Beginning note: I actually finally went back and rewatched Volume 6, so I was reminded of the city that it primarily takes place in: Argus. As you know, I'd been just calling it "that village/city" or something, so now I can call it by its name. Don't ask why I didn't just look it up. There's a story behind it. So, without further ado, the final chapter that takes place in Volume 6.
Well, they didn't find Pyrrha's family. But what they did find was a bunch of explosions.
After Sera and Neo left the statue in the park, they headed into the shopping district, but for a very good reason that was totally vital for finding Ruby and the others.
"I need new clothes!" Sera announced to the world. She was still wearing her ratty, shredded clothes from her journey to Argus. Luckily, she had some money left over from her and Neo's endeavors.
Neo rolled her eyes as they walked into a promising-looking clothes store. Fifteen minutes later, and after getting a few questioning glances from the cashier, they were walking out of the store with Sera in her new duds.
She stepped out of the automatic doors and straightened her new sleeveless coat. Her newly bought (temporary) outfit (there's no way she was going to make this a permanent style) consisted of a black tank top, sleeveless black leather coat, black jeans, and a new pair of boots. The coat wasn't buttoned, so it could flow freely in the wind, and it was long enough to reach her thighs.
Sera has a method to her madness. The outfit has a theme for when she finally finds her friends.
She adjusted her collar and rolled her shoulders. Thanks to not having sleeves, both of her tattoos were on full display. The clothes were liberating, in a way. Like, she felt like some sort of anime character with a questionable background that uses a single letter for their name.
Neo appeared at her side, looking bored and tired of being where she was. Then again, she had to follow Sera around and wait for her to choose clothes to wear.
"I'm still surprised you didn't want anything. You know, spice up your wardrobe a bit," Sera glanced over to Neo. The mute girl quirked an eyebrow, then with a shimmer of light that started at her feet and traveled upwards, her clothes changed until she was wearing her old white and pink outfit. It looked spiffy and brand new, as if she'd the clothes had just been made.
"Show off," Sera grumbled. "Since when could you even do that?"
Neo gave her a look like, Oh, I can do plenty of cool stuff, sister.
"Whatever. Let's just find the others already. We have to find them eventually, right?"
Neo got a reluctant look on her face.
"Oh, shut up," Sera muttered. "Let's just go. Maybe we'll have luck with those Atlas guys again. One way or another, they're getting to Atlas. If I know Ruby, and I do, she's not going to take no for an answer."
Thankfully, Neo seemed to finally agree with Sera. Then, the two of them went into the night.
. . .
"You know, I honestly thought it'd be easier to find a bunch of people in colorful clothing. You'd think Nora could blow up a building, or maybe Weiss could make a giant pillar of ice for no apparent reason. But no, it's like finding a needle in a gods damn pile of knives." Sera said with a tone so overly happy that it kinda scared Neo.
The shorter girl reluctantly turned her scroll towards Sera. Maybe call it a night and start again tomorrow?
It took a second for Sera to answer. When she did, Neo jumped.
Sera kickstarted Bellona and slung her sword over her shoulder. "You can head back to Neon's if you want for the night, but I'm going to keep searching. So, you comin' or not?"
Neo bounced on her heels with indecisiveness, then backed off.
Sera shrugged, "That's all right. I'll be at Neon's in a little while, okay?"
Neo nodded and rested her parasol on her shoulder, then Sera sped off. After the roar of Bellona's engine died down, Neo took off down the dark street, the bright streetlamps lighting her way.
. . .
The morning sun peeked over the horizon and began to light up the city of Argus. Sera was currently sitting on the grass beside her motorcycle and holding a to-go cup of steaming coffee in her hands. She's never been a fan of coffee, but this cup of Pumpkin Pete-rivalling sugar and caffeine was the only reason she was awake.
Sera yawned and took another sip of concentrated heart attack as she leaned back against the podium of her death statue.
"We had a good run, Death Sera. We really did. We fought a dragon, we saved a village from an old witch, and we found the city where our friends are. We fought off Mercury and Emerald and survived our mother's murder castle. But apparently, the one thing we cannot do is find our friends!" Sera threw her cup, splashing coffee against the concrete.
She groaned and hung her head between her knees. Why does it have to be so difficult, she thought.
"Not as hard as you might think, you know," a voice broke the silence. Sera didn't even have the energy to draw Silver Linings, you know, like a good warrior would when startled by some random stranger. Instead, she tiredly picked her head up to meet the eyes of who'd addressed her.
Immediately, her breath hitched in her throat. At first, she thought it was Ruby. This woman looked exactly like her. Then she noticed that her hair was different, and she wore a white long-sleeve shirt and two-toned gray and white pants.
She smiled and tilted her head in the most comforting way that Sera had ever experienced.
"Who're you?" Sera asked.
The woman gestured towards the sunrise. "Beautiful, isn't it? I never get tired of seeing a sunrise like that."
The sky had turned a brilliant shade of violet and orange. It really was beautiful to watch, but Sera still had more important matters to think about.
"What did you mean by it's not as hard as I might think?" Sera asked.
With her eyes still transfixed on the horizon, the woman said, "I'm glad they found you, you know. I was a bit reluctant at first, but you've done well at Beacon."
What is this woman on about? How does she even know I went to Beacon, and why isn't she calling me out on having a statue?
"Um, okay…" Sera trailed off. She was too tired to process what was happening. For all she knew, she was hallucinating this entire scenario.
"Qrow's done a good job of preparing you for the battles to come. But you better hurry, they're about to really need your help, Sera."
"Wait, what?" Sera got to her feet. The woman looked over to her, a small smile on her lips.
"Might wanna go, that Atlas woman's going to attack right about… Now."
The ground rumbled beneath Sera's feet and a boom echoed across the city. Sera immediately gripped the hilt of her sword and scanned her surroundings.
"What the hell was tha-?" Sera voice died in her throat. The woman had completely disappeared without a trace. A soft breeze blew ruffled her hair. It was weird, but for a second she swore she smelled roses.
She didn't have time to think about what just happened. Without hesitation, Sera jumped on Bellona and kickstarted its engine to life.
If they're anywhere, Sera thought, they're going to be in the middle of whatever made the ground shake.
And with that, she twisted the throttle and flew down the road.
. . .
Inside the dark throne room of her large and menacing castle, the witch Salem sat upon her throne. A young man knelt before her, his long hair covering his eyes.
"It has been weeks," Salem said at last. "and you still have not brought me anything I didn't already know."
The young man dipped his head further down in his shame. He had no retort, for she was right.
"I'm sorry, my lady," he said.
"Sorry?" Salem rose to her feet. "Sorry doesn't cut it! All of my underlings have proved their worth. All except you. The only thing you have done is lead me to my daughter and her worthless team members in Forever Fall Forest." Salem took her time approaching the young man. By time she had finished, she was standing directly in front of him and glowering down at him.
"Tell me," she said in a lower voice. "how does it feel to have betrayed everyone and everything you ever knew? All of my subordinates have different reasons; money, to survive, for the fun of it. But you, you still haven't revealed your true intentions. What is it you're after?"
The young man picked his head up. His blond hair shined in the dim light and his green eyes were narrowed. "Simple," he said, his voice low. "The death of Sera Purpura."
"Why?"
Magnus hesitated. "For taking the only person I cared about."
A smile spread across Salem's ghostly features. "Rise, Magnus Mundus."
Magnus got to his feet.
"If you can accomplish our shared goal," she said. "You'll earn a permanent place by my side," Salem gestured to one of the seats at her table.
Magnus grinned and bowed to the pale woman. "As you wish."
"Who are they, this person whom my daughter 'took' away?" Salem asked, her eyes glowing a mite brighter.
The former Shade student's eyes flickered between Salem's eyes and the empty space beside her head. After a moment, he finally answered.
"Cerulean."
"Your teammate?" Salem's eyes widened slightly. "Do tell."
"I'd rather not," Magnus replied, which wasn't a smart move.
"What?" Salem said, her voice steely calm.
Magnus flinched. "S-sorry. Um, yes. When Cerulean ignored me and started dating Sera, I uh, kinda lost it. They never knew, but still…" he trailed off.
"I see," Salem clasped her hands together.
"Yes, well," Magnus took a step back nervously. "Better start looking for her." He turned around and started for the door.
"Magnus."
Magnus halted.
"I know you plan to kill her, but I'm going to tell you right now: you are not to kill her. Not yet. I still... have plans for my daughter. But do not think you can ignore my wishes. Because the minute you put your desire before my own…" a ball of black flame appeared in her hand. "That will be your last bad decision."
Magnus gave a stiff nod, then continued on his way out of the throne room.
. . .
"So, what the hell now?" Yang Xiao Long panted, holding her left arm to her side. She and Blake were gazing down at the body of water that Adam Taurus had just fallen into.
After all of the shit that Yang went through after what Adam did, this fight had been, in a word, rather liberating.
Gotta admit, she thought to herself. Stabbing that asshole felt pretty good. Better than it should've. But what can you do?
"Come on," Blake squeezed her shoulder. "Let's get out of here." She turned and stepped away from the edge. When she noticed that Yang hadn't moved, she quirked an eyebrow. "You okay?"
"Yeah. Just… I wish Sera was here. She hated him almost as much as we do. Plus, she probably would've enjoyed kicking his ass." Yang stared down at the clashing rapids, and at the crashing waterfall.
"Yeah, she would've," Blake took Yang's hand into her own. "She'd probably laugh down at the rapids, gloating about the fight the whole time."
Pyrrha Nikos appeared at the edge of their fields of vision, apparently finished with checking the perimeter for any additional White Fang.
Yang cracked a smile. "I can hear her now. 'Is that all, Toro? All that talk and grandeur of your obsession with Blakey and you drop the ball?'"
Blake smirked. "Or she'd go 'No wonder you're so mad all the time; you're a bull who wears nothin' but red'."
"…Isn't that kind of racist?"
Blake nudged Yang's shoulder. "Only if it's one of you filthy humans saying it."
"Hey!"
Yang and Blake laughed together, despite you know, just killing a man.
"What're you two on about?" Pyrrha asked once she reached them.
"Sera," Yang replied. Pyrrha's easygoing expression faltered. "Oh," she said.
"Come on, let's get back to Ruby and the others before—" Blake steered them away from the edge.
Something suddenly roared through the forest that they had come from. It sounded like the loudest, angriest Ursa had just found the huntsman that killed its mama bear. Yang quickly realized that it was an engine. Except the last time she'd heard something of this caliber, it was her dad's old motorcycle from his younger years. Who would be driving something like that through the woods?
"What is that?" Blake asked.
"I don't know," Yang gulped. "But we should hurry and check it out." Then the three of them dashed towards the forest, Yang wishing that she hadn't driven Bumblebee into the water below.
. . .
"What the actual hell is that noise?" Sera demanded as she got closer and closer to the sounds of explosions and crashes. It sounded like a fight was going on. A big one. But with who, she didn't know.
"The hell happen? Did the Atlas military decide to test out new explosive Dust?" she muttered to herself and twisted the throttle of Bellona further. The front wheel kicked up momentarily then touched back down.
Another explosion erupted somewhere above her and rocked Bellona. The motorcycle shuddered slightly.
Come on, Sera thought. You better not fall apart on me.
That's when she came upon a clearing and saw it. The view was absolutely beautiful for about three seconds. She could see the ocean before her, the mass of blue twinkling spectacularly. The sky looked like it hadn't stormed in months, perfect for sailing or flying. Then she saw the giant mech.
. . .
"You have got to be kidding me," Sera deadpanned. As soon as she came upon the cliffside, the next thing she saw was her friends fighting a giant robot with the voice of an old woman.
A white and red blur zipped through the air towards the mech, and Sera's heart dropped. It was Ruby and Weiss riding a white and blue Lancer Grimm—presumably one of Weiss's summoned familiars.
"Found you," Sera mumbled, her chest swelling with relief. With a grin, she revved Bellona's engine and tore up sand to get to her friends. But what she didn't notice was the large blaster aimed right at her.
She'd made it a quarter way over to her colorfully clad friends when the world was suddenly upside-down. A large blast of Dust energy plowed a trench right in front of the motorcycle and grazed its front wheel. In immediate response, Bellona flipped end over end and sent Sera flying.
The next thing she knew, she was picking herself off the ground with dirt covering her body and in her hair.
"What the hell…?" She shook her head, trying to shake away the daze. After she got to her feet, her eyes fell upon the ruined mess that used to be her motorcycle.
Bellona laid in a heap of scrapped metal. The front wheel was missing, the engine block was shredded, and Sera was pretty sure that the handlebars weren't supposed to bend that way.
She glared at the mech with murderous intent. "SERIOUSLY?! I just got this!" She yelled at the distant robot. Frankly, she was surprised that no one had noticed her. Then again, she was still a hundred yards away.
Sera groaned and picked her sword out of the wreckage of her new vehicle. She'd told Moe that she would take care of it, and now it was a pile of scrap.
"I'm gonna tear that thing apart," she muttered and slung her old sword over her shoulder.
Fortunately, Ruby was way ahead of her. Sera was still a hundred feet away when the mech's blaster leveled at Ruby, who was standing defiantly on the cliff edge with Crescent Rose in hand. Apparently, Ruby was telling the mech off, and Sera wished she was close enough to hear. She probably would've been proud.
Now that she was getting closer to them, she noticed that Yang wasn't there. She wondered where she was, and if she was okay. But at the moment, her only intentions were to save her team and rip this robot into strips of tin.
Sera straightened her collar as she ran and adjusted her gun belt. Gotta make herself look at least semi-presentable for returning from the dead.
Once she got within earshot, she slowed to a steady pace and tried to hide the grin on her face from seeing Jaune, Nora, and Ren.
They were focused on the crazy Atlesian woman piloting a mech. Ren had just hitched a ride on one of Weiss's Lancers when Sera got closer. He rode it around to the mech's back and leapt onto it, surprisingly not alerting the Atlesian woman inside.
Jaune gritted his teeth and turned to Nora. "We have to take her down quick and get out of here. The longer we stay here, the worse it gets for us."
"I know, I know! Where's Blake? She was supposed to shut down the tower!" she replied.
"I have no idea. Yang isn't responding either. We just need to hurry and—" Jaune's eyes widened he saw Sera. "Oh my Dust…"
"What? What're you looking—oh my Dust."
Sera gave an uncomfortable, lopsided grin. "Hey, guys…"
Jaune and Nora only gaped at her. Jaune dropped his sword. Then Nora laughed and threw her arms around Sera's neck.
The amnesiac actually had to struggle to stay on her feet. She hugged Nora back, as tightly as she could. Fortunately, Nora could take it.
Jaune approached them and reluctantly put a hand on Sera's shoulder, almost as if checking to make sure she was real.
Sera felt something wet on her neck, so she looked down only to see that it was Nora, crying into her neck.
"We thought we lost you," she said.
"Yeah, well… You didn't," Sera let out a low chuckle. She looked up when Jaune squeezed her shoulder.
"Good to have you back," he gave his usual reassuring smile.
"Good to be back," she grinned and nodded towards the mech after Nora released her. "What's the deal with that?"
Jaune shrugged. "Crazy old Atlas commander. Stealing a ship. Gotta get to Atlas." He listed off.
Sera grinned. "What the hell did I miss?"
"Sister," Nora smiled devilishly. "You have no idea."
"We can catch up later," Sera drew her sword. "First, let's deal with the crazy Atlesian."
"Like Jaune said," Nora hefted her hammer. "Good to have you back, Snowball."
Sera's grin reappeared. "I've missed you all so much, I'm not even mad about you calling me that."
"Good," Nora smiled and ran towards the tree line.
"C'mon," Jaune said. "We better let the others know you're not dead."
"Aw, come on," Sera shouldered her sword. "What's the fun in that?"
Then she sprinted for the trees towards where Nora had gone. The first person she was met with was Qrow Branwen. He was watching Ruby and Weiss flit around on the white Lancer. Cordovin was trying to swat them like a fly. Which, in this case, they kind of were a fly.
"So, uh, everyone thinks I'm dead, huh?" Sera said to Jaune and Nora.
"Pretty much," Nora replied.
"Well, except for Ruby. She never gave up hope," Jaune added. Sera smiled at that.
"What about Yang?"
They stopped walking. Nora bit her lip and glanced at her. "She's uh… She's had to do some adjusting."
Gotta admit, that stung a bit. She couldn't imagine what it was like for Yang to go through that.
"Well… Hopefully me coming back from the dead doesn't make it any worse," Sera said wistfully.
Nora and Jaune glanced at each other, apparently having a silent conversation.
Well, that's reassuring, Sera thought.
Qrow's eyes were still transfixed on Ruby and Weiss. He was clenching the hilt of Harbinger tightly.
"Qrow," Jaune spoke up.
"Yeah," he replied in his usual gruff voice. When no one answered, the huntsman glanced towards where Jaune's voice had come from. As soon as he realized that he was looking at Sera, his eyes widened, and he dropped his flask.
"Holy shit," was all he said. Then he turned his attention back to the ensuing fight. "Well then. Good to have you back, Snowball."
Sera smirked. "Missed you too, old man."
"Yeah, yeah," he picked his flask up and shoved it into his pocket. "We'll have the welcome back party after all this is finished."
"Fine with me," she grinned and hefted her sword. "How do we take this thing down?"
"Your guess is as good as mine, kid," Qrow uncorked his flask.
"Well, great. What're Ruby and Weiss doing?" Sera fixed her eyes on the tiny distant forms of her teammates.
"Trying to find a weak spot. Ren's on top of the thing, if you can see him."
Sera squinted her eyes and eventually spotted a dot of green on top of the mech, shooting blasts of green energy and hopping around to avoid being grabbed by large metal hands.
"Spectacular. So, what do we do?" Sera glanced over at the huntsman.
"Basically? Wait here. Nothing else you can do right now."
"Then how are we gonna help take it down?" Nora asked, voicing what Sera was thinking.
Qrow smirked. "I said there's nothing you can do." Then the huntsman promptly sprinted towards the cliffside, jumped off, and turned into a black crow and flew towards the battle.
Sera looked at Jaune and Nora helplessly, but they only shrugged.
"Don't look at us," Nora said. "He's been doing that all day!"
An explosion drew their attention. Now flying around the mech's head was a sleek gray airship that was blasting Cordovin with missiles and generally annoying the Atlesian woman.
"Let me guess," Sera watched the airship dive towards the water. "The stolen airship?"
"Yep," Jaune said, putting extra emphasis on the 'p'.
"Who's piloting?"
"Oh, you know, an old lady with no eyes," Nora replied.
"What?" Sera demanded.
"She can see," Jaune promised. "Mostly."
"Thanks, very reassuring," Sera huffed.
"Oscar's up there, too," Jaune noted.
"Wait, why isn't Ozpin coordinating the fight? He probably knows how to take this thing down more than any of us," Sera quirked an eyebrow.
Nora chuckled nervously and scratched the back of her head. "About that…"
"You know what, I don't want to know right now. Tell me later, after we beat this thing," Sera hefted her sword and watched the ensuing fight.
"If we beat it," Jaune muttered. Sera ignored him.
Cordovin continued trying to shoot the airship out of the sky while it divebombed her and shot missiles back. Qrow and Ren were ant-sized dots on the back of the huge piece of machinery, apparently trying to get to something.
Apparently, they found it whatever they were searching for. The mech suddenly shuddered while its seemingly artificially generated aura failed and dissipated. Qrow and Ren jumped onto the back of Weiss's Lancer and flew towards the cliffside.
"Oh boy," Sera mumbled once she realized that three more of her friends were about to see that she was still alive.
"Whatcha gonna do about that?" Nora asked. She didn't have to explain what she'd meant. It was too obvious.
"Good question," Sera muttered. She didn't know. Pray, maybe? Too late to decide, they were about to land.
In a minor panic, she jumped behind Nora and Jaune to hide.
"That's not gonna work," Jaune noted.
"Shh," Sera hushed.
Qrow, Ren, Weiss, and Ruby approached Nora and Jaune, seemingly unaware of their missing friend.
"We've disabled its shield generator. Now what?" Ren said. Qrow's eyes scanned the area until he noticed that Nora and Jaune were standing suspiciously close together. His posture relaxed and a smirk played on his lips.
"We find a way to stop that mech get out of here," Ruby said determinedly. Sera raised an eyebrow at the tone of her voice. She sounded older. Still as high-pitched as always, but more mature. What happened since Sera had been gone?
"Right… But how do we do that?" Nora asked.
"Its arm. Maria told me about it while we were flying around. Every time it fires, missile pods eject for some reason. Its not much, but its our best shot at taking down Cordovin," Ruby stated, clenching Crescent Rose tightly in her hand.
"Jeez, Rubes," Sera walked out from behind Nora and Jaune. "When did you get the chance to grow up?"
The determined look on Ruby's face melted, and everything went silent. Qrow smirked and glanced at his niece. Ren's eyes widened, but it turned into a small smile. Weiss's mouth hung open and stared at Sera wide-eyed.
Sera tried for a smile, but Ruby still wasn't reacting. Then a tear traced down the left side of her cheek, and her face lit up with joy.
"I knew it!" she tackled Sera with the force of a charging Ursa. The two of them fell to the dirt, Ruby squeezing Sera tightly and laughing into her shoulder.
"I told them you were alive!" Then she stopped and met Sera's eyes, her smile morphing into a frown. "Where WERE you?! Do you have any idea what you put us through at Haven? Do you know what it's been like for Yang?"
"Uh, guys? Don't you think we have a bit more to worry about right now?" Jaune asked with a semi-worried tone.
Sera sat up, all happiness gone. "I… Yeah, I know. I'll explain everything later. Promise."
Ruby searched her eyes for any negative signs that might be there. Finally, she answered. "Well, all right then." She got to her feet and hefted Crescent Rose. "It's great to see you again, Sera."
Sera grinned and got to her feet. "Good to see you too, Ruby."
The sound of an old lady's voice over a loudspeaker interrupted the touching reunion. "Did you really think that taking my shields down would stop me? Fools! Atlesian technology is the best in the world!"
Sera rested her sword on her shoulder. "Is she always like that?"
"Unfortunately," Ruby groaned.
"What are you wearing?" Weiss demanded, apparently over the shock of seeing her dead teammate.
"Love you too, Ice Queen," Sera replied. "If you must know, it's because I'm back."
Everyone waited.
"In black," Sera finished.
"I changed my mind. I didn't miss you," Ruby crossed her arms.
"Yeah you did," Sera grinned.
"Can we just beat this thing already?" Nora demanded.
"What's the plan?" Ren asked.
"Remember the arm thingy?" Ruby asked. Everyone looked at her questionably. In response, she smiled and brought her hand to her ear. "Maria, come in for a landing, will ya?"
"We doing it?" an old lady's voice replied.
"Yep!"
"Finally! Let's take this geezer down a few notches!" Maria replied. Within seconds, the stolen Atlesian airship swooped in and hovered above the ground. The side door slid open to reveal Oscar standing there looking distressed. Then his eyes widened when he saw Sera grinning at him.
"Ruby, what're you doing?" Qrow asked, but it was already too late. Ruby jumped onboard with Crescent Rose in hand. But what she didn't notice was that Sera had suddenly appeared beside her, seemingly out of nowhere.
"What the-? Oh, right. Semblance. But what're you doing here?!" She demanded.
Sera grinned and hefted her old sword. "Hey, gotta make up for lost time, right?"
A smile made its way onto her face. "Right. Let's take this crazy woman down."
"Damn right!" a second crazy woman said from the pilot's chair. She was short with browned skin and gray hair. A high-tech goggle-like device was on her face. Sera assumed that that's what let her "see", as Jaune had mentioned.
"Who's the new girl?" she asked.
"This is Sera," Ruby replied.
"Oh, the-? Oh. Oh, right."
Sera glanced at her team leader. "Been talking about me, have we?"
"I mean, yeah. Had to after Yang forced that guy to build that statue of you."
"I knew it!" Sera cheered. "What's the deal with that anyway?"
"Well… Yang wanted something to memorialize you. We couldn't have let your sword down in the Vault be your memorial, could we?"
Sera smiled at that. It was touching to see what lengths her friends would go to for her. "Speaking of that… Where is my sword?"
"Oh, you'll see," Ruby smiled.
"Enough chit-chat! Get up here already!" Maria Calavera told them. Then she picked up the radio and began talking to Cordovin. Something about where she was going to stick her last missile.
The doors slid open, and Ruby aimed her rifle towards the mech's arm.
"You got this, Rubes," Sera mumbled, watching intently. Ruby took a deep breath, then pulled the trigger. Too late. The missile pod closed and disappeared into the arm.
Sera's heart dropped, and judging by the look on Ruby's face, hers did too.
"Really?" Cordovin's voice boomed. "You thought you could trick me?"
The mech's blaster took aim at their airship, its cannon already charging up.
"Pull up!" Oscar and Sera both shouted. Maria yanked back on the stick and the airship dipped backwards until the nose pointed at the sun. Fortunately, they were going to avoid crashing into the mech. Unfortunately, the blast grazed them and shut all their systems down.
"Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit!" Sera screamed and clenched the seat she was holding herself to.
"We're gonna crash!" Oscar shouted.
Yellow electricity sparked along Maria's prosthetic eyes until they dimmed and the shutters closed. "My eyes! I can't see!"
"Oh no," Ruby muttered.
"Oscar, take the stick!" Sera ordered. Reluctantly, Oscar grabbed the control stick and straightened the airship out. Sera looked out the windshield, and she'd never thought she'd see the ground come at her that fast. The next thing she knew, the airship crashed into the tree line and plowed a trench in the dirt.
Fortunately, unlike the train wreck, nothing slammed into her head and knocked her unconscious.
She sat up groaning and shook her head to clear the daze. When her vision cleared and the world stopped spinning, Sera sat up to check their surroundings. The airship seemed to be in one piece, hopefully still operable.
"Is everyone all right?" Oscar groaned.
"Define 'all right'." Ruby sat up cradling her head.
"I'm fine," Maria stood shakily. "Sera?"
"Ugh. Remind me to not let granny pilot again," Sera groaned. She was met with a smack to the head by a short walking stick.
"Yowch! What the hell, lady?" Sera yelped.
"Come on. We have to get out of here," Ruby said, then stumbled out of the airship and fell to her hands and knees.
"Ruby!" Sera jumped out of the crashed ship and went to Ruby's side. After picking her up and putting one arm around her for support, she looked up to see Cordovin stalking towards them in her mech.
"Very clever, but even the highest intellect cannot outsmart the power of Atlas technology," she laughed.
"Getting real tired of hearing about Atlas tech," Sera mumbled. Qrow and the others appeared in the clearing that the Atlesian airship created through the trees. Ruby shrugged Sera off of her and marched towards the cliffside.
Qrow immediately grabbed her hand, and Ruby stopped. "Ruby! What're you doing?"
Sera was about to add to his question, but the look of pure determination on her face when she met their eyes was enough to halt any person.
"You're gonna have to trust me," she told them.
Qrow made a displeased sigh, then released her. Ruby continued on her way, walking towards the large mech with Crescent Rose in hand. Sera immediately caught up with her and walked at Ruby's side.
"What're you doing?" Ruby asked.
"Come on, you really think I'm gonna let you do something stupid by yourself?" Sera smirked. Ruby rolled her eyes, but she didn't object.
"Now, let's kick this tin can's chrome-covered tail," Sera pounded a fist into her open palm. They'd just arrived at the cliff's edge when Cordovin looked down at them.
"Surrender for your crimes and accept your punishment!" the mech pointed at them.
Sera glanced at Ruby and gave a smirk. "Ruby, say something cool. Let her have it!"
"R-right," she answered. Ruby glared up at the imposing mech and raised a clenched fist in front of her. "No!"
"…Seriously?"
Ruby ignored her. "We're going to Atlas. Bigger people than you have tried to stop us and failed. We're supposed to be on the same side! But you just take advantage of the power you've been given to treat others like they're not important! We didn't want to steal from you, we did it because you gave us no choice!"
"And I—" Sera butted in.
"We," Ruby corrected.
"—am gonna give you one last shot to hear them out!" Sera finished, referring to Ruby and the others, since she'd just arrived at the fight like five minutes ago.
Everything was still for a count to five. Then in a quiet and clear "I'm done with this" voice, Cordovin said, "I've heard enough."
Then the Atlesian woman aimed her mech's cannon right at Sera and Ruby. The thing was the size of a tunnel, big enough for a train to fit in. And it was charging with Dust energy to vaporize them.
The wind generated by the spinning of the barrel whipped Sera and Ruby's clothes and hair. Sera glanced over to Ruby nervously. Her eyes were narrowed and glaring into the cannon, and Sera instantly knew her plan.
"Oh no you don't-!" Sera tried to grab Ruby, but it was too late. She disappeared in a flurry of rose petals and flew into the barrel.
"Ruby you insufferable goddamn donut!" She screamed at her team leader.
Ruby reappeared standing far down the barrel of the cannon, Crescent Rose ready to fire. She took a deep breath and aimed down her weapon's scope.
"Oh you clever little…!" Sera's eyes widened. Then Ruby took a deep breath and fired. The force of Crescent Rose's recoil sent her flying out of the cannon.
As soon as the bullet hit its mark, the Dust energy released all of its stored-up power. Sera stumbled back and fell onto her rear while trying to look up at the damage. The mech's entire arm was shredded and now covered in a mix of ice, rock, and sparking electricity.
"WHAT?!" Cordovin shrieked.
Sera glanced up to see Ruby falling out of the sky, apparently unconscious. Electricity was dancing across her body and flickering aura.
Without a moment's hesitation, she jumped into the air to catch her. Ruby slammed into her body and sent them both flying to the edge of the cliff.
Sera grunted when her back slammed into the dirt and created a shallow crater. Fortunately, she shielded Ruby from further harm.
"Ruby! Are you okay?" Qrow's voice said from somewhere to Sera's left.
"Yep, she's just fine. Don't mind me, just dying," Sera groaned. Qrow picked Ruby off of her to reveal a battered white-haired huntress.
Unfortunately, Cordovin was pitching a fit now.
"No, no, no, no, NO!" She shrieked over the mech's speakers. "All Atlesian forces attack the traitors! Every airship, every soldier!"
"Commander!" A second voice replied, still over the speaker. "We've been trying to reach you! The Large Grimm Sensors have been going off for minutes now! We need you here, ASAP!"
Immediately, an extremely loud roar echoed across the sky, followed by the sounds of explosions.
"What… What does that mean?" Weiss asked.
"It means," Qrow sighed tiredly. "that we just destroyed the one thing that can save the city."
"What's going on?!" A familiar voice asked.
"Oh, no…" Sera thought aloud.
"Airship, now!" Jaune ordered. Sera glanced to the right to see the previously crashed Atlesian airship to see it floating just a few inches above the ground. Apparently, it was working again.
"What's wrong?" Blake's voice asked. Wait, Sera thought. What's Blake doing here?
She looked up to see Nora holding her hand out for Sera to take. Nora pulled her to her feet.
"Thanks," Sera let out a sigh and held the spot on her abdomen where Ruby hit her. She looked towards where Yang and Blake's voices came from, only to see Ruby, Jaune, and Weiss blocking her view. "Huh, this feels familiar…"
"Ruby, are you all right?" Yang demanded after seeing her ripped up and battered clothes.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine! And two things are wrong. One, Argus is in danger. And the second thing, well…" Ruby stepped aside. Sera was then able to see Blake, Pyrrha, and Yang standing there. Blake gasped, and tears brimmed in Pyrrha's eyes. They looked beaten up and bruised, but otherwise okay.
Their eyes instantly widened and filled with terror.
"Uh, hey guys…" Sera gave a small wave.
Pyrrha surged forward and hugged her tightly. Then Blake did the same.
"Long time, no see," Sera chuckled and endured the crushing grip of Pyrrha and Blake.
"We thought we lost you," Pyrrha said.
"Yeah, well… I'm alive."
"Clearly," Blake chuckled and wiped a tear.
"Hey Blakey, long time no see."
"Yeah… I'm back too."
"Clearly."
"Ahem," Ruby coughed.
Sera glanced over to see Yang still standing there with a blank stare. "Oh. Right." Pyrrha and Blake let go of her and dusted off her shoulders and front.
The amnesiac took a deep breath and stepped towards her. Unfortunately, a yellow fist slammed into her cheek, sending her directly through a tree.
"Where WERE YOU?" Yang screamed and stomped towards her.
"Dead?" Sera asked hopefully.
"NO, YOU WEREN'T," Yang's voice boomed.
"No, I wasn't," Sera groaned and picked herself up. As soon as she got to her feet, Yang grabbed her and pulled her against her. Gotta say, Sera didn't realize how much she missed Yang's lips until they were pressed against hers.
Before Sera could snake her arms around her waist, Yang pushed her away and held her at arm's length. "Where were you?"
"Long story," Sera managed, her face as red as Ruby's cloak. Then Yang kissed her again.
"Uh, guys? We kind of have more to worry about right now," Qrow called to them.
"Yeah. Big Grimm attacking the city? Remember that?" Jaune added.
"Let's put that on the back burner real quick," Sera mumbled.
"Sera!" Ruby exclaimed.
"Fine!" Sera and Yang shot back.
Everyone began boarding the airship until only Sera and Yang were the only ones not onboard.
"Seriously, how are you here right now?" Yang asked as they got nearer to the ship.
"Seriously, I'll tell you later. But hey, I'm not dead," Sera spread her arms and grinned. Yang smirked and slugged her in the arm, then hopped aboard the airship.
"Come on, let's go kill some Grimm," Yang smiled and stuck her hand out. Sera grinned and took it, allowing the blond to pull her aboard.
. . .
Sera almost lost all hope when she saw the Leviathan and flock of Chimera and Manticore Grimm. Almost.
But when Ruby started talking about using her silver eyes, she became a little hopeful.
"You want to what?" Qrow demanded.
"I can do it! …Probably," Ruby replied.
"Oh, very reassuring," Weiss rolled her eyes.
Sera stopped paying attention after Ruby said silver eyes. She and Yang were sitting on a bench, holding onto each other's arms. Sera was also glad that she was latched onto Yang's real arm rather than her prosthetic. She'd been holding onto enough metal objects already, aka her motorcycle before Cordovin destroyed it.
"How are you even going to get to it?" Jaune asked. Ruby glanced at Weiss hopefully.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding," the former heiress rolled her eyes.
"Pleaaaase Weiss? It'll work if you just get me close enough!"
Weiss looked over to Qrow and Pyrrha. Pyrrha shrugged helplessly while Qrow rubbed the back of his neck.
"Fine," Weiss conceded. "But it better work."
"It will! Probably. No, I'm sure it will. Now let's go before it breaks another wall of shielding!" Ruby said.
"Wait, what're you doing?" Sera sat forward. Everyone looked back at her, making her a bit uncomfortable. Funny, she used to like being the center of attention.
"Ruby's going to get in close enough and use her 'silver eyes' to kill the thing," Nora explained.
"She figured out how to use her eyes?" Sera asked with a surprised and amazed tone.
Everyone looked to her expectantly.
"More or less," Ruby fidgeted.
"Fantastic," Sera sighed.
"Well why don't you go kill it then?" Ruby stomped her foot.
Sera immediately stood and put her hands on her hips. "Is that a challenge?"
Yang grabbed her hand and pulled her back to the seat. "Sit down, you're not fighting that thing."
"Why not?" Sera asked with a smile, despite the impending doom that they were flying towards. "Do you have any idea what I've done after Haven? The things I've fought? All the hardships I've endured to get here—"
"She's gone, Snowball," Yang told her.
"What?"
Sure enough, the side door of the airship was open, and Ruby was gone. Sera peeked out the window to see the scythe wielder flying towards the Leviathan on a white Lancer.
"That mungy little bugger! I'm gonna kick her ass if she lives!" Sera promised.
"…You weren't a good influence on your team, were you?" Maria Calavera said from the pilot's seat.
"Probably not, no. But they still love me, don't they?" Sera smirked. "Besides, what are you doing in the pilot's seat, old lady? Didn't you crash the last time you flew?"
Maria huffed. "Do you see anyone else in here who can pilot this thing, young lady?"
"Pretty sure this pansy of a huntress could any day," Sera gestured to Qrow.
Calavera leaned over to Jaune in the co-pilot seat and whispered, "I like this one."
"Us too," Blake put a hand on Sera's shoulder.
Yang shot to her feet and went to the open side door with a distressed look on her face. "Ruby!"
Everyone looked out of the windows and door.
"Oh, no…" Weiss muttered. Ruby was frozen in front of the Leviathan's giant face. Probably didn't smell too good, Sera thought.
The Grimm opened its maw and went in for the kill. Ruby instinctively raised her arms to shield herself. She yelled something, but it she was too far away to hear. Then, everything went still. The Leviathan halted a few inches from Ruby, and a lady with blue skin appeared out of nowhere.
"What the…?" Sera stared at the woman. She looked like she was naked, but Sera hoped otherwise.
"What's going on?" Sera looked at Yang, but she was frozen too. As well as the airship and everyone in it.
"Stopped time… What could've done that?" Sera thought aloud. The only thing that's different is the blue woman. So… What is she?
Before she knew it, everything resumed as if nothing had happened. Well, except for the blinding silver light that emanated from Ruby's eyes that turned the Leviathan into stone. That, Sera had to admit, was pretty cool. It spread slowly but surely, turning the entire monster into stone.
"What did-?" Jaune asked.
"Did it work?" Nora added.
"Gods, I hope so," Qrow sighed and uncorked his flask. Yang exhaled the breath she'd been holding in and took Sera's hand.
"What's with the blue chick?" Sera asked under her breath.
"Blue chick? You mean Jinn? Where'd you see her?" Yang asked. Sera pointed at Ruby, but before she could verbally answer, the Leviathan began to crack. Gray pieces of stone fell from it and into the ocean.
The Grimm roared and broke out of the rest of its encasing, targeting in on Ruby once more.
"No," Sera mumbled. "No, no, no!"
"Not good," Qrow added.
The amnesiac felt terror well up inside her at the prospect of losing Ruby right after getting back to her team. Something was on the verge of snapping within her, she could feel it.
"Weiss," she barked. "Get me over there right now."
"But—" Weiss tried to retort.
"Now," Sera faced her. Weiss had to resist jumping away from her, because the amnesiac's irises blazed red, all the white in her eyes darkened to black.
"R-right," Weiss said and waved her rapier to form a glyph that then formed another Lancer.
"What're you doing?" Yang asked. Then Sera turned to meet the blonde's lilac eyes, and even Yang looked startled. Her skin was lightening up until it was as white as snow, and black veins webbed out on her arms and the sides of her face.
"I'm going to kill that thing," Sera stated simply. The Lancer hovered in midair beside the airship, awaiting Sera.
"Then I'm going with you," Yang responded.
"Like hell you are," Sera headed for the door. Yang grabbed her arm and stopped her in her tracks.
"Either I'm going, or no one is," she said sternly. She and Sera had a five-second stare down before the latter finally conceded.
"Fine," Sera rolled her now red eyes and hopped onto the Lancer, Yang following suit. "Uh, giddy up!" Sera spurred the summoned Lancer. Immediately, the Grimm shot towards the Leviathan and Ruby.
Yang wrapped her arms around Sera's waist and put her chin on her shoulder. "You look kinda cute like that."
"Stop lying, Xiao Long," Sera smirked, then the Lancer dove towards Ruby. It came to a halt and hovered in the air in front of the Grimm's face, right beside Ruby.
"Ruby, get out of here!" Yang shouted, but Ruby stood gaping at the Leviathan, apparently trying to use her powers again. "Sera, whatever you're gonna do, you might wanna hurry!"
"Yeah, yeah," Sera mumbled and stood on the Lancer. "Hey ugly!" Sera shouted and fired several rounds from Silver Linings into the Grimm's face. That got the thing's attention. It roared directly into her face, but luckily the white Lancer was keeping them just out of reach.
"Jeez, you stink!" Sera waved a hand in front of her nose. "Ever try a jumbo-size breath mint?"
The Leviathan roared again, blasting Sera and Yang's hair back as if they'd just been hit by a giant fan.
"So that's a no then?" Sera shouted at the beast. She heard barely controlled laughter from where Yang was sitting, then looked to see that it actually was Yang. "What's up with you?"
"Nothing," Yang grinned, despite the giant Grimm in front of them. "Just missed you."
"Yeah, yeah," Sera smiled to herself.
"So, what now?"
"Honestly? I have no idea. This thing can't exactly be cut down with a sword," Sera admitted.
"What?! Then what're we doing here?" Yang demanded.
"Trying to save your sister!" She pointed at Ruby.
"And you didn't think this through at all?!"
"I'm working on it as I go!" Sera rebutted.
"You're insufferable!"
"Love you too!"
"Ruby, get out of here!" Yang shouted at her sister.
"I can do it!" Ruby called back.
"Ruby!"
But Ruby wasn't listening. She was staring down the Leviathan, her eyes narrowed in concentration.
"Sera, you gotta do something before she gets herself killed!" Yang grabbed her shoulder, which was pretty dangerous considering that they were flying a hundred yards in the air.
Sera ran through her list of possibilities, which was to say, not a very long list. Silver Linings wasn't going to scratch the thing's hide, her half of Ember Celica wouldn't dent it, and her old sword was about as useful as a needle against an elephant. If she had Crimson Eclipse, then maybe. The weapon could be loaded with Dust to cause a ton of extra damage, but she lost that sword in Haven.
She focused on the giant red spotlights that were the thing's eyes. Surely, they were more susceptible to damage than its skin. Then, her eyes shifted down to its giant maw.
"Ruby! Can you get this thing to open wide?" Sera called.
"What for?"
"Remember the mech?"
Ruby's eyes widened with realization and a smile appeared on her face, then she immediately fired round after round at the Leviathan's face, hoping to make it mad enough to try and blast us with its breath attack.
"Guys, you've got to hurry!" Jaune cried through Yang's scroll. "Its almost to the final wall!"
"Get ready," Sera told Yang. She grinned and cocked her gauntlet and arm, ready to fire at a moment's notice. Sera quickly reloaded Silver Linings, spun it on her finger, then swiftly holstered it.
"What're you doing?" Yang asked.
Sera smirked, "Let's see who's the fastest hand in Mistral."
"Oh, you're so on," Yang grinned.
The Leviathan roared and shook its head wildly once it had enough of Crescent Rose.
"Here it comes…!" Yang warned. The massive Grimm opened its jaw and aimed at all of them. Orange energy formed at the back of its throat and heated up for a blast
"Now!" Sera shouted. She, Yang, and Ruby all fired everything they had into its maw. The blast continued to grow and expand until just seconds away from firing, and their Dust rounds didn't seem to do anything to detonate it early. A loud humming sound emanated from it, signaling that it was about to fire.
"Dive," Sera's eyes widened. "DIVE!"
The two Lancers immediately shot downward and towards the ocean just as the Leviathan discharged all of its stored-up energy. The force from the blast pushed the Lancers even faster towards the water, and all of their bodies rag dolled.
"Pull up pull up pull up!" Yang panicked.
"I'm trying! It's not like this thing has power steering!" Sera yanked back on the Lancer's body, trying to make the summoned creature go upwards.
Just before they hit the water, the Lancers shook their heads as if coming out of a daze and corrected themselves. They came to a over just inches above the sea.
"Well, that didn't work," Ruby noted.
"Let's get out of here!" Yang said. She brought her scroll to her face, a picture of Weiss on the screen. "Weiss, get us up there!"
The twin Lancers shot upward and toward the floating airship. Sera had to hug the summoned Grimm tightly to keep from falling off, and Yang had to hold onto her waist.
"AHHHH!" Ruby squealed from somewhere to their right. In no time at all, the Lancers dropped them off inside the airship, then promptly dissipated into icy mist. Sera, Yang, and Ruby dropped to their hands and knees to catch their breath and recover from the vertigo they were just given.
"Are you all right?" Blake asked, helping Yang to her feet.
"Yeah, we're fine! But what do we do about that?" Yang pointed at the Leviathan. It was almost to the city now. Apparently, that last breath attack managed to destroy the final wall of shielding that protected Argus. Flocks of Manticore and Chimera Grimm flew towards the city, but the other Atlesian ships seemed to keep their attention away from the city. For now.
Sera and Ruby got to their and gazed at Argus, along with the rest of their friends.
"We shouldn't have stolen this ship," Pyrrha broke the silence. "If we didn't, that mech would've been able to protect Argus from this attack."
"Hey, let's not think about that right now," Jaune put a hand on her shoulder.
"What now?" Ruby asked. She looked to Qrow, Yang, and Sera for answers, but they had none.
A dull, rhythmic thumping made its way to everyone's ears. Ren was the first to voice what everyone was thinking.
"What is that?"
"It's coming from… Behind us?" Weiss guessed. Sure enough, the sound was getting louder, and coming from behind the airship. But before anyone could investigate, a familiar old lady's voice shouted via loudspeakers.
"ATLAS TECHNOLOGY IS THE BEST IN THE WORLD!" Cordovin decked the Leviathan with her mech's remaining arm. The Grimm roared in pain and stumbled back, away from Argus.
"Cordovin?!" Qrow exclaimed.
"TRY TO ATTACK MY CITY, ARE YOU? I'LL SHOW YOU A THING OR TWO ABOUT ATLESIAN POLICIES!" Cordovin pounded the Leviathan again. Then she reared the mech's arm back, and a giant blade protruded from its wrist. She thrusted the wrist blade forward and drove it into under the Grimm's ribcage.
The Leviathan shrieked in pain, emitting a high-frequency sound that made everyone onboard the airship clutch their ears. It was especially bad for Blake, who had highly sensitive cat ears.
The giant Grimm dissipated from the bottom up until its remains blew in the wind.
"Yeah, that's what I'm talking about!" Nora cheered.
"We're not finished yet," Jaune warned.
"He's right," Qrow said. "There's still dozens of Grimm in the air."
"About that," Cordovin's voice piped in over the airship's PA system. "There's a lot of Grimm in the skies of Argus. Some airships may be lost in the battle. I guess… I could leave out one of those airships from my report after this is all done."
"So… You're letting us go?" Ruby asked.
Cordovin chuckled lightly. "It's time the Atlas military goes back to protecting the inhabitants of the planet we live on, don't you?"
"Yes, ma'am," Ruby smiled.
"Get out of here, huntress. Atlas can handle these monsters," she said, her tone much more laid-back.
"You got it," Ruby replied. "And thanks."
"Just get out of here before I change my mind, Miss Rose." Cordovin hung up.
"So… We just go?" Blake asked.
"She said they could handle it," Nora shrugged.
"Believe me, they can," Weiss added.
"Maria, set course for Atlas," Qrow said.
"Way ahead of you, old man," Calavera hit the accelerator. The airship lurched forward, almost sending everyone to the ground.
"Dust, woman! I thought we weren't letting you fly anymore!" Sera fixed her footing.
"And I thought you were going to kill that Grimm, but you had to get your hide saved by Cordovin, didn't you?"
"Oh, shut it granny," she sat on a bench at the airship's side. "Guess we're really going to Atlas, then."
"What made you think that? Was it the airship we stole to go there? Perhaps fighting the Atlas military?" Yang plopped down next to her.
"Shut it, Xiao Long," Sera rolled her eyes.
Yang grinned and looked over at her, then the blonde's expression faltered.
"What?"
"Can you go back to looking normal now, please?" Yang sighed.
"I thought you said it looked good," Sera wagged her eyebrows.
"Change back or I'm gonna go sit with Weiss."
"You wouldn't," Sera fake gasped.
"Change back or I will, and you know how much I hate being next to Weiss," Yang said cheekily.
"See, the thing is, the more I stay like this, the more I get used to it, and therefore can fight better to, you know, protect you and the others…" Sera trailed off.
"Oh, shut up," Yang grabbed her head and pulled their faces together. After a few seconds, the color returned to Sera's face, and the black veins on her arms and face disappeared. When Yang pulled away and Sera's eyes fluttered open, they were violet again.
"Better?" Yang grinned.
"Uh-duh," Sera stuttered.
"You two done yet?" Qrow asked.
"Uh, yeah," Yang said and leaned back against the wall.
"Good," Weiss added. "Now we can fly in peace to Atlas."
Yang and Ruby exchanged looks and laughed.
"Sure, Ice Queen," Yang said.
"Whatever you say," Ruby laughed.
Sera couldn't help laughing. She doubled over and clutched her gut. Everyone looked over at her like she was crazy.
"…Are you okay?" Ren asked.
"Cause you're sounding a little crazy over there," Nora added.
Sera stifled her laughter and wiped a tear away. "Sorry, just… I missed this." She felt something grab her hand, then looked over to see that it was Yang.
"We missed you too, Snowball," she squeezed her hand. Then she felt the presence of people closing in, and she looked up to see the rest of her team standing in front of her.
"Believe it or not, she's right," Blake said with a small smile.
"Yeah! Right, Weiss?" Ruby beamed.
Sera met the ex-heiress's cold eyes and waited. Finally, Weiss said, "As unbearable and aggravating as you definitely are," she said hesitantly. "I admit, things were a lot less stressful with you around. Like those Apathy Grimm? Gods, your semblance would've been useful then—"
"Wait, the what Grimm?" Sera asked.
"Point is, we missed you," she finished.
"Aw, Weiss actually shared her feelings!" Nora cheered.
"Shut it, or I'll freeze you where you stand," Weiss threatened. That got a laugh from everyone present, even Maria.
"So," Qrow said, and all attention turned to him. "What the hell happened after the Spring Maiden's Vault?"
Attention shifted to Sera again. She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. "Pull up a chair, cause it's a long story."
. . .
"…Are you real?" Blake broke the thirty-second silence once Sera finished her story.
"You broke out of Salem's castle?" Qrow asked.
Sera looked up from the thermos cup of cocoa that Ruby had given her. "Uh-huh."
"How in the hell did you manage that?"
"Well, about that…" she turned the cup in her hands. "I sort of had some help."
Qrow narrowed his eyes. "What kind of help?"
She chuckled nervously. "You're not gonna like it."
Approximately two minutes later…
"You WHAT?!" Yang shot to her feet.
"I know, I know, but—"
"That is way the hell out of line, Snowball!" She pointed a finger in Sera's face.
"Yang—" Ruby tried to put a hand on her shoulder.
"I don't know what the hell you were thinking doing that—" Yang continued her rant.
"I was thinking that I wanted to live!" Sera told her. "If Raven didn't pull me out of that hell hole, I'd still be there! I hate it too, but your mom saved my ass. I know, she's shitty, and she left. But the only reason she saved me, is because she knew you cared about me!"
That seemed to shake her out of her funk. "What?"
Sera took a deep breath. "She took one look at us and knew, Yang. Plus, I told her. She's a bad mom, a bad person, and you deserve a better mother. But just for a little while, she was good to me."
"Raven actually being a decent person? Doubtful," Qrow snickered.
"Well she did sic her entire camp on me for some sort of 'canonizing' thing," Sera muttered.
"She what?" Ruby asked.
"Don't worry, I won," Sera waved her off.
"What the hell was she thinking?" Yang asked.
"That I needed to prove myself or something," Sera blew a strand of hair out of her face.
"What even," Weiss deadpanned.
"You tell me," Sera sighed. "I lose my sword, get captured by an evil immortal, have to stay with Raven Branwen, go through a train wreck, fight a friggin dragon, then—"
"About that," Pyrrha said. "When we went down to the Vault and found you, um, gone, we found this." She picked up a wrapped-up object that was leaning against a wall. It was about five feet long with a black handle sticking out of the wrapping.
"Is that…?" Sera's eyes widened.
"Yes, it is," Pyrrha unwrapped the object, revealing the shining blade of Crimson Eclipse.
"No way…" Sera approached the red head and picked it up gingerly. Pyrrha smiled when she handed the sword to her, which made Sera feel a bit better because if Pyrrha was taking care of it, she knew it had been sharpened and polished daily. Pyrrha was good like that.
"Oh, I've missed you," she held Crimson Eclipse to her chest.
"Yeah, we missed you too," Ruby said innocently.
"Wasn't talking to you this time, Rubes."
Ruby frowned and crossed her arms adorably. "Well fine, then."
Sera grinned and unsheathed her old sword, leaned it against the wall of the airship, then slowly sheathed Crimson Eclipse into its scabbard.
"You have no idea how good it is to have this back."
"What about your other sword?" Yang asked.
"Honestly, I don't feel much connection to that sword. When I first saw it, I remembered the day I made it and all the hours I put into maintaining and caring for it, but now… I dunno, it feels kind of sinister. But this sword," Sera pointed at her back. "I got this while I was at Beacon, after I woke up to a world I didn't remember. I'm more attached to it because Beacon is more my home now than Shade."
"Well jeez," Yang joked. "All she did was ask you about her sword, not your whole life story."
Weiss nudged her with her elbow.
Sera smiled and sat down once more. "Okay, enough about me. What the hell happened with all of you?"
"Oh, boy," Ruby sighed. "So much."
One rundown of Volume 6 later…
"I'm kinda jealous," Sera chuckled. "You didn't have to fight a dragon or crazy old lady."
"Yeah, but those Apathy Grimm were pretty nasty," Ruby said.
"So, you had Neo to help you through all that?" Blake asked.
"Yep."
"And she was with you when you were looking for us in Argus?" Pyrrha added.
"Correct."
"And from what you say, she's actually helping us and is on our side now?"
"That's right."
"So… Where is she now?" Qrow asked.
"Oh, she's back in…" Sera trailed off, her eyes widening in realization. "Oh, my DUUUUSSSST!"
"If you think we're going back, you've got another thing coming," Maria said sternly.
Sera put her hand in her hands and stared at the floor. "After all she went through with me, I just up and abandoned her."
"Hey," Yang sat beside her. "It's all right, she's a clever girl. If she meant what she said about helping us, she'll find her way back."
"Since when do you find Neo tolerable?"
"After you told us your side of the story," she intertwined her fingers with Sera's. "Don't get me wrong, I don't forgive her for her past. But I'm not going to let someone's past define them," Yang glanced at Blake, who gave a nod and smiled gratefully.
"Very adult of you," Sera squeezed Yang's hand.
"Yeah, well, had to grow up sometime, right?"
"Finally," Weiss huffed.
"Hey guys," Qrow said from the front of the airship. "You might wanna come see this."
RWBYS and JNPR shuffled towards the front, where the night sky was in full view. Everyone was crowded and had to stand shoulder-to-shoulder, but it somehow worked so everyone could see.
"See what? There's nothing there," Nora put in.
"Just wait for it," Weiss said unenthusiastically.
Then the clouds grew thinner as they got closer and closer. The bright lights of a city lit up the night sky with dozens of dazzling colors, but that isn't what caught everyone's eye. Floating several thousand feet in the air was a giant hunk of rock that seemed to have once been part of the city. More buildings laid out across the top, but the tallest towers seemed to be there.
Sera's first assumption was that some rich wackos decided to attach some booster rockets to the ground that held their towers and launch it into the air to protect their precious money and belongings from being destroyed for whatever reason.
But that was just her thought at first glance. This was Atlas, after all. There's no telling why there's a floating hunk of the city in the air.
"All the times I've been to Atlas," Maria said. "I never get tired of this view."
"It's beautiful," Ruby gasped.
"It kinda is, despite the, y'know, raging prejudice for the Faunus and distaste for peasants such as ourselves." Yang commented.
Everyone glanced at Weiss.
"Are you just gonna take that?" Nora asked.
"No, she's right. Why do you think I left here in the first place? Well, one of the reasons, anyway," Weiss said.
"We're finally here, at least," Jaune shrugged.
"But what now?" Ruby asked.
"Find Ironwood," Qrow said, as if that answered everything. He probably wasn't sure himself.
Sera felt Yang grab her hand again, then looked to see her with a happy twinkle in her eyes.
"What's with you?" Sera asked.
"We made it. All of us made it, and no one's getting separated again," she squeezed Sera's hand tighter.
The amnesiac smiled, pulled Yang into a one-armed hug, then kissed her cheek. "You're goddamn right."
Then they gazed out at the large city laid out before them and just enjoyed being with each other, and with all their friends.
(Song to conclude the finale of Volume 6: Here I Am from Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron)
Well, now we wait for Volume 7. Thinking about doing some filler chapters in the meantime or something, maybe Sera and Yang actually going on a date for wholesome reasons (Unless no one wants to see that). If anyone wants to pitch ideas, go ahead, cause I think it's still another month or so until V7.
To be continued…