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I am making no money from this.
Chapter 37: Protect And Serve
Today was the day.
It was currently Monday morning, which made the fact the corridors were filled with teenagers who seemed to be both fully awake and happily excited somewhat strange. Classes had been cancelled, Fourth Year students had finished their final written exams and were preparing to head out into the world as fully fledged teams of Hunters. The student body as a whole as well as a significant amount of the adults living on the campus seemed to share an almost palpable sense of anticipation; in particular the first year students. The Centenary festival, marking both one hundred years since the end of the great war and twenty years since the defeat of Salem began today and lasted for two weeks; as did the first year students' final mission of the year after which they would be returning home.
"Come on come come on let's go!" Eagle chirped happily, skipping several steps ahead of her team-mates as they made their way towards the atrium
"We're coming, we're coming" Felix laughed "This is gonna be awesome; y'know that Professor Peach actually organised the firework display?"
"Okay I'm wearing earplugs then, I get almost deafened in her class enough as it it" Arctus chuckled, walking hand in hand with Diamond was was the norm for them. Before long they reached the atrium itself, holographic screens with a blue tinge to them showed which Teams and individual Hunters were being assigned to which mission; though before Team FADE could approach them they found themselves distracted by the loud and thoroughly disgruntled voice of Helios Nikos
"I still say this is a mockery, this is grunt work!"
"And I say you're being an idiot" Nyanza sighed with a roll of his pale green eyes while Olivine and Ether shared resigned expressions, as if such conflicting personalities caused these disagreements between the partners to be commonplace. Nyanza's bushy white tail stood on end for a brief moment as he caught sight of Team FADE before he called over to them
"Hey, will you guys come and talk sense into this guy please? He's gonna ruin something good for us" amused and intrigued the four teens strolled over, allowing Olivine to explain
"We've got out mission assignment, we're security detail on one of the other aerial platforms"
"Where they're launching the fireworks from?" Diamond asked
"Oum no" Nyanza laughed "We're at one of the really swanky hotels that's throwing private parties; the Aurora….Arctus you probably know the place right?"
"Heard of it" the Bear Faunus gave a shrug
"Yeah well, Team NEON get free use of all the facilities. So I'm hitting the clubs this weekend and taking chicks back to an Oum damned Jacuzzi the size of our dorm"
"You're a degenerate" Helios sighed "This is beneath us. This is our final test of the year, I wanted to end on a high note; return to Anima fresh from a victory….Instead I get to tell my mother and sister I was a glorified sentry"
"You get to tell them you completed every mission you were assigned and led your team well" Ether interrupted before turning to Team FADE "And speaking of sisters' I'm performing with mine tonight, Creatures of Grin are back from hiatus. You coming?"
"Sounds like a plan" Diamond grinned "Right Big Guy?" Arctus nodded in agreement
"Thank you Ether" Helios murmured, before standing a little taller and squaring his shoulders "Come on then, let's go face our mission head on" as team NEON left Arctus muttered under his breath
"If he think two weeks with the bourgeois is gonna be peaceful he's gonna get a rude awakening" Diamond shoved him playfully while joining in her friends' laughter before turning to Felix
"Dude you should totally have offered to go somewhere with Helios tonight" the Lion Faunus flushed slightly before turning away, absent mindedly fluffing his hair
"Anyway. Let's go find our mission" the other three members of Team FADE shared knowing looks before following, Eagle struggling to suppress a fit of giggles. Stopping in front of the holographic screen they began searching for their names, Diamond being the first to do so
"Oh sweet, we're on street patrol duty down on ground level, actually not too far away from where me and Arctus work"
"Cool, who's our Hunter?" Felix asked, he was answered by a streak of golden lightening racing passed him and in the space of a single blink the teens found themselves joined by a figure in black clothes with gunmetal body armour strapped over it a pale green light shining from his chest where an Aura regulator had been surgically grafted into his body, the tail of a husky swishing behind him and his face obscured by a featureless mask, which was promptly removed, revealing brown skin, piercing blue eyes, a beard and a small afro
"That would be me" Rover Tan answered with a smile
"Uncle Rover?" Arctus seemingly needed a moment to process, when he did his mind instantly realised someone was absent "How's Aunt Missy?"
"Oh she's ready to pop….I can't wait to meet the little Munchkin" Rover answered, visibly beaming with pride "And who's this?" Rover's eyes darted to Diamond
"Diamond, Arctus's partner….and his girlfriend"
"Cute" the Husky Faunus gave them both a wide smile before quickly reading the mission summary and deciding to give the students some additional information "Basically we're day shift. I think Scar's got a couple of older students to volunteer to work the night shift with him. We're looking to pick up any drug dealers or stick up artists using the festival as a chance to make quick Lien, there's probably gonna be a few" the teens nodded in understanding, Arctus looking thrilled at the opportunity to be working with his uncle; after a moment Felix spoke up
"Hey, I parked my car in one of the hive complexes yesterday in case we needed it for the mission and our Hunter didn't have their own transport. Do you think we'll need to stop off and pick it up on the way?"
"Good thinking but not really" Rover shrugged "There's gonna be so many pop-up stalls in the streets that you wouldn't really be able to drive it where we're going anyway. That being said let's go" the five of them made to exit the atrium; Team FADE each seeming to realise even more than before that this was both a vastly different assignment to their previous missions and a highly important one. Just as they reached the exit Felix found himself grabbed and pulled into a crushing bear-hug; he instantly realised the identity of his assailant as only one person would be so bold
"Hey sis"
"Hey bro" Corvid answered with a wide yawn "We only got back a few hours ago. Rest of the team are in the dorm; probably asleep. I'm joining 'em soon, I only came to come see my baby brother off" she punctuated her words by ruffling his hair, much to his annoyance
"Get some sleep Corey" Felix sighed "You look exhausted. Team FADE are apparently on a day shift so if you're awake we can meet up and watch the firework displays"
"Sounds good" Corvid nodded before pausing "Wait, you mean you didn't ask the buff redhead you've been drooling over?"
"I swear to Oum" Felix hissed through clenched teeth until Rover stepped in, sensing his discomfort and reminded them all that they had jobs to do.
Antonia Arc's stomach growled loud enough to jolt her from her stupor. She had no accurate way to gauge how long she'd been kept in this cabin but she was certain it had been more than a day. She'd regained consciousness after her attempt to get the attention of Penny Rose and the team of young Hunters accompanying her had led to her captors knocking her out cold; finding herself in a cabin that was not her previous abode. At some point while she'd been unconscious a small tear in the wall had been covered, though the water that had leaked inside had been left and now had a distinctly stagnant stench; when Antonia had first awoken there had been food waiting for her, that was the only food she had received.
Antonia's eyes darted to the door of the cabin and she reflexively shrunk into the corner with the sound of a key being turned. She had become painfully aware that she had allowed herself to fall into a sense of complacency and when the trio of Faunus holding her captive stepped into her cell, unaffected by the ankle deep water, she was truly scared of them for the first time.
"Food" Carcharodon hissed simply as her deposited a plate of what was recognisable as some kind of fish on her bed, his face obscured by his hooded robe "I didn't intend for you to starve, but we've been busy" a slight nod in the direction of Onyx Ursabane made Antonia's eyes widen in shock. The Puma Faunus had his own weapon slung over in his back, but now it was complemented by the laser battery they had been working to repair; it's barrel cut short and suspended with a rudimentary harness over his shoulder which included some form as padding Antonia guessed was in lieu of a real cooling mechanism.
"So you have the weapon you wanted" Antonia stated as calmly as she could force herself to sound "And yet I'm still being kept as a prisoner. I thought we had an agreement?" her words seemed to infuriate Raffia who unsheathed his sword and took a single step forwards, allowing her to see that he'd acquired new pants and footwear to replace the garments that had been burned to ashes when the Pearls' Photon Accelerator tore into the ship. What Antonia noticed the most however, was that for once Carcharodon had made no attempt to curb his comrades' behaviour and merely stared at her before speaking again
"Situations change. You knew the Huntress that attacked us; you called to her by name"
"You know the bitch that took Hellion and did this to our ship!" Raffia raged, Carcharodon allowing him to stalk close enough to be able to stab Antonia if he chose to before stopping him, the Axolotl Faunus continued his furious tirade "I think we've been far, far too lenient with you. I think we should take your eyes and hands and send them to that Huntress as a warning that we're coming for her!"
"Enough Raffia" Carcharodon hissed, before returning his focus to the scientist "Who is she?" Antonia remained silent for a moment, privately weighing up pros and cons of various responses; she may have been kidnapped, coerced, assaulted, half starved and terrified but she was still Antonia Arc and she was far from beaten
"She is someone who would kill all three of you in less than a minute. Forget you saw her and save yourselves the trouble-"
"We can't do that" Carcharodon countered simply "She took Hellion. I am not leaving this Kingdom without her"
"You don't have a chance against-"
"HER NAME WOMAN! BEFORE I START PEELING PARTS OF YOU!" Raffia's hate fuelled fury was reaching fever pitch and with Carcharodon's loyalty to the Shadow Cadre's missing member forcing him to agree, Antonia knew it was merely a matter of directing it at this point
"Her name is Penny Rose" she exhaled slowly "Her wife is one of the greatest war heroes alive today and Penny herself is a veteran fighter"
"Without her craft she's still only human" Onyx growled from the doorway, Antonia forced herself not to smirk; 'If only they knew'
"And you know where to find her, don't you?" Onyx demanded quietly
"I do" Antonia admitted in a whisper. The shark Faunus turned to his comrades
"Head inland, steal a vehicle and load as many of our supplies as possible. This ship is beyond repair….We find this Huntress, compel her to take us to Hellion then we find the means to leave this accursed Kingdom"
"And her?" Raffia spat in Antonia's direction, Carcharodon regarded her for a moment
"She comes with us, if she's lying she dies. If not we honour our word. We strike tonight" with no more to be said the Shadow Cadre left Antonia's makeshift prison, locking the door behind them. Antonia allowed herself to sag against the wall and realise just how much her hands were trembling, she had no doubt that if Carcharodon suspected her that he would make good on his promise. Eventually her shallow, ragged breaths gave way to soft giggles eventually devolving into a fit of manic laughter which she hurriedly tried to stifle.
Her ruse had worked.
She had never planned to allow the Shadow Cadre to get away with their crimes, she was an Arc after all and a strong sense of duty had been instilled into her as much as any of her siblings despite never becoming a Huntress. Seeing Penny's Bull-Head however had been something of a catalyst that allowed form a concrete plan of action, a plan that was now underway as the Shadow Cadre were preparing to attack Penny in her home; a home which Antonia had helped build, a home which housed the P.E.A.R.L AI which Antonia had not only designed, but was capable of activating by voice command if nearby.
The Shadow Cadre would have no idea what hit them.
The lowest levels of the sprawling metropolis that was New Vale's capital were a bustling hive activity, streets crowded with an innumerable mass of bodies and countless stalls turning the streets between the gargantuan towers into a vast open air market where ones senses were under a constant barrage from the various vendors selling their wares, a plethora of smells and countless signs, flyers, streamers and assorted neon lights as demands for the viewers attention came from a thousand sources. The downside of this dizzying array was that as Team FADE patrolled the busy streets it made their task of spotting any criminal activity far more difficult. The upside was something that Eagle stated succinctly with an excited squeal
"This is so cool!"
"This is even bigger than the Vytal Festival last year" Diamond nodded in awed agreement
"Corey sent a ton of photos from that, being in the middle of it is different" Felix noted before being momentarily distracted by a street performer who either by their Semblance or some other means was controlling the effects of various Dust types and putting on an artistic display.
"I competed in two Vytal Tournaments" Rover chimed in while still keeping an experienced eye on their surroundings "This is definitely a bigger party. Could really have done with Bordeaux giving us an extra pair of eyes but he's called in sick. Today of all days"
"We'll be fine" Arctus shrugged
"Well you've already proved yourselves capable" Rover answered before giving his nephew a stern glare "Despite some mistakes that we're not gonna bother going over again" the Bear Faunus squirmed uncomfortably at the reminder that his uncle knew about his teams' encounters with the criminal underworld. He was spared any further awkwardness by Eagle's childlike and infectious exuberance as something else caught her eye, a stall proclaiming to sell ancient weapons belonging to Hunters of times gone by
"They're fake" Diamond warned her, her eye for detail becoming apparent once again "The writing on their stall is badly translated old Mistrali, no Mistrali Hunter's weapon would end up on a market stall either. It'd either be returned to their family or Haven Academy"
"I guessed they would be" Eagle sighed "But they still look cool though, look at those throwing knives"
"Huh, that reminds me I never did pick a new knife up" Diamond mused
"Still want one to carry around dates?" Arctus laughed before leaning down to kiss her cheek.
"Keep focused" Rover chided them gently "I'm not saying you can't enjoy yourselves a little, but don't let yourselves get distracted. This is a job and we're effectively on company time right now" the teens nodded and returned their focus to searching for anyone that may be deemed suspicious.
Their patrol had gone on for several hours, Team FADE following Rover as they expanded outwards through the grid like maze of streets, noting that as they moved away from the busiest parts of the festival the vandalism, grime and general air of uneasiness that was common to the poorer parts of the city began to make itself known
"Eyes forward" Rover murmured as they rounded a corner, following his gaze Team FADE caught sight of two individuals further down the street, one of whom kept their face obscured with their hood pulled low; the other was a teenage boy, perhaps fourteen or fifteen years old with a rucksack slung over one shoulder baring the emblem of Bulb Preparatory Academy, Signal's mainland Vale equivalent; something that Felix fought the urge to sneer at, the inter-school old rivalry was hard to forget. Neither individual had noticed the Hunters arrival and continued about their business, the teen handing over a handful of Lien which the hooded individual proceeded to count out and pocket, before reaching into a hidden pocket and withdrawing something that had the telltale green glow of SDC patented Eco-Dust
"Booster" Diamond spat, hand flying behind her back to where Lex Talionis was holstered, Rover shook his head and held out a hand to stop her
"Street punk Sustrai, it's not gonna be like fighting Grimm or the mob. Move to detain peacefully. Xiao Long, lead your team" Felix watched as the teenager stuffed his freshly purchased drugs into his bag, a plan of action rapidly forming
"Diamond get above the dealer, I've got your back. Eagle, have Sentinel pin the kid….gently. Arctus, use your glyphs to close the street off"
"On it" Diamond nodded leapt onto the nearest wall, her Semblance taking effect and allowing her to run vertically up several stories before heading in the direction of the drug dealer, Felix following on the ground. His footsteps causing both the dealer and customer to finally turn and notice their presence, the teenager seemed to sense that some kind of confrontation was about to occur and turned to run; making it no more than a dozen steps before being brought to a standstill. Eagle had crossed the street, ducking behind parked cars as she deployed Sentinel, the droids pincer like claws had shot forwards on their retractable cables to ensnare him. As the boy tried to remove his jacket and slip free Eagle rushed out of cover and restrained him, beginning to read him his rights and state why he was being detained. At the same time the end of the street nearest to the drug dealer was barred by an oversized Glyph courtesy of Arctus. The drug dealer rolled his shoulders back and stepped towards the Lion Faunus who was advancing on him
"The fuck are you?" the dealer demanded as he lowered his hood, revealing himself to be barely older than Felix himself; certainly no older than his early twenties "Malachite's crew have already been told they can't come around here bitch, this block is protected!"
"So would that count as an admission of guilt?" Felix asked "You as good as admitted working for Torchwick"
"I'd say it does" Diamond answered as she leapt down from the wall, landing behind the dealer wearing a predatory smile; her hatred of the substance this man was selling all too apparent
"Yeah, we're not here for Mel" Felix smirked "Now put turn around and put your hands against the wall, legs-" he was cut off as a fist connected with his cheek, sending him staggering back a couple steps; the man had most certainly unlocked his Aura and managed to weave around Diamond's attempt to put him in a choke hold. Shaking his head and blinking spots away Felix watched the dealer reach into the back of his waistband and frantically called out to Diamond
"He's got a gun!" without wasting another moment Felix charged forwards and tackled the drug dealer to the ground; wrestling with him for a few moments before managing to pin his adversary and deliver several punches in rapid succession, seeing blood flowing from his adversaries' nose and his own golden Aura beginning to envelop his fists Felix realised how close he was too losing his temper and doing something rash. Taking a single breath he quickly returned to his feet and dragged the drug dealer from the ground, pinning him face first against a wall. His continued struggling ceased when he felt the barrel of Diamond's weapon pressed against the back of his skull.
"Search him" she spat "Don't move ass-hole" Felix patted down the suspect, turning out his pockets produced almost a thousand Lien, a knife, two Scrolls which was known to be telltale sign of drug dealers; and finally almost thirty hypodermic syringes, the barrels filled with glowing narcotics
"Well done" Rover noted, having sped over when it became apparent that the situation had been resolved without difficulty "Looks like the kid's a first time buyer; nervous about not making the grade at school….Not gonna be an issue now, they'll expel him for this. Hope you're proud of ruining lives you little prick" Rover's final words were directed at the suspect, who wisely chose to use his right to remain silent. Rover produced a pair of handcuffs and fastened them behind the young mans' back before taking the wallet Felix had found when searching him, finding identification inside
"Ah Charlie Lean; oh yeah this scumbag has seen the inside of a few cells. I'll take him down to station for- Hold on, keep an eye on him" Rover then swiftly stepped away and withdrew his Scroll. Felix and Diamond kept their focus firmly on the criminal they were detaining, though they clearly heard the Husky Faunus growing more and more frantic as his conversation went on before finally ending the call and grabbing Charlie by the back of his shirt and turning to the students in his care
"I'll take these two down to the station. It looks like we're cutting patrol short today, I've gotta go. I'll inform Goodwitch of the situation and she'll work something out for you from there"
"Okay?" Felix raised an eyebrow "So are we gonna be working with you tomorrow or-"
"Look Xiao Long I've gotta go, like right now" without waiting for a response Rover vanished in a streak of golden lightning, taking both the drug dealer and his customer away with him, leaving Team FADE in mild shock as they regrouped
"Okay….what just happened?" Arctus asked
"Your Uncle said he had to go" Diamond answered "Might be that something came up that they need more Hunters for"
"So..." Felix shrugged as he trailed off "Now what? Looks like we've got a free day"
"Well there's big firework display later" Diamond suggested "We don't really have those in Mistral, I kinda wanna see that….And I was kinda planning on seeing Ether's gig later tonight, unless you've got anything else in mind Big Guy?"
"No that sounds great, we just need to find a spot" Arctus replied
"I might see if any of my Aunts or my grandparents are gonna be in the city tonight" Eagle shrugged "I haven't been home in a few weeks"
"No problem, I've gotta pick me car up but if you're meeting up with your family I'll drop you off" Felix offered "If not I'm probably gonna be hanging out with Corey later if you wanna join us?"
"Sure" Eagle beamed
"Well we'll see you later" Diamond and Felix bumped fists before the silver haired sniper took her partners' hand in her own and the two halves of Team FADE went their separate ways; planning to enjoy their newfound free time to the fullest.
Penny Rose, formerly Polendina stared out of the cockpit of the Pearl out at New Vale's skyline; airships visible in the distance while smaller craft flitted around her as the sun gradually set, casting the numerous towers and countless bridges between them in a golden hue. Eventually she felt her Scroll vibrate, promptly withdrawing it and answering
"Salutations"
"Penny where are you right now?" Qrow Branwen sounded far from his usual nonchalant self, informing the copper haired android that something was wrong
"Currently in mid-air" she answered "I returned from a mission last night, I promised to give the twins the best possible view of the firework display tonight. So we're going to be hovering between some of the aerial platforms the fireworks are being launched from. You can join us if you'd like?"
"Where's Ruby?" Qrow demanded, seemingly not registering the offer at all
"Still on Patch, she went to give a talk to final year students at Signal. I think she's still at Yang and Blake's-" she was cut off by a slew of curses from the veteran Hunter, upon hearing them she surreptitiously closed the partition between the cockpit and rear compartment of the Pearl, checking that Tai-Jaune and Summer-Pyrrha were playing quietly at the moment
"Qrow what's wrong? Has something happened?"
"It's nothing"
"Qrow" Penny's tone was stern and motherly, a voice she'd never thought herself capable of using effectively before the twins were born
"It's nothing Penny don't worry" Qrow tried to assure her "I might have a lead on something is all. You and Ruby are the people I trust most with it but I've got someone else I can call in. Enjoy the time with the kids Penny"
"If you're sure?"
"Yeah I'm sure" Qrow assured her in his usual gruff tone as he composed himself "Send me your location, if I can get this wrapped up fast enough I might just fly myself up there and join you later" Penny smiled at the thought, whatever problems Qrow Branwen may have had he was somebody Ruby loved and admired, he had been nothing but supportive of the two of the two of them; becoming something of a surrogate uncle the way Taiyang Xiao Long had stepped into the role of father after the deaths of both Geppetto Polendina and James Ironwood. Penny saw Qrow as family and loved him dearly
"That would be sensational"
Qrow ended the call with Penny and fought the urge to hurl the device across his basement as a sudden wave of fury and self loathing washed over him. He despised having to lie to his family, yet here he was making decisions on other peoples' behalf like Ozpin before him. He allowed himself a single low guttural growl of displeasure before turning his attention back to the countless camera feeds being displayed on the several monitors of the supercomputer within his basement, each of them showing a different street within New Vale as he tracked his quarry. A single face was highlighted as it came into view on each of the feeds, the source of Qrow's current tension; a pickup truck that would no doubt be reported as stolen had been gradually making its' way around the outskirts of the city, making a clear effort to avoid the traffic and patrols caused by the festival. The pickup truck carried four individuals, a small young man with a facial tattoo and fins protruding near his ears in the driver seat, someone whose face was obscured by a hood in the passengers seat and a large young man in the rear bed, carrying what Qrow was stunned to realise was a weapon taken from an old Atlesian warship. All three of these people were secondary concerns, his main focus was the woman sat between the driver and passenger; a blonde woman whose face he would know anywhere without the facial recognition programs alerting him every time she appeared on a new screen. He'd found Antonia Arc, the mother of his child.
"Alert, cyber attacks on New Vale security detected" a computerised voice informed him, Qrow stroked his grey beard as he considered his options. He knew without a shadow of a doubt who the would be hacker was, his own espionage equipment was provided by Atlas after all, he knew the work of an Atlesian spy when he saw it. It was simply a matter deciding if they should be allowed to continue. Qrow made a quick decision, deciding that his most obvious source of backup would be the Arc children currently in the Kingdom and then quickly dismissing the idea; the Shadow Cadre may be young but they were capable and Antonia's sisters would allow their emotions to cloud their judgement, a mistake that would be capitalised on. He needed someone cold, detached and ruthless and such a person had thankfully just presented themselves. He made a call of his Scroll and waited as patiently as possible until it was answered
"Hello you've reached-"
"I am speaking to Atlesian Special Operative Kafsi Asteri, dispatched covertly to New Vale to retrieve Antonia Arc due to her knowledge of state secrets" he steam-rolled over the breathy tone the woman was affecting as she slipped into one of the many characters she played to avoid detection. He was in no mood to deal with spies and thankfully the assertion that he knew exactly who she was brought the charade to an end
"Who am I speaking to?" Kafsi's voice belied her obvious suspicion
"Qrow Branwen. I've known that you were in New Vale the whole time"
"If you intend to blackmail-"
"Shut up and listen" Qrow snapped "I've found Antonia Arc and the Shadow Cadre. I know where they're planning to attack next, I'll send you the location now. Meet me there and we bring them in" there was a pregnant pause before Kafsi spoke again
"You understand that this sounds suspicious to me"
"Kafsi I do not have time for this. They are making their way to my nieces home, my niece who is married to the Huntress who captured one of the Shadow Cadre months ago. I think that they're expecting to find their missing member there"
"I see. Send the co-ordinates" Qrow was unsure if she believed him and as far as he was concerned it was irrelevant, a few keys were pressed and the information was transferred
"Done. They'll be there within the hour. Head them off at the point indicated to avoid civilian casualties"
"Understood. Asteri out" the line went dead and Qrow rose from his seat, pouring a single glass of whiskey and downing it in mental preparation for what was to come. Typing out a list of commands and entering several passwords into his computer system he remotely accessed Pearl, instructing the AI to initiate all self defence protocols and effectively turn the home into a fortress until further notice. Then he straightened out, abandoning the hunched posture he'd been faking for a few years to give those around him the impression of a retired and decrepit old man; cracking his neck he reached into a draw and withdrew a jewellery box, from which he withdrew the silver rings he'd worn on every mission. Then he reached for harbinger, collapsing it from the scythe form that Ruby had drawn inspiration from and was now used as a faux walking stick. Once the weapon was in its' broadsword form he slung it over his back and readjusted his cape, preparing to step out into the field of battle one more time.
He knew he was susceptible to the same emotion driven poor judgement that he had been wary of in Antonia's sisters; but Qrow Branwen was a man of many vices and was unable to stop himself from indulging in hypocrisy at that moment.
Despite their mutual agreement that cliché dates at fancy restaurants were something that suited neither of them Arctus had taken Diamond to somewhere considerably more expensive than the places they usually ate at, the restaurant advertised itself as the finest in Atlesian cuisine and Diamond's jokes about plain and unseasoned food had lasted up until the moment she'd tasted it. At which point Arctus had reminded her that the first settlers on Mantle were in fact from Mistral and spicy food was a substitute for actual heat in times gone by. Currently the two of them were getting comfortable in the spot they'd chosen to watch the firework display from, they were situated on a bridge between two of the cities' massive towers where traffic seemed to have slowed to almost non-existence, Diamond leaning against the railings and waiting expectantly while Arctus wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her from behind; her response was to lean back and pull his arms around her a little tighter as she melted into the embrace with a satisfied hum
"You wanna borrow my jacket?"
"I'm good dude, just stay here"
"Wasn't planning on going anywhere babe" Arctus chuckled, planting a gentle kiss against her cheek
"You try so hard to be smooth Big Guy" Diamond laughed softly
"I mean, I'd like to think it's worked well for me so far" the Bear Faunus countered with an amused smirk
"Apparently dorks are my thing now" Diamond shot back as she rolled her eyes before turning to kiss his lips briefly; as the kiss ended the first Dust enhanced firework of the night was fired from one of the aerial platforms suspended above the city, arcing through the air with a multicoloured contrail behind it before exploding in a flash that could be seen from miles around
"Dude that's awesome" Diamond breathed out before letting an excited squeal that she would later deny all knowledge of as the night sky was set ablaze by a shifting aurora of flashes and explosions which signalled the start of dozens of street parties both between and within the Hive complexes which formed New Vale
"It's beautiful" the silver haired Mistrali mouthed in awe
"Yes you are" Arctus beamed, kissing her again
"Oh my Oum, you are such a dumb-ass" Diamond managed to gasp out as she burst out laughing, eventually turning and snaking her arms around his shoulders "But you're sweet though" before Arctus could respond Diamond's lips were crashing against his as she pulled him down into an intense kiss, his hands finding their way to her hips, the display above them forgotten until they broke apart panting and wearing bright smiles. Arctus laced his fingers through Diamond's as he took her hands and pulled her close
"I love you Diamond"
"Arctus I-"
"You don't have to say it back babe" he assured her, sensing her sudden apprehension "I'm not trying to push you into anything. I just know how I feel about you, about us and I felt like I needed to say it. So yeah….I love you" Diamond's response was to nuzzle into his neck
"Big Guy I….wait" Diamond broke away from him, leaving Arctus with his heart hammering in his chest and throat suddenly dry. Diamond herself however was distracted as she leaned over the railings of the bridge "Can you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Arctus was confused his attention had been consumed by his partner, the fireworks seemed to have stopped. Straining his ears he eventually picked up the sound that had caught Diamond's attention. His eyes widened as he realised that the city below was filled with a cacophony of screams, blaring sirens and distant gunfire; a single repeated message being laid over it all from every available speaker
"Proceed to the nearest shelter. Grimm incursion in progress. This is not a drill"
The time had come.
Phobos's preparations had been completed, the Grimm hordes numbering in the thousands with the final Grimm to be spawned being Phobos's own personal mount which would enhance and broaden the effect of the Alpha's control over the creatures of Grimm, acting as an amplifier for the signals sent through the hive mind. The Steeds' body was perhaps twenty feet tall and roughly sixty feet from the tip of its' snout to the tip of its' tail. It carried itself of four thick legs, obsidian body covered in an armoured carapace; it had the skull of an ancient herbivore, beaked with an armoured crest extending outwards and a trio of horns extending forwards, it's tail tipped with a mass of bone sporting several short curved spines which formed something akin to a mace. Between the steeds' shoulders, constructed of a mass of bone and pulsating black nerves and tendrils which extended directly from the Grimms' spine, was a throne. Phobos sat watching events unfold with cruel intent as it clutched at its' new weapon, a solid bone serrated broadsword as long as the Alpha was tall.
When the light show beyond the walls that imprisoned the Grimm had begun the feedback through the hive mind had been monumental, leaving Phobos struggling to maintain control over it; then the Alpha reasoned that the time for control had passed and sent the signal through the synapses of the monsters
'Attack!' the waves of fear radiating from the Kingdom served as proof that Phobos's plans had been successful and the creatures of Grimm were now erupting forth into the streets and towers of the city, its' defenders forced to split their attention as the night sky was filed with countless airborne monsters descending on the walls defences driven by the desire to destroy. The trumpeting bellows of Goliaths drowning out all other sounds with each blast and alerting Phobos that now was the time to act. While sat upon the throne the Alpha could command the Steed without a word as if it were its' own body and sent it charging through the desolate streets of the exclusion zone. Another deafening blast from the Goliaths guided Phobos in the right direction, surging forth from into the open killing field created by the artillery upon the wall shelling buildings until nothing remained just in time to watch the last Goliath be slain; cracks in the walls surface and the heavy damage to the nearest gate being the price paid for their destruction. The first bullet whistled passed Phobos's skull and the Alpha howled out a single word, brandishing its' sword at the defenders
"CHARGE!" at its' command the true might of the Grimm horde was unveiled, the monsters in the sky doubled back for another pass and thousand upon thousands burst out of cover, rushing over each other and surging forwards like a living tide of darkness behind Phobos and the Steed roaring and shrieking their challenges. Phobos was barely aware of bullets pattering harmlessly off of its' mounts' armoured body as they drew close to their target; the defenders larger weapons being turned to seemingly futile task of thinning the masses of Grimm. Then with a thunderous crash the Steed charged the gate, sending steel and rubble flying in all directions; more than one guard being hurled from the wall by the force of the attack, only to be snatched up or set upon by the Grimm that followed Phobos through the now destroyed gate. Phobos took stock, its' mind almost overwhelmed for a brief moment as saw the fruition of its' plans. Then it let out a roar and gave its' next order
"KILL EVERYTHING!" New Vale had been breached and the Grimm invasion had begun, the voice in Phobos's head was pleased.
"I'm coming home"
Authors Notes:
Well, that week off that I said I was gonna take didn't happen. One day I'll actually say I'm taking a break and then do it.
I put it down to spending half of this week off of work due to snow.
Also I should have mentioned this last chapter but we've passed the 50k views mark on .
I think there's about four more chapters left of Vol.3 and First year, just a matter of tying up loose ends and dispensing justice.
Next Chapter won't actually feature Team FADE themselves, we're going to be dealing with side characters first; then going back to them.
Anyway let's summarise:
In my head excited Eagle has Nora's walk cycle.
Of course Arctus knows about all the stupidly expensive hotels that nobody else could even afford to be stood near.
I think Ether and Helios's conflicting personalities are something I want to look into more in second year, I we all love the super buff bad-ass, but that shifty little opportunist bastard has a charm of his own.
I still think the band name "Creatures of Grin" was a stroke of genius.
"If he think two weeks with the bourgeois is gonna be peaceful he's gonna get a rude awakening" Arctus knows, trust him.
Rover Tan is the Hunter for the final mission, meaning that we're three for three on missions being led by someone's aunt or uncle (If we include honorary uncles).
Team CLIR are back.
At this point the only people who don't realise Felix and Helios have crushes on each other are Felix and Helios.
The Shadow Cadre are ready to move.
Raffia is beyond pissed.
Here's the thing Antonia is a genius, she helped Geppetto Polendina build both of Penny's bodies, helped save Rover's life by grafting the Aura regulator into his body, She designed Qrow's 'Bat-Cave' she designed the AI that runs Penny's Bull-Head and house as well as helping modify the Bull-Head itself, she is the CEO of a company that's second only to the SDC….She is more than capable of playing a group of teenage bandits.
Also the Shadow Cadre are abandoning their ship that they've had since they were on Patch, if that feels like an ending just remember; endings are really just the start of something else.
Remember that Team CLIR competed in the Vytal Tournament in Mistral in their first year, meaning that Diamond would have attended the festival as she lived in the city at the time.
Brindle Bordeaux is absent, remember that the last time he was mentioned was when Rhodium had learned his families' whereabouts; more on that next chapter.
Of course Eagle honed in on the throwing knives, who else uses those….
I imagine that Hunters that have to bring in civilians have to constantly remind themselves that not everyone can walk off getting punched through a wall and change their plans accordingly.
The anger management has been paying off, the thing that Felix was worried about happening nearly happened but he managed to stop himself.
"Charlie Lean" he may as well have been called Drugs McDealer.
So Rover, whose wife is expecting just streaked off into the distance….I'll give you three guesses where we next see him.
Splitting up the team….Not a good idea.
So Penny and the twins are in the air. More on that next chapter.
Qrow doing his Batman thing again.
Also yeah it's not a stretch to say Qrow knew Kafsi was there. Kafsi answers to Gangrel, who doesn't trust her, Gangrel answers to Winter who is Qrow's occasional drinking buddy and one of the few people who knows about him taking up the mantle of protector of the Maidens.
So the Shadow Cadre may not be running into a fully up and running battle system, but they are running into an Atlesian Specialist and Qrow and they've lost the element of surprise.
Also the CRWBY officially named Qrow's weapon Harbinger and I realised that I'd never actually given it a name, so yeah Harbinger it is.
The thing about Mantle first being settled on by Mistrali travellers is actually canon, I just thought I'd see what I could do with it.
I'm sorry but Diamond and Arctus are sweet together, simple as that.
And if you know my writing the "I love you" is going to come up again before this battle is over.
Yes Phobos is riding a Triceratops Grimm, "The Steed" it's about as tall as a double decker bus and about as long as an articulated double decker, not including its' horns; then it has something that's basically a rudimentary version of Salem's throne in The Downward Spiral on its' back.
He also has a sword now.
The Battle for New Vale or the Second Breach has officially started.
Thank you to SumoSnipe, Araniladin, Arkanes Shippou, FleetOfWarships, ShadowAlex2000, LoneDragon, TigerRose, FluffyFirefly and Ferrous for their reviews on the last chapter.
Eh, Atlas isn't quite as insane as it was in The Downward Spiral; twenty years of more progressive leadership has made a lot of improvements. Realistically Kafsi isn't doing anything that the CIA hasn't historically done. It's bad but it isn't 40K Grim Dark bad.
Carcharodon's name was actually taken from the Star Sharks or Carcharodon Astra chapter of the Space Marines in 40K his weapons are named "The Red Waves" in an homage to one of their leaders having the moniker "The red wake" his all black eyes, shark teeth and the Shadow Cadre's tattoos as well as them being entirely 'Fleet based' was all based on the Star Sharks; Carcharodon is also a genus of Sharks, the only currently living member of which is the Great White.
It's less likely to be Carcharodon that snaps now, more likely to be Qrow.
Keep those puns coming
I see your point with the Eagle and Hellion situation, here's the thing; they're not an item, they're going to develop more together in the future. Right now Eagle is doing her best out of a sense of duty and at her core just being a good person. Hellion is a flirt because that "If you want something then take it" mentality is a key part of who she is, and the fact that Eagle is the only person she has to talk to so she's latching on.
Okay to be fair Raffia has so far survived having his skull caved in and being shot several times by Ruby, having his arm burned off by Arctus and being impaled then shot in the back of the neck by Diamond. He can be killed but it involved burning through all of his Aura so his Semblance can't regenerate him; growing his legs back and healing his burns was far from easy but also far from impossible.
I'm glad you like the aerial fights because they're tricky for me to picture in my head so it's nice to see that people are getting what I'm trying to convey.
You're a fan boy for a second year team of minor characters. Well I always envisioned for Team CLIR to be the next gen Team CFVY so that's actually a sign that they've done their job.
The voice Phobos hears….That's setup for third and fourth year, so all I'll say is "Kinda"
As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.