Summary/disclaimer: Time for another chapter of Cold Compassion. Enjoy the 2500-word chapter. I don't own RWBY, Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth do.
(Atlas, Atlesian Medical Faculty, 'M3'.)
Cinder threw Penny into a set of double doors before Slater ducked under a quartet of mini Nevermores summoned by Winter.
Cinder was knocked backwards. Slater twirled Umbra before Cinder did a backflip as Winter flipped off his back and hit Cinder with an Aura enhanced dropkick which floored her. Slater tried to follow up with a slash that brought the axe cutting through the floor before trying to bring the weapon down. Cinder rolled to the side and dodged both strikes before Slater went to stab her.
Cinder bounced back with a L kick which caused Slater to slide back. Winter sent a Beowolf summon which blocked a fireball from Cinder at the cost of being destroyed.
Winter swung her sword only to be blocked by Cinder's glass swords. Slater watched the duo push swords against each other while sparks flew.
"You Atlas elites are all the same! You think by hoarding power, you're keep it forever!" Cinder hissed, she twirled around and swung at Winter who parried a left slash, then a downwards one.
"I refuse to starve!" Cinder growled before Penny tackled her into a wall, cracking it. Cinder slashed Penny before slamming her into the servers, rocking them without breaking them.
"You're the arrogant spoiled brat who already has Maiden powers… You don't get to attack a hospital after a Grimm invasion and lecture us… We're not the ones cocky enough to fight 3 on 1." Slater said as he flicked his weapon and it changed to its podao form.
"You're not hurting Fria!" Penny yelled before twirling her swords at Cinder. She somersaulted and battered away the blades before Slater managed to slam the pole portion of his weapon into Cinder. Penny followed up with a barrage of lasers before a gust of wind knocked her into the wall. She recovered with a burst of her jets.
Cinder tumbled backwards before screaming as she charged Slater. Winter squeezed the trigger of Frostbite, Jar'Kai ejected from its mother weapon into her other hand.
Winter charged forward. Cinder slammed her blades into Slater's weapon and forced him to his knees. She grinned and added flames to her weapons.
Slater grunted as the Fall Maiden sneered at the struggling specialist. He squeezed the trigger of Umbra. A Gravity round exploded from the under barrel. Cinder stumbled back before backflipping to avoid Winter. She managed to score a kick which knocked down Slater and caused his Aura to shimmer.
"We need to take her down hard, she's too quick for one of us and I can't press an advantage without you guys." Slater whispered; Penny landed next to them as the trio faced Cinder.
"That all you got, hotshot? We can do this all day." Slater said before nodding to Winter.
Slater rushed forward, he pivoted and twirled Umbra in a wide arc. Cinder ducked the swing only for Winter to slide, hook her left foot around Slater's right ankle and score a slash which finally took a chuck out of her aura.
Cinder screamed in rage before lashing out at Winter who used a White Glyph to dodge it. Slater slammed his weapon into Cinder's while she slashed at him. He blocked them with the pole portion of his weapon before Winter flipped over him.
Penny sent a sword at Cinder, breaking one of her swords. She turned and then thrusted her sword at Winter. She threw her other sword at Slater who deflected it. He fired at her, freezing the ground under her. she slipped before Winter kicked her down.
Cinder shot her Shadow Arm at Winter. She threw the Atlas Specialist through the doors. Her Aura blinked as Winter got up and smashed through the door before shifting Cinder around with a White Glyph.
Cinder roared and surged forward, dropping her blades. Flames blasted from her hands, eye and feet. Slater ducked only for Cinder to seize Winter and Penny and slam them through the door and then wall.
"Winter! Penny!" Slater transformed his weapon into a sniper and followed the duo.
Cinder grinned as she held both women. She prepared to drop Winter before a bullet hit her, sparkling her Aura again.
"Hands off my partner, you bitch!" Slater hissed before Winter stabbed her arm. Cinder screamed and dropped the specialist who conjured a Glyph before sheathing Jar'Kai into Frostbite.
She refused to lose the blade, she took a step off her glyph and freefell towards the ground.
Cinder tossed Penny away before kicking a sword at her. she caught the blade only for it to explode and knock her backwards. Penny fired her jets and recovered.
"I have come too damned far to be stopped by a worthless TOY!" Cinder screamed while panting.
A blue fireball slammed into her, further depleting her aura as she was greeted by Winter riding a Manticore.
"Holy crap, I seriously underestimated Winter." Slater said before cycling a Lightning round into Umbra's chamber.
Cinder threw a fireball at Winter who rolled around it and shot a burst of flames. Penny charged her as Winter slammed into the Fall Maiden. Cinder threw another fireball before Penny slashed her and vanished, firing a few lasers which caused Cinder to fly back.
Another fireball hit the Fall Maiden and turned her around. Slater locked onto her and waited for a good moment to strike.
Cinder charged Winter and Slater fired. Cinder went to strike the Manticore.
A lightning round hit her torso and caused her to spiral away. Slater grinned before Cinder screamed and blasted Slater with another fireball. She followed up with a series of slashes which ripped at Slater's clothing before kicking him with a roundhouse kick.
He was thrown backwards and flipped into Fria's room, he slammed into the wall and groaned before Cinder seized him by the face. His pants were scorched from the flames, he had a black eye and bled from the lips and his shirt was tattered.
"I will kill all of you if I have to if it means getting that power." Cinder tossed him through another part of the wall where he rolled along the ground and came to a stop, unmoving.
She turned and froze up the wall before blasting part of the ceiling. Rubble blocked the hole as Winter and Penny landed on the roof of the hospital.
"We need to get back in there, Slater will be killed one on one!" Winter yelled; she checked her scroll.
Slater had a pathetic 15% Aura left. She dispelled the Manticore and started to look for a way inside. There was a massive amount of freezing cold wind.
"Fria…" She said before screaming as the rapid burst of cold air hit her through her Aura.
Her index, middle and ring finger were encrusted with frost as her glove was ripped open. Winter whimpered and looked at her frostbitten hand before bracing herself.
"This isn't just because of General Ironwood… This is for Fria and Slater." She said before she dropped into the freezing cold winds.
"WINTER!" Penny yelled before the android prepared to followed Winter inside. A Bullhead rounded on her just as the White Fang airship exploded and the Atlas Cruiser arrived
(With Slater and Cinder)
Slater was glad for his Semblance; it was because of Cinder's strength and Maiden powers that he was so damaged. He knew he couldn't handle the cold and ducked behind the door.
"Damn it…" Slater muttered. He had seen Cinder rip open the pod for Fria. He had started climbed to his feet by then.
The Winter Maiden stared down the Fall Maiden before unleashing all of her power. The room began to freeze before her power smashed through the ceiling and flash froze the room into a miniature winter. The door to the pod was thrown at Cinder while frost and freeze spread through the room like a plague.
Cinder had escaped into the observation room at the cost of the rest of her Aura.
"Fria…" He said before Winter dropped in. She walked towards Fria, using her glyphs to brace herself and stop the cold winds from bothering her.
"Fria, please stop…" Winter said before the Winter Maiden looked at her, she blinked and gasped as her powers subsided.
"I had my job to do… I was supposed to protect the power of the maiden till I could pass it on… I hope I didn't lose track of time. But you can James I'm ready." Fria said. Winter and he frowned.
Fria was an old woman; the poor woman didn't even remember anything anymore. She didn't deserve to be part of another war. Both damned Salem to the deepest pit for drawing the pitiful elder into a conflict her addled and aged mind didn't understand.
"Fria… I'm sorry you're a part of this war." she said. Winter wiped at her eyes while she lowered the aging Maiden to the ground.
"What is your name?" Fria asked, Winter sighed.
"It's Winter, ma'am. I'm… So sorry your part of this war." Winter stated, ready to cry over the fact that the poor woman had to die for the world to live.
Fria smiled. She didn't know the weight of the burden her only visitor had. She knew her time was hastening towards the end. She didn't fear it, she had a very good life.
"Are you the one?" Fria asked, the hole had frozen over, neither knew where Penny was.
"Yes." Winter's tone carried finality, she hadn't understood the weight of the deed, but she did now.
Slater turned his weapon back to its halberd form, he collapsed to the ground before looking at his weapon. Fria grabbed Winter's hand and smiled; light blue energy came from the Winter Maiden. Winter blinked and tried to remove her hand but Fria grasped it harder.
"You have a kind soul, Winter… Promise me your carry on this duty and use this power… To bring peace." Fria gasped out; Winter looked at her before clasping her hand.
"I promise… I'm sorry you had to do this, Fria." Winter said as Blue aura coursed through both of them.
"I'm not… My Semblance is to see visions… You're be happy with that young man. Goodbye, dear…" Fria collapsed while snow began to fall. There was a slight explosion noise that Winter slowly turned to.
Winter's eyes burned a Light Blue, Slater frowned and continued to climb to his feet.
"NO!" Winter turned only to be sent flying along the ground as her Aura shattered.
"SHE WAS MINE! THAT POWER BELONGED TO ME!" Cinder screamed. Winter drew her swords from her belt as she drew back her arm to strike.
One of Penny's swords sliced through her shadow arm. Cinder screamed and beat the ground in pain.
"NO!" Cinder screamed and lunged at Winter. She threw a sword which Winter blocked before she devolved into throwing knives and swords.
Winter parried or dodged them while staring down the angry Fall Maiden. Cinder grabbed one of her blades and slashed at Winter before she could respond.
A splash of Blood came from Winter's left arm along with part of her sleeve. It also ripped up the fingers of her other glove and burned her arm.
"DIE!" Another strike that gave her a black eye, scratched her face and ripped through her hair tie, Slater looked at Umbra and reached for it.
A third strike followed by a punch ripped up her pants and injured her ribs while throwing her across the room.
"I will not let the power go to a trust fund brat working for the damned worthless military…. This world belongs to me, not her…" Cinder hissed while she formed a glass knife and advanced on Winter who panted, her swords knocked aside.
"I'm… Not letting… A bitch like you… Hurt anyone else." Winter gasped out before Cinder grasped her hair.
"That power belongs to me… Cinder Fa-…." Cinder let go of Winter and gasped in pain.
Umbra's spike emerged from her chest, she looked at the bloody wound before looking at Slater.
"I told you… To stay the hell away from my partner… You shouldn't have acted superior to us. My Semblance was to harden my skin physically unless the trauma is internal or its elemental damage… You knocked out most of my Aura… Not me." Slater said before Cinder collapsed.
She went to swing again before Winter managed to stab her, the Fall Maiden went limp and her power left her. it swirled around before exiting the room.
Slater grunted as his Aura shattered and he collapsed to the ground. Umbra dropped from his hand as the duo looked at each other.
"Well… She wasn't so tough." Slater said, he had dots of crimson on his lips, they curled into a smile all the same.
"You idiot… Why did you take her attention off me?" Winter asked. Slater chuckled
"Because you're the Winter Maiden. You're my partner, what makes you think I'd let hot shot over there hit you? She hit you and she'd have broken your Aura right away. She was getting pressed into a corner and was going to lash out at anything who got in her way. I wasn't going to let her kill you… Your more than my boss or partner… Ow, these burns hurt." Slater muttered. He grunted while their communicators went off.
"Sir, Ma'am? The enemy airship is done and the remaining White Fang troops pulled out. We saw a massive storm of snow from the hospital, are you both ok?" Clover asked.
"We're going to need a med evac or a room prepped… Good thing me and Win got hurt in a hospital… Ow. Clover, we ran into Cinder Fall, the Fall Maiden is KIA and Winter retrieved the Winter Maiden powers. we're both down and we aren't going anywhere." Slater said while Penny walked in.
The girl had glowing green flames from her eyes, Slater blinked.
"Sir?" Slater brought his hand to his communicator, speechless.
"Commander? I think you might want to tell General Ironwood something that is going to surprise him and change the odds." Slater stated, he turned to Winter who had passed out from her wounds.
He grabbed her bruised hand weakly and rubbed her frozen fingers while Penny looked at the wounded duo.
He groaned in pain, neither realized their relationship had changed. She rested her head on his shoulder.
"Thank you…" Winter said before the sound of engines cut them off.
Author Notes
Phew, another chapter done! I want to point out that Cinder might return, but as a Grimm revenant. I wanted to make the fight longer and more detailed. Next chapter will begin the second arc and show Winter and Slater recovering and the next phase of the war. until then, Lighting Wolf out!
Ps: Penny might be delayed and Raven is probably on Thursday.