A/N: More RWBYHammer for everyone! Buckle up, boys and girls!
Book Two: Corruption's End
-Chapter 20: On the Walls of Shao-la-
"After a few hours, we didn't notice the smell anymore. There's too much las-fire. Too much sweat and smog. It's like wading through an ocean of death. After awhile, the waves take you under and you can't breathe anymore." Darron Marius, on the Investigation of Uriel
As the twin moons of Ransha bathed Shao-la in a pale red light, demented chanting from the besiegers echoed off the walls of the city. Frenzied shrieks and screams assaulted them too, birthed from alien, inhuman throats. It was noise from beyond human comprehension, noise unlike anything Yang had ever heard, each syllable nightmarish and ear-splitting. Most of the words were incomprehensible, but she could make out the name 'Josephus' more than enough. Bastard.
She buried her head between her knees, trying to shut away the noise. She'd slapped her pauldron on to cover up the light that pulsed from her burning glyphs. Her comrades weren't faring as well. Some wept from the constant vocal assault, tears streaking their faces as they rocked against the battlements. Only a lucky few had saved enough amasec to drink themselves to sleep. The rest had to make do.
Mael's lips worked in fervent prayer, and his fingers wrought the Sign of the Aquila many times over before kneading Rhain's beaded necklace. Caolin tried to hide within his scarf, curling up into a defensive ball.
"I'm gonna fucking lose it." He said, staring at the campfires beyond the walls. His long-las had been polished to a mirror-shine in a failed effort to ignore the screaming. "I'm gonna fucking drill them."
"Easy there, kiddo." Jorvis grumbled into his cigar, his scarred and brutal face twisted into a rictus of anger. "If we open up on them, they'll think their intimidation bullshit's working."
"Intimidation?" Ros asked, dark circles lining her once luminous eyes. He waved his hand at the darkness.
"That's all this is. They're trying to scare us. And if Trooper Piss-pants over there is anything to go by, it's working." Caolin sighed, trying to clear his eyes of sleep.
"Sorry sir." He mumbled.
"It makes sense though." Yang said. They looked at her. "At the best, we drive ourselves crazy. At the worst, it keeps us up all night." Jorvis nodded, smoke trailing from his nostrils. "Which means they're going to attack soon."
"A-fuckin'-plus, Trooper."
"I'd rather they did." Asgeg said, not stirring from her place on her small and wrinkled bedroll. "Anything's better than listening to this." A low howl of pain punctuated her words, some victim's drawn-out death scream. She clenched and unclenched her hand, inspecting the watch fires that reflected off the sleek finish. "I'd give the rest of my bits for a chance to shut them the fuck up." Ros put a hand on her back, a soothing, matronly gesture.
"It's all right." She said. "We… Yang? What are you doing?" Yang walked to the battlements, cupping her hands over her mouth. She channeled aura into her throat to amplify her voice and keep it from tearing open.
"BOOOOOOO!" She screamed, pouring out her fury and frustration. "YOU DON'T SCARE US, YOU GOAT-FUCKING SPEAR-SHAKERS! DO YOUR WORST, WE'LL BE WAITING!" Ros chuckled before joining her at the walls.
"THE EMPEROR'S WRATH AWAITS YOU!" She hollered. "AND HE'S GOT PLENTY TO GO AROUND!" Emboldened by their example, jeers and zealous condemnations poured down from the walls of Shao-la. All along the walls, Woadians and Ranshan alike joined in, fueling the flames of vitriol that guarded them against their fear.
"Well said, Trooper. Corporal." Jorvis said, wearing his frown that for some reason… almost looked like a smile. "You got some killer pipes, Trooper." Yang shrugged.
"Thanks sir. I will say though, this whole situation is pretty absurd. I wish we could just bomb these assholes into the next century." She said. Jorvis shook his head.
"Even our Lady's ship doesn't have bombardment capabilities that precise. You all saw what happened to Jala Prime. We'd be fried grox," he huffed. Yang chuckled. Even though they couldn't do any damage, it felt good to yell back at the infernal noise. Even now they continued their taunting, mocking the heretics and damning them to the deepest realm of the warp.
It wasn't much, but it helped.
The assault came at dawn, when the first rays of sunlight crept across the enemy encampment, falling upon towering siege engines that crawled towards Shao-la. Whistles blew, alarms sounded, and the Cathedral bells rang out to warn the citizenry. Yang watched the rickety machines edge closer, fingers clenched tight around her lasgun. Even more of the foul bastards had arrived under the cover of night. How many more, she couldn't say. What she knew was that every single one marched on Shao-la.
War-horns blared keening, unnatural cries, trumpeting the heretic's advance. Working quickly, a small contingent of the Elodian armor sallied out of the city, long enough to tear a few siege towers to shreds with high-explosive shells. A cry went along the walls each time they struck, cheering as the enemy scrambled to escape the flaming wrecks. A few hundred crazed cultists surged forward, hoping to catch the tanks out of position. They were already retreating into the city however, and only served to draw the warriors within firing range. Pintle-mounted bolters and a tide of lasguns awaited them, scything them down to a man. Yang did her part, spraying a maelstrom of lasbolts into the green-clad crowd.
Their work was not done. Dozens of towers rolled closer, pushed by chanting warriors. The siege engines were repugnant things, covered in blood-drenched spikes and foul symbols, each side armored in iridescent green scales. Behind them marched the besiegers, discipline and infernal chanting keeping them in close order. Advancing as they were, it was a bitch to hit anything. As her cell drained, Yang realized the towers wouldn't burn either, as the sheeted scales absorbed lasbolts with ease.
"Reloading!" She cried, slapping a new cell home and tucking the spent one into her belt. Better be careful with my ammo, she thought, looking over at the encroaching tide of enemies. At least my power sword never runs out of juice. And I always have Ember Celica.
Still, the heretics advanced, shoving the wrecked towers aside and mashing their comrades' corpses into the mud. The tanks were repositioning behind the gate, too slowly to engage the encroaching besiegers. Fifteen new engines wheeled closer, pushed by teams of hundreds. As they neared, Yang gagged on their rank stench. The heretics smelled like someone had soaked a month-old corpse in a sewer, then dredged it out for an extensive tour through a fish market. A few of the weaker-stomached Woadians made retching noises, wheezing and reeling for air as spittle trailed from their lips. Roaring in righteous anger, they redoubled their barrage of lasbolts. It wasn't enough. Due to the shape of the city walls, only a fourth of the Woadians had proper defilade on the invaders. The rest covered the flanking walls and set up fire teams within the city.
Yang removed her helmet long enough to tie her hair into a tight bun, and stuff it back as tight as it would go. If these assholes get any of their stink on my hair, I will personally slaughter them to a man. Shaken by the smell and the sheer numbers, a few of the Woadians balked at the sight before them. Ros clapped them on the shoulder, offering words of encouragement, fresh blue war paint streaking her face.
With a roar of its engines, Weiss' Valkyrie screamed overheard, raining down bolter fire. The explosive rounds tore at the constructs, blowing apart their wheels and their hauling teams. No sheet of scales would save them from the punishing volume of bolter fire. A few hopeful rockets streaked after the flier, but none connected. Wheeling around, its VTOL engines buffeted propwash at the defenders, their whoops and whistles lost in the howling gale.
It retreated, and the only thing that stood between Shao-la and its destruction were the soldiers upon its walls. Yang readied her lasgun, bracing it against a firing slot. Caolin fired, his long-las barking with glee as he scythed through his targets. There were too many. Stray autogun fire and lasbolts hounded them, loosed from untrained hands. A spray of bullets thudded against the battlements, pushing Gamma back into cover.
The biggest tower neared, the war-chants of the heretics ringing within its dark wooden hull. Green-black forms crowded around its base, howling for a chance to storm the city. Yang fired at them, red lances falling within the tumult and sending them scuttling for cover. Her friends joined her, pouring lasbolts down the walls of Shao-la.
Arrows (arrows!) were their answer, swarming up from below. The steel-tipped shafts rattled off the walls and fell upon the Woadians. Most bounced off their flak armor, but an unlucky few found their way into flesh. A woman from their sister platoon was speared under her chin, and she gurgled in surprise before toppling off the battlements.
That arrows had actually managed to wound her comrades sent a red fury boiling up within Yang. The tower edged closer, its door almost within deploying distance. Bowmen on its top-most section rained arrows upon them, which clattered off the ramparts. The Woadians returned fire, bathing the tower in lasbolts.
"Mael!" Ros said, pulling at his pauldron, "fucking hit them! Front wheel, left side!" He brought his rocket launcher to bear, hauling it over his shoulder. It was almost upon them. "By the Emperor, do it now!" He fired. The weapon gave a chunk-fwoosh as it delivered its payload, landing on-target with a resounding crash of splintering wood and screaming cultists.
"Fuck yeah!" Yang cried, pumping her fist. "Nice shot buddy!" He nodded in thanks, ducking under the hail of arrows that hissed over their heads. The tower gave a creaking lurch, shifting to its side as its front edge gave way to its wound. With a rattle of chains, its door slammed open, revealing its contents. A platoon's worth of soldiers had been crammed into the tower, centered around a heavy stubber.
"Get down!" Ros shouted. Bullets raked the defenders, chewing apart the ones too slow to dive behind cover. Yang watched in desperation as her comrades fell, shredded by the volume of fire that poured out from the siege engine. Jorra and Kal died first, belching smoke from their ruined corpses.
A scream pierced the clamor of battle as a heretic launched himself at the walls. Yang caught his throat as he vaulted over the battlements, throwing him to the earth with a howl of rage. She ducked back behind cover before the stubber swept over her position. She could feel the rounds thudding into the battlements, impacts that shuddered against the thick stone.
"Where the fuck did he come from?" Caolin cried.
"The door's only a couple yards away! Jumping distance!" Yang said. Good. Time to get handsy. The stubber gave an audible clicking, and Yang hauled her friends to their feet in time to receive the assault. Screaming wordless battle cries, the warriors swarmed over the gap, soaring through the air. Some missed, falling short of their target and shattering apart on the ground below. Most didn't, meeting the Woadians with cold steel.
Lasbolts from all along the walls speared them, burning black holes into their crude armor. Yang introduced the first attacker's face to Ember Celica, tearing his head away from his neck. Ros fell under the weight of three snarling cultists. Roaring, Yang ripped them away, hurling them back into their comrades.
Her lasgun whined, belching death into the incoming tide of green-clad bodies. A salient of warriors had formed near the siege tower's door, pushing to take control of the walls. Brutality reigned as the Woadians closed with bayonets, shouting battle-hymns and pious war-cries. The noise, the smell, it was tremendous. Bones broke and snapped, the ringing clamor of steel paring into flesh and sinew. Drawing her power sword, Yang dove into the thick of it. Her sword hummed as each stroke fell, cleaving her enemies into butcher's slop.
Caolin screamed as he straddled a cultist, plunging his knife into the invader, stitching him with repeated jabs. Joining Theni near the salient, she pushed the limping man away from the thickest fighting, charging into the crowd with her sword leveled like a lance.
Tearing into the midst of them, her sword ran in vicious circles, hacking, rending, carving. A pike came screaming for her throat, which she sidestepped with ease. Diving forward, she hewed its wielder in half, along with the warriors that flanked him. Buckling under the weight of her freight-train stampede, the salient crumpled. With a cry of rage, Ros rallied Gamma platoon, massing the rangers together to push the attackers over the ramparts. The heavy stubber swiveled low, a fresh can of ammo tucked by its tripod.
Before it could suppress the guardsmen, Theni shot its wielder, melting his face away with a well-aimed lasbolt. He fell across the gun, throwing it off-target. Before the next wave of enemies could leap across, Yang jumped the gap, sword raised in fury. She brought it down on the nearest warrior, splitting him in half. Funneled into the limited space afforded by the tower door, the attackers had no choice but to swarm her. She cut them down regardless, striding forward as her victims tumbled off the door.
"Yang, what the hell are you doing?" Ros shouted. She was trying to load a new cell into her lasgun.
"Having fun!" She replied, ducking under a sweeping battle-axe. Her momentum carried her into her next blow, slicing apart a screaming man. Gore by the gallon slicked the door beneath her feet, great red splashes that streamed onto the legions below. Still, Yang was sure-footed, her aura keeping her legs firmly planted. "Get me some tube-charges!" Yang cried.
"Are you serious?!"
"Just find 'em!" Yang said, throwing a warrior off the side. A colossal man appeared from the depths of the tower, cowering his subordinates with his sheer size. He was obese and shirtless, his skin coated with weeping lesions and rotting, fetid pustules. Blisters the size of dinner plates sloughed his skin away, ringed with festering green wounds. Just looking at him made her nauseous, setting her shoulder-glyphs into a smoldering burn.
A lasbolt slammed into him, the crimson beam scorching away half of his face. Dripping burning fat, his tongue lolled out of the steaming wound. He stepped forward, his half-face twisted into a smile.
"You've gotta be fucking kidding me." Yang muttered.
An enormous mace sat on his shoulders, rusted and bloodstained. He shrugged it off, advancing on her. She pounced, power sword bared to pierce his heart. The blade hissed as it entered his bloated body, steaming as it cooked away its flesh. She looked up, expecting pain to rule his face.
What she found was the mace, screaming for her temple. It connected, slamming her across the door and sending her tumbling off the edge. Her semblance flared with power, and she caught the edge of the door with her fingertips.
"YANG!" Ros screamed, voice hoarse from exertion.
"I'm fine! Get the tube charges!" She replied. Ros did not move, her face frozen in fear behind the stock of her lasgun. "GET ME THE TUBE CHARGES, WOMAN!" Reluctantly, she obeyed. Yang took a breath as she hung, extinguishing the ghost-flame that licked at her hair. It took all her restraint not to let loose. Arrows were everywhere, swarming, hissing hornets that sought her death. Yang hauled herself up before they could hit her. Lasbolts swarmed out from behind her, a wall of red beams that choked the air with ozone.
The rotting man still stood, bearing a dozen more burns from her comrades' lasguns. Yang's power sword sat in his chest.
"Alright, you sick pile of shit, you got me good. I'll admit it." She cracked her knuckles, staring up at the half-grin the beast wore. "And that's the last time you will." The mace swung forward again, a sweeping, crushing arc. Yang ducked under the blow, before leaping up to slam Ember Celica into the remnants of his jaw. He stumbled back from the force, plump arms waving and scrambling for purchase.
She did not relent. Her fists hammered at the bag of flesh and fetid blood, aura lending her strikes impetuous fury. He was coming apart at the seams, but he did not fall, weathering the storm of blows rained upon him.
"Just. Fucking. Die!" A wild swing brought his mace around, but she dodged it with ease. Off-balance from the hasty attack, he floundered. Yang seized the opportunity, ripping her power sword from his chest and dragging it along the rest of his body. His flank wept noxious ichor, and he leaned against the tower's doorframe. His half-grin did not fade. Holy Terra.
"Yang!" She spun to see Ros waving a pack of tube-charges over her head.
"Throw 'em!" She obeyed, hurling the explosive through the air. Yang caught it with her free hand, just in time to step under a clumsy mace swing. "You just haven't learned, have you?" Her power sword flashed, rending a hole from his shoulder to his gut. Setting the charges for fifteen seconds, she launched herself forward with a wordless cry.
Thirteen seconds.
Yang smashed into the man-thing, barreling into him with a burst of aura-enhanced might. His feet worked, trying to slow his forced retreat. Roaring, she pushed him back into the siege tower, where his comrades were waiting. They were chittering and wide-eyed as they watched the duel, and grew fearful as they approached.
Ten seconds.
"Eat this!" She slammed the tube-charge into his chest wound, and hammered it home with a brutal kick. He flew back, knocking his fellow warriors aside and careening into the depths of the tower. She turned, sheathing her sword as she did so. "I'm taking this." Yang said, scooping up the stubber and a few cans of ammo, stuffing them under her arm. Pumping aura into her legs, she retreated, feet flying as they carried her back to the walls of Shao-la.
Three seconds.
She leaped through the air, her boots scraping the battlements as she landed. Giving her friends a ready grin, she dropped her loot and spread her arms wide. "I'm back!"
A massive explosion ripped the siege tower apart, birthing a colossal pillar of flame that shot into the sky, wooden shrapnel filling the air in a cloud of debris. The sound was tremendous, a throaty BOOM that set her heart plunging into her stomach.
"YEAH!" She cried, throwing her hands up in the air, deaf to her own words. "YOU LIKE THAT, ASSHOLES?" They didn't. The siege tower was reduced to a smoking ruin, black blast-marks scorching the earth and the walls of Shao-la. Wounded warriors crawled around the blast-site, rendered into piecemeal. Many burned, writhing and slapping the flames that ate at their necrotic flesh.
"Holy fucking Terra." Caolin breathed. The words were quiet, muffled by her ringing ears.
"What can I say?" Yang said, shrugging. Ros punched her on the shoulder.
"Don't ever scare us like that again."
"I think… I think I get it." Caolin said, appraising Yang. "You… you're an incurable show-off."
"Eat a dick." Yang replied, still beaming. She jerked her thumb at the stubber. "Thought we could use this, by the way." They stared at the weapon with suspicion. An arrow dashed between them, missing Mael by inches. "We should probably get back to it." Nodding, the Woadians threw themselves into the ramparts, stuffing new cells into their lasguns.
"I'll get the stubber set up." Theni said, hauling the weapon to the battlements. Svyr helped him, hooking a long belt of rounds into its chamber. No doubt they mistrusted the weapon that had claimed the lives of their comrades, but practicality demanded its use. Yang enjoyed a moment of rest, uncapping her canteen and relishing in a swig of musky water.
"That was insane." Ros said, her face coated in soot. She turned to loose a few lasbolts.
"I like insane. It got rid of the tower, didn't it?" With a few clicks, the stubber roared to life as Theni flooded the siege-grounds with a torrent of lead.
"True. You fucking reek though." Yang looked down, her stomach churning with bile at the sight of her flak armor. Bits of flesh and squirming maggots coated her, and gangrenous skin dripped off Ember Celica. Vomit threatened to add itself to the grime, but she bit the reflex down.
She doused herself in canteen water, tearing loose a fallen warrior's tunic to use as a cloth. While the battle ebbed away, she cleansed herself, making sure to purge her weapons thoroughly. The attackers were beating a retreat back to their camp, hounded by stubber-fire. Jorvis emerged from the gatehouse, scowling at the enemies' backs.
"I heard an explosion. I'm assuming Trooper Xiao Long was responsible?"
"Guilty, Sarge." Yang said, scrubbing the last of the blood from her gauntlets. "Fatass didn't know how to die." She shuddered, remembering the languid, rotting form of the enemy. Thank the Emperor her hair had been tucked away under her helmet. More thunderous echoes shook the walls of Shao-la as more siege towers succumbed to Woadian explosives. Each one was a punch in the gut, a brutal churning gurgle.
Though they repelled the assault, the mood among the Woadians was somber. Fifteen more of their own had fallen, succumbed to sword wounds and stubber rounds. Their sister platoon had been decimated by the assault, as the brunt of the melee had fallen on their shoulders. Many more were wounded, hands clasping arrows that jutted out from gaps in their armor. Lacerations and stab-wounds marked others, clutched at with feeble, shaking fingers.
Bodies choked the battlements, heretic and guardsman alike. Yang knew many of the lifeless faces. She hadn't been as close with them, but they were still familiar.
Whatever Weiss is after, it better be worth it.
A/N: Aw yiss, mutha fuckin' battle scenes. I hope you guys enjoyed! It was certainly a blast to write! As always, I'd love to hear what you guys have to say! Hearing your guys' reactions is always makes my day. :D
Review Replies:
DanAbnettFan1997: I guess you'll just have to wait and see! :D
Slayer 10321: See the above reply! :3
The Walrus of Eden: I'm glad you like him! He's really grown on me as well. The Imperium doesn't have an official problem with homosexuality, if the Cain books are anything to go by. (He comments on a pair of lesbians without a hint of rancor or accusations of HERESY!). Although going by a planet-to-planet basis, there's bound to be a benighted word or two who look down on it.
Zedicus101: Glad you're enjoying yourself! I'd check the SV thread though, there seems to be more discussion there. (The SB one has seemed to atrophy for some reason).
OBSERVER01: That actually sounds fucking badass. I loved the PJ books! Yang & Ruby= daughter of ares (Ruby aligns herself with Artemis), while Weiss is a daughter of Athena, and Blake is either a daughter of Hades or a minor god).
Gafgar: I hope the chapter assuaged your questions!
RED Roman Pyro: It certainly seems that way! But I doubt it would be better to wait for those doors to break. They're awfully tough, and if they're broken, it means bad, bad things!
Guest: That's fine! Thanks for the help!
Hypothetical Spiritual Entity: Here's an awesome siege then! :D
Mintskittle: I'm sorry! As noted above, the Ecclesiarchy doesn't have an official problem with it. They're not worried about a few deviants not reproducing, not when you have worlds that can hold a hundred billion people. Oh, and Yang did indeed hit a growth spurt between S2 and now! Thanks for your awesome reviews!
Heitomos: Thanks for your reviews! I'm so glad you're enjoying yourself! As to the blanks, I've spoke on this before: due to my interpretation of blanks, keeping just one near Weiss would be violently dangerous to her. Even if she could muscle through, the newly-awakened test subject wouldn't fare as well.
Nemris: Oh believe me, you ain't seen the last of it.
SixPerfections: I MISSED YOU, BUDDY! :D Glad to see you're still around! So glad you're still with me and enjoying yourself. :) We'll see just what Josephus has in store for Ransha, but for now, you'll just have to wait and see! Thanks for the reviews, man!
Thanks so much you guys! You're the best fans I could ask for! :3