Chapter 42 – Honest Soul…
Ruby
She was ready, but that didn't stop her heart from hammering so hard and fast.
She wasn't stood with Pyrrha, but the Spartan was laid across the rocks with Ira Red and Crocea Mortem combined into their Rifle Form. She was aiming down at the Cabin where that massive glowing purple crystal protruded from the ground, the same one that Cinder had pointed out before going off with Emerald and Mercury to rescue Amber. Ruby walked down the rocks towards Penny, who was sitting on one of the rocks. She looked more afraid than Ruby was.
Hell, they were all afraid, no doubt about that.
Ruby sat down next to her and affectionately held her hand. "You okay?" Ruby asked her, concern ever present in her silver eyes. Penny exhaled with a tremble.
"It's Salem…" Penny said, shaking her head. "… do you really think we can defeat her?"
Ruby sighed and shook her head as well. "I don't know. I won't lie to you, Penny… I know you'll see right through it. I really don't know if we can win this fight… but… we have to try. It's all we can hope for now." Ruby explained, and Penny nodded her head.
"If Cinder can do it, despite her circumstances, then so can we." She exhaled, hardening herself and tightening her grip on Ruby's hand. The two pressed their heads together, then Ruby reached into her bag and she pulled out the letter from Qrow.
Still sealed.
"Are you… gonna read it?" Penny asked, and Ruby closed her eyes, then tucked it back away in the bag.
"If we survive this? Then I will." She answered, and that made Penny giggle.
"That's one way to motivate yourself to survive." Penny joked. Ruby looked past her and at Pyrrha, seeing her not taking her eyes off the cabin, rifle aimed down at the porch. They knew her mind still had Jaune on it, questioning how Salem could have done this.
As Pyrrha stared down at her, she sensed the Brothers' Grimm watching over her. She could feel their fear, and it was stronger than her own. Right there were the Relics, all four of them… but she hadn't activated them yet.
But once she does?
The Brothers will have no choice but to be called back to Remnant… the question was merely how long would it take once combined? Would it be instantaneous? Or could they resist the call before it forced them back down to Remnant?
Damn fools… made a weapon that could kill Salem… but the only way that could work is if it could kill a God… like them.
Maybe you should have considered the consequences of giving a broken woman immortality, huh?
Should have maybe not made her immortality match your own.
Pyrrha's stare turned when she heard something approaching them. Ruby stood up with Penny as they saw Cinder flying towards their position. She descended and landed before the two of them, her Exo-Skeleton creating a loud thud as she landed. The mechanical bones creaked as she stood tall. Ruby approached her and pressed one hand against her shoulder. "Amber?" She asked.
"She's okay… we got her out of there." Cinder assured, the news brought relief to the entire team. "Mercury and Emerald are getting her to safety… there's nothing holding me back now." She promised, which made Ruby smile. But that smile faded and Cinder could see the trepidation in her eyes.
"Good… we're gonna need that fire." Ruby said as she walked with Penny. "Come on, you'll see."
Cinder followed them up the ridge and stood with Pyrrha, and saw Salem sat on the porch of her old home. She was fiddling with some pebbles she found on the floor. Just as Cinder predicted, she was right here. "What's she been doing?" Cinder asked.
Pyrrha shrugged, still aiming at her. "Absolutely nothing."
"We heard her speaking with somebody when we approached, and some loud crashing like she was throwing things at something. But when we got to the top, she was calm and just sat there." Penny explained, crossing her arms.
"And the Relics?" Cinder asked.
"All of them are there. Creation is leant against the wall. I don't know what she's waiting for." Ruby explained. Cinder could see the four of them there, just sat on the floor like they weren't such godly devices.
"She's got something up her sleeve. She always does." Pyrrha assured.
"So I guess we all know this is definitely a trap, right?" Cinder presumed.
"Yeah… but to be honest? I don't really care anymore." Ruby shrugged, grabbing Black Thorn and drawing them, spinning the Volcanic Pistols through her fingers. A smirk grew across the side of Cinder's face.
"Good… I was hoping you'd say that." Her amber eye shone bright and ignited, the sky darkened above her with a loud clap of thunder. She opened her palms, constructing the obsidian axes inside. Penny's back opened and the Grave Dust poured out, solidifying into Floating Array, which rotated behind her back.
Pyrrha stood tall and disconnected the two blades, holding them both in her hands. "Let's finish this." Cinder stated with a scowl.
Salem continued to fiddle with the stones she found, then her glowing red eyes glanced upwards towards the team made their approach. The four women surrounded Salem and were always at the ready. Salem smirked, still in her black dress as she rolled the pebble around her palm, staring at it.
"But perhaps victory is in the simpler things you've long forgotten. Things that require a smaller… more honest soul." Salem recited, staring at Ruby as she got into position.
Salem inhaled before speaking again. "I had hoped that Ozma could have understood the need… for the Gods to be vanquished. That he could see my vision, that only in a world where their blood has been spilled could a new and better world be created." Salem explained, turning and staring at Cinder as she revealed herself around one of the glowing purple crystals. "I wanted to create a world where we could reclaim the power that was lost. And for a time… I tried to see things Ozma's way. That we could atone in the eyes of the Gods. But the thousands of years of solitude have shown me… that this world can never be free from them. This world will forever be under their watchful eye, and the second that things slip out of the way they want things to be… they will erase it." Salem stated, looking at Ruby.
"But killing them will be worse than anything they could inflict on us. They're the reason we exist… whether or not they deserve to die." Ruby stated.
"Perhaps… or perhaps life is not something we should cling to so tightly." Salem stated with a chuckle, her eyes glowing with anger. "Remnant… it will never be whole… it doesn't matter who leads. There will always be those who are unable to accept unity… like all of you. And that fact alone… means the Gods will destroy Remnant, anyway." Salem stated. Pyrrha shook her head and gritted her teeth.
"So you'd let the entire world suffer a fate worse than death, anyway? For what? Revenge?" Pyrrha questioned.
"Call it revenge… call it justice… it matters not." Salem stated, looking at the stone in her hand. "Because finally… after all this time… I am now certain of what I must do." She said, crushing the stone and letting the powder fall through her fingers. She stood up and turned the Relics, raising her hand and causing the four of them to all float and rotate around as she walked to the Double-Edged Sword stabbed into the porch.
"I will call the Gods back to this forsaken land, and with the Relic of Destruction – I shall cut them down. Either freeing this world from their control or destroying it all… and granting me the rest I seek. It matters not to me which ending happens… so long as the blood of the Gods is spilled on this very soil… my purpose shall be complete." Salem explained, and they watched as she tapped the ground with her sword.
Black smoke billowed around her, forming into ornate white armour around her body, forming spiked shoulder pauldrons and impressive chest plate and long red cape. Behind her, the four relics activated, the three of them surrounding the Sword of Creation as the pommel slammed down into the living room of her home, and the blade pointed up toward the sky.
Team C.P.P.R's eyes widened as a massive bright beam of white light shot upwards through the roof and collided into the shattered moon, hanging over their heads. The beam spiralled with white energy like a tornado, completely eviscerating the house, leaving only the base behind. And they saw the fragments slowly become wrapped with golden matter, slowly pulling the moon back together.
With the glowing sun behind it… soon to form…
… an Eclipse.
Ruby narrowed her silver eyes at Salem. "Even after all these years… you're still the same selfish girl who tried to trick the gods."
"It is not a thing I can expect… such a smaller and more honest soul… to understand." Salem stated, spinning her sword through her fingers, eyes glowing and igniting with red flames, activating the combined Maiden Powers of Spring and Summer within her.
Cinder roared with fury as she blasted towards Salem with the rest of Team C.P.P.R. Ruby leapt up into the air with Black Thorn, going directly for the head and Penny shot upwards as well whilst Pyrrha sprinted at Salem. Salem swung her sword into the obsidian axe Cinder held so hard it shattered against her sword, then she kicked her in the chest before spinning around and punching Pyrrha in the face and slashing Ruby out of the air. Penny immediately fired her powerful beam of green energy at Salem, but she raised her sword, refracting the beam across the sky, burning through one of the crystals, sending it toppling into the black sand.
The massive crystal's impact made the ground quake, but Penny continued to hover above Salem, firing her laser constantly at the Dark Monarch. Salem gritted her teeth in anger and opened her hand, forming a spear of lightning and launched it towards her. Penny's green eyes widened, and she gasped, hit in the shoulder by the magical bolt and sent crashing down into the sand. Salem spun her sword through her fingers, turning to see both Ruby and Pyrrha charging towards her. Salem raised the sword, blocking both attacks from the Dual Wielding Huntresses, catching Black Thorn's curved blades.
Ruby swung herself forward, flipping through the air and thrusting both boots into Salem's jaw. She grunted, staggering away from the Rose, before rotating around on the spot, slashing across Ruby's legs, knocking her off her feet. Pyrrha launched Ira Red into Salem's chest, making her stumble back. The blade stabbed clean through parts of the armour, but she didn't even react to the blade that punctured through her body. The Spartan leapt towards her with Crocea Mortem, held above her head to drive down into Salem's face.
Salem smacked the sword from her hand with the huge double-edged sword and caught Pyrrha by the throat. Salem slammed Pyrrha against the ground with substantial force and stamped down at her head with her boot. Ruby shot around her and hooked her scythe around her through. The blade cut into the white skin and black blood oozed out. Salem snarled and turned as Ruby swung off the queen's back. She dropped and rolled across the sand, kicking up the black grains off her long cloak of red.
Salem stabbed her sword into the floor and raised her hands, forming multiple red glyphs in the shape of the Salem Eye, which all shot balls of pure magical power towards her. Ruby gasped and sprinted away as the projectiles shot at her, crashing into the ground and creating huge elemental explosions. Fire, lightning, and ice erupted at her heels as she fled. Ruby transformed into a cyclone of petals, zooming around another tower of purple crystalline matter, and she threw herself towards Salem.
Ruby tackled her and they both crashed through one of the crystals.
Penny climbed out of the crater where she landed and turned to Cinder. "Cinder! I have an idea!" She said, and her back opened up, revealing one of her energy cores. "Shoot some lightning in there! It will boost me up!" Penny called out, and Cinder nodded, cracking her neck.
Ruby swiftly slashed Salem down the arm, cutting down the middle and spilling thick black blood across the floor, but Salem hardly even reacted and grabbed her by the mouth. She swung her upwards, extending her arm like that of a Nuckelavee, tossing her high in the air, and as Ruby flipping through the sky, Salem slung a fireball upwards towards her. The fireball detonated on impact, blowing Ruby higher, and she came crashing back down.
Salem held out her hand and the sword she stabbed into the ground came flying back into her palm. Pyrrha spun her swords through her fingers, then turned to see the clouds of lightning crackling above Cinder. A smirk grew on Pyrrha's face, causing Salem to turn and see the lightning shoot down into Cinder, charging her up. Cinder roared with rage and blasted the lightning into Penny's core. The lightning charged up her core swiftly, causing her eyes to glow, then the panels closed up to protect the energy inside.
Her swords transformed and spun in a ring as they aimed at Salem. The Dark Queen's eyes widened upon realising. Penny fired a colossal beam of green matter at Salem, and she raised her enormous sword, spinning it on the spot with her magical telekinetic powers, making it spin like the rotor blades of a helicopter. The beam impacted the spinning sword, melting the sand into glass beneath Salem's feet, and it pushed her across the surface of the land slowly. Salem growled in anger as she fought back, holding her ground against Penny.
Penny continued to fire, but Salem couldn't predict Cinder to come flying over her with her axe in hand. Cinder drove the enormous blade directly into Salem's throat, nearly cleaving her head clean off. Salem grunted in pain, and her attack was just as Penny ceased her beam, falling to one knee. Cinder pushed the blade deeper into Salem's neck, forcing down so hard that Salem fell to one knee.
Salem responded by punching Cinder in the face so hard it threw her away. She grabbed the axe in her neck and effortlessly ripped it out, letting it crumble in her palm. Pyrrha jumped off one of the rocks and slashed downwards at Salem, causing her to stumble backwards a couple of steps, but Pyrrha didn't slow down in her attacks. She cut across the heel of the Queen and when she fell forward, Pyrrha jumped and flipped backwards, kicking Salem up the jaw, landing perfectly at the end.
Salem crashed against the ground but as Pyrrha went for a second attack, Salem got back up and dug her hand into the ground and hurled a rock towards her. Penny soared forward, spinning Floating Array forward like a giant saw blade, cutting it clean in two. Both of them attacked Salem at the same time, Pyrrha thrusting forward and driving both swords into her chest whilst Penny fired her swords downwards, stabbing them into Salem's shoulders. She landed behind her and swung Salem into the rocks as hard as she could.
Salem grunted as she crashed against the wall, and Pyrrha charged forward and drove Ira Red into Salem's neck, pinning her there with gritted teeth. Salem raised her hand and her sword came flying back towards her. Pyrrha rolled aside, ripping the sword to the side and spilling more black blood across the floor. But as she readied her stance, Salem swung upwards with the sword, scraping up Pyrrha's armoured chest. Sparks flew high, and she bounced across the floor. Penny launched herself forward and kicked Salem in the face with her jet boots, burning the side of Salem's face. Penny flipped backwards and slashed her many swords at Salem.
The Dark Queen deflected the incoming swords with hers and ran her hand across the tremendous weapon as it floated towards her, blasting red flames across it and throwing it towards her. Penny gasped, and she slid onto her knees, only to get punched in the face by Salem. She dropped to the ground as Salem called the weapon back into her palm. Salem stamped onto Penny's throat, pushing her against the floor, and raised the sword to impale her.
Until Cinder blasted into Salem's side, blowing her away from Penny.
Ruby groaned as she rubbed her head and lifted her head to see the Relic of Creation right in front of her whilst they fought. She got up and walked towards it, reaching out for it, but the raw power and energy coming off the Relic burned her hand and even blew her away. She tumbled across the sand and stared up at the moon.
"Gods… if that becomes whole… the Grimm will be unstoppable…" she stammered, turning to Salem.
She stared at the Relic of Destruction and approached it, but it was still within that field of energy. "Damn it… only person who can grab that thing… is her…"
Behind her, Salem and Cinder continued to battle. Cinder grabbed Salem by the face and smashed her cheek against the ground as she flew her across the battlefield. Salem's face became sliced up as sharp rocks hidden in the black sand chipped away at her, smothering black blood over her. Salem dug her hand into the ground until she caught a submerged rock, suddenly stopping and causing Cinder to be thrown forward. She tumbled across the sand but glared at Salem, who stood tall.
Half of Salem's face had been eroded down to the skull… and even then… her flesh and skin still returned within seconds, like nothing happened. Cinder formed her axes and sprinted at Salem, throwing one of them at her. Salem deflected the incoming axe with her sword and immediately threw the sword sideways. It spun once again like a saw blade towards her. Cinder dropped to the ground and jumped up, cutting Salem's arm off and swinging around towards the side of Salem's head.
Salem caught the axe with her hand, and the blade cut deep into it, but she crushed the head of it anyway whilst the other arm swiftly extended from the stump. She punched Cinder in the face and threw her into the rocks, so hard that it dazed her. Salem punched her twice in the face before throwing her into one of the crystals. The impact made her aura flicker and Cinder groaned, trying to form her axe as Salem flew towards her.
Salem stomped down on Cinder's chest, pushing her against the rocks and called her sword back into her hand and drove it down towards her sternum. Cinder gasped, having to catch the sword with her hands, growling in pain. Salem smirked sinisterly as she pushed the blade closer and closer towards Cinder's heart.
"Choosing to die in combat rather than from a sickness… I always admired your drive, Cinder Fall." Salem chuckled.
The blade was now touching her sternum, and her grip on the blade was slipping. Suddenly a massive blast of purple flames erupted behind her and a gigantic bolt of purple energy shot into Salem's shoulder, causing her to stagger away from Cinder, turning to see…
… Pyrrha.
Her aura was aflame in purple energy, and she stared at her hands, turning to see the Brother of Darkness behind her, extending his wings. She raised her blades and gritted her teeth. Salem could not see his manifestation that was in her head… but she saw the power… and knew it was him.
Cinder chuckled. "Took the bastards long enough to help again…"
Salem silenced her by kicking her in the face, sending her crashing through the rocks. Salem clenched her fist and sprinted towards Pyrrha, who ran at her as well. Salem swung the sword towards her but Pyrrha closed her fist and punched Salem directly in the face, creating a flash of purple energy, blowing Salem back down against the ground. Pyrrha landed and turned to see the Brother of Darkness beside her.
"You must not allow her to summon us back! We can feel the call!" Darkness warned as he floated around her.
Pyrrha ducked down as Salem blasted lightning from her hand at her head, then she jumped and slashed down the side of Salem's face, cutting a deep gash in her face. As Salem stumbled aside, Pyrrha punched the ground, and darkness channelled his Godly Power through her body, blasting black fire up from the ground. The explosion staggered Salem, and then she crossed her arms together and roared with fury, creating a powerful pulse of energy from her body.
The power of darkness burned across Salem's body and she stumbled to the side just as Ruby launched herself into Salem's right and drove Black Thorn through her cheek. She slammed her down against the floor and dragged her into Pyrrha's boot, kicking her in the mouth. Ruby ripped the blade through the mouth and caused Salem's jaw to dangle from black flesh. Salem spluttered blood and snarled with rage, punching Ruby against pieces of the roof of her old home, before catching Ira Red and yanking it from Pyrrha's grip.
She tossed it aside and punched Pyrrha in the gut, before slashing her up the chest and caught her by her red ponytail, smashing her face against the rocks so hard it made her red aura flicker slightly. "Even with their feigned assistance, you are still no match!" Salem roared, punching Pyrrha into the rocks so hard they exploded.
Salem gripped her sword tightly as Ruby suddenly jumped behind her, driving her Scythe into Salem's shoulder. Salem spun around and smacked the flat side of her sword into Ruby's face, knocking her against the ground. The Dark Queen gripped Ruby by her hair and punched her in the face, sending Ruby flying up into the air. Massive black wings sprouted from her back and she flew after the Silver Eyed Huntress, grabbing her by the throat as they soared through the sky, punching her relentlessly in the face, before kicking her in the chest.
Ruby shot back down towards the ground, passing by a sharp cliff edge. She swung Black Thorn into the side of the cliff, dragging it down and splitting the soil and rocks as she held on tight. Eventually the scythe stopped dragging, and she dangled on the side of the cliff, hearing the sound of Salem landing above.
Ruby strained as she climbed up the rocks and soil, moving her body aside as chunks of rock and volleys of sand dropped from above. "When will you children understand? You cannot destroy me. Nothing you can do to me will bring me pain. Your efforts and struggles are pointless. Just accept that the Gods must fall." Salem stated, and just as Ruby got to the top, Salem grabbed her by the throat and lifted her off the floor, sword in her other hand.
"The four of you alone cannot destroy me…" Salem stated, ready to plunge her sword into Ruby's chest.
Suddenly, a massive explosion erupted from the other side of the castle, getting Salem's attention. Ruby chuckled, a smile growing on her face. "Jinxed it."
Blake
The Dreadnaughts made their approach to the Sanctum…
With only three of them with the Menagerie Resistance, their army was hardly the greatest, but already on arrival, they had hope. There were already flags of the White Fang blowing in the wind down below and some more airships with rebels armed and ready to fight, alongside Huntsmen and Huntresses, warriors of which they did not recognise. But seeing more of their people still out there was more hopeful than they could have expected.
Blake stood there at the ready. Her hand was immediately found by Yang's, and her warm touch made her smile. She turned to Yang and pressed her head against the brawlers. She gripped Gambol Shroud tightly in her other hand, whilst everyone readied themselves for the battle ahead.
Ghira and Sienna stood together at the front of the ship, in front of their forces. "I know you're all scared… I won't deny it, I am too. But we all know what we've signed up for today. Salem? Killian? Watts? They have all had their time in the sun and now they are willing to burn us all away for their petty ambitions. We cannot allow them to succeed, or we will lose everything that we are." Ghira explained.
Ilia sat and held Lightning Lash on her lap, looking at the wedding ring on her finger, whilst Weiss brandished Myrtenaster. The soldiers held their guns and blades tight as the Dreadnaught approached their Forward Operating Base. "Once we leave the safe zone of our F.O.B… expect heavy resistance from Salem's forces. She is the Queen of the Grimm, but not only that, the Black Gallows answer to her. The odds are stacked against us… but we already have four brave women inside fighting Salem right now… or we hope they are. We need to focus our efforts on taking the castle. Once we have the castle, we take the land." Sienna explained.
Kali sat on a box with her blades, tapping them together as she thought about the battle which approached. Ren gently caressed Nora's pregnant stomach, and she rested her head on his shoulder. She exhaled shakily as the Dreadnaught descended towards the ground.
Oscar stared down at the Long Memory after he woke up. His report on Salem's location helped a great deal for morale. Knowing she was on the other side of where they were going to be helped people know that the enemy they were up against could at least be killed by them.
The Dreadnaught landed on the black sand by the ocean of tar, and it opened the gates. They emerged from within and they already had shield pylons set up to protect them from anything being spawned in the massive sea of Grimm Tar. Which would not last forever, merely long enough for them to begin the invasion. Blake and Yang walked out with the others, and Yang felt a lump in her throat when she stared at Evernight, knowing this was the place…
… where it all started.
"You okay?" Weiss asked, touching her shoulder.
"If you told me back when we first when to Beacon, we'd end up here? Facing what we're facing? I… well… I dunno what I would've said." Yang chuckled, shaking her head.
"I feel that way about everything that happened, honestly. But we've gotta go on… for everyone we've lost." Weiss explained. Yang smiled and nodded. They continued on whilst Oscar stood still, staring at it all like it was familiar… past the vision he saw. Like this place was once a home… the feeling was hard to describe, but he quickly shook it off. Ghira turned when he saw a couple more Airships arriving at the area.
"It's not the most organised army, but the fact there are a few Airships arriving gives me confidence." Ghira admitted.
"We had very few options. Killian really pushed this on us." Kali sighed. Sienna walked ahead of them with Cerberus' Whip dangling from her arm, standing beside Blake who stared at the keep. Her blindness may not allow her to visibly see it… but she could sense it's presence.
"You alright?" Sienna asked her.
"We have to make this right. We need to stop her." Blake stated. Sienna turned back to the forces that were deploying from the ship.
"We will… and I have an idea of how to get their attention." Sienna assured, patting her on the back.
"You do?" Blake asked.
"Oh yeah, best way to start an attack is to make the first strike." Sienna said, but Yang raised a brow.
"Is it?" Yang asked.
"Element of surprise, my dear. The fact no Grimm are attacking us yet means they weren't expecting us to be here yet." Sienna answered as their forces all exited the Dreadnaughts. She patched in the pilots of the ships.
"This is a direct order from Sienna Khan. Once all our forces have been deployed, fire on the main tower." Sienna ordered.
"Ma'am?" one pilot asked.
"Our friends already in there are gonna need all the help they can get. We need the Grimm and the Black Gallows to stay away from them. We need to get their attention." Sienna commanded. Ghira smirked, and he cracked his neck, growling as they approached the point of no return.
Knowing that once the attack begins, Grimm will begin spawning from the Tar Pits. Their forces all emerged from the ships, roughly a couple thousand, not a large number, considering what they were up against. They needed a hell of a lot more, but they knew what they were signing up for.
Blake and Yang stood side by side with Weiss and Ilia next to them. Oscar spun the Long Memory through his fingers and Nora drew both Stormur Skeggox and Magni, veins glowing pink with Ren beside her.
Sienna spun Cerberus' Whip and Ghira extended the claws from his fingers, with Kali drawing her dual swords.
Sienna raised the scroll to her lips.
"Fire." she commanded.
The three Dreadnaughts aimed their forward cannons at the main tower and blasted powerful lasers into it, creating a massive explosion which blew the very tip of the tower to pieces. The explosion was gigantic, throwing chunks of debris across the sky and crashing down into the surrounding area.
And within moments, they heard the sound of the Grimm howling, and the tar bubbled aggressively as Grimm were spawned from within. Monsters clambered out from the tar, roaring viciously, but the Reformed White Fang stood their ground, with Blake at the front with Yang.
Beowulves roared viciously with Sabyrs and countless other Grimm amongst them. Apathy dragged their creepy body up from the deep tar, shrieking as they stood tall, with Nevermores descending from the towering spires of Purple Crystal, alongside Teryxes, Griffins, Sphinxes and Manticores.
They were vastly outnumbered.
But none ran.
The Grimm charged towards them and the soldiers opened fire, whilst the Huntsmen and Huntresses charged towards the beasts.
Beginning the Battle of Evernight.
Lavinia
On the other side of the Sanctum, the Vasillias Cartel made their approach, a massive fleet of Dreadnaughts armed to the teeth with weaponry and filled with soldiers and vehicles. Unlike the Reformed White Fang, they had an impressive army, more than capable of challenging their forces.
"Ma'am! We're picking up resistance on the other side of the Sanctum! Looks like Faunus from Menagerie, judging by the colours." One of the Operatives called out, getting Lavinia's attention. The Winter Maiden walked over to his computer and saw the feed from a drone, showing the battle. Winter approached as well, her eyes widening.
"Weiss!" she gasped.
"Their numbers are thin right now… alright, send a couple of Dreadnaughts and deploy forces there to give them a hand. The rest will deploy as planned." Lavinia commanded.
"Yes, ma'am!" The operative nodded.
Winter pushed her hands through her hair nervously, knowing her little sister was down there was making her heartbeat race more and more. But Eryka approached and held her hands. "Hey, it's okay. We're gonna do this." She promised her, and Winter nodded.
"Yeah…" Winter exhaled, and she picked up her sword. Eryka looked at her bow and saw her own hand was shaking… she still felt like she was missing a part of her after losing Dulcis. She did not know how to do this without him, but she wasn't going to back down.
"I want the two of you going there." Lavinia said to Eryka.
"Are you sure?" Eryka asked.
"Don't worry, we'll handle the Black Gallows. My men have already contacted us and let us know that we have Pietro here. And he has the Modified Black Queen Virus. We'll come up with a plan on how to deploy it. But you need to get to them with our reinforcements for them and help secure their area. And… your brother is in there. And the others, we know they're all important to the people down there. You need to get inside that castle and find them." Lavinia explained, and Eryka held her shaking hand, turning to Winter.
Winter nodded, always standing by her side.
"Okay… be careful." Eryka begged her mother, but Lavinia just smiled, holding out her hands as she walked backwards.
"Made it this far." She said, turning back to her forces. Eryka ran with Winter to join the reinforcements, and once they left the Dreadnaught, it descended at the designated Landing Zone to deploy their ground forces. Lavinia jumped out beforehand though, igniting her eyes and floating in the air with her Winter Maiden Powers. She descended with the rest of her fleet as their army was deployed and approached their F.O.B.
The Marrow, Vine and Happy Huntresses were here as well, armed to the teeth with their weapons and itching for a fight. Lavinia watched as Eryka and Winter's Airship flew with the Dreadnaughts to where the Reformed White Fang were located.
As she approached the base, she saw none other than Pietro Polendina was here, as he promised he would be. "You truly are a man of your word." Lavinia greeted.
"Lavinia Vasillias… heh, I never thought I'd be relieved to be escorted by Cartel Mercenaries." Pietro stated.
"We do live in interesting times." Lavinia admitted.
She turned to see that Dutch was here, barely standing with his eye clouded because of the damage his head suffered from Killian's gunshot. "What the hell are you doing down here?" She questioned.
"I'm… here to help." He strained.
"You can barely stand, Dutch." Fiona held out her hands.
"I have not survived what I have survived to sit this out." Dutch stubbornly argued.
"All you're gonna be is dead if you join us." Lavinia warned, pointing at him. "And besides… we're going to need your help up there more than down here."
She turned to the Shadow of Broken Promises which loomed above with the rest of the Black Gallows fleet. "The Black Gallows may have us outnumbered but thanks to Pietro, we have our ace in the hole, we just need to get it uploaded into their network. Once the virus infects their systems, they will fall apart. The Black Gallows will die right then and there." Lavinia explained.
Dutch leant against the Airship he snuck aboard to get down here. "We need you up there in my ship, and help direct our troops. You know Black Gallows deployment strategies better than any of us here." Lavinia concluded. He looked up at the ship and then at the Happy Huntresses.
"She's right. You're our eye in the sky." May agreed with a smile.
He sat inside the Airship but he still listened to them make the plan. "So? What's the plan?" Joanna asked.
"We need a team to get aboard the Shadow of Broken Promises. I know it won't be easy, but it needs to be a small team." Lavinia explained.
"Well… I know the layout of the ship like the back of my hand, had more experience with it, and I know all its little tricks and secrets. It's one of the few things Killian taught me." Dutch assured. "I can direct whoever goes up there."
"See? Eye in the sky." Joanna said, winking at him, specifically mimicking his now blinded eye.
"Funny." Dutch chuckled.
"But who's going up there?" Lavinia asked.
"I'll do it." Marrow volunteered first, which made Fiona proud. Considering he was the most afraid of all the Ace Ops, it made her happy to see him volunteer so quickly and confidently.
"I'll go too." Fiona also volunteered.
"You sure?" May asked.
"Yeah, I'm small and sneaky." She shrugged.
"True, I won't be much good up there." Joanna chuckled, rolling her broad shoulders and cracking her neck.
May was about to volunteer, but Vine stepped forward. "As will I. I can hack through their security thanks to the technology I have built into me." He offered. May stepped back, and she sighed, knowing they needed more people down here on the ground than up in that ship.
A team of three was more than enough.
"Better question now is how the hell do we escape? You said the Black Queen will destroy all Black Gallows tech, right?" Marrow asked Pietro.
"That's correct. Which is why I specifically asked the Mercenary who picked me up to use my old airship. It's a very old model of Bullhead, and is most certainly not linked to the Black Gallows network. But even better? It won't be picked up on their sensors. How do you think I avoided them for so many years?" Pietro asked, making Lavinia chuckle.
"Clever move, old man." Lavinia commented.
"I got to this age somehow." Pietro chuckled, leaning back in his mechanical chair. Lavinia turned when she heard the sound of incoming Black Gallows forces deploying from their fleet. They saw Wasps and Dropships descending from the hangars.
"Bingo." Lavinia smirked. "Wait until they've deployed their wave of soldiers, then fly up there. They're will be far less resistance waiting for you up there." She ordered the Infiltration team.
Marrow, Vine and Fiona walked to the old Airship, and she turned to Pietro whose mechanical chair walked into the Airship where Dutch was waiting. "Keep an eye on things for us, okay?" Lavinia asked, and Dutch nodded.
It may not be where an outstanding soldier like him wanted to be…
… but it was where he was needed.
Lavinia walked to May, Joanna and the rest of the Vasillias Cartel as the Black Gallows deployed their forces on the battlefield. She turned to her forces, her eyes glowing and flaming blue as she spoke.
"Once we were just a Cartel of Criminals… preying on the weak and doing everything for money. But today? Today we have the chance to be remembered for doing something truly great! We can be remembered as the army who stood against the hand of tyranny and fought for a better future!" Lavinia cheered, making her soldiers cheer. "So together… we shall march… and we shall show the Black Gallows what happens when you mess with the Vasillias Cartel!"
Watts
Watts pressed his hands against the table, focusing on the matter at hand, but he could hear Adam ranting and raving in the background.
"Goddam it, where the hell is Salem? We should have expected them to attack. Why the hell did she and Killian send out that message?" Adam questioned, but Hazel sighing actually made Watts chuckle.
"Do you ever stop complaining?" He questioned.
"You wanna find out?" Adam barked at Hazel, drawing his sword at him, but Hazel didn't even flinch. He just glared down at him, arms still crossed.
"Speaking of which… where the hell is Killian?" Icarus questioned, looking out the large windows of the Throne Room.
"He's dead." Watts answered, and that silenced them all.
"How the hell do you know that?" Hazel questioned.
"He hasn't responded since the message and my forces reported a colossal explosion in the very area he was last seen. Someone attacked and must have killed him. I don't know who, but they managed it." Watts answered, simply using his intellect to figure that one out.
"Well, what the hell are we gonna do? The Black Gallows aren't going to run efficiently without his command and my forces are falling apart after the people of Menagerie kicked them out. The entire world has gone into a frenzy." Adam argued as he paced around.
But whilst this was happening… Watts just thought to himself…
This is it…
… the time for Salem to finally die and for me to take her place.
The secrets of the Relic of Knowledge will be mine… and I will not allow Salem to destroy this world for her petty vengeance.
He stood up and walked to the end of the room, seeing the attacking forces from the East and the West. He held his arms behind his back as he stared down at it all. Then he smirked. "Cardin Winchester… he escaped… he must have been the one to inform the Vasillias Cartel. They know that Neptune is alive, and the others… that's going to drive their loved ones to find them." Watts chuckled as he stood there.
"What are you thinking?" Hazel asked.
"We wait for them to come for us. The castle is going to be their target. Once they take it, then they have the landscape. So you will wait for them." Watts said as he walked away.
"Us? What about you?" Adam questioned.
"Arc, with me. Together we shall locate Salem… and quell this once and for all. And Adam, find Tyrian and get his head in the game. He can stop playing with his toys now. He has some true fun coming soon." Watts said as he smirked, walking with Jaune out of the room.
As he walked down the hall, he raised his hand and smirked, his ten rings glowing brighter as the Grave Dust swirled around him.
And Jaune's eyes glowed bright purple.
He knew that tonight, this ends once and for all…
Author Note - The Final Battle has begun!
Writing Team Copper Vs Salem has been a long time coming, loved writing that fight. Was so awesome to do, since Salem is such a powerhouse, but so are literally every single member in their own ways. And hey finally the Gods are actually helping Pyrrha again, only because their asses are on the line. I love writing Salem fights because I can make them as brutal as I want but it doesn't matter what they do to Salem because she will just recover immediately.
The Reformed White Fang and Vasillias Cartel are here as well, let's hope to god that the plan goes well and the Black Queen can take down the Black Gallows once and for all. Those guys need to be stopped if they want to stand a better chance. Grimm alone are super dangerous, but with the Relic of Creation slowly reconstructing the Moon and about to start another Eclipse? They won't stand a chance once the Grimm are made unkillable when that happens
And oh god... Watts' always has something up his sleeve
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review, follow and favourite!
Stay tuned for the next chapter - Battle of Evernight
- Matt