AN: Hey everyone, I have the next chapter here. Thank you for all the support this series has gotten here and on Tv Tropes. This chapter sets a couple of days later with the military team arriving to Menagerie to drop off the imprisoned White Fang members. Afterwards, we get the start of the fight people have been waiting for. Hope you enjoy this chapter, leave a review with your comments and questions, and have a nice day.
Chapter 28 – Grieving
A couple of days later.
Nobu.
At the end of the Menagerie landing docks, Nobu watched as two Atlas smaller airships landed. She looked over to the one that landed away from her, seeing Sigurd and Brynhildr exiting as they lead the former white fang members towards a few Menagerie officials. The Grimm Archer then looked to the airship she was in front of. After the hatch opened, Reines and Trimmau walked down the airship. Nobu smirked as she crossed her arm, "Well, looks like you managed without me." She said with Reines remaining unamused, "Uh, where are the Ice Queen sisters?" Nobu said as she looked towards the airship, waiting for them come out. However, the only one she saw was Adam. The Grimm Archer turned back to Reines.
"Winter is dead." Reines said with the smirk fading from Nobu's face, "Come on, let's head back to the main airship." She said before turning around, "You should talk with Weiss." Reines walked back up towards the airship. Nobu remained speechless for a few seconds, almost unable to move. Despite still having a lot of questions, she followed Reines and the maid golem back onto the ship.
After they returned to the main airship, the four walked down the halls. Nobu led the way, but Adam notices her hands were clenched. "She locked herself in the room for days." Adam spoke up, "Even glyph to keep the door in place, but it faded away recently."
"So, she's ready for people to talk to her?" Nobu said in optimism as they reach the room.
"I wouldn't say that," Reines said before the door opened.
As the door opened, a pungent aroma ran over the four. Sitting on a bed in her nightgown was Weiss, her cheeks red as she chugged a cleanish liquid from a green bottle. Her hair was a disheveled mess. After the bottle was almost finished, she then glanced over to open the door, "Oh, hey Ruby!" Wiess spoke in a slurred voice, "When did you get here?"
"W-Weiss, it's me, Nobu." The Grimm Archer responded as the white heiress wobbled, "Have you been drinking!? It's not even noon!"
Adam looked at the bottle in Weiss' hand. He then saw a dozen empty bottles littering the floor, "So, this is where Musashi's sake collection went." He said before kneeing and picking up an unopened bottle.
"Hey, I need that!" Weiss shouted at Adam as she pointed. However, she leaned forward too much and fell off the bed and onto the floor.
"I think you have had enough," Nobu said as she walked in, helping Weiss back onto the bed. In the motion, her body recoiled at the stench, "When was the last time you bathed?" She said, noticing the sweat stains on the nightgown.
"Hey, I don't smell that bad," Weiss responded as she pointed to the restroom, "I still went to the bathroom, just don't walk past the mirror on the wall." She then looked to Reines, who had a deadpan expression at the sight, "What are you looking at? Huh?" Weiss said in irritation, "What, I'm too much of a kid to be drinking? That's what you're thinking, right?"
"In your kingdom, you would be underage." Reines clarified, causing Weiss to throw an empty bottle at her. Trimmau caught the bottle before it could hit her owner, "However," Reines spoke, her tone slightly remorseful, "You're no longer a kid when you experience a loss like this." She said with Weiss remaining quiet, "The next phase of our operation is not for a while." Reines then spoke to both Nobu and Weiss, "With theLieutenant General dead, her subordinates fall under my command. As an order, take this time to grieve as much as you need." She then walked away, Trimmau following her.
Weiss gritted her teeth before looking down. Adam watched as tears of anger formed in her eyes, "Schnee," He spoke, gaining Weiss' attention, "…I told you before about the exception to my rule." the White Fang swordsman said with Weiss remembering, "Because of recent actions, I have widened that margin by a few humans." Adam spoke as he walked out of the room, looking at the sake bottle, "I'm taking this one with me, you don't need it." He said with the door closing behind him.
A few seconds of silence lasted like an eternity between Weiss and Nobu, "Hey…" The Grimm Archer finally spoke up, "…You want to…talk about…it?" At the mention of that last word, Weiss' body froze. Despite not moving, tears ran down her face, causing Nobu to have a look of panic, "Weiss!?"
"It killed my sister." Weiss responded with Nobu having a look of confusion, "Winter, she was perfect." Weiss said as she looked down, picking up a nearby bottle of sake, "The perfect leader, the perfect fighter, the perfect Schnee." She said before opening the bottle, "Anything Winter did, she did flawlessly the first time. Even summoning glyph…I'm nothing like the amazing person she was. I'm a disgrace to my family name… It should have been me to die on this mission." The white heiress was about to drink until Nobu put her hand over the bottle, "Why?" Weiss said as she scowled, but did not turn to the Grimm Archer, "Why are you here? You and I aren't friends." She then glared at Nobu directly, "Why would you care about what I'm doing now?"
"…" Nobu did not respond right away, but rather closed her eyes, "You remember last year, the time leading up to Grand Order. All the training you did with Professor Semiramis." Nobu said before smiling, "Well, I was watching you from the bushes. That's how I learned about your weird fear of skeletons." She said with Weiss gritting her teeth in anger, about to hit Nobu with the bottle, "Even after I learned what I needed to beat you, I still went to watch you train." She said before half opening her eyes, a sincere smile on her face, "No matter how many times you were blown back, you still kept trying. You never gave up, even when everyone else I knew would have…even when I would have." She said with Weiss stopping her motion with the sake bottle, "When I was practicing doing my summoning, it was so hard. I thought it was impossible for me. But seeing that you never gave up, meant I could never give up if I wanted to beat you."
"Nobu…" Weiss spoke.
"Then, during Grand Order." Nobu responded, "Not only did you conquer your fear, but you summoned a powerful knight with my red skeleton." The Grimm Archer then closed her eyes, "Even though you didn't win the whole thing, you beat me. I lost to the Schnee family's most stubborn little Ice Queen." She said with a giggle before opening her eyes, looking directly at Weiss, "And despite herself hating someone me for everything I did. She still helped me to rescue my best friend when nobody else would." Suddenly, tears started to pour from Nobu's eyes, but she still smiled, "Even when she was already pushing herself, she was able to maintain an even larger summon to save another student. Even after that and only having a small amount of strength left, she still made sure two more people were healed before passing out." Nobu said with a slight giggle again, "One of them being this idiot."
"Nobu…" Weiss said as tears formed in her eyes, "Why are you telling me all of this?"
Nobu then hugged Weiss, closing her eyes, "Because you are amazing. No matter what you say against yourself, I know what I'm saying is true. And…Your sister knew you're amazing too." The Grimm Archer said as Weiss' eyes widened, "Weiss, your sister loved you with all her heart. She sacrificed everything because she trusted you with the rest of this mission. She knew, no matter how difficult things would get, or how long it would take, you would be able to persevere until the mission was a success." Nobu hugged Weiss tighter, "Because that's how amazing you are."
Weiss could not articulate any words as her eyes filled with tears, "AAAAAAaaa!" She cried as she let go of the bottle of sake, hugging Nobu as tight as she could. As the white heiress cried on her shoulder, the Grimm Archer softly smiled as she rubbed her back.
"It's okay," Nobu whispered, "Just let it out."
Musashi.
In the infirmary wing of the airship, Musashi laid in a bed with her forearms in thick casts. A bowl of noodles was on her tray on her lap, still steaming as she glared at it. With her right hand, she tried to pick up the chopsticks, but could not manage a grip without flinching in pain. As the pieced of wood fell back on the tray, she sighed. Suddenly, the door to her room open, leading to Reines, Trimmau, and Adam walking in. "Hey, you three managed to tell Nobu what happened?" She asked with Adam nodding, "I see, and… how's Weiss?" Musashi said as she started to look down, "I still feel terrible, I shouldn't have been taken out so easily on that ship." She then noticed the bottle in Adam's hand, "Hey! Is that my sake?"
"Your opponent was far strong than any of us anticipated." Adam dodged the last question as he placed the bottle on a nearby counter, then leaned against the, "We were not ready for something like that thing."
"Columbus' private quarters held documents on what It was, a monster called Megalos." Reines said as Trimmau pulled out a chair for her master to sit down in, "However, Its original name was Heracles."
"The Immortal Great Hero!?" Musashi responded with Reines nodding.
"As hard as it is to believe, he was sighted last year before and during the Invasion of Apocrypha." The Princess of El-Melloi informed, "Then, according to Columbus' paperwork, Heracles was captured by someone known as The Woman in Black and into Megalos. As well, she told him that the monster had all twelve lives restored."
"T-twelve lives?" Musashi exclaimed.
"Brynhildr told us that she saw the thing come back to life once." Reines spoke as she crossed her arms, "And I'm not even sure the airships barrage was enough to fully kill it the remaining eleven times." She said as she slightly griped her arm at the next sentence, "After all, Drake's EX Noble Phantasm was not enough to put the monster down for good before."
"Are you saying that Winter's sacrifice might have been for nothing?!" Musashi responded, "What did Weiss-"
"We haven't told the Schnee about this yet," Adam cut her off, "There is no point in piling on more bad news, especially since all of this is unconfirmed." He then looked over to Reines, "You have already sent drones to scan the waters, checking for that creature's remains." The White Fang swordsman said before sighing, "But if they find remains, then it means it wasn't blown to bits and could have regenerated the rest using its lives."
"And if we don't find it," Reines continued, "It could mean the monster is on its way here." Musashi turned to the Princess of El-Melloi, "From his documents, Columbus was planning to use Megalos to wipe out all faunus on Menagerie." She said before looking to Adam, "If we hadn't stopped him then, this island would have been his next target."
"Which is why I do not regret killing that bastard," Adam before scoffing, "But he is not the only White Fang Killer. His report omitted any names, but we can at least confirm three more individuals who are also White Fang Killers."
"You can't be serious about this?" Musashi responded, "Look how much with lost just taking out one of them."
"That is why we need to expedite the meeting with Sienna Kahn." Adam responded, "With one of the White Fang Killers dead, that should be enough to convince her of the commitment we have to this cause. We'll work together to eliminate the last three, using it as the foundation to forge the military alliance."
Reines nodded before taking over the conversation, "Sigurd and Brynhildr already know about this and are talking with the Chieftain. If anyone can get in contact with the Leader of the White Fang directly, it's him." She then smirked as she looked to Adam, "I'm supersized you didn't meet him, I'm sure he would have given you a medal for your valor."
"We have already met before," Adam said before looking down to his right, "And I can never show my face to that man or his wife again. If we want this mission to be a success, he must never know I was let out of jail." He said with Musashi having a look of worry in her eyes towards him.
"I see. That must be why you told those faunus prisoners to never mention it was you the rescued them." Reines said before standing up with a sigh, "In any case, we are at a rare moment of free time before needing to move out again. So, I'm going to take this opportunity to do some shopping."
"S-shopping!?" Musashi said with a dumbfounded face, "Really!?"
"Of course, it's my favorite hobby. However, it is rather boring to shop alone." Reines responded while smirking to the swordswoman, "So, do get better soon. I heard Menagerie has some fantastic swimsuit designs." She said before walking out of the room, Trimmau bowing before following.
As the door closed, a silence fell over the room between the two remained individuals, "The Chieftain of Menagerie is Blake's dad, isn't he?" Musashi inferred with Adam nodding, "Yep, that would be the reason you don't want to meet him." She sighed as she looked back to him with a weak smile, "You know, it's possible Blake never told her parents about-"
"It's not a matter of if they know," Adam cut her off, "I know what I have done. It will only make the situation worse if I am there." He then looked over to her, "If this means all that I have done to help those faunus will go unrecognized, so be it."
"I see," Musashi said before looking back to her bowl of noodles, "I can agree with you, even if I think you're being a little too harsh on yourself." She said before trying to pick up the chopsticks, but they still fell out of her fingers.
As Musashi gritted her teeth in frustration, Adam walked over to the bed, "Here," He said before taking the chopsticks, pinching and coiling and a bit of the noodles in the broth.
"Uh," Musashi said in confusion, "What are you doing?"
"I'm helping you eat," Adam responded before taking the chopsticks with noodles out of the bowl, holding them at mouth level to Musashi, "Just like you helped me before."
"O-oh," Musashi said as her face was a little red, "T-thanks." She said before opening her mouth, allowing Adam to put the noodles inside. She bit down before he pulled out the chopsticks, chewing the food with a smile, "So good!" the swordswoman said before noticing something else in the room, "Can you pass me my sake?"
"No," Adam coldly responded, causing Musashi to pout, "When you've recovered, you can have some." He said while putting the chopsticks back in the, preparing another serving as the swordswoman had a soft smile on her face.
Raven.
In a small wooden cabin never a cliff, Raikou sat at a desk in her bedroom. She hummed to herself as she wrote a letter, then looked out the window to the partly cloudy sky, smiling at its serenity. Not too far away, she noticed a large tree full of green leaves. The Spring Maiden sighed before returning to her letter. Upon finishing it, she folded the paper, then sealed it with a kiss, "Well," Raikou said while getting up, putting the quill pen down atop the sealed letter, "Time to finish making the pie." She said with a smile before walking away from her desk and out her bedroom. On the door was her apron, which she put on her before leaving the door slightly open.
However, in that tree was a small black bird with red eyes. It was not a Grimm, but a corvid. It flew from the tree down to the windowsill. Upon flying into the house, the corvid transformed into Raven. The bloody huntress landed on the floor, her feet not making a sound. As she stood up, her cold eyes focused on the door out of the bedroom. In slowly opening the door, she discovered Raikou placing the steaming pie on the kitchen windowsill. Raven readied her weapon, unsheathing the sword. Purposefully, she grinded the blade against the scabbard, revealing her presence.
"Oh," Raikou said, her back still toward the bloody huntress, "You're the one they said would try to kill me?"
"Turn around," Raven responded, as she reposed her sword, "I can't kill you until you see my face."
"Then, we can just keep casually talking like this?" Raikou said with a smirk, "Too bad I already know who you are." She said with the smile on her face fading, "You should be a better mother to Yang." The Spring Maiden said with Raven hesitating, "She looks like such a nice girl."
"..." Raven did not respond.
"Hm, not in the mode to talk now?" Raikou asked, "Trust me, I know it is hard being a good mom." She said before turning around, a sweet smile with half-closed eyes, "But you have to try your best, for your daughter's wellbeing."
"Right now, all I care about," The bloody huntress said before reposing with her crimson sword, "Is killing you and taking the maiden power from your corpse."
Raikou sighed, "It looks like I will have to beat the lessons into your thick skull." The Spring Maiden said as Raven blinked.
However, as the bloody huntress opened her eyes, Raikou was already in front of her. Raven gasped at her opponent's speed, as well as the sword that was already thrust in an overhead motion. She blocked the strike with her crimson blade, but Raikou let out a slight giggle. Suddenly, the Spring Maiden's sword glowed white. The sword swings were as fast as lightning. Raven struggled the parry this speed, especially when she saw a strike she could not block.
This time, Raven jumped back as she spawned a red vortex. In jumping though, the bloody huntress reappeared outside. She sighed in relief, but then noticed something. The partly cloudy sky was gone, replaced with near pitch-black clouds. Raven gasped as she saw the flash from above, then heard the thunderclap. A bolt of lightning struck down, aimed from for her position. Raven dashed with barely any time to spare. The lightning strike scorched the soil. Raven tried catching her breath but then heard another thunderclap. Instinctively, she ran without looking up at the sky, knowing what the target of the lightning was. Raven dodged the thunderbolt as best she could, the strikes getting closer with time.
Suddenly, Raven changed her method. She stopped as she reposed with her sword, closing her eyes. As she listened for the thunderclap against the wind, the bloody huntress cut the air over her head. A red vortex appeared in the path of the lightning, while a second vortex appeared over the wooden home. As the bolt was sent through the first vortex, it exited the second and struck the home of Raikou. Raven opened her eyes, watching as the house was set ablaze by the thunderbolt. She relaxed her stance as she waited, knowing this was not enough to kill the Spring Maiden.
Suddenly, Raikou jumped out of the window. Before she landed on the ground, the Spring Maiden slashed the air towards her burning home. The sword slash created a heavy gust, blowing out the fire in an instance. "You want the power of the Spring Maiden?" Raikou looked at her scorched home for a few seconds before turning back to Raven, "Come get it."
The two reposed their swords, each having a focused gaze on their opponent. However, the Spring Maiden's eyes started to glow with a sparking aura.
AN: There you go, Weiss has not been doing so well after Winter's death. However, while her friends are not close by, everyone can see how much she is suffering right now. I really liked showed that, despite Reines and Adam having terrible personalities, they do manage to say some nice things to Weiss. And the Nobu moment was one I really liked to putting words to, it is one of my favorite moments between those two in this series, (It is funny making this nice Nobu while reading the Fate/Type Redline manga version. If you haven't read it yet, it is good and shows why she is called a demon). You see the hints that maybe Megalos is still alive. We also get a nice Adam and Musashi moment, referencing his time in prison. And finally, Raven makes her move to kill Raikou. Next chapter, we see how well that goes and if some people decided to crash the party. That is all for now, thanks for reading, and hope to see you in the next chapter.
