Chapter 18
Atlas
Day 4: Afternoon
The five of them slowly made their way down to the lowest level of Atlas Academy, a series of giant rooms that essentially functioned as a warehouse for unused technology and whatever else the military no longer had a use for. They were all certain that the orders they had just received from the General were a trap; despite their precautions, he had figured out that they were planning on helping Mantle.
Jaune's grim expression mirrored Yang's own feelings. Ren and Nora led the group down the last flight of stairs, so Yang couldn't read their expressions, but judging by the way they were tightly holding hands, they were just as high-strung as the rest of them.
Blake and Yang glanced at each other, both sharing nervous but determined looks. Whatever waited for them at the bottom of the stairs, they would face it together.
As they came to the last landing before the bottom, Yang could hear an unintelligible conversation coming from below, she could hear Clover and Harriet's voices but couldn't make out what they were saying. Yang saw the entire group tense up as everyone realized that the Ace Ops were the ones waiting for them.
Jaune turned to the rest and opened his mouth, no doubt to suggest that they go back up the stairs and figure out a new strategy when Clover's voice called clearly from down below. "Come on down guys, I want to get this briefing started as soon as possible."
Jaune closed his mouth and sighed. They all knew they had no choice now, and reluctantly continued down the stairs. They stepped into a dimly lit room, the walls lined with dusty shelves stacked high with wooden crates, containing some kind of unused equipment.
They saw the members of the Ace Ops standing around the room, trying, and failing, to look nonchalant. They were not a unit that was used to subterfuge or being subtle and Blake immediately saw through their facades. They were all incredibly tense; Marrow's finger tapped on his folded arms, Elm was much too sweaty for the coldness of the warehouse, and she could practically see the nervousness wafting off the others. All except Clover, who looked cool and collected.
He saw them and nodded in greeting; if he noticed how tense the five of them were he said nothing and immediately swung into the briefing as they gathered around with the other Huntsmen. He pulled out his scroll which projected a blueprint of the sub-level they were currently on into the dusty air.
"Command believes that Salem will make her move on Atlas very soon." He said simply, "They think she'll try infiltrating the city by digging through the rock and emerging into the Academy where she'll be able to take the control center." His frown deepened, "I don't think I need to tell you that if the Academy falls to the Grimm, it's all over for Atlas."
He pressed a key on his scroll and five red-highlighted areas appeared on the map of the warehouse level. "Command has determined that this level is the most likely place the Grimm would emerge, and these five points are the spots where the rock is the least dense." Another key press brought up three green highlighted areas. "I've split us into two teams of four and one team of two. The two teams of four will proceed to the green areas, where you should be close enough to two breakthrough points to cover them both. Here are your team assignments." He spoke quickly, leaving no room for argument.
Blake made eye contact with him, trying to figure out whether he had lied to them earlier and he had been in on it with Ironwood the whole time, but his expression gave almost nothing away. She thought she detected a brief conflicted expression on his face as he transferred the mission files over to them but she didn't know him well enough to get a good read.
"Let's get it done Huntsmen." He said, nodding confidently. And with that, the briefing was dismissed.
A few minutes later, Yang and Blake found themselves walking to their assigned point with Marrow and Vine. Nora and Ren had headed off in the opposite direction with Harriet and Elm, leaving Jaune and Clover to cover the remaining breakthrough point. They walked through the cavernous rooms mostly in silence, the oppressive quiet occasionally punctuated by Marrow trying, and failing, to make small talk.
As they passed through a doorway leading to yet another cavernous storage room stacked high with crates, Blake and Yang felt the ground shake slightly, rattling the boxes and making the shelves they were stacked on creak ominously. It wasn't that unusual to feel atlas sway slightly from time to time, it was a city floating in the sky after all; but this tremor felt different, as if the floating city had been deliberately jostled. Yang cocked an eyebrow at Blake who shrugged in return. They were both more focused on the two Ace Ops who they just realized had dropped back and were walking behind them.
"Sooo…" Marrow said, his voice sounding nervous and slightly shaky, "We didn't get a chance to talk much yesterday after coming back from Mantle, was it too cold for you guys with the heat turned off?"
Stunned with disbelief,Yang stopped dead in her tracks, "Did you seriously just 'Hey, how 'bout that weather?' us?" Yang spat without turning around. Blake had stopped as well, turning her body slightly so she could see the two other Huntsmen from the corner of her eye. Yang kept her eyes on her partner, Blake's body language would tell her if Marrow or Vine moved. "Why don't we stop pretending here…" Yang continued, her voice taking on a hard edge, "You two are here to bring us in for whatever made-up crime Ironwood has accused us of." The only response was a soft sigh from one of the two operatives, telling Yang all she needed to know.
"The way I see it," Blake said tightly, her cat ears flatting to the sides of her head, "you have two options. One: you let us walk away. You tell Ironwood that we gave you the slip and we continue to try and save Mantle."
"Or two:" Yang said, her voice menacing, "You try to take us in." She clenched her fists. "And I can promise you that we are not going down without a fight." She sighed slightly, not wanting to fight people she considered friends. "So what's it going to-"
Blake twitched, her hand darting to Gambol Shroud on her back. The second Yang saw Blake's arm move, she immediately pivoted to her right, deploying Ember Celica mid-turn as Blake darted to the left. As she came about, facing the two Ace Ops, she hoped that they'd been fast enough to avoid-
Marrow's voice rang out "STAY!"
A quick glance showed Yang that Blake had been rooted to the spot, frozen in the motion of drawing her katana. There was a flicker of movement in the corner of eye, before she even realized what was happening she was ducking and rolling under Vine's sudden attack, his glowing vines passing just inches above her head. She rolled upright, making sure she was positioned out of Marrow's line of sight. It was as enough that they had Blake, it was over if they managed to immobilize both of them.
She rolled back to her feet, anticipating that Vine would bring his vines around again in another attempt to immobilize her, but she was wrong. Her head snapped over just in time to see him wrapping his aura projections around the already motionless Blake, slowly tightening them around her torso. Blake's eyes, the only part of her that seemed to be able to move, found Yang and she could see the uneasiness in them.
Rage boiled up inside Yang and her hair flared to life, illuminating the dark and dingy room with flickering yellow flames as she prepared to rush at the two men.
"I wouldn't." Vine said, as if reading her thoughts, his voice entirely too calm considering the situation, "We don't want to hurt either of you, but if you don't stand down I will squeeze her until something breaks…"
Her hair blazed even hotter, a waterfall of fire rolling across her shoulders, "You wouldn't DARE…" she snarled.
Vine's only response was to tighten his grip on Blake, keeping eye contact with Yang the entire time. He squeezed until a small squeak of pain came from Blake's throat, the fear in her eyes only growing.
"Ok! Ok! Stop!" Yang cried out, gritting her teeth in anger. He stopped squeezing and Yang looked at her partner, she gave Yang the tiniest shake of her head, the only movement she was able to do. She was willing to suffer broken bones if it meant that they were able to help Mantle. Yang didn't know what to do, she didn't want to see Blake hurt but the people of Mantle desperately needed them.
"Yang, please stand down," Marrow said, interrupting her thoughts, his eyes never leaving Blake, "We don't like what Ironwood is doing either, we're just following orders!"
"Then you should HELP us!" Yang nearly screamed, "If Atlas leaves Mantle behind, it's going to be a slaughter!" Her breath came in gasps, panic gripping her heart. "Please," she practically begged, "Fight with us. If we work together I know we can save SO many lives…"
She could see that Marrow had a haunted look in his eyes, sweat beginning to drip down his brow, his lower lip quivering. Vine, however, just shook his head. "You're stalling Miss Xiao Long." He said coldly, "Please be assured that my threat is not a bluff." He tightened his vines slightly around Blake for emphasis, "I will break her."
Yang stared at him, her hair burning hotter than ever, reflecting the white-hot fury she felt towards the cold and indifferent Huntsman. He was hurting Blake, NO ONE hurts Blake, especially not this clown. Her legs tensed, she was certain If she boosted herself with Ember Celica, she'd be able to close the space between them before the man could make good on his threat.
She was just about to leap into action when their comms came to life. *Salem is making her move on Atlas.* Ironwood's voice said in their ears. *We don't have time for long explanations,* he continued, *So I'll be brief. Your arrest was a…regrettable but necessary decision that you five have forced me to make. You would have ruined everything Ozpin and I have been working towards for years.* He paused for a moment and Yang could almost hear him pinching the bridge of his nose. *Right now, Grimm are swarming into Atlas and we need everyone available to combat them while we prepare our escape. You have no reason to trust me but if you agree to help me I won't throw you in prison where you all belong. In case you need a reminder,* he continued, *She's trying to destroy Atlas. If Atlas falls from the sky, Mantle gets obliterated. Everyone dies.* he paused a moment, *Do we have a deal?*
Yang's mind whirled. She had no idea how to respond, things were happening much too fast. She saw Marrow's guilty expression and the way he shook his head slowly. Vine regarded her cooly, his expression much too calm for a man threatening her partner with bodily harm. She wanted nothing more than to smash her fist into his stupid, impassive face. She sighed, knowing deep down that it would accomplish nothing; she'd more than likely end up chained in a cell and people would die because she wasn't there to save them.
She took a deep breath and slowly let it out, her flaming mane cooling to a dull glow. "Fine." She snarled into the open comm line, "Deal." Blake gave the tiniest nod of assent, "Blake too." She added. She heard similar responses from Jaune, Nora and Ren who she assumed had also been ambushed by their supposed guardians.
*Release them.* Ironwood said, *If they try anything, you are authorized to incapacitate them by any means necessary.*
Vine slowly unwrapped Blake's torso, gently lowering her to the ground, and Marrow released her from his semblance's influence. Without looking at the two of them, she briskly walked towards Yang. Yang could see that Blake was trying to hide how shaken up she was; but could still tell by the way her right hand had a white knuckle grip on her left bicep
"Are you ok?" Yang asked gently, putting her hands on Blake's shoulders as she approached.
The Faunus woman nodded, "I will be…" she said softly, her voice slightly shaky, "I just…need a minute."
*They're yours to command Clover,* Ironwood said, *Meet him by the stairs where you came in. Oh and children? I've already given you plenty of chances. Let me make it very clear right now that there will not be any more.* they heard the click of the comm line closing.
"How do you feel?" Yang asked as she saw Vine and Marrow start to head toward the exit of the warehouse room, the latter looking down and rubbing the back of his neck.
Blake winced as Yang's hand gingerly touched her side, "I think he cracked a rib…" she said, "It'll heal but-" Yang's head snapped towards Vine who was waiting for them by the door, her hair flaring back to life once again. "Don't." Blake said quietly, gently grabbing Yang's wrist, "It's not worth it." Yang huffed angrily but Blake saw her muscles relax and her hair slowly cooled to barely glowing embers. "Come on, they might try to arrest us again if we keep them waiting too long." She said, a slight tinge of humor in her voice, and led Yang towards the door.
"If it makes you feel any better," Vine said as they approached, his voice neutral as always, "It wasn't personal. Just orders."
"Oh, fuck you." Yang snarled, slamming her shoulder into him as she stalked past into the next room.
Vine turned and followed them, "You're very hot-tempered for a Huntress." He said quietly.
Yang couldn't stop herself from whirling angrily on him, her hair blazing back to life, "If you ever touch my partner like that again," she yelled, brandishing her metal finger in his face, her voice echoing down the empty halls, "You'll find out just how hot my semblance gets!"
She had to admit, the shocked look on his face was just so satisfying. "And that goes for you too." She snarled, shooting a withering glare at Marrow that made the dog Faunus visibly flinch. She turned on her heel and stalked aggressively off down the hallway. After a moment she heard Blake's quiet footsteps catch up to her and felt her hand slip into hers, squeezing reassuringly. She looked over, and Blake was giving her a soft look, silently communicating to her 'I'm ok.' Yang smiled, squeezing back. Her hair cooled and her pace slowed. She was so damn grateful to have a partner that understood her so well.
The groups of Huntsmen all arrived back at the stairs at roughly the same time. Yang took stock of the others, noting that Ren and Nora were sporting a few new bruises on their face and arms. The redhead glared at Harriet with a fury Blake had rarely seen from her. Harriet, meeting Nora's gaze without flinching, wore a smug look on her face; Elm, on the other hand, looked guiltily at Ren who had an arm wrapped around his ribs, much like Blake was doing.
Jaune and Clover were the last to arrive, neither looking the worse for wear; but Jaune's expression quickly darkened as he saw the state that Ren and Nora were in but held his tongue as Clover gently put a hand on his shoulder.
"Well…" Clover said, rubbing the back of his head, "This is going to be awkward…" he sighed, "I doubt it's worth much, but I'm genuinely sorry about that. We were given explicit orders to take you in unharmed if we could. None of us enjoyed that."
"Speak for yourself," Harriet said with a snort of amusement, smirking at Ren and Nora, "I had fun"
With an animalistic cry Nora surged forward towards the speedster before Ren's surprisingly strong arm hooked around her waist and hauled her back. "It's not worth it." He said quietly. She fought his grip for a moment but eventually relented with a frustrated cry, and stepped back.
Harriet sneered at them, "Yeah, that's what I thought." She turned back towards Clover only to find him standing an inch in front of her, his jaw was clenched and he had a furious scowl on his face.
"One more word." He said, his voice low and dangerous, "One more word and I'll have you confined to quarters. Grimm or no Grimm." She stared up at him, sudden fear in her eyes. "Do I make myself clear, Lieutenant?"
"Y-yes Captain." She said meekly, unable to meet his intense gaze.
He took a deep breath before stepping back and addressing the whole group. "Ironwood's orders are for one of the Ace Ops to be with you at all times. Vine, Elm, Harriet: I'm transmitting your orders, considering the circumstances, I think it best for you to not be around them." The three of them left the second their scrolls chimed, not wanting to incur Clover's wrath. He turned to JNR, "You three are with me. Marrow, you stay with Yang and Blake."
Rage flashed through Yang's body, "No. No way." she growled. He'd hurt Blake, there's no way in hell she'd ever work with him again.
Clover closed his eyes for a moment. "Will the four of you give us the room please?"
They all nodded and headed for the stairs, Jaune giving them a concerned look before heading up after the rest.
"How can you expect us to work with him?" Yang asked loudly, "He attacked us! He-"
"Look." Clover said, cutting her off, "We don't have time to argue. The three of us can't fight Ironwood alone. We need all the help we can get, and out of the Ace Ops, He's the only one I think we have a chance of getting on our side. I know it's not ideal, but he's a good man. He's not like Harriet or Vine."
Yang growled under her breath. "I don't trust him. Hell, I barely trust YOU after all that's happened."
"You don't have to trust him." Clover said, "All I'm asking is you give him a chance."
Realizing that she'd been essentially speaking for Blake as if she wasn't there, Yang looked over at her, "Are you ok with this?"
The Faunus was silent for a moment, then sighed. "I don't trust him either, but as he said, we need all the help we can get." She saw Yang's concerned expression, and was quietly glad to have such a considerate partner. "I'll be fine Yang. Really." she slipped her hand into Yang's, giving her a reassuring squeeze, "Whatever our personal feelings are, we have to work with them if we're going to accomplish anything."
With another sigh, Yang turned back to Clover. "Fine. But I'm not gonna be nice to him."
"Fair enough." He said with a small grin. He led them back up the stairs to the main hall where the others were waiting. "Let's get moving people, we've got a city to save."
A few minutes later, Yang, Blake and Marrow's Manta lifted off the landing pad, finally giving them a chance to see what was happening in the city. Down in the streets below, they could see crowds of civilians streaming towards the subway entrances, seeking shelter from Salem's attack. The ship cleared the tops of the buildings, affording them a view of the entire city.
Yang heard Blake gasp next to her as distant farm fields came into view. They quickly figured out what had shook the island earlier: the massive whale had beached itself on the edge of the agriculture sector, its open maw disgorging hundreds of Grimm into the fields. The defenders out there were putting up a valiant fight, but they could still see Grimm slipping through the lines and heading into the city itself. The massive energy dome that had deployed around the city was wavering in places, especially by the whale. It only made sense, the massive beast had destroyed one of the shield pylons as it beached itself onto the island and the other Pylons were struggling to keep the shield active.
Yang shared a worried look with Blake before turning to Marrow. He was seated along the wall, staring at the deck, the haunted look from the basement still on his face. She cleared her throat pointedly, "So where are we headed?"
He shook his head briefly, as If snapping out of a trance. "Most of Atlas' Huntsmen are fighting on the front line against…that thing. Unfortunately that leaves the rest of our forces stretched very thin in the rest of the city. The three of us have been tasked to help with the evacuation of civilian sectors. We're to escort civilians into the subway tunnels and protect them from any Grimm that slip past the front lines." He glanced at the pilot, "We're currently waiting to see where we're needed most."
Right on cue, the pilot's voice came over their earpieces. *I'm getting reports of a large herd of Grimm headed towards the financial district in the lower ring of the city. It's about fifty percent evacuated but there's still people trapped in buildings.*
Marrow nodded, "We'll head there then."
The pilot immediately turned the craft and headed towards the lower part of the city, soaring between the massive skyscrapers. 'Herd' had been an understatement, the streets below were teeming with untold amounts of Grimm. Packs of Beowolves and Creeps chased people back into the buildings they were trying to evacuate from as various flying Grimm swooped from building to building, breaking windows in their search for prey.
*Ground's too hot.* the pilot said, *I'll put you down on the roof of that skyscraper,* He indicated the tallest building, a massive structure that seemed to be ninety percent glass. *If I go any lower and the flying Grimm will bring us down.*
"Copy." Marrow said, tapping his earpiece. He wrenched the door open as the Manta set down and they all hopped out onto the windy but thankfully Grimm-free rooftop.
They walked up to the edge of the building and peered over the railing as the Manta took off again, heading back in the direction of the Academy. Looking straight down, Yang could see Grimm gathered at the entrance to the office building, some forty stories below. Looking at the reflection in the windows of the building on the other side of the street, she could just barely make out a crowd of people barricading the doors with office furniture; from the looks of things their makeshift barrier wouldn't last much longer.
The three Huntsmen looked at each other before turning as one and leaping off the side of the building, making sure to push themselves as far away from the glass windows as they could. They turned and fired their weapons at the massive glass panes of the building, raking fire down the side as they fell. The windows shattered spectacularly, huge shards of glass from dozens of windows falling with them.
As they neared the street, Yang twisted and used several blasts from Ember Celica to transfer her momentum to be more horizontal, eventually tucking and rolling to a stop across the street from the mass of Grimm.
At the same time, Marrow grabbed onto Blake as she threw Gambol Shroud's hook into the wall of a building and swung them to a stop, landing next to Yang. The Grimm, their attention drawn by their flashy arrival turned toward them. An Ursa bellowed a challenge that shook the windows behind them.
Yang just smirked and waved goodbye as the rain of razor sharp glass sliced most of the unsuspecting Grimm to ribbons. The wind began to scatter their dissolving ashes down the block as the trio ran towards the building, a few rounds from their weapons finishing off the injured survivors They carefully escorted the trapped civilians out of the building and into the street.
They quickly moved from building to building, killing Grimm and picking up a few more civilians along the way, before dropping the large group off at a subway entrance guarded by Atlas soldiers. They stopped and took a breather once the door had been locked and barricaded.
Yang leaned against a wall wiping sweat off her brow. She looked at Blake, who was currently refilling Gambol Shroud's magazine with dust ammo. She sighed and wondered how she could look so damn pretty doing something so mundane. She opened her mouth to say something about the badass way Blake had killed an Ursa, but their earpieces crackled to life telling them of a massive Goliath making its way to a subway entrance a few blocks away. Blake looked at her with a slight frown and Yang pushed off from the wall. She knew there would be no rest for them, not for a long while.
I'm Back! Sorry I've been gone so long, check out the end of the next chapter for why, hope you enjoyed the chapter!
