Chapter 51
"I won't allow you to harm anyone else!" Adam declared as he charged Ilia. Her whip lashed out at him but he ducked beneath it. Wilt sang as it was drawn. Sparks flew as he slashed at her, only for her Lightning Lash to shift in rapier mode and block his attack.
He took a step back and then came in again from another angle. She blocked again but it was slow. He could outpace her and overwhelm her.
So that's what he did.
Adam launched a flurry of attacks her way, constantly changing the direction and intensity of each blow. Ilia was quickly losing ground and Aura as his cuts made it through her defences. She couldn't keep up.
She's good. She always has been. But to be honest she never quite caught up to Blake, let alone me. And now that he wasn't holding back she was in a rougher spot.
She desperately tried to pour Dust down her blade, which caused lightning to spark and strike him whenever she managed to block him. A noble effort, but he took that energy and stored it within himself. It hurt but he could take it.
Ilia blocked another strike but this time she shifted her weapon back into whip mode and wrapped it around his blade, trying to keep him from continuing his onslaught. A smart plan but he had Blush at his side. His scabbard barked as he fired into her stomach. He used the opportunity to wrench his blade free and then kicked her in the torso to create some distance.
As she stumbled back he sheathed his blade and concentrated. As the red glow suffused the area around him he spoke. "Ilia! I don't know how to convince you, and if I can't convince you then I won't be able to convince her either. With that in mind, I have to take a different path!"
Memories filled his mind of all their time together. The three of them had had fun for a while. Adam doubted they would ever get to be like that again, but that didn't change anything. He was going to prove to them that they were wrong. But to do that he had to do more than just talk to them. "If you cannot be convinced then I shall arrest you both! Lock you up while I go to change this world! I will make it better for the Faunus! I'll show you how wrong you both are! But I cannot allow you to hurt anyone else! So I'll take you both down!"
I always wanted to change the world. It got caught up in my hate and spite and eventually in my love for Blake and desire for control. I have to move on and change the world, like I promised oh so long ago.
As Wilt came free he felt something click in his mind. His vision seemed sharper for a split second as his Semblance activated. The energy he poured into his blade changed and became fire. His blade came free and with a slash, he unleashed its power. A wave of flame was thrust forward to crash into Ilia.
It wasn't purely fire however, it still contained some of the usual kinetic energy. The combination wave threw his foe backwards through the wall. She rolled along the ground and came to a stop next to Fennec Albain.
Adam calmly stepped into the next room and looked around. The fighting had stalled from his appearance.
Sun stared at him and then pointed to his face. "Dude… your eye…" Adam gave him a confused look but pulled his sword up, using it as a makeshift mirror.
His blue eye was glowing, similar to how his Semblance made the colour red glow wherever it was on his body. It was… new. His eye had never glown like that before.
Ilia pulled herself to her feet, her Aura sparking and crackling as it tried to form a barrier around her. Adam calmly stalked over to her. She tried to use her whip but he ducked or blocked each attack. The fighting around them resumed. Ilia tried everything to keep him back but it didn't work.
He ducked under another attack and lodged the hilt of his blade into her stomach, shattering her Aura in the process. As she coughed and lurched forward he raised his weapon and struck down, slamming his hilt into the back of her head.
Ilia collapsed to the ground with a groan. She was out of the fight, for now at least.
Adam turned his attention onto the Albain twins. Neptune and Ghira were fighting Corsac and winning, whilst Sun was battling Fennec. Adam quickly ran to join Sun.
Fennec cursed and tried to get some distance but Adam wasn't having it. He still had energy built up from his battle with Ilia, so he sheathed his blade and then launched another wave of flame. He blinked in surprise as the fire engulfed his opponent.
I used it again? Seriously!? I trained for ages after the Breach to use it again and couldn't manage to do it again, but after using it once against Ilia it just works!? Damn and it feels like I drained a lot this time too! Adam shelved his complaints for later.
Fennec was still up after all.
Though not for long as Sun and Adam started their next attack. They'd been fighting alongside each other, and against each other, for a while now so they knew how the other fought. Fennec stood no chance as the pair struck him like a wrecking ball.
A flurry of blade and gun-chucks slammed into him. He didn't get a chance to retaliate at all. Within moments his Aura broke and Sun knocked him out with a smack of his staff.
Corsac stood no chance.
He tried to fight back but between the four combatants in the room, it took no time at all to overwhelm him. The Albain's had never been the greatest warriors after all. They'd been chosen for their charisma and cunning, not their skill in battle.
Thus they stood no real chance against seasoned fighters.
As Corsac fell to the ground unconscious one of the walls exploded as Scarlet and Sage were thrown through it, their Aura's were crackling and close to breaking. Adam ran to stand between them and their opponent.
"Heh. Adam Taurus." The White Fang Lieutenant chuckled. "I've been wanting to cut you down for a while now."
"Hey!" Sun said, rushing to stand beside Adam. "You hurt my friends! I'm taking you down, Banesaw!"
"Banesaw?" Adam asked, eying his friend.
"Well he hasn't told us his name, so I gave him one!" Sun replied.
"Hmph. 'Banesaw' huh? I'll take it!" The Lieutenant announced. "Although… this mission is a wash." He looked between all of his fallen allies. "I'll take my leave of you all. Taurus. We'll see each other again."
With that, the large man bounded off into the forest. Adam wanted to follow but after a quick look at his scroll's Aura meter, he changed his mind. His Aura was far too low for another battle. This fire attack costs way too much right now. Another one of them probably would have broken my own Aura.
Sun seemed to be of the same mind as he didn't give chase either. Adam turned and looked over them all. "Scarlet and Sage, work on securing those we've defeated! Sun go check on Kali! Neptune, I need you to make sure Yuma and Trifa are arrested."
"Got it!" They all chimed with varying enthusiasm. SSSN rushed off to comply.
"Ghira, we should make an address to the people."
"You're right." The older man grumbled.
People had already gathered by the time the pair exited the building. They chattered and worried.
Adam stepped out, took in a deep breath, and projected his voice. "People of Menagerie! The White Fang have attacked us! Led by Corsac and Fennec Albain, and under orders of their new Supreme Leader, the White Fang struck at all of us! By attacking the chieftain of Menagerie they have shown they have no desire to stand down!"
He walked down the steps, his arms open wide. "The Humans are not the cause of this! It's us! We allowed the White Fang to do whatever they wanted and now they have bit the hand that fed them! We granted them power, now we must take that power back! I will not stand back and allow them to misuse our power anymore!"
Once he reached the bottom step he beat his own chest. "The White Fang do not work for us, but against us! They seek war with Humanity! Do you all want to be forced into a war!? Do you want your brothers and sisters and parents and children and friends to fight and die in a war they didn't want!? WE have a chance to stop it! We are Menagerie, the home for all Faunus! WE get to decide if we march to war!"
Adam opened his arms once more, as if welcoming all of Menagerie into a hug. "Do you want war, Menagerie!? Or do you want to live in peace!"
There was a beat of silence before the crowd began to chant peace. To maintain their peace, their apathy, they must fight. They must go and stop the White Fang so that they can continue to ignore the world here on Menagerie. Thank you, Blake, for you have given me what I needed to change things here. They won't remain so apathetic to the world once they fight to protect Haven.
"The White Fang must be stopped! Soon we shall march to Haven and protect it! We shall show this world that the Faunus will not allow such evil to be done in our name!" He declared to triumphant calls from the crowd.
They had a lot of work to do, getting them ready for battle. But once that was done Blake and her forces wouldn't stand a chance.
I'm coming Blake. I'm going to make sure you don't hurt anyone else ever again.
The birds chirping was all that could be heard as Cinder stepped back into their Bullhead. Their meeting with Raven had gone quite well, all things considered.
They now knew Vernal was the Maiden and had the assistance of both in the effort to claim the Relic in Haven. Watts might have disagreed with her plan to ambush Qrow and his forces, but Watts could stuff it.
Cinder knew what she was doing. They had strength aplenty. Especially with Raven and Vernal on their side.
It would be an easy battle that out them far into the lead.
The fires had been put out. Menagerie guards were taking their prisoners away. Despite that, there were still outstanding issues. And one was going to make Adam's life worse.
"So he wasn't there?"
"No. Yuma was gone when I got there. Trifa was still there, unconscious. But Yuma was gone." Neptune reported.
"Shit." Adam growled.
Between him and 'Banesaw', there was still a threat on Menagerie. The best-case scenario was them retreating to join Blake at Haven. The worst-case was either an assassination or a prison break.
Adam called out to one of the passing guards. "Reinforce the prison! Make sure any White Fang are kept away from each other. Make it as difficult as possible for a prison break to free them." The guard nodded and rushed off.
Hopefully, they could keep Ilia and the others imprisoned.
A/N: And so the battle for Menagerie comes to a close and Adam uses an oxymoron to convince them all to fight for Haven. They have to fight so that they can sit around on Menagerie and not fight. Gotta love it. I didn't really want to use Banesaw as the name tbh, but it got really annoying using "White Fang Lieutenant" all the time. Oh well. Everyone but him and Yuma survived and was arrested. But with those two free there may yet be issues. Can Adam counter them before they start? Oh and meanwhile Cinder has Raven's support. No real change there.
Oh, and of course Adam's Semblance! He's finally going to figure out how this new aspect works! The specifics will come in a chapter or two, but essentially it's tied into his desire. He's been so focused on just getting Blake back, but if he can't convince Ilia at all then he can't convince Blake. So he has to try something else. Arresting them and then going off to complete his original dream of making a better world is what he's chosen. That change of course allows for his Semblance to evolve. As I said, more detail to come as Adam figures out how it works.
I hope you all enjoyed! I'll see you next time!