Emergency Warning:
Due to unprecedented circumstances, a worldwide alert is now being made to all countries in the globe of a massive blizzard occurring. The cause is unknown, and scientists alongside meteorologists have concluded this is not a natural weather formation. While uncertain if this weather is being caused by a villain such as the self-proclaimed God Crom, the cold is very real. All residents are to start gathering supplies to warm up your homes and ensure your safety. Companies and Organizations are sending supplies to those who lack it.
I repeat, this is a warning-
It was getting colder. A lot colder.
Aura is good for many things, and that included allowing the body to withstand certain temperatures. However, even Professionally Trained Huntsmen could die if they allow themselves to stay in the cold or heat for too long. Aura was good, but even it can't protect the body from such a drastic drop in temperature perfectly.
"Man it's freezing here." Mercury shivered as he sat down in the cabin. Doing his best to light up a fighter with Emerald gathering wood. "Thank goodness we found an empty cabin. Even better, I doubt whoever owns this will bother coming here."
"Probably best if they don't." Emerald places the logs down, and lets Mercury use a small lighter to start burning it. The embers are small, but soon getting bigger and bigger. Already feeling just a bit warmer just from seeing it. "After all, if they come, that thing will just kill it."
Outside the cabin, the Hound was relaxing. Now fully regenerated and simply letting it's human pets warm up, with the Grimm in this area now guarding the place just in case. In other words, this place was safe for now.
"Uh-huh. Whatever." Mercury puts his hands closer to the flames and gives a sign of relief when he felt his hands warming up. Emerald saw this and got a bit closer, feeling the same relief at the heat.
"I found some sweaters and other supplies." Emerald told him. "That should help us out for a bit."
"Maybe. But for how long?" Mercury asks. "We can't stay here forever. This place isn't going to protect us for long."
"Well, we can't exactly go to town." Emerald reminds him of what happened just two days prior. "Those jerks are still hunting us down."
"Man." Mercury whined a bit as the heat from the fire finally washed over his body. Yet even then it did little to soothe his mood. "While we've been hunted before, at least we had Cinder and her boss helping us out. Now, we only have fido and his friends and no secret base to go back to."
After the Fall of Beacon, the two criminals were forced away. But by being affiliated with Cinder, they could easily escape and go back into the Land of Darkness, an untouchable location with nothing to fear. Now, they had to rely on that freak Grimm to escape and could only have the necessity of survival and nothing more. Heck, it was amazing that they haven't been caught, especially by that group of trained Huntsmen and that bitch leading them.
'Huntsmen. What a pain.' Ever since he was a boy, his asshole of a father trained him in ways where he could deal with them. While he was a failure of a father and a person, the moves and tricks Mercury had been taught did work. However, while Mercury was a great fighter, ultimately he was trained as an Assassin. Meaning fighting multiple Huntsmen was a no go unless he had allies or Grimm.
If it wasn't for the Hound, while Mercury could have killed one or two of them, he and Emerald would have been caught. Which means only one thing.
"Hm?" Emerald then saw Mercury get up and suddenly start doing some pull-ups. "What are you doing?"
"Keeping in shape." Mercury told her. "Haven't had the time since we've been moving, but now we should get some exercise." He then looked at her with a serious look. "We're going to face more enemies sooner or later, and for that we need to keep our skills sharp. There might be a time when fido can't help us with his little friends."
Emerald...couldn't deny that.
It was a surprise when those soldiers came. Even more so when they ran away and saw the Hound dealing with multiple Huntsmen. Emerald was confident they could take some of them on. But she's no fool in believing they would have won if the Hound hadn't been there. Especially against the woman who so easily dealt with Mercury. Where he had been defiant, for some reason she couldn't even think of facing her for some reason. Like all her courage to fight her was just...gone.
'Yeah…' Emerald thought as she got up and placed herself a few meters away from Mercury. Ready to do some training for herself. 'If I want to find Cinder, I can't get caught. And that means, I need to train.'
So with that, the two teens began working themselves to be ready for the future. All while still wondering where Cinder and the rest were.
"So you've come back." Where the heist team have returned with Salem naturally upset. Hazel and Cinder were bowed before her with Watts by the side a bit nervous. Bandit Princess and Tyrian nowhere to be seen at the time. Salem was silent for a moment, slowly opening her eyes to look at Hazel and Cinder who were bowing to her while Edel was on the far side of the room. "Before we begin, I would like to know the status of our patients. Dr. Watts?"
Watts quickly cleared his throat. "Well, Bandit Princess has a few minor scratches and a high fever that she caught when she was exposed to Katz's Semblance. I read online and discovered Katz's Semblance induces terrifying visions to anyone he makes eye contact with, allowing him to torture them with any number of scenarios he can dream up. According to a few articles if the connection between him and his victims is interrupted they instantly contract a high level fever. As a doctor, my recommendation is that she be put on bed rest until it is broken since I'm afraid she won't be of much use in her current condition."
"And Tyrian?"
"Well aside from the most obvious being his tail being bisected he has scorch marks from fire, electricity, stab wounds, cuts, a few cracked ribs, shrapnel embedded in his face and skin. I would be surprised if it was anyone but him to survive such wounds. While his recovery will be quicker, it's obvious he will need a replacement for his tail. I've already given him some pain killers and removed the shrapnel from his face and luckily there were none in his eyes. I have a workshop already prepared to create a new tail." Watts reported.
"Good. Now then..." Salem looked to Hazel and Cinder. "I want to show you both something."
She held up a tablet, showing several news reports of the plane crash with a recording of Tyrian and Katz's battle shown. Soon after, it showed none other than Tyrians face with, for some strange reason, a new name and an obviously fake background that depicted him as a rogue Satyra agent now wanted with everybody watching knowing he was apparently a Rank 4 criminal. Hazal and Cinder both knew what this meant.
"Start anywhere you like but in the end it's all the same. Ignoring the fact that we could not have known this Katz had already hijacked the plane before you arrived he was just one being and yet had managed to thoroughly defeat almost all of you. Despite his injuries at the very least Tyrian lasted longer than all of you combined." Salem said, her voice and tone growing softer but both could feel the anger as she spoke. "Four of you, with each of you skilled and strong enough that one Mobian shouldn't have mattered. Not against your strength, Hazel or your ruthlessness Cinder."
Hazel had a worried look on his face while Cinder was actually feeling afraid.
"Bandit Princess may not have lasted as long as you two but she already paid for her mistake. Tyrian managed to fight Katz to a standstill and all we have to show for it is this." Salem held up the Dust bag. "One. Single. Bag."
She threw it onto the floor in front of Hazel and Cinder.
"Not even close to powering Watts' machine and it is unlikely any other cargo flights will be as easy to take as this one. In other words our plan to return home has been set back a great deal." Salem narrowed her eyes at them. "How is it that in our world we have operated with great impunity but here...First there were those spies in GrimmFall who tailed you, the encounter with Living Bullet, the visit from Satyra and now this Katz. I trust you all to operate with a sense of stealth and in the wake of what was supposed to be a simple heist you get outsmarted by a single feline, the plane destroyed and Tyrian's face now on public news."
The two before her couldn't exactly deny these things. Back on Remnant, they could hide and deal with most threats. Here, it was, well, rather zigzagged. By no means were they well known and it wasn't as if they were weak. But time and again has shown that this world has some strange yet oddly strong individuals that have challenged them time and again. The two themselves also feeling a bit of their pride hurt as they had been defeated so easily in seconds compared to Tyrian who managed to get a draw between him and Katz.
"I have nothing to say." Hazel finally speaks up. "This was our lost and I accept any punishment."
"Likewise." Cinder follows.
Salem just sighs and then waves them off. "Go train yourselves and get ready for the next time." She tells them. "I'll let this through since this incident was unprecedented, especially with this Katz. But next time, I want you to last longer than ten seconds. Understood."
"Yes ma'am." The two said before leaving to do as she commanded. Leaving the room with only Salem, Edel, and Watts left behind. The Queen of the Grimm narrowing her eyes in slight frustration at this delay. Knowing that it won't be easy to get more Dust like this for a while or maybe even never, meaning they had to rely on the bandits getting the Dust found here in the Wilds.
'Which obviously won't be easy.' Salem thought, knowing these bandits were killers first, and not trained miners. More likely to kill themselves and destroy the Dust instead of mining ir properly, with the Grimm being obviously unsuited for the task. Honestly, all she wished for was to re-create the portal and then go back to Remnant, not stay trapped in this unknown world where the risks outweigh the benefits.
"Watts," Salem then turned to the scientist who stood ready to answer. "Just how much power is needed to charge the portal when you finish it."
"The amount needed to breach a hole in space time and stabilize it, well…" Watts walked to the bag full of Dust and while high-quality, wasn't even close to what he needed. "I'd need about over a hundred bags of these." Salem had to resist the urge to kill someone outside the base.
"Fine." Salem says as she was slightly upset by the high demand needed. "Get back to work and tell the bandits if they find any loose Dust outside this town, to put it away into storage. Also, start getting the heaters ready. You all need to stay warm somehow."
"Understood ma'am." Watts bowed and then left. Not wishing to stay any longer as he could tell Salem was still upset nor did he want to stay with that creepy false child who sucked his life force. Once he left, only Edel and Salem were left. The witch herself standing up, and moving towards the clear windows where she saw the town and beyond that, the Wilds.
A nice place this land is, but it wasn't home. Funny. She never thought she'd be home-sick, but maybe that was why she wanted to have the dimensional portal ready. Because even if she never admitted it, she missed Remnant due to whatever small piece of humanity she retains in her. Regardless, for now she's here and must bide her time. No need to get impatient or angry.
'Even though Tyrian is known, nobody actually knows where he is.' The local law and heroes had no idea where he, and by extension, her and her followers were actually at. As such, they still had an advantage in this game of hide-and-seek. And while a shame they couldn't get the Dust, Watts wasn't near finishing the portal just yet. While the town had most of the supplies he needed, it'll take from weeks to months to actually construct it all by himself. Seeing as the bandits would sooner ruin the parts they needed than aid in the construction, thus making Watts have to build it by himself.
So while things were troubling now, by no means was everything delayed. In fact, may as well check on her spy. Focusing her powers, she then decided to listen to see if Living Bullet was doing anything of note.
"Zzzzzzz"
Or...he was sleeping right now. Even great heroes needed their rest, so she supposed that wasn't much of a surprise. Guess Salem could just read while she was waiting. The books of this world were as nice as the ones back home, so she went to a table to read a story where she had left off, and would do some work later on.
"Sa...lem…" She then turned her head where she saw Edel, still in her corner. Though it seems she had something to say. "You...eed...Dust..?"
Putting the book down, Salem said, "Turn around and speak more clearly."
The girl obeyed and nodded. Then spoke once more saying, "You need...more...Dust?"
Yes she did. While she didn't need to hear the obvious again, she decided to see where this was going. "I do."
Edel blinked, then lifted her pearl. An image popping up. Interested, Salem walked closer where she finally saw the Pearl showing something. Particularly, a building which then zoomed in showing rows of Dust. Just what was needed to fuel the portal once it was done.
"Where is this?" She then asks, wondering if this was a case of too good to be true. She experienced quite a bit of that. Biggest being escaping her tower only to still be isolated after the rebellion.
Instead of answering, Edel 'zoomed' the image back showing that the building itself is near another location. A different city with a sign on a billboard. It said one thing. Denver.
Smiling, Salem knew what to do. It has been a while since she moved on her own.
"I'm sorry, a Fallen is coming here?" The wife of the Dragon of Denver, Tina Matthews says in disbelief.
"That is correct." Sebben tells Tina, understanding why she's surprised. "One is coming, and with a sizable force as well. I have already contacted a certain Team who will come and help you out, and have informed those like Living Bullet and Krunk if they wish to help."
"Sending in even some of the Justice Friends huh. What, don't trust in my skill?" She playfully asks.
"They are there for the Fallen to be more precise, though I admit with this weather, they may be unable to help." Snow was slowly falling, and the fastest man alive couldn't exactly run easily on snow or he'd trip and fall. As for Krunk, his jumping, while good, wasn't that fast. Plus all planes and jets were being halted for the time being because of that Ice Queen when she threw her temper tantrum.
"Got it. I'll try playing it safe when this Fallen comes with whatever crew she has. Though tell me this, why are they coming?" Denver didn't exactly have anything special to warrant such an action. Sammael busy enough with others schemes to care about Denver all of a sudden, especially since her husband wasn't even here but a country away.
"To be honest, I actually don't know." Now that was a surprise.
"Didn't that eye of yours tell you?" Tina remarks, since she was certain he only knew a Fallen was coming here because of that Spiral Gem.
"It only showed me of the attack, not of their objective." Sebben tells her, explaining that he didn't see everything. "However, be careful. Because during their attack, the Fallen leading them destroys a building that causes a massive explosion, killing countless."
"I'll be ready then. And you say they're bringing friends."
"Mostly crude individuals, but also a small but elite group of Rank 4's that you should be ready for. I'm already sending you the information of what I know about them." That she did. No doubt Living Bullet will also receive that information who'll tell Krunk since, er, his hand usually crushed phones.
"Got it. I'll wait for you back-up, then I'll deal with the Fallen." Tina then smirked. "They're messing with the wrong city."
Yep. SALEM will get involved at long last. I decided it's time for her to shine and start her new plan to gather the Dust needed for the portal. Of course, trouble will hit her, literally. But she's a grave threat for a REASON, and will show why she shouldn't be messed with as well.