Chapter 7 – The Empress Kraken
Ruby
It was colossal…
Perhaps the largest Grimm they had ever encountered, far bigger than the Reapers. The Reapers were gigantic, no question, and the Krastax were enormous too… but this? This was unbelievably huge. Giant tentacles spurted from the ocean, and they destroyed everything around them. They could see the waves constantly sloshing back and forth from the Empress Kraken's body remaining beneath the surface of the water.
Then the water erupted once more, and its terrifyingly enormous head rose from the dark depths of the deep. It had four glowing red eyes, hidden within its heavily armoured skull. Unlike most Grimm, its teeth were not technically teeth, but in fact were huge protrusions of its skull, shearing through the dock terrifyingly fast. It clamped its heavy jaws down onto the docks, causing the ground to shake and the impact alone blew everyone back a few paces.
Ruby drove Crescent Rose to the ground, gasping as the huge tentacles smashed down into the ground, cutting off the roads for some civilians. Its roar was horrifying and deafening.
"By the gods… and I thought the one we fought in the Cruel Sea was big… is this really a fully grown one?" Yang gasped, staring at the titan.
"I hope so… I can't imagine one getting any bigger than that." Blake answered, gripping onto Gambol Shroud tightly. Ruby stared at the immense beast as it continuously ripped chunks of the docks out with its colossal head, ripping it to pieces.
"Ruby… I… I don't even know where to begin with this one. Where do we even start?" Weiss asked, looking at it, but Ruby just stared at it. Weiss turned and saw both Ozpin and Glynda were doing the same thing. They didn't say a word, they just stared at the titan calmly, surveying it.
The thing is way too large for us to effectively cut it to pieces. Our attacks will be meaningless to a Grimm that big.
Its head is completely armoured…
… Grimm have their weaknesses covered in bone armour. If we can break the armour, maybe that would be enough?
Then again… we have nothing with the firepower to break through its armour, and those tentacles will crush us before we even get close.
Damn… there's gotta be a way…
Wait…
Ruby gasped, her silver eye widened, and she turned to Yang almost immediately. "That's it! Yang, how did you guys kill the last Leviathan?" Ruby asked her.
"We crushed it. The thing chased us into an underwater tunnel and it came crashing down over its head." Yang answered.
"Yeah, that's right… we kept shooting it in the mouth with the Tethys' Turrets. It was a weak spot, the mouth." Weiss remembered. "But Ruby, that thing is like… three times the size of the one we fought in the Cruel Sea." Weiss stated. Ruby looked around and saw the bridge.
"Hmm… you think that bridge could do the trick?" Ruby suggested, pointing at the enormous Suspension Bridge that crossed over the harbour that connected to the other side of Vale. Ozpin looked at the Bridge and he nodded.
"A bridge filled with abandoned cars? Filled with explosive fuel? That could be enough to crush its head." Ozpin confirmed, staring at the giant as it repeatedly ripped up the docks.
"If we keep pissing it off, we could make it go berserk. But first we need to get it directly underneath the bridge…" Ruby said. It was not very far from it, and luckily, they would not have to move from their spot for it to move. They just had to keep moving that way somehow.
Her eye glimmered brightly for a few moments.
"I take it your Silver Eyes aren't enough, right?" Blake presumed.
"Definitely not… I could hurt it but… that won't be enough." Ruby confirmed.
"Alright… piss it off. Sounds like a plan." Yang shrugged, cracking her neck and pumping her fists.
Ruby raised her scroll to her ear, contacting Ortega. "Admiral? Admiral, can you hear me?"
"I hear you, R-Ruby!" The connection was not incredible, but it was enough.
"I have a plan to kill the Kraken. Is there anybody still on the Suspension Bridge? The one closest to the thing?" Ruby asked him. From up above, Ortega used the external cameras on the Drift of Wandering Star, and he examined the bridge.
"Negative. A-Anyone who was o-on that br-i-idge is dead or evacuated to either side of V-ale." Ortega informed.
"Good, because we're gonna need to use that bridge to give this nasty bitch one hell of a headache." Ruby explained.
"Care to explain h-ow you intend to bridge down a susp-ension bridge?" He asked.
"By pissing off the Kraken. We get it underneath it and anger it enough? It will fly into a rage and end up bringing the bridge down. We just need to get it in position." Ruby explained.
"G-Gods… alright I-I'll keep you updated! Just k-kill that thing!" Ortega ordered. Ruby looked up at the sky, seeing the Drift of Wandering Star still battling against the endless swarms of Grimm that blocked out the sun. It was just getting darker and darker by the second.
"Count on it!" Ruby assured, then she gasped and turned as the Kraken roared even louder.
The Kraken repeatedly slammed its jaws down onto the docks, ripping the pier apart with ease. Sheering off massive chunks of concrete and metal with its massive teeth. Ruby shot across the docks as the ground shook. It was growing increasingly harder to stay on your feet with the repetitive tremors created from the Kraken's attacks.
It roared with fury as it kept attacking, then Ruby got into position and aimed through the scope of her rifle. The crosshairs lined up with one of its four glowing red eyes; it had not even noticed her yet; it was just completely focused on the docks.
This must be Umbra, commanding that thing to take down the docks to stop people from escaping…
… this is way too strategic.
She loaded an explosive round into the chamber of her rifle, aiming directly at the furious titan. She breathed calmly – as calmly as she could, given the circumstances – and pulled the trigger. The crack from the gun echoed and was followed up by the deafening bang of the explosive laced bullet nailing the beast in the eye. The Kraken bellowed in rage, recoiling its head back as the explosion caused the glowing red eye to burst open.
Long stringy membranes made from black tar swung out from its head, spilling the black fluid everywhere. "Oh gods! That's nasty!" Yang yelled in disgust as the huge leviathan recoiled back from them all. It shook its head in pain and rage, before its titanic head descended back down into the deep. But the tentacles remained, rising from the deep sea to smash the dock apart.
Another Gunship flew overhead, firing missiles into the tentacle. "This is VS-234! Looks like you could use some help down there!" The brave pilot called out. She fired everything she had at the tentacle, the machine guns shredded through the thick oily mass of the tentacle, blowing it in two with one of her missiles. It retracted sharply, coiling up as the top half ripped away from the rest of the limb and crashed into the sea. Polluting it with the tar, and the wounded tentacle returned to the sea.
The Gunship kept shooting at them, but they were too late to warn her of the Teryx that flew into the side of it. "No!" Weiss screamed. The gunship spun out of control as the Teryx slashed its claws and blasted fire into it. But the pilot was clever and rotated her thrusters into its body. The heat from the thrusters scorched into its body. The Teryx roared in agony before it flew away from its prey.
"Fuck, that was close!" The Pilot gasped.
Ruby smiled with relief, then she saw the water burst open as the cavernous mouth of the Kraken emerged once again. "LOOK OUT!" she screamed, only for the last thing they heard from that heroic pilot was her scream of fear. The Kraken slammed its jaws down, and the Gunship exploded into flames. It shook its head and spat the burning debris from its jaws. It reared its head back, roaring up into the sky as more tentacles rose from the depths.
Suddenly Ozpin's Sceptre flew right past Ruby, stabbing into the body of a Grimm, killing it instantly. It nearly got her, and she looked around, gasping. "Oh, crap…" Ruby realised the black blood that spewed from its eye and the tentacle had spawned more Grimm. Not only that, it brought down one of its massive tentacles, smashing it into the floor and locking it in place. She watched as spherical pores opened up, and these horrific parasitic Grimm Variants came spewing out. They looked like slugs but had these long arms with spiked appendages attached. They clawed their way across the floor towards them, snapping their jaws filled with rows of razor-sharp teeth.
Making noises that made the hairs stand on end. "The hell are these things?" Blake yelled as one of them lunged forward. It slashed its pincers at her and spat acid at her. She rolled aside and cast a shadow to dodge the incoming acid.
"They're Parasites! We need to cut its tentacle off to stop it from creating them!" Glynda called out, blasting bolts of purple energy forward. The crackling bolts of energy blew the Parasites to pieces. Ruby could kill them one at a time with her rifle, they were literally one shot kill. They had no armour and were extremely weak. But they knew that if there were too many of them, they could easily overwhelm them.
Just like Beowulves or Sabyrs, whereas they could actually take a hit. But these things would just keep coming unless they severed that tentacle. The Kraken watched them as they killed the Parasites as quickly as they could. Alongside, keeping an eye out for newly formed Grimm made by the blood it spewed. Yang caught one parasite by the throat and smashed its head down into the ground as she rushed forward. She slid underneath one as it jumped at her, and she shot another in the face with Ember Celica.
The thing exploded into many pieces from every attack she made. Weiss drove Myrtenaster through the head of a Parasite and slid across the ground, slashing up a Beowulf that attacked her, before finishing another Parasite by ramming it down the top of its head. Blake shot Gambol Shroud repeatedly, nailing Parasite after Parasite as they kept on coming after her.
She left a shadow for them, and they swarmed it, thinking they toppled her and tried to rip her open, only for Blake to swing forward and slash them all to bits with her sword. The High Leader of the White Fang swung around and took the head of a Thrall clean off in one swing as well. Ozpin shot forward suddenly, sprinting through slowed time, literally running through the Parasites and grabbing Mihi Vindicta. He then drove the Sceptre directly into the pore that was spewing out the Parasites, then he gritted his teeth and formed multiple glowing glyphs behind him, which made many magical signs for him to control.
He fired three beams of green energy directly into the Tentacle, cutting it clean in half. The Kraken growled from the pain, the tentacle swiftly yanked itself away from where its severed half laid, it whipped around violently from the pain before dropping back into the sea.
He turned as he saw Ruby dashing through the air, landing atop one of the broken buildings overlooking the harbour. The Kraken roared once again, and she stood her ground, staring it down. "Hey! Ugly!" she yelled, her eye grew brighter and brighter. The Kraken glared at her when she did that and it suddenly lunged directly for her. Its massive jaws opened wide, and it went to devour her whole.
But Ruby's silver eyes activated, lighting up the entire area in a blinding white light. The few Grimm that were still standing all became frozen in stone or were completely obliterated by the power. They watched with shock as half of the Kraken's face turned to stone. It growled in pain as it retreated from her; it struggled to roar, but the force of its jaws caused the hard stone to crumble off. The bone armour had been shattered as well in places where her Silver Gaze had damaged it. Smoke trailed from its scorched black skin, and it roared in immense pain – and rage.
The Kraken hissed deeply, glaring back at Ruby and it lunged towards her once again, bringing its massive jaws down. Until the sky darkened over it and two huge lightning bolts crashed down into its head. It jolted and bellowed in anger, shaking its head. Ruby turned and saw both Cinder and Coco flying across the broken docks, eyes aflame as they flew past the head of the beast. "Thought you guys could use a hand!" Coco called out, blasting two beams of icy air into the titanic creature's head. It howled with rage, snapping its jaws repeatedly at them, swinging the tentacles at them as fast as it could, but the two Maidens were much faster. That's when they saw one of the massive sharp legs of the creature, similar to a Crab's, erupt through the water and smashing through a building. It had many more, and it pushed its whole body up out of the water as it tried to keep up with the nimble Maidens.
"Ha-Ha! I knew they'd make it!" Yang cheered, slamming her fists together.
Yatsuhashi jumped off the edge of one of the falling buildings and he threw Fulcrum straight through the body of an Ursa. The enormous sword impaled the beast to the floor, and as he landed, he grabbed onto the hilt of the weapon and ripped it through the shoulder of the Ursine Beast. Its roars of pain ceased, and it crumbled into dust. Velvet and Fox both slid down the sloped hill of rubble, where water was spilling out from the sewers.
"Heard you gals had been fighting all sorts of crazy shit… but… wow… a Kraken?" Fox chuckled.
"Y'know how it is." Ruby shrugged as she dropped to meet them. Emerald landed with them as well, then Ruby turned and she gasped with relief as Qrow landed as well. She dashed forward and hugged him as tight as she could. He held her tight, kissing the top of his daughter's head. Yang did the same, holding him tightly.
"Hey kids… gods you had me scared." Qrow chuckled, smiling as he looked at them.
As much as Ruby wanted to have a more emotional reunion, she looked around fearfully. "Wait… where's Jaune? And Kassius? Everyone else?" Ruby stammered.
"Kassius has gone to find out. Saph and Terra showed up. They have Adrien, he's okay." Qrow explained. "They said they were using a skyscraper as an evac point, but they were attacked by Fear and Fury. Their attacks caused the building to collapse after the civvies were safe. They were still on it, but Kassius hasn't given up on them. He's with his team and they're headed to the bridge. Hoping Jaune heard his call." Ozpin explained.
"Wait? WHAT? Kas is on the bridge?" Yang gasped, immediately getting her scroll out.
"What is it?" Emerald asked.
"We need to bring that bridge down. It's our only chance of killing that Grimm." Ruby explained as she paced back and forth, Yang swiftly raised her scroll to her ear.
"Kassius?" She called.
"Yang? Are you okay?" Kassius immediately asked her.
"Hey, don't worry about me! Get the hell off that bridge! We plan on pissing that thing off so bad it destroys the bridge, bringing it down on that bastard's head!" Yang yelled.
He paused for a few moments.
"Hmm… I may have a few ideas on how to help with that…" Kassius chuckled.
"W-Wait what?" Yang stammered.
"Just get it under the bridge! You'll know when we've done it." Kassius assured.
"Kas? Kas!" Yang groaned, rolling her eyes. "Why's he always gotta be all dramatic?"
They turned to see Hazel and the White Fang arrive as well. Battling through the Grimm, Hazel punched a Beowulf into the wall so hard that it killed the beast instantly. Mazen roared, driving his Chainsword straight through another Ursa's body, cutting it clean in two. Hazel approached Ozpin, then he stared at the Kraken whilst the two Maidens kept it occupied.
"That's… one big fish." Hazel chuckled.
"Cephalopod, but yes." Ozpin couldn't help but correct him, a common trait for the Teachers of Beacon.
"Good to see you're still standing." Hazel said to them, and the Professor smiled and nodded his head. He also turned to Glynda, who smiled happily to see his grizzled face. Mazen also approached Blake and knelt before her, bowing his head.
"High Leader." He greeted.
"Please, you don't have to do that… besides… with everything going on, we got bigger things to worry about." Blake chuckled, getting him to stand back up.
Ruby quickly approached Mazen and Hazel. "Have either of you seen Jaune and his team?"
"Yeah, we found them. They were in a bad way but not seriously injured. They're currently with Kassius' team. On the Bridge." Hazel explained.
"They were in the middle of Vale. It's bad in there." Mazen stated.
Ruby shuddered. It was hard to even imagine how horrifying Central Vale must have been. But they could not share this moment of unity. "Everyone look out!" Cinder called out, and the Kraken suddenly lunged downwards once more, cleaving through the docks once again, ripping massive chunks of ground from it.
And from behind they had more Grimm coming, rising from Reality Splits opening in the ground. They climbed out like the undead, roaring viciously as they came charging their way.
"Just get that big bastard under the Bridge!" Ruby commanded the two Maidens. "We'll hold off the Grimm! Kassius, I hope you have a good plan." Ruby sighed, spinning Crescent Rose through her fingers.
Then again… this was Kassius Locke they were talking about.
The man always could come up with the craziest yet most effective plans they had ever seen.
Jaune
Moments prior…
Team J.N.P.R, Neo, Hazel, Mazen, Kaa and the remaining soldiers in Mazen's platoon moved as quickly but as carefully as they could through the Fallen City of Vale. Jaune's head was still hurting badly, bleeding heavily from the trauma he suffered from the fall. Nora also had a limp from the impact, but the fact they survived it at all was all thanks to Pyrrha and Neo's quick thinking. Neo and Pyrrha stayed with them, but were the only ones in their team who could really do anything if they were attacked.
But now that they found Hazel and Mazen, they would have a better shot of getting to the Bridge like Kassius suggested. Nora gasped, watching as a Krastax smashed the building down into the street. She could hear the screaming of the poor civilians inside, thrown to their deaths as it came crashing down. They turned the next corner, since the road ahead was blocked by flames, and Jaune stopped, gasping when he felt a hand grab him by the foot.
"Ah!" He yelped, but then he saw it was a dying civilian. And the state he was in… was horrifying. His left arm had been gnawed down to the bone, blood everywhere, and he had also been disembowelled. All this was after he was burnt alive… the fire had gone out, but the damage was done. Half his body was completely charred, to where he looked like his skin had been turned to pumice, with glowing orange embers shimmering in his scorched flesh.
"Please…" He could barely speak. "Kill me… it hurts… so bad…" the man whimpered, wheezing for breath.
"I… I'm so sorry…" Jaune sounded like he was gonna cry. He had kept a level head this far, but seeing so many people dying in the worst ways imaginable? It was like he was surrounded by what happened to his sister Skyler repeatedly. He went to draw his sword, but there was a sudden gunshot. He turned and saw Mazen had drawn the gun of one of his soldiers and killed the man for him. Shot him in the head. He didn't say a word, he just gave the pistol back to the soldier and kept on walking.
It was mercy… but seeing what the Oncoming Shadow was doing to people?
Jaune was no fool. He understood why Vir Nominis Umbra used them. The Relics offered the chance of a painless death. The Oncoming Shadow didn't. The terror, the pain his creations could inflict on so many without mercy? It would break the population into wanting a painless end.
After seeing the alternative? The Relics being destroyed and their universe decimated by their destruction was a more appealing choice.
But they couldn't give up.
Otherwise everyone who died to day… and everyone who would soon die? Would all die for nothing?
They had to kill Vir Nominis Umbra once and for all. If anything, the Oncoming Shadow just helped remind him of their mission. But seeing all this? Whether they win in the end, this would not be something you would ever forget.
Pyrrha walked ahead after helping her boyfriend back up, and they left the man where he fell. But Pyrrha only got a few steps forward before spotting the Bridge. They were so close… then she felt it…
… her hairs stood on end.
"Oh, crap…" Pyrrha gasped, raising her fist to stop everyone. "Jaune, Nora, Ren… take cover."
"What is it?" A White Fang soldier asked. Pyrrha watched the sky.
"Incoming…" Pyrrha answered, so everyone also drew their weapons. Then the bone chilling screech burst between the buildings, and his wings cut a shadow through the blood red sky. It was Fear, but with him were the burning wings of Fury. The Undead Bat and the Burning Wyvern came towards them.
Fear's bat descended towards them, diving like a falcon, but then it spun through the air. The wings folded away, and the bones snapped into their new positions. The muscle shifted, tore and mutated, and his long limbs extended from the Bat's torso. His head then flicked up from within the sternum, pulling his hood of rotten skin down over his head. He grinned maniacally, eyes glowing gold and Formido Falcem in his grasp.
Fury blasted a beam of fire towards Mazen, but he just scowled back at the Wyvern and slammed his fist down into the ground, activating his semblance to lock his aura. The fire just burned against the crystallised aura, but had no effect on his body. The Wyvern ascended, banking around the blocks, then he came erupting through one structure. The windows shattered and the burning debris came crashing down around them.
Fury smashed his axe down into the chest of a White Fang soldier, pinning him down into the tarmac. Mazen stood tall with Hazel against Fury, whilst Neo stood beside Pyrrha and faced Fear.
The Knight of Fear laughed maniacally at them as he spun Formido Falcem through his fingers. "I can sense the dread in your bones, in your heart… in your souls. How long before that admirable bravery wavers completely?" Fear questioned, Pyrrha narrowed her Emerald eyes.
"You're gonna be waiting a long damn time before we give up, Vazquez." Pyrrha promised. He cackled back at her.
"We shall see, my dear."
His eyes glowed bright gold, then he created a haunting howling sound, before he shot forward, moving at the speed of light in a zigzag motion. He immediately slammed the curved Scythe into Pyrrha's chest, so hard it blew her into the wall. He swung around and slashed across Neo's throat, but she shattered like glass. Fear's eyes widened. Then she suddenly stabbed him in the back of his neck. She floated before him and rested Hush over her shoulder, winking at him.
Fear ripped his crossbow from his shoulder, shooting a bolt at Neo, but the skilled Former Assassin batted the bolt aside and stood her ground. Fear sprinted towards her, slashing his Scythe repeatedly at her, but Neo just walked backwards, smirking constantly as she effortlessly dodged his incoming blows. She ducked under the blade as he swung horizontally at her, then she hooked the Umbrella onto the back of the Scythe. He threw her up in the air, but she twirled gracefully before spinning around and firing three times down at him.
Shrieking explosive projectiles descended towards him, but Fear opened his wings from his back, blocking the incoming missiles. They exploded against the rotten skin, but it was hardly even affected by her attacks. Fear launched up towards her, and punched Neo in the cheek, and slashed across her aura. He landed two hits, but even when in the air, Neo still got a few strikes in and dodged most of his.
She wrapped her legs around his neck as they fell and slammed him into the road. The tarmac exploded around him, then she floated back down with ease. Fear suddenly launched his scythe at her. She dropped to her knees and bent back, only just dodging the incoming weapon, but Fear still had a few tricks up his sleeve. As he charged at her, he raised his hand, blasting his Nightmare Toxin at her, but she opened her umbrella to block it from her face and held her breath and nose to make sure that she did not inhale any of it.
Fear counted on that though, since it slowed her down, and then his skeletal hand grabbed her by her pink and brown hair, and he threw her into the wall. She crashed against the wall, gritting her teeth, then her eyes widened as Fear shot forward with that evil grin on his face, reaching his sharp hands out towards her.
Only for a piece of metal to suddenly pierce straight through his side. The impact alone knocked Fear out of the air, sending him tumbling across the street. He turned and ripped it from his ribs, seeing Pyrrha spinning Milo through her fingers with a scowl on her face. Fear swiftly fired his crossbow at her, but she raised Akoúo, stopping the bolt from hitting her. It snapped upon contact. Then she transformed Milo into Rifle Mode. She fired shot after shot at him, and she had a thought enter her mind.
I've beaten you without the Maiden Powers more than once. I don't need them to stop you now.
Fear sprinted towards her and swung his fist at her. Pyrrha chose her placement perfectly, because right behind her was the wall where Formido Falcem had lodged itself into after he threw it at Neo. She backed up, ducking and parrying every punch he threw at her. Pyrrha swiftly swapped back to sword form and stabbed him in the shoulder. She then rolled over that same shoulder, carving a deep wound through his form, breaking his shoulder apart. He staggered, and then she stood tall, changing to Spear form and launched it into his sternum.
It pinned him to the wall, and he growled with anger, trying to get free. Pyrrha threw Akoúo at his head after he yanked Milo free, stunning him. Then she held out her hand, calling Milo back. She caught it and transformed it back into sword form. She jumped and spun, striking diagonally across his chest, bouncing her shield off the wall and into the side of his head. She then jumped and kicked him up the jaw with both feet after performing a flawless backflip.
Fear smashed against the ground and stared at the Invincible Girl, who called Akouo back to her other hand, smirking.
On the other side of the fight, Hazel and Mazen both charged towards Fury. He ripped his axe from the corpse of the White Fang soldier and roared savagely at them, fire erupting out from his body like gas escaping a machine to depressurise. Fury sprinted at them and swung one axe at Mazen, who slammed his Chainsword against it, constantly revving it and spinning the teeth, throwing sparks everywhere as the blades ground. Hazel swung his fist into Fury's face, but had little effect.
Fury kicked Hazel in the chest so hard it sent the massive Huntsman tumbling backwards. The Knight turned and smashed his head into Mazen's. The White Fang Lieutenant staggered back a few steps, but Kaa threw one of her knives into the side of his head. The blade detonated and blew part of his jaw off. But molten lava replaced the grill that was destroyed, swiftly reconstructing the damage dealt. He snarled savagely as he glared at her, but then he heard Hazel unleash a devastating roar.
Fury turned and saw the blood dripping from his mouth, and his eyes were bloodshot with hatred. He crushed the glass vial in his hand and let the shards hit the floor. Hazel bellowed and suddenly punched down into a car and launched it one handed at Fury. The car broke apart as soon as it hit him, and Fury crashed into the road a few feet away. He bounced over the road, ramming his axe down into the ground.
The White Fang soldiers cocked their weapons to join in, but Mazen held up his hand. "Stand down, we'll handle him. Keep Jaune, Nora, and Ren covered from any Grimm that is attracted to our fight. They're in no shape to fight right now." Mazen ordered.
"Yes, sir!" the soldiers agreed, rushing to the injured Huntsmen and Huntress.
Fury's wings sprouted from his back as he roared at the three warriors. Hazel's fists were shaking as his Blood Rage sent him spiralling into endless rage. He was sweating profusely, and his jaw was locked into a gritted expression. "I can sense the rage in you… you would make a fantastic Knight…" Fury growled back at Hazel. He just yelled with rage and immediately punched Fury in the face. This time, his punches dealt with some serious damage, making the burning Knight stagger back from every single attack he made.
But Fury could still take the hits, and caught Hazel's fist in his burning hand, glaring down at him. He then punched him in the chest so hard it threw him across the ground. Mazen slammed his Chainsword down into Fury's shoulder blade, repeatedly sawing through the molten armour plating. Burning hot rock and metal spat out from the teeth of the Chainsword as he repeatedly sawed deeper into the Knight.
Fury roared and blasted fire from his mouth like a Dragon. Mazen grunted, having to rip the blade free and roll aside. He batted the flames from his shoulder, but Fury immediately threw one of his axes at him. It exploded just before it hit, launching Mazen into the building. He groaned, but Fury sprinted into the room, batting Kaa aside with ease. He charged after Mazen, who scrambled back to his feet and rolled out of the Berserker's path. He smashed the aisles down as he got closer. Fury then dug one axe into the floor to stop himself from going any further.
Fury roared viciously at Mazen, but the White Fang Lieutenant suddenly aimed his fist at him and revealed a new upgrade. He had a new Bracer, one that fired missiles at whatever he was staring at, and his mask would help him target them. They all fired and exploded into Fury's chest, blowing him through the wall. He tumbled then Mazen lept towards him, roaring with rage as he slammed his Chainsword down towards Fury's neck to cut his head clean off.
Fury raised his massive smouldering hand and caught the sword, then ripped it from his hand and punched Mazen in the head. He turned as Hazel came charging at him, punching Fury in the face. He then smashed him in gut, making the Knight hunch forward, then he uppercut the powerful villain. The punch threw Fury upwards, and he crashed down onto the floor. Hazel jumped onto Fury and repeatedly pummelled the Knight in the face, smashing him deeper and deeper into the road with every single blow he threw into the burning Knight.
He then grabbed Fury by the chest plate and punched him so hard in the head that the grill cracked.
He then spat out lava and stared at Hazel, laughing darkly. "Is that all you've got?" He challenged. Hazel yelled with rage, then Fury kicked him in the chest so hard that he smashed through an abandoned van.
Fear smashed Pyrrha into the wall and kicked Neo out of the air, but then… they both stopped.
They both looked at each other. It was like they sensed something. Pyrrha stared at them and her eyes widened.
They… they look afraid…
They did not say a word, they just transformed into their Beast Forms and escaped. Hazel panted. It looked like his semblance was wearing off now, which was quite relieved. Kaa helped Mazen back up, and they looked around in confusion. "Um… that was kinda… confusing? Why the hell did they just leave like that? They had the upper hand." Kaa asked, but Pyrrha knew.
She had seen that expression before… when she was trapped in the Charred Forest.
"Umbra… it's him… he's coming. We need to go." Pyrrha explained.
"What?" Mazen questioned.
"The only reason they would leave like that is if Vir Nominis Umbra commanded it. And that means he's coming, and when he gets here… well… we're not getting out of here. He's done playing games." Pyrrha explained. Jaune strained and got back up.
"She's right, we need to get to that bridge." Jaune agreed. Nora and Ren stood up with him. Pyrrha looked at Neo and she just nodded. They both had seen them like that once. Neo knew all too well what Vir Nominis Umbra was capable of, especially to those who betrayed him.
They all kept moving and finally got to the bridge, killing a few stray Grimm along the way. "Ha! I fucking knew it!" The familiar voice of Kassius Locke laughed.
Kassius
He just couldn't help but laugh, before he immediately hugged Jaune, then Pyrrha and then literally everyone he saw there. Oscar smiled and did the same, relieved to see them okay. "Thank the gods. After what Saphron told us, we thought you were goners." Kassius laughed.
"They made it? They're okay?" Jaune gasped with relief.
"Safe and sound, I can promise you. They got into the Vault a few minutes before it had to close." Kassius promised with a smile.
That was precisely what Jaune needed to hear.
"You guys look like you've been through hell." Sun commented.
"We kinda have… Central Vale is literally that… Hell. The Charred Forest is consuming everything in there. It will soon spread here." Pyrrha explained, still shaken by how quickly that once bustling city had gone to hell so quickly.
Kassius turned and saw Hazel and the White Fang. "Thank the gods you're all still kicking. The guys down there could use you." Kassius explained. They all looked past Kassius and saw the massive Kraken.
"Holy fuck… yeah, Ortega wasn't kidding. That's one big Kraken." Kaa chuckled with wide eyes.
"Alright, what about you?" Hazel asked.
"We're heading onto the bridge. See if we can find a weak spot from up top." Kassius explained. Hazel nodded, and he went with the White Fang to join the Kraken fighters. They watched as it slammed its huge tentacle down, unleashing the Parasites on Team R.W.B.Y.
"Alright? What're we looking for?" Nora asked.
"Wait, you guys wanna come with? You sure? You fell from a Skyscraper." Kassius asked.
"We'd be of better use with you, Kas. We'd be a burden down there." Jaune stated. Kassius couldn't argue with his logic, so he nodded his head in agreement.
"Alright then… we need to see if there's any weakness we can exploit on that Kraken. End of the day, this thing is way bigger than the one we fought in the Cruel Sea. And… we're not in the Tethys." Kassius explained as they walked onto the Suspension Bridge. It was clear for now, but as they walked across it, passing by abandoned cars, and the many ripped up corpses… they could get an even better view of Vale being destroyed. Reapers were everywhere, destroying and killing everything they could spot from up there in the sky.
Sun looked around, keeping Ruyi Jingu Bang handy. "Well, we don't have the firepower to kill it." Jaune said, then suddenly a bright white flash erupted, shocking them. When it cleared, they saw the Kraken recoil back with half its face turned to stone.
"Damn, nice one, Ruby." Sun chuckled.
"That's my girl." Oscar proudly praised.
"By the gods, a full blast from her Silver Eyes only hurt its face? What the hell can we do from up here?" Nora questioned.
"I don't know…" Kassius said as he walked with them, looking at the beast. He rested his arms on the railing and he sighed. "Hyde, you think you can do anything against it?" Kassius subconsciously asked.
"I struggled with a Leviathan? That? I don't think so…" Hyde admitted. They watched as Cinder and Coco attacked the Leviathan with their Maiden powers, seeing everyone meeting up with them.
"Can the Drift of Wandering Star do anything?" Penny asked.
"I don't think we can risk it. It could destroy the docks, or worse, it could kill Team R.W.B.Y. Too close and way too risky. My girlfriend's down there I am not risking that." Kassius stated.
"Well, I doubt thing is just gonna go away. There has to be a way…" Sun said with a sigh.
"I know… I'm thinking…" Kassius agreed.
"We shot it a tonne in the mouth last time. I know it didn't kill it, but it definitely hurt it." Nora stated.
"Yeah, but… that thing's at least three times bigger. We'd need something huge to do that." Kassius explained.
Suddenly, one tentacle swung up and slammed into the bridge so hard that the whole thing buckled and sway. "WHOA!" Jaune yelped. They held on, but luckily, the Suspension Bridge stayed up. The huge cables wobbled back and forth as it stabilised. He felt his scroll vibrate.
"Kassius?" She called.
It was Yang.
His heart suddenly was filled with butterflies, and he fumbled to answer.
"Yang? Are you okay?" Kassius immediately asked her.
"Hey, don't worry about me! Get the hell off that bridge! We plan on pissing that thing off so bad it destroys the bridge, bringing it down on that bastard's head!" Yang yelled.
"Wait… the bridge we're on?" Sun asked with wide eyes.
"Of course they are…" Jaune sighed.
He paused for a few moments, staring at something, and that mischievously excited smirk returned. There was a truck with a huge tanker near the edge of the bridge, filled with fuel.
"Hmm… I may have a few ideas on how to help with that…" Kassius chuckled.
"W-Wait what?" Yang stammered.
"Just get it under the bridge! You'll know when we've done it." Kassius assured, hanging up.
"Did you just hang up on Yang Xiao Long?" Nora questioned, but Kassius ignored that.
"That Tanker. If we can get that to fall and explode on the Kraken's head, that will be enough to send the thing into a rage. A sudden hot pain in its head? That will be enough to make it go berserk." Kassius explained.
"Kassius?" Sun asked.
"All we need to do is shove the thing off." Kassius shrugged.
"Kaaaaaaas?" Sun sang.
"C'mon, let's get ready." Kassius said.
"KASSIUS!" Sun yelled, finally getting his attention. "How are we getting off the bridge, then?"
Kassius paused, raising his finger and opening his mouth to answer… but he had nothing. "Good question…" Kassius admitted. Jaune gasped and looked up at the Drift of Wandering Star. He pulled out his scroll and contacted Ortega.
"Admiral? Can you hear me?" Jaune asked.
"Arc? Gods, I thought we l-lost you!" Ortega answered.
"Not dead yet, we're with Kassius' team. We're on the Bridge." Jaune explained.
"The Bridge? You mean the one Ruby intends to drop on the Kraken?" He asked.
"Yep, that's the one. We've got an idea to help piss it off enough to make it go nuts, but we're gonna need immediate extraction after we do it." Jaune explained.
"And your plan is?" Ortega asked.
"To drop a Fuel Tanker on its head." Jaune answered. Ortega couldn't help but laugh.
"You kids never cease to surprise me with your crazy ideas." Ortega chuckled. "Alright, I'm sending Junior with a heavy airship. It will be enough to pick you all up. Just let me know when you've done it."
"Oh, you'll know." Jaune chuckled. He closed his scroll and nodded at Kassius. "He's sending Junior with an airship to get us off here as soon as possible."
"Good… because we won't have much time."
Then they heard them… the screeching roars of Grimm. Kassius turned and saw the incoming Sphinxes, Teryxes and many other Flying Grimm, headed directly for the Suspension Bridge.
"Oh, for fuck's sake. Can we get a break?" Kassius sighed.
Oscar readied his weapons.
"Let's just be ready for when that thing is in position." Oscar stated.
"Yeah… we can do this." Kassius agreed.
Ensemble Battle
Cinder shot across the sky above the Kraken as it swung its tentacles repeatedly at the two Maidens, and she blasted fire into its body, burning the flesh and blowing massive wounds into different areas. But even their combined power was not enough to truly harm the beast.
But that was not their goal.
It was to get it to move.
Coco spun through the air then drew Gianduja, transforming it into Minigun form, and she hovered over the creature, firing down on it. The Leviathan snapped its jaws at her but she just dodged its huge teeth.
Down below, everyone else continued to hold off the incoming Grimm, whilst also avoiding the giant tentacles, as it continuously slammed its tentacles down onto the docks. Ruby shot forward, cutting through three Beowulves in a single strike, killing them all instantly. She then dug her Scythe down into the ground, using that momentum to throw herself forward and kicking a Thrall in the chest. It crashed to the floor, and then was curb stomped by Mazen Ursus. He spun around and drove his Chainsword downwards, straight through a Sabyr that jumped at him. Black blood had completely covered the White Fang Lieutenant as he fought.
Fox roared, sprinting forward and slashing Sharp Retribution relentlessly through the Grimm, punching a Beowulf in the chest so hard it threw it into an Ursa. The huge Bear Grimm smashed the Beowulf aside like it was nothing, roaring viciously back at the Huntsman. He ducked down as the Ursa Major rushed towards him, only for Fulcrum to suddenly be rammed into its chest.
"Thanks for the help." Fox sent.
"Any time." Yatsuhashi sent back. He slashed through its torso, causing the beast to crash back down to the ground. More Grimm charged forward, he just smirked and sprinted towards them with Fox. Yatsuhashi swung around and beheaded three Beowulves in one strike, whilst Fox vaulted over his shoulder, shredding the hide off a King Taijitu. The Second head came around and went to devour him, but Velvet flew towards it on Magnhild, and smashed the Serpent's head in with the massive Nordic Hammer.
The Snake coiled before it died, and she smiled, resting the holographic hammer on her shoulder. She turned though and switched to Cardin's Executioner, smashing a Thrall into the wall and immediately changing to Flynt Coal's Trumpet and blasting a swarm of Sulfur Fish away.
Yang turned and gasped as she saw the ground rise, and the black smoke levitated huge chunks of rubble into the air, forming into a Geist. It roared at them as it walked forward, swinging its enormous arm of rock down towards Team R.W.B.Y, but Weiss formed multiple glyphs behind her which rocketed multiple fireballs into its face. The Geist roared as it staggered back, then Blake threw Gambol Shroud to Yang and launched her forward. The Blonde Brawler yelled with fury as she smashed her cybernetic fist into one of its arms, breaking it apart. Then Glynda launched a spear of rubble into the other.
Blake ran forward and threw her Grappling Hook towards its face and yanked its mask away from the main boulder with all her might. Emerald took the shot, swinging upwards and cutting the skull of the Geist apart with Silent Judgement, ending the Geist in seconds. The Huge chunks of rubble came crashing down all around them, some of which flattened Grimm in their path.
Up top, however, they had their own problems.
The Sphinx landed before them, roaring viciously. Kassius cracked his neck and sprinted forward, firing Vulcan Nox at its body. The Sphinx screeched down at him and its long Snake Tail lunged towards him, but he slashed Lash Equinox across its face. But the Sphinx swung its wing at him, blowing him across the bridge. He drove his sword down and gritted his teeth.
A Griffin flew directly towards him but Penny sliced it clean in two with Floating Array, and she hovered over him, charging up her lasers. Then she blasted a powerful beam across the bridge into the Teryx that was going for Jaune, knocking it out of the sky and plummeting down into the water below with an almighty clap. Sun jumped up and smashed a Manticore down into the ground with all his might, spinning Ruyi Jingu Bang through his fingers.
"C'mon you ugly son of a bitch!" Sun yelled, and the feral Chimera roared right back at him, blasting a fireball at him. He spun his Bo-Staff through his fingers effortlessly, blocking its explosive projectile, and then it swiped at him. He smashed the hand aside and jumped over its head, slamming the staff down over its head. The impact was so hard it finished the beast off, killing it instantly. He looked down the road and gasped. "Oh shit, we've got Thralls!" He called out.
"Crap… they must know what we're planning!" Kassius called out.
"Umbra! He's trying to keep us in Vale to kill us!" Pyrrha called out.
"I'll handle the Thralls!" Oscar assured.
"You sure?" Kassius asked.
"Of course. I can do this all day." He promised, bolting forward. He zoomed across the bridge through frozen time, cutting through the zombified Humans and Faunus with ease. They broke apart from the velocity of his attacks. He then returned to normal speed, kicking one in the knee to drop it down, and he then kicked it in the face. He shot another in the face as it leapt towards him and crushed the downed one's skull under his boot. He ducked down as a Thrall went to tackle him, and pirouetted, cutting one of them clean in half with Traveller's Atrocity.
Kassius fired shot after shot at the huge Sphinx whilst Pyrrha threw her shield into the side of its head. With their auras down there was little the rest of Team J.N.P.R could do, but Neo had them covered. She repeatedly jabbed a Griffin in the throat with Hush, before performing a perfect front flip, and as she finished the flip her foot slammed its head down into the ground.
Penny flew overhead, cutting down the Nevermores one by one, aiming for their wings as they tried to fire Fatal Feathers into the team to kill them, beaming them as well, or even using her dust upgrades to her advantage, blasting fireballs from her hands with ease.
She only just narrowly avoided the tentacle of the Empress Kraken as it swung it past her and into the bridge out of anger. She looked down and watched the immense beast disappear beneath the waves once more. Cinder and Coco both hovered above the water, moving underneath the bridge to get it in position.
And it worked. The water suddenly became its massive jaws as it tried to devour them whole. But they flew aside just in time, blasting fire and ice into its armour. It roared with fury as it tried to kill them.
Below, Qrow threw Harbinger across the battlefield, shredding multiple enemies. Ruby stared at the giant and opened her scroll. "Kassius! You've got one pissed off Kraken in position! You ready?" She called in.
"Hey! Give us a minute!" Kassius called back.
"WE DON'T HAVE A MINUTE!" Ruby yelled back.
"Ruby! We've got our own problems up here!" Kassius called out. Sun immediately rushed to the tanker, but he could not force it off the edge on his own.
"Send me to help!" Hyde suggested, and Kassius did not hesitate, ripping his secondary soul from his body and Hyde sprinted to Sun's aid. Kassius turned and grunted, being smashed against a car by the Sphinx's tail. It hissed viciously at him, but then a missile suddenly exploded into the side of its head. The Sphinx turned and roared at the large Acolytes of the Rose Airship that finally arrived. Junior and the Malachites were aboard it, and he fired his Rocket Launcher at the enormous creature.
Hyde and Sun pushed as hard as they could to get the truck to move. Hyde growled with rage as he forced it as hard as he could. It got closer and closer to the edge, and finally…
… it fell off the edge.
"YO BOMB'S AWAY! And all that shit…" Sun called out through the Scroll. The massive tanker plummeted down and exploded on top of the Empress Kraken's head. It let out a deafening bellow of anger. Plates of armour broke apart from the blast as it shook its head. It roared with immense hate, and the tentacles smashed through the supports, even smashing up through the bridge they were on.
"It worked! It's going crazy! Get the hell off that bridge!" Ruby yelled.
"C'mon!" Junior yelled as the Airship got closer to them. Oscar darted across the bridge in seconds and got aboard. Penny stayed in the air since she did not need to get in to be safe, but kept them covered. Sun got aboard next to the rest of Team J.N.P.R.
Neo and Kassius both rushed to the Airship whilst the Sphinx pursued them. Kassius ducked down as the long cables that kept the Suspension Bridge up snapped, lashing out with metallic pulse sounds. One came right past him and sliced straight through the Sphinx, cutting it clean in half. The Sphinx roared in agony as the bridge collapsed beneath it, sending it crashing down onto the Kraken.
Neo jumped aboard and Kassius jumped, just as the bridge dropped beneath him, but Neo caught his hand. Jaune also helped. "Gotcha!" He called out, hauling Kassius up and into the Airship.
They flew to safety as the massive structure came plummeting down. The Kraken let out one final bellow before the huge bridge crashed down onto its head.
And finally… silence.
The weight forced the beast back down to the bottom of the sea, and the tentacles became lifeless…
… and finally… it crumbled into ashes.
Yang stared at the Bridge with Ruby and Blake beside her. "Kassius? Kassius, are you okay? Kassius?"
"Oscar? Please pick up!"
"Sun? Sun, please…"
There was a pause as the silence surrounded them… and then…
"WHOO-HOO! HELL YEAH THAT WAS AWESOME!" Kassius laughed. They all sighed with relief.
"Y'know… just once… it'd be nice if we don't have an insane plan that nearly kills us." Oscar chuckled.
Ruby raised her scroll to her ear. "Admiral… Kraken's dead. You're clear to pick us up."
"Roger, E.T.A five minutes." Ortega assured.
"Oh, come on!" Velvet panted. They all turned and saw more Grimm headed their way.
"Looks like we're gonna have to hold them off until Ortega gets here." Ruby said.
BANG!
A huge bolt of glowing red lightning shot down from the Charred Forest above and into the city nearby. "What now? More Knights?" Kaa asked, but Ruby felt sick to her stomach, hairs stood on end.
"… no… so much worse…" Ruby stammered, eye wide.
In the city…
… Vir Nominis Umbra stood tall, and his eyes glowed bright red as he smirked, staring Ruby down. Their eyes met, and she gripped Crescent Rose tightly.
"Five minutes… five minutes…"
Author Note - The Star of the Show is finally here... fuck...
This was a fun chapter to write, sorry it took a while. Last week was hellish at work, was beat pretty much every day lol. Definitely glad I held off though, otherwise it wouldn't have been as good. Was awesome writing these fights, especially against the huge Kraken and showing everyone working together to beat it. And of course that fight against Fear and Fury was awesome, though short.
And we know why they left now, it's because Vir Nominis Umbra is here.
Five minutes, let's just hope they can actually get the hell out of Vale, it's too late to save the city now. The only way to save it now is to get to the Embered Grove with the Relics and find out how to kill Umbra.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review, follow and favourite!
Stay tuned for the next chapter - Vale Has Fallen...
- Matt