Chapter 74
"Down you go!" Nora cried, slamming her hammer into a Manticore. The Grimm cried out as it crashed into the road beneath it. As it struggled to stand, Ren sprinted up to it and launched into a spin.
The blades of Stormflower made short work of its neck.
As it fell apart into black mist, the duo rushed off to join the rest of the battle. Manticores soared through the air, firing balls of flame at anything that moved.
Weiss launched icicles, piercing wings and sending Grimm crashing down to the ground where Jaune and Pyrrha rushed to finish them. Ruby dashed through the area, raining petals and bullets on any Grimm she could get to. Adam and Yang tag-teamed a larger Manticore. The former used his ice blade to freeze its wings so the latter could tear them off.
And then Penny flew by, using her lasers to finish as many Grimm as she could.
Nora and Ren nodded to each other and threw themselves at a newly arrived Manticore. The monster roared as Ren used his cables to rapidly bring himself in close to unleash a hail of SMG fire into its under-protected belly. As he slide by beneath it, Nora struck it with an uppercut. It screamed and released fire into the air.
Nora brought down her hammer and crushed its skull.
To the average person, their teamwork was impeccable. But to Qrows trained eye, he could see there was just a little… off. As if they were unsure of something. Could grow to be a problem. Damned kids. The older huntsman sighed as he observed the battle from the top of a building. It was going well. No civilians had been hurt, thankfully.
And yet…
When the battle was over, the civilians came out of their homes. Ruby and her friends put on brave smiles. But instead of being celebrated…
"Screw you!"
"Damned Atlas dogs!"
"Murderer!"
They began to throw stones, both literally and metaphorically. All targeted towards Penny. Damn. What the hell is going on? Qrow let out a sigh and dropped down. Stones pinged off of his drawn blade as he set it between the civilians and their targets. "Enough! The Grimm are gone. Let's move."
"But…" Ruby started, her eyes wide. "Just like at the rally…"
Penny simply nodded and flew off, returning to Atlas. With their target gone, the angry people turned and began to disperse. But Qrow could feel it. The tension in the air.
"Let's get out of here. We need to make sure the Grimm aren't making another push."
This wasn't over.
"We've deployed Riot Suppression Teams to Mantle and made dozens of arrests. Sadly, it's done little to quell the outrage, especially with that video of Penny being responsible making the rounds." Clover reported in the early hours of the morning. "Thankfully, the kids are doing a good job pushing back the Grimm."
"... Damn it. And Jacques is already breathing down my neck." Ironwood grumbled under his breath. "At least Camilla and Sleet haven't followed suit. Yet." He winced. Now that he'd gone and said it, the chances had increased. That was how shit his luck was, as far as he was concerned.
"In addition," Clover continued, "Robyn has been attacking our trucks. She's already stolen three shipments to Amity."
"Three? It hasn't even been a full day." Ironwood had to admit, she worked fast. But… this just shows why I can't trust her. "Alright. Take the AceOps and arrest them."
"Understood. What about Taurus and his allies?"
"... send them out of town for a couple of days. I would prefer they aren't here to… rile up the crowds. We'll deal with things ourselves, for now."
"I see." Clover tapped at his scroll for a moment. "We do know the location of a sizable number of Centinels. We could send them to clear it out? Should only take them a day or two."
"Do it. Then proceed with your own objective."
Clover saluted. "Understood, Sir. What about Tyrian Callows?"
Ironwood stood from his chair and faced the window. "Keep an eye out. Once you've dealt with Robyn, focus on him."
"Copy that."
"Dismissed."
"I'm worried about Penny…" Ruby mumbled under her breath. Her voice still echoed slightly in the deep, dark halls of the cave system they'd been sent to clear out. "That fake video…"
"Not much we can do about it though," Yang replied with a sigh. "We can shout about it being faked all we want, but we're just… randoms to the people. Leave it to Ironwood to handle. It's his job after all."
"Yang is right," Weiss said. "It's out of our power to change."
Ahead of them, Adam grunted as he cut down another Centinel. "Pretty sure your word would count for something, Schnee."
"Hmph. Perhaps back when I was Heiress. Or before my father pissed off everyone with his victory. Does that satisfy you, Taurus?"
"I guess it does. Too bad your money won't help you now."
"That's why I have my sword. And you. A good meat shield goes a long way."
The good-natured ribbing caused the pair to smile and laugh under their breaths. It lightened the air, dispelling the tension that was slowly starting to consume them. But it could not get rid of their anxiety entirely. All they could do was put it off, for now.
"This is RSTY. Is everything alright with you guys?" Ruby called into her scroll a few minutes later.
"This is JNPR. We've gotten pretty deep. Lots of Grimm down here. But we're fine. For now." Jaune responded shortly after.
"This is uh… Oscar. We haven't come up against anything too bad. We're uh… still getting used to fighting alongside each other so… we'll take our time." Oscar sounded a little unsure, but this was his first 'big' mission with Blake and Ilia as his team.
Adam clenched his fists slightly. He was worried. About Blake. Having her out of sight… a part of him was incredibly worried about her twisting back into that damaged person he'd been fighting for so long. I… can't babysit her. She'll be fine. I'm sure of it.
He took a deep breath and let it out. Maybe this place was messing with him. The cave system reminded him of a time many years ago, when he was young and mined in places just like this. As the team headed deeper, Yang touched his elbow lightly.
"You okay?" She whispered.
Adam nodded, but then shook his head. "I… don't know. This place is… irritating me. And Jacques winning doesn't help."
"I get that… I wish I could do more."
"So does everyone. We all wish we could be better, faster, stronger. We all regret that things weren't as good as we thought they could be." Adam shrugged. "We… can't do anything about the past. No matter how much we wish to."
"Are we still talking about the election?" Yang asked.
"... No." He glanced away.
Yang pet his shoulder, her metal hand clinking slightly. "Well… the future can still be better. Or something like that. We just gotta… push forward. Make things better and all that."
"Hmph. Yeah. Let's start by ending this nest."
"Exactly!" Yang grinned and pumped her arm.
Metal scraped against stone as Robyn ducked into an alleyway, narrowly avoiding Clover's hook. She threw herself down the passage, twisted in midair and fired a bolt backwards just as Harriet raced around the corner. The speedster took a face full of Frost Dust.
"Fuck!" She yelled, muffled as her face was surrounded by ice. Her feet slid across the floor and out from under her, sending the Huntress to the ground.
Robyn fired two more bolts, creating a barrier of ice to slow her pursuers and hurried down the alley. Light from the moon trickled down from above. She had to be quick. The other Ace-Ops will be here soon. Gotta get out of here. Gotta move!
She passed through an open circular area, with a large sewer grate in the centre, and rushed through the other end. Water splashed as she ran down the next alley. Lightning crackled as Harriet gave chase. Robyn bit her lip and leapt out of the alley, grabbed hold of a lamppost and used it to twist around.
As Harriet came racing out of the alleyway Robyn's feet collided with her face.
"Gaaah!" Harriet cried out as she was sent flying into a nearby dumpster.
Robyn took no time to gloat. She fired a Frost Bolt to seal the dumpster and then ran. Thankfully, with Harriet stuck, she was able to get out of the immediate area.
After that, it was simple for her to vanish into the night. She knew the streets here far better than any Atlas soldier. So she took a long, roundabout path back to the pub where her fellow Happy Huntresses were waiting.
Damn it. If we don't get those supplies, Mantle is screwed the next time anything happens. And who knows what Jacques is going to pull next…
Deep within the halls of a five-star hotel, a group was convened…
"I've asked you two here for one primary concern… James Ironwood." Jacques Schnee did not smile as he gazed at Camilla and Sleet. The two councillors nodded. They all knew what a pain the General had been. "His closing of the borders and embargo have hurt not only Atlas and Mantle, but all of Remnant. How long until the other kingdoms run out of Dust? How long before another Great War occurs, all because of James' paranoia?"
Sleet nodded. "You're right. Atlas is already running out of luxuries we can only get in Mistral or Vale. If we run out, we will quickly find the people… unwilling to forgive us."
Camilla sighed. "Our economy is showing signs of falling apart. Exports, especially those of the SDC and other Dust companies, were our primary means of gaining Lien nationwide. Aside from those supporting the military, many of our smaller companies are closing. Or close to it."
"Precisely," Jacques said, steepling his hands. "It is because of this that… I recommend we hold an inquiry into James' ability to fulfil his job. It does not matter if we are safe from Grimm if our economy crumbles and war is declared. We must set him straight, or call a vote of no confidence. If we must, we will elect a new Headmaster and General. Are we in agreement?"
"Yes."
"I concur."
Jacques allowed the tiniest of smiles, as if fragile and full of hope for the future, to cross his face. "I thank you both for your bravery. Soon, we shall free Atlas and Mantle from this curfew and heal the damage that has been done."
"Incoming!" Yang yelled as a massive Centinel burst through the ceiling. The Grimm was at least times as large as a normal Centinel…
And it was followed by a twin.
The twin Alpha Centinels spiralled around each other as they sent chunks of stone flying. RSTY hit the deck as the chamber they found at the bottom of the mine began to turn into a torrent of stabbing legs and flying stone.
"Limit their movement!" Ruby shouted, giving the first order. At her command, Weiss began to launch icicles at the writhing monsters. Yang knelt and cupped her hands together. Adam ran at her. As his foot landed in her hands, she used her strength to boost his jump, sending the Bull flying high.
"Hraaah!" He roared and unleashed his Semblance. Blue filled the air as his ice blade sent a wave of freezing energy that collided with the twin Centinels. The beasts screeched and reared back, making them easy targets for Weiss' next barrage.
Ruby and Yang opened fire a moment later. Sniper and shotgun tore into the monster's tough hide. The former pierced through into the soft flesh beneath while the latter shredded the hide armour. Together the sisters caused large chunks of meat to be carved from the howling Grimm.
Of course, what fell off immediately began to dissipate into nothingness.
Moments later, JNPR arrived and brought their own fire to the table. Grenades, hand cannons and rifles joined the barrage as Adam landed into a roll, sprung up and brought Blush to bear.
Seven people fired all they had at the raging Alphas. Bullets, Dust and falling stone filled the air as Jaune stood by, sighing at his seeming uselessness. Of course, he'd fought plenty on the way over, but still…
Within a couple of minutes of entering, the twin Grimm were laid low. Frozen and then battered by hundreds of bullets and icicles.
The cave system was now clear of Grimm.
But as the sounds of battle fell silent, as the smoke faded and the stone settled. As the mission slowly slipped from their minds all of them began to wonder.
What is going to happen next?
A portent of danger had crawled over them all…
A/N: Things continue to spiral into disaster... Ironwood doesn't trust the gang to help with Robyn and sends them off. Meanwhile, Jacques sets the stage for the downfall of a good-natured dictator. If only it wasn't Jacques, then we could root for him...
I hope you all enjoyed and I'll see you next time!