Mad Max: Road to Salvation

Episode 31: Times to come

A/N: Ok so this is the final chapter of this volume and I'll pick it back up later in volume 2 after I take care of my other stories that need attention. Hopefully this is a satisfying conclusion to a great first volume. Please don't flame me or leave for what's about to happen.

[Charles: thanks but I had to change that, it just didn't feel satisfying to me.]

[Gamerman22: Sorry but that's going to be in the next volume, I promise.]

[CLearwingyuta: thanks.]

-SEVERAL DAYS LATER-

"You want to do what?" Max snarled at the wise headmaster who treaded on thin ice.

"I understand your reluctance Max but-" Ozpin started to make his case but he was interrupted by an irritated Max.

"This is-" Max started to say but Ironwood interrupted him as well.

"Necessary! It's asset denial mister Rockatansky, you remember teaching that to your students, don't you?" Ironwood butted in.

"James, you have to understand how difficult this is for him." Ozpin tried to remind the general of his place in this discussion.

"You're asking to risk my daughter's life. Difficult is not the most accurate word." Max crossed his arms and scowled.

"We would not do so lightly Max, you know as well as I do what our enemy is capable of. If this power falls into her hands then it spells disaster for all of us." Ozpin tried to remind Max of the danger they were all facing with the threat of the false fall maiden.

"Why isn't Glynda here?" Max growled at the absence of the girl's surrogate mother.

"She's… also considering the options." Ozpin replied calmly.

"You told her first?" Max raised an eyebrow.

"I wanted to give you both time to weigh this individually, I'm not blind to how both of you feel about each other." The wise headmaster explained in a calm tone.

"How did you know?" Max sighed.

"I know a ring case when I see one." Ozpin pointed to one of Max's pouches that held the ring since it was shaped differently from its normal appearance.

"We're getting off of the subject you two! Glynda and Max's impending marriage aside, this is our best option!" The general tried to bring the discussion back its original topic.

"Ironwood, I will only warn you once, this is my daughter's life, so watch your tone!" The road warrior growled at the general who stood behind the safety of a video screen in atlas.

"This would benefit all of us including her, but I will not deny that it carries risks." Ozpin admitted the risks of the process of aura transfer.

"Then tell me, how does it benefit her?" Max said with his tone growing more reasonable.

"It gives her the chance to gain the strength to protect herself. From what the science teams, and the good doctor Grey have determined, it may be possible that Amber and Anya will simply share the body rather than completely fusing their souls together. But for the sake of argument, the latter has an equal chance to the former of occurring should we choose this route." Ozpin said tactfully, explaining the full weight of this predicament. "Either we deny our enemies the full power of the fall maiden, or risk everything later on. I know you would choose your child over the world, but in this case, I would argue that both go hand in hand. But I will not force you Max, you lost more than your fair share of loved ones in the past, and it is your decision to make."

"You're asking me to risk my child, and yet you haven't even told me who exactly we're fighting Ozpin." Max sighed in an attempt to curb his anger and relax.

"That's true, I haven't but she is not our current discussion." Ozpin told the truth.

"I don't care, say it." Max demanded.

"*sigh*Her name is Salem." The wise headmaster began his explanation. Max began to hear the whole story of who the enemy truly is. Max had encountered her before in his mind once as he recalled the nightmare he'd had some time ago. Ozpin continued his explanation on the dark queen's existence to the barest extent, so as to keep some secrets close to his chest as usual, and also away from the war mongering general, who was also now privy to this info. It was enough to satisfy the angered road warrior, and even explain who created the Grimm to an extent. With that said, Max stormed out of the room to think about the events of this night.

Even now as he sat upon the rooftops of beacon, the wasteland veteran who'd seen it all, was left at a crossroads. He knew this decision would've been easier a long time ago, but then again that was a different time and place, when he was a far more broken man. He was not devoid of his painful scars, but neither was he completely healed even though Anya had helped to ease most of his suffering. It seemed fate was still against him, even after he'd been returning to being at least close to the man he once was. He knew he'd never be the same again, that was a given fact of life for him. But could he do same to his own adopted daughter? Would it be heartless to force this fate upon her? Or, could it be a blessing in disguise? These thoughts plagued his mind while he stood a lonely vigil over the school, with the light of the broken moon shinning down on him for company.

Meanwhile, Glynda was also in her own state of melancholia on what to think of this. She had known Ozpin for a very long time but she'd never considered he'd go this far. How could he even consider forcing this on a child who was so young? The huntsmen and huntresses in training were at least old enough to defend themselves and would hopefully understand the risks of their chosen profession. But this, it was madness. The normally stoic and strict disciplinarian had come to love that girl as if she were her own daughter and it sickened so, to learn that even Oz would go that far. She wanted to pretend it didn't happen, that her employer and friend could never cross that line. But he had, and this problem would go away. She knew of Salem through what little Ozpin had explained, which was still a great deal of information. But the weight of the world on the shoulders of a child, a toddler no less? That was sheer insanity! As the good witch of beacon of paced the empty halls in deep thought, she received an alert on her scroll that made her eyes go wide with horror. With the directions she had been given, she ran to find Max and alert him to what had just happened.

After sometime had passed, the two of them made it to see Amber crying out in fits of pain for what may be her last moments in the land of the living. The whole time though, within her mind, Amber was hearing Max's words from the previous days repeat themselves. Despite the feeling of her insides imploding she fought with all her will to think of Anya. The girl had been so sweet to her in the few times she'd stumbled in to speak with her. It had had left her wondering where her own innocence had gone. She forced away the thoughts of her attacker even as the cancer seemed to try forcing its way into her mind. Amber pulled the face of Anya into her mind and refused to let go as the darkness began to consume her. With one final act of defiance, she made sure the last girl in her thoughts would not be her attacker but instead the daughter of Max. The heart monitor sounded its long tone to signal that the life of the fall maiden had been extinguished. Everyone in the room gathered around as Amy gently shut the girl's eyelids with the palm of her hand, while doctor Grey deactivated the various pieces of medical equipment. But one thing that seemed to be a small comfort, was that she had died with a smile on her face. No one could understand why though, except for Max who had a sinking feeling in his gut. He sprinted away in the direction of Anya's bedroom without another word. Glynda chased after him to find out why he had done so. Ozpin also clued into the same possibility that ran through their minds and calmly walked off to follow them.

At that moment, Anya was peacefully playing in dreamland without a care in the world. As she was enjoying a good dream Amber seemed to appear right beside her. The innocent little girl smiled warmly at her presence with Amber returning the sentiment. She knew her time had come though and decide to say her farewell to the girl who'd warmed her heart. In the physical world, Anya's body glowed ominously from behind the safety of her bedroom door. Max continued his sprint to Anya's room not even caring how winded he was getting from it.

"Well Anya I think it's time I went away." Amber said with a with sorrowful smile.

"Where are you going?" Anya tilted her head curiously.

"Hopefully, somewhere nice." Amber answered calmly.

"Will you ever come back?" The little faunus girl asked sweetly.

"Maybe someday, take care of yourself while I'm gone ok." The former fall maiden replied with a sigh.

"Ok, I'll miss you." Anya said with a sad look in her eyes.

"Me too, but I'll leaving you with a very special present." Amber tried to cheer up the girl.

"Ooh what is it?" Anya grinned with wonder.

"You'll find out when you wake up. Goodbye." Amber said as she waved to her little friend and disappeared into a bright portal of light that quickly vanished. Just like that, Anya's body stopped glowing and Max reached the door. He opened it to catch the fading glow and hear the quietly peaceful breaths coming from where his daughter slept. He breathed a sigh of both relief and frustration as he knew what came with this new development all too well. Glynda arrived just after him and Max looked to her with his usual stoic face. It was clear both of them would have a lot to talk about concerning the future. The next day preparations were made for the proper burial of Amber's body. Ozpin had a decent hidden location in mind. It was a quiet ceremony; the rain had poured down that day with barely any words spoken in remembrance. As they mourned her death, the question still remained about where to go on from here. Max watched the beautifully decorated coffin sink into the ground. It was the first time in a very long time that he'd seen a proper burial first hand. He and Glynda looked each other in the eyes, both with looks of sorrow at the demise of the former fall maiden. The two of them were reminded that despite what they were capable of, everyone dies. Knowing that fact Glynda knew how she felt about the man in front of her, time would not wait for her to take the chance. Both of them held hands before Glynda leaned in to kiss Max directly on the lips. This was beyond unexpected for him, especially at this particular moment. Glynda used just the right amount of tongue as she deepened the kiss with no objection from the man she had grown to love. Ozpin saw this and thought to himself about how when the average person is faced with their own mortality it can make them do the most unpredictable things.

Later that night, Max proudly stood guard over his daughter's bedroom. The young girl now had a massive target painted on her back and he knew it. He now had a mortal enemy who would stop at nothing to kill her, making him more than eager to find Salem and take the fight to her wherever she is. Ozpin had made it clear to him that Salem will never stop until she is either successful in killing everyone who lives and breathes or until someone destroys her. With that in mind, Max understood his place now in this world. If Salem would come for his daughter, his family, he would stand in sheer defiance. Until the day came when there would be nothing left for her to throw at him, he would become a wall. He was already considering how to retaliate whenever the chance came as this was now personal. He had no doubt that someone would be mad right now at the denial of an asset such as the full powers of the fall maiden. One advantage he understood at this moment was that they would have no idea where the power went. But he balanced that with the fact that if Salem were as clever as Ozpin led him to believe, a major suspect would already be his daughter. Things were coming to a head now and it was only going to get worse from here.

-ONE MONTH LATER-

Max had been getting vibes about the right time to propose to Glynda as the right time still hadn't presented itself yet. All this time and he was still no closer to that moment. That being said, Glynda wasn't exactly in a rush. The road warrior suspected that his soon to be fiancé had an inkling of what he was planning to do. It was difficult for him to pick up on though, she had been very subtle and Max had to give her credit on that. The two of them spent their free afternoons together with each other while Bruz and Dinki-di kept a close eye on Anya. The little faunus girl though was starting to slowly discover what she had been gifted with. It made headaches for the older dingo faunus when somethings would mysteriously burst into flames whenever Anya would have even a slight temper tantrum. But of course, he knew enough not to ask about this. One Friday afternoon though Bruz would receive an unexpected visit from an old friend. As he sat on a bench watching Anya and Daniel play in a sandbox that had been set up on the schoolgrounds Bruz felt his hair stand on end as an ugly little hunchback shuffled towards him.

"It would seem you need my guidance again my fellow acolyte." Chum said happily as he hobbled over to Bruz's side.

"Wah! Chum don't spook me like that mate!" Bruz jumped slightly and dropped his voice to a whisper. No one but him could see the hunchback's ghost, but he didn't to draw attention himself but talking out loud to a ghost.

"It would seem the little angel has received the sacred catalyst to unlock her full potential! Praise be to the sacramental piston!" Chum-bucket raved with joy as he watched the little girl [play in the sandbox with her friend.

"So that's why she's been so uppity lately." Bruz said with a satisfied look on his face.

"Yes, the holy powers she has been gifted with are beginning to reveal themselves my fellow acolyte. Oh, what joy!" Chum rejoiced excitedly.

"I'm guessing that isn't all you came to tell me, right?" Bruz raised an eyebrow as he crossed his arms.

"Oh yes there is so much to tell, dark forces are closing in alright. But fear not, the angel and the shaman are gonna bring you some help." Chum remembered his other reason for coming to see the manic dingo mechanic.

"What kind of 'help'?" Bruz asked with a look of skepticism.

"I-I can't say for sure." Chum stuttered briefly.

"Then why tell me?" Bruz hissed.

"I was not finished! An orange striped demon the saint faced once, he's a wily one alright. But the angel may summon a disciple of war who may aid you! He is also a warrior whom has slain many infidels is his day. He was once a seeker of things, an agent of recovery or 'freelancer' of some sort. There may even be more who will join this great crusade! One thing I do know, is that there is one here already who the demon once depended on. I do not know his name though, but I can say if he reveals himself then he will be all the more helpful in defeating the dark queen's minions and her fiery temptress." Chum told Bruz of the incoming reinforcements that would arrive sometime in the future due in no small part to the aid of divine intervention.

"Thanks for the head's up then chum! I'll be on the lookout mate! Oh, wait show me the opus drawings again I want to get my black fingers to work on that beauty!" Bruz grinned with this knowledge in hand and quickly asked his otherworldly guide for another vision of the mighty war chariot.

"Of course, anything to help you and the holy saint in your sacred quests and protecting the little angel from those who would seek to bring her harm." Chumbucket said as he gave the vision to Bruz on building the magnum opus.

"Alright chum, I'll see ya later on down the road then." Bruz grinned and gave Chumbucket a two-finger salute as he vanished.

"Farewell my fellow acolyte!" Chum said as he disappeared.

'Oh, damn it, I forgot to ask him about what he meant by a catalyst. Well I suppose that angel power Anya's got that he told me about must have taken something special to trigger it.' Bruz cursed to himself as he pondered the nature and full extent of Anya's abilities. He shook his head though at the idea since he'd been unaware of recent events since he'd been busy keeping up with his schoolwork for the time being. But he knew when the first chance came that he'd get, the construction of the opus would begin. The mighty machine filled his thoughts as he fantasized about it in his head. Anya briefly looked at him with her tilted in curiosity as it appeared that her big brother was off in his own little world. The little girl shrugged her shoulders and went back to playing with her fellow ankle biter. Glynda watched with a warm smile as stood a short distance away with a clipboard in her hand. Max walked up behind her and briefly flashed a quick grin before returning to his usual stoic visage. Glynda had noticed his presence and she couldn't help but feel warm inside at the moment. It just seemed right, like it was all a pleasant dream in spite of the insanity that had been happening recently. She felt a sense of motherly pride well up within her at that moment and looked over to the man she planned on eventually calling her husband.

'He had better not keep me waiting so long, otherwise I may have to drag it out of him.' She thought to herself with annoyance as she was getting impatient for Max to pop the question to her. But she let that go in favor of enjoying the moment before her. Max felt like it was too perfect though, he knew evil was lurking somewhere out there.

-SALEM'S LAIR-

"Hah, you didn't get the powers after all your high and mighty talk little miss matchstick!" Felix mocked the girl with burning eyes on her failure as she had come back empty handed and no extra power came to her even though she sure the fall maiden should be dead by now.

"Do you have a death-wish? If so I will kindly grant you an express ticket to oblivion." Cinder replied with ire in her voice.

"Last I checked, you nearly had your ass handed to you Cindy. That guy I fought would've mopped the floor with you. I almost killed him too, and I didn't need help to do it! SO keep on threatening me, I'll be happy to give you a nice shallow grave to spend eternity in. You don't scare me." Felix boasted on his own near success against the road warrior with only his basic abilities as a tough SOB.

"Is that right?" Salem asked nonchalantly as she walked into the room where Felix and Cinder were talking.

"Well hey Salem, just giving Cindy here a little pep talk." Felix patted the fiery girl on her head which infuriated her to no foreseeable end.

"It will have to wait Felix, I want you to look into something for me." The dark queen said calmly.

"Sure, no problem. What do you need me to do?" Felix said with a false act of obedience. Inside, he was seething with hatred towards the dark queen that commanded him.

"I want you to find the children of this road warrior that Cinder mentioned." Salem said expectantly.

"Can't Tyrian do that?" Felix groaned lazily.

"Are you questioning my orders?" Salem said coldly. The way she uttered those words was enough to make even a hardened killer like himself freeze with fear.

"N-no, just considering alternatives, you don't need me to kill kids, I do better with their parents." Felix covered his ass with a nice yes man save, which he hated.

"He's busy with another matter, so I expect you to handle this accordingly." Salem waved him off dismissively and the mercenary just silently breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yes." The mercenary said indifferently. 'Grr why I ought to-!'

"I am the queen of the Grimm, Felix. I can sense your anger." Salem said with a hint of distaste for his underlying disobedience.

"I know that, and I'm not objecting to what you want me to do. Besides, revenge is a dish I love to give out." Felix replied coolly with a visage of false courage in the face of death.

"Good, that is why you are so useful. Perhaps when you are finished, you can assist Tyrian in his efforts." Salem decided to entice him with a possible reward.

"With what?" Felix asked incredulously.

"I won't spoil the surprise Felix, now go." Salem said calmly and dismissed her hired help. The disgruntled mercenary walked away and flipped off Cinder who scowled at him.

-BEACON-

A chill ran down Max's spine at that moment causing him to shudder slightly. He frowned and crossed his arms in deep thought to ponder what had caused it. He was shaken from his thoughts by Glynda who bore a look of concern.

"What's wrong Max?" Glynda asked as her eyes seemed to try piercing Max's own.

"It's nothing." Max replied.

"More like something, I know you better than that. Don't make me wait." Glynda put her free hand on her hip.

"*sigh* My instincts." Max answered.

"Oh?" Glynda raised an eyebrow.

"Something is out there Glynda, and I want to keep you and Anya safe, that's it." Max answered as well as he could.

"I'm touched but whatever it is, we can handle it, together." Glynda replied with a blush but got serious again. The two of them looked each other in the eyes and Glynda kissed Max again, leaving the man stunned once again. He put his arms around her and grabbed her ass in a moment of weakness to his 'other' instincts. She backed off and wagged her finger, despite panting slightly with enjoyment. Max rolled his eyes, and she grew a tick mark on her forehead before sending him flying with her riding crop. The veteran fighter groaned as he picked himself up from the ground to catch the swaying of Glynda's hips as she walked away. He shrugged it off and went to the garage to perform a tune up on the interceptor. He left Bruz to continue watching his sister and walked away to take care of his business as usual. All the while he pondered the feeling again, like something was nagging at him pertaining to Raven. That was strange though, since he hadn't seen her in quite some time.

-Xiao-long residence-

"Well it's official sis, I'm getting in to Beacon in a few months!" Yang said cheerily.

"Great yang, and when you see 'you know who' be nice." Ruby nagged to her big sister.

"Oh sure, I'll be nice (not)." Yang said as the view faded to black.

-END VOLUME 1-