Chapter 26: Time To Make A Miracle
(Schnee Manor, Whitley's Room)
For the past few weeks, Whitley had been engaged in a battle of wits with a mystery hacker. Said mystery hacker had been relentless in his attempts to infiltrate the SDC's mainframe, but Whitley had kept him at bay, using every trick he knew, and some he had to come up with on the fly.
However, over the past couple of days, the hacker had been relentless. For the past thirty-six hours, he had been trying to access Mantle's heating grid, and Whitley had been largely successful in keeping him out.
Until he had fallen asleep, that is.
He had some automatic programs set up, but those were easily predictable. They had been predicted and defeated, because whoever this hacker was, he had complete control over the SDC mainframe. Whitley pinched the bridge of his nose, he was not looking forward to explaining this to Father... who was also locked out of the SDC network, and would likely know by now.
"Whitley. What happened?"
Whitley turned and saw his father standing in his doorway, dressed in a white suit as he always was. The imperious look on his face left no doubt in his kind why he was standing there.
Whitley flinched, out of reflex more than anything. "I... fell asleep. And the hacker that I've been trying to keep out took over the whole system. I apologize for my failure, Father."
Jacques was silent for an agonizingly long moment before speaking, "What was the hacker trying to do?"
Whitley frowned. "He was trying to get into the controls for Mantle's heating network."
Jacques very nearly swore. If the heating network went down, most of the citizenry of Mantle would die within hours from exposure. In essence, this mystery hacker had signed the death warrant for almost all of Mantle. This needed to be fixed, and soon.
Jacques narrowed his eyes. "What do you need to fix it?"
Whitley blinked. He had been expecting Jacques to berate him for his weakness, for not pushing through his weariness. "Father?"
"Did I stutter, Whitley?" Jacques retorted, "What do you need to get control back, and the heat back on?"
Whitley gaped at his father for a brief moment before regaining his composure. "I need to be on-site at SDC Headquarters, specifically the server farm. With how well the hacker has built this lockout, the only way to defeat it is with a direct hardline connection to the servers."
Jacques contemplated his options for a moment. Admittedly, there was only one viable one.
He pulled out his Scroll, and dialed the number for his hotline to General Ironwood. "Hello, James. As much as I hate to add to your workload, I have a problem. Code Omega."
(Atlas Academy, Briefing Room)
Jaune wished that he was still dead to the world, but also knew that General Ironwood wouldn't have woken them unless there was an emergency. He had promised them a good night's sleep after their involvement in the Siege of Argus after all.
Jaune sipped at the coffee he had been given by Marrow, one of Ironwood's Ace Operatives. He seemed like he was a kind person, so unlike most others in Atlas. He noticed Ruby, Weiss, and Penny, and waved them over. Ruby seemed especially down for some reason, Jaune wondered how that could be, given Penny's miracle of a return.
Weiss sat on his left, and Jaune couldn't help but laugh at the shudder that went through his girlfriend as she took a drink of her coffee. Her love of coffee in the morning was legendary, after all.
Jaune turned his attention to Ruby, who looked positively dreadful. "You alright, Ruby?"
Ruby looked glumly at her coffee before taking a halfhearted sip. "Some of the civilians on that last ship out of Argus saw me use the Silver Eyes. We ran into some of them that were picking up supplies for the refugee camps on our way over here."
Weiss, now awakened to her normal mental faculties, frowned. "What's so bad about that, Ruby?"
Ruby hugged herself, prompting Penny to rub her back. "They looked at me like I'm some kind of angel of vengeance. One of them called me the Lady of Light."
Weiss took a sharp breath in. It didn't take the years of training she had in reading body language to see that Ruby was disturbed by this turn of events. "Ruby, they're just trying to cling to any shred of hope they can."
Ruby screwed her eyes shut. "I know, Weiss. But I'm no angel of vengeance. I'm just... me. They're building me up into something that I'm not, something I never wanted to be."
Jaune and Weiss glanced at each other, neither of them were quite sure how to handle this. Both of them knew that Ruby had gone off more than once about only wanting "normal" knees, but this was a whole new level.
"Ruby, you do not have to try to be what others attempt to make you. They do not know that the light they see does not come from your eyes," Penny said gently, "The light they see comes from your heart, just be yourself and they will see."
"But... what if they still think I'm their... Lady of Light?" Ruby asked.
Jaune shrugged, "That's a question that Pyrrha asked more than once. She hated the titles the tournament announcers would give her, the Invincible Girl, the Goddess of Victory..."
Ruby looked at Jaune, "What did you tell her?"
Jaune smiled, "Penny's already told you. Just be yourself, and the people that truly care about you will see past the titles they give you."
Weiss looked up at her boyfriend... no, fiancé, and giggled, "Indeed. Remember when I thought you only wanted the perks of being with me?"
Jaune pinched the bridge of his nose, "Please. No."
Ruby joined in Weiss's giggle fit, at least before it cut off abruptly. Jacques and Whitley were here. After a brief look around, Weiss spied Winter staying as far away from their father as possible.
"What's he doing here?" Jaune wondered, "We don't have time to run around doing Jacques's dirty work while Salem's knocking on our door."
Penny tilted her head, "I do not believe that the General would allow us to be tasked with whatever objective Jacques Schnee has, unless it was vital to Kingdom Security."
Weiss took another sip of her coffee, "But why is Whitley here? Why..." Why would Whitley be here? He had always been staunchly opposed to all things Hunter related, but yet...
Then it hit her. The only reason Jacques would be here is if something had compromised the SDC, and the only reason that Whitley would be here was if the issue was with cybersecurity...
"You bastard." Weiss let slip.
Jaune raised an eyebrow, "if that was about Jacques, I completely agree, but-"
Weiss shook her head, "No, it's not that. The only reason my father and Whitley would be here was if something or someone had compromised the SDC's cybersecurity. Watts is behind this."
Jaune would've replied, but General Ironwood stood up. "I apologize for interrupting your well-earned rest, but this is urgent. I have received a report that a hacker, who I believe to be Arthur Watts, has taken control of the SDC mainframe, and turned off Mantle's hearing network."
"Oh, crap." Marrow said.
Ironwood looked at Marrow coolly, "Perhaps you'd like to explain the seriousness of the situation to those of us who aren't familiar with Mantle, Specialist Amin."
"Busted." Harriet snickered.
After shooting a glare at Harriet, Marrow stepped forward and began to explain. "Long story short, the heating network keeps Mantle from freezing to death. Without it, or a projected Aura, you would die with only a few hours of exposure."
"Thank you, Marrow." Ironwood said, "So, it goes without saying that we are on the clock here. Luckily, we have a plan. Whitley, if you would care to explain?"
Whitley did a double take, "Me?"
Ironwood nodded, "It is your plan after all."
"Very well." Whitley stepped forward and pulled out his Scroll, causing a holographic image of the SDC headquarters to appear. "The only way to lift the lockout, and regain control of the mainframe, is for me to have a hardline connection to it. For that, I need to be at the server farm... here." He adorned a location near the bottom of the hologram with a blinking red light.
Weiss frowned, "That's not going to be easy, security is very tight down there."
"How tight we talking, Weiss?" Yang asked.
Weiss smiled, but it was without humor. "The security cameras have machine guns, and any disturbance will be investigated by a veritable army of AK-130s."
"Is there any way to circumvent some of that security?" Jaune asked, "Plus, I wouldn't be surprised if Watts has Hazel and Cinder with him. We have to take that possibility into account."
Whitley thought for a moment, "We could use the VIP elevator from the top floor." A green blinking light appeared at the top floor of the hologram. "I would have to defeat its security, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem. It'll take us right where we need to be, plus most of the security will ignore us if we exit out of it. That's a hardwired response, because Father has no patience for repeated security checkpoints."
Jaune stood, and walked toward the hologram. "That's good, but it can be better. I think we should have one team act like we're coming in the front door, to draw out any surprises Watts has for us, the second team goes down through the elevator, while a third team helps deal with the chaos down in Mantle."
"I'll agree to that." Ironwood said, "What did you have in mind?"
Jaune blinked. He hadn't been expecting that, he shook his head to clear his confusion, then continued. "Team One needs to go in loud and proud. It also needs to seem like we're committing as many resources as possible to it, to further sell the deception. I think it should be me, Weiss, Ruby, Penny, Oscar, and Winter."
Winter cleared her throat, "You do know that I'm the Winter Maiden now, right?"
Jaune paused, "That wouldn't affect anything. We need to make it look like Team One is our only hope." Jaune moved on, "Team Two needs to have experience with intrusion into Atlesian facilities while still having the muscle to defend Whitley. As such, Team Two is General Ironwood, Blake, Mercury, and Whitley."
"To be blunt, Mantle is going to be a mess, so Team Three is everyone else." He turned to Jacques, "Is there anything you can do to help with Mantle?"
Jacques stroked his chin for a moment, "I'm not sure, without access to the mainframe..."
"What about our cargo fleet, Father?" Whitley suggested, "We can use them to supplement whatever ships Ironwood assigns to aid in evacuating Mantle,"
"Was that part of the plan, James?" Jacques asked.
Ironwood nodded, "More or less, yes."
Clover Ebi, the leader of the Ace Operatives, stood. "In that case, let's go do our jobs. Team Three, move out!"
After they had left, Ironwood continued, "There is something we need to do before we leave. Whitley, this is going to be a very dangerous situation. You need to have your Aura unlocked, if it isn't already."
Whitley frowned, "But I don't want to be a Hunter."
"No one's saying you have to be." Weiss said, "It's for your protection, Whitley."
Whitley ground his teeth, "Fine, but only if he does it." He punctuated his ultimatum by pointing at Jaune.
Jaune blinked, "Why me?"
"It's simple, when I first met you that first time you came to Atlas, I had expected you to attempt to ingratiate yourself to me. You made no such attempt, nor did you attempt to force a conciliation between me and Weiss. In effect, you have always approached me on your level, instead of trying to artificially elevate yourself to mine."
Jaune glanced at Weiss, who shrugged at him. She wasn't going to bother to try to change Whitley's mind, as he had made no secret of his animosity for her. He turned to face Whitley, then took a deep breath in. "Alright, Whitley. Close your eyes and concentrate." Jaune laid his hands on Whitley's shoulders, closed his eyes, and reached out with his mind.
In his mind's eye, he could see a dim ice blue ember, not unlike Weiss's Aura but different in its own way. He pushed his golden Aura towards it, and just barely brushed against it, causing it to burst into flame, although not quite as bright as his. Words sprang to his mind, and he said them involuntarily.
"It is in humility that we find strength. Through this, we become an exemplar of bravery and hope to stem the tide of evil. Infinite in sorrow and lifted up through friendship, I empower your will, and by my hand support you."
Jaune's eyes snapped open, and he saw Whitley looking at the back of his hand, which was now glowing icy blue. "Wonderful." Whitley drawled. "I cannot wait until I never have to use it again."
Jaune opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it. "Alright, let's get moving. We don't have much time."
(SDC Headquarters, Lobby)
Adam almost wished he had stayed in his cell, as Arthur Watts was insufferably Atlesian.
"Cinder, you four have the lobby on lockdown, right?"
"Yes. Just like the last time you called, five minutes ago!"
He couldn't help but chuckle at Cinder's distress. At least Watts knew that if he had directed his pedantic rechecking at him, Adam would've checked how many limbs Watts had, and would make sure he came up short. He glanced over at Hazel. The big man was eyeing the last member of their party with suspicion, and rightfully so, considering what it was.
It was a robot, just like any Atlesian murderbot. This one though, was made to look like a human girl, for reasons that escaped Adam. Something to do with Watts's vendetta with some other Atlesian scientist. Adam had tuned out the good doctor to preserve his sanity. Hazel had tried to make conversation with it, of all things, but it had just parroted its name and mission statement at him.
I am Copperhead, the Queen's will is my own.
Yeah. Spooky as all hell, yet another reason why Adam would be more than happy to dance on Atlas's ashes.
Without warning, Watts's voice emanated from Copperhead. "I've detected a Manta class airship coming in to land in the plaza. It appears that Ironwood has sent his last hope of saving Mantle to greet us."
"Wonderful." Adam said, he hated taking orders from humans, but the promise of all of Atlas falling, obliterating the SDC along with it, was worth a few hours of percolating hatred.
(SDC Headquarters, Entry Plaza)
Weiss frowned as she disembarked from the Manta. SDC Tower loomed in front of the group, a monolithic reminder of all that the Schnee Dust Company had become under Jacques. The plaza they had landed in was bare of any sort of landscaping or amenities, effiectively making it a wide open field. Albeit a field made of concrete. She drew Myrtenaster, and checked her dust load, it was the same as always, but it was more for comfort than anything else.
"Penny, can you scan the area?" Winter asked, "I want to know if whatever Watts has planned for us is out here or further in."
Penny nodded, "Of course." She cocked her head for a moment as her scanners swept the plaza and lobby, which was within her visual range. "There are four individuals in the lobby, most likely hostile. I can positively identify Cinder Fall and Hazel Reinhart. There is an individual who matches the description of Adam Taurus, although he is supposed to be imprisoned in Atlss Correctional. The fourth... does not make sense."
By now, everyone had their weapons out. "What doesn't make sense, Penny?" Ruby asked.
"The fourth individual... the closest identification I have is me."
Ruby froze. "What?"
"There'll be time for figuring that stuff out later," Jaune said. "Right now-"
"Right now you have bigger problems, Schnee-lover."
While they had been discussing the results of Penny's report, Cinder and the rest had taken the field, and Adam couldn't help but taunt them. Jaune's gaze flickered across the enemies arrayed against them, and quickly devised a battle plan.
"Winter, you handle Cinder. We just need to keep her in check until the others are down. Penny, you handle your doppelgänger, you're probably best equipped for that. The rest of us will play bad guy hot potato with Hazel and Adam."
Cinder laughed, her eyes igniting with the stolen power of the Fall Maiden, and molten blades taking shape in her hands. "it doesn't matter what plan you came up with, boy, unless you have Raven in your pocket there's no way you'll survive this."
Winter pumped the lever on Stardust, ejecting the parrying dagger. For the briefest moment, she closed her eyes and concentrated. Lend me your power, Fria. She opened her eyes, now alight with the power of the Winter Maiden, created a Velocity Glyph below her, and flew at Cinder, saber first. The look of surprise that Winter had hoped for never appeared, as an avaricious grin materialized on Cinder's face. Cinder inhaled, and belched a blast of fire at Winter.
Winter, however, had other ideas. She called upon the power, and slashed her parrying dagger through the air, causing a gust of wind to howl towards the oncoming blaze. Upon impact, the fire shifted upwards, leaving Winter's path of attack open. She thrust her saber into Cinder's Grimm arm, earning her a scream of pain. "Heat rises, Cinder." Winter said, "But you would know that if you even bothered to learn how your powers work, instead of trying to burn everything you see to ash."
Cinder laughed, "Watch your step." She set off a explosion at Winter's feet, causing them to be blasted apart. She gritted her teeth against the pain from the wound in her arm closing as she discarded her blades, and made as many as she could with what dust she could with her Semblance. By the time Winter had recovered, six swords hovered around her as she took to the air. "Enjoy your power while you can, Schnee. Because I'm about to take it from you."
Winter began to hover, as Summoning Glyphs sprang into existence behind her, and localized storm clouds began to gather. "Come on, then."
(Penny)
In her short life, Penny had experienced quite a few different emotions thanks to her relationship with Ruby. Happiness, Joy, Longing, Sadness, Grief. But right now, she was experiencing a new emotion, one that made her... on edge, made her consider tactical decisions that would invariably lead to disaster. Oh... was this anger? She didn't like it.
As soon as Winter had lunged at Cinder, Penny was already rocketing towards Watts's copy of her. The copy followed suit, and they slammed together, neither making much progress due to the equal amount of thrust from the other. So, there they were, head to head, grasping each other's hands, hoping the other would give. "Who are you?" Penny demanded, "And why do you look like me?"
"My name is Copperhead." She droned, "Master Watts built me to be superior to the failed creation known as Penny." Copperhead used the leverage she had on Penny's arms to flip around and blast her in the face with her jet boots. As she was sent reeling, Penny registered pain. Dad had warned her that the pain from big attacks would seep through her Aura, but she hadn't been prepared for it. Seeing Copperhead heading straight for her on another collision couse, She darted up and away from the main battle, to give the others room to work and her room to maneuver.
Penny deployed blades from her hands that extended out by about a foot, and swiped at Copperhead as she approached. The false copy attempted to dodge, but wasn't quite fast enough. Penny narrowed her eyes upon seeing the soft glow of Hard Light Dust upon impact. Did Copperhead not have Aura?
Four metal tentacles that ended in three fingered pincers unfurled from Copperhead's back. "You will fall here. The Queen demands it." The tentacles shot out at her, attempting to bind her arms and legs. Penny slipped into the gap between them and spun, hitting them all with her blades. Her onboard computer registered hits, but also reported more Hard Light Dust activation.
If I do not take out the Hard Light Dust source, I am going to lose this fight. Think, Penny think! What would Ruby do?
The tentacles came back and wrapped around her, restraining her. "What? No!" Penny cranked her rocket boots up to full, but she was held fast.
Copperhead cocked her head, "I knew you were inferior, as Master Watts said. However, I did not think that a soul would be such a burden in combat. I will relieve you of it."
Penny felt the the tentacles shift, and something plugged into the data port on the back of her neck. Moments later, a warning message flashed on her HUD. Danger! Viral Upload detected!
Penny didn't panic. Ruby had planned for this very scenario. It would've been stupid not to, with Watts still in play. The only downside was that it would hurt. A lot.
Without further ado, Penny used the Lightning Dust that she carried for use with her blades to electrify her entire body, along with anything that happened to be plugged into it.
She screamed from the pain, since self-electrification was no picnic for anyone. How did Ruby's friend Nora put up with this all of the time? In the end it didn't matter, as Copperhead's tentacles threw her away like she was a live wire. Penny did a quick scan of her adversary, and was pleased to find the flickering of Hard Light Dust sprinkled around. Her last ditch gambit had damaged the shield projector.
"Who is the inferior one now, you cheap imitation?"
(Jaune)
Their strategy was simple, wear Hazel down while keeping Adam in check.
"OZPIN!"
It was a shame that most plans never survived first contact with the enemy. Hazel was charging them, while Adam was circling around, looking for the perfect opportunity to slaughter them.
"New plan!" Jaune said, "You three contain Hazel, I'll deal with Adam!"
Weiss shot him a worried glance as Ruby and Oscar met Hazel's charge. The big man wasn't using any Dust yet, so they had to take advantage of that. "Be careful, Jaune." She muttered before joining the fray.
Jaune started to run towards Adam, who was simply doing... nothing. He was just standing there, menacingly.
"Come on, you bastard." Jaune muttered, "I won't let you take them by surprise."
Adam pulled the trigger on Blush causing his sword to be shot out of the sheath at Jaune, who in his single minded approach, was caught unawares.
The sword turned projectile took Jaune completely by surprise as it hit him in the forehead, knocking him down. His eyes widened in alarm when he saw Adam jump up and grab Wilt, then descend into a strike. Jaune rolled to the left just barely avoiding being perforated, and scrambled to his feet. He took a classic Valean Bladesmanship stance, his shield held off to the side and angled up to deny those areas of attack, and his sword held up by his head parallel to the ground, ready to parry any attacks from above and turn them into counters.
Adam tilted his head as he resheathed his sword. In their previous fight, this boy had been using a combat style that had been disjointed to say the least. Now it seemed like he had found what worked best for him. This was clearly a defensive stance, not that it would do him any good. Adam feinted left, towards the boy's shield arm, as he did so, Adam made sure to take note of his eyes. They were a vibrant shade of blue, the same as his. More importantly, they showed Adam that the boy was panicked, weary, afraid. It would be easy to manipulate him into making a fatal mistake. Following through on his deception, Adam attacked from the right with a horizontal slash, right in the only spot his guard left open. He would have to commit to a bad parry or take the hit...
At least, that's what Adam thought.
Jaune shifted his shield to cover his right side and stabbed out with Crocea Mors, catching Adam in the side and nullifying his attack with a single maneuver. Desperate to maintain the initiative, he transitioned from the thrust into a diagonal slash. Unfortunately Adam smashed his blade into Crocea Mors, denying Jaune his follow up.
"You've improved since last time." Adam noted as they struggled, the sound of metal on metal grinding between them as they both tried to pry some advantage away from the other, "However, it will not matter. I am still leagues ahead of you."
Jaune grunted from the exertion of keeping Adam at bay. While he was certainly nothing to scoff at when in came to physical strength, Adam was right there with him. "I've had to fight people who were better than me since day one at Beacon, You'll have to do better than that to scare me." Jaune let Adam overpower him, only to press his blade against Adam's wrists and push, slicing at the Faunus and forcing him back.
"Very well." Adam taunted. "I'll do better."
In the blink of an eye, Adam was gone. Jaune looked around frantically, he could hear Adam darting around but he couldn't see him. Was he that fast?
Thanks to a flicker of movement spied out of the corner of his eye, Jaune was able to turn around and find Adam, only to see that he was charging up a Moonslice. Dodging wasn't an option, Adam was too fast. His only option was to tank the hits from one of the most lethal Semblances that Jaune had ever seen.
Before Haven, this would've been a death sentence. But now? Now he had a fool's chance.
And a fool's chance was all Jaune Arc ever needed.
The very air seemed to begin to crackle around Adam, as if in anticipation of what was to come. His hair began to glow crimson red, as if foretelling the blood that would be shed. Jaune took a breath, and willed his Aura to become more than it was, making him shine, a brilliant light against Adam's darkness.
Adam ripped Wilt from its sheath, and sent a Moonslice hurtling at the boy, who readied his shield. Adam scoffed, how many times had his enemies attempted to trust in their armor, their Aura to protect them, then be shocked when it failed?
Jaune gasped as the Moonslice hit, and began to rip through his Aura. He could feel himself getting pushed backwards by the sheer force arrayed against him, but he did not relent. He was the only thing standing between his friends and Adam, so he would hold. There was no other option.
He dug his feet in, and shoved with his shield, sending what was left of the Moonslice skyward. Moments later his comm clicked.
"Thanks for that, Jaune. Put Cinder on the defensive."
Adam frowned. How had the boy withstood that attack? He had been able to withstand lower powered Moonslices at Beacon, but that had used all of his stored energy! His Aura should've failed, his shield and armor should've broken, and he should've died! How had he-
His Semblance, it had to be. Some variation of Aura empowerment perhaps? This boy was no spineless Atlesian, that was for sure. Adam began to circle him, and the boy followed suit. "You have no small amount of skill, boy. I'll give you that. What is your name?"
Jaune hesitated for a brief moment, this had to be a trap, or a stalling tactic. However, he also needed to catch his breath. "Why do you care now? You didn't back at Beacon."
"One warrior knows another," Adam said, "And I recognize you as such, despite you taking up with the Schnee bitch. Now, I would have your name."
Jaune knew that Adam would see the flash of anger on his face, and would probably try to exploit it. "Jaune. Jaune Arc."
"Well, Jaune, I'm going to kill you now, and you only have yourself to blame. After all, I didn't make you share a bed with the heiress."
Jaune snorted, Adam was still on his bullshit. "For someone who hates humans so much, you do a great job of taking orders from them."
Adam froze for a moment before resuming, "A small price to pay to ensure the destruction of the SDC! When Salem takes the Staff of Creation from the Vault, Atlas will plummet, erasing its own sins and avenging all the Faunus exploited by Jacques Schnee!"
"What about all of the Faunus that will be killed when Atlas falls onto Mantle?" Jaune snapped, "Do you even care about them?"
Adam stopped moving, "Their sacrifices will be remembered in the new world that I will create, a world where-"
"Did you ask if they wanted to be sacrificed?" Jaune interjected, "Sacrificed for this insane idea in your head that'll never see the light of day?"
Adam chuckled, "Their compliance isn't a factor."
Jaune growled as he activated both Wind and Lightning Dust, causing the space around his sword to become a raging storm. "You're a maniac. I won't let you hurt anyone else, human or Faunus!"
"Try." Quicker than Jaune could react, Adam mechashifted Blush into a sawed-off shotgun and fired as fast as the action would allow. The special ammo he had looted from one of the warehouses inside SDC HQ would put Jaune on the back foot, and put that back foot in the grave.
Jaune threw himself to the side to avoid the surprise barrage, but he never had been the fastest combatant and he paid for it.
As he was getting up, he quickly came to a horrible realization. Adam was using flechette rounds. Instead of normal bullets, flechette rounds fired blades designed to cut rather than penetrate. Adam's sudden attack had opened up cuts on his legs and side, as he hadn't been able to activate his Aura in time.
Just like that, Adam had turned the battle to his advantage. It was no longer about if Jaune's Aura would hold. Now the question was if Jaune could beat Adam before he passed out from blood loss.
He didn't have time to think of much else, because Adam was on him. He clumsily deflected a blow from the side, the deadly crimson blade skipping off of his shield. Every action he took only opened his wounds more, and because Adam was so relentless, he had no time to call on his Semblance.
Jaune gave ground, what choice did he have? He could feel panic and fear overtaking him, but he couldn't do anything about it!
Am I going to die?
They locked blades once more, but this time, Adam had the definite advantage. "Be at peace, Jaune Arc." Adam said, "You'll be reunited with your lover shortly."
No! I won't let it end like this!
Jaune stepped in, and smashed the pommel of his sword into Adam's face, then bashed him with the side of his shield. The pain from his wounds made him keel over, but Jaune wasn't about to let a silly thing like pain stop him from surviving. He stabbed Crocea Mors into the ground and unleashed a lightning laden cyclone centered on Adam. "Fall, damn you! FALL!"
Adam surged out of the storm, and smashed his boot into Jaune's face, sending the valiant knight sprawling. Adam walked up to him and flicked the tip of his blade up to his throat. "You fight until the bitter end. I can respect that, but you've reached that end." Adam resheathed Wilt, and charged a Moonslice.
Even if it was futile, Jaune refused to die whimpering on the ground. That wasn't how his dad had died, so it wouldn't be how he died. He raised Crocea Mors, even if it only bought a few seconds, every last nanosecond he could give his friends mattered.
The blood red blade of hate met the silver blade of heroes, and for a moment, the blade of heroes held its ground. Until it didn't.
Crocea Mors, the ancestral weapon of the Arcs, the sword that had been forged for the man responsible for the settling of Vale, and had been wielded in the defense of the Last King of Vale was cut in two.
Jaune looked at the hilt and half a blade in his hand, then hurled it at Adam. The Bull Faunus lazily dodged, then looked at him with genuine confusion. "Really? Even now?"
Adam prepared to strike again, blade poised to deliver the final blow.
At least, he was. Until he was violently replaced by a charging Boarbatusk summon.
Adam roared in anger as he dispatched the spectral Grimm, then glared at his attacker. "You..."
Jaune turned, and saw perfection in his eyes. He saw Weiss Schnee, she was battered, her dress was torn, her hair was chaotic, parts were singed and some was gone altogether, but she was there. And she stood ready to annihilate any who dared to lay a hand on her darling knight.
A Summoning Glyph appeared underneath her, and Jaune gasped as the blade of the Arma Gigas was summoned over Myrtenaster's.
"Get the hell away from my fiancé, Adam!"
(Weiss, a few moments earlier)
Hazel was close to falling, finally. Not due to them wearing down the giant's insane Aura reserves, but due to Ruby and Oscar getting through to him, bit by bit.
Oscar slipped out of the way of another punch, "Hazel, you're fighting for the same forces that killed Gretchen! Can't you see that?"
"She was only a child, and Ozpin sent her on a suicide mission!" Hazel attempted to smash Oscar to bits with a double fisted hammer blow, but Ruby snatched him up with her Semblance, and took a shot at Hazel. The Ice Dust crystal in his left arm exploded, covering his left side with ice. "Maybe that's true, and maybe it isn't." Ruby said, "But before every mission, right before we would leave, Ozpin would always ask us if we were sure. We were never forced to go on missions, we were always given a choice. Gretchen made that choice, and you still can! It's not too late, Hazel!"
Hazel shook his head, "Salem's s force of nature. She can't be beaten."
Ruby was courageous, this much was clear. However, she had never done anything as suicidally dangerous as she was about to do.
She walked up to Hazel and slapped him. Everyone froze, until Ruby spoke again. "She can be beaten, Hazel. I know, because I've asked the Lamp of Knowledge how to beat her. Don't waste your life wallowing in your grief. I've seen what that does to people, and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy."
Hazel bowed his head, and uttered the words that they had hoped to hear since the battle started. "I surrender."
Weiss wiped at her brow, thank the gods that was over. Hazel had ruined her dress, burnt her hair, and to be perfectly honest, she would probably have some lovely bruises in the morning.
"Fall, damn you! FALL!"
Weiss whirled around to see a cyclone with lightning arcing around it engulfing Adam, and Jaune... was on his knees.
Adam burst out of the cyclone and attacked Jaune again. Weiss's eyes grew wide when she saw him preparing a Moonslice, with his target being a fallen Jaune, who was barely able to lift his sword in defense...
She ran.
There was no sense in it, she had little hope of beating Adam alone. With her Aura depleted as it was, she would have to end this quickly.
Her heart skipped a beat as Adam's blow broke Crocea Mors in two. He raised his sword again...
It was now or never.
And Weiss had promised to never let him fall.
The power responds to a need, you have to create that need.
Weiss raised her hand, and a Summoning Glyph launched an already charging Boarbatusk straight at Adam.
As Adam dealt with her summon, Weiss created another summoning glyph below her. She knew partial summoning was possible, so there was no reason that this wasn't feasible.
She let out a sigh of relief as the blade of the Arma Gigas covered Myrtenaster. Now to business.
"Get the hell away from my fiancé, Adam!"
Adam tried to start bantering with her, but Weiss had no patience for it. Using a Glyph she hurled herself at Adam. The murderous glint in his eye didn't escape her, and she used another Glyph to evade his counter by sending her sky high. Using a series of Gravity Glyohs, she locked his arms and legs in place.
Then she descended, and brought down the Arma Gigas's blade, delivering a thunderous blow to the fallen White Fang leader. He was sent sprawling, and actually made a crater when he hit the ground. The spectral blade faded as Weiss's Aura broke, having been depleted by her bringing her wrath down on Adam.
She quickly moved to Jaune and checked him over. "Jaune, say something!"
Jaune smiled ruefully, "Ow."
Weiss couldn't help the tears that fell.
"I'm fine, at least, I am now." Jaune explained, "Adam wasn't giving me the time I needed to use my Semblance on myself, so I couldn't heal. He was using Fletchette rounds in his shotgun, so-"
Out of nowhere, Weiss felt someone on her right shove her to the ground, after she landed, she looked to see who assailant was. Then she wished she hadn't.
Winter was standing there, with Adam's blade sticking out of her gut.
Weiss shut her eyes and prayed that this was a nightmare, but reality was cruel.
Adam yanked his blade out of Winter, and she fell to the ground. "First the whore, now the bitch."
With his wounds healed, Jaune got to his feet. He didn't have a weapon anymore, but he did have one thing going for him. When he amped himself, he was a nigh unstoppable juggernaut, and Adam had to be on his last legs by now. With a wordless roar, he threw himself at Adam. He grabbed his head and smashed it into the pavement, then viciously kicked Adam, sending him flying.
"Weiss..."
Weiss scrambled over to her sister, her eyes unable to control the flow of her tears. "Yes, si-sister?"
In the background she could hear the battles. Ruby and Oscar trying to contain Cinder, Jaune helping Adam with some radical restructuring of his face via pavement, and Penny fighting off Copperhead via electric overcharge of her systems. None of it mattered.
"Don't... have time. Take my hand."
Weiss hesitated for a split second. She knew exactly what her sister wanted to do. She wanted to make her the new Winter Maiden. Forgive me, Jaune. There's no other choice.
Weiss took her sister's hand, and everything faded to white.
(?)
Weiss looked around, taking in her surroundings. Not that there was much of anything to take in. She was in a white void that stretched as far as the eye could see. What was this?
"Hello, sister."
Weiss turned to find Winter, with no sign of the wound that had killed her, standing a few feet away. She ran to Winter and threw her arms around her. "I'm sorry, Winter! I should've-"
Winter knew this was no time for scolding, she had a job to do, after all. "Hush, Weiss. I would have thought that he was incapacitated after a blow like that as well."
Winter continued, "I suppose I owe you an explanation. Put simply, I do not trust anyone else with the power. I know you'll use it the way it was meant to be used."
Weiss cocked her head, "And how is that?"
Winter smiled, a softer smile than Weiss had ever seen on her face. "Love. Love is the key, remember that, and no one will be able to defeat you."
Weiss nodded, her eyes brimming with tears. "I will."
Winter took Weiss's hand, and an ice blue glow passed from the elder Schnee to the younger. Her task done, Winter began to fade.
"Winter, wait!" Weiss cried out.
Do not fret, dear sister. A part of me will always be with you.
(SDC Headquarters, Entry Plaza)
Weiss's eyes snapped open, she was kneeling beside Winter's body.
Jaune was trying to pound Adam into next week with nothing but his Aura. If that progressed, Adam would get lucky eventually and Jaune would-
No.
Weiss rose to her feet with her eyes aflame and bent nature to her will. The wind began to howl and storm clouds began to gather, twin symbols of her grief and rage given form. She raised a hand to her ear, and gave a warning to her friends and lover. "No one interfere. Adam is mine." Jaune looked over, then quickly ran for it. He knew exactly what Weiss was like when she was angry and this was, without question, a category five Weiss storm. Plus, Jaune had to process the fact that Weiss was the Winter Maiden now.
Adam paled. Cinder had never shown any sort of power like this, just some fire blasts. Was this what a Maiden was truly capable of? Regardless, a Schnee stood in front of him, so he would do what he came he to do. He raised Blush and fired, her Aura had been broken, so this would finish her.
Weiss held her palm out, and scattered the flechette rounds with a wall of wind. "My name is Weiss Schnee. You killed my sister. Prepare to die."
Adam attempted to charge, but found himself unable to make any headway against the winds that buffeted him. "NO! I CAN'T DIE HERE! I HAVE TO STRIKE BACK FOR THE FAUNUS!"
Weiss halted her approach. "Who said the Faunus want your vengeance?" Weiss asked, "Blake told me everything, Adam. I know that all you care about is revenge for that brand."
"SHUT THE FUCK UP! YOU'RE A SCHNEE, YOU COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND!" Adam launched a Moonslice in desperation, it was barely powerful enough to reach Weiss, but it was all he had.
Weiss felt her heart ache as she conjured a wall of earth to block Adam's last desperate attack "I understand better than you think, Adam. I was abused by those who were above me, as well. All couched in terms of knowing what's best for me. Please surrender."
Typical Schnee arrogance! She knew nothing, NOTHING! "NO! I WON'T GO BACK TO A CAGE!'
Weiss sighed. She had tried. "Goodbye, Adam." She caused Adam to be struck by lightning, finally breaking his Aura. Then she conjured a single ice spike, and sent it through his chest.
The winds calmed, and the storm dissipated. Yet, Weiss Schnee's grief remained. She half walked, half stumbled over to her sister's body. She fell to her knees, and wept. Not from the pain of physical injury, but from the pain of loss. She had just lost the very person who had enabled her to walk the path that she had chosen. Was this how Jaune felt when Pyrrha...
She started at a light pressure on her shoulders. Jaune was by her side, gently holding her. Weiss looked at him, hoping to see some sort of comfort in his eyes. Instead, all she saw was a pain filled thousand yard stare.
"Ruby said Cinder retreated as soon as you started in on Adam." Jaune said, his tone flat. "She must not have wanted to try to deal with the four of us."
Weiss didn't respond. She was too emotionally raw to do much else but cry over Winter's body.
(SDC Headquarters, VIP Landing Pad, Ten minutes earlier)
Blake was almost feeing nostalgic as she stepped off of the Manta onto the landing pad on top of SDC Tower.
It had been over a year since Blake had to hotwire an electronic lock to infiltrate an Atlesian facility, but once she was staring at its innards, it all came back to her in a flash. After a few moments of creative rewiring, the door opened. "There we go." Blake said, "One VIP elevator, all ready for us." The insides were as Blake expected. All metal and plastic, nauseatingly Atlesian. Just like everything Jacques did.
Whitley sniffed, "Adequate, if inelegant. I'll take it from here." Whitley produced a cable from the messenger bag he carried and connected his Scroll with the elevator's systems.
"Uh, is that a good idea?" Mercury asked, "If Watts detects another device connected to the system..."
Whitley scowled, "He won't. Even this elevator is considered low security compared to things like the heating system. If Weiss and her friends are doing their jobs, his attention should be focused elsewhere."
Blake's cat ears flicked. "That tracks with other Atlesian facilities I've broken in to. So much for the Atlas military's claims of being invincible."
General Ironwood sighed as he took up a position in front of Mercury and Blake as they waited for Whitley to finish, "For the record, I've been trying for years to update our military doctrine, but the council doesn't quite understand how projecting invincibility translates to poor soldiering."
"Speaking of which, shouldn't you give the order for Team One to swoop in right about now?" Mercury prodded. Ironwood grunted, then sent a message from his Scroll.
Whitley shot a glance at Blake, "Why exactly were you breaking into Atlesian facilities... Blake was it?"
Ignoring Mercury's snicker, Blake answered. "I used to be a member of the White Fang."
Whitley froze for a split second, "I... see." He worked in slilence for a moment longer, then the elevator doors closed and the elevator began to move. Whitley disconnected and stowed his Scroll and cable in his bag. "Did you ever kill anyone?" Whitley asked in a quiet voice.
Blake shook her head emphatically, "No, I didn't. There were times were it would've made an infiltration easier, but I never did. Any other questions?"
Whitley tilted his head, "None that we have time for."
"I hate to break up... whatever this is, but we're almost there." Mercury said, stamping his feet to prime his gun boots.
"Where are we headed, Whitley?" Ironwood asked, "I haven't been down here in a long time."
Whitley let out a breath that he hadn't realized that he'd been holding. "Right, then straight ahead. This elevator practically puts us on top of the server farm."
Ironwood took a deep breath in to calm himself, and took stock of the situation. He had three operatives, counting himself, and one non-combatant specialist. One of their number had intimate knowledge of how to infiltrate Atlesian facilities, while the other was a trained assassin. Neither of them knew how to properly protect someone in the heat of battle like he did.
Ironwood allowed himself a small smile. For the first time in a while his Semblance had a good idea. "Blake, Mercury, you two take point. I'll bring up the rear. Whitley, unless I tell you otherwise, stay between us at all times."
The elevator dinged, the doors opened, and their group was confronted by the security cameras painting them with targeting lasers and priming their guns.
"Watts?" Blake asked rhetorically.
"Watts." Mercury growled.
"Well, this is a surprise!" Watts said over the PA system, "I knew my actions here would drive you to recklessness, James, but I never expected you to drag a defenseless child into this suicide mission of yours!"
James gritted his teeth, they did not have time for this. Every second Watts delayed them was another second closer to an unacceptable death toll in Mantle. "Your co-opted toys won't keep us from turning the heating back on, Arthur." He said calmly as he removed Due Process from its holster.
"And they sure won't keep us from finding you, and kicking your ass!" Mercury taunted. "This has been a long time coming, you pompous sack of crap!"
"Oh, Mr. Black... is this why you turned traitor? So you could get some of that parental approval you never got from your own father from General Irondaddy?"
For a moment, Mercury became very still. Even his breathing seemed to stop. "When I find you, Watts, I'm going to start hitting you. I don't know when I'll stop."
"Riveting. I'll let you hold on to that little fantasy, at least you'll die happy." The machine guns started to whirr, indicating that they were about to fire.
For Whitley, time seemed to crawl forward at an infinitesimally slow rate. He was going to die, they were all going to die.
"Get down!" Blake yelled. Whitley's eyes went wide as he saw a fiery double of Blake leap from her toward the gun-cameras. He remembered in the nick of time to activate his Aura. As the cameras opened fire, the double exploded. Whitley lost track of what was going on as the wave of heat and sound knocked him against the back of the elevator. He felt someone grab him by his shirt collar and haul him to his feet.
"MOVE!" Ironwood roared. Blake and Mercury burst out into the hallway, and began to take out the next few cameras leading to the server farm. Ironwood took the other side, and cleared out some more, to give them some breathing room. Whitley followed them out, keeping between the three Hunters and keeping his Aura up. As they made their way to their objective, the lights in the corridor went from the usual soft white to a glaring red, and alarms began to sound. Ironwood hissed as AK-130s began to deploy from a wall panel a ways down the wall from him. "Blake, Mercury, take Whitley and get going! I'll hold off the AK-130s!"
"Alright, General." Blake said with the barest hint of a tremor in her voice, "Let's go!"
Ironwood didn't even spare them a glance. He raised Due Process, and fired.
One AK-130 fell, the victim of a perfect headshot. Only too many to count left to kill.
A soldier would've fallen back and called for backup. That would have been the course of action that James Ironwood expected from any number of his men, because they were soldiers. Despite his distaste of Ozpin's overreliance on guardians, Ironwood was forced to realize one simple fact.
He was a guardian. Had been ever since that fateful day when Professor Ozpin had come into his office, and asked him the question that James himself had later asked Winter and the Ace Ops.
What's your favorite fairy tale?
He strode forward purposefully, at a measured pace. Ironwood knew the AK-130s inside and out, including their weaknesses. They would focus fire on the nearest target, not caring about who was beyond him. Three more gunshots, three more down. With the others already moving on to the server farm, Ironwood was free to fully sink into Mettle. It told him the only way to survive was to go through the gathering horde of murderbots.
So he would. Failure wasn't an option.
(SDC Headquarters, Entry Plaza)
While Oscar minded Hazel, Jaune consoled a absolutely distraught Weiss, and Penny still contended with that fake, that left Ruby to patrol the perimeter of the combat zone, and make sure that Watts didn't have any other surprises in store for them.
She had Crescent Rose out in its mid-range rifle mode, and was making wide circles around her friends, looking for anything out of the ordinary. It didn't take her long, since the lone Grimm was just there. "Guys, we've got a Grimm. Just one. Some kind of dog Grimm. I'll take care of it." Ruby leveled Crescent Rose at it, and fired.
At the exact moment that Ruby pulled the trigger, the Grimm darted out of the way of the bullet and charged at Ruby. Grrr, it got lucky! Ruby mechashifted Crescent Rose back to scythe mode and slashed at the oncoming Grimm only for it to dart away again. Ruby blinked as she saw it begin to circle her, almost like it was...
Almost like it was hunting her.
Ruby felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up, felt the steady rhythm of her heartbeat quicken. There was something about this Grimm, those weren't just lucky dodges. This Grimm was dangerous. She took one hand off of Crescent Rose, lifted it to her ear, and began to call for help. "Guys, something isn't right about this Gri-" She yelped as the Grimm interrupted her by surging forward and bit her arm. In the split second she had to react, Ruby realized that if her Aura hadn't been up, she would've just lost that arm. The Grimm jerked its head, throwing her to the ground. Unprepared for the sudden change in direction and impact, Ruby lost her grip on Crescent Rose, the weapon skittering distressingly out of reach. "No!" Ruby cried as she kicked futilely at the Grimm ripping her Aura to shreds. It smashed its giant paw into her gut, sending her sprawling.
Enough! I can't let this thing get to Jaune and Weiss! It would tear them apart with the state they're in!
Ruby waited for it to lunge at her, then used her Semblance to dart towards where Crescent Rose had fallen. After scooping up Crescent Rose, she whirled around and shot at the Grimm again, this time her shot hit, taking a chunk out of its shoulder and causing Grimm goo to splatter across the ground.
Wait, that wasn't right.
Ruby looked on in horror as the Grimm convulsed and began to transform. As it began to switch to a bipedal form, she could hear the sound of bones breaking and reforming. Ruby's eyes went wide as she realized what this Grimm was, or more accurately, who it probably was.
"No, no..." Ruby whimpered, "Please let me be wrong." Ruby launched herself at the Grimm, chambering a strike that would cut most Grimm of this size in two. It would've done just that, if the Grimm's arm hadn't stretched out in a way that defied how an arm should move. It lashed out, grabbed Ruby by the head, and smashed her into the pavement.
Ruby groaned has she shook away the impact of that last blow, she would have to use her eyes. There was no other option. She looked up to find the Grimm stalking towards her. "What do you want?" She asked rhetorically, out of reflex more than anything. If it wanted her dead, it had already had plenty of opportunities to accomplish that.
The Grimm stopped, then the cracking of bones resumed, this time from its throat. When it finished, the Grimm opened its mouth and uttered a single word. A word that chilled Ruby to her core.
"Rosebud."
Ruby felt like someone had just ripped the heart out of her chest. From the scant family videos that her father had taken before Summer's alleged death, Ruby knw that her mother's pet name for her was Rosebud. But this... This wasn't supposed to be possible! Raven had said that she had found Summer dead when she had used her Semblance to reach her in Evernight Castle! Had Raven lied? Or... had the process of turning her mother into a Grimm only begun when Raven had barged in?
Ruby scrambled to her feet and ran. She needed to get some distance from this... this abomination!
"Ruby! Look out!"
Ruby looked up to see Penny headed straight for the Grimm, with that fake Penny hot on her heels. Penny fired her lasers with pinpoint accuracy, driving it back. Before she could start a second attack, the fake lashed out with metal tentacles and flung her back into the sky. Ruby took a deep breath. Even if Summer was inside that thing, the woman that Ruby had chosen to emulate in everything she did was long dead. There was no doubt in Ruby's mind that this thing wanted to take her to Salem, so the witch queen could turn Ruby into a Grimm. Ruby's vision began to be rimmed with silver, that wasn't an option. Without her fighting alongside her friends, everyone was going to die. Ruby grit her teeth, planted her feet, and aimed the most threatening glare she could at the Grimm. "Not again." She hissed, "Never again." With that declaration, the world turned to silver.
When Ruby's vision cleared, she was confused. The Grimm was still there. It was shielding its face, sure, but it... She gasped. Did Grimm made from Silver Eyed Warriors have a natural resistance to the Silver Eyes? The Grimm turned back to Ruby, and she took an involuntary step back. Her blast had an effect after all, its head was blown clean off.
Revealing the face of Summer Rose.
The Grimm lashed out with its arm, grabbed Ruby, and pulled her to it. She tried to get away, but it was just... too strong! "Rosebud..."
"Shut up!" Ruby yelled, "You're not her! You're just a Grimm wearing her face!" Ruby fired Crescent Rose, causing the Grimm to back off. She cycled the bolt, then sighted in on its head. Her mother was long dead, all Ruby was doing was helping her to finally rest. The Grimm whipped its arms around, flailing around to try to stop Ruby before she could deliver the death blow. One strike hit the besieged reaper on the side of the head, breaking her Aura. Ruby raised Crescent Rose to block the next strike, only to watch in horror as the Grimm grabbed it by the tang and ripped it from the shaft.
Ruby raised her hand to her ear once more, and screamed into the comm, "HELP! I NEED HELP RIGHT NOW!"
Help was quick in coming, but it wasn't the ever helpful Oscar, nor was the assistance borne by Jaune's iron will. No, help arrived in the form of a woman who had once shoved a copy of Dust for Dummies in her face after their disaster of a first meeting. A woman who turned all of the grief that was currently assaulting her heart into a weapon, a weapon with which she ordered the elements to obey her.
"Get away from her."
Ruby turned, and saw Weiss, her eyes surrounded by ice blue flames. Twin swords of ice materialized in her hands as she darted towards the Grimm, interposing herself between it and Ruby. The Grimm swung at her, but Weiss was faster. She swiped at its arm, and severed it. It let out an inhuman scream and stumbled back. "Enough." Weiss said, her voice cracking. She moved until she was right in front of the Grimm, and stabbed her swords down through its feet, pinning it in place. Then she darted back towards Ruby, and attempted the same maneuver she had attempted on Cinder back at Haven. Blades of ice began to materialize around the Grimm, waiting only for Weiss's order to descend. "Rest in peace." She whispered. The swords fell, impaling the Grimm many times over. Weiss let out a sigh of relief when she saw that the Grimm was finally beginning to dissolve.
"Weiss?"
Weiss turned to look at Ruby, "I'm sorry, Ruby. I've already lost one sister today. I couldn't bear to lose another."
Their attention was drawn upwards by a flash of light. It seemed that Penny had taken a page out of Weiss's book, as she had surrounded the fake with her laser bits, and let her have it. As Copperhead succumbed to the emerald fire and began her final descent, Ruby grinned. "That's my girl."
Weiss noted the tremor in her voice and sighed. "Ruby."
Ruby tilted her head, "Huh? What is it, Weiss?"
Weiss placed a hand on her shoulder, "It's okay if you're not okay. If you can et it out, you probably-."
Ruby shook her head violently. "I can't... if I did that now, I'm not sure if I could put myself back together again."
Weiss leaned forward and drew Ruby into a hug. "I understand, Ruby." She glanced over at where Winter's body lay, "Especially after today."
(SDC Headquarters, Server Farm)
Whitley took a moment to catch his breath after being half shoved, half thrown through the open door to the Server Farm. His heart was threatening to beat out of his chest, and he could see a rip in his pant leg where only moments ago had been a wound from being grazed by a stray bullet. Maybe there's something to this whole Aura thing after all. He looked up, and saw the monolithic servers that gave the room its name stretching out before him. He scrambled to his feet, and ducked behind the nearest one as bullets from the AK-130s that were pursuing them whizzed by.
"Damn it!" Mercury swore as he backed towards the door, firing off Wind Dust shots as he went, "How many of these things are there?"
There was a moment of relative silence, filled with the sounds of combat that Whitley had dubbed NFI, Normal For this Insanity, before Blake spoke up. "All of them!" He heard the door close with a clang, then breathed a sign of relief as he loosened up his tie and cracked his knuckles. Unless Watts had somehow made massive changes to the security system's coding, the system wouldn't allow the AKs to be deployed in the Server Farm. Too much risk of damage. "Whitley?"
"Present!" Whitley called back to Blake. His misgivings about having been a former member of the White Fang had evaporated in the preceding firefight. "About to get started." His fingers danced across the keyboard of the workstation if front of him. "Well then, Watts. I do hope you're prepared to deal with a pissed off nerd with admin privileges!"
Mercury popped his head into the aisle, "Really, kid?"
"That... may have sounded cooler in my head." Whitley admitted.
Blake took the moments of relative peace to scan the room, what would she have been looking for if she had been knocking it over with Adam? Without an inside man, hacking the network like Whitley was trying to do would've taken too much time. With servers as secure as the SDC's there had to be some sort of control room... right? She looked up, saw maintenance catwalks overhead...
There.
Directly in the back of the room and built into the ceiling, there was what had to be a control room or something similar. "Mercury, cover Whitley. I'm going to check out that control room." Without waiting for a response, she drew Gambol Shroud and transformed it to chain sickle mode. Then, with agility that could only be a result of the combination of her natural Faunus abilities and her years of experience in the White Fang, she leapt on top of one of the nearby servers. With practiced ease, she threw her weapon which latched on to the pipes above the maintenance catwalks. She drew in a breath, and ran. When she reached the edge of the server, she jumped and swung up to the maintenance catwalk.
She returned her weapon to its sheath, then made for the control room. While a mad dash would certainly fit with how this mission was going, for now they had time, so there was no reason not to be cautious. Within the space of a few minutes, Blake had made it to the control room. There was a large window to the left of the door, and as she peeked in from the side, Blake had to do a double take. Then she closed her eyes, shook her head, and looked again.
Watts was in the control room.
Blake activated her earpiece. "Watts is in the control room."
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." Mercury replied, "That's too easy. It's got to be a trap."
"Even if it is a trap..." Blake hissed, "We can't pass this up."
With Whitley fully engaged in trying to wrest control of the network back from Watts, they were at a stalemate. Until Ironwood spoke up. "I've finished up with these AK-130s. Flush Watts out, then drive him towards me."
Without another word, Blake slipped under the window and came to the panel for the door lock. After a few brief moments of creative rewiring, the door was unlocked. She rose, drew Gambol Shroud in pistol mode, and made her way inside. The door opened silently, causing Blake to roll her eyes. Of course Jacques Schnee would spare no expense for a door in one of the most secure areas of SDC headquarters, but heaven forbid that he set proper safety guidelines in the Dust mines! A meeting table with papers scattered about dominated the center of the room, while Watts sat at a console in the back of the room, tapping away at his keyboard as he tried to keep Whitley from regaining control. "How did you survive long enough to get around my lockout?" Watts grumbled, "You all should've died in the elevator!"
Blake slipped right behind Watts, and held her gun to the back of his head. As she did so, he froze, giving Whitley the opportunity he needed to work his way into the system. "Arthur Watts, you're under arrest."
Watts raised his hands above his head. "Ah, the princess of Menagerie, doing Atlas's bidding." Watts snarked, "Your parents must be so proud."
Blake winced, of course Watts knew about her parents. "Save the snark for your cell mate. Step away from the computer, leave your weapon, Scroll, and rings on the desk."
Watts reached into his pants pocket and placed his Scroll on the desk. "Now, my weapon I can understand, but why the rings? They're nothing special about them."
Blake growled. Watts was stalling for some reason. "You really think that I don't know Scroll Rings when I see them? Off, now. Or I carry you out of-" Her admonition was cut short by Watts trying to elbow her in the side. She backpedaled by one step, caught his arm and used it as leverage to throw him to the ground. The revolver that Watts had tried to draw flew out of his grip, and out of reach. Even pinned beneath her, Watts still attempted to resist. "How?" He howled, "How did you know I was up here?"
Blake smiled internally, Watts was going to be steamed over this. "I didn't."
Watts looked back at his captor in exasperation, before finally relenting. "Well, in that case... I have a message to Ironwood from the Queen. In case of my failure, of course."
Blake smacked Watts with her pistol causing him to lose consciousness. "You can tell him from a cell." After tying him up with Gambol Shroud, sje got on the comm. "Watts is in custody, I repeat, Watts is in custody."
"Good job, Belladonna." Ironwood said, "Whitley, what's your progress?"
After a slight delay, in which Mercury was no doubt instructing Whitley on how to use his earpiece, the younger Schnee replied. "I have control. The heating systems are back to normal, as is the security system. We should be able to get back to the Manta without any issues."
"Good, I'll rendezvous with you three and we'll all go together." Ironwood said. "Good work, everyone."
(Atlas Academy, Briefing Room)
As was usual with official missions, they ended where they began. Which was important, given the gravity of their situation. "Let's start with the easiest debriefing," Ironwood said, "Team Three, What's your report?"
Clover stood at attention, "As of our departure, approximately fifty percent of Mantle's population has been evacuated to Atlas. Also, all of the Grimm that pose an extreme risk to life have been eliminated." Clover paused for a moment before continuing, "And I have to say, If it wasn't for the kids and their teachers, things would've been a whole lot worse."
"Hah! I'll say!" Elm shouted, slapping Ren on the back, "I've never seen anyone walk up to a Ursa Major and palm strike it through a building!"
Ren coughed from the impact of the playful slap from the much larger woman. "Please, the bragging on my behalf isn't necessary. We had a job to do, so we all did everything in our power to accomplish it."
Ironwood glanced at the reports on the table in front of him. The assistance of the "Beacon Brigade", as his men had taken to calling RWBY, JNPR, and their allies, had been instrumental in securing areas of the city and keeping civilian casualties to a minimum. "Be that as it may, Ren." Ironwood said, "Without you all, things here, and in Argus would have been so much worse." He adjusted his tie, then continued. "Speaking of Mantle, our mission was a success. Whitley was able to regain control over the SDC network, and turn Mantle's heating back on. Also, thanks to the efforts of Blake Belladonna, Arthur Watts is in custody. I have made the decision to continue evacuating Mantle, using the SDC's cargo fleet as temporary mobile evacuations shelters."
Qrow spoke up after taking the first swig from his flask in more than a few hours. "Smart. They have medbays, bathrooms, and living quarters, not to mention they're relatively armored against Grimm attacks."
Ironwood inclined his head. "Indeed." He paused for a moment, "Now, I know this may be difficult for any number of people here, but we all need to know. Team One, your report please."
Jaune stood up and leaned on the chair in front of him. Ironwood looked over the others, Weiss was a mess. Ruby was clinging to the broken pieces of her weapon, Penny had what looked to be a nasty gash in her arm. Oscar was the only one of them that didn't seem any worse for wear, but even then he still had a grim look on his face. "He were met with heavy resistance. Cinder, Adam, Hazel, and a copy of Penny named..."
"Copperhead." Penny prompted.
"... Right. Copperhead. Long story short, Hazel surrendered, Cinder ran, and both Copperhead and Adam are dead."
Weiss spoke, her voice cracking. "Winter died saving me from Adam. She passed the Winter Maiden powers to me."
Ironwood clenched his fist, digging furrows into the table before he realized what he was doing. Winter's death was a blow, but one that they could recover from. "Anything else?"
Jaune slumped his shoulders, "Both Ruby and my weapons are broken and need repairs. If we even have time." He added bitterly.
Ironwood sighed, "We do have time, thank the Gods. Watts had a message on his Scroll meant for me, from Salem. I'll save you Salem's grandstanding, and tell you the timeline. She's giving us two days and one night, starting tomorrow. She will attack Atlas in force at dawn on the third day."
"Why wait? It makes no sense!" Harriet hissed, "Why not just crush us now?"
Vine finally spoke up. "Fear. She wanted the refugees to turn Atlas into a pressure cooker of negative emotions, but thanks to us it's a pressure cooker of something else. Hope. Salem either has no idea of the change to her plan, or doesn't care."
Ruby fidgeted. "Wait, there's something else. There was this... Super-Grimm and it attacked me."
Ironwood blinked, "Well, Super-Grimm or no, you're still here and it's not so-"
"SHUT UP!" Ruby yelled, "MY MOM WAS IN IT!"
Marrow interposed himself between Ruby and Ironwood, "Whoa. Let's all calm down. We've got the facts, that's all we needed here. We have two days to prepare for Salem, and we'll need them. First step is a damn good night's sleep. Come on, get going."
Ironwood raised an eyebrow at Marrow as RWBY and JNPR filed out. "I don't recall dismissing them, Marrow."
Marrow shrugged. "They're just kids, General."
Glynda finally spoke up. "I suggest the rest of us get some sleep as well. We aren't going to get anything accomplished while we're all strung out like this."
As much as Mettle told him that his one-time fiancé was wrong, Ironwood knew that there was time for rest. "Agreed. Everyone, get some rest. You've earned it."
(Atlas Academy, Jaune and Weiss's Room)
Weiss had removed her ruined dress and replaced it with Atlas Academy pajamas. Now she was on a call with Mantle Armor Works, a small arms and armor manufacturer that specialized in custom jobs and also happened to be a subsidiary of the SDC. "You have my measurements, yes? Good, thank you. What about my fiancée's sword? is there anything that can be done?" She listened to the hurried explanation from the associate she was talking to, then nodded with satisfaction. "Good, he'll be very happy to hear that. I'm going to need a rush on both orders. I understand that will be expensive, but I need both done yesterday, if you catch my meaning." She paused for a moment before saying goodbye and hanging up.
The only thing that was keeping her going at the moment was focusing on what needed doing. New combat gear for her, repairs to Crocea Mors... now she had to fix her hair, cut away what the battles at the SDC had ruined and hope there was something salvageable left.
"Weiss, you need to rest."
Weiss ignored him. She couldn't stop. If she stopped, she'd start thinking about Winter. That could wait until after Salem was defeated. "I'm fine, Jaune." She reached for the hairbrush...
Winny, can you do my hair for the party?
Of course, sister. In fact, I have a present for you.
The front that Weiss had been able to put up since Winter's death, the combination of adrenaline and anger that had enabled her to keep functioning long enough to kill Adam and the Hound, as they had taken to calling it, crumbled faster than a cookie in Ruby's grip in the face of her memories of her sister. She keened, her wails bouncing off of the walls of the room that her and Jaune had been assigned. Weiss was only vaguely aware of the big strong arms that wrapped around her from behind and gently rocked her back and forth. She clutched at him, as if he would be ripped away at any second. She looked up at him, and saw those big blue eyes, hooded with concern. "J-Jaune, promise me that if we do die... you won't die before me. I-"
"No." Jaune interjected, "We're going to beat Cinder, and we're going to beat Salem. And then we're going to graduate from Beacon, and then we're going to come back here to Atlas so you can take over the SDC, and we're going to get that apartment together. Just like we planned, you hear me?"
Weiss nodded but didn't say anything, words being beyond her for the moment. "Here," Jaune said, "Let me help with your hair."
She relented to him. After all, she certainly wasn't in any shape to be objective about what hair was damaged and what wasn't. With the utmost of care, Jaune brushed her singed and burnt hair, and with skillful application of scissors that could've only been taught by years of experience borne of the whims of seven sisters he salvaged what he could. When he was done, Weiss's hair was a good deal shorter than it had been before, sitting at shoulder length. She sighed. "Thank you, Jaune."
She turned to him just in time to see him cut off his Warrior's Wolftail. "Jaune? Why did you-"
The human embodiment of a golden retriever in front of her shrugged. "It didn't feel right for me to keep mine. Now come on, we both need rest."
Weiss got up from her chair, and made her way towards the bed. When she saw Jaune take his shirt off, another memory of her sister came to the fore.
Weiss, if you find yourself falling in love with someone, do not hold back. That is the way of things among Hunters. When each day could be your last, you should never leave regrets behind.
"Jaune," Weiss said, her voice descending to a needy whisper, "I need you. Tonight."
Jaune blinked. "Weiss, you're too emotionally compromised, we shouldn't..."
She emphatically shook her head as she stalked towards him. "You're right. We shouldn't... but I don't care. We're both alive, and since it's an open question if we'll stay that way, I need to revel in it tonight."
Jaune extended a hand to her.
She practically pounced on him.
A/N: I'm sorry.
So, Adam. Why is he so much more powerful here than in chapter 15? Well, that's simple. He didn't have "Kill the Schnee" Tunnel Vision here, which means his full set of abilities is on display, instead of being blinded by his rage.
Jaune versus Adam is a matchup that's always fascinated me. It's the classic argument of what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immoveable object. Another thing, note that Jaune didn't actually win. If Adam wasn't interrupted by a flying Boarbatusk, Jaune WOULD have died.
And Weiss is the Winter Maiden. There's going to be some big angst from Jaune next chapter on that subject, for obvious reasons. But here, he's just focusing on making sure that Weiss is alright.
Next Chapter: Weapon repairs, Ironwood and Jaune plan their strategy for the final battle, Weiss learns how to use the Maiden Powers, and everyone comes together for a wedding.