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Chapter 147: Countdown To Destruction

In the days following Salem's expansion of the blockade around New Vale in the form of vast, serpentine tendrils erupting from her gargantuan Grimm Spires and sprouting appendages which weaved between one another to form a fleshy barrier around the city which almost served as a grotesque parody of a forcefield the Kingdoms' Capital was subjected to mass panic and sheer terror of a scope that those sworn to protect it had never experienced before.

The populace of New Vale had been thrown into desperation with crime, looting, rioting and protests against the Council all reaching unprecedented levels which Hunters had been dispatched alongside the police to quash by any means they found to be necessary, the knowledge that beneath the city lay an untold amount of Grimm waiting for the opportunity to strike meant that such things had to be halted; though with no real solutions in sight the heavy-handed approach seemed to do little more than exacerbate the situation.

The tentacles had not yet formed a complete barrier yet however, instead there were several gaps and ragged open spaces between the spires which; at the current rate of growth would likely be closed within a matter of mere days. This had created a sense of extreme urgency not only within the Council and the military who had initially sought to destroy the tendrils, only to learn that doing so caused a reaction just as volatile as targeting the spires themselves; but also amongst the citizens who had been pushed to desperation and found themselves having to make unthinkable choices. Over the last several days it had become clear that the military and Hunters would not only have to keep the Creatures of Grimm from the people but also conversely keep the people from attempting to assault the spires in a foolhardy attempt to escape; with reports from Hunters such as Rover and Artemis tan in particular detailing instances of groups of civilians coming prepared with climbing gear, seeking to simply scale the Grim spires and slip between the gaps in the fleshy barrier between them.

Overall it seemed to be apparent to all within the besieged city, Hunter and civilian alike that something monumental was on the horizon and would almost certainly coincide with the city being completely sealed off, a moment that was drawing ever closer with a dreadful sense of finality.

Something bold and unprecedented had to be done.

That was why Qrow Branwen was currently making his way into a vast space hidden far below the campus of Halo Academy, the clang of the feet of his robotic chair striking the metallic floor reverberating around him as motion sensors activated several lights and brought the place into view, revealing a sizeable warehouse. Whilst the uppermost level of the anti-gravity platform and the campus itself had been styled to resemble Beacon Academy and its' massive propulsion system was the product of Atlesian engineering the academy had also been built with Vaccuan preparedness in mind and featured enough supplies to either New Vale's last line of defence or single-handedly wage a war with the arsenal it contained.

An arsenal that had recently been added to.

"Qrow" Glynda's stern and clipped tones echoed faintly as she strode into view from between dimly lit aisles with Professor Bronzewing at her side, the two of them cross-referencing their own information against something written on a clipboard the Grimm Studies Professor carried.

"Are final preparations underway?" Qrow asked, rare nerves creeping into his voice and making him hesitant whilst in response to the question Dove swallowed thickly and shifted his weight with uncertainty of his own.

"The last thing I need to do is ensure that the medical teams are fully prepared to handle Nyanza Angora's operation and that the operating theatre is adequately secured….the last thing we need is a breach within the academy on top of everything else"

"Is Fracture ready for medical use?" Qrow's eyes narrowed, the question tacit accusation as he knew without a doubt what the answer would be.

"I've worked on the formula as much as I can" Dove admitted with a heavy sigh "But the reality of the situation is that none of us could be alive to carry the project on this time tomorrow….They're going to pump him full of as much Aura stimulant as possible and hope that his Semblance carries him through" Qrow has appalled and certain that if he could still stand he would have punched the younger man full in the face for a choice that was either callous or desperate.

"How are preparations on your end proceeding?" Glynda asked, cutting decisively through any tension or hostility before it could arise and forcing her colleagues to remain entirely practical.

"The Third and Fourth Year students have been given their respective mission parameters, Oum I hate having to use the kids for this but we're gonna need everyone we can spare" Qrow sighed and paused to steady himself "The first and second years are being confined to the campus for their own good, Ren and Nora are going to with them, as much as they'd rather be in the field-"

"Good" Glynda nodded "Ren is my Deputy Headmaster, if I'm in the field then his presence is required here in case of….well, you know what could happen" the sound of the stoic and seemingly unflappable Glynda Goodwitch contemplating her own mortality hung in the air for a moment and Qrow would freely admit that he found it more than a little disconcerting.

"So we're really doing this then?" he asked slowly, forcing himself to accept that this was real.

"We are. There's no choice" Glynda nodded "Dove and his team have managed to create a sizeable amount of the Fracture compound….From what we understand Salem's spires are filled with fossilised Grimm matter, which is simply a condensed form of the same substance that comprises Spawning Pits. We may not have enough to wipe out all of the spires but we do believe a concentrated attack could do significant damage and at the very least create an escape route out of the city-"

"Provided that the Grimm that this attack causes don't completely overrun the entire city" Qrow noted "This could be the end of New Vale"

"And yet it almost certainly will be if we don't act" Glynda countered "Salem is planning something and I have no intention of simply standing by and allowing it to happen….Now we all have our roles, I need to speak with Gangrel Slate and his team" Qrow understood the dismissal for what it was and nodded; silently preparing to return to his massive supercomputer array and use his ability to tap into every security camera feed across the Kingdom to aid and guide the Hunters fighting in what promised to be one the most hard-fought battles since the Great War.

He only hoped that when it was over he would still be alive to see his daughter again and that there would be enough of New Vale left for her to return to.

A dull crack of teleportation and a burst of thick, acrid smog announced Gangrel Slate's arrival into the small clearing in the woods that had served as the Nikosi encampment; a few moments later Adam Taurus strode into the clearing after him, fallen leaves and twigs crunching under heavy, booted footsteps. Blake, Yang, Weiss and Kataigida were awaiting their arrival around a small campfire at which some small woodland animal that the tribal leader had skewered was being cooked whilst Kataigida sat close by with her spear laid beside her and her sword across her lap as she sharpened it with a whetstone which she carried on her person at all times.

Besides Kataigida the entirety of the group seemed a little worse for wear, dishevelled and dirty after spending several days both performing reconnaissance on Salem's spires and reporting their findings, limited as they were to both Qrow and Glynda in the city beyond the spires and Winter in Atlas and also halting and engaging the seemingly endless stream of Creatures of Grimm drawn towards New Vale either by their own instincts and the fear radiating from the city in almost palpable waves or by Salem's will, arriving in packs and swarms ranging from mere handfuls of smaller monsters to dozens of large and lumbering beasts at a time; a task made more difficult by the fact that Kataigida's retinue of Nikosi warriors were still stationed elsewhere.

"Any developments?" Weiss asked as Gangrel sat beside her and worked out a crick in his neck whilst Adam leaned against a tree at the edge of the small clearing and kept his distance, fully aware of how distrusted he was and how uncomfortable his current allies found his presence. Gangrel merely nodded wearily and took a moment to gather his thoughts which the Bull Faunus took to speak up

"Bloodsuckers" he stated simply, a distasteful and irritated note to his voice at the mention of the Flea Grimm which were each roughly the size of a small child "Hundreds of the things swarming across the fleshy growth between the tendrils and the spires….it looks like they were stemming and stitching up the damage that New Vale's attack left on them"

"We have to tell Goodwitch…..but she's gonna be 'Ticked' off" Yang noted, the sheepish smile she wore indicating that the pun had been made out of habit more than anything else.

"Yang's right" Blake added a moment later before being interrupted by the sound of her own Scroll; the group had taken to keeping only one their Scrolls turned on at any given time in order to conserve their batteries and allow them to keep in contact with those within the city for longer, currently Blake's was the device being used and she quickly pulled it out to see that she was being called by Goodwitch herself.

"Professor" Blake straightened up at the sight of the stern-faced woman, a habit that she would likely never break "We were about to contact you, a scouting mission-"

"It can wait Blake" Glynda's tone was heavy and exhausted, something about it making it clear to the entire group that something about the situation had changed and causing each of them to move a little closer to where Blake sat.

"Professor Bronzewing and the scientists from Atlas have a made a breakthrough and the testing of their new weapon has proven it to be effective in destroying Grimm matter in its' primordial state" Glynda continued without prompting, letting that moment hang in the air for a moment before explaining further "It would be prudent to assume that Salem is planning something after recent developments and as such we've manufactured enough of Bronzewing's new compound to fully arm one airship….it's all we could manage to make on short notice. You need to be ready to move at nightfall"

"You're attacking the spires!" Yang exclaimed

"Why not pump the chemical into the underground, that's where she's hiding?" Blake asked, eyebrow arching.

"We are" Glynda confirmed "We considered pumping the power grid full of the compound but upon considering how much we were able to produce and Salem's reach and abilities we deemed it to be too dangerous; it would almost certainly result in a massive Grimm incursion with no way to get civilians to safety"

"So you're going to target the Spires and blast a hole in them for people to evacuate from" Gangrel surmised

"Exactly" Glynda nodded "The city is being put in lock-down now and civilians are being moved to shelters, we're expecting this to be bad, I won't sugar-coat it; but we're also expecting it to work and we can't afford to fight Salem on her own terms. The plan is simple; Dove and I are going to be aboard the airship armed with his new 'Fracture' warheads and given an aerial escort. Once we breach the exterior of the Grimm Spires the warheads will destroy the fossilised Grimm matter within them, the scientists will be flying through the opening created in order to return to Atlas and continue their research; I believe however that with a combination of the new compound, Ruby's eyes and conventional tactics we can bring down the Spires one after another and create an opening that Salem can't repair, at least not immediately and hold the line for log enough for Vaccuo to send aid and help us bring down the rest….she isn't all powerful or we wouldn't have lasted this long. That being said you are each highly skilled and would be tremendous assets to the battle"

"This seems awfully risky, like you're gambling the lives of everyone in your city" Adam noted, his smooth voice sneering.

"Of course it's a gamble. Our other option is death….Do not presume to lecture me boy, I refuse to believe any version of you is more than a demented murderer" Goodwitch's tone was filled with more venom than her former students had ever heard and the Bull Faunus let out a low snarl in response only for Kataigida to rise to her feet.

"Enough" her voice boomed throughout the clearing "We will rise to the challenge and we will break Salem's hold over your city….thinking about what could happen if we fail is pointless; none of us would be alive to see it, unless one of you is a coward who would flee?" silence was the only answer to that particular accusation and instead Glynda nodded in silent approval

"Nightfall then" she repeated "I'll send you the co-ordinates….and good luck" with that the call ended and a heavy, oppressive silence hung about the clearing for several moments before the sound of Kataigida sharpening her weapons began anew. Blake and Yang reached out to squeeze one another's hands reflexively and Adam stalked deeper in the woods, likely in search of something to vent his frustrations on whilst Weiss leaned into Gangrel and looked up at him, icy blue eyes suddenly fearful.

"You think this plan could work?" she murmured

"If Bronzewing's as clever as Goodwitch thinks he is" the Bear Faunus considered for a moment and slowly nodded "Concentrated attack, everything we've got, including this new weapon all on one spot and then hold the line while we get people out….It could work"

"It will work" Weiss's expression suddenly morphed into something harsh and defiant as she drew Myrtenaster and began reloading the weapons' Dust chambers "It will work, we're going to rip down Salem's towers and fight our way back into New Vale; then we're going to find Ruby and take on Salem herself….we're getting our son back" Gangrel heard her and found himself simply in awe of the woman that he had married with a wide and toothy smile forming on his snout like face.

Weiss would overcome this challenge like any other and see the results she wanted; all that remained was to prepare.

Three muffled cracks sounded out as Diamond raised and fired Lex Talionis with practised ease, each shot hitting the bullseye of a different target at the far end of the academies' shooting range; an impressive feat considered that the silver haired woman hadn't bothered to bring the weapons' scope to her eye.

A moment later the shooting range was filled with the cacophony of automatic gunfire as Felix pointed Hack and Slash in the general direction of the targets and simply opened fire.

"Why do you even come here?" Diamond asked, unable to keep a soft chuckle out of her voice as she shook her head in disbelief "It's not like you're actually aiming"

"Neither were you" the Lion Faunus noted pointedly before shrugging and looking away "I'm trying to take my mind of things and there's only so clean I make Eagle's car….it helps"

"Trying to build up the muscle memory" Diamond countered a little defensively as she collapsed her rifle and gestured to her cybernetic arm; in truth after months of use the limb was as close to a perfect substitute for the arm that she had lost as it would ever be, the machinery and processors completely attuned to her own nerves leaving little to none of the delays and pauses in motion that had initially plagued it. She had come to the shooting range partially to practice but also to help clear her head just as much as Felix seemed to need to, though she found herself letting out a sigh and brushing away strands of hair that had fallen in front of her eyes as she decided that perhaps forcing their glaringly obvious concerns to the back of their minds was perhaps not the best idea

"Wanna talk about it?" she asked cautiously, Felix nodded silently as he reloaded his weapons before setting them down and making himself comfortable.

"I'm scared" he said finally, the admission seeming to need to be forced from the recesses of his psyche and hanging awkward and heavy in the mercifully empty shooting range for a moment after he had spoken.

"We are gonna be right in the thick of it" Diamond murmured quietly nodding in understanding and agreement

"That's not it" Felix shook his head, his words hushed and faltering as he explained "I'm not worried about me….I was talking to Myrtle today; she's been taken to one of the shelters with Redwood and Astra….they're terrified Dee, not just them, there's thousands of people counting on us….all of New Vale and we might not be enough" Diamond paused and considered the truth of her Team leaders' words, admitting if only to herself that she shared his fears before letting out a slow breath and giving him a nonchalant shrug; slowly reasserting the unshakeable calm that had been one of her greatest assets for so long and answering

"Yeah but how's that different to any other mission?" Felix cocked his head, his mouth opening and closing silently several times as he struggled to form a response before finally he leaned back and rested his head against the wall as a small snort escaped him

"Thanks for that….I guess" The conversation came to a halt as the door of the shooting range opened, allowing Helios to stride into view; his heavy and reinforced golden armour in place with Milo and Akuo slung over his back. At the sight of him Felix crossed the room, a gentle smile crossing his face as he wrapped his arms around the taller mans' shoulders with Helios responding by leaning down and kissing him before resting his forehead against Felix's.

"Hey" Felix breathed out, the single word packed with countless emotions; all of which the redhead seemed to sense and understand.

"Hey" he murmured, pulling the blonde a little closer and continuing "You have your assignment?"

"Yeah" Felix nodded "We're with Team GORE, we're gonna be in the air….strategic insertion, taking out priority targets when the Grimm start pouring out" it sounded so simple when he couched it in the clinical and detached terminology of their trade; it would be a gruelling and likely bloody battle however and they both knew it.

"Team NEON are going to be on the ground" Helios replied "We're going to be integrated with an infantry unit helping hold the line" Felix's deep blue eyes were wide, the air left his lungs and his blood felt as though it had frozen in his veins as his mind was suddenly filled with images of a tide of Grimm washing over Team NEON's position or the Spawning Pits in Salem's domain beneath the city sending swarms of monsters bursting upwards from beneath them.

Felix swallowed, eyes filling with tears as a painful realisation came to him.

"You're saying goodbye"

"Fluffy, we could all be dead by sunrise…..I just want there to be nothing left unsaid-"

"Stop it" Felix's voice was suddenly firm and unwavering "We're getting through this, no matter what it takes…..everyone is coming home; us, Arctus and Eagle, Nyanza….Eimaste gia pante, tipota den to allazei" Helios blinked several times, stunned confusion in his bright green eyes

"Who….when did you-"

"Hellion has been teaching Eagle the tribes' language for years and I um, spoke to your sister a few times while she was here last year" Felix admitted, the sudden steely resolve that he'd felt when using the language of Helios's people wavering and being replaced by an awkwardness that seemed at odds with the situation until Helios simply leaned down and kissed him again, pulling him into a crushing hug.

"Stay safe….and destroy anything that tries to prevent you from doing so" Felix chuckled, deepening his voice as he uttered words that Helios had once said to him before a mission.

"Kick ass and don't die" Helios laughed as he recalled that particular conversation "I'll feel safer knowing that you're in the air though"

"Let me know if you say any big Grimm you wanna fight yourself; I'd hate to steal your glory" Felix snorted, the cause of the animosity between them in their First Year as students still being a source of amusement for the blonde, Helios responded by kissing his forehead.

The two of them remaining like that until Diamond cleared her throat to remind them of her presence; at which point Felix reached out as if offering her to join them and make it a group hug which Diamond responded to with a roll of her eyes before obliging.

Appearances aside she was just as terrified of what the night could bring as they were.

The Allied Remnant Resistance Movements' base of operations in the ruins of Old Vale was a hive of bustling of activity as always, with those who called it home going about their business hurriedly in the fresh mid-morning air. Today however the atmosphere was markedly different, frantic and almost desperate whilst even the most cursory glance at the faces of those members of the resistance in the streets would show them to be nervous with their eyes darting around as though they expected an attack to come at any moment as they loaded crates of supplies into vehicles that had been carefully maintained despite the ruined state of the city around them against the odds.

The resistance was preparing to move out.

It had been a tough decision for the leadership of the base to make but ultimately an inevitable one as they had come to the conclusion that the White Fang had almost certainly learned of their whereabouts and following their taking of Mountain Glenn would most likely be well armed and well equipped. The loss of both of the Resistances' bases in what had been Vales' mainland territories was a crushing blow and would set back the efforts to reclaim and rebuild by several years; however it was still favourable to engaging a vastly superior enemy force on their terms and be destroyed entirely.

Once it had been made painfully clear to the leadership of the base that Oscar would be unable to use the Powers of the Wizard to simply magic them all away to safety this time, owing to both the sheer amount of people present and also that there was nowhere for such a large group of people to be taken to; those leaders had had sent out emissaries to the small groups of wandering and nomadic scavengers that skulked through the ruins in ragged robes and gas masks, trading and bartering for safe passage through what the groups considered to be their territory whilst also arranging to send a sizeable portion of the bases' population to Patch whilst the scouts and trained fighters searched for a suitable location to set up a new base of operations and begin again; some of them hoping that the arrangements they had reached with the various unaligned factions could be the beginnings of alliances that would see Vale restored to something resembling its' former glory whilst many others were far less hopeful, seeing it as another battle that would likely need to be fought.

It was against this backdrop of fear and nervousness that Arctus and Eagle made their way beyond the limits of the base.

Oscar had been worries upon realising Jade was nowhere to be found

Arctus and Eagle has assuaged his concerns and stated that they had a good idea of where she might be and now that the two of them had stepped out of the maze of makeshift barricades surrounding the bombed buildings that formed the base they saw that their guess had been correct; the Reindeer Faunus was in the makeshift vegetable garden that the two of them had helped her to make only days earlier, hands dirty and sweet covering her brow with a wheelbarrow beside her filled to the brim with all of the vegetables that she had uprooted whilst Jade herself swung at the trunk of the fruit tree she had created in its' centre with a small hatchet, anger and frustration were little substitute for strength or skill however and she seemed to be making very little progress.

"Jade?" Eagle called out as she and Arctus drew close "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" the teen shot back, punctuating her words with another swing that sent bark flying out but did little real damage.

"Okay, but why are you cutting down the tree"

"Because they can't have it!" with her next swing the axe head broke away from the handle and Jade stomped her foot, sending vines littered with sharp thorns creeping out across the point of impact; a wordless sound of pure frustration escaped her before she took several deep breaths and controlled herself

"We're moving out 'cos the White Fang are gonna come and attack this base the way they did Mountain Glenn" she continued "They're not getting this tree…..they're not getting anything else I make; I'm not gonna use my powers for them again-"

Arctus's sword flashed out impossibly fast as the towering Faunus strode past her; the severed trunk of the tree swaying before beginning to fall in slow motion before both he and Eagle grabbed it and lowered it to the ground carefully.

"Thanks" Jade quickly rubbed her eyes, trying to hide how emotional she had suddenly become and unintentionally smeared dirt across her face in the meantime.

"Anytime" Eagle grinned "Come on, Oscar was looking for you"

"Yeah, you're riding with us" Arctus added "We're going wherever Oscar does"

"Actually about that….I wanted to ask you guys a question" Jade shuffled her feet nervously and glanced down at the now barren ground before Arctus gestured silently for her to continue.

"Look, Oscar's gonna find a way to get you two home….it might take him a while but he's gonna do it" she sighed "I wanna come with you"

"What?" Eagle's eyes were wide

"I just wanna….no, forget it it's-"

"It's not dumb" Arctus interrupted "Talk to us"

"Look it's selfish I know that" Jade huffed "But look at this Remnant compared to the one you come from, I'm from the timeline where everything went wrong and I wanna get away from running and fighting and dying, I hate it all….but honestly, me not being here is probably a good thing; nobody wants to say it but Null is looking for me and that's why we've all gotta run. If I'm gone then the resistance don't have to worry about the White Fang recapturing me"

Arctus and Eagle shared worried glances, each wishing that they could tell the young Spring Maiden that she was wrong and that she would be better off staying in the Remnant that she had been born to yet neither of them could find it within themselves to lie to her; she was correct in her understanding of the situation, she was a target and her timeline was frankly horrific.

Eventually Eagle let out a sigh

"Have you spoken to Oscar about this?"

"Not yet, I mean-"

"Talk to him….I can't just agree to kidnap you-"

"He's not my dad!" Jade exclaimed "I haven't got a dad, or a family….I've just got minders whichever side I'm on"

"Talk to Oscar" Arctus chimed in "And I'll help argue for you if you want me to….Our Remnant isn't perfect, it's got it's own problems and you need to be sure about this Jade; 'cos if you do it I don't think you'll ever be able to come back-"

"Why would I want to?"

"Okay" the Bear Faunus let out a slow breath and nodded "I get it….If we can then we'll bring you with us when we go home, whenever that-"

Arctus was brought to a sudden halt as the force of Jade throwing herself at him and giving him a crushing hug knocked the air out of his lungs; a stream of promises and gratitude pouring from the younger Faunus as she did so.

The time had come.

The Grimm Spires caused darkness to come to New Vale earlier than it should have, the gargantuan mass blocking vast swathes of the horizon yet as the sun set, painting the sky with streaks of pale red and gold its' last rays of light gleamed against the hulls and armour of New Vale's entire military might.

The entire city had been evacuated as best as possible, whilst leaving was entirely impossible the vast population of the Kingdoms' Capital had been relocated, in several cases against their will, to the various shelters within the Hive-Towers which were being protected by the police who had in turn been given access to whatever weaponry and armour could be spared.

Beyond the monolithic towers, in areas that could best be described as picturesque in a middle-class and nondescript way a perimeter had been put in place in preparation for the sea of monsters that the Grimm Spires would send forth; tens of thousands of soldiers supported by columns of tanks and hundreds upon hundred of Paladin battle-suits and countless robotic soldiers courtesy of Poly-Tech and other companies with similar capabilities; all of which was bolstered by several teams of Hunters placed strategically within the defensive lines. Back within the city proper more Hunters had been stationed at the ground and lower levels of the Hive-Towers, acting less as reserves and more as a bulwark against a seemingly inevitable attack from below.

Above it all were the Kingdoms' aerial defences; the vast islands created by anti-gravity platforms being devoted entirely to air support, resupply and triages for the casualties that would soon begin to occur whilst between and around them New Vale's air-force displayed its' full might as roughly two dozen fully armed warships moved into position, casting enormous shadows on the city below them whilst smaller craft hovered and flitted around them; all amidst a veritable swarm of transport and fighter craft which hung in the air like flies around some large beasts.

Glynda Goodwitch stood in the centre of the Command Bridge of one such vessel, Dove Bronzewing at her right hand and a crew of the finest that her Kingdom had to offer gathered around her as she prepared to lead the charge and declare war on Salem herself.

"Status report?" she demanded firmly, it had been years since she had needed to take control of a warship but decades of teaching and working away from the front lines had not dulled her edge, at her words the entire crew seemed to stand a little straighter.

"Ground forces are in position ma'am, defensive perimeter is in place and optimal coverage against subterranean attacks has been achieved" one voice announced.

"Police are reporting that the shelters are filled and they're prepared to hold the line against anything that gets through; vehicles are also standing by to begin ferrying civilians out of the city at as soon as possible" another added a moment later.

"Good" Glynda nodded "Coastal settlements have been warned of the situation and both Atlas and Mistral have all the ships they can spare en route to those settlements to house the citizens" with that she turned her attention towards the horizon displayed on the ships' viewscreen and several tactical readouts displaying the fleet. The vessel she captained was at the head of New Vale's forces, forming the tip of the spear and flanked by several warships on either side and countless other craft; there were two craft however that brought a small smile to her face which flew level with the cockpit of the ship as though they guarding it. To the right was 'Old Unreliable' Team CLIR's Bull-head unmissable with its' distinctive luridly colourful paint-job, the transport in turn flanked by its' own pair of armoured guardians as Corvid Xiao Long donned the Omega Wing and Nickel Polendina revealed that she had finally repaired and upgraded her own weapon as the hulking, vaguely gorilla-shaped mass of the Omega Destroyer unfurled around her. To the left of the warship was a Bull-Head whose hull had been daubed with a bloody red paint and covered with countless tribal markings, both glyphs and twisting and fluid, yet jagged depictions of various monsters and battles against them; Team Gore's Bull-head had been hastily repaired and the remaining members of the team of raiders were now joined by Felix Xiao Long and Diamond Sustrai-Black.

The most important asset in New Vale's armoury however remained unseen from her current position, though Glynda knew that Ruby Rose was present, standing atop the hull of the airship with Crescent Rose deployed and her signature cape trailing dramatically behind her as she prepared to leap from the hull and into combat the moment the ship needed to raise its' shields.

"Message from Gangrel Slate" one of the bridge crew intoned "His team are in position" Glynda nodded silently before turning to Dove

"Are the Fracture Warheads primed?"

"They are" Dove answered, voice wavering just a fraction before he clamped down on his fears and swallowed thickly. Glynda allowed him a moment to steady himself, privately needing the opportunity to steel herself as doubts and fears rose from the back of her mind only to be quashed. Goodwitch watched the sun set over her Kingdom and with a single slow breath resigned herself to what was to come; giving an order that she knew would cost hundreds, if not thousands of lives.

"Primary weapons, open fire" the newly darkened sky was illuminated as first her own vessel and then those surrounded it unleashed torrents of laser-fire, missiles and photon beams that streaked and surged towards the first Grimm Spire that had been marked for destruction, a cacophony of explosions ripping away its' chitinous exterior to reveal its' deep violet and crystalline innards which cracked and oozed as the monstrous construct began to both regenerate and spawn the first of the tide of horrors to come, the screams of newly made Grimm filling the air.

"Dove, fire the Fracture missiles" with a silent nod the Professor of Grimm Studies did as he was told and the missiles streaked towards their target.

The war had truly begun.

The White Fang were in position.

It had taken them several days of ceaseless and meticulous work to prepare, with Caliginous Null first ensuring that his forces were armed and equipped for the task at hand, each of his warriors being armed to the teeth and with the heavily modified Atlesian Paladin Battle-suits at his disposal repaired and readied. The second order of business had been proper reconnaissance and intelligence gathering, though the White Fang scouts had been granted a boon upon seeing members of the resistance meet with members of one of the local groups of scavenging nomads; they had corned the group of travellers and compelled them, under threat of extreme violence and certain death to divulge the Resistances' secrets only for the White Fang to wipe them out regardless, reasoning that survivors were far too great of a risk to allow. Finally Caliginous had ordered his followers to take their positions positions, the White Fang forces moving out through the city and surrounding the small town made of bombed and ruined buildings that their enemies operated out of from several miles away before slowly closing in; setting up several traps and diversions as they went in an effort to ensure that they were not pursued as they escaped with their prize, the small army of Faunus militants, with Caliginous at its' head coming into view of the Resistance base and the maze of defences around it just as the sun reached its' zenith in the clear sky overhead.

The Locust Faunus supposed that a raid in the dead of night would have been far too cliché

A heavy tension hung in the air for a single moment that stretched out for an eternity before it was shattered by the dull crack of a sniper rifle being fired from behind a collapsed section of wall in what had once been the upper floors of an apartment block, the shot audibly flinging a fighter to the ground somewhere behind Caliginous, though he made no effort to turn towards them and reasoned that their Aura should have protected them from the blow. A fraction of a second later the Resistances' guards opened fire in earnest and the Locust Faunus suppressed a wince as he felt several bullets impact against his own Aura whilst the sound of guns, grenades and orders being yelled out filled the air as the defenders attacked all points of the ring of White Fang fighters that surrounded them. It took only a second for the White Fang to recover and retaliate, with their own snipers that had sequestered themselves in nearby buildings revealing themselves as they began picking off the woefully unprepared sentries in their makeshift watchtowers whilst Caliginous watched a stocky Canine Faunus beside him raise a rocket launcher to their shoulder and take aim before he made a showing of reaching out and forcibly lowering the weapon, raising his free hand and bellowing out an order

"CEASE FIRE!"

The command was passed through the White Fang ranks and all around the perimeter of the Resistance base masked Faunus lowered their weapons and stood at the ready, the defenders halting themselves only a moment later; whatever horrors the war had brought shooting at an opponent who had lowered their weapons or surrendered was unconscionable to many of them. The Locust Faunus strode out in front of his forces in long, leisurely paces with his hands clasped behind his back and his antennae bristling only slightly as he waited for his obvious call for parley to be met by his enemies' representative.

"You need to turn your forces around and march back to Mountain Glenn" the emissary called down as they appeared, an area of empty space rippling like water rippling to reveal a short, Reptilian Faunus with pale scales covering their skin and holding a unique rifle that he trained directly on Caliginous's face as his yellow eyes narrowed

"Perdu Callow, formerly of Team GRAP and a White Fang deserter" the Locust Faunus spoke loudly enough for his voice to carry and for the disdain dripping from every syllable to be heard "Do be reasonable, you're surrounded and outgunned, yet I came to you willing to negotiate….it was your forces that opened fire" Caliginous's purple eyes gleamed as he watched Squish falter for a moment, keen Faunus vision allowing him to study the mans' face as he weighed the likeliness of a trap against his unwillingness to gamble the lives of his allies before finally, with a grimace lowering his weapon

"What do you want?"

"What the White Fang have always wanted Perdu, justice for crimes committed against us!" Caliginous splayed his arms wide, speaking as much for his own followers benefit as the defenders and putting on a show; after having spent so many years in the service of Adam Taurus the Locust had learned the importance of a skilled oratory to keep ones' forces in the right frame of mind and sow doubts in ones' enemies

"We're not some marauding bandits taking whatever we please, you know us better than that….you were one of us once" he continued, relishing the furious look on the other Faunus's face "And regardless of your movements' refusal to acknowledge us as such New Menagerie is a Kingdom, we have our own laws and we demand the right to police them-"

"Get to the fucking point" Squish's voice was harsh and Caliginous could see his fingers flexing around the trigger of Breaker as he sensed where the conversation was going.

"You are harbouring terrorists and traitors to New Menagerie, we are willing to cease our hostilities against your people and return a respectable portion of your assets from Mountain Glenn in return for your compliance" Locust gave a twisted smile full of jagged and broken teeth as he met Squish's gaze "I'm offering to spare all of your lives in return for the traitor Jade Rangifer and the spy Neon Katt"

Squish wasted no words.

Caliginous had the briefest of moments to prepare himself, a slight coiling tension in the Reptilian Faunus's muscles as he raised and fired his weapon; the Locust Faunus stepping aside with inhuman grace and fluidity, allowing an explosive shell to soar past his ear and erupt into flames as it struck the ground behind him.

Caliginous smiled

"In truth I expected no better" he called up to Squish before striding back into the ranks of the White Fang, a gleefully maniacal smile spreading across his face and his eyes darkening as his murderous hunger brought his Semblance to the fore; dust and rubble rising from the ground as it was drawn towards his gaping maw until he reigned in his insatiable appetite for destruction and consumption. Steadying himself he turned and pointed towards the Resistance's base and bellowed out an order that echoed through the White Fang forces surrounding it

"WIPE THEM OUT!"

Yang Branwen tore through the narrow tunnels and corridors of New Vale's power grid, a trail of black rose-petals floating behind her in her wake as she surged through Salem's domain before finally coming skidding to a halt in the throne room where Pantheon was already waiting and sinking to one knee as she addressed the Queen of the Grimm herself.

"I take it there have been developments?" Salem asked nonchalantly as she sat languidly upon her throne of bone and Grimm tissue; her Chimera had been in the city watching the Kingdoms' attempts to mount a counter-attack against her to free themselves from her ever-solidifying grip; both Yang Branwen and Pantheon had naturally been inclined to launch a full-scale assault on the city and destroy everything that stood against them, Salem however had simply been content to wait and watch.

"There have" Yang nodded, keeping her eyes downcast as she remained bowed "The Kingdom has prepared for war my Queen, the civilians are hiding in shelters whilst and soldier, Hunter and airship they have has been deployed….it looks like they're preparing for a last stand"

"We'll tear them apart, my packs have waited long enough" Pantheon snarled menacingly, prompting Salem to merely snort in faint amusement.

"Let them try, let them fail….soon it won't make-" Salem's eyes widened to the point that they threatened to bulge from her skull as she collapsed forwards and fell from her throne, mouth impossibly wide as let out a scream of equal parts pain and fury that began silently but soon reached a deafening cacophony that made the ground beneath her tremble.

New Vale had opened fire.

Reaching out and sending her consciousness through the Hive-Mind she saw the terrifying truth of what had unfolded, the Kingdoms' forces had opened fire to destroy the armoured outer layer of one of her Grimm Spires before firing their new weapon directly into its' crystalline and primordial core to destroy it entirely; leaving a blackened and ruined empty space behind it as if it were a diseased and rotten tooth. The attack had spawned thousands upon thousands of Grimm yet the Chimera had been accurate in her report and New Vale's forces were waiting for the monsters, even as the airships turned their attention towards another of her spires.

It was time to act.

"GO!" she screamed as she launched herself to her feet "There's no more time to waste! Pantheon, take command of your packs, Yang butcher their Hunters….My grip of this city is still strong enough, I can still enact my plan but it must be done now!"

"Yes my Queen" the Chimera's fiery red eyes glowed with malevolent light before she simply vanished in a streak of movement and a burst of falling petals, Salem's last glimpse of her being that of her reaching over her shoulder to unsheathe her axe. The Queen of the Grimm made to put her plans into motion yet came to an abrupt halt upon realising that Pantheon was still present.

"Go you fool!" she roared "I said-"

"What is your plan?" Pantheon demanded, the multitude of snarling voices that they spoke with firm and resolute

"What?"

"What is your plan?" Pantheon demanded "Your plan was to take this city, my Grimm could do that yet you want us to die for a distraction"

"Your Grimm?" Salem allowed herself a bemused smile despite the severity of the situation as she strode towards the hulking monstrosity and cupped their bone-armoured skull

"Do you think you're some hero of the Grimm that will lead them into a brighter future one day? Listen carefully Pantheon and understand, You are a weapon, my weapon to be used as I see fit….I never intended to take New Vale and rule over it as some petty tyrant; I plan to unmake it entirely. NOW GO!" with those final screamed words Salem reached out through the shared consciousness that all Creatures of Grimm shared and forced her own will directly into Pantheon's mind, something all of their ambitions and defiance beneath a choking smog of simple mindless obedience and animal ferocity. When she released her grip of their skull Pantheon remained silent and shivered for a moment before turning and stalking away, snarling in anticipation as they prepared to lead the tide of Grimm attacking New Vale.

Leaving Salem free to focus on her true plans.

The Queen of Grimm took her place upon her throne once more and cleared her mind, allowing her body to melt away into nothingness and be absorbed into the surface of her throne and her conscious to travel freely through the network of twisting vines and roots of Grimm matter she had spread throughout New Vale; her mind raced up through the tendrils and out of Power Grid and into one of the cities' monolithic Hive-Towers through obsidian capillaries before finally reaching the roof of the impossibly tall building, where roots and seeping black primordial ichor burst from cracks in its' surface and spread out to coat the roof in a congealing tar-like surface.

From which Salem rose, her body still reforming as she strode to the edge of the Hive Tower and took in the sight of the battle beginning to rage below.

With a single exhalation she put her plan into motion.

Salem tapped into both the Powers of the Wizard and her own abilities as the manifestation of the Grimm Hive-Mind in tandem and within an instant their terrifying effect began to take hold as roads and pavements all throughout the city were torn asunder, viscous and formless Grimm matter laying motionless beneath it like some dormant pool filled with terrors, the tendrils and roots she had burrowed into each of the Towers spread and burst from walls with more of the same, seeping darkness leaking from them all whilst her Grimm Spires and the flesh that connected them to one another poured out yet more protean darkness.

And then, without warning the entire city began to sink.

Salem was the manifestation of the Grimm psyche, destruction was her sole reason for being and spending what felt like uncountable aeons trapped beyond the flow of time, lost in the moments between moments and had given her a terrifying sense of clarity. Packs of monsters doing battle against the Kingdoms and their Hunters in a constant cycle of destruction and recreation was futile but now, with the powers of the Wizard at her disposal she had created an anchor which she had tethered the entire Kingdom of New Vale to darkness and silence that she had been trapped within and could now simply drag the Kingdom, its' people and even the Creatures of Grimm slowly and inexorably down into the endless abyss that waited for them.

She would destroy it all in one fell swoop.

Authors Notes:

OKAY BEFORE WE GET INTO ANYTHING I JUST WANT TO SAY SOMETHING:
I'M POSTING THIS ON MAY 29th 2020, WHICH IS THE THREE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THIS STORY….SO THANK YOU TO EVERYONE THAT'S STUCK WITH ME FOR THIS LONG AND CONTINUED TO READ IT.

Now, on with the notes….I warned you that things were gonna get crazy, did I not warn you?
But yeah, 8 chapters into this volume and 4 left to go; three of them are gonna be the big finale battle of the volume and one of them is obviously the wrap up chapter.
And then let's not forget, this isn't the finale; we've still got Vol.12 left to go.

But anyway let's summarise shall we?:
First off, shout-out to anyone who gets what the title is a reference to.
Gotta crack down on that panic cos it's feeding them Grimm….unfortunately all cracking down does is cause more panic.
Shout to Rover and Artemis, once again saving the public from their own stupidity.
Something bold and unprecedented had to be done….And at that moment you knew shit was gonna go south.
Of course Halo Academy has its' own on-site Warehouse, it's a huge floating fortress.
So, Nyanza's getting his operation; let's see how that plays out.
No Ren and Nora in this fight, that's a loss they're gonna feel.
So that's the plan, Anti-Grimm missiles directly into the guts of the Spires and just hope they don't get overrun by what comes next.
Kataigida's fine, she lives in the woods anyway; everybody else is really starting to miss having running water.
Bloodsuckers, they're actually a callback to Vol.01, Team FADE's first ever mission.
Professor Goodwitch will always be enough to strike fear into the hearts of her students.
Attacking the floor you're stood on is not tactically sound.
Glynda is having none of Adam's shit.
Weiss has set her mind to it, that's it argument done everything else is just a formality.
Felix's pray and spray versus Diamond's sniping is always a fun little interaction.
"Yeah but how's that different to any other mission?" I mean big facts right?
So Team GORE & FADE are gonna be starting the fight working together and NEON are on the ground; this should be fun.
"Eimaste gia pante, tipota den to allazei" = We're forever, nothing changes that
"Stay safe….and destroy anything that tries to prevent you from doing so" and "Kick ass and don't die" is a callback to one of the third year missions except the roles are reversed.
Yay for group hugs.
There are times when packing up and rolling out is the smart option.
No magical time-bendy mass teleport this time.
Anyone else feel like this was Jade's defining moment as a character?
I mean Null would definitely have come to wipe out everyone who isn't him eventually but let's be honest Jade did paint a big target on everyone's back.
New Vale did not come to fuck around, every other battle in the city we've seen has been a surprise attack; this is different.
Glynda leading the attack in person, how bad do you think this is gonna get?
Team GORE and CLIR's Bull-heads on bodyguard duty just looked cool in my head.
Yeah, Nickel's finished work on the Omega Destroyer; I said she was working on upgrades and I've got something fun planned.
Ruby is naturally posing on the roof of the ship, just for the aesthetic.
So in short, Caliginous Null aint nobodies fool.
Come on, he's a villain he's gotta have his monologue; especially if he's in the White Fang it's what all their leaders do.
"Hey, we're not evil we're just policing and enforcing our own laws" is not a trick you expected him to pull is it?
As if Squish was gonna do anything other than shoot him in the face.
But now we've got two big finale battles happening in different Remnants, enjoy.
Of course Salem knew that the Kingdom was up to something, she's not an amateur.
Well, the Fracture Warheads worked then.
So, who do we think Yang is gonna face off against?
And here we have Pantheon being openly defiant of Salem….don't worry, surely you don't think that her mind-controlling them is going to be the end of it.
This is what Salem has spent the last two volumes working towards! She isn't going to just fight the Kingdoms forever any more, she's going to throw them out of the time-stream the way Oscar did to her and send them into complete oblivion, one Kingdom at a time.
She's destruction given form and after being separated from the Hive-Mind she's even willing to destroy the Grimm as well, leaving total nothingness behind.

Thank you to SumoSnipe for their review on the last chapter.
Skunk Faunus….excuse me while I note that down somewhere, maybe a first year challenge for AJ since you want her story so much.
Well I'm using the Maiden Powers as I described them in Downward Spiral rather than canon; Winter Maiden can build Ice Fortresses but Spring Maiden has the most potential in terms of creation; there's also the fact that Null probably doesn't know who or where all of the Maidens are.
Small fire might work on the underground but against the big armour plated spires? Nah, missiles.
I honestly didn't know that they had blue blood.

As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review