Seconds after the bombs went off, there was silence. Then, the buildings began to collapse and the grimm began to fill the streets. It was nothing short of apocalyptic.
"Fucker!" The pink haired huntress whipped around, ready for a fight, but instead activated her magic and ran. "I swear, where -"
She had been separated from her wife when they had left Atlas Academy following a rather gruesome fight, one with too many shadows and figures from her past than she was ever going to be ready to confront. Now, her heart was pounding in her chest and her lungs were struggling, with all the smoke and debris in the air. She was gasping, continuing to run with her hand tightly around her gun. It had been over a year since the last time she had found herself needing to fight and the situation now was nothing short of dire. It was much worse than she thought it would ever be.
She was closing in on the location her sister had sent her and the only reason she kept herself running was because she knew Glynda would kill her if she went missing in action. Her younger sister had always been notoriously concerned about her - especially since they both had become huntresses all those years ago - and the pink haired huntress knew full well that it was not undue. So many times she had almost gone missing, following what she was sure was calling out for her. It certainly was the only reason she had some of the powers she had, though even now she wondered if her impulse was something Ozpin had manipulated, knowing she would be unable to resist.
It didn't matter. Right now, she had to get to the presidential manor. She was so close, too. Just a few more minutes was what she told herself. Push through, don't fall, don't get caught up in anything too reckless if you can avoid it. The grimm were everywhere and she knew full well that the hunters and huntresses and military personnel around her would probably hold this against her one day if they all survived. For the time being, she didn't care. The adrenaline was too strong, and it was entirely flight for her. She had been running or fighting for years; only once had she found herself frozen and she had vowed since then to fight until there was absolutely nothing left. She had to.
She was a huntress, after all. She had known for years that she was always going to end up having to push herself to and beyond the breaking point and it seemed this was that time. Fleetingly, she prayed that Qrow and Winter were still alright; she hadn't seen them in hours and she knew full well that they could be dead. Gritting her teeth, she cursed her brother in law and teammate out under her breath, her usually breathy, high voice, squeaky and angry. As she pushed her way onto the grounds and made her way into the manor, she only stopped running to catch her breath. This was a brief, relative safety. Every part of her aching from the pain of the fights and the noise and the adrenaline, she started towards the main presidential office where Glynda had told them they would be.
It didn't take long for her to find it. She flashed her ID at the guards who let her pass and she entered the office to see, first, her sister and the Atlesian President, along with Ozpin. Then, she saw James. Seething, she slammed down her weapons on the table and stormed towards him, her fists clenched. Without warning, she slapped him and reached for a vase, presumably to throw in his direction, but stopped short and instead pulled out her scroll and shoved a news article into his face. James knew full well he had made a mistake, but he couldn't believe how angry she was. It had been years since she had been so upset. Around her eyes and behind her glasses were the tell tale sparks of a maiden, and he knew as well as anyone that -
"Cat, calm down!" James caught her wrist before she could manage to break anything and evenly met her gaze. "This isn't my doing, this isn't any of our faults! Making things worse -"
He cut himself off upon the doors to the room opening. When he was sure she was calm enough not to do anything too impulsive, he let go of her wrist and sighed. Looking terrible, Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee stumbled into the office, although both young women seemed stunned to see not only the huntress and the General, but Glynda, Ozpin, and Atlas' President Ronnie Ciel as well. Ciel, for his part, looked absolutely haggled and his usually perfectly composed appearance was terribly awry. For once, he didn't look anything like the esteemed, arrogant politician Weiss had always thought of him as. He seemed painfully human, and extremely scared.
"I've got a lot of questions," Shara Winelend remarked dryly, stepping into the office shortly after the two huntresses. "What the hell are two kids doing here? We're about to -"
"Let them be," Ozpin told her, then turning to Cat. "I assume you know plenty of what happened at Beacon?"
She snorted. "You could say that."
"Wait, was she there -" Ruby began, confused.
"It's been quite a while since Team JGCS has been active," Ozpin put in shortly. "That, however, looks as if it will be changing tonight."
Ruby began to respond but found herself cut short when another group entered the room. Surprised, she and Weiss watched Robyn Hill, Emmett Schnee, Emmeline Ciel, and Willow Schnee all step in. Weiss stared at her mother in absolute disbelief; her aunt and uncle she was far less surprised by.
"And apparently Team WERE is reforming as well," Ronnie shook his head. "I will say, Willow, that I'm shocked to see you here."
"No more shocked than I am," She glanced away for a moment, guilt rising in her chest. "But I don't suppose I can run from these powers any longer."
Weiss' eyes went wide when her mother finally looked up, the tell tale sparks of the Winter Maiden around her own eyes and little bits of ice from her fingertips began coating the Atlesian President's desk.
"You're the Winter Maiden?" She exclaimed in sheer bewilderment. "When did this -"
"Happened while we were at Atlas Academy, actually," Robyn rolled her eyes and leaned against the wall with her arms crossed. "By the way, James, I've played the part of fifteen years younger than I am well, don't you think? Certainly set that bitch off the scent, if anything."
"Yeah, it was really effective," Cat scowled at her. "Of course, none if this is going to matter if she kills us all anyways, so I'd suggest saving your little pat on the back for later."
Robyn sent her a dark look. "Alright, listen to me you little shit, we're all -"
"Not in the mood," She said, waving her hand dismissively and activating her semblance in the palm of her hand. "Talk to the sparkle."
Robyn huffed indignantly but didn't say anything after Emmett elbowed her sharply in the side.
"By the way, Ronnie," Glynda finally said, sideways eyeing her teammates and their closest friends before turning back to him. "You are aware that what you're about to do might as well be dancing with the devil, don't you?"
"I am," Ronnie said shortly. "But it must be done. I am overruling James' decision to leave Mantle out of the picture and I am evacuating everyone from the kingdom to Vale via the military and declaring martial law. There is no other way."
Ruby and Weiss shared a horrified look. "But President Ciel -" Weiss protested.
"I would like you two girls and your teammates to lead at least two of the ships out," He said, standing up and opening the protocols to launch the Atlesian Emergency Broadcast System for the first time since 2001. "I presume Miss Belladonna and Miss Xiao Long are more than capable of leading a ship out?"
"I guess," Ruby swallowed hard, looking between all of them. "But what about my uncle Qrow, or...or Penny?"
"I haven't seen him since we were separated," Robyn hesitated for a second and then sighed. "As for Penny, she's dead. She died saving Winter Schnee, actually. And, before you ask, I don't know where she is either. Last time I saw her, she was with Qrow."
"Whitley's already been evacuated," Willow added, for Weiss' sake. "First ship out to Patch, alongside your cousins Lily and Sasha and your aunt Cristal and her and Oz's kids."
Emmeline nodded, glancing at her scroll. "That ship just landed safely in Lexenly. They'll be fine."
"The question is, will we?" James crossed his arms, and Shara shrugged, adjusting her crossbow. "I suppose it's inevitable, then, that our two teams are reinstated."
"Project Odile and Odette," Ronnie eyed the eight of them and then looked to Ozpin, unsure if he should say anything more.
"Teams WERE and JGCS had been meant to guard the powers of the maidens from the start," Ozpin eventually explained, stunning Weiss and Ruby. "Glynda is the Fall Maiden, Cat, the Summer, and Willow, the Winter. We still don't know what happened to the Spring Maiden...but we have never been able to find her."
"Exactly," Cat said, the lie rolling uncomfortably easy off her tongue. Sensing her tension but thinking it was about the fight from just hours before, Shara took her wife's hand.
Watts really had been all too skilled for his own good. But it mattered not now. He was dead, and that was the end of that.
"Back down, Arthur," Cat hissed, pointing her gun at his head. "You don't have anywhere to run and you might as well accept that for once in your life."
He laughed. "You still love me, don't you Catherine? You change your name but you're still the same woman. Catherine Marianna Goodwitch. You -"
He stopped short when she grabbed him by the collar and pressed the cold barrel of her gun against his temple. In his periphery, he could see her wife raising her crossbow as she slowly approached him, ready to fire.
"What is this?" He growled. "You two can't possibly -"
"After everything you've done, I don't imagine I'll have much trouble pulling the trigger," Shara told him as she continued to approach, trying to find the perfect angle. "Really, it is what you deserve."
He sneered, ignoring her and instead eyeing his ex-wife. "You've gone behind my back for years to try and stop my plans, even when we were married. You sent our daughter to Vale, didn't you? Where is Claire, if you don't mind me asking, Catherine?"
"Safe from you," She snapped. "I left you those ten years ago for a reason, and I haven't let her anywhere near you since. She's only seventeen, and, frankly -"
"So prideful, aren't you?" He smirked.
"Not in the slightest," She replied, her voice a dangerous whisper. "But it's because of me we haven't lost more lives. I'm doing what I always have, and it's what I need to."
Arthur raised an eyebrow. "As I am sure Jacques could tell you, it did not have to be like this."
"And it is ignorant to believe that either of you would have changed," She snapped. "So either back down now, or -"
Arthur managed to kick her off of him and, though her gun fired, it went off well out of range of him. Not holding back, he pushed his aura into the palms of his hands and blasted her far back against the walls of the Atlas Academy library. Her aura rippled in dark red waves over her, indistinguishable from her blood as she began to bleed. He then ran at her and pulled out his own gun, ready to shoot her, but instead being shot in the back back Shara. Realising in a split second what had happened as she fired three more arrows into his back, Arthur's eyes went wide and he slumped forward in a pool of his own blood. One of the arrows - he hadn't the time to know which - had pierced clean through his heart. After years of crimes, unlike his business partner, he was done.
He was finished, in the blink of an eye.
"Cat?" Shara helped her wife up off the ground the second she reached her. "Are you alright?"
She shook. "No."
Shara's eyes went wide in her surprise. "You...you weren't going to kill him?"
She shook her head. "That was never my intention. Arrest, sure...but I can't...I've seen too much death...the grimm are their own matter but...no, I couldn't. He…"
"Why not leave this just to me?" Shara reached up to cup her cheek. "If -"
"I wanted to teach him a little lesson," Cat whispered, her silver eyes brimming with tears. "That the past is never going to let us go, and he...he left so many...so many survivors in pain and I wanted him to know what could come for him at any time. I...I wanted to terrorize him the same way he has always terrorized me."
Shara pulled her in close. "It's over, Cat," She murmured. "Now we just have to deal with Salem and whatever hell she's bringing here."
"Cat?" Glynda cut into her sister's thoughts, eyeing her in concern. "Are you sure you don't need to sit down? You've lost a lot of blood in the last few hours alone."
She shook her head. "I'll be fine," She turned to Ronnie. "Need any help with that?"
"No," He took in a deep breath and finally activated the system. "This I must do myself."
The system glowed to life, casting an eerie shadow all through the office. Around the kingdom - in every city and every television set, radio, and scroll - the alert system went active for the first time in forty years. Nothing had thus far been so immediately cataclysmic since then; even the Fall of Beacon had not caused the Atlesian Council or the president to use the system. This, however, was unavoidable. Ronnie felt his stomach sink as the reality of everything around them set in. For all intents and purposes, this very well could be the end of the kingdom. The fall of the world's strongest military power, the freest and greatest kingdom, appeared to be at hand. It was an absolute blow, and that fact was setting in on them all; from Glynda and Cat Goodwitch; to Willow and Emmett Schnee; to General Emmeline Ciel and General James Ironwood; to Robyn Hill, Shara Winelend, and Ozpin; to Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee. The sirens that were about to go off were destroying everything they had ever held close and it was utterly terrifying.
"It is with the utmost regret that I inform the kingdom of Atlas that the end of what we have always known appears to me among us," Ronnie stared into the camera, doing nothing to hide how unkempt he was. "I am declaring a state of national distress, and request that all citizens evacuate via military transports.
"In twelve hours, martial law will take effect and I do not wish for any citizens to be caught up in any danger. If by some miracle Atlas does not fall, then I hope everyone will be able to return, survive, and rebuild our kingdom.
"But...if things go the way I fear...then I hope that the casualties are reduced. This was no accident...as you all are very well aware by now. I am sorry this information was classified for so long, but I do hope you all understand and take heed. The end may very well be already here...so, I beg you, do not let your guard down. Not now."
Deftly shutting down the broadcast system, Ronnie stared them all down and then sighed again, perhaps more defeated than any of them had ever imagined possible.
"Odile and Odette, go and try to mitigate the damage and prepare what you can," He finally said. "Ozpin, remain here with me. There are a few things you and I must discuss. And, as for you two young ladies," He eyed Ruby and Weiss sharply for a moment. "You have your orders, and those of your teammates. Make sure they know too, and begin the evacuation processes. If you happen to find Winter Schnee and Qrow Branwen, give them the same message. Is everyone clear?"
Emmett cast a wary look towards his brother in law. "Ronnie, what is it you're hiding from us?"
"Nothing material," He said. Outside, the sounds of more bombs going off became only louder again. "Go. You, Emily, Robyn, and Willow go to Mantle and deal with the situation there. Cat, Glynda, James, and Shara will address things in the capital. Just stay alive. All of you. What Ozpin and I have to discuss is immaterial."
"President Ciel -" Ruby protested.
"Go," He said shortly. "That's an order I will not repeat again. You know full well what's at stake, Miss Rose, and, if you don't, then I sincerely hope you figure it out sooner rather than later."
Author's Note: this story will be 30 chapters and, yes, is in large part inspired by the fact that Glynda is back and I simply cannot resist. Hope yall enjoy this take!
~~ xoxo sleepyCJ