Ares stalked through the forest in his monster form. He was carrying numerous tusks of the Goliath Grimm in his arms and some were wrapped in his tail. Grimm population was at a good level in his eyes, they were prey for the monsters and it gave them needed energy. Energy for their natural armor and to shift in between forms. He could see why humanity wanted to start expanding seeing as to how Grimm population was at an all time low in their eyes. As time passed by and his family grew, he began to care less and less of what humanity was doing. If they wanted to expand within Vale then so be it but he wasn't going to share his territory with them. He fought, bled, and colonized these woods so they were his. Monsters just wanted to be left alone and were content with living without society's shackles.
The sudden shift on his shoulder made him snort when Ken kept asking questions. He had been more talkative these last few days and it brought a smile of relief to him. Ken's condition was still a mystery to him but he at least took him on hunts and fights, letting him observe from a safe distance and even participate in some of the killing. Both of them had observed Grimm to figure out which one had the best armor and chalked it up that the Goliath variant had the best defense out of all the encountered species. Grimm used to be the apex predators for countless years but in the span of a year their numbers dropped drastically in Emerald Forest seeing as there was a new predator residing in the woods.
A trail was carved from the countless trips of wild animals that were hunted and dragged across to the numerous pairs of feet that the children and others had used to go in and out of the village. Eventually, he came across that trail and saw the stone gates start to slowly open when stomping was heard in the distance. He saw countless Behemoths exit the gate and begin to crowd around it while he just bend down and pushed the tusks towards them before turning a bit to guide the ones in his tail to them. They nodded at him and began to lift the tusks together and bring it inside while he just bent down and let Ken slide off of his neck safely. He nudged Ken inside with his snout while he just stood up to his full height then let out a plume of smoke.
His sensitive hearing picked up the sound of babbling while his nose picked up two familiar scents. Pretty soon he bent down and peered through the entrance of the gate to see Michelle holding Emma in her arms as she walked up to him. All he did was wait patiently while she walked before she reached him after a few minutes. Deep rumbles echoed as Michelle put her hand to his snout and he leaned into it, not to much or he would've knocked her over but just enough to let her feel that he was enjoying it. Pretty soon, Sistine had joined in and rubbed her hand against it while he just closed his eyes and leaned into their touch. It was nice, such soft hands that shouldn't be tainted in blood.
As much as he wanted to stay here and feel their soft touches for eternity, he still needed to hunt and scare off any potential intruders. Humans were tricky in his eyes; show too much compassion and they'd take advantage of it but show too much aggression and they'd find ways to eliminate you in the future. They feared what they didn't have a clue at or understand and that pushes them to destroy it. All they need to understand was that the monsters wanted to be left alone without the fear of mankind trying to force their ideologies onto them. He nudged them back inside after they gave one last pat then headed out into the wilderness, walking for about a mile before he reached a small opening.
In the opening was actually a basin that was used to collect underwater materials for the monsters. Unlike some, this was fresh with wildlife and the water was clean enough to drink safely. He let his snout dip underneath the surface then began to take large gallons of water and let it run down his throat. It soothed his throat a bit and would often evaporate when he shifted back into his hybrid form. As he was drinking the water, something caught his eye and he looked to his right to see the shimmer of something before his head jerked to the side slightly. It was for a second but he saw all that he needed; a hunter, not a huntress or huntsman, but a simple hunter who wished he could test his luck and try to take down a monster. He didn't move for a second but in the span of several seconds, he was already on the hunter and gripped him in his right hand, ignoring the man's screams. Still ignoring the pitiful screams and relishing in the fear that replaced the man's smugness, he opened his mouth and put the hunter in his jaws.
A wet crunching sound was heard as he suddenly bit down with tremendous force and felt the warm blood drip down his maw. The metallic scent flooded his nose as the warmth of the red fluid dripped down and landed on the ground in globs of blood. His teeth sawed and mashed the torso into a paste before he suddenly threw the rest of the man into his mouth and began to chew loudly. Bones, organs, and blood swished around in his mouth before it went down his throat and was soon to be melted in his toxic stomach acid.
Something in the brush a couple of yards away made him look and his eyes caught sight of something within the trees. He merely crouched down and started to sniff carefully and eventually found the scent of civilization; one of industry, Dust, and even perfume. All he had to do was follow the scent and eventually he found another hunter hiding in the trees. He acted like he didn't see her as he got close and stared directly at her for several seconds before moving away. His form stomped away and eventually began to disappear within another set of trees while she just breathed in relief. Her heart racing at a rapid pace and it seemed to skip several beats in the meantime. Pretty soon tears began to leak from her eyes and she started to sob loudly, most likely drawing Grimm if there any nearby but all she did was tell Ares where exactly she was at.
He picked up a decent size boulder, not to much to where he'd demolish half the forest but enough to where she couldn't move out of the way or dodge it then hurled it at her. She barely had time to look before the boulder smashed into her body. The impact alone killed her while the crushing force of the rock and the ground smeared her body on the dirt below. Bones cracked viciously while her organs shifted into different spots as it collided with her. Pretty soon her body skid against the ground and left a bright red trail of scattered bones, organs, and blood.
His massive body turned to the side to where he found the camp that they were settled at about two miles away and stomped towards it. It took a few minutes but he eventually reached it and started to burn it to the ground with his fire. They were spying on the monster home since he found various pictures scattered. A monster's eyesight is extremely effective when spotting prey and can spot its prey from up to two miles away and their noses are greater than a bloodhound's. His anger took a turn for the worse he saw that there was a picture of Emma and a target painted around her. At first, killing those poachers would've made his stomach sink a little, but now all he wished was that he could've taken his time in ripping them apart.
Something climbed up on his tail and quickly scaled his back before landing on top of his head. He already caught the scent of poison and he didn't need to look to see who it was.
"What are you doing out here, Arachne?" He rumbled.
"What, I'm not allowed to go outside the village?" She asked as she flipped onto her stomach and had her head resting in her hands.
"I never said that. I wanted to know why you were out here. You never seem to want to go out of the village anymore." He commented.
"I'm hurt." She feigned dramatically.
"Good." He said as he stomped through the forest, leaving giant footprints in the ground. It went quiet for a while as she just traced her finger on the top of his armored head gently.
"I came out here to look for you..." She said quietly.
"It's not like you to say stuff in that tone. What's wrong?" His eyes trailed up in an effort to see her in his blind spot but eventually turned his head back to the path ahead.
"It's about sleeping with you guys..." She said.
"There a problem with it?" He asked.
"What? No, yes... I don't know. The problem might be that I just come in at random times and it feels like I'm intruding." She tapped her fingers together.
"That's the problem? You're not." He glanced at her direction.
"But-" She started.
"Arachne, you're a Gorgon. You all are naturally drawn to warm or heated areas. I've seen random Gorgons go to Goliath or Behemoth huts regularly since they're warm and let them sleep comfortably. If coming in and sleeping with us makes you more comfortable then you're welcome. Michelle and Sistine enjoy it because they like to cuddle like children and I don't care because it doesn't bother me that much." He explained.
"Does this mean I can watch you guys have sex then?" She grinned. Her question threw him off guard and he choked on some heated saliva before he just sighed and plucked her off of him and set her on the ground, walking away quietly. She called his name numerous times but he ignored her for the next several minutes. Eventually he picked her up and set her back on the top of his head and continued to walk, or rather stomp towards the village.
"Depends on if Michelle and Sistine are in the mood. It's hard to tell with those two." He said.
"Do tell. Please do." She grinned wildly.
"Michelle surprisingly likes it soft while Sistine likes it rough, complete polar opposites of what they're like." He said. A excited giggle was heard from her and it didn't really phase him like when he had first met her, her laughter almost seemed comforting sometimes as opposed to an annoying one when they had first met. Silence seemed to bask over them for the next several minutes as they neared the gates and he bent down so that she could go inside but not before she gave him one last rub on his snout. He watched as she headed inside before standing up to his full height and turning back around to go hunting. The wildlife population was extremely plentiful so there were no worries about running out.
The monsters often hated it when they went hunting and encountered people from civilization. Most would leave after receiving threats of snarls and barks while others would leave after literally being chased for a mile or two. There were always that lot that tried to take them on then perish in the end. Monsters have been in these woods for about a year and a half at this point and civilization knew their behavior, how territorial they were. Ares usually marked his territory by slashing numerous mountains and trees or leave an isolated section to continuously burn. He encountered a small group of monsters at one point and didn't attack them but simply observed them in his monster form. It was not that uncommon for a group of monsters to make their home in the village and find out a role.
Every single monster knew that Ares ruled supreme and they didn't have a problem seeing as to how he ruled fairly. They were prepared to die for him as he was the same.
The snow melted and a lot of the children were happy to finally bask in the warm air. Ken wasn't one of those children to be honest. He merely crafted items in the back of his class while the other played. It wasn't the same as before when the children would play, there wasn't as much fun since he got in that argument. The most he really did was go hunting when he was hungry and scout for materials to craft more items. He didn't really enjoy playing much anymore. Playing meant that he was limiting himself from learning and that bothered him now. Rei seemed to enjoy playing with the children and Frost, even Mimi now more than ever, but she didn't really talk to him anymore. She did but it wasn't like it used to be. She only talked to him when she needed help crafting or simply with their lessons but never to spend time with him.
In truth, she was wary of him. She didn't like this new side to him and it bothered her whenever he had to stop what he was doing to just help her. It felt like she was starting to become a burden to him. He was one of the smartest students in her classes yet he just kept to himself and only helped when the person wouldn't leave him alone. She knew that he was already limited to what he could create in class since he put several other children to sleep for a couple days using a concoction he made.
Frost felt the same, as much as she like roughhousing with the others, she didn't like doing it with Ken. Whenever she did it with him to play around, he went too far and was aiming to maim or kill her. None of the other children wanted to roughhouse with him either, he may not have participated that much in class during combat but he always found some way to win, regardless of how hurt he got. He was observant and it showed, he relied on smarts to win rather than strength.
Mimi absolutely refused to go near Ken at all. The runt of the Royal Family was downright terrified of him, always running away in fear when he got close despite him not looking in her direction. When he first met her and began to help her with her confidence, she looked up to him and eventually found herself seeing him as a close friend but now it was like he was a demon. Though, she did try to have a conversation every now and then, to which she was trying to now.
"H-Hey, Ken?" She gulped.
"Yes?" He asked.
"I-I need help." She said.
"With what?" He didn't look up from the poison dart he was crafting.
"Crafting this." She put out a drawing of a club, making him look at it for a few seconds.
"Have you attempted it first?" He went back to the dart.
"A lot... it's hard." She said. It was silent for a while as he just finished his collection of poison darts before turning to the crude drawing of the club, noticing several things wrong with it.
"The handle is too short and the striking part is too wide. You're probably collecting the wrong materials also, something most of the others do." He said.
"I mean... it's hard to craft weapons." She murmured.
"It's not hard, half of you don't pay attention to class or craft enough. We have the survival test the next full moon and half of the children don't even know how to hunt successfully." He said as he went to the back to collect the right materials. A new thing had begun, the survival test was meant to gauge a Monster's ability to handle the wilderness. There was one every season and the children were tasked with surviving by themselves but their wits. It was a grueling task. They were being sent into the wilderness for three weeks far away from home and were meant to make it back. While it was dangerous, this would be a terrific learning experience since it meant applying all that they learned in their lessons.
"When is that? All of the Royal children are wondering." She said.
"It's next week." He answered, sighing when he heard her choke on her spit. She started to panic erratically and start to hyperventilate before he stood up and chopped her in the top of her head and made her eyes water.
"What was that for?" She whimpered.
"Stop whining. Judging by the fact that you are panicking means that you aren't even remotely prepared. I take it the others aren't either?" He asked. A simple shake of her head made him deadpan at her before sighing and gesturing her to go get the others. She scrambled out of the cave and he was alone for the next forty-five minutes, just waiting for the others. How were they going to accomplish this if none of the others took this serious. It was clear why the elders and Ares made this test, it was to see if the children could actually thrive when they got older. Others may not have taken it serious but he did, there were too many things that could go wrong and it was a good learning experience. They weren't going to be kids forever and some would probably want to move around.
He figured he'd at least help them because he really didn't see himself working well with others.
Countless parents and older monsters watched as the children adolescent monsters stood by the gate. It was the day they would be put to the test to see if they could survive and thrive like adult monsters. Some knew it wouldn't be that long but they couldn't help but worry as they would receive no assistance unless the situation absolutely called for it. Ares knelt down and stared into his siblings' eyes with his hands on their heads.
"Take care of one another, okay? This is a big step and it's going to be hard for you." He said to them. Rei gave a wide smile to him and hugged his neck before running over to the other children at the gate. Ken was about to do the same but was stopped when Ares gripped his arm.
"I need to go." He said.
"I know, just... Ken, make sure you take care of the others." Ares said.
"I thought that's what this test was for, to test if we see if we can survive on our own?" Ken asked.
"It is, but I know you're more prepared than anyone else. The only thing that worries me is the fact that there might be soldiers in the area, if you see any then you fight if cornered then run, okay?" Ares asked.
"... Why are you telling me this?" Ken tilted his head.
"Because I know hiding something like this will upset you. Ken, listen, you and I both know a war is coming and it's coming fast. I want you all gone in case an attack happens at the village so you all can survive." Ares answered.
"Wouldn't it be better to tell everyone?" Ken asked as he turned to look at everyone.
"Some of them couldn't handle the news or would make foolish mistakes. I'm telling you because you would know what to do, should something happen to me-" Ares said.
"Nothing's going to happen to you." Ken crossed his arms as he stared at his brother.
"Ken..." Ares rubbed his head.
"Nothing's going to happen to you because you're too strong to fall. You and everyone else are too strong to fall, if I need to stay here to make sure that doesn't happen then so be it." Ken said. Ares blinked for a few seconds before chuckling at his younger brother and ruffling his hair with a smile on his face.
"I need you to take care of the others on the test. You can lead them should they stray too far." Ares said.
"What about the mothers, young ones, and the sick?" Ken asked.
"I have made a path to a safe location, do not worry about us." Ares stood up.
"How long are we going to be out there now that you told me this?" Ken looked up.
"A month. You children will stay out there a month until or until the monsters come look for you all. Remember what dad used to say about his travels." Ares said.
"Let the wind guide you to a path of survival." Ken started.
"Then let the wild be your warmth in the night." Ares finished. He stumbled a bit when he felt his brother slam into his stomach and looked down at him. It didn't really take a genius to figure out that he was worried about everyone. Despite Ken being bitter and antagonistic towards others, he did care about the well being of the village. Just because he wasn't as social as he was didn't mean he was a complete stranger to empathy. It took several minutes but he managed to pry Ken off his stomach and nudge him towards the gates.
The children waved their goodbyes to the adults and younger children while an escort of Behemoths and Goliaths led them to the survival grounds. All he could do was stare at their retreating figures while Michelle came by with Emma in her arms, his eyes were still locked onto their figures while he took his daughter in his arms. There was a part of him that was worried for the safety of the children but part of him wasn't. He was doing this so that just in case the village was attacked, they could be safely away from the conflict. The younger ones and mothers would take a nearby passage to an underground system to keep out of harms way.
He knew civilization wanted revenge after they had escaped from its clutches. He may not have been as smart as those scientists in that lab but it didn't fly over him that bringing about the death of innocent people would be forgotten, someone wanted payback at the Monsters. Those soldiers that attacked during Emma's birth was an evident sign of that. Her tiny hand grabbed his ear and she tried to gnaw at it but he smiled and pulled away at the last moment. She seemed to do this several more times before giving a toothless smile at him while he just smiled back and nuzzled her. There was a familiar weight on his right and left side, and he turned to see Sistine and Michelle smiling at him.
All those bitter thoughts seemed to melt away as he just smiled warmly at them. His head craned towards the village to see some of the other Monsters start to do their daily duties or go back to their huts while he decided to do the same. Some of the younger children played near the middle without a care in the world while mothers carried some infants and toddlers on their backs in soft cloths acting as carriers. Female Goliaths had spikes on their backs but had the ability to essentially suck them into their backs for comfort. It was useful for carrying children on their backs or to sleep better. Males could shorten their also but it still was evident that they were there.
Ares' spikes could be sucked into his back until it was only about a couple of inches long while Michelle and Sistine could do it until they were completely gone. As the three of them were heading to the cave and entered it, he put Emma down and gently rocked her to sleep in her crib. He looked at her one last time before heading off to bed considering the day had started to drip into the evening. The familiar weight of two bodies made him close his eyes but the third one caught him by surprise and opened his eye to see Arachne lying on top of him.
"You said I could sleep in here from now on." She said.
"I meant when you were cold, not for when you just feel like it." He countered.
"So mean." She gasped.
"To this day, I still will never understand you." He sighed.
"Good." She said quietly then fell asleep shortly after. He looked at the other two, who were already asleep, before shrugging and closing his eyes also.
Everything after that seemed to come to a crawl and the night sky seemed to take over as Monsters turned in for the night. No one was aware of the drone that passed over the village, observing it for a while before taking off to another section of the forest to scout certain individuals.
Two weeks had passed when he noticed something was wrong. A deep sense of dread filled his body and he looked around to see that everything was fine according to his eyes but his stomach felt something different. It was like that sense of worry seemed to fill it and make it sink like a bag of stones to the bottom of the lake. The day progressed slowly and agonizingly as if to mock and eventually sunset came. Not even spending time with his family and going hunting seemed to make the sense of worry erode away. He wasn't the only one who had felt this, Buck and the Corpse-Eater had felt it too, he could see it in them.
Both were more alert than usual; their muscles glowing brightly, tails stiff with tension, and eyes darting back and forth. The three didn't know why but they felt something was wrong with the forest and it made them wary. Sistine and Michelle tried to calm him down with their affection but he merely stared ahead with a hand against his head, thinking of all the possibilities that made him feel this way.
It was early into the night when the Corpse-Eater rushed into the cave, bowing slightly before addressing them.
"The children at the survival grounds. Gorgons-" He didn't get to finish before Ares rushed out the cave, nothing but his hoodie that the children had made for him years ago. There were calls to his name but he ignored them then sent orders for a group of Monsters to come with him, naturally Buck and the Corpse-Eater came along shortly after and soon caught up with him. The survival grounds was an hour and a half away from the safety of the village but it would probably take him half the time seeing as to how he was jumping across the thick branches in the trees and across bodies of water should the need arise.
The group of Monsters that were following him were silent as he was as they traversed their way across the forest, in hopes of reaching the children in time. The minutes turned to tens of minutes and even that felt like hours to him before he reached the makeshift camp the children had set up.
Only to find it in ruins.
There were signs of a struggle as the camp was ransacked and on fire. Eventually, after a few minutes, the other Monsters arrived and their hearts sank a bit at the sight. He frantically turned and began to look around with the others for any survivors. Nothing was left but the signs of a struggle. Only blood smeared on the ground that made their worries skyrocket. He eventually found something that made a deep sense of hate boil within his blood.
On the ground was a lone bullet casing, and eventually he found several more scattered across the ground that made his pupils shrink with fury and his eyes glow brightly. He sniffed it for a quick second before standing up and flicking it away angrily. He should've never sent them out here alone, they should have just waited until he settled this conflict with civilization first before he even decided to send the to do this test. How could he be so stupid as to think that they'd be able to deal with soldiers without the protection of the adults?
Some of the others had came near him as he just stared at the pillaged camp with a blank stare, the fire seemed to reflect against his eyes as his breathing was slightly labored. No one said a thing for the next few minutes while some of the others kept looking around in the meantime.
"I shouldn't have sent them out here..." He said quietly, almost to where some of the others had to strain to hear.
"No one could've known about this location. It was a surprise attack-" Buck started.
"It still does not excuse the fact that I sent children out here by themselves while a growing conflict was happening. A stupid mistake on my part." Ares interrupted.
"My King, we do not blame you for this. It is humanity's fault." A Kraken said, her eyes drifting to the destroyed camp around them. Nothing could ease the sense of dread that seemed to sink his stomach to the ground. They were just as worried and would keep looking for the children all night if they had to. Silence seemed to bask over them while the others continued to look for the next several minutes and he just continued to stare at the fire.
"There isn't anything left. They must have hid their footprints well to escape and-" The Corpse-Eater set his hand on Ares' shoulder before he felt him place his hand on his forearm to stop him.
"Have you found Rei and Ken?" Ares asked quietly. The others looked at one another for a few seconds before shaking their heads while his two right hand Monsters looked at him then shook their head solemnly. Everyone saw his shoulders slump down considerably and had decided to give him some space for a minute then went away to continue searching. Pretty soon he was just left alone in the middle of a charred, destroyed camp with nothing but bullet casings and abandoned tents to keep him company. His body lowered down to a knee and he picked up another casing, frowning considerably the longer he observed it carefully. There was a noise to his left and he whipped around then threw a savage snarl. Light began to pool in the back of his throat and illuminated his mouth as he prepped his fire to burn whatever it was as soon as it came into view.
Slowly but surely, a hand came out of the corner of a tent and a head peeked around to reveal Frost. She looked tinier than normal and a fear-stricken look had adorned her face, something that didn't sit right with him. Her clothes were torn in some places and some cuts were on her, even bruising that looked like a hand had gripped her tightly. This wasn't the Frost that he had come to see grow into a little trouble maker of a Goliath. It was of someone who had seen something that would give her nightmares.
The light had extinguished almost immediately and his terrifying snarl of a face seemed to dissipate and be replaced with a worried one. He dropped to his knees and held his arms out while giving out labored breaths of relief.
"F-Frost." He called with his arms stretched out. Her eyes watered and she scrambled up to him then crashed into his chest, giving out tiny whimpers of fear as she clutched him tightly. His arms immediately wrapped around her, being mindful of her bruised arms, and set the side of his face against the top of her head. He couldn't help but adjust her every once in a while when she shifted to wipe her tears on his clothes, still shaking in fear of the event.
"Ares, we-" Buck stopped when he came back to the camp to see one of the missing children.
"You're safe now..." Ares whispered to her quietly while she just rubbed her face against him some more, tears still leaking profusely. The others soon came after and widened their eyes when they saw her, all crowding around her to see if she was safe and sound while being mindful not to overcrowd her too much. They noticed he seemed to hold onto her as if she were his own daughter because at this point she was in this situation.
They backed up as he stood up with her in his arms and held her close to him, acting as if she were the most fragile thing in the world and looked at all of them. Every time he went to adjust her, she clutched him even tighter than before and would make it difficult for him to adjust. He just hoped nothing had happened to the village while he was gone.
How wrong he would be soon enough.
The village was worse when he arrived. He could smell the smoke from a mile away and saw the illumination from a couple of miles away. His legs carried him quickly while he still held Frost in his arms while the others were following closely behind him. Smoke seemed to fill his lungs and make him cough when he approached the gates and saw that the main entrance looked like it had been blasted in by an explosion. When all of them entered the village, a sense of dismay filled their minds at what they saw.
Huts were destroyed, fire was set to the trees and lit up the night sky, and some Monsters were on the ground dead. He had to pretty much fight with Frost to get her to let go of him but eventually she did, just to be picked up by Buck and stared as he rushed to different huts to pull Monsters out.
He saw Mathias' hut on fire and rushed inside. The Elder Kraken was trapped underneath a support beam and was at an angle to where he couldn't lift himself out without breaking a limb or two. He coughed violently before his eyes caught sight of Ares lifting the beam off of him then wrapping a tail around his torso and pulling him out from underneath the beam then place him over his shoulders. He pulled him out from the blazing house just in time to see it fall to the ground, cinders burning up into the sky.
"Ares..." Mathias coughed hoarsely. "The cave." He pointed. Ares turned to look at the cave and widened his eyes when he saw something shimmer in it. He took off towards it and almost sank to his knees when he saw Sistine on the ground, her body covering a small child and her form lying still. He quickly rushed up to her and flipped her over on her back. He had to blink tears back when he saw her eyes closed and barely felt her breathing against him.
"Sistine... Sistine, come on... wake up." He whispered. His voice cracking every so often. "Please don't leave me..." He said as he brushed some her her hair out from her face and his tears landed softly on them. Here he was, on his knees holding one of the loves of his life in his arms, not knowing if she was dead or was on the brink of death. Tears were in his eyes and dripped down onto her face quietly before he leaned down and planted his face into her collar, letting more tears drench her.
It seemed like forever but he eventually felt her hand brush the side of his face weakly and his eyes snapped open when he felt it. He leaned up to see her smiling weakly at him and her thumb brush the side of his face. His hand gripped her wrist gently as he stared into her eyes before pulling her head up a bit and setting his against hers, the tears fell some more and she had sent him soothing words that made him sob softly. Knowing she was alive was enough to give him hope in this situation. When he tried to stand up, she stopped him then gestured to the child in front of them. He wrapped his tail around the small child gently, faintly feeling vibrations through the muscles of his tail, and guided them to her arms.
She clutched the small child gently as he stood up, carrying her in a bridal carrying position while the child was deep within her embrace. He looked around the cave and dread seemed to fill his heart when his eyes caught sight of the empty crib and Michelle missing. He wanted to look for them but Sistine's hand against his face made him turn towards the cave entrance and began to walk outside.
"Where is Michelle, Sistine?" He asked.
"Soldiers... came... and took her." Her eyes closed slowly, only to open when he shook her awake.
"And Emma?" He asked.
"Her too... we both tried to protect her... Arachne tried too... They had bombs on them..." She said quietly. His heart sank faster than he expected and felt his throat tighten a bit.
"Where?" He asked frantically.
"Don't remember... everything's fuzzy. Something about a tower..." She closed her eyes. He didn't say anything else as his breathing began to become labored with stress as he carried her outside and into the middle where a majority of the Monsters were crowded. Some caught sight of her and the child in her arms before rushing over to them. The rest had managed to save all they could and bring the injured to the middle and away from the fires that harmed them, mainly Krakens, Wraiths, and Gorgons. There were some Behemoths and Goliaths injured but mainly the other three species.
Frost had stood next to her before he scooped her up into his arms and the both of them watched as the healers healed Sistine the best they could after they had to pry the child out of her arms.
"Ares..." Frost looked at him.
"Yeah?" He had his gaze locked on Sistine.
"Is she going to be okay?" She asked.
"... I don't know." He answered. She felt her chest tighten when she heard that.
"I'm scared." She said then sank her head onto his shoulder.
"I know, sweetheart." He said quietly as he put his right arm against the back of her head while using his left one to carry her.
"I am too." He whispered.
He woke up early, earlier than most and began to move the rubble of burned houses and dig graves for the deceased. Others saw him doing this and began to help with the tasks, not saying a word the entire day. By noon, all the rubble was moved and into a pile for later use, if there was any to use. By early evening, all the graves were dug up for Monsters that had died during an attack and the bodies were gently lied inside after being wrapped. Late evening is when Arachne stumbled into the camp, beaten in several places and a hazy look in her eyes. She was unresponsive half the time and it made his worries skyrocket when she barely responded to anyone.
Her scent was wrong and something didn't add up, it was a few hours when he found out on his own. Nothing would stop him from ripping that person apart. They had tortured her for several hours then used her as an example for the Monsters before she escaped. This wasn't the Arachne that wormed her way into people's hearts with her jovial activity. Both her eyes were green now instead of one and he never noticed until now. She would always lean into his touch whenever he was near and grew erratic when he went missing without telling her.
Frost constantly clung to him ever since the previous night. She shied away from anyone's touch and would cling to him where ever he went. She left to go check up on Sistine then would return shortly after to help him with whatever he was doing at the moment. Everyone saw the look he gave in the direction of the hunter school, at times it would last for several minutes but there was always that same look in his eyes whenever he looked at it.
The look of absolute hate.
Before he could give less than two shits about civilization but now he wanted them dead. All of them. Several others felt the same way, the Monsters wanted their pound of flesh and he'd grant it. He should have seen this coming, he thought that civilization would be different than the ones that attacked and colonized Shear. That they at least held some sort of competent and rational thoughts but he had never been so wrong. A thought occurred to him though, would he be any different than the White Fang? The only difference between him and the White Fang was that the Monsters wanted nothing but to be left alone, to live out in the wild in peace yet civilization had the gall to storm their home and take their children.
Every single one of them knew their children had been taken. Some of the Monsters from the patrol had found cages with some dead soldiers around them, each cage looked big enough to fit a couple of children into it. The scent of burned fuel was still in the area and there was plenty of evidence... like the distinct radio chatter of an officer, who had stated that the children were being transported.
He picked Frost up and carried her to a hut where Sistine was lying, bandages wrapped around her and her form barely moving. He was supposed to protect her, yet he just left the moment he heard the news about the children. What kind of King was he supposed to be when he couldn't even protect his people and loved ones?
"Ares..." Frost tugged at his collar.
"She'll be okay." He reassured. She didn't look convinced and just stared at Sistine from his arms while he did the same. Silence seemed to bask over them for a while before he let her down and watched as she went up to Sistine and lied down next to her on the bed, careful not to disturb some of her injuries in fear of opening them again. Several minutes passed by before Mathias came in, with a bandage on his head.
"Ares, some of the others wish to talk." Mathias said.
"Frost, I'm going to talk with the others. Keep her safe, okay?" Ares asked as he knelt down to her level. He watched as she nodded up at him then walked out of the hut to join the others who were sitting on a flat rock, each bringing out something to sit on. They saw him clench his fist tightly enough to draw blood and urged that he get something to stop the bleeding but he merely held his hand up.
"The attack happened shortly after you and some of the others left. Soldiers had set some explosives on the gate while the Behemoths were switching shifts and detonated it shortly after. Some threw smoke that made our eyes water and sting then began to fire. They killed the ones that didn't have armor and injured some that had a little bit. It was a double attack on two fronts." Mathias explained as he sat down.
"How did they find out about our home?" Ares asked as calmly as he could.
"Soldiers were one and there were drones. We found out after some Krakens scrambled and disabled them." A Kraken explained as they brought out a bag with a destroyed drone. He picked up the camera lens and crushed it in his hand before flicking the broken bits away. Heat pooled within his throat but it died down as he calmed himself a bit.
"If you find any soldiers in the forest, kill them. Hunters, kill them too." He ordered.
"What about the children, what about this attack? Have you lost your roots?" A Goliath barked. Half a second later, everyone backed up when he tackled the Goliath to the ground and started to smear their face into it violently.
"Do not think that I have forgotten and forgiven this attack so easily! We are going to heal everyone then get our children back. Did you think that this will be forgotten?! An attack on our home when we want to live in peace?! You had better think again before you even assume such a thing!" He snarled violently as he hoisted the Goliath up in the air with one hand. The Goliath dangled and gave out a strangled, choking noise as the air started to leave its body.
Mathias didn't say anything but just placed a hand on Ares' shoulder, ignoring the glare he was thrown before shaking his head. Ares loosened his grip and dropped the Goliath on the ground before a plume of smoke escaped his nostrils. He ignored the coughing of the Goliath in front of him then gestured with his head for them to get out of his sight, and they did. Everything was quiet as he just stood there with his orange eyes bleeding into a black and red as he sat down in his spot once more.
"What are we going to do?" A Wraith asked.
"We will rest for the couple of days then storm the tower and get our children back. If they are not there then we find the next location and look. We will keep doing so and destroy anything in our way until we find them. Civilization did not heed our warning. They did not listen when we wanted to be alone while they were left to their own devices. They take our children and attack our home for escaping a lab in the past. We're going to get our children back, and destroy the tower." He said, his glowing eyes seemed to shine vibrantly and the others soon found theirs shining brightly too.
"If we are doing this, then I cannot do anything to stop you nor dissuade you from doing it." Mathias commented.
"I thought you would've tried to stop me." Ares looked at him.
"Ares, they took my students and family. They've done nothing to try and make peace with us nor even attempt to contact us peacefully. It does not take a fool to see that they are still angered by the escape a year ago. Humanity will never change as a whole, neither will the faunus. The most I can do is heal the injured here and possibly fight if needed, though not for long. If they want Monsters then we will show them our full extent." Mathias explained.
"So you're giving up on them." Buck gestured.
"For now, I am. Maybe future generations will learn from this but seeing how this world is so much more incompetent, I do not see that happening." Mathias said.
"So this means that you're letting us go wild and not giving a shit?" The Corpse-Eater grinned viciously.
"It is. Civilization has lost my respect. Go wild." Mathias nodded.
Mathias was always the one who would voice the most logical reason, always considered the ins and outs of a situation before acting on it. He was Ares' reason to stay docile and not act violent towards anyone but intruders. If he had decided to give into his wild side, his more violent side, then everything was off the table. No human, nor faunus, were safe from the wrath of the Monsters. Ares would often discuss with Mathias about how to go about a situation, it was a learning process for the young King and it was paying off since him and Mathias were on the same boat.
With that, all of them had decided to go back to their broken huts, while he went to the hut that Sistine was at. Upon entering it, he saw Arachne sitting on the bed with Frost and Sistine. Frost was currently giving Sistine water while the older Goliath sipped carefully then lied back down when he entered the hut, letting his eyes adjust to the darker setting. He went up to the bed and sat down, sitting cross legged next to the bed while Frost went up and went to sit on his lap, letting him set his chin on the top of her head gently.
Arachne sat near the head of the bed quietly and he let his hand cup her left cheek softly, making her lean into it. The trauma was still there and it wouldn't disappear soon, which is why he vowed to make the one who did it suffer. Sistine reached up and brushed his hand softly while sending him a smile that made his worries melt away, something he needed at the moment.
"Ares..." She smiled at him.
"How're you feeling?" He asked.
"A little better, she's been helping me." She smiled at Frost, who nodded quietly.
"That's good. I'm going to do something... something you're not going to like." He said quietly, making her blink.
"Ares, I'm not going to be mad if you storm that tower and civilization. If it means getting the kids back and avenging some of our people then I won't be mad. Just promise that you'll come back to us." She said.
"I will. I don't know how long it's going to take. It could be weeks or months." He said.
"We'll always be waiting for you. Just please, get Michelle and the others back." She pleaded with teary eyes. He didn't like seeing those teary eyes of hers. None of them did but he hated it. He could handle her being pissed, annoyed, or even outright livid, but he couldn't handle seeing his mate cry in front of him.
He would get them back.
"I'll get them back." He said.
"I know you will. Frost, Arachne, could you give Ares and I some space?" She asked. The other two blinked before nodding quietly then stood up and left the hut. All that was left was the two of them, just him and her.
"Sistine..." He muttered, only to be silenced when her hand gripped his softly.
"Ares, get them back. I want them to meet their family and live a peaceful life." She said. A soft laugh met his ears when she saw his look of confusion. Her hand started to slowly and agonizingly guide his towards her stomach, the same spot and in the same way as she did a year and half ago. It took him a minute of rubbing that spot in circles a few times for it to finally click in his head.
"You serious?" He breathed. A teary eyes smile was what he received in return and he couldn't help but mimic the same one. Now he had all the more reason to come back, to make it back home with his family and the children. Pretty soon the other two came back in, neither knowing why he had decided to sleep in the bed with her despite her injuries, all they could really do was smile when they saw him laughing a bit while Sistine did the same. Both holding onto one another gently.
The next few days would go down in Remnant as one of the darkest days it had ever encountered. All because of a foolish mistake from a certain individuals.
So, I'm sorry. I'm really, really, really sorry for not updating this and for this shortened chapter. Usually I push out chapters for this story that are 14k words but I felt that I would be rushing things a bit. I feel like my descriptive skills are sort of lacking with this story but who knows. On an unrelated note, I have been having a blast with Modern Warfare, everything about that game just screams amazing to me. That's not me being a fan boy about it either, I haven't bought a call of duty in god knows how many years but Modern Warfare was one of those games you knew was going to be good, and it is. Enough about that though, now onto reviews.
Specter343: Thank you very much.
hornig3: The reader, that's who.
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Momasos24: I'm going to update now, since the chapter is up.
Sau1 43: Congratulations for being the lucky 100 reviewer. Yeah, the memories of when time was a little bit simpler, but thank you for reading it back then.
Well everyone, I just want to say thank you for reading this and waiting patiently for it if you all have been doing so. It means a lot to me that some of you guys give this a read, even if you didn't like it, it still means a bit to me that you at least decided to take the time out of your day to read this. I know I won't impress anyone but that's not going to stop me and if I didn't please you then... sorry, I guess. I'm not here to please everyone.
With that, I thank you and will see you all in the next one. Take it easy, everyone and goodbye.