RWBY: MRRN

Volume 6, Chapter 36: Decisive Victory, Swift Respite

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. All rights go to Rooster Teeth.

"Yes!" Nasser cheered as he saw the Scorchers inbound, preparing to launch a bombardment run on the Iron Knights. "Glad to see they made it in time!"

"Indeed," Ruo agreed. "But we still have to deal with the Knights inside the city."

"That's easy," Nasser claimed as six Iron Knights came into view, one of them holding a flashbang grenade. Just as he was about to throw it, the Scorchers were heard over the city…and then launching missiles at the Iron Knight forces outside the wall, killing many of them.

"Fall back!" one of the Iron Knights cried out. "Fall back!"

"Yeah, you better run, you losers!" Nasser insulted.

-0-

"Successful hits, Colonel," Andre informed aboard the bridge of the Odysseus, "Most of the Iron Knights in the city are retreating as we speak."

"Good," Geom-Eun replied. "All ships in the fleet: target the Iron Knights' ships. This is a perfect opportunity to cripple their forces and we need to take it."

"What about the Argus Mech?" one of the bridge operators questioned. "It's requesting aid against a colossal Grimm, one much bigger than a Leviathan."

"Is he able to identify it?" Geom-Eun questioned.

AAAAAARRRRRRRRRR! The Grimm rose from the sea again, flying towards the Mech and its mouth open wide; with one swift attack, it ripped the cannon arm of the Argus Mech right off.

"Left flank ships, change target," Geom-Eun ordered. "Focus your fire on the Grimm attacking the Argus Mech!"

"Colonel, the right flank ships are ready to fire upon the Iron Knights' fleet," Andre informed. "They're awaiting your command."

"Open fire," he ordered.

"Right flank, open fire!" Andre addressed the Atlesian ships. As ordered, they launched their missiles at the Iron Knight ships outside the city, easily decimating three of them in a matter of moments.

"All successful hits, sir," Carnelian informed the Colonel. "The Scorchers are getting ready to make another run."

"Give them the green light for another run," Geom-Eun responded. "How many Iron Knights left in the city?"

"Enough for the defenders to clean up," Andre informed. "Should we send transports to the city, sir?"

"No. The battle is nearly won; keep up the pressure."

"Here comes the giant Grimm again!" Andre alerted Geom-Eun. "Ships, open fire!" The ships on the left flank immediately opened fire, tearing the colossal Grimm to shreds in moments.

"The Grimm is dead!" Andre confirmed.

"Well done," Geom-Eun replied.

-0-

"Fall back!" Nachtfel cried out to his forces as he watched them be blown apart by the Atlesian Fleet that had arrived much earlier than expected. The Iron Knights fled out of the city, though many of them were blasted by the Scorcher's bombardment run while the airships were torn apart by missiles.

"The Basilisk," Nachtfel remembered. If he could…no, he couldn't. The ship's weapon would need time to charge, which would leave it vulnerable to both the Silver Eyes and the Atlas Fleet; as much as he hated to admit, all they could was pull back.

"Victory!" David cried as he watched the Iron Knights flee the city. "We have victory!" The defenders gave out a loud cry of joy and pride, their hearts swelled with happiness that they had successfully defended the city of Argus, despite the odds being heavily against them.

Sadly, the feeling of victory was forfeit to some of the defenders as they looked around the wall where the battle had taken place. Many good Atlas soldiers, Bush Militia and seven Steel Elites lay dead on the concrete, many with families that'd never see them again, with dreams that they'd never be able to accomplish. Argus was saved, but the price of victory was heavy.

The price of defeat was much heavier for the Iron Knights; when they attacked Argus, they easily outnumbered the defenders a hundred to one. They had all the cards in their hands, except for two things going wrong: Mercury damaging the shield generator controls and the Atlas Fleet arriving much sooner than expected. Now, they were retreating without even a tenth of their original forces.

If Mercury hadn't damaged the controls, then they could've poured whatever forces they could into the breach and reactivate the shield to stop the Atlas Fleet's assault. Once they were able to get their hands on the defense weaponry and turrets, they could've easily taken down the fleet.

Argus was still standing…and the Iron Knights had lost, being dealt a crippling blow to their forces.

-0-

"Mother," a Grimm child greeted Salem outside the nursery.

"What are you doing up this late?" she asked the young Disciple, kneeling and gently petting his hair. "You should be sleeping."

"I…I had a nightmare," he replied. Salem held the child close to her with a tenderly and motherly love, wanting to comfort the young Disciple.

"Your Grace," Valkoin addressed, standing behind her. Salem held the young Disciple for a few more moments before sending them off back to the nursery before turning to greet the wire user.

"What news?" she asked.

"Bad," Valkoin informed. "The Atlas Fleet arrived in Argus much sooner than expected. The Iron Knight forces are crippled badly; they lack the resources to launch a second assault on the city. The attack on Argus is a total failure." Salem frowned at this revelation, her red eyes seeming to glow with rage.

"And the Relic?" she questioned.

"They didn't retrieve it either," Valkoin informed solemnly. "Odds are, they'll take the Relic to Atlas and out of our reach."

"Not entirely," Salem responded. "Vacuo was supposed to be our next target, but with two Relics in Atlas, we cannot pass up the opportunity, which is why I've sent Dr. Watts, Tyrian and Despair there."

"What of me?" he asked. "Should I depart for Vacuo?"

"No," Salem responded. "I'm sending you back to Mistral." Valkoin raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"You're sending me back to the Kingdom that we failed to defeat? I have my ways of getting around without attracting attention to myself, but I fail to see why you'd want me back there."

"Mistral is still recovering from the attack on Haven, especially with the Kingdom having to rely on students since most of their professional Huntsmen are dead. Luckily, I think we may have found an opening."

"An opening? An opening to do what?" Salem summoned forth a Seer Grimm, which slowly floated to the two of them. When it was between them, Salem conjured an image of a man in a rather traditional Mistrali uniform, identifying him as a Mistral Councilman.

"Lan Se Tiankong," Valkoin deduced. "Why him?"

"Lan Se Tiankong isn't as noble as he presents himself," Salem explained. "He's been using…'unideal' means to solidify his power. Dealings with the Wild Hunt, having business with major criminals in the Mistral underworld…he actually controls one of the biggest crime lords in Mistral: Honest Giovanni Volpe."

"Volpe" Valkoin spoke. "I've heard of him. Notorious for his exploitation of Faunus and human alike and selling them as slaves in the black market, correct?"

"Indeed. Volpe serves as Tiankong's primary enforcer to get rid of those who'd oppose him."

"I'm aware, so why is he essential?" Salem smiled.

"Just like Jacques Schnee, Lan Se has many resources at his disposal, resources that could cause chaos for Mistral."

"Chaos that will attract Grimm," Valkoin deduced. "Lan Se's after one thing: power and he will do whatever it takes to get it. He's already a Councilman; that's about as high as he could get, unless…" Valkoin thought for a few moments, wondering what he could use to convince the corrupt Councilman to help him.

"The one true way he could control all of Mistral is by controlling all major powers in the Kingdom: Treasury, Military, Huntsmen, Commerce, Human Resources, State and Labor, each one controlled by a member of the Council." His eyes widened as he understood why Salem wanted him to manipulate Lan Se Tiankong.

"Use him and his criminal resources to kill the Kingdom's leaders, correct?"

"Yes," Salem confirmed. "A nation without leaders is like a body without a head. Cut off the head and the rest of the body stops functioning."

"Leaving it vulnerable to attack," Valkoin finally guessed. "I understand now. I'll depart for Mistral as soon as possible."

"Good," Salem responded before walking off with the Seer Grimm following her.

"The sooner I get my hands on the Relic of Destruction, the better," Valkoin whispered. "I'll have to move quickly if I can get to Vacuo and locate the Summer Maiden. Neither Salem nor Ozpin could be immune to it."

This war was tearing Remnant apart; Valkoin was undoubtedly responsible as well, but in his mind, the main aggressors were Salem and Ozma after learning what he had from Salem and the Relic of Knowledge. For thousands of years, they waged war on each other, costing countless lives, two of which were his parents.

"Glaucus," a young teenage Valkoin told his brother as he helped him onto his feet in the pouring rain. "Come on; we've only a few more blocks to go."

"I'm so hungry," he groaned. "Is there any food nearby?"

"We'll find some," Valkoin assured as he helped his brother walk down the sidewalk, becoming drenched in the downpour.

Life hadn't been kind to them ever since they lost their home after the deaths of their parents. They had lived on the streets of Vale, struggling to survive, to eat, to even find a warm place to sleep.

"There," Valkoin said to his brother, pointing to a stall with food.

They had managed to steal some food, but were quickly cornered by police officers who proceeded to beat them and leave them in the pouring rain that day.

His home, his fortune, his family…all of it was stolen by Ozpin, forcing him and his brother to a hard life on the streets until they enrolled in Beacon Academy. What he wanted more than anything was to see both Salem and Ozpin dead, blaming both of them for the hardships he endured.

Luckily, he was well-informed about the Relics, especially the Sword of Destruction underneath Shade Academy. Having known of Ozpin's reincarnation and Salem's immortality, he knew that no mortal weapons could end their lives for good, but the Relic of Destruction was not a mortal weapon. He believed that it could possibly destroy Salem and Ozpin once for all.

His partnership with Salem had paid off well, gaining what information he could on her all the while hiding his true intentions. It wasn't easy, but he was gathering all sorts of knowledge on her and felt he had enough to know how to beat her.

"Mother, Father…" Valkoin spoke. "Soon, you will be avenged."

-0-

Blake groaned as she opened her eyes; to her surprise, she was in a medical bed in what appeared to be the underground safe zone where the citizens held up during the battle.

"You okay?" Saphron asked as she put a warm wet cloth on Blake's head. "You looked pretty bad when you were brought in here."

"I'm…I feel like a truck fell on my spine," Blake groaned as she felt some pain in her back. "What…what happened?"

"Blake!" Yang cried out as she, Weiss and Ruby rushed to her side. "You're awake!"

"Yeah…but my back is killing me," she complained. "Wait…if you're down here, then…?"

"The Atlas Fleet got here," Weiss informed. "The Iron Knights retreated. We won."

"Oh, thank Oum," Blake sighed. "What about my dad? Where is he?"

"Right here," Ghira responded, walking over and kneeling next to Blake's medical bed. "And I also have news from Menagerie."

"About Mom?" Blake guessed, prompting her to try and sit up, but with the pain in her back, she had no choice but to lay down.

"Your mom's recovering," Ghira informed. "She's going to be fine." Blake let out a ragged sigh, overjoyed that her mother survived the assassination attempt of the Albains that night.

"But that's not all," Ghira continued, taking a more serious tone. "Corsac Albain was murdered in his prison cell."

"Murdered?" Blake gasped. "By who?"

"We don't know, but we strongly believe it was Adam Taurus," the Menagerie Chieftain answered. "He must've went to Menagerie after the Battle of Haven."

"Adam…" Yang whispered, feeling her arm shake. She quickly grabbed it to calm herself down.

"During the Battle of Haven, Adam claimed that he had no involvement in the attempt on you and Mom," Blake brought up. "Do you think…he was telling the truth? Is that why he killed Corsac?"

"We truly don't know," Ghira responded. "Perhaps it was a way for him to tie up loose ends. But we searched Menagerie for him and found nothing."

"Then we have no telling where he could be," Yang concluded.

"Unfortunately," Ghira replied before standing up and looking at one of the doctors. "Will she be okay?"

"Once her Aura regenerates, she should be okay," he assured. "Ms. Arc here has been a major help with those wounded in the battle."

"Thanks," Saphron responded.

"Well, that's my sister for you," Jaune complimented. The two siblings then hugged for a few moments before Jaune noticed a much more solemn look on his sister's face.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Jaune…I need to talk to you," Saphron spoke before pulling Jaune aside, away from Team RWBY.

Weiss couldn't help but let her concern for Jaune take over and looked at the two siblings. They talked for a while before Saphron handed Jaune a letter, which he took and opened it. As he read it, his expression changed negatively from concern to worry to a mix of frustration and sadness.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked her teammate, breaking her attention away from Jaune. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she assured before noticing that Ghira was gone, most likely having returned to ground level to help with cleanup. Now it was just down to the four members of RWBY.

"Blake…I'm sorry," Yang apologized.

"Yang?" Blake replied. The sun dragon slowly reached over and took Blake's hand in her own.

"I'm sorry for the way I treated you when you came to Haven. Ever since you came back, I thought in the back of my mind that…that'd you run away again, just like Raven did."

Blake looked at her partner with immense sympathy, having seen the damage her birth mother's betrayal had caused her. Raven had abandoned Yang as a child, never made any contact with her, blamed her for them not being reunited sooner and then sold her out at Haven to save herself, though she claimed she was trying to save Yang too.

It wasn't too hard to draw a parallel between her and Raven: both of them had developed a tendency to run from their problems. Both of them had abandoned those who needed them. Both of them let fear cloud their judgment, leading them to make decisions that strained their relationships with others.

"You are not Raven," Yang stated firmly. "Raven only cared about herself. You care about others. I'm sorry…for everything."

"I'm sorry too, Yang," Blake apologized. "For running away without a word. For not coming back sooner. I made a promise to stop running and I broke it; I know it'd be time before you trusted me again because I knew what I did hurt you, all of you." Blake squeezed Yang's hand firmly, offering a warm and friendly smile.

"You're not Raven either. You stayed by your friends' sides when Raven ran away. What Nasser and Robin said to you that day…you didn't deserve that. You're a very good friend, Yang, and I'm happy to know you."

"She's right," Weiss agreed. "You're a very good person, Yang, and I'm happy to know you too." Weiss then wrapped her arms around Yang, feeling regret for the way she had behaved towards her upon her secret being exposed. While Yang had lied to the group, they had behaved as if she was Ozpin or Raven herself; considering how bad morale was and angry everyone was upon Ozpin's secrets being revealed, it was a terrible time for Yang's secret to be exposed.

Yang was wrong to have done what she did, but their reaction could be seen as disproportionate. Yang had only kept one secret whereas Ozpin kept many of them, which sometimes resulted in people getting injured or killed. As Yang pointed out, even if she had told them about Raven, they had no idea where she was, so they could've ended up going a wild goose chase. Whereas Raven had abandoned others to save herself, Yang had fought to protect those she loved.

Blake tried to sit up so she could hug Yang, but her back was still in immense pain, preventing her from doing so. Yang, Weiss and Ruby all then gently hugged Blake, being careful not to hurt her.

"So…does this mean we're all good?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah," Yang assured her sister, making her smile. To see her teammates reconciled did Ruby's heart much good, knowing that their issues had been resolved…leaving only her own.

-0-

The Odysseus arrived at the airfield and slowly landed, where David Brownwood was waiting to greet the Colonel whose arrival had helped them win the battle. When the ship landed and the doors opened, Geom-Eun Holang-I and Andre Carnelian stepped out and saluted to the Argus Commander, who returned the gesture.

"Colonel," David addressed. "Thank you for helping us."

"Of course," Geom-Eun responded. "How bad were your losses?"

"Too many to count," David replied. "We would've lost the city if you hadn't arrived."

"The city would've been lost if you and the other defenders didn't hold the line for so long," Andre replied.

"So, will you be staying in Argus?" David asked.

"No," Geom-Eun answered. "Most of my fleet will stay to help Argus recover, but I will be returning to Atlas, along with providing transport to Glaucus Viisaus and those accompanying him."

"You'll be transporting them?" David asked, confused. "I was led to understand that they'd be taken in an armored transport."

"That was the original plan, but since I'm here, General Ironwood asked to oversee their travel to Atlas personally," Geom-Eun explained. "I'll take them to Atlas when they're rested and ready."

"I'll let them know," David told the Faunus Colonel. "Unfortunately, we don't have much fuel to spare for your airships."

"That's fine," Geom replied. "We brought some fuel of our own and to drop off in Argus. General Ironwood felt you'd need it due to the battle."

"Thank you." Geom nodded his head and turned to address two of his accompanying soldiers.

"Alert everyone in the fleet: set up a defensive perimeter at Argus's wall."

"Yes, sir," the two soldiers obeyed, then walked back into the Odysseus to carry out the Colonel's orders.

-0-

"What!?" Nasser barked as he, Ruo, Forest, Sterling and Ruadh met up with the Kendricks. "Nachtfel is a Dark Herald too!?"

"Not so loud," Math hushed his partner. "Right now, yes: we think Nachtfel is a Dark Herald. When I cut his arm off, a new one grew, one that looked like purple diamond; it was able to tear through my Aura and wound my arm."

"Great," Ruadh groaned. "So when Nachtfel goes back to Salem, he'll undoubtedly inform her of this. We won't have the element of surprise anymore."

"We won't," Math acknowledged. "Which places much more on us learning of our powers."

"Easier said than done," Robin brought up. "We have no more questions in the Relic of Knowledge, so we'll be learning this entirely by ourselves. It'll definitely take time."

"Shouldn't we at least tell General Ironwood?" Ruo suggested. "Perhaps he could help once we get to Atlas."

"How can he help us with these powers when we barely understand them ourselves?" Robin replied. "We don't have anything concrete to tell General Ironwood."

"Plus, could we trust him?" Math asked. "He's an extremist and he's paranoid. There's no telling of what he'd do, since as Robin said, we have nothing concrete to tell him about these abilities. It'd be better to gain a better understanding first before we tell him about them."

"I agree," Saf replied. "General Ironwood's been making some…extreme and unnecessary changes lately. The Dust Embargo, the closing of borders…we don't know what's in his mind right now." She sighed.

"Maybe we should reconsider taking the Relic to Atlas."

"We can't turn back," Math stated. "The other Kingdoms are in no condition to protect the Relic, especially with Raven in the wind. I don't trust General Ironwood either, but Atlas is our only option at this point. We'll just be careful around him."

"Yes, be careful around him," Forest insisted. "Even before the Fall of Beacon, Ironwood was an extremist, paranoid, and slow to trust others. It'd be wise not to share everything until you've determined whether he can be trusted or not; these measures have definitely shown that his tendencies have worsened."

"We will be careful," Math replied before his scroll went off, receiving a call from Glaucus.

"Hey," he greeted. "Hold on, really? Okay, I'll let the others know."

"What is it?" Robin asked as Math hung up.

"We need to meet back at Pyrrha's house to determine our next courses of action," Math informed everyone. "Let's head on back."

-0-

Back in the Nikos house, which remained mostly untouched by the battle, everyone had gathered together to discuss the next courses of action for everyone, including Team COAL and Silvio. Needless to say, the revelation of Nachtfel being a Dark Herald was a big shock for everyone.

"You've got to be kidding me," Yang groaned. "So Salem has a Dark Herald at her beck and call too?"

"Looks like it," Math confirmed. "But the good news is that the Relic is safe, Argus has been saved, and we can go to Atlas when we're ready."

"Well, I won't be going with you," Glaucus announced, making him the center of attention.

"What?" Math asked, almost unsure if he heard right. "You're not coming with us?"

"With Mistral and Argus having suffered major losses, I feel it'd be better if I stay here and help," Glaucus responded. "With Forest, Sterling and Ruadh going to Vacuo and Qrow most likely going with the Relic to Atlas, they'll need veteran Huntsmen to help."

"Yeah," Qrow confirmed.

"Then I'll be going with you," Luna brought up, smiling at the scythe user. "I'd like to reconnect with my dad."

When Luna said the word 'dad', the room became dead silent, almost as if a grenade went off. Did they hear right? Did Luna just call Qrow 'dad'?

"Luna…Qrow's your dad?" Math asked, his expression shocked and uncertain. "Are you joking?"

"She's not," Qrow replied. "She's my daughter."

"Oh, my Oum!" Yang shouted, covering her mouth in surprise. "She's a family member!?"

"Yeah," Luna chuckled before being tackled to the ground by Yang and Ruby, much to everyone's amusement. The Wolf Faunus struggled for several moments before finally getting Ruby and Yang off.

"We have another scythe user in the family!" Ruby sung. "We have another scythe-" Her voice was suddenly silenced, courtesy of Weiss's Shut Up Glyph.

"We get it," the Ice Queen spoke. "You're very excited."

"Hey, come on, Weiss Cream!" Yang joked. "We just found out we have another family member. Surely you can 'chill out' and-" Yang suddenly found herself unable to speak either.

"Stop with the puns," Weiss groaned before lifting the Glyphs from Ruby and Yang. After the commotion died down, Math went outside, his own thoughts going back to the reveal of his own heritage from Forest.

"Math," the eagle swordsman greeted. "Do you want to tell them? About Trenton?"

"Not yet," Math replied. "What was he like? Trenton…Dad?"

"When I first met him, he was very prideful and didn't like the idea of not being team leader," Forest explained. "As time went on, he came to accept his role in the team. Despite how prideful and arrogant he could be at times in his youth, Trenton always had strong moral principles…and was probably one of the bravest men I ever knew."

"Sounds like he was a good person," Math responded. "How did he die?"

"Saving my life," Forest explained. "We were on a mission to find one of the Maidens, but we didn't know there was a Grimm nest nearby. We were attacked and…your father gave his life so I could keep mine." He looked over to Math, a mix of solemnness and regret on his scowl.

"I'm sorry I didn't find you sooner and…I'm sorry I couldn't save your father. He would've loved you, treated you as a father should treat his son, as well as Safirlas and your mother."

"Why didn't she just leave?" Math wondered with a bit more anger in his tone. "Why did she stay with him? Why didn't she just end things with Donovan before…before planning to go with Trenton?"

"That's a discussion you'll need to have with her when the time comes," Forest answered. "You should get packed and ready to leave for Atlas with the others."

"How will you get to Vacuo?" Math asked his mentor.

"I'll arrange with one of the Mistral pilots to take us there," Forest answered. He then put a hand on Math's shoulder.

"Be careful up there; we don't know how General Ironwood is right now, so be cautious around him."

"I will," Math assured before he hugged his mentor and he hugged back.

-0-

"Well, Glaucus won't be coming with us," Andre informed Geom-Eun as they sat together at a table, away from prying eyes. "He's going to stay in Argus to help the city. Forest, Sterling and Ruadh are going to Vacuo."

"Vacuo," Geom-Eun repeated. "Most likely to make sure the Relic of Destruction is kept safe from Salem."

"How do you think they'll respond to us knowing about the Relics?" Andre asked. "They might be quite shocked at us knowing."

"They might, but in time they'll understand we're here to help," Geom-Eun replied. "What matters now is making sure the Relic of Knowledge is safe in Atlas's borders and away from Salem's grasp." Geom-Eun then stood up.

"Have the Odysseus on standby and make sure we're full on Dust. I want us ready to depart when they arrive."

"Yes, sir," Andre replied.

Author's Notes: Volume 6 is almost over! I hope you guys enjoyed the Battle of Argus!