A/N: Ah, the support's been great, sad that we're nearing the end but hey, it's been a fun ride, and I got's me a new RWBY story planned for next year, one that I feel you'll love but we'll save the details for later.
To Astray-Tech: Appreciate seeing you're enjoying my fic, knew that reference in chapter 16 wouldn't slip by everyone. Chapter 48, yeah... yeah that hurt to write. Chapter 63 was intense, Tabus was actually what gave me the idea for the Four Horsemen, 'Mars' was already created but never a Horseman 'till I created her and the rest. I really hope you enjoy what's to come :)
Now, enjoy~!
Chapter 66 - Perfection of my Masters
"I will move forth and win your war. But if I should die before you continue, you shall have heard my final dying roar." ~Yharon
Act VII - Memories
Do you know what it's like? To be a Vex?
No, not those organic-machine hybrids that can control time, but a 'failed' creation of your God or Gods?
I do, shunned for what you were told was right and wrong, a frail child who's told off for something they had no recollection of understanding, you can gift a being with knowledge, that doesn't mean they know where to start, to act upon the minds and wills of those around them, a person is far more than simple matter and memory, they are far more complex, and I never had those thoughts in my own, only order through balance.
But out there, beyond worlds, dimensions, the Multiverse, the Omniverse... something slumbers there, festering in the darkest point of matter, the Vex and I know this, only a select few deities know of this, and when it wakes, all will be consumed, no mortal or God will survive.
That is all I know.
Once more, the integrity of the Argus shook from the reacting spell written across the ground the group of Huntsmen and Huntresses stood on, all wobbling to stand straight. Before them, Charron rose up, his body's blackish-green hue crackling with static, growing more and more unstable with the passing of time.
"You must come to realize that your end is irreversible, however, I doubt you will understand," He raised his right hand to the air above him, releasing a beam of dark matter, striking the cybernetic arm belonging to Albatross, who flew backward from the strike. "Predictable."
"Teams, pick a side, and hit him with everything you got!" Ruby declared, bursting into a flurry of roses with a trail of white following suit. Everyone complied, Weiss standing with Iota and Amber, both reading for an opening, with Blake and Yang running to the left and right, Qrow was regrouping with Albatross and Oscar, who merely wiped the ash off his arm as Ozpin took control
"Let's wait for our chance to strike, we cannot afford to waste our energy," Ozpin noted as everyone was close to being unable to fight as is
Ruby swung horizontally with Crescent Rose, forcing Charron to bob back, which allowed for Summer to cross her axes, flashing an 'X' of fire and ice, the two elements merely shattering against his chest, followed by multiple rounds from Ruby below. Charron raised his fist, throwing himself downward to imbed the ground under Ruby while she used her weapon's recoil to make room between them. Summer remained where she was, slicing through his back in a whirlwind of petals he couldn't catch.
Emerging she brushed her hair aside and allowed her silver eye to shine through the Argus, forcing Charron to grunt at the painful assault to his dark matter half. This rendered him immobile for a time. Two golden slugs tore into his jaw, his wrist pulled back into the blast to connect with a fist to his collarbone, followed by a Mike Tyson Peek-A-Boo style that left Charron wide open for a sudden Southpaw stance that led into a flaming uppercut, throwing Charron high into the air as he snapped up straight.
"...N-null, null... null!" His voice groaned in agony, bones and dented flesh reconfiguring under his erratic twitching
"I've had it with you!" Yang snapped, eyes burning crimson. Ember Celica led her charge with focused backblasts, aiding to evade the man thin beams of light that appeared from the Vex's hide. With a particular backflip, Yang clasped her hands together in a wide clap
*CLAP*
Yang's hands slapped against one another, and the resulting kinetic force rupture the airflow, and the positive and negative energy Charron fired had rebound to his body, the seizure of gold and purple sliced through the hall, burning marks into the walls, and nearing striking some of them too. Yet Yang stood there, exhaling sharply when something snatched around her throat, lifting her body off the ground.
"You all fail to comprehend what it is I do, so I shall spare my breath and end another. Since Kai held the power to create two lives, I shall take two, starting with you." Charron spoke cynically, twisting his hold on Yang's throat to keep the others at bay, watching helplessly as she struggled for breath. Her aura all but starting to fizzle out
"Yang!" Her team cried out, with Qrow rushing in to save her alongside Summer, yet something overshadowed his form, followed by a sharp flash of orange and yellow, and the searing hiss of fire on metal
*ShatterShatterShatterShatterShatterShatterShatterShatterShatterShatterShatterShatter*
Yang was quickly able to pry the shaking hand off her throat, throwing her body backward from the blade barrage that left the area in front of her scorched and torn with holes. Charron slowly rising to his feet once more. Her savor wasn't who she expected it to be.
"Touch her, and you'll lose more than a hand." Tabus spat, spinning a knife atop her finger. She let out a gentle sigh after that. "Thanks, really needed that."
"Eh, even if it were another world's version, the last thing I'd do is save Blondie from her own mistakes," Zorah remarked, stepping past the group with Night Sky resting over his shoulder. "Besides, now there's three of you, without question my nightmare has become a reality." The horrified look on Zorah's face told the truth, then he peered down at Blondie. "Huh?"
Noting the cybernetic arm he immediately broke into a laughing fit, tapping Night Sky against the metal framework. "Hahaha, that's fucking rich! Here's hoping my Blondie suffers the same effect!" His eyes opened wide with a toothy grin. "Oh, maybe I can cut it off for her, haha, that'll be a treat!"
"Hey!" Yang snapped, pulling her arm away as Zorah lost his smile and turned toward Charron
"It seems that thinking you had the intelligence to know which side to choose was a mistake on my part, then again, you are Ruby - And you brought another inconvenience," That made Tabus' eye twitch, her raven-crimson hair brushed to the side of her face, meanwhile, everyone else was in shock over her appearance, especially Ruby herself
"M-me?" Ruby couldn't understand what she was seeing, nor how it was possible to be looking at herself, sure, it was a more menacing duplicate, but it was still her. "I-I-I uhh..."
"There's two of you!?" Weiss gaped in shock, and Tabus ground her teeth at that, grasping her knife tightly. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me and that scares me."
"I'm going to forget I heard that simply for the fact our world's at stake but," Then she poised the knife at the lot. "Call me by that damn name again and I'll finish what I started back on that airship, my name is Tabus, got that!?" Her snappish tone shut them up completely with Tabus tilting her head to eye Yang, who was in a state of silence
"Hey." Yang's eyes finally moved to look at the silver ones that faced her, but it was... hesitant, turning away to scratch the back of her head with a knife. "Thanks, you know, for keeping your Ruby happy, you really are a... a good sister."
"How touching..." Zorah murmured, clicking his fingers. "If you're done prepping can we get this started already, Hero?"
*CRASH*
Charron's twisted smile and glare were dug through the smooth floor, a flaming body tumbling off his back, rolling to land beside Tabus and Zorah who tried not to laugh uncontrollably at the sudden arrival of Sky. He had converted to his Dragon King Mode for the battle, crushing several shards of red Dust between his fingers
"Nice landing." Tabus mused with a quirked brow, then frowned. "What?"
"I was in your head, I know what you wanted to say to Yang," At that, Tabus turned a small shade of red, averting her eyes from Sky who continued to taunt her. "Aww, that was cute."
"Can it, Kai!" She growled
"I concur, can we for five seconds, FOCUS!" He screamed in their faces, both nodding quickly as Zorah took the lead, withdraw Night Sky again with the scabbard to form True Night Sky. "So, you're the Vex I've... well I don't really know what you are or what you're planning with this whole 'false-God' crap, but for your sake, you shouldn't have messed with my world."
Albatross moved in beside Zorah, holding his swords low, "All you rest some more, don't overexert yourselves."
"Yeah, what the metal man said," Zorah shrugged, then froze upon seeing the woman in a white cloak. "w-what...?"
"Thank you." Summer sighed, resting her hands atop the pommel of Rose-Thorn with Qrow flattening his back against the wall. Seeing Zorah's reaction, Summer titled her head. "Huh?"
The white-haired boy jolted and looked away, but it was too late, she saw his startled expression, one she knew all too well when her daughters saw her face again. Softly, her facial features softened apologetically for Zorah.
"You okay, Ruby?" Sky looked to his girlfriend curiously, trying to keep his state of mind calm, and it took alot of concentration to do so. When their eyes met, Ruby nodded with a wide smile
"Kick his butt for us!" Ruby cheered with Iota vanishing in a flash of white
"Kai... I am glad you are well," Iota now became present in his mind again, only he sounded wary. "I won't lie, Charron is far stronger than we thought, he just keeps getting back up."
"It's fine, Iota," Sky took a stand with Albatross and Zorah, Tabus standing with them. "Everything I've done, all the amazing people I've met brought me here to this point, and I know what I have to do."
Charron stopped, eyes curved jadedly, his smile twitching with small vortexes manifesting in his hands. "You ignorant brat..."
"The reason I'm standing here right now is to put you in the ground, for everything you've done to this world!"
Tabus grinned devilishly, with Albatross switching out his midnite sword for his handcannon, Zorah clicking his tongue, lowering his longsword to rest backward, the handle resting near his hip.
"Let's dance!" Albatross declared, the team breaking apart as Charron's blast of ether struck where they previously stood
"No - Null - I will not let you - N-Null. Null - all of your efforts 'till now will be for nothing!" Charron's mentality was cracking, raising a hand to bring it down onto the earth, eyes shining blindingly. "NULL!" Three lines of spikes stripped through the earth in a wave, funneling the fighters closer
"'Bout time I try this, here's a little something I cooked up," Tabus began, tossing several knives into the air, pressing a hidden button on a bracelet around her right wrist, commanding the blades to envelop the boys. "O Swift Wings o' Iron, Sharpen Our Flight! Bladedance!"
The trio lit up with a faint outline. Albatross was red, Zorah orange, and Sky magenta. All three feeling lighter on their toes. "Nice work, Tabus!" Sky grinned, with Zorah humming in response and Albatross offering a thumbs up.
The trio rushed Charron who raised his palm towards them. A flash of purple light was their warning, and an eruption of dark matter consumed the ground in a halo around the Vex, yet the three had split apart, dividing to the sides of Charron, Zorah charging through with many burns to his body.
"Huh - grah!" Night Sky slashed across his arm, followed by a horizontal slant to the stomach, bringing genuine pain to the Vex as he recognized the sword's material. "Midnite?"
"Fast learner, yeah, pretty nasty against anything with dark matter in their bodies," Zorah shut his mouth and vanished into the floor, striking across Charron's back as he swept his back with a wall of cursed flames, Zorah dove over his head, severing one of the wings while pushing off Charron's face, flicking him with a sonic blast
Charron only got a second to think upon a foot striking his jaw, followed by Albatross throwing a punch to the back of his shoulder. Charron swung out his arms, rings of razor light shredded the air but the two had quickly flown away. Tabus swept low, being pulled into the shadows by a hand before a large wall of spikes could impale her. Both her and Zorah emerged behind the Vex, tearing apart his newly regenerated wings with a plethora of serrated attacks.
Charron flew upwards, evading another bombardment from Tabus who was using Sky and Alba's distraction as her way to attack his blind spots. "You two are grating on my nerves..." Charron growled, managing to backhand Sky, yet he froze, seeing the hand had merely scuffed up Sky's face. "W-what?"
"Fire Dragon's-" Sky pulled himself forward, his arm swung forward. "-Wing Attack!" A whirlwind of orange engulfed Charron, with Alba pointing his handcannon up at the nova, firing upon the black form that extinguished the fire, each shot rattling Charron's bones. He vanished, emerging right in front of Alba who narrowly swayed under a fist, the knuckle split through a vertical swipe from Zorah, himself offering the middle finger to the Vex as he sailed past the two. Alba spun in a helix, cracking both feet against Charron's arms but was blown away by another ring of twisted energy.
Tabus kicked in from below, striking Charron across the chest even as his energy beams pierced several holes through her body. Her arm managed to break and throw three ice knives through the side of his wings, freezing them and throwing the Vex off balance for her ax-kick that broke her leg clean in half.
"You talk too much." Tabus spat, landing behind Zorah while her body regenerated. Zorah poked a finger into the sky, forcing Charron to throw himself away from the flaming talons. Immediately Sky ushered the flames into a fine point of a spear surround his forehead, tackling Charron with a spear of flames that threw him across the Argus, fingers sinking into the marble to erect another barrage of spikes.
Zorah swept in, shoving Sky aside as he was impaled in several vital spots, blood caking the ground as his body landed near the recovering team, bones broken at odd angles before their horrified eyes. What made their stomach's turn was that Zorah just vomited up a glob of blood, rubbing his lips.
"Holy crap!" Tabus grimaced
"Zorah n-!" A dry chuckle cut Sky's fright off, black smoke rising from his many wounds, which immediately filled with black skin, his right hand turning black with white claws, a strange, speaker-like organ appearing on the back of his palm. All while his right eye turned milky-white without any discernable features, most of his teeth cartoonishly sharp
"Fuck that hurt like a kick to the teeth," He coughed, his voice mingled with Echo's. "It's a good thing Echo never leaves my side, even when I really want her too." One prominent bang turned neon blue a second later, his hand brushing the hair away to reveal his orange eye, that tattoo of his glowing as bright as his eye
"He's a Host for a Nightmare," Albatross blinked, almost breaking into a small chuckle. "Damn, didn't see that coming."
"So that's a Nightmare just like Gambit..." Sky now realized where Echo kept disappearing to, it was Zorah's body this whole time, it would also clarify his recklessness in a fight
"Zorah was it?" At his name, he drew his eyes to Charron. "Yes, I see, a tormented child with a self-destructive vendetta against Ruby, Yang, and Taiyang, your own family all because they blamed and scorned you for the death of that nobody warrior," He chuckled. "Your hatred is so comical."
"Hold on," Yang blurted out. "So in that other world, he's our-"
Zorah tapped Night Sky against the ground, a grin stretching wider with a straight but blazing glare. "Okay, three things. One," He put his finger up. "Stay out of my business, Blondie, two," A second finger. "If you really think rambling on about my dumpster-fire of a life then you've clearly run out of any new material, and third-" Zorah dissolved in shadows
With Charron still high in the air it was impossible for Zorah to reach him, or so he believed. The cold chill of a blade ran down his spine, Zorah appearing with a murderous glint in his eyes, the Nightmare arm stretching down to propel him higher with a sonic wave, the sword striking with the force of a bass boost, the sound ringing in Charron's ears as a large gash split across from his chest to his right shoulder. Zorah ducked under a blast, taking several shards of Dust to the side to slam his boot against Charron's nose, lurching up with True Night Sky clutched in both hands, red Dust crystals breaking between his palms, spilling mist and blood down onto both their faces.
"Night Sky Scourge!" The whole length of the longsword cast itself in a brilliant, orange flame, the soles of his feet erupting with sound, twisting Zorah down with a vertical slice powered by the force nearly the sound barrier. "Who gave you the right to say that about my Mom, you slag!?"
The attack connected with Charron's forearms, amputating the right with enough force to split apart the earth below, the Vex landing headfirst into the ground with Zorah landing a few feet away, his arms snapped back into place while blowing out the heat residing on his sword.
"A-All of your efforts... were pointless!" Charron sneered from the hole, prying himself off the ground while glaring daggers at Zorah, the boy casually strolling around with his thumb sliding across his throat mockingly. "Not this time." He vanished the second Tabus moved in for an attack
Tabus grunted when a fist drove itself into her chest, then Charron grabbed one of her knives, sinking the blade through her left eye while twisting her right arm, snapping the bone in two. Even though it was Tabus and she couldn't feel anything, that didn't keep from everyone wincing, Yang almost turning green at the sight, and Summer practically burning with fury beside Qrow, himself furious.
Throwing herself away from Charron, Tabus wrenched the knife from her eye, allowing the crimson eye to narrow under the mist, whilst she tore the remains of her jacket off, leaving her with a slightly torn spandex covering her chest, though it did slightly reveal her, not that she cared. Tabus then snapped her fingers, triggering a chain reaction of ice to erupt from the floor, locking Charron in place as he struggled. Albatross then poised his handcannon, delivering an explosive payload that left the Vex blindsided by ice and fragmentation.
Sky followed closely, gathering all the embers he had left swirling across his body, enhanced further by pushing himself to trigger Soul Flare, charging headfirst into the crossfire
"Way of-" Tabus was to his right, two fists full of searing daggers
"Let hatred, sorrow, greed, envy, violence, and lust feed the Abyss-" And Albatross stood to the left, his right hand crackling with purplish-red light
"-A Thousand Cuts!" "-Nightmare Rain!"
The fires shattered the ground dramatically, spliced with a concentrated beam of purple and red magic, both forces crackling and rupturing Charron's barrier without fail, Zorah materializing below the Vex. Drawing Night Sky in a single, crescent stroke he gouged out both his eyes, stepped back to tag in with Sky
"Give 'em a show, Hero." Sky obliged the swordsman, twisting his fingers into Charron's skin, wrenching Charron closer to his mouth as it opened wide with dark red flames
"Dragon King's-" Everyone immediately plugged their ears. "ROOOOOAAAR!"
The gargantuan tunnel of crimson fire tore through the Argus, shaking the foundations to their core with a deafening wail of a dragon, the temperature practically boiling even as the flames slowly died down, leaving only a rumble and disintegration of rubble to be heard between Sky's pants. He stepped back, observing the damage and lack of Charron's body say for his severed arm lying limp on the floor.
Zorah then broke the silence with a whistle, Echo emerging beside him in her human form. "Damn gotta admit, even though you ripped off Fairy Tail that was badass."
"So cool~!" Echo gushed, rubbing her eyes. "I think even my eyelashes got burnt off."
"Such power..." Amber awed at the scene with the smoke lingering around them all
"Did... did we win?" Jaune coughed, his eyes adjusting to the light again
"No way!" Blake looked petrified, her own legs shaking at the sight. "It... how can anything survive that?" Everyone quickly trained their guns at the smoke, and the distorted figure stepping through the debris, twitching
"You're kidding me, it's still alive?" Weiss was struck with disbelief, yet when the smoke cleared, Charron stood standing, unscathed to say for a little damage, and that deranged look in his eyes had everyone rooted in place
"Fire Dragon's Iron - MMPH!?" A hand shoved itself against his face, blasting him with a hail of corrupt energy as he gaged on collision with the ground. Charron just cackled at Sky's growing despair, and the flames surrounding his skin quickly extinguishing themselves "Crap!"
"Null... Null, Null... NULL!" He wailed the word that kept on repairing the damage dealt, even as it drained him of stamina he refused to consider the outcome, unleashing a bulletstorm of energy blasts to completely throw the Argus into disarray, some of his attacks landing their marks and keeping many of his attackers down for the count
Even as the layer of dust and smoke dispersed, Tabus, Albatross, Sky, and Zorah managed to stand, having taken the hits for the others without their Auras completely rejuvenated. Echo herself having used her soundwaves to nullify most of the attacks with a great deal of effort, her and Zorah beginning to fade in and out of reality
"Underestimating us and throwing a tantrum, some 'all-powerful-being' you turned out to be." Tabus barked
"Come at us with everything you got, and we'll counter it all the same." Albatross challenged, leveling his sword toward his foe
"Mess with a member of RWBYS and you'll regret it." Sky dared, holding his ground despite the throbbing pain in his muscles
Charron lowered his hand, grin stretching with a daring glare. "We will see about that," Then, he was gone. The whole team noticing how the runes gradually faded to grey
"Oh, crap he stalled us." Echo slumped, dumbfounded while Zorah went to say something, then realized his hands were now transparent
"Bad timing too, we're out of time," Everything looked to him and Echo, seeing his nervous frown. "We have nothing to anchor ourselves to other worlds so we're being thrown back into ours any second now."
"No way," Jaune gaped, clutching his side as he tried to stand
"Sorry, I wish we could still help but..." Echo sighed, looking up at the Huntsmen hopefully. "I may be a Nightmare, and... we're not known for our tendencies to save lives but... I hope you guys can find a way to win, for all our sakes."
"Oi, Sky," Turning away from where Charron once stood, he didn't so much as say a word as his eyes crossed to Zorah's. "I may not care for my life or whether or not I'll die someday, but, for my team's sake," His expression lightened up. "Don't let them die for our mistakes," Slowly, the Host and Nightmare began to fade away, all that was left were two smirks. "Good luck, Hero."
Even as the air grew distant and silent, they now lost two powerful allies in their fight. In the end, they let Charron win.
"Charron was toying with us the whole time," Tabus slumped to her knees, discarding her knife. "It wasn't even a fight, it was just a Goddamn game to him!"
"No..." Yang couldn't phrase her fear other than to fall to her knees as well, her hand over her mouth
"We lost, everything we did meant nothing..." Blake too was unable to stand, unable to say more under the weight of the reality that had sunken in
"Even after all this time," Albatross looked down at his hands, balling them up angrily, squeezing his eyes shut. "Dammit, I thought I got stronger but... I still can't even compete with something like a Vex," He had failed, he hadn't tasted failure in so long, so the feeling was a painful realization. "I let you all down." "I... how long can I keep going like this? Serafin, I don't know what else to do, sorry."
"We weren't ready to face something so powerful, and we couldn't do anything to help you either." Weiss apologized for him
"Heh, it's funny, I've have nothing left to live for, decades I've just listened to Salem and followed orders, and now, when I actually have a reason to live it's when everything's about to be destroyed, are you kidding me?" Tabus had given up, but her reply made Team RWBYS look to their leader, who had been making her way towards Sky who had said nothing, he just sat there, staring off toward the spot Charron again once stood by, mocking them
"Sis?" Yang asked, yet she didn't reply, all she did was sit down beside Sky, who held his head low, Cognitum resting on his lap. There was no other way.
"I remembered when I regained my sense-of-self, back on Merlot's island, you were the reason that I came back, over the time we knew each other, it was always you who stood by me, and I guess I did the same for you," Sky spoke softly, with Ruby cupping Sky's arm in her hands, Sky's head rising to face hers. "Even when I messed up, you kept coming back when so many others would and have turned away from me."
"I always will, because you never gave up on me when I kept pushing you, and... because I want to," Ruby replied, both looking down at Cognitum's screen. Penny then emerged beside the commands, smiling sadly between it and her friends, nodding her head to give her consent
[EC-1101 Rewrite Complete]
[Project Eclipse Prototype Active]
[Installation Complete]
[Begin Override? Y / N]
"I'm sorry I never was the perfect boyfriend. The perfect brother. Best friend. Ally. Personality." Sky looked to all of them kindly. "But I'm willing to try."
"And we'll always help you every step of the way," Ruby replied gently, helping Sky to his feet before stepping back. His hand then hovered over the 'accept' button, hesitant to press it. A painfully long time passed with him staring down, thinking back to everyone who was ever standing beside him.
Ruby. Weiss. Blake. Yang. Jaune. Nora. Pyrrha. Ren. Coco. Velvet. Erika. Iota. Eric. Penny. Summer. Qrow. Amber. Ozpin. Oscar. Albatross. Trinity. Mars. Tabus. Myst. Eros. Azure. Zorah. Echo. All of that made him press his finger down on the 'Y' command, Iota's astral fingers and Penny's own joining him in his act
In a flash of light, the whole shell of Cognitum began to unravel into blue streams of code across Sky's arm, consuming the very mass that had made Cognitum, but slowly, that same code began to infect his arm, quite painfully might I add. Sky grunted under the pain of the code ripping into his arm, the virus stretching through his arm, and across his shoulder, moving to infuse itself into his chest, to his shoulder and stomach, down his legs, and across his face, even across his eyes, forcing Sky to clutch himself painfully.
It felt as though his blood was boiling hotter than his skin could bear, his bones breaking and quickly mending with Cognitum's tech as the agony became almost unbearable. Yet he grit his teeth and bared it, if power like this cost him a few agonizing moments then he'd happily pay the price, he had to. Summer then had to place a hand on Ruby's shoulder to keep her from touching him, her own eyes unable to look away.
"This bloody huuuuurts!" Iota screamed in Sky's skull which filled only with numbers reaching levels of infinity
"EC-1101 has fully recognized you as the new cognitive processor! Now only the encoding of the armour remains!" Penny added rather too cheerfully. Sky would say something but he was still trying to breathe after that excruciating pain that still tingled through-out his body
Slowly, grey plating began to take shape across Sky's body, his boots sharp; Smooth, padded metal running up his legs with several spines pointed back off his shin, his armor became sharp around his waist, with blades jutting across his sides, plated with more armour around the back. His chest slimmed down to be near skin-tight metal with three horizontal gaps.
His pauldron wasn't big and bulky, but smooth, like a vulture's beak, with the rest of the grey armour coating his biceps down to his gauntlets, the hands gaining the same black, empty port as the chest. The gauntlets then shot out two straight blades with a triangular tip and an onyx edge.
His face was covered by a face mask, revealing two black slits of eyes. The helmet was narrow and shaped with pointed ears and a pointed forehead, giving Sky a similar appearance to Horus. A pair of large, trident-like wings, each split into the two pairs of three large segments folded against one another without a membrane ending in an opening designed to expel energy.
Overall, the armor crossed Red War's sharp accents with the compact nature of Shikari, the ears and helmet of Echo, and the knight-like build of Iron Regalia. Sky was about to comment on the style until a small, tennis ball sized sphere appeared, bobbing around Sky. While the orb merely looked like a glowing ball, to Sky's optical sensors he could visibly read the blueprints detailing the many augments and breakdowns of Form One, Iron Regalia.
Then Form Two, Echo appeared as a light blue. A purple orb was Form Three, Malware. A green one was Form Four, Shikari. A white one represented Form Five, Red War, then orange for Form Six, Dragon King Mode. All these blueprints, all the data collected, finally connected with Sky again for the final time.
"This is it... every design," He felt a little upset, these alongside Cognitum were the foundations and proof of every trial he overcame, and now they would be erased, hopefully not forever.
His armor cracked and peeled once the orbs all gathered inside his suit. The paint fell apart, revealing a golden tint within. Amethyst light coursed through the palms, the edges of his blades, chestplate, and eyes. The wings vents beginning to expel the purple energy with a low hum.
Sky could feel it, every armor he's ever worn was infused into the hide of his final creation, and its power was only amplified by Soul Surge, the purple tint to the outline of his shimmering form feeling just as warm and embracing as the first time, only far stronger.
"I think i'll call this one... umm..." Sky paused, trying to place the name, even as his body shivered from the aftershock of the merge, "Hrm, kinda still trying to recover from that agonizing process, any ideas?"
"Perhaps, Elysium," Everyone eyed Ozpin at his suggestion. "The place which exists at the ends of the earth to which certain favored heroes were conveyed by the gods after death." To Sky, that couldn't have been a better pick
"Nice choice, Professor, suits - no pun intended," Rubbing his chin, Sky eyed the location Charron previously stood once more, finally able to see what exactly kept catching his eye. Lingering in the spot was a strange, subtle pull in the air, a few bits of debris frozen around the nullified space. "...Guess this is it, guys."
Some of them looked among one-another, "Wait, are you planning to go alone!?" Yang caught on
"That's the plan, though Iota and Penny are with me." Sky informed her from under the helmet. "Please don't try and stop me."
"Like hell we won't!" Erika shoved her hand against his chestplate, scowling through his visor. "Don't you bloody dare take another step, Kai!"
"That's suicide if you go there on your own," Nora frowned for concern over her friend's dumb idea
"No way are we letting you do this alone, you saw what he did 'without' his completed state, imagine what he'll do now?" Weiss shared her concern too. "Kai, please, I know you want to but just - grah, just wait!" Weiss was getting flustered trying to come up with something to keep him here
"She's right, if we're doing this, we'll do it together like always." Blake reinforced, yet someone had to tell them
"You can't." Albatross raised his hand to stop Yang from interrupting. "I know what it's like, to put your faith in a single person who you want to keep safe, but we can't survive that close to the Remnant's core. But with that suit, Sky will, but it's also laced with Vex DNA, and since we don't have a God with us, his suit's the only real way to beat him" Albatross crossed his arms. "It's why Mars built it with the ability to adapt and create a living arsenal, so whoever wore it could stand a chance against Charron, even at his best."
Softly, a gentle chuckle broke their worries into a state of bafflement, Sky putting a hand out as he let his small moment of bliss last a few precious seconds. "Sorry, it's just... hearing all of you care this much just reminded me of my years before Remnant, when all I had was Erika and our parents, myself left with just two broken fragments of my personality for friendship, now, it all just seems really insignificant,"
"Each and every one of you has done more than I can ever hope to repay in a lifetime," He waved his hand around them slowly. "Each day at Beacon I learned so much, laughed, fought, cried, all of it was because you opened up to me, let me learn to trust again and ultimately accept and move on from my past, from what Rika did to me," Sky's hand twitched slightly still
He pulled his hand close to his heart. "I found a best friend in you Yang," She jumped at his words, holding a pained smile. "You always saw a reason to laugh, and put up with my cynical attitude for so long."
"Blake," Her cat ears perked up, looking back at Sky with her arms crossed tightly to her chest. "I don't think I've ever known someone to be so similar to me, we've both seen the darkest sides of human nature, but I found myself upstanding so much more talking with you, and reading together was always so much more fun," Her own lips broke into a smile
"Weiss," She couldn't look at Sky, wiping something from her face. "Even if we aren't related by blood, you and Erika are the two greatest sisters I could ask for, just know I love you."
"H-how can you just say s-something like that and..." Erika comforted her with a pat on the shoulder, letting her ease up against her, Erika herself trying to keep herself together
Stepping forward, Sky put his hands around Ruby, pulling her into a strong hug. "I don't plan on dying, but... if by some narrow chance I... can't keep my promise," Removing his helmet, Sky leaned forward as Ruby quickly turned her face, his lips and her own pressed together firmly for what felt like a final time, her arms wrapped around his neck. They leaned in further, not minding the audience they had as they broke away, breathless a moment, Sky could still taste a hint of strawberries on her lips. "...Just know... you mean more to me than anything else in this world."
Her smile, even though her own misty eyes and tight grip remained, felt just as warm as the day they met. "I know you do, dummy, because I do too." With that, she reluctantly let him go, his helmet concealing his face one last time
"And besides, I'm not alone," Raising his hands, two scans swept across team RWBYS weaponry. Ruby's webbed in red coding, Weiss in white, Blake's in grey, and Yang's in gold. "If you don't mind, I'd like to borrow your weapons - erm, well, the designs that is," After a slight stupor of confusion the girls unanimously nodded, holding out their weaponry for the scan to complete. "Perfect, thanks!"
[Augments Aquired]
[Downloading...]
[ID: Crescent Rose]
[ID: Myrtenaster]
[ID: Gambol Shroud]
[ID: Ember Celica]
With the upload complete, his gauntlets developing a medieval-styled Ember Celica, his blades became a thin, golden blade like Weiss' Myrtenaster, for his elbows and knees the bracers curved inward, guarding his knees and elbows with a blade, imitating Crescent Rose. Last, a black binding tied itself around his forehead, letting a slither bob in the wind while more black bindings hugged his armor at certain points, three blades of Gambol Shroud jutting from either side of his waist downward like a kilt.
"Take this!" Ruby called out to Sky, his hand quickly snatching the real Crescent Rose from the air.
Sky hesitated. "B-But Ruby, this is-"
"Nope, just bring her back safely, okay?" Her easygoing smile aided in his hands adjusting to the weight of responsibility held between his fingers
For a second, Sky merely held the Scythe-Rifle in his hand, spinning it around and attaching the weapon to his back between his wings. He gave her a nod, "Alright, I promise, now then, you guys ready?"
"It ends here," He replied with a grim tone to his voice, Sky's eyes lingering on the approaching rift that called out to him
"I'm with you until the end, my friend!" Penny offered a little more optimism for what could safely be said as the most challenging fight in Remnant's history
Sky merely took a glance back, everyone watching with varying levels of worry and hope, that was what their world hinged on, their hopes and futures solely on his actions. Tightening his fists he step forward, and he vanished without a trace or sign to be left behind.
[Remnant, space between Mantle and Outer Core]
Sky finally touched the ground again, for a moment he was left to wince under the strain of bright light before his HUD. Adjusting to the vibrance he stumbled forward, his eyes spanning to the ceiling of rock and crust above. In the world below was a gargantuan ocean of molten rock and fire, bubbling and erupting constantly with long, hissing arcs of flames. If not for Elysium, Sky wouldn't survive down here for long, but that was the least of his concerns.
Slowly, Sky stepped down the isle of what remains of a divided temple, distant structures of what looked to be a lost civilization, now split among pillars of rock that protruded from the ocean of magma. Sky moved past broken columns and made his way up a small step, moving to stand before a cliff face which overlooked the world below, and to his surprise, a maelstrom of lava began to form in the fires below.
"Woah!"
Now rising from the magma, a dark creature rose, magma flowing off its body like water as the Gaia monstrosity rose to its full height, towering hundreds of stories tall. Its form took on the appearance of a black serpent, with jagged, coral protrusions on its back, allowing for monstrous versions of the snakes Sky fought back in the Ascendant Plane to burst from its back, dozens slivering through the magma below, all looking up at Sky, hungrily.
"No way..." Iota breathed
A creature of such size made Sky look like a grain of sand by comparison. It had brown skin with its lower body and torso resembling that of a snake's, two thin arms with long purple claws, and scaly shoulders. The head itself was massive, mostly composed of jagged teeth with purple eyes dotting its sides in threes and its face looks like that of a reptile. Four backward-facing horns jutting from above the eyes. All the while energy flared from his head and down its back into the magma, turning it a sickly purple upon contact.
"Charron the Equinox," Sky muttered to himself. The overwhelming power housed just on the surface of Charron's perfected form was unbearable to behold, yet Sky wasn't shaking, for the first time since the day he dawned Cognitum against that Alpha Beowolf, Sky didn't waver. "So, think we can kill a false God?"
"Don't think we have a choice, you ready, Penny?" Iota responded in-kind, even through Charron's nigh unbearable roar that dislodged many massive stalactites from the ceiling.
"Combat Ready!" Penny saluted in Sky's HUD. Drawing his blades and fanning out his wings with a trembling roar in the engines, dozens of purple wisps expelled from the vents in his wings and chest, signifying he was ready to take off
"...right here, this is where our journey ends, Charron."
To Be Continued in the Finale...
Cliffhanger~! The end is nearly here! I'm so goddamn excited and sad that RWBY: Fragments is nearly over, but the finale is going to be badass, especially with Sky's final armored form. Next time, Charron the Equinox versus Sky Zaffre, bearer of Project Eclipse. Hope you enjoyed, appreciate the support as always, seeya in the final chapter!
Final Chapter: Memory Fragments Act 3 [Project Eclipse: Complete]
Sky confronts the Vex in a desperate attempt to save Remnant and so much more from calamity, but how great will the cost be?
