RWBY & All associated trademarks are property of Rooster Teeth (RIP Monty Oum)
I claim no ownership of anything except my own original characters.
I am making no money from this.
Chapter 17: The Main Event
Team MARZ braced themselves, an icy and foreboding dread coiling and making itself at home in each of their stomachs as the black fog that had rolled over the ground of the makeshift gladiatorial arena continued to bring a fresh, biting chill to the already frigid air; wisps of ephemeral darkness coiling around the limbs of the teens with an unexpected heft and presence about them. The nauseating and slippery sensation abated after a few stomach-churning and fearful moments as the tendrils of mist ceased their tentative exploration and retreated back towards the tunnel from whence they had came, only to a coalesce as a more solid dark shape drifted into view; the darkness seeming to contract into a more tangible form.
"What the fuck is that thing?" Astra demanded, forcing as much raw aggression into the words as they could to mask the simple fear that welled up in them at the sight of the monster that Persian Green had clearly been saving for the grand finale of the nights' perverse festivities.
"I think I've heard of things like these before, they sometimes show up in old SDC mines" Athena-Jade whispered, shifting her weight and adjusting her grasp on her weapon as she regarded the Grimm "They're called Geists….But this one's different"
The Geist was, at least in the Bear Faunus's limited estimations an exemplary and utterly terrifying example of what its' particular breed of monster could become. Tall and skeletal the thing stood at roughly seven feet tall though it appeared larger still due to its' ability to hover unnaturally in the air and propel itself by some unknown means; the lowest part of its' body was a series of twisting and writhing tendrils that it had in place of legs which had flattened out to take on the look of ragged fabric despite the tooth-ringed suckers adorning them as they reached up towards the waist of Grimm. Above the waist the thing was vaguely more humanoid, boasting a ribcage and spine laid over dessicated and papery obsidian flesh whilst more folds of loose black skin were wrapped about the things form in an imitation of some form of cloak or robe, revealing themselves to be a manner of vestigial limbs as they flapped in a breeze that affected the Grimm alone. The outer edges of a gaunt pair of shoulders were identified by twin clusters of jagged bone spires erupting from the back of the monster and reaching around to partly encircle it at odd angles whilst the arms of the Geist reached out with grasping desperation; four arms arranged in two pairs of skeletal yet somehow boneless limbs with overlong and taloned, crooked fingers. The fleshy robe of the Geist had risen up around its' neck and skull to form a ragged hood lined with serrated hooks intended to deter any attackers and within its' folds rested an oval bone mask that made only the most paltry attempts to mimic a human face, a curved line of sharp teeth sprouted from the lower portion of the mask despite the lack of any apparent mouth to create the illusion of a deranged and frightful smile whilst angry red veins led to a singular eye set within the centre of the mask; a glowing red orb which pulsed faintly as it regarded the enemy before it.
Whilst it was not a pack animal like Beowolves or other Creatures of Grimm it was clear that this Geist had reached a point in its' evolution where it could be compared to an Alpha or something similar.
"Astra what's the plan?" Regalia asked
"I would suggest falling back" Zirconia noted quietly, mismatched eyes narrowed as she regarded the Alpha Geist with caution, the rest of her expression as inscrutable as ever.
"No, no falling back, no running" Astra shook their head, forcing themselves onwards despite the pummelling that they had already endured and the hands of Persian Green's goons and the Alpha Beowolf that had fled before the Geist "We're Hunters….we're supposed to protect people and no matter what these sick fucks have done I'm not gonna walk away and let this Grimm loose on 'em. AJ, do you have any idea what these things can do or how we fight 'em?"
"From a distance" Athena answered with a sudden sense of clarity "I don't know how different this one is but my Mum told me that these things can sort of possess anything around them, rocks, trees, old broken machines and robots….We can't let it get close to any of our weapons" almost as if to prove her point the Alpha Geist floated forwards, exhaling a haunting and rattling breath from somewhere deep within its' form as it did so and as it drifted out into the arena it passed over the bowie knife that Astra had been given by the criminals running the fight club; at which point Team MARZ were left watching in shock as one the ragged tendrils imitating cloth which formed the lower half of the Alpha Geist reached to grasp the weapon and pull it into the depths of the living darkness only for the Grimm to begin violently shuddering a moment later, its' upper pair of arms trembling and twisting unnaturally until finally the claws adorning each finger tip lengthened and began to change shape and colour until each of them had formed a perfect replica of the bowie knifes' blade.
"Oh hell no!" Astra yelled, panic getting the better of them for a moment as they aimed Buckshot Ares and opened fire with their twin weapons, unleashing a maelstrom of bullets at the Alpha Geist only for the Grimm to prove itself to be far more agile than its' previous languid drifting had suggested.
"Spread out!" Astra yelled as they continued to fire "We need to box it in!" at their command Team MARZ sprung into motion, Regalia using her ubiquitous harpoon launcher to return to the high ground of the now broken cage above the arena and aim Apex Scavenger in its' shotgun form down at the Grimm which continued to evade the Hunters' assaults with a series of swooping dives and sharp turns.
'Hard-light! Ice!' the synthetic and computerised voice of Sunriser Cain announced as Zirconia performed a wide and arcing slash whilst rushing brazenly towards the Grimm with her hair, cloak and the single cape hanging from her waist trailing behind her; the twin Dust cylinders of her unique weapon first generating an impassible barrier of translucent and glowing cyan and then causing a several feet thick wall of jagged icicles to erupt from that curved plane.
The Alpha Geist responded by charging directly at the ice, its' oddly incorporeal form merging with the freezing spears before it upon collision only for it to be halted by the hard-light barrier in what seemed, for at least the briefest moment to be a victory.
"GET CLEAR!" Athena Jade called out frantically, some unknown instinct making her stomach lurch dangerously with fear and causing her to fling several glyphs up around her partner her quickly used them to leap away a moment before the Alpha Geist re-emerged, icicles now part of its' make-up hanging from the various folds of the fleshy robes it draped itself in. With its' initial plan halted the Grimm began ripping the frozen spears away from the hard-light shield and hurling them at each of Team MARZ in turn, bringing Astra skidding to a halt as they attempted to close the distance between them; disregarding Athena's warnings in order to protect their team-mates whilst Zirconia and Regalia were brought crashing to the ground in quick succession as icy projectiles tore through shimmering glyphs and the protective cage as they were launched with impossible strength.
"I've got it!" Athena assured her team-mates as she shifted her weapon into its' ranged form, the familiar sound of the lase cannon priming itself comforting to her as she aimed at both the Grimm and the remains of Zirconia's ice wall, hoping to either destroy the Grimm or at least deplete its' source of impromptu ammunition.
"AJ WATCH OUT!" Astra's voice cracked with the sheer panic in their words as they bolted across the blasted and bullet-scarred arena as fast as their Aura-fuelled muscles would allow; the beam of crackling pale green light spewed from the barrel of Mould-Breaker yet the Alpha Geist managed to remain just ahead of the attack and weaved around the outer edge of the arena with its' newly formed claws bared before lunging at the Bear Faunus, each of its' four arms extending further than should have been possible and failing to tear their target to ribbons only by the efforts of Astra who tackled Athena-Jade to the ground.
Sending her lasers' beam lancing through the edge of he arena and into the perimeter defences.
A dull boom of an explosion rocked the area and the world seemed to fall away, all movement and time itself seeing to halt as the burning and devastating remains of a heavy artillery piece that had thus far been saved the wrath of Major Grapeshot's efforts to destroy the fight clubs' defences were blasted into the air, the weapon arcing overhead and impacting against the reinforced cage above with enough force to dent and crumple part of it and an echoing clang which shook all present back to their senses, including the Alpha Geist. Team MARZ took the opportunity to regroup as they found themselves powerless to stop the Grimm from surging upwards, each of their blood running cold as it regarded the holes in the cage that had trapped it and contemplated its' escape for a moment before choosing a course of action that was possibly more terrifying still; the first year students watched from the ground and suddenly felt utterly unprepared for what was to come as the spectral Grimm began to absorb the artillery piece into itself, watching with wide-eyed and sickened fascination as its' ribs broke and reformed, the robes made of its' own midnight black flesh pulling aside whilst its' lower right arm twisted and reshaped itself to form a support strut and trigger mechanism for the heavy weapon that now spewed from its' innards and rested where a hip should have been.
"I would ask you to reconsider falling back" Zirconia rasped out "But this Grimm didn't escape when it had the chance, I don't think it would let us leave….it wants to fight us"
"No, it wants to kill us" Athena countered "Subtle difference"
"We can still beat it" Astra forced the assertion out through gritted teeth and forced themselves to ignore the incredulous looks it earned them "It's a Grimm with a ranged attack, that's nothing new. We just need a plan….who's with me?" there was a moment of palpable tension until Regalia nodded and braced herself, face splitting into a fierce grin as she answered.
"I aint afraid of no ghost"
Yells, screams, gunfire and roars of primal rage and exertion echoed through the tunnels of the Desert Claw as those who had operated the illicit colosseum were introduced to a frightening an undeniable reality; namely that when adhering to his strictest professional standards Carmesi Hueso was an extremely competent Hunter of Grimm and criminals alike, however when those standards were allowed to waived or disregarded the Komodo Dragon Faunus was something else entirely.
He was wrath incarnate.
"Who the fuck is this guy!" Persian Green cried in abject terror, keenly aware of the blood that had spattered across his face even as he continued to flee.
After unleashing the spectral monstrosity that he had been reserving for the end of the evening in response to Astra Mars opening fire on the control room he ran his operations from Persian had begun urgently, with a sense of strictly enforced calmness began attending to a series of tasks that needed to be completed before it could be deemed safe to leave; ensuring his paying customers that they would be reimbursed and that their privacy was of utmost importance to his organisation before ending the secure transmissions through which he was broadcasting the death-matches and then ensuring that the computers were so thoroughly destroyed that no incriminating information could be recovered. With the far reaching consequences in hand the criminal entrepreneur had turned his focus to closer and more immediate part of his predicament, namely that there were Hunters tearing through his establishment and the Alpha Beowolf had freed several of its' pack-mates and was currently leading its' fellow monsters on a bloody and relentless charge out of the Desert Claw in a determined effort to escape to safety and lick its' wounds. Eventually however some shaky semblance of order had been enforced, patrons had been bundled into any available vehicle and evacuated with armed security who had promised them that their own vehicles would be returned to them in due course whilst the unleashed Grimm and Persian's own employees did the jobs that they had been given and kept all threats at bay, allowing the man whose experience of crime lay far from the direct and unrefined violence now encroaching upon his domain to make an escape.
Only for him to be ambushed.
Persian had been making his way towards a makeshift garage within the repurposed airship terminal and freight shipping depot where his own car, an expensive yet unassuming luxury vehicle had been parked and had been flanked by half a dozen armed guards and a further half a dozen salvaged Atlesian robots when the Komodo Faunus had attacked, tearing through flesh bone and steel with equal ease and now, as Persian and his remaining escort fled there were three men and a single robot remaining; the rest cut down without mercy by the enraged Hunter who chased them.
"Stop that crazy son of a bitch!" Persian screamed, gesturing wildly behind them as the sound of booted footfalls drew closer; the criminal and his remaining guards had finally reached the dimly lit garage yet Persian was under no illusions about his ability to start the car and simply drive away without being dragged from it unless a distraction.
"Are you insane!" the nearest masked thug to him demanded in a wheezing, breathless gasp "This guy's cutting people open like-"
"And I will pay any amount of lien to not be one of those people!" Persian shot back in a panicked and trembling wail as he continued to sprint.
"Fuck that I'm getting-" the rest of the man's assertion went unsaid, swallowed by the booming report of a shotgun which left Persian Green trembling in weak-kneed terror as he struggled to keep control of his stomach and bladder whilst the red mist that his employees' skull had been reduced to washed over his own body whilst the headless and lifeless remains of the man collapsed to the floor in a gushing and crumpled heap several feet away from where he'd been standing.
Carmesi had caught up with them.
"STOP HIM!" Persian yelled, tears of simple, base fear leaving clear tracks along his bloodstained face as he turned and bolted. Two fearful men wearing balaclavas and carrying machine guns glanced at one another and quickly realised that they and a lone, outdated and several-times repaired Atlesian Knight were all that stood against a Hunter who acted with none of the heroism or honour expected of his profession; for a moment it seemed that the two men might try and throw their weapons down in order to beg for their lives and surrender yet before they could do so the robot stepped forwards and opened fire with its' shoulder mounted weapon.
Dooming them all.
"NO PRISONERS!" Carmesi bellowed, low voice reverberating in the close quarters and metallic walls as he aimed his larger weapon, still in its' shotgun mode at the robot and opened fire; the blast tore away both its' shoulder mounted weapon and the right arm it was mounted above and in the time it took the automaton to stagger back a single step the Komodo Dragon Faunus had crossed the distance between them, shifting his larger weapon back into its' savage looking, broad and flat edged melee form that was equal parts sword and cudgel which he swung downwards at the machine, cleaving through its' shoulder and burying the weapon in its' torso. Seeing the weapon stick the two masked thugs readied their own weapons and opened fire in clear desperation, bullets pattering harmlessly against an Aura the colour of arterial spray and doing little more than turn the berserk Faunus's attention towards them, baring his sharp teeth in a monstrous smile Carmesi unsheathed his second weapon, the smaller and angled forward machete which he promptly flung at the first his remaining assailants; the air was filled with echoing screams as the weapon unfurled into its' triple bladed and almost boomerang-like form which tore through the hands of its' target before circling and cleaving a deep and bloody gash into the back of the freshly crippled gunman's leg. The assault was not over however as Carmesi had surged forwards immediately after throwing the blade and deftly caught it as it returned to him, collapsing it back into its' machete form and lunging at the last remaining opponent standing between himself and his goal, leaving a crimson spray, torn flesh and a sickening, choked gurgle in his wake.
Yet it was too late.
"BASTARD!" Carmesi's roar of unrestrained fury shook the walls as he heard tires screeching and saw that Persian Green, the quarry he had been forced to neglect was escaping; his luxury car already in motion. Carmesi sprinted back towards where his larger weapon was still embedded in the final Atlesian Knight and tore it free with a screech of rending metal, reloading the shotgun component as fast as hand that were slick with blood and trembled with frenetic energy would allow before taking aim with pure bloodlust filling his eyes. The first shot tore through the rear window of the car yet Persian remained unharmed, the second ripped a chunk from a rear door as the car turned and peeled away whilst the third shot barely grazed the car, doing no more than break the glass of its' tail-lights.
Persian Green had escaped and Carmesi felt his rage retreat away from him like a receding tide; his breathing reduced to shaky and shallow gasps as he glanced around at the carnage he had wrought as if seeing it for the first time. His enemies had been armed criminals, most of them directly threatening his life when he had cut them down and there was quarter to be given or any further explanation required; at least not to himself, he was certain that official channels and sources would need to be satisfied though they were hardly a concern to the reptilian Faunus at that moment. Carmesi turned his thoughts to what these disgusting individuals had been doing and quickly realised that Team MARZ would likely need aid, with that he began retreating the way he had come with the intention of entering the fray from the high ground of Persian Green's office yet he stopped after only a few steps; the man whose hands he had cut away and leg he had all but eviscerated was still alive, whimpering and crying in agony as they tried to drag their bloodied and mangled form away.
Carmesi aimed and fired without remorse.
Despite Astra's earlier assertions the Alpha Geist, now equipped with a heavy artillery piece was more than simply just another Grimm with a ranged attack.
"I can't cut its' movements off, it's too fast!" Athena-Jade spat furiously as another attempt to do so was met with failure and the latest beam crackling and ephemeral green light to be fired from Mould-Breaker, a series of more carefully measured assaults than her initial attempt missed her target by a laughable margin. The Bear Faunus, in attempt to keep the Alpha Geist at bay had been flinging up one series of glyphs after the next in rapid succession and hoped to corral her target into place yet it had achieved little as the spectral Grimm had somehow not only taken the destroyed high-calibre machine gun into itself but had done so seemingly without increasing its' own mass or weight and it continued to defy gravity with the same ease, flitting about the battlefield, weaving through the barriers Athena placed around it and contorting itself in a revolting oddly graceful display; all whilst returning fire and forcing Athena to fling up yet more glyphs to weather the barrage of shells until blood trickled from her nose due to the strain and a sheen of cold sweat so profuse that the band-aids she wore as a fashion accessory had begun to peel away from her skin coated her alabaster form.
Yet Athena-Jade Slate remained as defiant and unmoving as ever.
Widening her stance and bracing herself despite the way her usually powerful and thickly muscled legs shuddered the snowy haired young woman flung up a wall of dozens of glyphs in front of herself, their glowing surfaces overlapping in several places to create a more sturdy defence as the Alpha Geist readied the artillery piece that had merged with its' lower right arm and innards and unleashed another salvo of its' seemingly endless shells, projectiles which Athena now realised were formed from sculpted, pitted and sharpened bone. As the onslaught subsided she shifted her weapon into its' hammer form and sprung forwards, creating a series of glyphs that lay horizontal between herself and the Alpha Geist; a wordless yell of desperate frustration escaping her as she engaged the Dust powered propulsion system in the head of her weapon and simply threw herself at the Grimm without a second thought.
The Geist floated aside and Athena's blue eyes widened, time slowing to a crawl as she sailed passed her target whilst the Grimm reared back its' upper limbs; their clawed digits still taking the form of bowie knives.
'Ice! Lightning!' the familiar sound of Sunrise Cain's mechanical voice broke the condensed eternity of tension and brought a sense of relief washing over Athena as she felt the sudden, jolting weight of Zirconia landing on the shaft of her weapon in a crouch before springing forwards and attacking the Alpha Geist whilst it was still caught off-guard. The first of her weapons' twin Dust cylinders froze the air solid, creating a sculpture of solid ice reaching from the ground to over a dozen feet in the air which had ensnared one of the Grimm's arms but also several of the tendrils that formed its' lower half; the Alpha Geist acted on instinct and began to simply merge with the ice and take it into itself only for the Lighting Dust to be activated and send a devastating amount of electricity through the ice which in turn sent the spectral monster reeling back with a wailing scream that seemed to emanate from deep within the things' core.
"Thanks" Athena managed a weak, toothy smile as she used the shaft of her weapon to support her weight and take what brief respite she could whilst the Geist was on the defensive.
'Fire! Lighting!' her partners' weapon let out another synthesised declaration of intent as the Grasshopper Faunus unleashed one of her signature attacks; her mismatched eyes shining in the light of the flames and crackling, buzzing forks of electricity which trailed after and expanded out from the wide, arcing and perfectly poised spinning slash that she performed.
"We need a plan" Zirconia rasped out as she turned towards Athena "Contrary to what you may think I don't have an indefinite supply of Dust on my person at all times-"
"MOVE!" it was Astra's voice that interrupted their moment, the Deer Faunus coming streaking towards them in a blur of fiery red motion with Buckshot Ares at the ready. A fraction of a second later the Alpha Geist burst through the smoke and dying flames of Zirconia's last attack, wailing in fury as it charged at the Hunter; Athena and Zirconia had almost no time to react as Astra flung themselves between them and held both of their forearm mounted weapons over their chest, the twin shields locking together and a vast plane of impassible, rose-tinted hard-light expanding out to protect the three of them as the three remaining arms of the Grimm, each ending in knife-tipped digits shot forwards and stretched out almost endlessly. The blow sent Astra hurtling back and the hard-light they had intended to act as protection struck Athena and Zirconia with enough force to drag them from their feet and leave the three of them struggling to rise from the tangle of limbs they had landed in.
"Appreciated, but not the most tactically sound move" Zirconia noted quietly as she pulled a sputtering Athena from the ground.
"I thought it might shoot at you again" Astra countered to justify themselves before giving a sly smile "Besides….Regalia needed me to distract it for a sec"
It was then that the Racoon Faunus made her play.
A surreptitious use of her 'Look-See' Semblance whilst her team-mates had engaged the Grimm had informed her that the weak point of the Alpha Geist was the Cyclopean bone mask it possessed in place of a true face, whether that was due to that part of its' body acting as some kind of focal point for its' incorporeal form or a simple matter of a well placed head-shot being a particularly grievous injury Regalia did not know and lacked the time or inclination to study the Grimm enough to get answers.
Instead Regalia had used the combined frontal assault from her team-mates as a diversion and managed to sneak behind the Alpha Geist, something that would have been impossible were it still flitting around the arena unbothered by the laws of physics. She had seen enough to know that the thing needed to use one of its' limbs, be that hand or tendril to absorb something into itself and so, hoping that she had not miscalculated and fighting the urge to nervously wring her hands Regalia aimed the harpoon component of Apex Scavenger at the back of the Alpha Geist and fired, sinking the jagged projectile into its' shoulder and quickly retracted the harpoons' cable.
Sending herself hurtling into the Grimm.
She collided with its' back and swiftly ripped her weapon free before she could run the risk of Apex Scavenger being stolen and made a part of this monster and from there she shifted the weapon into its' close combat form, grasping onto the curving bone spikes that erupted from the back of the Grimm and swinging her quarterstaff sized pickaxe down into the base of its' spine.
"Aim for the head!" she called out to her team-mates as the Alpha Geist began to thrash and flail; being rewarded with the sound of bullets and beams of incandescent light ripping through the air yet it was to little avail; the Grimm was certainly wounded and Regalia's were assaulted by the acrid stench of burning rubber, brimstone and bile as Grimm stone was scorched and sundered yet either due to some undertsanding that its' weakness had been discovered or simple, frenzied and animal panic the monster began soared and whipping about the arena again; continuing to thrash as it did so until finally Regalia was bucked free and sent clattering to the ground with a painful and jarring thud.
"Heh….still got my weapon" she managed to choke out as she held Apex Scavenger aloft as though it were a trophy, ducking under the cover fire that her team-mates provided her and limping hurriedly back towards them.
"Okay" Athena-Jade breathed out, forcing herself to remain resolute despite her weariness as she turned to her team leader "Astra I don't want to rush you, but one of those crazy plans of yours that always work despite being totally crazy would be great right now"
"Well the usual plan of just throwing me at it isn't gonna work" the Deer Faunus admitted with a bitter laugh "That last hit took out my hard-light shields and if it catches me it's gonna eat Buckshot Ares while they're still on my arms….I don't really wanna find out what the feels like"
"It's preparing to absorb something else" Zirconia's quiet rasp was delivered with a sense of finality that sent fresh waves of fear through her team-mates.
"Oh that's not good" Regalia gasped, shoulder sagging in defeat as the four of them watched the Alpha Geist drift towards the edge of the arena, still largely enclosed with in he reinforced cage and examine its' surroundings closely as it it were making a plan of its' own; then the Grimm floated higher into the air and began to slip its' tendrils through the bars, revealing that the flattened and sucker-lined appendages were as formless and flexible as its' arms. Within moments the first tendril had reached the now emptied stands beyond and wrapped itself around one of the cameras which had been broadcasting the sadistic death-matches to viewers elsewhere and as the Geist began to slowly crush and absorb the device into itself, more tendrils following suit Team MARZ realised with utter dread what the Grimm intended.
It was going to consume the entire building along with everyone still inside.
Major Grapeshot, formerly of Haven Academy and subsequently the Mistrali Air-force did not consider himself a guerilla fighter by any means, however he was a veteran Hunter and solider with enough years of experience under his belt to render him well-versed in many disciplines of combat.
Including those he was currently using to render justice upon those who had made a mockery of his profession and life's work by poaching Grimm and then unleashing them on good, honest Hunters for sport.
Once he had decided that allowing the particularly spirited youths in his company to aid their ally and join the fight directly would be the best course of action and promptly used his weapon and Semblance to create an opening for them to do so the Major had set about the task of destroying the perimeter defences that those running the gladiatorial arena had erected around it, seeing that if he did not that would be turned against the students along with the Grimm. It soon transpired that the criminals running the operation may well have been considered outstanding amongst their peers but that was a standard far lower than that which Grapeshot had been trained to and held himself to for decades since and such it was little challenge at all for the leathery old veteran to overwhelm the crew of one of artillery pieces scattered around the repurposed depot and open fire on the others even as Team MARZ fought against a Creature of Grimm below. The sight of a laser beam fired by the Slate girl arcing wide and ripping through the makeshift arena wall had caused the Major to glance down and immediately change his plans and strategy upon realising exactly what kind of monster it was that had been unleashed.
Which had led to the current conversation he was engaging in.
"Ah yes, Professor Adel always a pleasure….although perhaps not in this instance, he circumstances are a little disagreeable I'm afraid" he allowed himself a hearty laugh as he spoke, blissfully unaware of the perplexed and irritated glare that Coco Adel was shooting her scroll.
"Mister Grapeshot this number is only to be used in case of emergencies" Coco answered firmly, evidently fighting the urge to point out the fact that it was passed midnight and that she, along with her family had been asleep.
"Quite, quite" Grapeshot nodded along agreeably as he left his post and continued towards his next destination "If you recall my associate and I are currently furthering the education of a team of your first year students and we seem to have into a spot of bother that I don't quite have the firepower for"
"Firepower?" Coco was suddenly alert and her voice icy as she no doubt bolted out of the bed "You were supposed to be on a recon mission looking for an Alpha Beowolf, what the hell happened?"
"Quite an interesting story and one I will be sure to regale you with in person, I'm loathe to say something that could incriminate so many moneyed and connected people over the scroll; I'm sure you understand?" Grapeshot answered voice remaining conversational despite the seriousness of the situation "Now, about that additional firepower-"
"What do you need?" Coco interrupted "Are my students safe?"
"Acquitting themselves admirably as we speak Professor, an absolutely capital job" Grapeshot nodded "The problem is we seem to have found ourselves inside a building of sorts whilst fighting a Geist and I'm sure you can imagine the problems that can cause"
"Oh my Oum" Coco breathed out, the weight of his words sinking in.
"Precisely" the Major said simply "So if you would be so kind as to send your fastest people to deliver an air-strike to my location that would be most appreciated. I'll see to things until they get here, cheerio for now Professor" with that Grapeshot ended the call and let out a low growl, teeth bared in murderous fury beneath his moustache as his blustering and jovial bravado fell away and the unflinching coldness beneath it was revealed.
The enemy was coming to him and they would find only death and defeat waiting for them when they arrived.
Grapeshot had moved away from the artillery piece he had been operating and begun making his way towards where logic dictated that those fleeing from the venue would most likely be congregating and leaving from. He did not expect, or truly intend to be able to catch them and instead comforted himself with the knowledge that the evidence that they had gathered thus far would find its' way into the correct hands and that the information would be used to improve Remnant; the objective here was simply to draw any remaining lackeys, be they human, Faunus, robot or unleashed Grimm into a narrow bottleneck rather than allow them to surround him.
Only moments later he was rewarded as a group of roughly a dozen masked thugs and clanking robots of assorted models and various degrees of disrepair came thundering into view with their weapons at the ready.
"Put the stick down old man! You're outnumbered!" the lead criminal barked, using the barrel of their own weapon to gesture at 'Magnificent Ivory' Grapeshot's own weapon which was currently in its' cane form; a form which had once been a cudgel but had been reworked as he advanced in years and years of hard landing began to take a toll on his body.
"Ah the ruffian can count and speak in full sentences! Wonders never cease!" the quip had barely left his upturned and sneering lips when Grapeshot shifting his weapon into its' rifle form and opened fire; ignoring the enemy and instead using his Semblance to shoot multiple support struts at once. Screams of panic filled the air but were quickly swallowed by the sound of creaking metal as the entire section of makeshift stands and bleachers that they had been advancing beneath and behind came collapsing down under its' own weight on top of them and no doubt left several of their number with serious injuries. Grapeshot was not content to take chances and waited with all the patience that years of hunting all manner of foes had imparted on him until finally, after several tense moments something stirred in the twisted heap of debris.
He fired a single bullet and the ammunition deposits of an Atlesian Knight exploded.
It was several more moments, almost a full minute until a hand burst from the wreckage and Grapeshot made an educated guess as to how the owner of the hand was positioned and where their head would be before pulling the trigger again; at which point the hand fell limp.
The Major would have been content to remain their for some time longer and ensure that a thorough example had been made but such things were made impractical as the entirety of the repurposed depot seemed to shudder in a way that was neither natural or the result of anything in his own, or his allies arsenals. Frowning deeply Grapeshot used the collapsed section of the stands as a shortcut to make his way, as swiftly as he could out into the open once again in search of vantage point from which to take stock of the situation; only to come to a halt when he managed to find one and see the source of the commotion.
"Blast! Blast, damnation and fiddlesticks!" he cursed, immediately regretting his decision to leave students to fight a Geist as he saw that the spectral horror had began to use its' abilities to merge with the venue itself in an effort to surround its' quarry. He had hoped that Team MARZ, considering who was on the team would be equal to the task but quickly silenced that traitorous thought and chided himself for it; it was their first official outing after all.
"Well then" he chortled as he readied his weapon "Time to be a teacher I suppose"
"How the hell is this thing blocking us so well!" Athena-Jade demanded as her attempts to destroy one of the Alpha Geists tendrils were blocked by a salvo of chitin artillery shells that forced the Bear Faunus to move.
"It's using the cameras as extra eyes!" Astra called back in response, destroying several of the offending devices with a hail of gunfire and tearing a wailing shriek from the Grimm yet still it seemed to have done no lasting harm.
"Well that's….memorable" Zirconia noted dryly as she took in the sight of the Geist slowly but inexorably merging with their surroundings.
"It's alive, it's alive!" Regalia gave a worryingly unhinged and hysterical sounding cackle as she aimed fired and reloaded her shotgun as fast as humanly possible in a desperate effort to slow the Alpha Geist down in its' consumption and integration of every non-living thing around it; the Racoon Faunus's reaction being more vocal and pronounced that Zirconia's usual sarcastic understatement as she watched the sickening metamorphosis unfolding around her.
The Alpha Geist had grown, or rather lengthened until its' body now sported a distended a skeletal spinal segment between its' many-armed, gun-wielding and robed upper body whilst its' lower half had given up the pretence of appearing to be torn fabric and had mutated into a series of dozens of tentacles which had burst and splint into countless capillaries as they came into contact with the stands and the cameras that had been abandoned around them; pulpy black flesh growing around and within the cameras and causing the same bloody red glow that shone from the Cyclopean eye of the Geist to ignite in their various lenses, giving the monstrous thing almost panoramic vision and leaving no angle of attack unprotected. From there the transformation grew only more bizarre and terrifying as the Alpha Geist, which seemed to have no upper limit to how far it could expand its' form reached out again and showed a level of cunning and intelligence as it sought out the rest of the artillery pieces that had previously surrounded the arena with the shrieks of fury it let out upon finding them destroyed beyond its' ability to use being only the most meagre form of mercy.
"Pull back to the centre of the arena!" Astra ordered "It can see us anywhere so there's benefit to hugging the walls!"
"Have you got a plan?" Athena-Jade enquired, trying not to sound too desperate or pleading in her hopefulness as she complied whilst also creating a barricade of dozens of her glyphs; a task which left her swaying on her feet until both Astra and Zirconia caught her and supported her weight, Regalia covering their retreat with more shotgun shells, this time using Dust based ammunition in a futile effort to inflict more damage even as the Alpha Geist returned fire with its' own weapon.
"It's stuck in place" Astra noted "It's arms can stretch and its' feelers are in the walls but its' basically rooted itself to the ground; it can't fly away now"
"What're you thinking?" Regalia asked cautiously
"We can at least hold our own in a firefight until Grapeshot and Carmesi get here" the Deer Faunus answered, shifting their weight as they realised how risky the idea sounded when spoken aloud "Zirconia, how much more Hard-light Dust have you got?"
"Enough for Athena to not need her glyphs for a moment"
"Good, then I can shoot this spooky-ramen reject in the face instead" the Bear Faunus tried to growl menacingly, the words being reduced to slur of barely coherent exhaustion as she readied Mould-Breaker in its' ranged form once again. At a concerned glance and finally a determined nod from Astra, who was faring little batter themselves the four of them put the plan into motion and Astra, Regalia and Athena opened fire on the Alpha Geist whilst Zirconia protected them from the heavy artillery as best she could.
The results were limited.
Ammunition made of solid bone tore through Hard-light shields that the Grimm could not simply absorb yet each shot landed wide as the monster was forced to defend itself from an endless volley of attacks that left the air thick with the choking, clogging stench of its' body being burned and gutted yet refusing to fade away as its' masked skull remained unbroken. Eventually the Alpha Geist let out another of its' piercing wails and launched its' upper pair of arms with their knife-tipped fingers at Team MARZ.
Only for both hands to be cut away in a single attack.
The sound of shattering glass followed by a primal bellow of rage and intent announced the arrival of Carmesi Hueso as his bladed projectile tore through the air along with anything else in its' path; the dark smog that enveloped it as it amputated the hands of the Geist obscuring the bloodstained weapon from view until the Komodo Dragon Faunus caught and sheathed it, switching to his larger blade which was promptly converted into its' shotgun form as he opened fire.
"This is not the Grimm you were fighting when I left!" he rumbled.
"Yeah they decided to throw me a leaving party when I quit" Astra sniped, sarcasm audible in every syllable even as they struggled to be heard over the sound of their own weapons which were running dangerously low on ammunition.
"I'm glad you have a sense of humour about this" Carmesi snarled back, never ceasing their shooting "If we make it out of this you kids might just have what it takes for this job"
"A little harsh in your assessment old chap, I certainly intend to inform their Professors that they passed with flying colours" Grape landed amongst them, the older man readying his weapon and managing to appear pleasantly amused at the situation if somewhat pompous even in spite of everything taking place around him. Astra, needing a moment to automatically reload the ammo belts of Buckshot Ares took a moment to offer a fist bump to their team-mates in response to the Major's comment before unleashing another salvo and the injured and screaming yet defiant monster before him; addressing Grapeshot as they did so.
"Okay we're all here, how do beat this thing?"
"It pains me to say it, especially after a Beowolf I may have fought in the Salem campaign escaped me because of this beast but we do not"
"We've beaten worse odds Major" Carmesi rumbled in irritation
"Indeed we have old chap, but not whilst tending to precious cargo" the Major gestured to the students under his care before adding "However the day will still go the Hunters, Professor Adel has already been informed the circumstances have evolved beyond the remit of your assignment and she has kindly dispatched assistance in the form of an air-strike.
"So we need to get out of here!" Astra exclaimed "If we pull back now the Grimm can't follow us without giving up its' position; we win either way" The Alpha Geist took that moment to scream in defiance louder than before, signalling that it had no intention being defeated or denied so easily and Team MARZ along with the pair of veteran Hunters accompanying them watched with both repulsed fascination and a sinking sense of finality as the Grimm forced more of its' being into the walls of the structure around them, oily black tendrils creeping across the exterior of every surface like diseased veins until finally claws and scythes of solid bone, mounted on twitching and shuddering masses of muscle erupted into being in each and every tunnel around the perimeter of the arena that might serve as an exit.
Sealing the Hunters in with the Grimm.
"Well" Grapeshot noted, adjusting his hat and mopping his brow as he peered at this new development "This is certainly a sticky wicket isn't it?"
Ruby and Penny Rose had naturally been the first people Coco had called when news of a student mission gone wrong had reached her.
The pair had been asleep, as was to be expected considering the hour when they had been contacted by their employer and long-time friend though they had soon sprung into complete alert readiness due to both the reflexes and almost preternatural abilities that their decades of experience had given them and the incredible sense of urgency that filled them once Coco had explained that it was Team MARZ, Ruby and Penny's own niece amongst them who had found themselves battling against a Geist whilst inside a building of some kind whose location could not be found on any maps of the area. They had been dressed, armed and airborne in a matter of minutes, Penny's personal transport leaving a contrail of light in its' wake as it surged high above Port Alistair and raced towards the horizon like a shooting star.
"Coming up on the Shabah Pass now" Penny announced as the blasted rock formations that had once been tall and proud mountains came into view.
"This is where they were supposed to be, looking for a Beowolf" Ruby noted, every syllable quaking with tension "What the hell went wrong?"
"Missions never go exactly as according to plan, I remember how Team RWBY's first mission ended"
"Everyone remembers how Team RWBY's first mission ended they teach it in history classes" Ruby countered, managing to share a weak and tired smile with her wife, her face illuminated from beneath by the light given off by various control panels and readouts; a moment later however the legendary Huntress found herself gazing out of the cockpit once again, her cybernetic eye shifting and adjusting subtly in an effort to pick out any detail that might betray something of importance in the pre-dawn darkness. Penny saw movement in the corner of her eye and noted how Ruby shuffled beside as if she wished to pace but simply lacked the room to do so, fiddling with the frayed and tattered edge of the cape she had worn for much of her life in a way that made it clear she wished to unfurl Crescent Rose just to feel the familiar and reassuring heft of the scythe in her hands.
"They're combat ready, they will be okay" Penny assured her, as soothingly as she could whilst reaching over and squeezing Ruby's with her hand whilst continuing to pilot the aircraft.
"Things have already gone wrong" Ruby murmured "And if anything happens to them Weiss will-wait, Penny there! Look!"
"Sensational" Penny almost purred, her usual dedication to any task given to her blending seamlessly with her own nerves and tension at the situation as she followed Ruby's gaze downwards and picked out several vehicles speeding through the Shabah pass, an odd collection of luxury and sports cars that were ill-equipped to deal with the terrain along with armoured vehicles of all sizes and a plethora of rough and ready looking jeeps and buggies with weapon mounted atop them; the strange convoy as travelling in a loose yet uniform direction at great speed which gave them distinct appearance of fleeing from what, if maps were to be trusted should have been a patch of barre emptiness.
"Our target should be up ahead" Ruby murmured, almost vibrating with nervous energy as the aircraft continued to soar through the darkness until finally she and Penny were rewarded with the sight of flickering floodlights illuminating a circular structure
"A shipping depot….SDC subsidiary, did Weiss ever mention this to you?" Penny mouthed the words out slowly as if processing them and struggling to make sense of them.
"It wouldn't have been something she oversaw; it was probably abandoned years ago" Ruby shook her head "That's not what's important, look!" at Ruby's behest Penny turned her focus towards where her wife indicated once again and saw, with a sense of revulsion that the entire interior face of what had once been a landing area of airships was being warped and pulled inwards; metal arcing and curling into vast claws with a deafening shriek of twisting steel that could be head, however faintly even from their current altitude.
"Is that multiple Geists?" Penny asked, unwilling to accept that a single specimen of the Grimm phantasms could cause such vast and far-reaching corruption of its' surrounding.
"Open fire on it" Ruby insisted "We were called in for an air-strike, bring the whole building down and I'll flush it out of the wreckage"
"Understood" Penny nodded, featured setting into an expression of dour determination that looked somehow wrong on a face so accustomed to cheery smiles; the primary weapon of her aircraft unfurled itself and began to gather swirling motes and specks of incandescent green light towards its' segmented barrel as it primed for a single devastating lance of light that would cut through all in its' path whilst at the same time rocket pods unfurled from the wings and the aircraft's own AI, the same intelligence which operated most of the automated features of Ruby and Penny's home began to help the android take aim, locking onto each of the structural points that the Geist or Geists were most likely to have taken control.
"Ready?" Penny enquired, receiving a nod from Ruby who swiftly moved into place behind her and took a position between the cockpit and cargo hold of the aircraft so that she could watch events unfold and leap into action at a moments' notice; seeing this Penny's fingers flexed over the controls as she counted down "Commencing bombardment in three, two, one, contact" At her words a single beam of light, similar to that fired by Athena-Jade Slate's weapon albeit orders of magnitude larger and more powerful surged from the nose-mounted cannon of the transport and carved a path of destruction that left glowing, molten and collapsing Atlesian steel in its' wake whilst rockets were deployed, advanced guidance systems sending them screaming through the air on curving vectors yet before they could impact against support struts or any, likely-depleted fuel reserves that might still be in place both Ruby and Penny saw something that left them numb with sudden terror.
A single glowing glyph, fired high into the night sky as if it were a signal flare.
"Oh no….they were still in there" Ruby gasped, the words leaving her mouth a moment before the rockets exploded and brought an end to the Desert Claw fight club.
Rubble, steel, rebar and other assorted detritus was flung aside with a dull thud that failed to completely mask the choking, sputtering groan of pain that escaped Astra's bloodied lips as they dragged themselves out of the wreckage; managing to stand for just long enough to give themselves a once over and see their own Aura flicker and shatter into a haze of vanishing embers before they swayed on their feet dizzily and finally collapsed backwards, finding themselves sitting on a heap of wreckage as they tried to make sense of what had happened whilst also struggling to overcome the ringing in their ears that rendered them almost deaf, disoriented and nauseous.
Before Astra could truly gather themselves in any meaningful way or organise their thoughts beyond a jumbled blur of pain and discomfort with the word 'concussion' floating on the periphery of their mind the Deer Faunus found themselves startled by another form erupting from the remains of the building almost directly beneath them. Scrabbling to their feet with several stumbling efforts they began clawing and grasping at the twisted metal which littered their surroundings and hurling it aside with as much strength as their burning, aching and depleted muscles would allow; uncovering Regalia who had already begun the process of freeing herself.
"Y'know what….the smell of napalm in the morning is overrated" the Racoon Faunus managed to wheeze out as she pulled herself free of the ruins; casting her leather jacket aside and throwing to Astra and gently massaging various cuts, grazes and other blemishes littering her lean and muscular body with one hand whilst brushing dust and debris from her tail and hair with the other, as she shook her head Astra saw that the tight lions' tail of grey-brown hair that was normally tied behind her and reached between her shoulder blades and come loose and revealed just how vast her mane of hair truly was. Regalia was unbothered by this however and quickly hefted Apex Scavenger overhead in its' melee form, using the pickaxe for its' intended purpose and tearing through the wreckage around her until movement nearby caused her to stop.
"Watch out! Watch out! You nearly took my eye out with that!" Athena-Jade yelled frantically as she burst from the remains of the building; powerful arms and shoulders bulging as raw strength achieved what her Aura was no longer capable of, lifting a massive sheet of metal that had landed atop both her and Zirconia yet conversely protected them from any further harm. The Bear Faunus was visibly dazed and sluggish after being so heavily taxed during the fight and her clothes, pristine as they had been were now stained with blood and other filth though Athena herself paid no mind to this and simply limped a few paces before gasping in horror as she tried to pull Zirconia to her feet.
"Your legs! Oh my Oum- Hops you're gonna be okay, I swear-"
"I'm fine" Zirconia interrupted before slowly dragging herself upright with a shower of sparks and visible discomfort "It's nothing serious, I'd know if it was….It's mostly just casing"
"If you're sure" Athena answered, not quite able to keep herself from regarding that statement with some suspicion as she glanced as the scuffed and dented surfaces of the Grasshopper Faunus's prosthetic limbs, the middle joint of the right digitigrade leg sagging and listing off at an odd angle that made walking or even balancing difficult. Without thought or hesitation Athena slung her partners' arm over her shoulder and pulled her into an awkward half hug to support her weight despite how unsteady she was herself whilst Zirconia removed the cloak like garment from its' usual place covering her nose and mouth and managed a weak smile which was made somehow more genuine by the blood trickling down her face from a shallow gash in her forehead.
"Thank you" she managed to whisper, shifting her weight so that she bore as much of Athena's as she could and ensured that the two of them were supporting one another.
The moment was interrupted before it could become either awkward or meaningful.
"Okay, we're all alive" Astra declared, voice wavering with sudden fear as they added "But where are-"
"Well, not the most dignified end to an evening that I've experienced but I daresay not the least either; I was a student myself once after all" a harrumph followed by a chortle announced the arrival of Major Grapeshot who had clearly burst from elsewhere in the wreckage but somehow managed to appear so nonchalant about the ordeal that it was if he had simply encountered them whilst on a leisurely stroll, the only real indication that he had been caught in the blast at all being that his hat had been lost somewhere which revealed grey and thinning and but still well kept hair. Astra tried to shake away the last of the dizziness and marshal the thoughts racing around their jarred and addled mind in order to form some sort of coherent comment yet before they could do so Athena-Jade began what promised to be a furious tirade.
"YOU HAD US BOMBED! YOU CALLED IN AN AIR-STRIKE WHILE WE WERE STILL INSIDE AND DIDN'T HAVE THE PILOTS CHECK IN WITH US FIRST! WHAT KIND OF HUNTER ARE-"
She fell silent as the dull boom of the sound barrier being breached, followed by a rush of air and scattering petals announced the arrival of Ruby Rose.
"Oh thank Oum you're okay" Ruby sighed as she flung her arms around Athena's unencumbered side.
"Aunt Ruby-"
"I didn't know you were still inside, I thought your team had managed to take one of the cars we saw heading away from here"
"Unfortunately that was out of the question" Major Grapeshot announced, clearing his throat to turn all attention back to himself "The Geist had begun infesting the exits-"
"And you didn't call off the air-strike? When you had students with you?" Ruby demanded, voice suddenly low and dangerous yet the implicit threat only made Grapeshot puff up in response; like a wild animal trying to make itself appear larger before a threat.
"My decisions were tactically sound, your rockets alone would have been sufficient for the task of weakening the Grimm's hold on its' surroundings. I was not aware that Professor Adel had sent such a heavy-handed answer to my request for assistance; if I had known that she would be sending you I would have adjusted accordingly"
"You know my niece is on this team, you didn't really think it would be anyone else coming did you?" Ruby demanded, the eyebrow above her remaining silver eye arching
"Hey it's cool" Astra interjected as they staggered over "We're all okay, we all made it out-"
"Hardly the point" Ruby stated flatly "It was needlessly risky and put you all at risk, Major you should have known better-"
"Professor Rose I can assure you that whilst I am most grateful for your assistance in any capacity I will not stand here and have my decisions questioned when the fault was clearly in the execution of my instructions" the air between Ruby and Grapeshot seemed to drop several degrees beneath the already biting chill in the night air in an instant, an electric tension crackling between the two veteran Hunters with Team MARZ; weary and battered as they all were shuffling awkwardly as they struggled to decide on a course of action.
The tension was released however as the rumbling snarl of Carmesi Hueso announced the Komodo Dragon Faunus's arrival.
"Major, Missus Rose" he snapped off a salute to both of his senior Hunters, paying no mind to what he had stumbled into the midst of whilst also handing over Major Grapeshot's hat which he had clearly recovered from somewhere
"Good to see you're in one piece old chap-"
"Bad news Major, it escaped" the Faunus trackers' hellish red eyes narrowed and it was clear that he could only be talking about one thing "When that laser cut through the building it ripped itself free of everything it had worked itself into, I tried to follow it even as everything was collapsing but I lost it; when I dug myself out I found tracks, claw marks, trails where its' tentacles had dragged along the ground and then tire-tracks….I think there were still vehicles left inside somewhere"
"And it's infested a car….clever" Grapeshot purred "A most entertaining hunt for someone I daresay"
"We'll go after it" Ruby asserted, only for Grapeshot to shake his head and openly contradict her in what could surely be seen as act of foolhardy bravery.
"An unwise decision Professor Rose I assure you" he gestured upwards at Penny's Aircraft which still circled overhead "Your abilities are held in high esteem and your reputation is earned I'm sure but if that Grimm were to incorporate the weapons at your wife's disposal and an aircraft into itself it might prove to be something of a catastrophe"
"Besides" Carmesi snarled, every word filled with venom "Our priority now is to hunt down the bastards who were running this place, Astra got a tracker on their leader. We handle that first, let the Geist haunt the rocks until we can come back for it"
"Quite" Grapeshot nodded pursing his lips as he added "Professor Rose if you would be so kind as to indulge me, I would like to hand your niece and her team-mates into your care so that you can return them back to their proper place at Breaktide Academy. My associate and I cannot in good conscience continue this mission with students accompanying us, nor can we allow the crimes committed here to go unpunished….Also, make it clear to Professor Adel that this is no slight on Team MARZ's abilities; when I have the opportunity to write a proper mission report I will give the four of them only the highest of praise"
"Th-thank you" Athena shuffled, alabaster cheeks smudged with dirt now flushing red as the compliments stood in contrast to the rant she had been preparing to launch into; Astra managed a weak laugh at this which gave way to strained, hacking coughs and any tension between the more experienced Hunter was quickly forgotten.
"I'll pass the message along. Good hunting Major" Ruby nodded before turning to Team MARZ and quietly seeing which of the teens needed medical attention "You've all done well, really well and I'm proud of you all….now come on, let's go home. Your first mission's over, how does it feel?"
"Like I want to murder everything gets between me and a shower or my bed" Astra answered in a spur of unfiltered honesty that gave what felt like a fitting conclusion to the mission as a whole, even as Ruby doubled over laughing.
Author's Notes:
First thing's first: Saturdays are the new upload day...Or we're going back to Saturdays depending on how long you've followed my writing for. The reason is that I started a new job and I'm on a rotating shift pattern, I could do Friday Uploads but they'd be at a different time every week so I'm pushing it back to the weekend for the sake of consistency.
So, only one chapter left of Vol.01 left to go.
This was fun to write, like a lot of fun and I feel like I should point out that this is just the first "real" boss fight the kids have taken on….compare this to the monster from Team FADE's first mission.
There's still some loose ends to tie together before you get the whole picture of what's going to be going on during Vol.02 and Vol.03 but you'll see next chapter.
But anyway, let's summarise shall we?:
I could have had the Alpha Geist reveal last chapter but I feel like this works better, really set the tone of the fight at the start of a chapter.
Also, AJ knowing about it is common sense really even though when I wrote Downward Spiral I was actually under the impression that the Knight Weiss was fighting in the White Trailer was an older model of Mantle robot; the reference to Geists in mines was obviously a Vol.7 reference.
Do only Grimm that are based on pack or social animals get an 'Alpha' variant? Who knows, all I know is I gave this Geist a creepy smile but no real mouth, an extra pair of arms and a hoodie made of skin that turns into tentacles 'cos fuck it.
Okay Astra is showing those leadership qualities right here but at the same time Zirconia's idea wasn't a bad one….Especially when the Grimm can take one knife and turn itself into Fingers McFuck.
So it can absorb and integrate ice as well as it would rocks or dead trees but hard-light is beyond it, which likely how it was being contained before.
I gave it the extending arms, like what Salem uses in canon just to make it even more nasty.
Yep, the Grimm has a fucking anti-tank gun now….Also, Regalia never change.
We saw a little of what Grapeshot and Carmesi are capable of before, but now there's no kids watching they get show off just what they're really willing and able to do….A little bit less honourable.
Also you know damn well Persian Green had his customer service voice up and running throughout that entire conversation with his backers.
The Alpha Beowolf has been mentioned again for a reason.
Boom, head-shot.
Yes, you read that right; a Hunter did just hack and slash his way through grunts with no Aura, using a machete….Also his weapons still need names.
Of course the ringleader escaped.
Ah you know it's bad when the Schnee/Slate kids are bleeding from the snout after overusing their Semblances.
Just head on charging the Grimm….I imagine Weiss just looking at Gangrel and telling him "She gets that from you" when she hears about it.
Turning the Grimm's ability to merge with things against it was a nice touch.
Nice save from Astra, cover two team-mates while creating an opening for a third.
Yeah see this is the difference between a Geist and my Alpha Geist; the Geist will merge with some of the rocks and Dust crystals inside a mine….the Alpha will merge with the mine, all of it.
Okay so the Grapeshot scene, the Carmesi scene and the fight with the Alpha Geist are all happening in tandem with each other, so timing doesn't sync up perfectly in some places.
Yeah it's probably a good thing he took out the rest of those guns, imagine if the Grimm absorbed all of them,
That whole conversation with Coco was a treasure to write, as brief as it was because it shows off just how absolutely bat-shit insane Grapeshot actually is, he's never once given a fuck.
Magnificent Ivory, the elephant gun that's also a cane has a name now.
Yeah, he's just as ruthless as Carmesi is.
"Blast! Blast, damnation and fiddlesticks!" I giggled to myself just writing that.
Now this isn't the first time we've heard a comment about "Considering who's on Team MARZ" is it.
Zirconia's little comments and Regalia's quotes were a highlight this chapter.
The Cameras being eyes is based on something from a British horror film that came out a few years ago that I cannot remember for the life of me.
Spooky-ramen….totally not Creepy-Pasta.
"Yeah they decided to throw me a leaving party when I quit" I take it back, Astra gets the MVP award for that line; also can we appreciate the entrances Carmesi and Grapeshot have made this chapter.
Calling in the air-strike while you're still in the building you want blown up is a bad idea, but sometimes a strategic move.
Of course it's Ruby and Penny, Grapeshot asked for the fastest.
So that was the patrons of the fight club running for their life.
Ruby only has one Silver Eye left remember, she's still powerful as all heck but letting Penny soften up the Geist by scrapping everything it's absorbing is still a smart move.
….Or it would be, if the area was clear and if Ruby and Penny's transport was equipped with the standard weapons.
So, Team MARZ are all alive….bruised and gonna have one hell of a headache but ultimately fine.
Oh AJ was about to channel Weiss at her most Weiss and unleash hell for a second there.
Grapeshot and Ruby were absolutely ready to throw down and the thing is, they both definitely have a point.
The Major's plan would have worked, if it had been a standard Bull-Head transport; the building would have collapsed but the Hunters were in an airship-sized open space in the centre, it was the giant laser that made a difference.
So the Alpha Geist….Is a Grimm in disguise.
And that ladies, gentlemen and others is the conclusion of Team MARZ's first mission; now there's just debriefing to deal with.
Thank you to SumoSnipe, OrcPaladinArthur, Funlander and MajorBrony95 for their reviews on the last chapter.
See, the faculty of Breakfast have jurisdiction in Menagerie….but if these rich sickos are international, well then I guess we'll just have to make sure that the footage goes to people like Qrow, whose shadowy cabal Ruby, Penny, Coco and co are still part of and then onto Ren and Winter who have seats on the Councils of New Vale and Atlas due to being the heads of academies.
Yeah the Thunder-Dome soundtrack definitely works; I'd love to hear what you think the soundtrack is for this one.
Funny thing, Astra and Wolfram are not the only LGBT members of the main cast.
A lot of those dead Hunters were probably willing participants...Just really down on their luck, although I wouldn't put it passed Persian to have a convoy full of civilians kidnapped and used as "Bait" to make the matches more interesting.
It's not the killing the Diabla's squeamish about, it's the butchering.
Major Grapeshot is certainly….a guy...God I can't wait for the reactions to the next chapter.
As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.
