Here we are at Chapter 84. Time for the volume 5 finale for this story, and to see exactly how the battle for Haven will conclude. I do not own RWBY or Tales of Berseria. They belong to their respective owners. Here's chapter 84. Enjoy.
Chapter 84: Ghosts of the Past
Out in the courtyard, the Faunus of Menagerie continue their battle with the White Fang, with the Mistral Police Force providing them assistance. Sun is jumping around, twirling his staff around as he knocks down a White Fang member to the ground. Several feet away, Ilia swings her whip around, wrapping around another member and shocking him until he passes out. In the center of the of the conflict, Rokurou dukes it out with Adam Taurus. Adam fires off his sheathe gun, but Rokurou deflects the rounds with his swords. Adam then sheathes his blade and runs at him, while Rokurou meets his attack head-on. The two get close and swing their blades, the two pieces of steel clashing and sending sparks out.
"Get out of my way. No one will stop me from getting my revenge against Blake," Adam seethes.
"It's a shame, really. A find blade like that being used to kill innocent people. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm no saint either, but at least when I killed someone, they could at least fight back. I never killed someone who was defenseless," Rokurou notes.
He then kicks Adam back and makes a few zig-zag strikes around him, getting a few hits in and then makes a cross slash that sends him flying to the ground. Adam staggers to his feet, only to see Blake standing before him.
"You'll pay for making a fool of me, and for everything you did to us," Adam threatens her.
"It's over Adam. More police are on their way, along with the huntsmen. You've lost," Blake says.
Adam laughs a bit, "Ha-ha, still too afraid to face me on your own. So instead, you send your little friends to do your dirty work for you," he says.
Just then, Rokurou lands in front of him and swings his blades out. Adam blocks the attack, but slides across the ground.
"Hey, what's so wrong about fighting alongside one's friends. As they say, 'strength in numbers.' Though, you don't seem to have many numbers on your side right now," Rokurou notes.
Adam looks around, seeing more of his soldiers surrendering or being defeated by Blake's allies. He looks back at Blake and Rokurou, who are now joined by Sun.
"You're alone, man. It's over," Rokurou says.
"Tell me, does Blake make all of her friends fight her battles for her?" Adam says, aiming his sheathe at them.
"Nah, it's a volunteer gig," Sun notes.
"You can try and make me regret coming here, Adam, but honestly... I've got more important things to deal with," Blake says.
Adam roars a bit and attacks. Sun twirls his staff around to block his shots, while Rokurou and Blake run at him. They swing their blades, forcing Adam to block Blake's attack and then jump back to evade Rokurou's. However, Sun comes in and swings his staff into Adam's face, followed by Rokurou swinging his right blade at him and sending him rolling onto the ground. Adam gets back on his feet and, seeing that this isn't a fight he can win, he makes a break for it to the forest nearby. Sun goes to chase him down, but Blake and Rokurou stop him.
"Sun, stop!" Blake says, stopping him.
"But, he's getting away. This is our chance!" Sun retorts.
"No, it isn't. He'll try to lure us away and pick us off one at a time. Our goal is to protect Haven. We need to stop the rest of the White Fang here. Besides... now he gets to see what it feels like to run away. Thank you, Sun. And you, Rokurou," Blake thanks them.
Sun smiles, "Eh, what are friends for?" he says, but then they hear the fighting going on inside the main building. "And speaking of friends; some may still need your help," Sun says.
Blake and Rokurou nod to him and head off to help their allies while Sun finishes things outside. Inside, the battle continues between Ruby's allies and Cinder's forces. The Dark figure fires off a blast of dark energy at Eizen and Zaveid, who both jump out of the way to avoid it. Eleanor runs in from the side and swings her spear at the figure, but he twirls over it and then swings his sword down on her. She blocks with her spear, but the figure fires off a smaller blast at her body, sending her flying back. However, Eizen appears behind the figure and conjures up an arte to send more stone pillars out, this time from under the figure's feet. He blocks with his sword, but gets pushed higher into the air. This gives Magilou the chance to use an arte, forming a large sphere of dark energy and send it down on the figure. The figure pours power into his blade and swings it upwards, slashing through the sphere, only for Rokurou to suddenly appear and slash his blades across the figure's body, flying by him and landing next to Eizen and Eleanor
"What took you so long?" Eizen asks.
"Hey, I'm here, aren't I? I had some business to take care of first," Rokurou says.
Meanwhile, with the others, Lionheart fires off a flame rock at Weiss' Queen Lancer summon, knocking it back, and then Hazel fires off a fire blast to destroy it, much to Weiss' shock. However, Blake suddenly appears through the smoke, kicking Hazel to the ground and then jumping up and landing next to Ruby and Weiss.
"Are you guys hurt?" Blake asks.
"N-No, I just remember you being more of the quiet one," Weiss says, still a litle surprised.
Blake readies her katana, "Not today," she says.
"Okay, so what's the plan Ruby?" Weiss asks.
Ruby looks around and fires off a shot at Lionheart when he tries to attack them, taking out the rest of his aura. Lionheart freaks out and is about to make a break for it, only for Eizen to appear and punch him hard into the chest, sending him to Rokurou, who impales him on his blades.
"No one escapes from the Reaper," Eizen mutters.
Rokurou pulls out his blades, and Lionheart falls onto the ground, dead.
"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me," Mercury groans, only to raise his eyebrows when Hazel roars in between him and Emerald.
"Eizen, can you guys handle the one in the cloak?" Ruby asks.
"Don't worry, we got him. You guys takes care of Cinder's lackeys," Eizen says as his group faces the dark figure, who regains himself and prepares to fight again.
"Alright then. Checkmate!" Ruby calls out as she, Weiss, and Blake charge into the fray.
…
Down in the vault, Yang joins up with Velvet as they confront Raven together.
"You okay, Velvet?" Yang asks.
"Yes, I am fine. Cinder and Vernal are dead, and I now have the rest of the Fall Maiden's power. However, Raven has the Spring Maiden's power. She was the true Spring Maiden all along," Velvet says.
Yang widens her eyes at hearing this, but nods as she faces her mother.
"I warned you two. I gave you both a chance to leave Ozpin and Qrow, and to not make the same mistakes as them and so many others. So, you two can believe me when I say that this wasn't personal," Raven says.
"Personal? You let your own brother and daughter walk into a trap that was meant to kill them, just so you could get the Relic. I'm not one to talk, but that's about as personal as it gets," Velvet retorts.
"You were going to open the vault, weren't you?" Yang asks.
"Yes, while you guys were fighting upstairs. I knew you two would be able to handle it. You are my daughter after all, Yang. And you're no slouch yourself, Velvet," Raven notes.
"The former Spring Maiden. She must've trusted you, and she must've had you in her final thoughts when she died. Ozpin and Qrow explained to us how the Maiden powers are transferred. At least, how they are usually transferred," Velvet says, glancing at her left arm for a moment.
Raven turns her back to them, "I'm sure they told you plenty, and you just sat and obeyed," she says.
"No, we're starting to ask questions like you said, so we're asking: What happened to the last Spring Maiden? Did she die in battle? Was it sickness?" Yang asks.
Raven turns back to them, "I don't see why that should matter to you," she says dismissively.
Velvet and Yang's eyes widen as they put the pieces together.
"You... You killed her. You gained her trust, and then had her killed just so you could gain her power. What the Hell is wrong with you?" Velvet asks, getting angry.
"...She was scared when we found her. Weak. No matter how much training I put her through, she never learned. She wasn't cut out for this world, and with those powers, she would've been hunted her entire life! What I did-," Raven begins.
"-Wasn't personal," Yang stops her.
"It was mercy!" Raven retorts,
"Mercy my ass! You use whatever, and whoever, to get what you want, even if those people die in the end. I've been there before. I've used people for my own benefit. I've gotten innocent people killed because of my actions. But still, I never betrayed my friends, and I never truly wanted to kill them. Unlike you," Velvet argues back.
"It's not that simple. You've said so yourself that you're no saint, Velvet. You did what you had to do to survive, just as I have. You should understand the things I've seen, the choices I've had to make," Raven says.
"You're wrong. I don't understand. And I especially don't understand putting your own daughter in harm's way just to gain more power. You think you know me, know her so well, but you're wrong," Velvet retorts.
"And you think you know me better than I know you," Raven says.
"No, we don't know you. I don't know you. I only know the Raven that Dad told me about. He said that she was troubled, and complicated, but she fought for what she believed in, whether it was her team or her tribe. Did you kill 'her' too?" Yang asks.
Raven is shocked by their words as she looks back, but then turns back to them as her powers start flaring, "I've stared death in the face over and over again, and every time I have spat in that face and survived; it's because I'm strong enough to do what others won't!" Raven retorts angrily.
"Strong? Who are you trying to fool?! You have others fight your battles, you run when things get too difficult, and you turned your back on your own family. You're not strong... You're just a selfish coward," Velvet argues.
Raven stares at her in shock for a moment before she screams and pulls out her sword, ready to attack... However, suddenly, a bright white light appears and engulfs the whole area. Everyone is blinded by the light for a moment before their vision clears and they widen their eyes in shock once more. Standing in between the three of them... is Summer Rose. Summer looks back to Yang and Velvet and smiles at them.
"S-Summer?" Yang mutters in shock.
Summer then turns back to Raven, still showing her gentle smile.
"Summer? No, this is impossible. You're dead. How can you be here?" Raven tries to make sense of the scene before her. Summer slowly walks towards her, and Raven aims the tip of her blade at her. "S-Stay away from me! You're not real!" she yells.
Summer stops with her face just a few inches from the tip of Raven's blade. She raises her right hand and gently holds the blade, moving it aside so she can walk closer to Raven. Raven is about to attack, but then Summer does the unthinkable and wraps her arms around Raven in a loving embrace. Raven can make no sense of the situation as her former team leader, who should be dead, is here now, hugging her. She finds her strength fading as she drops her sword, and tears begin to fall from her eyes. Summer separates from her and wipes the tears from her eyes, still smiling.
"Summer... How?" Raven almost cries.
Summer says nothing, but starts guiding Raven to the vault doors. Once they reach them, Summer places her hand over Raven's and coaxes it up and places it on the door. The door activates and it opens up, revealing some kind of dessert on the other side, with the Relic of Knowledge inside as well. Summer separates from Raven, who falls onto her knees, still processing all of this. Meanwhile, Summer walks back to Yang and Velvet, cupping Yang's cheeks in her hands.
"My beautiful little sun dragon. You've gotten stronger," Summer says.
"S-Summer, I-," Yang begins, but stops when Summer kisses her on the forehead.
"Keep looking out for your sister," Summer says.
Summer separates from her and nods to Velvet before she disappears and everything returns to normal around them. Yang and Velvet approach Raven, who has now started crying as they walk by her.
"You are powerful, Raven, but you're not strong. Not when you run from the fight and run from your family. Not when you're afraid of Salem, unlike us," Velvet says.
"I... I'm sorry," Raven cries.
Yang tears up a bit too, "Yeah, me too," she mutters, but then hears some noise behind her and they look back to see that Raven has vanished, leaving only a black feather behind.
They enter the other dimension and retrieve the Relic, finding it to be a lantern of sorts. However, Yang falls onto her knees and cries because her mother had abandoned her once again. Velvet pulls her into a hug, which she accepts, and lets her cry for a moment before looking up back towards the surface.
…
Back up top, the fighting continues as Ruby's group stand against Cinder's forces. Eizen and his group stand with them, keeping the dark figure at bay, while Qrow, Ozpin, and Team JNPR stand behind them, exhausted and injured from the fighting.
"That's enough. It's over, and you've lost," Ruby says.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," the dark figure notes.
"Oh, come on, you're getting weaker; I can see it. Your allies are toast and you're alone against all of us. Face it; you can't win this," Eizen retorts.
Mercury yells and pounds his fist into the ground in anger.
"It's not over. Cinder will come back, and she'll have the Relic, and she'll stop all of you... She won't let us down," Emerald says.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that," they hear and look up to see the elevator rise back up, revealing Yang and Velvet, with Yang holding the Relic of Knowledge.
"Yang... Velvet," Blake mutters.
Velvet smiles at her, "Hi, Blake. Been a while," she notes.
Everyone reacts differently, with Velvet's friends smiling at her in relief, while Cinder's allies looking on in shock and horror.
"B-But Cinder-," Emerald begins.
"-Is dead, and she's not coming back. And I am now the Fall Maiden," Velvet says, showing off her powers for emphasis.
Emerald falls onto the ground, crying at hearing of Cinder's demise. The dark figure tries to attack, but Velvet sends out a wave of ice from her powers at him, forcing him to fly back to avoid it.
"You can't win. This is your only chance to surrender," Velvet says.
The dark figure grits his teeth, "Not this time. I'm not through with you yet, Velvet," he says and conjures up some black mist around him, disappearing a second later.
With their unknown ally goen, Mercury and Hazel begins stepping back, "Emerald, get up. We need to go," Mercury says, but Emerald doesn't listen as she starts to panic. "Emerald!" he calls out.
However, Emerald's panic attack gets worse and her semblance overloads, affecting everyone in the room. A large black mass comes up from out of the ground, eventually taking the form of Salem, who screams at them and flies at them before everything goes black. A second later, the group look on, shaken by what they saw, and see that Cinder's forces are gone.
"W-What... What was that?" Blake asks.
"An illusion," Ozpin says, gaining their attention. "But, an accurate one. That... was Salem," he says.
With the battle now over, Blake sheathes her sword and sees her parents running into the building and runs to them for a family embrace, while also being joined by Sun on the sidelines.
"It's over. The police are rounding up the rest of the White Fang. Haven is safe," Kali says.
"Unfortunately, it appears that Adam Taurus got away," Ghira laments.
"It's okay," they hear and look back to see Ilia enter the building. "He's the only one that escaped tonight. Those still in the White Fang... won't follow a leader who abandons them. He'll be all alone now. And the White Fang will be divided and leaderless," she says.
Ghira sighs, "We've been fighting amongst ourselves for too long. Maybe it is time for a new brotherhood; one truly dedicated to bringing peace for everyone," he suggests.
"And they'll need a good leader," Kali gestures to him.
Velvet walks up to Rokurou, "Took you long enough to show up," she notes, hand on her hip.
"Well, I couldn't let you guys have all the fun. You know I love a good brawl," Rokurou says.
Velvet smiles and extends a hand to him, "It's good to see you again, Rokurou," she says.
Rokurou smirks, "Good to see you too, Velvet," he says, shaking her hand.
Sun looks back to everyone gathering together and smiles as he uses his tail to grab Blake and swing her around to face her old friends. Sun gestures for her to go talk to them, and she does. Meanwhile, Yang hands the Relic to Qrow.
"What happened down there?" Qrow asks.
"Well, when I got down there, Velvet had killed Cinder and taken back the Fall Maiden's power. Vernal was dead already, too," Yang says.
"And Raven?" Qrow asks.
Yang looks at him solemnly, "Gone," she says.
Qrow sighs, "Well, we're glad you're still here with us, firecracker," he says, a supportive hand on her shoulder.
Ruby suddenly starts to fall to the floor, only for Velvet to catch her and ease her down gently, "Are you okay?" Velvet asks.
"I'm fine. Just... tired," Ruby says as Weiss and Yang join them on the floor. Blake then approaches them. "So, Blake, what are you doing here?" she asks.
"I... could ask you guys the same thing," Blake replies.
"That's... a long story," Ruby notes.
"Well... I'm not going anywhere," Blake says.
"And that's all that matters. That we're all together again. Right?" Ruby asks as they look to Yang.
Blake gets nervous by her stare, but Yang eventually nods her head and smiles, "Yeah," she says, happy that Blake is back.
Blake smiles back and Weiss extends a hand to her. Blake joins them and all five girls share a heart-warming embrace after being separated for so long. Team RVWBY is finally back together. Off to the side, the others watch on, happy at the reunion. Velvet eventually gets up and walks over to her old friends.
"Thanks you guys. For everything," Velvet says,
"Hey, that's what friends are for," Eleanor says.
"So... I guess you'll be going now, huh?" Velvet asks.
"Yes. We could only stay for a limited time. We still have things to take care of back in our world. But don't worry, with friends like them, I know you'll be fine," Eizen says, nodding to her teammates.
Velvet smiles back at them, "Yeah. You're right. Take care of yourselves. And goodbye," she says, and out of the blue, hugs each other them; surprising them.
"You really have changed," Rokurou notes.
"Yeah, I have, and I have them to thank for it," Velvet says, nodding to her teammates.
Just then, a white light engulfs the room and Summer Rose appears before everyone again. Everyone is shocked to see her; Ruby most of all. Summer walks up to her and cups her cheeks.
"My beautiful red rose. You've made me proud," Summer says.
Ruby tears up, but smiles, "Thanks, Mom," she says.
The mother and daughter hug each other while everyone else watches on. Soon enough, they separate, but then Summer looks over to Qrow, who is still shocked to see her again. Summer walks over to him and puts a hnad on his shoulder.
"You've been a good teacher to them, and a good uncle," Summer says.
"I, um, I try," Qrow says, still in shock.
"Just don't go giving them your bad drinking habit, or else I'll be back," Summer says and then walks over to Velvet's old comrades. "Goodbye, everyone. We'll meet again soon. Someday," Summer says.
A white light engulfs them again, and this time when it ends, Summer and Velvet's old friends are gone.
"Wait, uh, where did they go?" Nora asks.
"Back home. Where they belong," Velvet says, and holds Ruby's hand. "But my home is here now. With you," she says, making Ruby smile and kiss her cheek.
Qrow then approaches Ozpin, who's on his knees, breathing heavily, "Oz, I can't talk about what just happened there, but what I know for sure is that we won today," he says.
"That's... good," Oscar says, revealing that he's back in control.
"Kid?" Qrow asks.
"He's... resting... Too much energy fighting," Oscar wheezes.
"Whoa, hey, don't strain yourself," Qrow says.
"No! He said... we have to... get the Relic to... Atlas," Oscar says before he finally passes out.
Qrow catches him and gently places him on the floor so he can rest. Qrow stands up and looks to everyone else as they celebrate their victory. He then turns his attention to the Relic of Knowledge, which starts glowing again, and sighs...
…
In Salem's domain, Salem watches the outside of her lair before the doors to her room open, revealing the dark figure who enters the room.
"I don't know who you are, but even if you aided my people, without success might I add, you'd better have a good reason for trespassing in my domain," Salem warns him as she turns to him.
"Simple. Velvet Crowe," the dark figure says.
This gets Salem's attention, "I'm listening," she says.
The figure removes his cloak, revealing a young face with golden-silver shoulder-length hair, and golden eyes that have a tinge of red to them on the edges.
"I can help you defeat her. You may call me... Innominat..."
And that's the chapter, and the volume 5 finale. Ruby and Velvet's group save Haven, claim the Relic, and stop Salem's forces, this time. Velvet's old allies go back to their world, while an old enemy reappears to stop Velvet. I put those moments with Summer in there because I wanted to and I thought they would be good. I'll explain how she could appear in the near future. Anyway, now that Haven is safe and the Relic is secure, what is next for Velvet's team? And will she be ready to battle against Innominat once again? Until then, please Read and Review.