(A/N): Fun fact about The Bureau: XCOM Declassified - Origin is never actually fought in the last mission. The final battle of the game is instead an especially long and especially boring shootout against nearly every enemy type in the game, which would be memorable if the last mission was anything other than that exact same thing for nearly half an hour. (Or if the game was anything else for however long you've managed to stay awake while playing.)
Considering that this is me we're talking about, and how I'm almost physically incapable of ending a story without some big dramatic final boss fight, I've decided to remedy this oversight. Hope you enjoy (what I think is) the best fight I've written for the series!
The Earth and the stars shone down high above her, their light pouring in through the clear ceiling of the central chamber hundreds of feet away. Below her a platform of steel and glass, woven together in an intricate alien pattern, separated her from the agents that were already opening fire on the machine that wished to bring an end to their world. And all around her the bronze and gold metal walls shone and reflected the amber light radiating from pulsing panel lines, giving her plenty of room to engage the half-Zudjari, half-Grimm abomination that awaited her.
Everything in Summer Rose's life, on both Remnant and Earth, had led to this moment. This one final battle.
The silver-eyed Huntress formed in a flurry of rose petals above Origin's head, Wandering Thorn already drawn in preparation for a surprise strike. But the ancient leader of the Zudjari was faster than he seemed, especially with his new Grimmified body parts - he was easily able to swat her away with a massive Ursa claw, knocking her out of her mid-air lunge and sending her flying. Summer flipped to recover and land on her feet, skidding across the floor and looking up just in time to see a blade of bone, blood, and darkness coalesce to form in Origin's right hand. He brandished the newly-forged melee weapon as he ran forward, swinging wildly and following up with stabs from his Deathstalker stinger and swipes with the bladed feathers of his Nevermore wings. She dodged, blocked, and parried as best she could despite being half the Outsider's height, her own sword glowing silver as it clashed with the weaponized shadows again and again.
After a moment of dueling and losing ground, Summer switched tactics, disappearing in another burst of pale roses. She then reappeared an instant later behind the legs, slashing at the armored calves and vanishing before a stinger or sword could find her again. Origin growled with annoyance rather than pain, catching onto her strategy faster than expected. The next time she materialized, he was ready; the deadly tip of the scorpion tail slammed into her shoulder, sending her stumbling into position for his blade to slam down on top of her. Even though she blocked the blade with the edge of her own, she still nearly buckled under its force; it was all she could do to push back and stand her ground against the Outsider's massive weapon bearing down on her.
So at last the silver-eyed devil comes to me, boomed Origin's voice in her mind, for the fight I have anticipated, and for the death she clearly yearns for. Why else would she be so eager to repeat the last mistake of her past life, so willing to appear before me alone and afraid?
Despite the fact that her legs felt like they would collapse under the weight of the world, Summer's response was as defiant as ever.
"Me? Afraid of you?" She grunted out a laugh. "Please. I've sparred with freshmen who were more intimidating than you. Besides, have you already forgotten?"
An ephemeral blue figure appeared over her shoulders, all four palms glowing with power.
"I'm not alone this time."
Origin yelled as a blast of pure force erupted from Asaru's hands, sending him flying across the chamber and flipping like a ragdoll under the Moon's low gravity. Summer was quick to capitalize on the opening, once more teleporting underneath the airborne warlord and delivering a rising slash to his unguarded back. She surged past him and tried to follow through with a downward slice, but Origin righted himself with a flap of his wings and raised his own sword to deflect her blade, dueling fiercely with the Huntress in mid-air while he kept himself aloft like some kind of demonic black-winged angel.
You and your new host fight well in tandem, praised Origin in a way that made Summer's stomach churn. You have potential, and power, two things the Zudjari empire is desperately in need of at this moment. Moz Zaaik may be gone...but you shall make a fine replacement.
Compared to the Outsider's overwhelming presence, Asaru's voice seemed almost meek and timid. Summer…
Don't worry, Asaru, thought Summer privately as she locked blades with her opponent. I swear on my honor as a Huntress, I won't let what happened to Shamash happen to you.
It was only when Origin's voice boomed in her mind that she realized her thoughts weren't as private as she imagined.
Just as you swore to return to your daughters?
Summer's blood froze as her mind reeled in pain.
Before she could wonder how Origin even knew about Ruby and Yang, an armored boot drove itself into her gut and punted her across the chamber. The pain of being kicked and having the wind knocked out of her felt like massages compared to the ringing in her ears and the stars in her eyes, and it was only at Asaru's command that she was able to avoid the blade as the Outsider soared into mid-air melee once again. Her dueling skills were less impressive this time - sudden fatigue and a cloud of pain clung to her and made her actions feel sluggish and slow, and no matter how fast she willed her arms to raise her sword, she felt slowed like molasses with each block, parry, and dodge.
Asaru… she thought groggily, bleary silver eyes struggling to focus on the fight. What's going on? What did he do to me? And how does he know about...Asaru?
Whatever the Ethereal said in response, it was lost in translation as mental noise. Concern for her new friend took root in her gut, but the sharp pain across her arm made her realize she had more dire things to worry about. She tried to focus on the fight, tried to focus on shifting and pooling her Aura to absorb attacks that slipped past her defenses, but that damn cloud in her mind muddled everything.
A clumsy swing to the side was met with an uppercut from the Ursa paw that launched her skywards. Her attempt to recover and teleport behind her aerial enemy brought her far closer than she wanted, and even the telekinetic blast she called to knock him away felt weaker and less forceful. When she finally tried to disengage with a burst of thrust from her jetpack, Origin gave chase and quickly caught up to her with a flap of his wings, throwing away the sword to drive a clawed hand past her Aura and into her torso.
SUMMER! Asaru's scream was clear and loud as fire raced across her nerves. She wanted to tell him that she was fine, but her thoughts were lost in the fog. Hell, she was barely even aware of the fact that her opponent charged into the chamber wall with her still pinned to his claw. What was wrong with her?
"First injector tube has been ruptured," reported Weaver over the radio, her voice distant and faint to Summer's blood-filled ears. "Here come the wolves."
"Line up, boys!" Knox called. "Gunners in front, snipers in back! Just like Sierra taught us!"
In any other circumstance, she would have been proud of her allies being so quick to adopt anti-Grimm horde tactics. But right now, with Origin slamming her against the wall and dragging her bloodied body through the metal plating, all she could feel was pain. Yet even that didn't hurt nearly as much as the agonizing sensation in her brain, and by the time the flying Outsider finally got tired of grinding her down - opting instead to yank his hand out of her stomach and hoist her in mid-air by the neck - she was certain she was losing more blood through her nose and mouth than she was from the massive stab wound in her gut.
I wonder how your precious family would react if they were to know the true circumstances of your death, gloated Origin menacingly as his claw tightened around the throat supporting her entire body weight. Perhaps, once this is all finished, I will pay a visit to Remnant and give them your corpse...or rather, what is left of it. Who knows? I may even be merciful, and allow them to join you in death. It would depend on how cooperative the New One is.
An image rose to the front of Summer's mind, unbidden and unwanted. An image of her sweet baby Ruby, her adorable toddler Yang, her strong and brave Taiyang, torn to pieces in a pool of blood. Bile rose to her throat, tears rushed out of her eyes, and the migraine that plagued her head suddenly tripled in intensity. She barely even noticed the Deathstalker tail rising up in preparation for the final blow, or how heavy her chest felt, or how dark the world around her was becoming…
Enough! You stay out of her mind, you monster!
Silver eyes suddenly snapped back into focus just in time to see Asaru put all four of his palms against Origin's helmeted face, purple energy spilling out between the spindly fingers. The Elder Zudjari roared in pain and released her to clutch and claw at his own head, giving her a welcome chance to fly back and take a deep gulp of rancid air. Whatever fog that hung over her seemed to clear up at the Ethereal's words and actions, and she could already feel her wounds healing from both her Aura and her ally's power.
"Thanks, Asaru," gasped Summer as she hovered at a safe distance on her jetpack, clutching her itching gut. "What was that?"
My apologies, Summer, replied Asaru, it seems I neglected to properly prepare you mentally against Origin's power. Psionics extends far beyond mere tricks like telekinesis and regenerative biofields - they can alter and impair the very mind as well. Your thoughts, your fears, your most painful memories...they can be turned against you as weapons by a strong will, with effects just as deadly as any blade or bullet. It would seem that your Aura, by its very nature as your will channeled into a protective force, makes you particularly vulnerable against such tactics.
"You're telling me," coughed Summer as she spat out one more mouthful of blood. She looked over at Origin, who was still reeling from pain both real and imagined as sharpened claws dug through his helmet with enough force to draw blood. While part of her knew she should strike while her foe was vulnerable, she also knew that without a solid plan she wouldn't accomplish much, not to mention the fact that she was still heavily wounded herself. Better to use this break in the battle to heal herself up, refocus, and rethink her strategy.
"You seem pretty good at that kind of mental warfare," she noted. "Can you keep him out?"
I will try to extend my own psionic defenses to you, but between shielding you from the worst and attempting to sever his connection, I may not be able to protect you from everything. He has the residual power of an Ethereal who lived for thousands of your years before they crossed his path, while I have only been in this reality for less than one. Even with only a fraction of Shamash's power as his own, I am at a disadvantage in that regard.
"I can handle whatever slips through the net," said Summer with a nod. "Speaking of disconnecting him from Mosaic, any luck on that front?"
He is more ingrained than I realized, reported Asaru sadly. I do not think he can be disconnected. It is more than probable that at this point, he is Mosaic.
Damn. Well there went the easy solution for stopping the end of the world. And if the chatter over the radio was any indication, destroying the machine was going to be harder than she realized.
"This thing's taken four C4 blocks and there's not even a scratch," grumbled Adam. "What the hell is it made of?"
"Whatever it is, it's clearly not breaking anytime soon," affirmed Shen. "We might be better off helping everyone else destroy the injectors - we at least know those break easily enough."
"A few more guns firing on those mangy mutts wouldn't be the worst thing in the world!" Dawson yelled.
"Damn right!" Knox agreed. "Oh Christ, they're turning into bears now!"
"Recons, target the big ones with armor-piercing rounds only," ordered Weaver. "Anything less than that'll just piss 'em off. Engineers, take those explosives you were saving for the main hub and put it on the tubes instead. We'll cover you as you do so."
"Understood, Director!"
Summer...warned Asaru, pulling her out of her mid-healing musings, Origin is shaking off the effect of my psionic assault. How should we proceed?
Sure enough, the massive Outsider had stopped hollering and thrashing and clawing at his helmet, glaring up at the Huntress through self-inflicted gashes in his faceplate. Blood ran down his face in great rivers of blue and orange, but Origin barely seemed fazed as he forged another shadowy sword in his hand.
"Looks like we're doing this the old-fashioned way," said Summer as she rolled her shoulder back into place, testing the newly healed muscles. "Keep knocking him down until he stops getting back up."
Simple, yet elegant, noted Asaru. I am with you.
She allowed herself a brief mental smile, and then with another flare of her jets the silver-eyed Huntress launched herself back into the fray.
"More crawlers incoming! Watch those teeth!"
"Cannon's running dry! Anyone got a fresh cell?"
"Take one of mine, love! Bloody bear turned my gun into scrap metal, so I don't need it anymore!"
"New pack on our four! Someone get grenades on them!"
Stupid.
Stupid.
Stupid stupid stupid.
That was the only thing he could think as he clumsily raced down the twisting halls, guided by a faintly glowing trail that still radiated heat. This whole thing was stupid. The aliens were stupid for building their doomsday device on the moon. The Bureau was stupid for coming to stop them. And she was stupid for trying to take on the idiot at the top of the totem pole all by herself, with no one to help her except a magic space ghost.
Then again...if this whole situation was stupid, what did that say about him?
He chose not to answer that question as he kept running, kept sprinting, kept charging into the darkness. The cloak module on the hip of his spacesuit grew warmer and warmer with each invisible step he took past the monsters lurking the halls, but the heat didn't matter to him. All that mattered was that he kept moving forward and followed the trail of melted steel, preparing himself for whatever he'd find at the end of it.
He could only hope that, for once in recent memory, he was doing the right thing.
And that he wasn't too late.
The sound of clattering blades echoed off the walls of the central chamber as Summer and Origin clashed in mid-air again and again. Wandering Thorn left arcs of silver light with each slash and thrust, weaving between the violet afterglow of a darkness-infused longsword. Jets of blue flame and flaps of black wings kept both Huntress and Zudjari airborne as they dueled with no regard for gravity or physics, the Earth they fought over shining brightly down through the transparent steel roof.
Fighting a humanoid opponent in a low-gravity environment was nothing new to her - she excelled in aerial combat thanks to both her Semblance and her quick reactions, so she should have been completely in her element. But the Grimm enhancements Origin had inflicted on himself made an already-difficult battle even harder, and she didn't need Asaru to inform her of her protective Aura flagging with each hit she failed to block properly.
And from the sounds coming from her radio, she wasn't the only one in a tight spot.
"Wolves got Charlie! Golf, Echo, somebody get her some healing!"
"Shit! Sorry Pepper, kit's dry! Just used the last of it to make sure Kilo's arm didn't completely fall off!"
"My medkit's been spent too. Best I can do is bandage her shoulder and staunch the bleeding. Cover me while I operate."
"It'll be okay, Penny. Just...don't leave me…"
"I won't, Cathy. I'm right here."
Summer bit her lower lip. Reports of similar injuries had been filling her ears the entire battle, and more were likely to come now that the Supports were out of the restorative fluid in the medkits. She had to end this fight with Origin sooner rather than later, if she wanted to save everyone.
Easier said than done, though.
She teleported to avoid a dashing lunge of the blade, already raising her sword to deflect the stinger that seemed to track her wherever she went. But Origin must have anticipated the maneuver because the Deathstalker tail suddenly whipped downwards from an unexpected angle, knocking her off-balance and sending her falling to the stained glass floor below. With a powerful flap of his outstretched Nevermore wings, a rain of javelin-like feathers chased after her, some of which were caught with telekinesis and launched back into his shoulder. He barely even reacted to the pain as his Ursa-like claw opened up with a sickening squelch, shooting a high-pressure stream of Grimm matter at her like water from a firehose.
Summer yelped as she raised her shield, letting the torrent of tar crash into the arm-mounted barrier instead of her body and face. Even with the nearly-impenetrable field of hardened light boiling away the darkened fluid, the force of the surging shadows nearly flung her off her feet. She dug her boots into the metal-framed glass, gritting her teeth as she tried to withstand the flow. Her Aura couldn't hold out under this deluge of darkness, even with her guarded stance. Worse still, Origin didn't seem like he'd let up anytime soon.
Asaru! I need some time to think!
Her Ethereal partner granted her request, the battlefield falling away as her perception of time slowed to a crawl. She caught a glimpse of a dozen agents beneath her feet firing on the Grimm, blood and black tar staining their spacesuits. She saw herself, trapped behind a blast of solid shadow, unable to withstand the pressure for much longer. And she saw Origin flying far above her, anger and insanity in his glowing red eyes.
We can't keep fighting him when he's in the air, she realized. He's got too much room to maneuver, and those Grimmified parts give him too many angles of attack. We need a way to clip his wings - and maybe take out the tail if we can.
Perhaps both can be done, Summer, pointed out Asaru. The venom in the stinger is similar to the caustic agents within the Silacoids - were it to be applied to one of his wings, it may weaken the joint enough for you to...what is the phrase? Neutralize two avians with one projectile?
The Huntress smiled inwardly despite the danger. You mean kill two birds with one stone.
Ah. Yes. That is what I meant.
Sounds like a plan. Do we have enough Aura to Scatter that far?
We do, reported the Ethereal. However, it will be critically low afterwards, and I do not know if I can regenerate it quickly enough for you to teleport again in my current state. A few solid hits may leave you vulnerable.
That gave Summer the briefest of pauses, as she steeled herself. Her Aura and her ability to scatter and reform at a moment's notice was all that had kept her alive thus far - without that, she would once more be relying solely on her own strength. It had gotten her this far, fighting without the powers of a Huntress...but would it be enough against Origin?
And yet...what other choice did she have? The protective soul armor would wear down under the torrent of Grimm matter one way or another. She could waste it shielding herself, or she could make use of it to strike a critical blow.
I should be able to handle the rest once he's on the ground. She gave a mental sigh. Besides, it's either this or let him keep throwing me around like a ragdoll. Let's do this.
Understood. I am with you, always.
Time resumed its merciless flow as more festering fluid poured against her shield, pushing her so low to the ground her knees were practically hovering over the glass. Summer took a deep breath as she gripped Wandering Thorn tightly, channeling her Aura into the blade and tying it to her own. She'd only have one shot to teleport, so she needed to make it count...and that meant using something as an anchor to give herself more precision.
Once she was sure she was ready, she flung her sword and sent it spinning end-over-end, sailing in the low gravity towards her opponent with enough force to split a skull. Predictably, Origin tilted his head to avoid the heated blade, letting it fly over his shoulder with an unimpressed stare.
But that was what Summer was counting on.
She vanished into petals and reappeared just in time to catch Wandering Thorn as it flew, jetting sideways and plunging the tip into the Deathstalker's pulsating stinger. Origin howled and roared as he thrashed his tail violently to shake her off, his rage and pain only driving her to dig deeper into chitinous flesh with the white-hot sword. Blood and darkness erupted from the twisted amalgam of flesh and shadow, but Summer didn't relent until the stinger was hanging on by a few sinewy muscles. Only then did she leap off and kick the stinger point-first into one of the wings, delivering its caustic payload before spinning into a diving slash that cleaved through both weakened joints.
A well-struck blow! Asaru praised as a shower of feathers, venom, and ichor rained down.
Despite fatigue building in her muscles, Summer grinned triumphantly. Bring him down, buddy!
The Ethereal complied and yanked downward with glowing hands alongside the Huntress, throwing their opponent downwards with telekinetic might. Origin screamed and flailed wildly as he crashed face first into the glass platform, the full weight of his uncontrolled fall breaking the thin steel supports and forming spiderweb cracks across the floor. Summer touched down gently a moment later and hit the ground running, leaping with her jets and driving her sword into the back of his armored neck. She held on tight as the elder Zudjari shook and swiped at her, stabbing with Wandering Thorn repeatedly and slashing away at the weak point she was creating. Alloyed plating crumpled and melted under the intense heat, and she was just about to raise her blade for the final blow when the clawed hand snagged her leg and flung her off her perch.
The silver-eyed woman let out a grunt of pain as she rolled across the crackling glass, rising to her feet slowly and carefully with her sword still raised. She cast a furtive glance down at the crumbling floor, which seemed to grow weaker and more unstable with every step she took. Swallowing hard, she focused on shifting her weight to find more even footing, doing her best to ignore her bleeding allies just below her. Origin had no such qualms as he roughly stood back up, glaring at the one remaining wing before tearing it off its joint and casting it aside with a low snarl.
This guy's persistent, I'll give him that, thought Summer grimly.
As expected from one who has led the Zudjari for thousands of your years, Asaru agreed.
Taking a breath to ready herself for the coming melee, Summer shifted her footing and charged.
The pair of alien warriors seemingly danced and glided across the fracturing floor, circling around each other as blades clashed in whirling blurs of light and shadow. She called on every dueling trick she'd learned and every swordsmanship maneuver she'd memorized; slashes and blocks flowed into thrusts and parries, which evolved into feints and counters as the battle raged. Origin kept up with her blow for blow and move for move - not only did he have the benefit of size on his side, his sword was easily as long as she was tall, giving him a longer reach and forcing her to stay closer if she wanted her attacks to land.
Enormous shards of glass were shaken loose by the impact of the swords crashing into each other, raining down on the agents below who couldn't afford to look up and watch the fight. These jagged pieces were picked up with telekinesis and thrown by both sides of the duel like flying daggers, tearing through Aura and armor and flesh just as well as the blades could...if not better. Summer winced with each razor edge that slipped past her defenses and drew blood, feeling a little weaker with every precious drop spilled and split. Her opponent paid no heed to the pieces of glass that shredded his armor, and even the shards that struck flesh seemed like a momentary annoyance at worst.
It was an unfair fight, but Summer was no stranger to those. She had to keep pushing.
But not even she could hold out forever against an impossible battle.
Death by a thousand cuts. Origin's relentless storm of slashes and glass eventually left her space suit more crimson than silver, staining her cape and filling her eyes with blinding blood. A moment's vulnerability was all the elder Zudjari needed to slam his Ursa claw against her one final time, sending her flying like a limp ragdoll and bouncing against the glass in dark red splotches until she finally collided with the wall.
"No! Summer!"
"Sierra's down. I repeat, Sierra's down."
"Come on, boss...get up. You've shaken off worse than this. Right?"
"I don't think she's getting up this time, Golf...looks like this is it."
She landed hard on her side, her head swimming in pain and her mouth dribbling with thick red fluid. Her chest heaved and strained for breath, laboring more and more to keep drawing warm, noxious air into her lungs. Her milky-white Aura rippled weakly around her, flickering and fizzling before vanishing like dandelion seeds on the wind. And her eyes strained to focus on the blurry eleven-foot-tall Outsider approaching her, bloodied sword in hand and murder in his exposed glare.
And so my story on Earth ends the same way it began, thought Summer bleakly as the darkness and Origin began closing in. Dying at the hands of an ancient monster with control over the Grimm, unable to save anyone...with no one to save me. I'm so sorry, Asaru…I failed you. I failed everyone. I...deserve this...
At the lack of a response from her Ethereal partner, Summer's heart sank even more. But when he did speak, it wasn't in response to her thoughts. Indeed, it was a far cry from the despair she expected to hear.
In fact, his voice almost sounded...jubilant.
He has returned!
Summer blinked slowly, an action that felt far harder than it should. What...what do you mean? Who's here? What are you talking about?
Asaru was so excited his thoughts were barely decipherable. I sense the remnants of my essence! The parts of myself I left behind! My original host has come!
The gears finally clicked in her blood-starved brain. Original host? You mean…
A third voice sounded in her mind and confirmed her answer.
Hang in there, Sierra. I've got your back.
Sure enough, the sound of a fusion lance discharging broke through the din of battle and the haze of fatigue. Summer's vision cleared just in time to witness Origin stumbling forward while clutching his shoulder, her eyes tracing the beam's smoky afterimage to find Carter flying up through the broken glass to land on a stable patch of supporting steel. The alien commander spun and spotted him as well, raising his hand to make the Grimm crash through the collapsing floor and target the new arrival. Carter merely responded by stowing the fusion lance and pulling out a plasma rifle, blasting apart the ink-black shapes with bursts of emerald energy and precise aim, steel-blue eyes burning with tranquil fury and determination.
The comms erupted into chaos as the other agents suddenly realized who was there.
"New arrival! Who is that?"
"Oh shit! That's Carter!"
"Who cleared his release?"
"What's he doing here?"
"Saving Sierra's ass, looks like. And ours."
As the squad chattered about the new arrival over the radio, Asaru's voice echoed in Summer's mind.
His presence alone makes me stronger. Makes us stronger. I will direct this new energy into your Aura. Let us finish this together, as one.
A surge of power washed over her body, enveloping her in a warm milky-white light as her Aura flared back to life with sudden strength. Summer grinned and activated her Semblance, disappearing from the pool of blood and leaving behind a pile of pale rose petals. A Nevermore dive-bombed Carter just as his rifle clicked dry, but the Huntress reformed in mid-air seconds before impact, drawing Wandering Thorn and swinging it down hard enough to cleave the entire monster in half down the spine. The pieces of the bifurcated bird crashed harmlessly into the ground, fading into mist just as Summer touched down next to her old friend.
"Nice of you to join us, Will," she said with a smile. "I'm glad you were able to find who I saw all along."
Carter just nodded tightly, though thanks to Asaru's remnants deep within, Summer could feel his appreciation. Their reunion was short-lived, however, as Grimm began to circle around the pair at Origin's command, prompting him to snap a fresh fusion cell into his rifle as she readied her sword.
"You ready, Sierra?"
"Let's do this, Whiskey."
With Asaru linking them on a near-spiritual level, they launched into a flurry of attacks as the Grimm closed in. The silver-eyed woman slashed and sliced at the monsters and drove them back, while the gray-hatted man finished off the wounded with plasma as they limped away. The Ethereal manifested above them both and attacked with blasts of concussive force, scattering the hordes and splattering the walls with blackened tar. When a massive Deathstalker crashed through the glass and tried to bring its claws down on top of them, Summer scattered all three of them to safety; a telekinetic lift by Asaru and a salvo of rockets into its exposed belly from Carter made short work of the armored scorpion.
Origin roared in fury and opened up his arm again, ready to unleash another torrent of Grimm matter. But the trio anticipated this and separated just before the high-pressure stream of shadowy fluid could strike them, as Summer and Carter flew on jetpacks in opposite directions while Asaru let the attack pass through his ephemeral form. A lance of pure psionic power struck the elder Zudjari between the eyes, blinding him long enough for Summer to rush in from the right and shatter his sword with an Aura-infused slash from Wandering Thorn. Carter flew in from the left and held out his shock spade like a spear, jamming the tip of the shovel into the Ursa claw and pulling the trigger along the shaft. The silver-eyed Huntress wisely grabbed her friend and teleported away as the high-pitched whine built in intensity; a moment later, Origin's entire left arm erupted into an explosion of blood and darkness, filling the air with chunks of flesh, shadowy mist, and intense screaming.
"Holy shit, those two are kicking ass together!"
"Don't sound so surprised, Echo - this is Carter and Summer we're talking about. Those two have practically been in sync since Groom Range."
"Not only that, but they're also drawing the Grimm's focus. Lock down the stragglers, and tend to wounded!"
The trio reunited and stood in the middle of the platform, watching as Origin rose to his feet despite his left arm barely hanging on by sinewy threads. The Grimm surrounded them on all sides, howling and snarling and screeching fiercely. The elder Zudjari had rage in his glowing red eyes, driven by the anger and desperation of his people, and that murderous fury only spurred on the Grimm further.
"Resilient bastard, isn't he?" mused Carter as he pulled the plasma rifle from the array of weapons on his back. "And those creatures keep coming...don't suppose you or your friend have any more crazy powers up your sleeve to get us out of this one, would you?"
The silver-eyed Huntress furrowed her brow. She and Carter could spend all day knocking around Origin and cutting down Grimm, but it was just a glorified delaying tactic at best. As long as there was a pool of the material for the shadowy beasts to return to, they would keep coming no matter how many were slain...and while the monsters of darkness could continue fighting forever, her team and her friends weren't so fortunate.
If they wanted to win this battle, they would need to eliminate the Grimm at the source.
And as she quickly reviewed her options, a smile spread across her face.
This alien warlord wouldn't take Earth.
Not while she still had her eyes.
Summer pulsed her battle focus yet again, freezing the arena in time and making her consciousness float slightly above herself and Carter as they stood back-to-back. She could feel his mind join with hers as well as Asaru's, letting their thoughts and feelings meld into one gestalt entity that overlooked the still battlefield.
Guess that's a "yes" to my question, thought Carter gruffly. So what have you got this time, a nuke in your back pocket?
No, but I do have something even better. She mentally smiled. Asaru, remember what you told me earlier? How you couldn't recreate my silver eye powers unless you were whole? Unless you had all of yourself in one place?
Comprehension dawned on the Ethereal as he slowly nodded. …yes. I remember.
Confusion radiated from Carter. Silver eyes? What's so important about that?
I'll explain later, intoned Summer, imagining that she was clasping the man's hands in hers. But right now, I need you to think of everything that you love. Everyone that you love. Focus on them, on the people who need you...past and present.
She could feel Carter mentally raising an eyebrow, but he did as she asked. Summer basked in the emotional resonance as warmth flooded into her thoughts from her other two companions, as she herself focused on what brought her joy. Memories and images flashed across all three minds, carrying with them radiance and brilliance and all that was good.
A blonde man with tattoos, holding two beautiful little girls.
Life is beautiful… intoned Summer.
A brunette woman with a bulge on her belly, holding a smiling little boy.
...it is precious… continued Carter.
A collection of men and women fighting for their lives valiantly against shadowy monsters, refusing to yield no matter their injuries.
…and it must… chanted Asaru.
All three of them spoke in unison as the frozen Huntress's eyes began to shimmer.
...be protected.
And then the central chamber was enveloped in white.
Weaver had thought she'd seen everything. In the last hour alone she'd killed at least five of every type of species enslaved by the Zudjari, faced down shadowy monsters that sought to consume humanity, and watched a silver-eyed Huntress from another world fight a winged monster against the shimmering backdrop of Earth. So she was reasonably sure that whatever happened after Carter's last-minute arrival, she could handle it.
Then Summer's eyes started glowing.
"Everyone hit the deck!" she shouted, but she needn't have bothered saying it aloud. All the agents that weren't already bleeding out on the floor dove to join them, either shielding their eyes or covering the bodies of their loved ones. A brilliant, all-encompassing light washed over the entire central chamber, and Weaver braced herself for the inevitable explosion.
An explosion that never came.
What came instead was a warm, pleasant feeling, like slipping into a hot bath on a cold winter's night. After concluding that this feeling wasn't dangerous, Weaver dared to look up and see the entire battlefield bathed in silver rays, her eyes quickly adjusting to turn the blinding beams into something as soft and gentle as a sunny summer day with no clouds in the sky. She looked down in confusion as a long ugly gash across her arm suddenly sealed shut, the stitches used to roughly hew it back together vanishing in a blue shimmer. One look across the chamber revealed similar effects on her fellow agents - Crawford gasped as she bolted up in Penny's arms, Weir watched in fascination as his broken leg suddenly straightened back into place, and even Knox let out a yelp of surprise as his nearly-severed arm reattached itself. Other gruesome injuries were similarly undone by the wave of healing energy - everything from ruptured arteries and cracked skulls to punctured lungs and shredded muscle regrew and reformed as though they had never existed at all.
For Weaver and her team, it was like a blessing from Heaven.
For the Grimm, it was the exact opposite.
Shadowy wolves and two-legged moles howled and screamed as they burst into white flame, locked in place as they burned away into nothing. Enormous bears and gargantuan scorpions were turned to withering stone by the light, while oversized ravens crumbled to dust as they crashed blindly into the ground and the walls. And the overhead tubes that piped in black tar suddenly erupted into geysers of gray steam, the machine itself shuddering and shaking like an overworked boiler about to burst. The central fixture of the entire room thundered and rattled for a solid ten seconds before it finally gave up the ghost - Weaver reflexively shielded her eyes as the doomsday device ruptured under the mounting pressure, tearing itself apart with a violent lurch and shriek before everything went still.
A moment later, the light faded, and everything felt dark by comparison.
At first, no one dared to move, for fear that doing so would undo the miracle that had just happened. And even when the fear-induced paralysis faded, people were slow to rise to their feet. Shen helped Weir test his newly-healed leg, Knox lifted Dawson and Adam off the ground, Jackie and Alfred leaned on each other for support, and Walters held tightly to Nils and helped him pull the sparking ruined walker servos off his legs.
It was Penny's voice, small and insecure, that finally broke the silence.
"Is...is it over?"
Weir let out a small breathy chuckle as he pushed his half-moon glasses into place. "I...I believe it is, dear."
Crawford hummed as she leaned into the former comms operator. "Does this mean we finally get to use our vacation days? I wanna go to Maui."
The small ripple of nervous laughter eventually split the tension as almost everyone finally laughed and smiled. It was hard not to feel some measure of joy and relief as the nightmare finally ended, as the realization dawned on everyone. They had come to the moon, dominated the alien species that had plagued them for seven months, challenged the Grimm in the heart of darkness...and survived.
Penny brought her lips crashing against Crawford's, holding big fistfuls of wispy black hair in her palms as her girlfriend returned the kiss with equal enthusiasm. Nils held tightly to Walters as he cried tears of joy, his wife-to-be finally letting the professional mask slip as she did the same. And the Mucallin husband-and-wife duo let out a long, hearty laugh, slapping Knox and Adam and Dawson and anyone else in reach on the back.
Weaver just smiled and walked over to Weir, who had chosen to sit down next to Shen and look up at the blue-green planet that drifted lazily across the transparent metal ceiling high above.
"...seems so much smaller from up here, doesn't it?" the good doctor mused idly.
"It does," agreed Shen as he leaned back to rest on his palms. "And now it'll continue to spin. Thanks to us...and thanks to you, Director."
The steel-eyed brunette stared at Earth for a moment longer, before tracking her gaze over to the white-cloaked woman who stood with the gray-hatted man and the blue four-armed figure that hovered over them.
"No…" she said slowly, letting out a long sigh of relief as peace washed over her, "I think, this time...it's thanks to them."
As soon as the light faded from her eyes, Summer Rose dropped to her knees in exhaustion.
She leaned on her hands against the stable section of floor with slow, rough pants, feeling a slight headache pulsing just below her temples and skull as she tried to get her bearings. Her vision blurred and sharpened as the silver afterglow clung to her sight, feeling the taste of metallic ash in her mouth for mere moments before it faded. These were all common side effects that occurred in lesser degrees whenever she used her silver eyes, but never quite to this extent. Then again...she'd never managed to evaporate an entire roomful of Grimm before, either, and she doubted she'd be able to replicate the feat without Asaru or Carter's help.
"...Big Sky to XCOM, is everything okay over there? We saw the whole place just light up like a Christmas tree. What's your status?"
"We're fine," said Weaver over the radio. "Sie - Summer did something with her eyes, something that healed all of us and turned the Grimm into ash."
"...all of them?"
"That's right. Trashed the machine too. Whatever she did, it wiped out every single enemy in the AO. If you saw it from outside, that probably means the rest of the stronghold's cleared too. So...I think it's safe to say that our work here is done. Good job, everyone."
Barnes let out a chuckle of disbelief. "Damn. Copy that, ma'am. Need anything from us on the Avenger?"
"A nice tall margarita would be nice. Hell, make it a double."
Summer blinked slowly, her mind parsing what she'd just heard. Not only was Weaver using first names over the comms - a practice that flew in the face of every radio protocol the Bureau used - she also mentioned how the wounds had been healed as the Grimm were vaporized. Her silver eyes excelled at destroying the creatures of darkness, but they never had the power to heal before.
Unless…
Asaru. Did you use your healing power alongside my eyes?
The Ethereal floating above her seemed to smile despite lacking a face. I did. There were many grievous injuries among your - our - friends, and I did not want them to die of blood loss after the battle was already over. Such an ending did not sit well with us.
She raised an eyebrow. Us? You mean…
That is correct. Carter was the one to suggest I imbue your light with my healing. Said that it would be more efficient that way.
The silver-eyed Huntress let out a breathy chuckle. There was the Carter she knew and fell in love with, the one that put others and their well-being above his own. The empathetic squad leader she'd served under, the patient healer she'd seen tending to his team after almost every fight. She knew he'd find that person eventually, and it seemed he'd done so just in time.
Speaking of which…
A soft gasp escaped her lips as she felt a pair of strong hands slip under her arm, gently pulling her to her feet with all the care and concern she'd come to expect. Silver eyes tracked upwards until they stared once more into steel blue, and this time she found what she was looking for almost instantly. That kindness, that warmth...it was there once again, though it was heavily clouded by an overwhelming sense of guilt.
Once he was sure that Summer was standing steady on her own, Carter stepped back and looked around, letting out a low whistle.
"Damn." He shook his head slowly. "Can all women from Remnant do that, too?"
Summer let out a soft laugh. "Nope. That gift is a little more rare, back where I come from. Family secret, as my Ma would always say."
Carter hummed thoughtfully. "Well, guess I should be glad that I got you, then."
He blushed faintly as he realized what he'd just said, an expression which doubled as Summer stared at him with a wry smile. "Um...we. We should be glad that I got you. No, wait. That we got you. Ugh...you know what I mean, dammit."
She giggled. "Oh, I know, but I wanted to hear you say it. You're always so cute when you get all bashful."
His eyebrow quirked up. "Really. Me. I'm the bashful one. Summer, do you ever even hear yourself talk after I give you anything resembling a compliment? I swear, sometimes I can't even tell whether you're passing out from blood loss or just swooning over me."
Her shoulders shrugged. "Could always be both, you know."
The two of them laughed softly, standing too close to be comfortable yet not close enough. Flirting and banter was all well and good, but there was still a divide as clear as the Earth above between the two of them. Now that the unifying threat of the aliens lay still and unmoving behind them, the emotional fallout of the last few hours still hung in the air, and neither of them were sure if they had the energy to begin mending it.
After an awkward silence, Carter finally took that first step and pulled his hat off his head, holding it over his chest as he gave a long sigh.
"Look, I…" he said, unease and discomfort clear as day on his face, "I know this doesn't make up for everything I said, or everything I did. I don't expect you to forgive me right away...or for anyone to let me off easy. But maybe...maybe this can be the start of my own little penance walk. To become the William Carter that Asaru saw...the one that you saw. It might not be much of a start, but...I hope it's enough."
Carter looked down at his feet sheepishly, and Summer's heart just about melted on the spot. Here was a man who had spent most of his life being lauded as a hero, only to crumble in the face of random chance and adversity. A tortured soul who had spent years lost in the darkness of grief and pain, wounded and weary yet still pressed on with some semblance of life and purpose. And even after nearly dooming the human race with his own lack of reason and restraint, he was here, making amends, doing the right thing. Not just for himself...but for her.
Summer still wasn't sure if Heaven was real, but if it was, she was certain that Julia and Richard were there smiling down at him in pride.
She let out a slow sigh and pulled him into a tight hug, one that he almost immediately returned. Silver eyes closed slowly as their owner nuzzled into his shoulder, feeling his chiseled jaw come to rest on top of her hair. Her lips pressed softly against his neck, an action that was repaid with a gentle kiss to her forehead. Any exhaustion and fatigue seemed to melt away in the embrace, and she didn't need Asaru's connection with Carter to know that the affection was not only appreciated, but reciprocated in equal measure.
"It's more than enough," she whispered warmly. "Thank you, Will."
The pair held each other for just a moment longer before a sharp hiss of pain from behind got their attention. Separating just enough to draw their weapons and point them at the source, their danger senses faded as they saw what had made the noise.
Origin was writhing and seething in pain, steam rising from his now-useless arms and pouring out of his vertical mouth with every rasping, hacking gasp. He struggled just to pull himself to his knees with his entire upper body trembling and shuddering, trying to rise and failing in every possible sense of the word.
"My people…" he hissed. "My empire...you have ruined everything! You...will fall before...before...before the might of - !"
The rest of his pithy taunt was lost in a pathetic cough as he fell over to his side, shaking the floor as he landed firmly.
"Ouch…" Carter said with a click of his tongue as he put his hat back on his head. "Every trace of that black Grimm stuff got vaporized when you did your magic eye trick, right? So if he had that crap inside him…"
"...I can only imagine how painful it would be," finished Summer with a slow shake of her head. "To have all his newfound strength burned away, leaving only ashes and his own fragile flesh behind. Then again...it's probably a massage compared to the humiliation of defeat."
The man in the gray hat nodded, not quite lowering his rifle. "So what's your call, Summer? Do we put the poor bastard out of his misery? Or did you have something else in mind?"
Summer looked back and smiled warmly, grateful that Carter's first instinct wasn't cold-blooded murder this time. Then she looked up at Asaru hovering nearby, who nodded.
"Well..." she said slowly. "...we were actually thinking this would be an excellent time to negotiate terms of surrender. Considering how he is Mosaic, his words and thoughts will stretch across his entire empire. So if I can talk to him...if I can talk through him...I might be able to stop this from happening ever again."
Carter nodded slowly. "Sounds like a plan. Anything I can do to help?"
"Yeah. You can be my anchor to the physical world, to make sure I don't lose myself in the mindscape."
"On it." He paused. "What do I do for that?"
Summer smiled and took his hand in hers. "Just like this."
"Ohhh..." Carter blushed faintly. "You got it, Summer."
She kept his hand tightly in hers as she approached the fallen Zudjari, rolling him over onto his back with the toe of her boot. Origin looked up at her with a seething glare, but said nothing. He knew he had lost. It was now a question of how much more he would lose, and that would depend solely on his attitude in the next few minutes.
"Alright Asaru…" said Summer after taking a breath to steel herself. "...plug me in. I'm ready."
The Ethereal nodded and disconnected two of the strands tethering himself to the silver-eyed Huntress, sliding them into Origin's forehead. Immediately the world as she knew it fell away, and her mind was suddenly filled with stars and planets and galaxies and universes and fleets and outposts and strongholds and stations. Everything was warm and everything was cold and everything was dark and everything was bright. And there were voices. There were so many voices.
And none of them were very welcoming of her.
What is this?
Who is this?
What happened to Origin?
What happened to Mosaic?
It's her!
It's the silver-eyed devil!
The one from Remnant?
I thought we abandoned that world!
What is she doing here?
How did she gain access?
Burn her brains out! Tear out her mind!
Are we being tormented?
Have we lost?
What will happen to us now?
It was almost too much to process at first. Like she was a child who never learned to swim, and she was now being thrown into the open ocean. The metaphor was more apt than she imagined, as she felt her chest tighten as though she were drowning in psionic energy. But Asaru was there to keep her afloat, to guide her through the roughest currents and the highest waves. She only needed to trust that he would broadcast her thoughts in a way that the Zudjari could understand. In a way that they would understand.
So she spoke with her mind across the Mosaic network, the first human ever to do so.
My name is Summer Rose, she intoned. And I am the Huntress that has defeated your Origin. I am here to negotiate the terms of surrender for the Zudjari, on behalf of the Humans of Earth.
A storm of emotions rippled through the cosmic mindscape. Disbelief. Denial. Anger. Shock. Outrage. Sorrow. Despair. Summer pushed through all of them to continue giving her speech, her mental resolve unwavering even in the face of so much dissent.
Here's what you are going to do now, she thought firmly and fiercely, her words echoing across the universe. You're going to remove your structures. You're going to withdraw your troops. You're going to create a cure for the Sleepwalker virus, and undo the poison you've inflicted on humanity. And then...you're going to take your ships and leave. You will never again return to Earth, you will never again unleash the Grimm, and you will never invade another planet with sentient life on it ever again. In return, we will allow you to live...a mercy that your Origin would have withheld from us.
The response was almost immediate: billions of voices flooded into her mind, and threatened to overwhelm her. Asaru filtered them into more salient thoughts, all of them reacting less-than-politely.
You condemn us to death!
We cannot support our population in space! How will we survive?
Cure the Sleepwalkers? Free the slaves? Such a thing is impossible!
How dare she speak to us so boldly! The Zudjari will never capitulate to your demands!
She felt herself grit her teeth in reality, frustration building in her temples as blood dribbled down her nose. With Carter's hand squeezing her palm, she gathered her mental strength and shouted into the void, pulsing her will across the entire psionic network in one echoing ripple.
SHUT UP!
It was a simple phrase, but it got the point across. All minds fell silent, rapt with attention.
Summer furrowed her brow as she filled the silence. I've seen your technology. It's capable of incredible things. And now you're going to use it to settle uninhabited worlds, to create life where none existed before. You will no longer be destroyers - you will instead become builders. These are my demands for you, as the lost daughter of Remnant, as the found protector of Earth, and as the speaker for the world that stole your Mosaic and humbled your Origin. I have learned your culture. I have studied your kind. I know that you respect strength and power above all else. You will now respect mine.
The voices returned far quieter than before, deliberating among themselves and among Origin. Summer waited with bated breath in reality, squeezing tight to the hilt of Wandering Thorn to keep herself grounded amidst the sea of thoughts.
After what felt like an eternity of waiting, the voice of Origin finally spoke in a humbled, defeated tone.
…we accept your terms.
