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Chapter 86: School's Out
Everything hurt, or at least every part of his body that Felix could still feel as he gradually regained consciousness. A dull of buzz of dozens of conversations, each held seemingly exclusively in tense and frantic murmurs reached his ears whilst a distinctly medical scent overpowered his sensitive nose in a combination that bombarded his senses and made the prospect of actually opening his eyes an unappealing one; though eventually open them he did as the various conflicting sensations of numbness, dull throbbing aches, shooting pains and a tenderness that enveloped much of his body became too much to ignore.
"What happened?" he mumbled out as the world came slowly into focus, Felix saw that there were people surrounding his bed in what he realised was Atlas Academy's medical wing, though he had never seen the facility so crowded before. Arctus, Diamond and Eagle were all battered and bruised, bandages visible below Diamond's tank top suggesting that her ribs had been broken whilst Arctus massaged a spot on his right side and Felix could see that several of his teeth were in the process of regrowing and Eagle's upper left arm was bandaged. There was a fourth person whose presence Felix's currently addled mind couldn't account for
"Mum?" Yang Xiao Long swept forwards with a tear-stained face and pulled her son into a crushing hug, only to pull back as a wince of discomfort escaped him.
"It's gonna be okay Fluffy, it's gonna be okay" the Lion Faunus forced his thoughts into something vaguely resembling order, heart suddenly racing and throat suddenly dry as the glimpses and flashes of memories from the Vytal Tournament and the White Fang's attack came rushing back to him, suddenly areas of his body where he suspiciously couldn't feel any pain made far too much sense and the Faunus found his hands trembling and gripping the sheets of the hospital bed as he took in several deep but shaky breaths and desperately sought out something, anything else to focus on. Casting his eyes wildly around the medical wing he saw several students he knew by sight if not more personally with various degrees of injury, ranging from mild cuts and blunt force trauma that Aura would correct up to missing limbs and the sort of grievous wounds that left the students in question connected to various life support machines. Eventually, after following the concerned glances Diamond was shooting in their direction he caught sight of Nyanza Angora and Grease Thunderbird, his fellow natives of patch were attempting to console Razzmatazz; Felix's stomach lurched as he realised that the spiky pink haired girls' right eye had been reduced to a sightless orb of milky white. His eyes lingered on Nyanza a moment longer before a thought occurred to him with chilling clarity
"Where's Helios? Dee, Arctus, Eagle where's Heely?"
"He's okay" Eagle assured him, moving a little closer and patting her partners' shoulder lightly "Well, not exactly okay but…."
"Eagle what happened?" Felix demanded suddenly panicked
"His people were clearing a path to get people out" Diamond explained "Helios wasn't hurt but….look not all of the Nikosi survived and Helios isn't in a good place right now" the way her cherry red eyes were cast downwards spoke volumes, though Arctus attempted to offer some consolation
"He's been here while you were out" the Bear Faunus informed him "But he had to go, his Mum needed him for some funeral rites"
"Oh" Felix mouthed simply, he knew that he should do something but at the moment he was too numb, everything that happened and the disjointed and hectic way his mind was processing the information was just too much for him at the moment
"What about Corey?" he eventually asked, voice heavy with sudden dread as he realised his sister was absent "Mum where's Corey?"
"She's safe" Yang assured her son "Blake and I saw what happened….all of Remnant did, when the feeds were cut off we called in some favours with Atlas and got ourselves here as fast as we could. Blake's with her now"
"She got you out dude" Diamond added "She brought down the stadium's forcefield herself and got you to a medical evac even with the Omega Wing damaged and no Aura left" Felix couldn't help the swelling of pride at his sisters' bravery that washed over him before the weight of his concern quickly quashed it
"So why isn't she here?" Felix's voice was timid and small and the looks his team-mates and mother exchanged amongst themselves at the question only cemented in his mind that something was drastically, terribly wrong.
"Guys?" he implored, voice wavering
"She freaked out" Diamond admitted, clearly not comfortable being the one to deliver the news but seeming to sense that nobody else was willing
"When she saw your injuries" Arctus admitted with a shake of the head "She said she couldn't be here….Once the doctors made sure you were stable she took off"
"Fluffy I want you to know that none of this is your fault" Yang cut in sternly, determined to head off any chance of him blaming himself before it could take root
"How bad is it?" the Lion Faunus asked, no longer to ignore the tightness in his chest and the terrifying lack of feeling where his tail should have been, as much as he would have liked to. When no reply was forthcoming he kicked the covers off of himself and began the process of pulling himself to his feet on shaky legs, gratefully accepting Eagle's hand as he found his balance.
"Holy Oum" he whispered out, voice cracking as he took stock of his injuries. Below his ribs was an ugly mass of reddened and angry burns and scarring which, while he knew that his Aura would heal them, were still enough send shivers down his spine at the thought of what would have happened if the sniper had aimed only a few inches higher. Then he saw his tail, or more accurately the third of it that remained and the bandaged stump that covered the point where it had been severed.
"Felix" Yang's voice was soothing though it seemed to fall on deaf ears "Felix look at me, I know it looks bad right now but it's okay" she gestured at her own cybernetic arm
"Yeah" Eagle added, gently nudging his shoulder "Poly-Tech are still working on their Faunus specific line of prosthetics. I'll talk to my Mum and get your name at the top of the list"
"Like what the High Commander had?" Felix's tone was icy, though it rose in volume and fury with each word as he all but roared in Eagle's face "YOU THINK I WANT THAT? YOU THINK I WANT TO BE PUT BACK TOGETHER WITH THE SAME PIECES AS THE PERSON THAT DID THIS TO ME?"
"Hey!" Diamond snapped, stepping between them as Arctus gently pulled Eagle away. The silver haired woman met his glare with an equally fierce expression which her own cuts and bruises only added to
"Not cool dude" she breathed out gently "She's trying to help" Felix caught sight of Eagle and the tears welling up in her crimson eyes and slowly sank back onto the bed with his head falling into his hands
"I'm sorry, Eagle I'm sorry….I just….everyone just go" his shoulders began to shake uncontrollably as he sobbed "Just go, please"
"Fluffy…." Yang trailed off, her unspoken concern apparent
"I don't want people looking at me right now"
"Okay" his mother nodded in understanding "We'll be here whenever you're ready" as if to highlight the point Arctus nodded silently whilst Eagle gave him a light hug
"If you need anything then just let me know" Felix didn't respond, unable to even muster up the willpower to wipe the tears from his eyes as they rendered his vision blurry; though as his friends and family left him he did motion for Diamond to stay behind
"I need you to do something for me"
"Go ahead" she braced herself, unsure of what Felix was about to ask of her
"Take over Team FADE" her eyes widened in shock as Felix continued "I can't lead the team….not right now, maybe not any more"
"Felix I-"
"Dee please….You've always been the best at handling pressure out of us" Diamond closed her eyes for a moment before sitting beside Felix and making a counter offer
"I'll handle things over the summer. I can deal with setting our advanced classes if everyone is okay with that; when we have to give debriefings to General Schnee and Professor Goodwitch I'll handle it"
"Thank you-"
"But" Diamond cut across him "When we start third year I want you to go straight to Counsellor Vasilias and get some therapy for PTSD….Team FADE needs it's real leader; but I can fill in for you until you're ready"
"Thanks Dee" Felix finally breathed out with a watery sigh "And….you and Helios are gonna be on the same airship home right?"
"I can pass on a message if you don't want to see anyone….I think you should message him and let him know you're awake yourself" Diamond offered as she rose to her feet
"Yeah" Felix nodded, still clearly shaken but managing to compose himself somewhat "Tell him I love him and I'm sorry about his people" Felix collapsed onto his back as she left, acutely aware of the space where his tail should have been pressing into his back but wasn't until he rolled over and buried his face in his pillow in an attempt to hide from the world in the hope that when he re-emerged it wouldn't be crumbling down around him.
Four Nikosi had fallen in battle; four men and women whom Helios Nikos had known his entire life had been violently snatched from the world and their pyre's had been built out in the tundra beyond the walls of any Atlesian city. That they should be sent into the great beyond so far from Nikosi lands and with so few of their people present was a tragedy that left Helios feeling hollow inside as he watched his mother conclude the funeral rites, a solemn affair that was conducted entirely in the language of the tribes. The pyre was lit and Helios finally allowed himself to cry as the need to be a stoic battle-brother to those whom they were here to remember passed; beside him Syneffo was in much the same condition and whilst it was true that the Nikosi; through their regular dealings with the Kingdom of Mistral and much to the distaste of the other tribes of Anima, were largely ambivalent towards religion and chose to honour their customs and traditions above any deity, at that moment however Helios prayed to the Old Gods of his people in his native tongue that the Nikosi fallen would find their way safely to their ancestors. The surviving Nikosi remained like this observing the pyre until nothing but ash and smoke remained at which point they began to file back to encampment they had made for themselves and would proceed to dismantle at sunrise in preparation to return to the vast swathes of wilderness that they called home. Helios felt a hand on his shoulder and knew by the touch alone that it was his mother
"Come" she said simply, motioning for Syneffo to do the same. The three of them made their way a short distance from both the Nikosi encampment and the pyre to a point in the snow with no discernable landmarks or significance; the question of what they were doing here was answered before Helios could voice it however as a red eyed and black feathered bird swooped low and in a flash of crimson Aura revealed the worn and sombre form of Qrow Branwen
"I'm sorry for your losses….may they be remembered as the heroes they died as" Helios's acid green eyes widened a fraction at the use of a translated phrase from Nikosi burial rites, only to narrow as he surmised what must have happened
"You dared?" his voice trembled with rage "You dared spy on our peoples' funeral?" he took a single step forwards with his hand flying to his sword before his mother placed an arm in front of his chest and barred his way
"He kept a respectful distance and did not intrude; I called for this meeting" Kataigida explained.
"Oh and kid" Qrow nodded towards Helios "Eagle and Yang have both told me that he's awake….he was asking after you" Helios nodded silently, there was no need to ask who Qrow was referring to
"Now let's attend to the matter in hand, we break camp at dawn and there's little time" Kataigida took a slow breath as she steadied herself in a way that surprised Helios, he couldn't recall seeing his mother so visibly uncertain before "I've made a decision regarding Syneffo's training"
"What's going on?" Helios asked quickly, a sense of inexplicable unease washing over him. Syneffo herself merely turned to her mother with a hopeful expression and her silver eyes wide
"Answer me honestly Helios" Kataigida spoke softly "Can you ever see yourself returning back to us fully? You've made the Kingdoms your home and you've flourished there"
"I…." he began to protest but found himself unable to as he thought of Felix and the many friends he'd made "I don't know" he answered in a worried murmur, suddenly unsure of his place in the world. Suddenly his mothers arms were around him and when she spoke it sounded as though she were fighting back tears
"Then I release you from your duties to the Nikosi" she pulled back and met his stunned gaze "You will always be a Nikosi and you will always be my son whom I love deeply….but for your own sake I will name Syneffo as my heir so that you may follow your own destiny"
"I…." Helios searched desperately for something to say to his mother but could find no words, instead he turned to Syneffo "Is this what you want?"
"I want to protect our people, if that involves leading them one day then yes" the armoured Hunter had never been more proud of his sister than in that moment.
"Thusly" Kataigida breathed out "When the time comes Syneffo will attend one of the Kingdoms' academies as you have. Though the unique circumstances regarding her silver eyes will require additional arrangements….Branwen, have they been made?"
"Not yet" Qrow admitted "I'm sure you can understand that my own family have been dealing with the attack. Ruby will be more than happy to teach your daughter though"
"Then it's settled" Kataigida nodded "Syneffo, when the time is right you will follow Helios to New Vale and study under an experienced Silver Eyed Warrior….Helios, promise me you'll watch over your sister"
"Of course" Helios nodded, swallowing a sudden lump in his throat. Qrow understood that their business was concluded for the night and gave a respectful bow to the ruler of the Nikosi before taking his avian form and vanishing into the night
"I have preparations to make" Kataigida noted softly before turning and leaving her children alone in the snow; Helios and Syneffo stared at each other in a tense, fragile silence for an indeterminate amount of time before Syneffo finally spoke
"I don't want you to leave us" the admission came as a whisper tinged with deep sadness
"I've been away for almost two years" Helios noted
"But you were always supposed to come back" Helios felt fresh tears welling in eyes and privately refused to start crying again, instead he sought a way to lighten the mood between them
"You could always order me to stay, Princess" he gave her a mocking and ludicrously deep bow
"Ingrate; you learned this from the idiot cat" she snorted; playfully punching his armoured shoulder as she compared him to Nyanza "But mother was right, you smile more now….this might just be where you belong"
"I will always be here for you, never doubt that" Helios assured her as he wrapped an arm around his sisters' shoulders
"Thank you" with that the two of them began to make their way back to the encampment, Helios giving his sister a tired smile
"So which will be the first tribe you go to war with when your iron-fisted reign begins?" Syneffo merely rolled her silver eyes and laughed.
Blake had found the dormitory Team CLIR had been assigned for their stay in Atlas with little trouble and stood at the door for a moment debating whether to knock or simply let herself in. While Corvid was a grown woman at twenty years old and Blake respected her privacy the fact remained that these were not normal circumstances; eventually she settled on the compromise of first lightly knocking and then opening the door without waiting for a reply.
"Corey?" she stepped into the dorm and found herself letting out a breath that she hadn't been aware she was holding as she saw the rest of Team CLIR gathered around her daughter and whilst Corvid was clearly not in a good place mentally, sat on the floor with her back to the wall and hugging her knees, with dark rings around her eyes, bruises all over her body and a generally unfocused and lost air about her; the fact that Lux and Rusty were sat either side of her protectively flanking their comrade whilst Iris seeming to be drifting in and out of consciousness as she sat on her nearby bunk eased Blake's mind. She also noted that in a cruel twist of irony Iris's new prosthetic had been shipped to Atlas Academy during the Vytal Tournament, a storage case much like the one Yang's arm had come with lay on her bed close by.
"Sorry if I'm intruding" Blake offered gently "I just wanted to make sure she's okay"
"Hey Mum" Corvid croaked out without looking at her; a subtle gesture from Iris had Lux and Rusty on their feet and following their team-mate out of the dormitory
"We'll give you some space" Lux explained as he passed Blake, Rusty turning back to their leader
"We're gonna go to the mess hall, you want anything?" Corvid simply shook her head in silence. The door closed and Blake simply crossed the room without speaking and sat on the floor beside her daughter
"So how soon before you start modifying that arm?" she asked with a grin as she motioned to Iris's prosthetic, Corvid merely shrugged indecisively and remained silent as she stared straight ahead. Blake reached down and gently squeezed her hand
"Wanna talk about it?" Corvid continued her silence for almost a minute before finally whispering
"It's my fault" Blake's head jerked around to face with such speed that her neck audibly cracked
"What?"
"It's my fault" she repeated "I'm such an idiot; I had to show off, I had to fucking win….If I hadn't gone all out, if I hadn't kicked the crap out of Fluffy then-"
"Then it would be you in that hospital bed" Blake snapped, refusing to hear any more of this "Corey look at me, look at me and listen; this is not your fault. You didn't force that monster to pick up a sniper rifle, you didn't force them to modify it to shoot steel spikes, you didn't force them to join the White Fang and you didn't march them into the stadium and force them to aim at your brother"
"I just-"
"Felix had his Aura left, you didn't" Blake noted "Which means that that sicko deliberately chose to shoot someone and make sure that it wouldn't kill them right away….you are not to blame, not for any of it" Corvid was still clearly unconvinced, head sinking into her hands
"I should have just stayed and brought that shield down straight away….what if Felix hates me mum?"
"He doesn't" Blake assured her "He's awake right now, Yang messaged me….he asked for you and I think he could use his big sister right now"
"I can't" Corvid admitted, wiping her steely grey eyes as she did so "I don't think I can face him right now….I'm sorry I-"
"It's okay. I understand" Blake soothed her as best she could "I'll tell him you were asleep….but promise you'll at least get one of your friends to pass on a message, he needs to know you're still here for him"
"Thanks Mum" Corvid croaked out before pulling Blake into a tight hug "Go and see him, I'll be okay"
"Promise?"
"I promise" Corvid nodded whilst freeing her dark hair from it's customary ponytail "I need to freshen up anyway" she gestured at the black flight suit she'd been wearing since the battle and the scarf which had once belonged to Yang and was currently covered in various stains
"Okay" Blake nodded, hugging her daughter once more "Yang will probably come and see you later" Corvid nodded in understanding and watched her mother leave before shedding her fur collared jacket and rummaging through her pockets for her Scroll, finding that it was mercifully undamaged; opening the device she saw that she had several unopened text messages, a small tired smile crossing her face at the sight of at least half a dozen from Onyx. Ignoring the messages and deciding that she would deal with people later, after she had slept and scrubbed the stench of the battle off of her skin; instead she opened a blank text message and selected her brothers' contact details, there were a dozen things she needed to say but couldn't find the courage or words to do so and none of her usual jokes and puns seemed to fit right now. After staring at the screen in silence for a while she finally settled on a short and simple message
'Hey Fluffy, you okay? I love you'
Upon leaving the medical wing Yang had merely waited outside until either she received news from Blake or until Felix decided to speak to her. Arctus and Eagle had parted ways, the exact location of Atlas Academy was technically classified and despite her many joint ventures with the military she was not cleared to enter the school; a state of affairs Yang and Blake had avoided due to being former members of Winter Schnee's black-ops unit from the war against Salem. Whilst Eagle had returned to Team FADE's dorm after promising the Bear Faunus that she'd be okay and she would spend the time either trying to sleep or packing for their return to Halo Academy Arctus had made his way towards his Aunt Winter's office and personal quarters where, through the same reasoning Blake and Yang had used as well as family ties Weiss was waiting with Athena-Jade and Coral. Diamond had caught up with him a little way before the office and alone in the corridor, with no one to judge her except someone she knew with utter certainty wouldn't she had allowed herself to show just how much the battle and the day that had followed it had taken from her and how tenuous the calm she portrayed really was; simply melting into Arctus's arms and sobbing into his shoulder. Eventually though, the couple wiped their eyes and entered General Schnee's office where they were at once pounced upon by Weiss who wrapped an arm around each of them only to pull back when she received a pair of pained winces in response
"Oh I'm so sorry, I didn't think" she admitted, hands flying to her mouth "Are you both okay?"
"Broken ribs" Diamond explained "Aura's working on 'em but they're still sore"
"Slashed" Arctus answered simply whilst gesturing to his side. The young Faunus removed his sword from his back and propped it against the nearest wall whilst casting his eyes around the office in search of his sisters, both blood related and adopted; he found them in a far corner of the Spartan room almost hidden in the shadow of a filing cabinet. One look at Coral made it obvious that this was her attempt to hide, the girl was curled in on herself as much as possible and covering her face with the pincers that she had in place of hands, which in turn clacked continuously as she trembled. Beside her was Athena, the Bear Faunus gently holding onto Coral's arm and making a valiant attempt to appear brave; an attempt which finally ceased when Arctus made his way across the office and crouched down in front of them
"I'm so sorry" her voice was uncharacteristically small as she bodily flung herself into her brothers' arms "I promise I'll never sneak off again, I just wanted to be a cool big sister and I'm sorry"
"Hey" Arctus gently ruffled her hair "It's okay, it's over and everyone's okay"
"But Felix got-"
"Felix is…." Arctus trailed off, not quite sure if he could bring himself to tell that lie
"Felix is awake right now" Diamond assisted "We were talking to him right before we came here"
"And Aunt Yang and Aunt Blake are here" Arctus offered before turning to his mother "Aunt Yang says hi"
"I'll try and see them both as well as Felix and Corvid before any of us leave" Weiss noted. Arctus turned his attention back to the children and noticed that whilst he had been comforting Athena Coral had remained silent and was at risk of simply vanishing into the background
"Room for one more" he offered holding his free arm outstretched, the Crab Faunus declined with a silent shake of the head and retracted further into her self, eyes darting around the room frantically as if searching for an escape.
"Arctus can I talk to you for a moment please?" Weiss waited until her son gently set Athena down and made his way back over to where she and Diamond were stood before continuing "I hate to ask you this because I know you had plans to visit Diamond in Mistral over the summer-"
"You want me at home" Arctus surmised, having been expecting something of the sort
"I need you at home" she corrected, voice dropping to barely a whisper as she continued "It was always going to be difficult to bring Coral into our lives, with the attack and everything that happened….those monsters showing up, they're both going to need all the support we can offer them"
"Yeah, yeah I'll stay" Arctus nodded, giving Diamond and apologetic and forlorn look only for her to lean over and gently kiss his bruised cheek
"It's fine big guy" she promised him "Everything's a mess right for everyone right now, it's gonna be rough but we'll make it work; what else can we do" Arctus, overcome with a fresh wave of awe for the calm determination and unshakeable conviction that the love of his life carried herself with, fought the urge to simply pull her close and kiss her fiercely right then and there. Instead he turned to his mother
"Mum, would you mind Diamond visiting over the summer?"
"Honey I will get her a key to the manor cut" Weiss replied nonchalantly before turning to Diamond herself "You're a part of this family now" the moment was both underlined and robbed of its' poignancy by Athena-Jade letting out an enthusiastic but whispered 'YES!' in the background. As his soft chuckling at his sisters' seemingly unbreakable enthusiasm tapered off the older Faunus reached over to his weapon and with a few moments of careful manipulation removed the plasma cell from Gefroren-Erbe before presenting it to Weiss
"Can you make sure Dad gets this" he asked, looking away from his mothers' questioning expression and offering only the vaguest possible of explanations "I almost did something stupid out there….I'm gonna rework my sword"
"I'll see that he gets it" Weiss assured him, giving an understanding nod and prying no further; she understood that things were done in the heat of battle that could not be undone and those who played the part of monsters had a unique ability to drag even the strongest willed Hunters down to their level.
"Thank you" Arctus gently wrapped an arm around his mother, pulling her into a hug whilst avoiding putting any pressure on his injured side "Where is Dad?"
"His arm was destroyed, he wants his ships' chief medic and engineer to work on replacing it" Weiss answered before following up with an explanation that Arctus wryly noted that he should honestly have expected at this point in his life
"Winter needs him working right now, Atlas need him. He's working but he promises he'll be home as soon as possible"
Gangrel made his way through the corridors of the Gespenst in a manner that could best be described as stalking, long predatory strides and a stern face filled with cold fury; he cut an intimidating figure and the loss of his cybernetic arm had done nothing detract from this fact, nor had the bandages wrapped around much of his torso or the stitches holding together various segments of his battered, bruised and bloody flesh.
"Sure you don't want me to handle this?" the request was made by Donner, her customary Mohawk and Specialist uniform back in place as she had been cleared for active duty once more; having led the Atlesian reinforcements into the stadium. A Cybernetic eye could be heard whirring faintly as it adjusted itself and a pale blue light could be seen beneath the eyepatch she still wore, breaking the illusion that she was still partially blind.
"No" Gangrel snarled "They targeted my kids, my wife and my nephew. This one's mine" the conversation died as the pair drew close to their destination; the soldier guarding the entrance to the brig of warship stood a little straighter as his commanding officer arrived and whilst Specialist Commander Slate was usually comfortably lax with certain aspects of protocol, this evening the guard felt a distinct need to a salute and address him properly
"Sir….I take it you're here for….her?" Gangrel gave no verbal answer, just a hardening of his expression as he used the access panel to confirm his identity and step into the maximum security prison that the brig of the Gespenst served as; Donner following him in and guarding the door from the inside as the Bear Faunus sought out his quarry. The brig was filled, each of the cells had been locked down so that the White Fang fighter within was monitored but unable to see or communicate with the outside world and a forcefield hummed around the solid walls of each cell in case any prisoners attempted to damage the cells themselves without the use of their Aura or Semblance. The prisoners aboard Gangrel's vessel were those who had been identified during the battle as leaders or ranking members in some capacity; Celeste Lupus had naturally been placed in deepest darkest recesses of the brig and sealed away the moment the chief medical officer of the ship had deemed her fit to leave his presence. She would never walk again; the combination of the sheer power Felix had unleashed in the blow that had ended their battle combined with the trauma that the destruction of her experimental cybernetics had caused irreparable damage to her spine and nervous system; a prospect that gave Gangrel an amount of pleasure he was a little ashamed of. Putting his feelings aside he lowered the forcefield around the cell and stepped inside, though he chose to keep the rest of the lock down protocol in place.
"This cell won't hold me forever, the White Fang-"
"The White Fang are gone" Gangrel cut across her coldly "The leaders of the individual cells are either dead or captives. The Cult of Taurus are dead, I killed Alpha myself. Without the threat of your personal hangmen over their heads some of your people have already started selling information for leniency that they won't get; I have the location of the boltholes your people are going to hide in….the Freelancers are going to have fun picking off the last of the people who killed Neon Katt. And then there's you, you're finished" Celeste would have been a pitiful sight to one who didn't know the deeds she was responsible for; her pale flesh had been burned in countless places by her armour and her entire body was riddled with cuts and bruises that ranged from deep purple to sickly yellow whilst her left eye had narrowly avoided being removed and instead a deep gash ran down the flesh above and below it in a twisted parody of Weiss's iconic scar; she had also been dressed in a prison jumpsuit with holes made to accommodate the various medical devices that had been transferred to her cell whilst Celeste herself had simply been strapped to the cold steel slab that served as a bed, it would keep her broken back straight while it healed as much as her restrained Aura would allow, if nothing else.
"If this is your attempt to scare me, to force me to betray my beliefs then you're going to fail" she stared directly up at the ceiling and whilst her tone was sneering her magenta eyes had long since lost their crazed gleam
"I don't care" Gangrel gave a one armed shrug "I don't need you to fear me and as for your beliefs….I know you won't believe this, but I actually knew Adam Taurus; he spent the last day of his life in a cell just like this rethinking everything he thought he believed and stood for, then he went and sacrificed himself fighting alongside the Atlesian military to save Faunus lives; I was stood next to him when it happened"
"Lies" Celeste breathed out "Lies to keep the Faunus race docile, all of it" Celeste's voice had dropped to a terrified whisper as the prospect of being robbed of her beliefs along with everything else sent chills down her ruined spine
"And I need you to understand Celeste, you will never get the chance to be a martyr like him" Gangrel growled, refusing to acknowledge her title. Sienna had been the High Commander of the White Fang, Adam Taurus in his more sane moments, before the bloodlust had truly tipped him over the edge, would have admitted that he was merely holding the line in her absence; Celeste Lupus was a pretender who had never understood the cause she bastardised.
"You came to kill me then?" the Ram Faunus seemed almost serene at the prospect before choosing to add what she presumed would be her final insult "I offered your son the chance, let's see if he inherited his cowardice from you"
"I'm not gonna kill you" Gangrel stepped closer, towering over Celeste's prone form and glaring down at her with a truly terrifying expression "I don't need to"
"You don't have the-"
"You're not going to die on your terms" Gangrel interrupted "You're going to get a trial, just like any other criminal, just like the rest of the White Fang we've captured. A lot of them are going to get the death sentence, I doubt the Council will give anyone less than fifty years….but you, you're a special case. I'm going to dig up all the dirt and find every skeleton in every closet just to make sure they don't kill you; you're going to get life without the possibility of release in a maximum security prison, this one right here. You're never gonna hurt anyone again Celeste, you're never gonna poison another Faunus's mind and the next psychopath to come along won't be able to hold you up as an icon….You're going to die alone and forgotten about, in this cell and I will do my best to make sure you live a long and miserable life before that happens" Gangrel had said what he came to say and simply turned and left, Celeste's mouth worked silently as her eyes widened in stunned horror at the prospect of what was to become of her. The Bear Faunus exited the cell and reactivated the forcefield, though a moment before its' dull buzzing drowned out any sounds from within the cell he clearly heard Celeste Lupus let out a blood curdling scream of rage and terror. He walked away, informing Donner that she and Chiffon had the ship and that he would be returning to his family.
Team GORE had been brought aboard the Gespenst, each of them individually though Carcharodon, Onyx and Hellion had been brought together by Specialist Chiffon who had found himself with the unenviable task of having to debrief the trio of raiders, each of whom were still emotionally high-strung from the battle with the knowledge that they were so close to being reunited with their missing member driving them to pace the briefing room, snarl in irritation and distractedly toy with their weapons. Eventually Chiffon had, to their great displeasure, confiscated their weapons; the sight of Onyx Ursabane sharpening his double bladed battleaxe whilst the blood of his conquered enemies still dripped from his clothes, hair and skin onto the floor was enough to make even the grizzled veteran concerned. Finally however it had been done, the herculean task of making them dictate a succinct report of what had happened so that the Kingdom of Atlas could confirm that some of its' most wanted criminals were in fact dead and Team GORE were free to go.
"I've never seen him take this long to heal, or need help" Hellion murmured, wings buzzing in frustration behind her "Are you sure he'll make it?"
"Of course he'll make it" the reply came from the Chief Medical Officer of the Gespenst, a gruff and greying man whose hands had been augmented with cybernetics which allowed them to move with superhuman levels of speed and precision
"Nobody dies on my watch" the Doctor, known by the crew of the ship simply as 'Doc Ratchet' grumbled mostly to himself "I once patched up a man who'd been sawed in half….vertically"
"Never really realised how small he is" Onyx noted as he gazed down at Raffia's unmoving body. When the Axolotl Faunus had destroyed the bridge that he and Beta had been fighting on Carcharodon had channelled what little remained of his Aura into his Semblance to make his way to the lowest depths of Eisenstadt Zweite where the fall had taken them. Beta was unmistakably dead, the Snow Leopard Faunus's body, burned and mangled beyond recognition; Raffia was in a similar condition and Carcharodon's fear had been immeasurable when his friends' regenerative Semblance flickered and failed as his Aura reserves proved insufficient for the task. Through sheer force of will alone Carcharodon had slung Raffia's wounded form over his shoulder and used the forearm mounted blades of the Red Waves to climb through the Hive City until he reached aid.
"He'll make it" Carcharodon said simply but with utter conviction; even as he spoke Raffia's Aura continued to work, bolstered by the cocktail of Aura stimulating drugs and sedatives that the Atlesian medic had pumped into his body; his skeleton had almost fully reformed with only hairline fractures remaining where shattered and utterly destroyed bones had once been, his missing caudal fin and blinded eye had seemingly healed and the majority of his internal organs were recovering steadily, leaving only the burned and blackened skin which had been stripped away to expose the flesh and sinew below in several places as a fading testament to the ordeal his body had been through.
"I have other patients to attend to, try not to disturb anyone" the Doctor stated bluntly, his way of giving the group the privacy they so obviously sought. Carcharodon waited until the man was out of earshot before crouching down and whispering in Raffia's ear
"The poison they call medicine doesn't work on you….I know you're awake" as he rose back to his full height Raffia's eyes slowly flickered open
"Come to make sure the death sentence sticks?" he croaked out, voice sounding as broken and defeated as his body appeared
"I've come to welcome you home" Carcharodon replied, swallowing a lump in his throat as he spoke. Raffia's eyes widened in shock and his fins lay flat along his skull as he sat bolt upright as fast as the many medical instruments still invading his body and the considerable pain he was in would allow, Carcharodon pulled the smaller Faunus into a crushing hug the moment he was upright with Onyx and Hellion quickly following suit
"Welcome back" Onyx chuckled as he cupped the back of Raffia's skull "You did well"
"And if you ever do that again I swear I will skin you" Hellion huffed
"I….what?" Raffia's mind seemed unable to catch up with what was happening "But….I was exiled, I came back-"
"All is forgiven" Carcharodon said gently "If you can do the same" Raffia paused for a moment before finally returning the hug in earnest
"Did we win?" he hissed, the ghost of his ruthlessness making itself known "Are they dead?"
"All of them" Carcharodon assured him "And not one of them died a warriors' death on the end of a blade"
"Good" Raffia hissed as he extricated himself from the tangle of limbs and returned to laying on his back, a somewhat less painful position
"Now what?" he murmured "Our arrangement with Atlas is over, where do we go from here"
"We already had arrangements made" Hellion informed him "But we need you with us for them to take shape"
"Atlas Academy is sending the exchange students home early, the tournament is being discontinued this year" Onyx added "Commander Slate saw fit to pay us handsomely for working with the Atlesians….I think our first port of call should be the Frost River"
"Agreed" Carcharodon rasped, a genuine smile on his face at the notion
"We're going home?" Raffia asked
"Briefly" Carcharodon nodded "If only to say our goodbyes to it….in your absence we decided that the only way that our culture will survive is to adapt and that we should continue training as Hunters"
"We can prowl the seas without reprisal from the Kingdoms so long as we focus our attentions on other raiders and kill any Grimm that lurk in their waters" Hellion explained, hoping desperately that Raffia would see the truth of the matter and the appeal that the notion held.
"Headmistress Goodwitch has already accepted us as students for the next two years" Carcharodon informed him bluntly "All we need is the fourth member of Team GORE….what say you?" Raffia looked up at the last vestiges of what he had in place of a family, saw the faces of the people he had been fully willing to die in battle for and weighed them against the notion of taking part in what the elders of his tribe would no doubt have called a perversion of their ways; after a moment of silence he gave the only answer he could.
"I'm with you, always….whatever comes next"
The black luxury car was a far cry from the levels of ostentatious that Rhodium Torchwick had made himself used to but could still hardly be described as nondescript, especially in its' current surroundings. The redhead mobster sat in the rear of the vehicle with his former cellmate, the Weasel Faunus known to most by his nickname of 'Tricky' sat beside him whilst the two of them were chauffeured by a more recent addition to the inner circle of Torchwick's ever expanding criminal empire; a street criminal and local rapper by the name of Vert, more commonly known by his street name of 'Uzi' who had come to Rhodium's attention when he bought the record label that the younger man was being exploited by, the mobster saw that the boy had the potential to be very useful and a wealth of experience with organised crime relative to his age and had quickly made the decision to recruit him; in truth the matte black car with tinted windows and glistening rims that Vert was driving had been a gift from Rhodium.
"This is the place" Rhodium noted calmly as the car entered an industrial estate close to the freight docks, slowing to a stop in the yard of a firm whose business involved manufacturing components for the large ships that frequented those docks
"Why do they always pick the most cliché places" Tricky sighed, beady eyes peering through the window of the vehicle but failing to detect anything "Seriously, we're running how many businesses now? If they wanna meet somewhere discreet them talk in a back corner of a bar or something….this is just bullshit" Rhodium rolled his eyes whilst Vert let out a snicker, thus attracting the attention of the redhead
"Uzi go see if you can find anyone" the younger man seemed to consider complaining before thinking better of it; he was tall with a wiry physique that was obscured by a baggy black hoodie and artistically ripped and faded designer jeans held up by a belt with a needlessly embellished buckle and tucked into an expensive pair of hi-topped trainers which were a combination of glaring white and vibrant acid green, his dark-skinned face was framed by dreadlocks that had been dyed the same colour and reached to his shoulders. Rhodium watched him climb out of the car and produce an oversized handgun that had been tucked into the back of his jeans and begin prowling the area
"Level with me Rhodey" Tricky breathed out with clear apprehension "You think this is a set up?….this isn't our turf"
"They're playing one hell of a long game if it is" Rhodium answered calmly "Besides, this isn't Malachite's turf either" the two of them sat in silence as they waited for answers, Rhodium silently considering his options. After his escape from prison the mysterious contact he knew only by the moniker of 'Dunwitch' had re-established contact and the steady flow of the Eco-Dust that was a key component in the narcotic 'Booster', easily one of the most lucrative ventures Rhodium was involved in; especially when one considered the uses one could find for a force of dependant and drug addicted Hunters whose abilities had been artificially enhanced. Recently however shipments had ceased and there had been no word, Rhodium would have simply assumed that Dunwitch had simply been apprehended were it not for the fact that no news outlet from any of the Kingdoms were reporting what would have surely been a major bust by the authorities. Then a few nights ago he had received a message, delivered through the usual convoluted and intricate channels that Dunwitch used stating that they would like a face to face meeting to discuss further business arrangements, which Rhodium had naturally agreed to.
"Hey!" Uzi barked out, prompting both Rhodium and Tricky so spring out of the rear doors of the vehicle on opposite sides; the redhead reaching into the trench coat he wore and retrieving Melodic Cudgel
"Ah Mister Torchwick, a pleasure" a voice seemed unnaturally distorted, as if it were a record played at every speed but the correct one and seemed to come from every direction at once
"Dunwitch?" Rhodium called out, frantically scanning his surroundings
"Indeed" the voice came from a single direction this time and the source of it seemed to manifest suddenly; a tall and spindly body clad in all black garments that could best be described as a combination of business attire and plague doctor, a well tailored and clearly expensive black three-piece suit, dress shoes, shirt and tie were offset by leather gauntleted gloves that reached back almost to the elbows, a flowing and hooded black cloak which hung open with the hood obscuring what little of the mans' features were left unhidden by their mask; a distinctly avian thing of deep matte black with a thin and curved beak and a pair of prominent goggles integrated into it, goggles whose lenses moved and adjusted themselves ceaselessly and seemed to faintly glow the exact same shade of red as the eyes of the creatures of Grimm.
"But enough with formalities" Dunwitch all but purred as they lowered their hood and began removing their mask "You can call me Oz"
"Holy fucking Oum" Vert gasped at the sight of Oz's face, the left side of his head still a skinless and twisted mass of exposed and burned sinew and horrific scar tissue whilst the eye socket remained empty. Tricky elbowed him firmly in the ribs whilst Rhodium remained utterly unperturbed
"So why the face to face….come on we've all got shit to do, you didn't come here just for a dramatic reveal"
"No, I came here because my operations in Atlas have had to be relocated, I decided it would be beneficial for both of us to offer my services in a more permanent capacity whilst also pursuing my own interests"
"It got too hot for you in Atlas now you wanna set up shop in my turf, you're looking to join the crew so you don't get scalped in protection fees?" Rhodium surmised, translating the scientists' words into something more easily understandable to a man of his upbringing and experiences
"Indeed" Ozymandias Eldritch nodded with as much of a smile as he could manage
"That can run" Rhodium nodded "Let Tricky know what you need to set up and we'll get hold of it. You'll get your cut of the profits from Booster….but I might have other jobs for you. This is an exclusive deal, I hear that you're working with any other crews and I'll put your body on the side of the road" Ozymandias merely listened to the terms before asking
"Am I to presume that these other jobs would involve maximising the effects of Booster to help deal with these other crews?"
"Got it in one" Rhodium flashed a savage grin, pleased to be working with someone who seemed to share his vision and scope "I'm done playing with Malachite, it's time to start preparing for war"
"A war you say?" Ozymandias chuckled "Oh I have a friend who will be most pleased to hear that"
Deep in the bowels of the Poly-Tech headquarters, in the classified storage facility known as the Toybox whose existence had been made more widely known by the exploits and subsequent escape of Ozymandias Eldritch a pair of security guards moved through the seemingly endless hallways; a Poly-Tech security team member who tried desperately to start a conversation with their new co-worker, an Atlesian soldier who had been considered but ultimately rejected for the Specialist Branch. The security teams were a new protocol, Antonia Arc had insisted on a living breathing presence in the vaults ever since Ozymandias's betrayal; she knew intellectually that the security robots had been so thoroughly examined that it was illogical to even consider that any potential backdoors into their systems remained, it made no difference and she insisted on the guards regardless.
"Damn….that guy was not playing" the security guard muttered as they passed the spot where Ozymandias had massacred the team sent to apprehend him, it may have been the guards overactive imagination but they were almost sure they could still see traces of blood on the walls and floor; the harsh glare of their companion however was most assuredly real and the two continued onwards without another word. Behind a door in the centre of stretch of corridor stood a steel container almost five an a half feet tall with a small section towards the top of the container removed and replaced with a transparent substance which, while resembling glass, was durable enough to withstand an Aura fuelled blow from the outside or a small explosion. The room was dark save for the light being cast by the dozens of advanced computers and other devices connected to the container monitoring things that the untrained eye could only guess at. What went unseen however was the fruits of Ozymandias's labour, the scientist despite appearances had been successful in finding his prize before being apprehended and even now the swarm of nano-bots modified the readings taken by each of the various machines and coursed through the connections into the container itself.
If one were to glance into the clear section of the container they would be shocked to see pale and lightly freckled flesh and faint wisps of coppery hair and if they were wise they would feel an unmistakable sense of dread as they realised that one of the machines sported a timer which was steadily making its' way down to zero.
Authors Notes:
And that ladies and gents is the end of Vol.6/Second Year
We've reached the halfway point in the story and I cannot thank the people who've stuck with me this long enough.
However, due to me being with my girlfriend for a couple of weeks soon I may post something unrelated to FADE next week but this story will be on hiatus until March 29th….I hope you're all still here when I return with Vol.7
Anyway let's summarise:
See Felix is….well not quite fine but he'll live.
Yang and Blake would have torn Atlas down if Winter didn't let them in….and Winter knows it.
Yang went to Felix because she has experience with losing a limb, Blake went to Corvid because she knows exactly what it's like to blame yourself for the White Fang's actions.
Yeah some students got absolutely fucked up.
Razz is still alive….but ouch.
I can't stress enough that Helios was at Felix's side until duty forced him to leave….do with that angst what you will.
Honestly Felix's mental state hanging on by a thread in this scene was hard for me to write, especially when he realised Corvid wasn't there.
So yeah, I'm leaving the possibility of Felix getting a robot tail later on open but it won't be weaponised like Yang's arm is.
So Diamond being the 'Unofficial' second in command just became official.
Kataigida brought Syneffo and twelve of her best people with her, four died….it might not seem like much but she brought her elite and a third of them won't be going back to Anima; that is crushing.
Helios is also not in a good place….I mean it's honestly fair to say that nobody is at this point.
So Helios is no longer the heir to the Nikosi, which does mean that all of his worried about having to leave Felix and return to his people one day are now over; also this is clearly not an exile like what Carcharodon did to Raffia but it will most likely change his standing in the Nikos tribe somewhat.
So yeah, Syneffo is coming to New Vale to train with Ruby, Penny and Qrow….things are gonna be fun.
"I don't want you to leave us" was honestly heartbreaking.
'The idiot cat' Syneffo and Nyanza will probably adopt each other as siblings.
Yep, the whole time that fight was going on Iris's new arm was just lying on a bed waiting to be used.
Blake makes the case well and firmly.
Delta really was a sick fucker.
Onyx low-key spamming Corvid's Scroll to make sure she's not dead.
I was going to give Eagle solo scene in this chapter but honestly I'd rather push further character development for her into Vol.7 when we're back in Vale where her closest family are.
Weiss immediately goes for the hugs. It's canon.
Athena and Coral should not have had to see any of that.
Coral is low-key terrified of everyone right now but especially Arctus.
Diamond is an honorary Schnee/Slate until she becomes one officially.
Athena's reaction to this fact is perfect.
So yeah, Arctus is done using a Plasma gun….I'm thinking double barrelled laser hand-cannon with the same transformation; it's the same weapon just reworked.
I think this is the most angry I've ever written Gangrel, normally when he loses it he reacts on the spot….this is different, he had a day to let this fester.
He sicked the Freelancers on the remains of the Fang; fun thing about the Freelancers is that they aren't part of any chain of command….whatever they choose to do to anyone they capture, Gangrel has complete deniability.
Yeah my Adam Taurus in Downward Spiral was unmistakably unhinged but it was in a different way to canon. Canon Adam is a sexual predator and a power hungry egomaniac using whatever rhetoric is convenient; Downward Spiral Adam believed in the cause to the extreme and it made him a Faunus supremacist, ethnic cleanser and despot….But he still had some beliefs that he abided by.
Now I'm sure what Gangrel just did breached the Geneva convention….But Atlas is a very fucked up place.
Can you imagine having to debrief Team GORE under those circumstances?
Doc Ratchet, if you know me then you know I had to throw in a Transformers reference.
Also, I love the "Vertically" line because while it was a nod to the Transformers MTMTE comic, it could also be canon because of Ironwood.
Seriously Raffia is tiny, he's probably a touch shorter than Ruby.
Raffia was an absolutely broken mess of a body, so badly injured that he needed to have his Aura artificially regenerated and boosted so that he could recover himself.
So yeah, side effect of Raffia's Semblance is that he can metabolise poisons, drugs and things like sedatives unnaturally fast; they don't work on him...it's why he never takes painkillers when he uses his Semblance to grow arms and legs back.
And like that Team GORE is whole again.
It's official, they're real students now.
Uzi Vert….I couldn't not lol; also he was actually referenced in Vol.5, he's gonna be one of Rhodium's regular sidekicks in Third Year.
Remember Tricky, Rhodium's cellmate in Vol.3….he makes a good point about the cliches.
Dunwitch = Eldritch….I honestly hope at least one of you saw that one coming
And yes he's dressing up as a fucking plague doctor now….Thank Ephemeral Rift ASMR for that.
I love that Rhodey gave no fucks about the dramatic reveal.
So yeah, Third Year is gonna involve an 'Alliance' between Rhodey and Eldritch and Rhodey kicking his turf war up a notch or several.
Freckles, coppery hair and a timer…..I told you I was ending this volume on a cliffhanger I fucking told you I'd do it.
Thank you to SumoSnipe, Aruachu239, Funlander, iSassenach, FleetOfWarships, DizzyDwarf, CanadianCavalier, FluffyFirefly and Garthraxxus for their reviews on the last chapter.
Oh indeed, if you remember there was a scene in Downward Spiral where Winter gave Mercury a very small example of what a pair of gravity Glyphs can do.
I've honestly never thought of Felix using his Semblance to freeze everything around him by draining all of the heat in one go.
It might only be a handful of belligerents….but that's all it takes to start another revolution in another twenty years time.
A couple of interesting potential ship names for Lux & Rusty but nothing that jumps out at me yet.
You didn't really think I'd kill Gangrel surely?
I'm glad you all enjoyed the battle.
I mean it was always gonna be Car versus whoever decapitated his sister.
It wasn't just because Trench was capable, it was because he had already declined an offer to join the Fang (By quoting Blake Belladonna's book).
Yeah Raffia can be killed, but it takes some work and planning out….he's taken point blank shots to the face and survived.
As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.