end."

"Thanks. And I'm sure his Highness will feel the same," Ebony cracked one last joke, knowing Brenton was still new to his title. "But yes. I'm ready to take them down."

Zinnia looked to the desert before them and muttered, "To the ones in the mind of everyone in Vacuo."

Ebony finished her statement, "Team VRSZ."