Chapter Nine: Atlesian Science is the Greatest in the World!
A/N: Again, sorry about the mis-upload on previous chapter
Maria stood, watching the scene play out before her. She was utterly floored as she saw the woman she had watched die nearly a month ago standing in front of her, squaring off with the leader of the Grimmlords.
Polendina looked the same, yet much different. For starters, her hair was longer than it was before, almost as if she had had it artificially grown that way. Her skin was metallic looking, reflecting like a mirror in the light of the candles and fireplace in the room. Her eyes were a deadly green, focused like lasers on Salem, the blonde seemingly shocked at the turn of events. Clearly, she had expected Polendina to buckle like the other men Maria could see around the room. Whatever Salem's power was, it was scary. She'd have to be careful.
"Polendina, how did you survive that explosion?" Maria asked, pointing at her old acquaintance. "You were in pieces and dust!"
"I told you, Maria Rose," Polendina smirked, glowing green eye moving to look at her. "Atlesian science is the greatest in the world. Now, watch the pinnacle of devastating science and research!"
With a flash of movement, Polendina's arm surged forward, slicing like a sword through Salem's hand. Salem gasped, more in surprise than pain. The Colonel punched her in the jaw, knocking her into the wall.
"We made measurements based on Tyrian's vitals and stats." A mad, gleeful look crept into the ginger's eyes as she stood over Salem, mad grin on her face as her eyes glowed like headlights. "And, I have been made to far surpass them. I know exactly how much I'll need to do to tear you apart and destroy you!"
"You're a fool if you believe that will be enough to stop me here," Salem had stood up, unharmed save her arm. She waved her other hand, the severed hand moving toward her with a sharp tug. With one swift motion, she reattached it, the hand fusing back to her body as she flexed her fingers to test her range of motion.
"Controlling gravity will not be enough to stop me from destroying you!" Polendina pointed as her eyes glowed brighter. Salem's eyes widened at the perceptiveness of the Colonel at having deduced her ability.
"Wait, wait, what?!" Maria exclaimed. "Her power is gravity?! How did you figure that out?!"
"She crushed my men without using her hands. And, just now, she moved her severed hand. She is able to focus gravity on certain things, manipulating them in regards to herself. However, that has its limits, which I am about to exploit!"
With that Polendina stood at attention, giving the Atlesian salute.
"You utter fool! Atlesian science is the finest in the world!" She exclaimed, her warped patriotism shining almost as bright as her eyes. She then held her hands out to her side, her back opening up like a hatch.
Maria's eyes widened as they took in the scene. It was a work of incredible ingenuity, to have taken the soul of a dead woman and contained it within such a machine. Of course, if she were being honest, she was surprised the ego had fit in the shell that now made up Penny Polendina's body. As she watched, glowing green blades rose from the hatch, totaling twenty in all.
At the same time, two large machine guns emerged from her stomach, barrels lined up next to each other. They glowed with a similar green energy to the swords, beginning to rotate at an unnoticeable speed.
"As I said, Maria, do not weep for me!" Polendina cackled, mad gaze fixed on Salem, who seemed almost as intrigued as Maria at the transformation Polendina's body was undergoing. "I have transcended beyond mortality to gain the power to destroy our common enemy! Hail to the fatherland!"
"Mechanical," She muttered, watching the glowing blades. Each blade was three feet long, cruelly curved and serrated to cause massive damage. The edges glowed a dangerous emerald color, humming and vibrating as if they could cut steel. A thin, almost unnoticeable sting was attached to each one, holding them within a few feet of Polendina.
"And now, Salem," Polendina's glee was barely restrained in her voice. "It is time for you to die!"
With a sound like thunder, the guns fired, ripping through the wall of the house with ease. The bullets glowed with a strange green glow as they raced toward Salem, holes riddling the Grimmlord's body as she was flung further back through the wall. As the guns fired, the swords raced forward, carving long gashes in her body.
"Choke on a thousand bullets a second, you vampiric bitch!" Polendina cackled, the blades continuously striking Salem like a deadly yoyo, the bullets continuing their assault.
Upstairs, Glynda and Oscar had gathered in a room with Oobleck, sipping coffee and waiting for news from the Colonel. Glynda sat calmly while Oscar impatiently tapped his foot.
"What is taking them so long?" He asked.
"They said they would get us when they received word of Salem's whereabouts." Oobleck sighed, trying to hide his own impatience. "But, yes, it does seem that they are taking a long time."
As he spoke those words, the house shook as if an earthquake had started. They grabbed the table and their chairs to hold themselves upright.
"What the hell is that?!" Oscar asked. "Atlas doesn't have earthquakes, does it?"
"No, there are no fault lines in Atlas," Oobleck seemed worried as well. "But, this seems to be coming from downstairs."
"What could possibly be going on that can cause such a massive shaking?" Oscar asked.
"We're going to find out," Glynda stood up, moving to the door and trying to keep steady. They followed her lead, making their way downstairs. When they opened the door where Maria stood, their jaws opened in shock at the sight of Polendina cackling as she blasted a double barreled machine gun out of her chest with swords blasting through the air toward a target.
"Is that… Salem?!" Oscar gasped. "Maria, what's going on?!"
"A dead Atzi soldier came back to life to take revenge on the Grimmlords," Maria pointed. "That's Polendina. She's somehow been turned into a powerful mechanical being. Of course, she actually seems more sane this time around."
"She seems to be doing well against Salem," Glynda observed. "She has her on the ropes."
"That's the surprising part," Maria bit her bottom lip. "I'm surprised this is working so well."
"Wh-What is this?!" Polendina exclaimed, continuing to fire as she watched Salem. The Grimmlord's body was no longer being riddled by the bullets; instead they seemed to be bouncing off. Even the swords, which seemed to be capable of slicing her to ribbons were making no purchase as Polendina kept firing them in reckless abandon. Salem's hand began moving, looking as if she was smacking the bullets out of midair.
"Her ability to control gravity shouldn't be able to let her block bullets like that!" Polendina shouted in alarm. "How is she doing that!? It should be attracting the bullets and blades to her!"
"Wait, did she say gravity?!" Oscar exclaimed. "Salem can control gravity?!"
"If that's true, it's such a frightening power indeed," Glynda felt her fists clench as she watched the battle between Polendina and Salem. While the bullets and blades were a blur, they certainly weren't making any tears or holes in Salem, now all of them being smacked away.
To Polendina's further alarm, Salem began moving closer to her, swinging for Polendina with her hand. Maria looked at the hand, seeing the air around the hand in question distorting, almost as if it was being pulled into her hand. It turned black at a small point, almost as if it was a miniature black hole. It became seemed to ripple the air, distorting it to seem as if it was sucking Salem closer to Polendina.
"I-I see it now!" Polendina looked closely at the hand as if came closer to her. "The gravitational field is reversed so that it is repelling the bullets and blades. She moved it quickly to block them all! I was right about it being localized to her hand though!"
With that, Salem's hand slammed into Polendina, the force of her gravity ability blasting a hole through the cyborg's chest, her body following shortly after. The Colonel slammed into the wall, her legs detaching from her body. Her waist portion looked crushed, as if someone had crimped it. She was still conscious, staring at the blonde Grimmlord in shock.
"She's incredibly powerful," Polendina whispered. "I couldn't have beaten her! Maria, it's up to you!"
With a wave of her hand, Polendina rushed forward, Salem grabbing her as she held her hand out. With a jerk, she ripped off the Colonel's uniform top. She grabbed the stone from the pocket, looking at it with renewed glee.
"I've waited four—no five thousand years for this!" She laughed, dropping the Atlesian. "Now, the Fire Dust Stone of Mistral is ours! Our true perfection is at hand!"
"That's what you think, you fool!" Polendina chuckled despite her position.
"Oh, and what do you think you can do to stop me?" Salem taunted the bisected Colonel.
"You utter fool!" Polendina's mad grin returned, her eyes glowing red. Unlike before, though, this time was much brighter, almost as if she had car headlights behind her eyes. "Didn't I tell you that Atlesian science is the finest in the world?!"
With a powerful burst of energy, two beams of light shot out from her eyes, striking Salem square in the face. They were brilliantly red, a contrast to her normal eye color. Where they struck Salem in the face, they turned her to stone. Salem hissed in pain, dropping the medallion. It began to slide down toward the cliff, picking up speed.
"Maria, get the stone!" Polendina shouted. "I'm in no condition to chase it!"
Snapping out of her shock at watching Polendina fight, the silver eyed woman shook her head, taking off after the stone. By the time she made it past Salem, the Grimmlord had recovered, joining in on the chase.
"Not good," Maria grit her teeth, running as fast as she could. Salem was faster, however, easily gaining on her. "She's most certainly faster and could survive the drop. I'll be a Rose Pancake if I go over the cliff! I have to stop her somehow! There's got to be a way to make it down to stop her! I can't let her get the stone!"
"Let me guess, Maria Rose," Salem taunted. "You're going to try and trip me, aren't you? Or, maybe kick me when I grab the stone? I know you can't survive the fall, but I can. You'll have to slow down, which will give me the advantage."
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch, you greek goddess looking bitch!" Maria focused on the snow in front of her. There were only a hundred yards of snow covered ground in between her and the cliff and that distance was rapidly becoming smaller with each step.
"We have to help her!" Oscar ran after them. He knew that he couldn't catch up to them, but he didn't have to. He just needed to be there when Maria got near the cliff.
"It's funny you say that," Salem smirked, taking a leap in front of Maria and grabbing the necklace. "But, I don't think I've done any underestimation of this situation. This stone will be mine and then I will kill you!"
"Well, you were right about one thing," Maria smirked. "I was going to kick something. But, it wasn't you!"
With that, Maria slid as if she was trying to steal a base. She kicked hard at the snow below her, sending it spraying up into Salem's face, blinding her for a second as she fell over the cliff. With the Grimmlord momentarily unable to see her face, Maria snagged the amulet with her foot, stopping short of the cliff. With the amulet on her foot, she smirked, watching Salem fly over the cliff.
However, the clever Grimmlord had anticipated something similar, her hand moving to the rocks under the cliff. With a swipe of her hand, she wrenched the rocks free of the cliff, sending Maria over the cliff with her. Maria yelped as she went over the cliff.
"You bitch!" She shouted, falling down. "I'll make sure you never get this stone!"
With that, she threw an Aura infused punch toward Salem, the Grimmlord smirking as she looked at it.
"Do you think you can send Aura into me to destroy me!? Fool!"
With a thrust of her arm, Salem's fist slammed into Maria, knocking the wind out of her as she spat out blood. The silver eyed woman slammed into the cliff, her head slamming into it an instant later, distorting her vision and causing her to see stars. Salem wasn't done, however, her hand open with the distortion of her gravity ability. Maria focused on this hand, charging her Aura into her fist. She threw a punch toward Salem's hand, intending to force her Aura into the hand, hoping the gravity would suck it into the Grimmlord's body faster.
"You idiot! Did you think you could use my own ability to infuse your Aura through me!? I'll crush you with this hand!"
With instinct, Maria held up her hand, the stone in said hand. Salem stopped her attack short, calmly staring at Maria.
"You won't attack me so long as I have this to use as leverage," Maria's face morphed into a grin. "Looks like I win!"
"Oh, but which of us will survive the drop?" Salem taunted. "Only I have that ability. Now, die, Maria Rose."
"Oh, but I never said I was falling," Maria smirked, her free hand grabbing onto an icicle that was falling. With her Aura, she slammed it into the cliff wall, the ice holding for a second before shattering due to the Aura in it, just long enough for Maria to leap up and out of Salem's reach.
"Roooooose!" Salem's taunts turned to anger as she realized that Maria had eluded her grip. Maria continued to climb, using the icicles to spear the cliff and climb. She gasped as she realized there were no more icicles to use as she was ten feet from the surface.
Maria felt her breath hitch as she realized this. She could use her Aura on water, even moving water, but something like ice was harder as the molecules were more solidified, preventing her from gripping and preserving it. Even with a solid object, her Aura could merely pass over it. The icicles were strengthened for her to have a quick grip, almost like the way she climbed the waterfall. But, now she was out of icicles.
But, it wasn't too late. Oscar had jumped down by that point, grabbing her hand as Polendina grabbed his foot.
"Why?!" The Colonel exclaimed. "Why would you jump like a fool!?"
"Because only Maria would do something so foolish," Oscar sighed as Polendina pulled them up. "And, her batshit crazy plans seem to work most of the time. So, I decided to take a leap like her."
"Looks like I'm rubbing off on you, Oscarino," Maria grinned as she sat down on the edge of the cliff. "But, thanks for that. Without you, I'd be a goner."
"Did you at least manage to get the stone?" Oscar asked.
"Of course," Maria smirked as she held it up. "I told you I had this in the bag."
"You said that when we were going to fight them in the first place."
"Well, I was right then and I'm right now."
"I think you both are insane," Polendina sighed, propping herself up from the snow by her arms.
"And, you seem to be a technical marvel," Oobleck walked out, staring down at the Atlesian soldier. "You seem to be even more immortal than them, considering you survived that attack. I think we can work together well."
"We will need to work together to destroy that monster," Polendina narrowed her eyes. "The time has come for true Atlesian pride. Let us go, Rose. We have another house you may reside at while we discuss our plans. This one overlooks the woods rather than a cliff. Hell, there's even an abandoned school you can look at, a marvel of our fair country."
"Why would an abandoned school be interesting?" Maria asked.
"It is a marvel of a building, even run down. Beacon Academy was the finest school in all the world when it was open."
"I've heard of that one," Glynda looked down at Polendina. "It was said that even some of the world's greatest scholars came from that school."
"Well, let's hurry up then," Maria groaned. "I'm hungry and it's almost dawn!"
Meanwhile, at the bottom of the cliff, Salem fell, slamming into the ground. She stood, looking down at the flowers she had narrowly managed to miss. She knelt down, touching them gingerly, looking up. Once she had stood once again, she looked down at her hands. A small chuckle escaped her lips, which grew into a maniacal laugh that echoed up the cliff.
"Keep the stone for now, Rose," The Amazonian built woman looked up. "I'll be taking it back soon enough."
"So," Maria sat down on a chair, bored; ten hours had passed since their encounter with Salem. "What are we gonna do while we're here?"
"We're going to plan our next move," Oscar rolled his eyes. "But, something's been bugging me."
"What?" Glynda asked.
"That school over there shares the address of the package. Do you think that's where they could be?"
"It's possible. But we shouldn't rush in."
"Of course you'd say that, Maria. You're being a coward because of those rings."
"No, that's not it. Do you really think that Salem and Hazel wouldn't know how to hole up until nightfall? They're millennia old, so there's no way they hadn't thought of it."
"Oh, please, you'll try and get out of this in every way you can."
"Maria's right, Oscar. We can't just run in blind."
"I have to check it out. My family's honor depends on it."
"Oscar," Maria put a hand on his shoulder. "You can't just rush into danger. You'll be killed."
"Didn't you hear me?! This is a matter of the Pine family honor! We need to avenge them as well as your family! I know about Cinder Fall and the mask that made her what she is."
Maria once again had to suppress the shudder that came to her at the mention of that name, something that didn't go unnoticed.
"See, you understand the weight of the situation! We can't just slack on this! We need to strike while the iron is hot!"
"You think I care about what happened a few decades ago? This isn't about my family any more than it is about yours. They're dead, so what? Sure, they fought some sort of good fight, but look where that got them!"
"I can't believe how insensitive you're being!" Oscar clenched his fists, suppressing the urge to pound Maria. "This isn't just their fight! As inheritors of their blood, we need to carry their torch to stomp out this evil at the source!"
"You're an idiot! Do you think I give a shit about what my family's legacy is?! I've been trying to get out of my grandmother's shadow for my whole life! I don't blame her one bit for it because she was a noble soul, but I don't want to be what she was! I don't want to be a martyr, destined to die to stop some 'great evil' or whatever!"
Maria was good at predicting things, but even she didn't see the fist slam into her face, knocking her over to the ground. Glynda sat there, cigarette in hand, watching the fight.
Maria stood up, punching Oscar's face. "How dare you!? Just because you give a shit about your family's legacy doesn't mean I have to!"
"I thought you had changed from your selfish ways," Oscar growled, turning to leave. "I'm going to that school. Don't try to stop me."
"Oscar, wait!" Glynda commanded. "We need to regroup."
"I can't do that!" Oscar shouted, running off.
"Oobleck, make sure he stays alive," Glynda looked at where Oscar had run off to.
"What's his problem anyway?" Maria rubbed her face.
"I understand where you're coming from," Glynda didn't answer the question, instead addressing Maria herself. "Your grandmother was a strong, noble woman who always did her best to do the right thing, so much it killed her in the end. Hell, she probably cried when she couldn't save Cinder. But, just because you might not live up to Summer doesn't mean you can't make just as much of an impact or make your own impact. Cinder Fall was a cunning and monstrous opponent, who is dead and gone within the remains of that ship. But, there is little you can do to run from your destiny. Sooner or later, you'll have to shoulder the burden your blood carries, the destiny to battle the evils of the mask and its creators."
"How did you know that stuff?" Maria turned to Glynda. "I never told you anything about my grandmother or family."
"Aura wielders tend to share secrets," Glynda took a long drag on her cigarette. "I know a lot about your family. Your friend Raven met with me some years back."
"Really?" Maria asked. "I didn't think you'd have known her?"
"She came looking for Aura wielders," Glynda glanced at the silver eyed woman. "She was worried about someone like Cinder or someone worse arising, potentially with a more dangerous cunning than she had. So, she asked me to become strong to be ready."
"What could be worse than Cinder Fall?" Maria asked, head tilted. "I mean, from the stories my grampa told, she was the most vile, evil person he'd ever met. How could someone be worse than that?"
"There are powers in this world you have yet to see," Glynda's voice was ominous at this point. "Powers that would throw you for a loop. I don't have such a power, but if someone had an ability more dangerous than the mask or Aura, they would pose much greater of a risk than even these Grimmlords. Take care to be ready if the need arises."
"You sound awfully naggy for someone who's supposed to be a teacher," Maria scoffed.
"I would prefer if you made it to be able to fight past this moment," The Aura instructor sighed. "Clearly, there are some lessons you should take to heart better."
"Yes, mom," Maria said with as much sarcasm as she could muster, rolling her eyes. Due to her rolling her eyes, she missed the look Glynda gave her. It was fleeting, gone in an instant, but held almost two decades worth of pain.
"Did you tell your grandfather where you were going?" Glynda shifted the topic. "What you were going to be doing?"
"No," Maria looked down. "I didn't want to worry him. He's already convinced I'm going to die young because of my blood and some curse."
"Well, considering both your grandmother and father both died from such a curse, his reasoning isn't unfounded."
"How did you know about my father? And why did you only mention him?"
"Your mother isn't a Rose. You told me as much during your stay. She would be excluded from a curse on your bloodline."
"I suppose that's sound logic. But, it still doesn't change that I don't plan to die here. I'm not going to be a slave to my bloodline's curse."
"Good. Excel past it, be as good as you can be. Hell, you don't have to follow in your grandmother's footsteps, but you need to at least not tarnish her memory."
"I suppose you're right. But… what's Oscar's story? He seemed way too upset for a simple fight."
"That is a long story. I will be quick and tell it to you."
As the story nears its climax, what will we see happen? Oscar and Maria have parted. Will they share the fates of their grandparents? We shall see.