The first beowolf to get close enough lost its head to Fidelis' war fan. The next found a longsword stabbed through its head. The rest found wall of fire and fury as the other pirates opened fire. It wasn't just beowolfs though. Boarbatusks came spinning through the field, one came straight for Hector. He slammed a foot down on its head with a brutal crunch and kicked another over before impaling it with his sword. Nevermores came flying from the sky with vicious screeches only to have Fidelis send bursts of wind through the air to tear them apart. But with every grimm they killed it seemed like five more would take their place. They were being overwhelmed.
"Fidelis," Hector called out, "we need to fall back!"
"Fall back?" Fidelis gave a manic laugh. "Are you joking, this is amazing!" He beheaded an ursa before flipping backwards and riding a boarbatusk like a bull. He rode it around as it tried to shake him off and Hector kept up his retreat. Then a mighty roar filled the area. "Is that a Beringel?!"
The massive gorilla-like grimm came out of the forest. Eight feet tall, covered in bone-like armor with massive sloping forearms that it used to propel itself forward. Fidelis just laughed as he charged the monster and Hector could only stare in bewilderment.
Beringel's were usually seen across the ocean, Mistral had to deal with them and all the reports he had read made them seem like nightmares to fight. They were huge monstrous beasts, who gave even skilled hunters a hard time. As Fidelis swiped and stabbed at it with his war fan Hector noticed that the grimm didn't even really seem to be noticing the assault. It just roared and tried to pound the captain with heavy bone covered fists.
Fidelis kept dodging, which made a great distraction and let Hector get a read on the situation.
It wasn't good.
Grimm were swarming the area in droves, it was like the shadows themselves were producing them. The men behind the barricade were liberal with their ammunition but it only held the wall of sharp hate filled death at bay, they weren't pushing them back. Soon they'd run out of ammo and the slaughter would begin.
"Fidelis, we need to fall back!" Hector didn't know if his yells could reach the captain, or if the man was even listening. He seemed intensely focused on the battle. He couldn't worry about him at the moment though. He used his sword to cut a path through the monsters to the barricade. He leapt over and took in the state of things.
The men were terrified. Screaming and firing indiscriminately into the mob trying to swarm them. It was chaotic and would only serve to rile up the grimm further with all the negative emotion. Another scream form inside the ship caused Hector to nearly run inside. But he stopped himself, took a deep breath, and addressed the nearest pirate.
"You," he said grabbing the tusked man's shoulder and spinning him around. "Who is second in command here?"
The man shook his head rapidly and began to hyperventilate. "Too many, there too many of them-"
Hector slapped him. He regretted the need for it but when the man looked at him more focused he decided to apologize later when they weren't about to die. "The second-in-command, who is it?'
"Um-um-um it's, uh, we don't got one."
Hector shook his head, "then who can I talk to?"
"The cap'n."
They both looked to see Fidelis give a bloodthirsty roar before lunging at the Beringel. The two seemed locked in heated combat, their battle sweeping a wide arc across the field. He seemed to be having the time of his life. His men were not as enthusiastic.
"Retreat!"
"I want to live!"
Run away!"
The men manning the barricade broke rank and fled back to the ship, the grimm at their heels. Hector tried to stop them but he was busy making sure none were left behind with the beasts. When the majority of the men were up the ramp leading into the cargo bay the door started to close, they were shutting everyone out, grimm and their fellow pirates both.
Hector started picking those who had fallen up and managed to get everyone through the still closing doors. One of the men of the men gave a shout. "Cap'n, come inside, quick!"
"Cowards!" Hector could hear him yell back. "Come on, let's give the monsters a figh-" Fidelis was suddenly cut off as he went soaring through the air and slammed into the still closing bay doors. His men dragged him inside while he was stunned and Hector squeezed in just before they closed.
The cargo bay was dimly lit. Men huddled together around the small light strips in the area and many were either praying or in different states of panic. Some were helping in the corner with something, where C's screams were coming from.
Running over he saw that she was on the ground next to a still unconscious R gritting her teeth and looking like she was in extreme pain. Hector knelt down as what he assumed to be the ships medic was giving instructions to her and the men around them.
"Get me some towels, now!" The medic barked. Her floppy cow ears shifted in irritation and she scratched the small horns at the crest of her head. She gave Hector a glare that stopped him cold as he approached. She looked him over before going back to giving orders and he approached. Kneeling beside her he let C grip his arm as she suppressed a scream.
"What is happening?" He asked the doctor.
"Her water broke as soon as she came in here." The medic explained. "She's giving birth."
"Birth, the baby is coming now?" He could hear still hear the grimm's screams and clawing at the doors. "This is not the best time."
C suddenly twisted his arm so hard he lurched forward. The medic laughed when he straightened himself up. "I think she agrees."
"Noted, what can I do to help?"
"Stay there and comfort her while the professionals handle it."
"Have any of you delivered a baby before?"
The cow medic snorted. "I've helped deliver all my nieces, nephews. Most people here have helped deliver at least one family member. Faunus stick together for this sort of thing."
She had a point, "fair enough."
The grimm only grew more relentless as C continued to struggle and the medic did her thing. Some commotion near the stairs though grabbed Hector's attention and a man limped into the bay.
"They've breached the upper decks!" He screamed causing a wave of fear and panic among those there. "They'll be swarming down here soon!"
Looking down at C he gave her arm a small squeeze before letting go and walking over to the stairwell entrance. The man was still there leaning against the wall and stood a little straighter as Hector approached.
"I-I tried to fight Judge, I did. But there was just so many of them. Just-" He stopped speaking as Hector put a hand on his shoulder and nodded.
"It is alright, you did your best. In telling us that they have breached the upper floors you have given us a chance to save more lives. Thank you, for your help."
The man could only look at him slack jawed before Hector began heading up the stairs. When he saw where the Judge was going he snapped out of it. "Hey, where are you going?"
"Are there men still in the ship?"
"Yeah?"
"They will need help." He turned to a nearby pirate. "You," the addressed man snapped to attention, "blockade the stairwell door behind me." The man saluted and with that Hector was up the stairs.
The ship was low on power, only thin red strips lit the hallways. The occasional scuffle could be heard around a nearby corner. Hector didn't know the layout of the ship too well so he just followed the screams and gunfire he heard in the distance. He ran and as he turned a corner he saw that a group of pirates was desperately trying to fight off some creeps that had broken inside and were barreling down the hallway. A creep was a strange grimm, it was just a massive fanged head attached to clawed hind legs and a tail it swung like a whip. One leapt forward and began to savage a pirate who began to scream for help. The creep attacking him suddenly found a blade though its head.
The man quickly crawled past Hector who sent his blade into another creep's mouth. There were plenty more however and they practically filled the hallway fully. Hector braced himself for the onslaught only for the first three approaching him to take a shotgun round to their faces and dissipate.
Hector turned to see the armored faunus from the blimp raid stroll up and cock his shotgun. "Oy, this ain't no love cruise pretties. I suggest you get your furry rear ends off me boat." He blew away more of them as he stood beside Hector and together they cleared the rest of the hallway. When they were done Hector gave the man a firm nod.
"Thank you for your help. How are your ribs?"
The rabbit man just sniffed and seemed to be gauging whether or not Hector was being coy before he hefted his weapon. "Their fine and it weren't no problem mate, soon as the cap'n heard 'bout what you was doin' he came running too. Brought a few of us wit 'em and told me to go an check up on ya."
"That was nice of him."
"Nah, he knew ya Judges are rubbish 'gainst grimm and didn't wanna clean up ya corpse after this was over."
Hector didn't really have a response to that. "Well, thank you again..."
"Buster, Buster Blue. Now let's show these dumb dumbs why ya don't break into a pirate ship."
Together Buster and Hector cleared out the ship's hallways little by little. They saved pirates as they went and sent them back to the cargo bay. They were making good progress until they reached the mess hall. Inside there were creeps and beowolves tearing and snapping at the men inside. To fire their weapons would mean risking hitting their comrades.
"Looks like we're doin' this da ol' fashion way," Buster said as he pressed a button on his shotgun and morphed it into a club. A beowolf that got too close found its head crushed in as Buster gave a war cry and jumped into the grimm's midst. Hector followed suit and soon they were slashing at the monsters left and right. As Buster crushed, Hector pulled the injured men back out of harm's way. Soon most of the pirates were safe but the grimm just kept pouring into the room.
"Mr. Blue," Hector called out, "we need to leave!"
"Bu' it's just getting good!" Suddenly a swarm of beowolves burst into the room. They came snarling and baying for blood.
"On second thought, yeah, let's go."
Buster retreated firing at the pack before helping Hector shut the door in their face. One of the pirates had a flaming lance and they used it to weld the door shut. Buster escorted the group back to the bay as Hector kept pushing onwards. Hallway after hallway, room after room, the grimm had completely infested the ship. Hector came across those he couldn't make it in time to save. Each loss weighed heavily on his heart but he kept going, saving who he could where he could. For a brief moment he wished that Nora and Ren had stayed with him, they could have easily helped bring the ship under control.
The sentiment became all the more appealing as he turned a corner and faced a hallway completely swarmed with grimm. As they looked at him he focused on creating as much sable energy as he possibly could as he slowly backed up. The swarm milled around the area sniffing for prey only vaguely aware that he was there. He kept taking steps back only to bump into someone.
'Ah, watch where your-Judge?" Fidelis said as he brushed himself off. He was accompanied by some of his men. "What the hell are you-?"
The grimm suddenly turned to them with red eyes focusing on the new target like lasers and the swarm surged forward like a black, white and red wave of death.
"We need to retreat!" He could survive the swarm…probably. But the others would most definitely die. They needed to get out of there as quickly as possible.
"You want to run? I don't-" Fidelis didn't finish because Hector grabbed him by the back of his collar and pulled him along. He sputtered and snarled indignantly but when another wave of grimm joined up with the other one he conceded and started to run alongside Hector. Together they made it back to the cargo bay. The pirates opened the door for them and quickly blockaded it again.
Hector looked around and saw that the bay was far more populated than it had been. There were more men but the atmosphere was no less dire. The grimm from the ship were pounding at the hallway door, the grimm outside were no less persistent. The cargo bay doors were now dented and shook with every blow. They didn't look like they would hold much longer.
The men didn't look like they were faring much better. Many were either nervously checking their weapons or reinforcing the barricades. Beyond the cargo bay door they had set up another perimeter. It looked sturdy enough, being made from crates and anything else they could find, but it very much looked to be a last stand option. Fidelis quickly went over to bark orders at some pirates who were idling about while Hector went to go check on C.
When he went over she was still in intense pain. The medic was rushing out orders faster now telling her to breathe while the others worked. R was still out of it and Hector quickly knelt, letting C grip his arm again. The orders were coming quicker now.
"This is it," the medic said, "push!" Causing C to scream out and groan in pain.
'You are almost done, keep pushing," he said gently as C gnashed her teeth and screamed. He scream was suddenly joined by another. Hector looked to see that the medic now held a wailing bundle. She handed it to C who let Hector go to hold her child. She pulled back the bundle and the people around them awed at the sight.
It was a small boy, with chubby cheeks, blond hair, and fuzzy little golden bear ears. C gently rocked him, her eyes filled with tears as she tenderly kissed her sons forehead. "He's beautiful. He's my beautiful little Teddy." The cargo bay doors were slammed into again and the baby began to wail even louder. C just looked at the boy and closed her eyes, pain wracking her features as she reached out to grip R's hand. "He isn't even going to be able to meet his father."
The words shook Hector to his core.
He knew that he was low on sable energy. The little he had recovered since the fall was quickly dwindling. He could feel the effects of hunger and exhaustion creeping along the borders of his consciousness. Kept at bay by the thin line of power he had left. If he kept going, if he kept fighting, then he would die. But looking at this family, this new and beautiful family, he knew that there was only one path for him. He remembered the oath he took so long ago.
In the flames of war
In pursuit of peace
A shield for all
A sword for all
We stand
He began to walk over to the cargo bay doors, his movements drawing the attention of all those in the room. Fidelis noticed his approach and gave the Judge a small nod.
"You saved a lot of my guys," he said before crossing his arms. "But you did put them in this situation to begin with. So we aren't square, yet."
Hector nodded. "I understand. Have you contacted anyone for help?"
Fidelis shook his head. "We only just fixed the ship after landing here. Even all the computer systems are still out. Whatever did sent all our software for a damn loop. Last I heard my guys in the engine room managed to get the general SOS signal up and running before they were swarmed by nevermores. We'll be seen to anyone looking but…"
"Otherwise we are on our own," Hector finished. No one was coming, this was it. The men around them began to moan and wail in despair.
"They're coming, they're coming!"
"We're all going to die!"
"What can we do, what can we do?!"
"We're all doomed!"
"No hope, no hope, no hope."
The panic only seemed to spiral outwards, rippling throughout the room and put the grimm into a bloodthirsty frenzy. Hector listened to them pound and tear at the door as Fidelis tries to get his men to calm down. It was then he noticed something, in the corner under a tarp. Walking over he pulled the tarp back, his eyes widening at what he saw.
"Captain Fidelis," he said calling over to the man, "what are these."
Fidelis walked over and joined him. He looked to see what Hector was pointing at and sighed. "They came with the ship. We use them for scouting."
"Do they work?"
"Yeah, why?"
"I have an idea."
Fidelis looked between Hector and the tarp before letting out a manic laugh. "You're joking. I'm all for crazy, I love me some crazy, but whatever your thinking…you've got to be completely out of your mind. I'm in."
"Good, gather your men.'
Fidelis did so and Hector was soon standing in front of the crew they had managed to save. They were nervous, and frightened. But they were also curious as to whatever the Judge and their captain had to say.
Hector cleared his throat, which did little to quiet down the murmurs. Some paid attention but the sound of the straining cargo bay doors still drew most of their nervous eyes with every clang. Fidelis gave an annoyed snarl.
"Hey, the Judge has got something to say, so shut up!" he barked out getting everyone to quiet down and pay attention.
"Um, thank you, Captain," Fidelis nodded as Hector addressed the crew. "Men, I know we have had our differences. Many of you blame me for the situation. I cannot say that they are wrong. But none of that matters right now. What matters is what we do now, and what we do next."
The crew began to murmur anxiously.
"Death, death is coming!"
'What can we do against them?"
"Hate, mindless hate and darkness. It's all they are!"
"And what are we?" Hector said raising his voice, the full weight of his authority coming through and grabbing the crew's attention. "If they are the darkness of Remnant personified then what are we, what are you? The White Fang was created to give the faunus a chance at creating a better world, one where you could protect your brothers and sisters against the evils of the world. The Sable Judges were created to fight injustice, and defend the weak whenever they cannot defend themselves. Well, today we all have a chance to live up to the ideals of our chosen causes."
"But what do we do?"
"Nothing to do but die!"
"Die, die, die!"
"Fight with me," Hector said gesturing to the door. "Come with me and let us face our enemy. Let us meet them head on and send the beasts back to the shadows."
The room was sunned into silence. One man managed to speak though, from the center of the crowd, in a meek voice. "Why?"
"For honor," Fidelis roared as he leapt unto a crate. "For the glory, for a hell of a great fight and a hell of a final stand no one will ever forget!" Many were nodding along to the words. "When they find us let's let them know that be gave the monsters a fight!" He raised his fists to the cheers of his men. "For the White Fang!"
"For the Fang, for the fang, for the fang!" the men all chorused, their voices rising so loudly they nearly blocked out the grimm outside.
Hector watched as the group dispersed and went to go prepare. Fidelis leapt off the crate and stood beside him, watching his men get to work. "An impressive display," Hector commented. He would need to work on his own orating skills if he wanted to inspire men like that… if they lived through this of course.
Fidelis shrugged. "Everyone on this ship knows that it's better to die on your feet than whimpering in a corner."
"Is that why you're fighting?"
Fidelis shrugged. "The Fang is my home, the pale claw is my ship, and these are my men. There's no way in hell I'm letting all three down. What about you?"
"Me?"
"Why are you fighting, is it just for that baby and his parents?"
"Partly."
"Partly? What's the other part?"
"The fact that I cannot stand around and watch you and your men die here. Not while I can still hold my sword, not while I can still fight."
"Good answer," Fidelis said nodding. "You're pretty crazy, ever think of becoming a pirate?"
"No, have you ever thought of becoming a law abiding citizen?"
Fidelis snorted. "No, come on let's go get ready."
It was then that they split the crew into two groups. There were those who would attack the grimm and those who would hold the line in the cargo bay. A circle of whatever they could find had been set up and reinforced. C and her family had been moved behind it and were resting. Hector could only hope that his idea worked and they would all live to see the dawn.
Either way, this is where it ended.
As the cargo bay doors opened the grimm let out their snarls and roars. But they weren't the only ones. All of a sudden there was a deafening burst of noise, a cacophony of roars that confused the beasts long enough for the first line of lances to slam into them.
The M274 Atlas All-Terrain motorcycles were simple, yet effective, vehicles of war. They had two reinforced metal wheels, sturdy but light chassis, and came with a sidecar mounted with a dust cooled chain gun. They also came with telescoping drill lances for the riders to wield. They were built for quick raids and small skirmishes, not sieges. But no one seemed to care for that fact too much at this point.
So with whirring, spinning lances and chain guns spitting out ammo by the score a dozen riders went out to meet their enemy. The first few rows of grimm fell to them easily, the next several quickly began to fight back, splitting the group of riders apart. A battle ensued as the men tore through the horde of grimm, screaming and cursing at the top of their lungs.
Hector wielded a lance and was driving his motorcycle as Fidelis stood in the sidecar holding and firing the chain gun from his hip with one hand and swinging his war fan by the wire in the other. He alternated between manic laughter and enraged roars as he fired round after round into the shadowy sea of monster surrounding them. Hector kept their path clear with the lance and together they cut a swath through the assembled grimm.
Hector was worried that the nevermores would pose a bigger problem but the man with the flame lance from earlier proved to be the perfect solution. He didn't know when the man had acted but at one point a column of fire had erupted into the air. It practically evaporated a group of nevermores and left many more on fire. The panicked monsters flew around into their brethren and ignited them too, causing a chain reaction that lit the night sky on fire.
In the glow of the burning sky the men were reinvigorated. They roared in fury and even when knocked off their bikes and surrounded they fought with tooth, nail, claw, hoof and tail however they could for as long as they could. But the battle was far from over and the grimm just kept coming.
A roar brought Hector's attention to a pair of riders who flew through the air and fell somewhere only to get swarmed. He screamed in anger as the Beringel charged through the field making a beeline for the ship. Hector drifted the bike and made straight for the rampaging grimm. As he approached he sliced into its back legs with the drill causing it to lurch forward and roar in pain. Fidelis peppered the beast with gunfire but it only served to make the monster angrier.
"This thing won't go down!" Fidelis yelled as the Beringel started chucked other grimm at them. Hector narrowly swerved out of the way to dodge a flying boarbatusk and went for another pass with his lance. The monster just took the drill and snapped it with a mighty hand causing Hector to careen them off to the side. He drew his sword and sliced through the surrounding grimm but he realized Fidelis was right. "We need something with heavier firepower!"
Heavier firepower…
Hector had an idea. A stupid, stupid idea that would most likely get him killed. But at this point that was a given. "Fidelis, we're going to need to improvise."
"I love improvising!" Fidelis screamed as Hector drifted the bike and revved up the engine. He sent the bike forward with a burst of speed directly for the Beringel. The monster roared as it braced itself and blocked the shots Fidelis was getting off from the bike. When they reached it, just before the bike slammed into the beast grabbed the front of it and tossed the bike upwards with a massive display of strength. This sent the two men flying into the air above the battle. It was then that they made their move.
Fidelis' wind powers were strong, combined with the fan they were powerful enough to create storm force winds. Fidelis spun midair, quickly drawing in speed and strength until he looked like a tornado in midair. Meanwhile Hector was positioning himself, twisting to get just the right angle. They moved together. Fidelis swung at Hector with the flat of the fan and Hector met it, extending his legs and using the fan's momentum and Fedelis' strength to fly forward.
With a cry of fury he raised his sword before slamming into the Beringel and ramming the weapon into its mouth, muffling its roar. Before it could even fall backwards he twisted the blade, bisecting it's head in half.
He fell forward into a roll unto the field as the beast dissipated behind him. He used his sword to slice through more grimm, keeping them back as he kept heading backwards until he was back to back with Fidelis.
"Nice landing back there," Fidelis said using his weapon to slash a beowolf through the leg and using his claws to rake out its throat as it tried to bite at him.
"Thank you," Hector slammed his fist into the gut of an ursa causing it to lean forward enough for him to drop his sword down on its neck like a guillotine. The riders were dwindling now, and while there were less grimm the men fighting were getting more tired and weak as the battle continued.
One ursa got a lucky shot though and sent Hector flying through the air. He could hear Fidelis shout but it was drowned out by the grimm that quickly swarmed over him. His armor started taking a heavy beating and while he stabbed at the monsters as much as he could he realized that this was it. He couldn't get up anymore and his energy was just about out. There was no escape. He could only hope he had made a difference.
And then all of a sudden the beowolves tearing at him disappeared. Dissipating instantly as a rush of wind came past. At first Hector thought it was Fidelis but as he stood up he saw that the wind was coming from a bullhead hovering above. The side opened up revealing a girl. She was…really well dressed, and welding a massive rotating mini gun that absolutely scythed through the grim in the area.
More kids, most probably her teammates leapt from the bullhead and into the fray below. One wielded a massive blade, another held bladed gauntlets, while the third used… a camera? A camera that apparently made hard light weapons, she was suddenly holding a blue wire version of her teammates gauntlets. Together the trio began to tear into the grimm, and even started beating them back. With the girl on the bull head providing cover and her friends slaughtering grimm left and right the sea of darkness began to recede. Any grimm not smart enough to retreat was quickly killed and soon the field had been cleared of them.
"Victory, victory, victory!" Fidelis gave a roar and the rest of the men followed suit. They had survived the night and dawn was finally coming.
As the sun came over the horizon Hector looked around and saw that the aftermath of the fight wasn't pretty. Most of the field had been trampled and burnt, scarred by the weight of the conflict. There were only four riders of the initial twelve left. Fidelis ordered his men to find all the bodies they could and have them put in the cargo bay for later burial. All in all it had been a brutal night, only about thirty percent of the crew had survived. Fidelis assured him it was still enough to fly the ship, but their losses still weighed on his heart.
He went to go greet the huntsmen as they landed their bullhead. The mini gun girl was the first to greet him. "So you must be Judge Hector," she said looking him over. "I'm Coco Adel, and this is team CFVY. The big guy is Yastuhashi Daichi, bun bun is Velvet Scarlatina and Mr. Orange is Fox Alistair. Headmaster Ozpin sent us to come looking for you. You look like hell."
Hector hummed in approval of the statement. At this point his armor must have been dent, burnt, and absolutely filthy. "It has been a long few days. I would have looked even worse if you hadn't arrived when you did. How did you know to come looking for me?"
"Two kids came running into the Beacon demanding to talk to headmaster. A pink girl and a green dude." Ah, Ren and Nora. "We were the first people they ran into and we took them to his office. They were worried about you, they weren't the only ones." She seemed to shiver. "Some rude girl in white started to give us an earful when we got there," that must have been Weiss ",and apparently he was getting worried too so he sent us to go fetch you as quick as we could. Looks like we got here just fast enough."
"We nearly didn't make it." Velvet chimed in. "That SOS marker though lead us right to you."
Hector felt marginally better knowing that the men of the bridge had accomplished what they had given their lives for. Their comrades were safe, he hoped they knew that somewhere.
"These men appear to be pirates, yet they fight alongside a Judge." Yatsuhashi commented. "How does such a thing occur?"
"It's a long story. Perhaps it is easier just to show you." He lead them back to the cargo bay where the pirates were taking stock and getting ready to clear out the rest of the ship. When they reached C the huntresses suddenly devolved began to awe and coo as they small the small baby in her arms. The two huntsmen boys witnessed the scene and rolled their eyes at each other, they were still smiling though. Together the group left to go clear out the rest of the ship as Hector knelt beside C. She gave him a gentle smile.
"We're alive."
"Yes, yes we are."
"Thanks to you."
Hector shook his head. "Thanks to many men and women, they gave their lives so we could be here."
C hummed thoughtfully at. Before she could say anything R suddenly gasped. His eyes fluttered open and he began to hack out a cough.
"Wha-what happened, where are we?" He sputtered out as he tried to rise.
Hector gently pushed him down as C calmly hushed him. "It's alright love, we're fine."
"What's going on? What happened to the grimm?"
"Gone," Hector added tranquilly. "The grimm have been beaten back and your family is safe."
"My family…" R's vision seemed to come back into focus and he seemed to notice the baby crying in C's arms. "Is that- am I-?"
"You're a father Rollo," C said happily, tears streaming down her eyes. "His name is Teddy, come meet your son."
Hector helped R…or Rollo now, up and over to his family. He held C in his arms and just looked at the baby in awe. "I'm a father." The words came out as an awed whisper as he began to cry. "I'm a father!"
His shout caused a chain reaction as everyone in the cargo bay began to cheer. Fidelis leapt unto a crate and extended his arms out to grab everyone's attention. "That was a hell of a fight! Now let's have a hell of a party! Break out the mistralian rum!" The crew gave out a shout and soon they were breaking out food and drinks all over the place. Team CFVY returned to the party in full swing. The pirates were drinking and celebrating, and as soon as the huntsmen returned they lifted them other shoulders and began to parade them around to the cheers of all there.
Hector sat off to the side on a crate as he watched the revelry. Fidelis was taking on Buster in a drinking contest. Some people were sitting with C laughing and joking while team CFVY was dancing with some of the pirates. They had cleared the bridge and Fidelis was playing his special party mix over the speakers as the celebration amped up. He could see Rollo though, only to have the man sit next to him. His breath was labored and he looked to be in pain as he shifted on the crate but he was alive.
"I hear we're still alive thanks to you, at least I am."
"We're all alive thanks to many people."
"Thank you," Rollo said, "for my life, and my family."
"You are welcome." And so they sat there, watching the others party. Hector looked to see that Rollo was looking at C with a complicated expression. It looked equal parts sad, pained and blindingly happy. "Is something the matter?"
He looked over at Hector and gave him a weak smile. "No…I mean-yeah but…" He sighed. "I want to marry her, so badly. I mean it's all I thought about since our first kiss, you know?"
"So why haven't you? What's stopping you?"
Rollo snorted. "What hasn't stopped me you mean? Try her dad for one, being on the road for two, the fact that no church or registry where we come from would even consider marrying us for three. It just seems like there's never been a chance to do it." He rustled his hair in frustration.
"Now seems like a calm moment, maybe it's time."
"You don't say, and who's going to be the one to marry us?"
"As a Sable Judge I can take on the duties and abilities of any regularly appointed official as well."
"Wait, so that means-"
"I am officiated, yes."
"…really?"
Soon the cargo bay had been restructured. Crates had been moved and shifted around so that they created rows of seats for the crew to sit on. An aisle had been set up to the center leading to a makeshift arch made wiring the pirates had set up. Underneath was Rollo, looking nervous and tugging at the collar of his dress shirt. He had borrowed a full tuxedo outfit from one of pirate's lockers. The pirate in question was dead now, so no one saw the harm in lending out his nice tuxedo's for a little bit.
Next to a teary eyed Rollo was Fidelis, who was filling in the best man role. Beside him were the two huntsmen acting as groomsmen for the ceremony. Across the aisle the cow medic, whose name he found out was Juno Alva, was the maid of honor, next to her were the huntresses looking like they were trying not to cry. Hector was directly under the arch and watch as C came down the aisle, dressed in a white dress she had borrowed from Juno. She was holding Teddy and Rollo gave a shuddery breath as she walked up to the arch and stared into his eyes.
Hector began the ceremony. "We have gathered here today to unite two people together in the blessed union of marriage. Through the darkest of nights and the harshest of days, their lives and their love have endured and survived into the bond we see before us today. I cannot ask if they will sacrifice for one another, I have seen it. I cannot question their devotion to their love, it has survived too much. I can only ask one thing. Do you-."
"Rollo Duff," Rollo said trying his best not to cry.
"-take-"
"Canary Winchester," C said with a radiant smile, she was practically glowing with happiness.
"To be your lawfully wedded wife?"
"I do."
"And do you-"
"I do." Canary interrupted.
Hector nodded. "Then I now pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride." Rollo wrapped his arms around the new Mrs. Duff and brought her in close for a kiss. He was careful of the baby and when he pulled back kisses his sons forehead.
The crew went wild and the party was immediately back on in full swing. The grimm were far less active during the day so everyone relaxed and they partied up until the sun began to dip in the horizon. The sun was setting in the distance as Canary and her family was loaded up into the bullhead. Team CFVY was next which left Hector as the last to board.
He stood in the open field hallway between the bullhead and the pirate airship, Fidelis standing across from him.
"You know" Fidelis started, "Adam's going to be pretty pissed. Aside from losing half my crew, when he finds out I let you go…"
Hector nodded. "The Judges will be no less angry about me letting a group of pirates free either."
"So we're both in trouble," Fidelis said with a smirk. "Any regrets?"
Hector looked around. He looked at the newly minted family man playing with his newborn son, laughing with his wife. He looked at the crew that milled around, in mourning but alive. His answer came easy. "No, no regrets on my end."
"Me neither," Fidelis extended a hand and Hector could only stare at it in shock. He reached out his own and the two shook. "See you around Judge. We're even now so don't be expecting me to go easy on you next time we're on the opposite ends of a fight."
"Same to you, captain."
With that they shared a respectful nod and headed back to their respective ships. As the bullhead began to climb into the air Hector saw the Pale Claw activate and rise as well before flying in the opposite direction.
"All right people," Coco said over the intercom, "next stop, Beacon Academy."
As the bullhead began to fly off towards Vale, Hector couldn't help but think. He was going to be in so much trouble with the Order as soon as he gave them his report. He had broken so many rules and regulations it would a miracle if they let him keep being a Judge. At the very least he would be punished quite severely.
But Rollo was alive, Canary was alive, their son was alive, and a whole lot of men and women were still alive. Because of his actions, and what he had sacrificed. As they continued to head towards Vale, Hector realized that the world was a little bit brighter than it would have been if he had done nothing at all.
And that made it all worth it.
End of Arc 1: Starting Steps
Man, that was a busy chapter. A lot of things to unpack here and even more stuff to look forward to as well, and we are finally heading to Beacon. I know I haven't really included too many elements from the show but this intro arc has set Hector up on a crash course with a few characters up ahead. Now that all the basics about the Judges have been introduced and Hector's personality is fleshed out a bit more interactions can be made easier. So all your favorite characters will have their roles to play soon enough. Though how we meet them and their roles may have been switched up a bit...
Did anyone else correctly guess the identity of C? I put her in as a curve ball with a ton of clues pointing at another of team JNPR. But considering that Hector had already met Ren and Nora on a pirate ship, I felt that having him create connections to all the main characters in one arc was beginning to look too predictable. So now he's set to deal with another prominent team as well. Speaking of teams, Team CFVY had been intended to come in and save the crew of the Pale Claw since the beginning. I have my plans for them too, but my use of them as Beacons elite errand boys presented some interesting ideas to explore in the future.
Anyways, thank you everyone for following the story this far. I hope you continue to do so and want you all to know how much I appreciate the support. Thanks again, and stay tuned for more.