Chapter 65
(AN: There are very few chapters left for Volume 8, possibly two or three left, four at the absolute most. The events for how Volume 9 will go in this story currently remains in planning, but all we can say for sure is that the story is going to be very different from how Volume 9 actually went.)
Ambrosius's reveal felt overdone, now that I was seeing it in real life. Like Jinn, he appeared out of a cloud of blue mist that was expelled from the crystal at the tip of the staff. There was no smell nor any feeling to the mist - not even the feeling of air rushing by my arm as it swirled around, growing bigger and bigger before it revealed the shape of the spirit inside the relic.
"Well, well, well! Someone's finally decided to engage my creative wiles!" the loud and outgoing tone of Ambrosius rang out as the mist dissipated to reveal the equally blue, naked, (thankfully lacking genitalia) and very muscular form of the Spirit of Creation. Like Jinn, he had golden earrings, a set of chains crossing around his torso, shattered golden shackles, and other accessories.
Time stopped - and I could feel it as I turned around. Liya was still beyond the doorway into the vault, and I could barely see Yang and Emerald on the walkway far behind us. Even beyond that, it all felt like everything had stopped. I couldn't feel the air around me, and I was just given a sense of odd awe at what was truly happening.
"Ahem?"
I turned around and noticed the spirit looking down at me, and I felt myself flinch. He felt powerful. "So good of you to finally grace my presence," Ambrosius said with barely concealed excitement.
My eyes widened at his words, not expecting recognition - or expectancy of any kind. "You've...you've been waiting for me?" I asked in mild shock and concern. How much did this guy know? What else did magic grant him?
"Oh yes," Ambrosius replied with a grin while he rubbed his hands together in glee. "Only Jinn was given the full details, Relic of Knowledge and all, but a soul from a whole new world!" Suddenly Ambrosius was in my face, questions flying at a mile a minute, either teleporting or having super speed of sorts. "So, what technology do you have there? You have no Grimm so do you have a need for weapons? What about Faunus or other species? Do you rely on Dust? Is that a prosthetic arm?"
I quickly backed away nervously, swallowing as I clutched the Staff of Creation close to me. "U-uh huh. Well I can answer all of that later. Right now, I need you to help everyone on Atlas or else they'll all die. I promise there'll be time for all the questions and-" I began to say.
"Uhh, time is frozen here, in case you didn't know. We literally have all the time in the realm," Ambrosius pointed out, almost bragging as he lounged back, shining his nonexistent nails on his chest. "Come on, I've been in that staff for a long time and do you know how boring all my recent creations have been? Surely you can loosen up and humor me with some conversation."
I pondered the thought of just saying no, but I stopped for a second. Time really did slow to a complete stall here, plus it was only me and the spirit here. No one was waiting on me, it wouldn't hurt to have a quick chat, just a small break. It was to my benefit really, if I got him in a good mood maybe he'd bend the rules a little…
I sat down on the grass, my legs feeling far more tired than I'd expected. My aura wasn't close to being fully replenished yet, and I was beginning to feel the soreness from the battles that had occurred minutes before: fighting in the city, fighting Grimm and the new knights, fighting off Stella, going up against Cinder and losing, fighting some more in the midst of a blizzard and an inferno going off at the same time.
Holy crap, I'd been through a hell of a lot. It hasn't even been a day, has it?
"Yeah..." I said as I set the staff on my lap. "So, what did you wanna know?"
- elsewhere in the city of Atlas, several minutes before the vault was reached -
Blake dodged another volley of cannon fire. Watts hadn't even bothered with going after the few retreating soldiers, having entirely focused his attention on Blake and Ruby. "Salem will get here soon," Watts boomed over the loudspeaker of the Paladin. "Once she does, you'll truly have no escape."
"Dammit!" Blake hissed as she felt her aura take another hit from shrapnel before she stumbled into another building, Ruby a few feet ahead of her. The building provided some cover for now, but it wouldn't be long until Watts was on top of them. "Why's he so fixated on us?" Blake groaned as she reloaded, slamming the magazine into the well of Gambol Shroud. "He should be focused on supporting Cinder or chasing the retreat! We bought them time, but I didn't expect him to completely ignore the others."
"It's not you he's after. It's me," Ruby realized as she reloaded her own weapon. "Salem still wants the girl with the silver eyes..."
"Then why is Watts doing it? Wasn't there...you said there was a Hound of sorts? A smart Grimm?" Blake asked as the thumping of mech steps grew closer and closer every second.
"I don't know. Maybe it's here, but we haven't seen it. There hasn't even been any report on whether other new Grimm have even been spotted," Ruby muttered as the two quickly hurried across the building, hearing Watts tear apart walls to get to them before the sound of cannons blazing was heard.
The ground and walls behind them exploded as Watts fired into the opening, the two girls being sent flying before tumbling through the other side of the building, groaning as they stumbled to their feet and shook the dust off of them.
"We need to be able to pin him. Those shields negate any heavy attacks we might be able to use," Blake said, panting from exhaustion as she tried to calm her breathing. "We can't call for help without letting him know what we're planning either."
"Where are those troops from earlier?" Ruby asked, turning around in mild panic as she tried to spot them. "And where's Biscuit?"
"They're climbing up one of the skyscrapers. They had a sniper in there but he's dead. His railgun's still there though, I figured we could use it to take out that mech's shields," Blake said. "But it's high up. We need to give them more time."
"How much time has it been now-" Ruby tried to say before a barrage of missiles blasted their position directly, the explosions sending the two flying once more. Ruby struck an overturned bus and toppled behind it, her aura fizzling out completely. Blake slammed into a wall behind the bus, her own aura dying out quickly as well.
"Ruby..." Blake croaked as she tried to get up, only collapsing back to her hands and knees as the Paladin stormed around the corner, fists unfolded over the arm cannons as Watts chuckled over the speaker.
"For all the bravery and skill you have, you're still only children playing amongst men. You and the rest of Atlas are no match for my genius." Watts scoffed as the Paladin brought its fists down, smashing the bus and flattening it in the middle. Reaching over, the mech picked up the unconscious Ruby before Blake could reach over and grab her tattered cape. The cannon on the Paladin's other arm folded up, revealing the cannon behind it once more. "Any last words?"
Blake looked up, hatred searing her amber eyes as she glared up at Watts's Paladin. There was no point in begging - not when there was no way an agent of Salem would ever give up a silver eyed girl. And it was the smarmy Atlesian doctor of all people.
It was over...
At least, that was what Blake thought to herself before a screeching yell filled the air. A pink blur slammed into the top of the Paladin, the mech's hard light Dust shields flaring violently. Despite the lack of any damage to the machine, it was more than enough to make it stumble and lose its grip on Ruby - either by accident or from the shock of the hit.
Blake cried out as she tried to catch her, only for Ren to come out of nowhere and grab the unconscious reaper in his arms, landing and sliding to a stop as the Paladin recovered. Nora landed next to Ren with a smirk on her face.
"Tsk," was all Watts said as the Paladin's other fist closed and folded under the arm, both cannons now out and armed.
"What're you doing here?" Blake choked as she stumbled to her feet. Gambol Shroud remained fully loaded, and she was ready and able to fight, regardless of her aura being depleted.
"Jaune and Pyrrha gave us the order to fall back. The soldiers we were assisting were safe enough, so we planned on meeting them at the next block before regrouping at the city center," Nora explained. "Guess we missed one."
"It's...it's Arthur Watts!" Blake warned. "Ruby and I couldn't even dent his shields. He's too good with that machine!"
"We'll be careful," Ren said as he gently laid Ruby alongside Blake. Nora roared and lunged at the mech, hammer swinging as she drew the machine's full attention. "Keep her safe. The two of us will occupy that thing until Jaune and Pyrrha get here." Ren drew Stormflower and got ready to move in before Blake grabbed his arm.
"Wait. There's two soldiers..." she said as she pointed up at a building, the one she'd told them to get in minutes earlier. "They're manning a railgun on the upper levels. You have to draw the Paladin out to the main intersection. Once you break its shields, they'll fire and cripple it."
Ren nodded as Blake let go in relief. "I got it," he said before he dashed towards Watts's mech, which was swinging its arm to deflect a strike from Nora's Magnhild, the hard light shields glowing. With a jump, Ren leapt atop an upside down car and fired at the Paladin's flank - the rounds bouncing off the shields over the legs.
Watts took notice, and he brought his left cannon arm to bear - only for Nora to smash at it once more. The shields flickered, and this time - they were more dim. Ren noticed instantly, and he quickly leapt off the car, jumping and flipping over a cannon shot that was far too close for comfort. As he landed, he continued to fire at the arm, its shields appearing with every bullet that impacted it.
The shields were being drained, and fast. All they needed was heavy firepower - and thankfully they had someone who had it.
"Nora!" Ren called, with his girlfriend taking notice and nodding with a grin. Pulling back her hammer, she formed it into her grenade launcher and moved around Watts's side - firing a grenade into the back of the mech. Its shields flickered violently, and Watts whirled around, the light autocannons on the arms blazing.
Nora fired again, three grenades in quick succession. The explosions kicked up enough smoke to send the Paladin stumbling, the rounds striking a building nearby.
"The shields!" Blake gasped as she began to move a little closer. Her legs were shaky and her whole body ached, but she could still fight. Ren and Nora were on the far side of the road, and she quickly took aim with Gambol Shroud. Squeezing off a few shots, the Dust rounds impacted the Paladin and whittled down a little bit more of its defensive barrier. The shields flickered, and they seemed to dim once more.
"We don't need to take down a section of the shields, we can just keep whittling it down with bug bites all over. The shields will need to redirect power to cover them. It'll take longer, but it's easier than having to keep hitting just one spot on a moving target-" Blake thought to herself, distracting herself from her pain with the quick plan she was forming.
Watts's Paladin whirled around, missiles firing upwards blindly before flipping and shooting downwards in all nearby directions. With a gasp, Blake lunged back and dodged an explosion directly, though the blast wave still sent a searing pain through her leg. With a cry of pain, Blake crashed into the ground and rolled to a stop.
"Agh!" she sobbed as she tried to look down. Her leg was a mess with torn skin and bits of shrapnel embedded into it, she felt blood on her head as well. It was all nothing her aura couldn't heal once it was back up, but she wouldn't be able to manage fighting off Watts anymore. All she could do was crawl towards Ruby and hope Watts was too busy to get to them.
The other missiles were primarily hitting the street, with Nora and Ren forced to halt their attacks in order to evade or shoot down the incoming warheads. Some exploded in midair. Others threw up concrete and dust with their detonations.
Ren slid back as he coughed, his own aura having taken a few hits from being in proximity of the explosions. "This is Manta 3-9, what the hell's going on down there?!" a voice rang over the comms, and Ren gasped. Looking up, he saw a Manta dropship flying nearby - turning to fly towards the explosions. The doors were open, and two troops were seen manning the rotary cannons sticking out.
Barely visible behind them were over a dozen soldiers, all holding onto ceiling tethers connected to their belts. Even from such a distance, Ren could tell that the Manta wasn't carrying reinforcements - they were all carrying survivors, all injured and rescued from the field of urban warfare.
"Pests!" Watts sneered, and the Paladin turned and aimed up at the dropship, cannons firing before Nora flew back into action, slamming into the Paladin and forcing its shields to flare up again. Luckily, all the shots missed - as the Manta immediately veered off.
"Get away from here!" Ren quickly warned as Nora continued to swing her hammer, slamming into the Paladin. The shields flared up violently once more, and the mech swung once more, hitting Nora and sending her flying high into a second story window of an office building.
Ren hissed in pain as he got up, quickly getting to his feet as he readied himself to charge before a new voice rang in his comms. "Stay clear." Ren froze before his eyes trailed up, noticing some movement above him in the building behind the Paladin. Upon realizing what was going on, he turned and ran.
Watts stopped the Paladin as well, having heard the message. "What?" he muttered in confusion before he slammed his head on the screen in front of him. The Paladin toppled, crashing to the ground the second the loud boom was heard. Blake winced as the sound blasted all four of her ears, and she ducked. Her cat ears flattened against her head as her own hands came up and clamped themselves over her human ears.
The Paladin groaned as Watts tried to get the machine to stand back up. His shields were offline, and there were structural damage alerts all over the screens. The second shot doomed his machine for good, piercing the swivel joint in the torso. The massive machine toppled in two, with the legs crumpling to the asphalt.
The much heavier top half smashed into the cratered street near the intersection, sparks and broken whirring heard as Ren looked back behind cover. "It's over," he finally said after a few moments, moving to head towards Ruby and Blake.
Up above in a building about a block away, two Atlesian soldiers and a dog looked down, the troops nodding before they disappeared inside the building, presumably making their way back down. Nora came out of the other building she'd been slammed into - battered and tired as she leaned on Ren. "Is it over?" she whispered as she pushed off Ren, kneeling next to Ruby and checking her condition.
"Not yet..." Blake croaked as she reached towards Ren. "G-give me your comm. Please." Ren did so, not asking any questions as Blake inserted it into her ear and began to speak. "This is Blake B-Belladonna. A-Are there any Mantas nearby?"
"This is Manta 3-9, we're still a few blocks away."
"Manta 9-7 here, ready to assist."
Blake smiled before looking back at the crippled machine. "I need an airstrike against a rogue Paladin on the intersection near Bridgeway Street, North of the...the Glass Unicorn..." she whispered, eyeing the nearest building with a visible name.
The comms were silent for a split second before the pilots responded with words of acknowledgement. It didn't take long for the dropships to come along, the sound of roaring engines heard overhead. Several missiles slammed into the intersection, smoke and fire billowing violently as the Paladin vanished behind an inferno of explosives. The Mantas sent the rising smoke swirling as their bombing run came to an end, flying past.
Blake, Nora, and Ren covered themselves over Ruby behind the wrecked bus, with smoke billowing past them. Their eyes were shut as the explosions came to an end, followed by the sound of crumbling and violent crashing that lasted a good minute or two.
Several more minutes passed, and Blake dared to open her eyes, certain that her ringing ears were bleeding from the cacophony of noises. The dust and smoke had cleared rather quickly, revealing that Watts's mech was no longer visible - completely buried under a massive pile of debris from a fallen building.
"That should keep him from coming back out," Nora said, sounding satisfied. Blake nodded before collapsing with a moan.
Ren heard the whine of a set of engines and turned around. One of the Mantas had circled back around near the rubble, lowering and deploying its landing gear. As the ramp lowered and the doors opened, Ren could see a few stretchers with injured soldiers, being tended to by a few Atlesian medics. "Come on!" one of them yelled.
As their small victory sank in, they all took some time to rest. A bark was heard, and Biscuit came bolting around the Manta, panting as he leapt into the air and crashed into Nora, who giggled and rubbed his thick fur under the assault of doggy kisses. The other two soldiers who'd assisted them from above came around as well, railgun in hand.
"Thank you for the assistance," Ren said. "Not sure we would have lasted too much longer."
"It's our job. Plus a Paladin running rampant would have been bad news for everyone," one of the soldiers said. "Are you injured?"
"Only Blake and Ruby," Ren said, walking past Biscuit and Nora's tussle and coming over to help Blake to her feet. Blake nodded as she leaned on his shoulder, while another soldier picked up Ruby. Two more men came out of the landed Manta to assist in bringing Ruby inside via a stretcher.
"Ren!" a voice called. Jaune and Pyrrha approached, panting as they made their way to the Manta. "What happened? We saw the damage and tried to get over here as soon as we could!" Pyrrha called.
"Watts," Blake answered as Biscuit finally got up off of Nora, though she remained sitting to keep petting and scratching the dog's ears. "He got in a Paladin and started attacking us. Took us everything we had to bring him down."
Pyrrha and Jaune looked back at the pile of rubble behind the Manta. "Good," Jaune finally said a few moments later. "We should get to the academy. There should be more troops and the rest of team RWBY waiting for us there.
Blake nodded, hoping Yang would be alright. "R-right," she said tiredly as Pyrrha came over and helped Ren carry Blake into the Manta, while Nora, Biscuit, Jaune, and the two soldiers joined them. Moments later, the Manta's ramp was raised alongside the landing struts, and the dropship took off, flying towards Atlas Academy.
- back in the Atlas vault, with time still completely frozen -
It was a little embarrassing to admit, but I likely spent a couple hours in the vault, just chatting with Ambrosius. Long enough at least for my aura to regenerate to an optimal level, as well as enough time for any aches I had to lessen.
The company was surprisingly pleasant as well. Obvious eye candy aside, Ambrosius was a wealth of knowledge and it shined through as we discussed the technology of Earth. He was disappointed for the most part, commercial airlines, jets and submarines couldn't really compare to Remnant's tech, even if they'd be rather impressive to your average citizen. His interest did peak significantly once we got on to discussing nuclear plants and spaceships though. With Remnants over-reliance on dust to power everything, and dust not working past a certain point of its atmosphere, it was safe to say it was a complete mystery to them.
Our conversation really started to pick up there as I began getting more into it, mentioning our most recent advancements before my death and throwing in some of the knowledge I had from franchises like Halo. Ambrosius would pipe in with his thoughts on how feasible something like the Death Star would be and how he could improve on the design. It was honestly a lot of fun, especially since we delved into more and more franchises and other kinds of potential technologies.
"I actually helped Ironwood produce a few of those ships in preparation for Salem, alongside the railguns," I said as I pulled up some of the old images on my scroll from so long ago, my pride somewhat shining through as Ambrosius looked. "I mean, they're pretty violent weapons - but they work against the tougher Grimm out there."
"Simply brilliant!" Ambrosius said as his eyes greedily looked them over. "I'd love to brainstorm with the men and women who were able to bring this to life."
"I'll be sure to introduce you to Dr. Polendina when we have a chance, he's Atlas's leading scientist you know?" I said, closing my scroll. "He even managed to give a robot a soul."
Ambrosius's eyes widened at that, interest shining through, as he smiled eagerly. "He did, did he? I'll definitely need to pick his brain. To think humankind and Faunuskind are capable of such brilliance is astounding..."
This was fun, I couldn't help but think again. To just relax and nerd out freely with someone who just got it. The Atlas scientists I had worked with before weren't too bad, but it was clear that I was an outsider, that they thought that I was just some kid that didn't know what he was doing. Granted that quickly changed once I started proving some results, but we weren't colleagues and there really were a stuck up bunch.
As nice as it was though, I needed to get back to work. I had a world to save.
I pulled out my scroll, bringing up images of the pneumatic tubes between Mantle and Atlas as references for the central location in order to funnel everyone on Atlas into Vacuo, alongside coordinates for Atlas Academy, the city center, and all major strongholds in the city of Atlas where as many possible survivors were bound to be grouped. "We need you to build a sort of portal network using these coordinates. They'd all lead to a nexus of sorts, where they can all be funneled into a single opening in Vacuo," I explained, bringing the information up for Ambrosius to read.
"I see," Ambrosius said. "And where will this nexus be?"
"An alternate dimension," I said, remembering Yang's words when Ambrosius asked the questions. "The vaults aren't a part of Remnant, they're in a completely different realm. You could make something like this for the portals to funnel in. Pathways between portals that connect into large central areas that lead to an exit portal in Vacuo."
"I see. And where would I be able to place this exit portal?" Ambrosius asked. From what I'd figured out by what little interaction between the spirit and RWBY, he had a bit of an ego, enthusiastic and relatively passionate for creations. He seemed a little serious now, but I honestly preferred that at the moment. I needed this to be done perfectly.
I pulled up the last bit of necessary information - the location of Shade Academy's main courtyard. "Here, these coordinates should be able to work. The end portal should be wide enough for traffic to go relatively smoothly. Oh, and vehicles and mechs should be able to pass through as well. Say...maybe about 20 meters wide and 8 meters tall? As for all the other doors, they should be around the size of this one." I pointed to the door that led into the vault, which was already relatively large in its own right.
"I clearly understand what you're going for, but I hope you do realize that the rules can only have me maintain one creation at a time. The moment I make this...network of portals, then the floating city will not be able to remain floating for long," Ambrosius warned.
"I'm aware of that particular rule. All the civilians that live here have been evacuated ahead of time so it's just soldiers here. There's also safety measures in place to make sure that it won't fall right away - but we need these portals to get everybody who's left safely out before Atlas is destroyed," I said as I stepped forwards, closer to the spirit. "We'll bring the staff with us as well, then we'll have you delete the network once everyone is safely across to Vacuo. After that, you can meet Jinn. She should be waiting on the other side."
Ambrosius's eyes widened. "So you have Knowledge as well! Tell me, how is she doing?" he asked.
I coughed. "I...I didn't exactly get the opportunity to meet her in person just yet," I admitted. "But I do know she's about as blunt as a hammer. She's a pretty polite person, notwithstanding."
The Spirit in the Staff chuckled. "That does sound like Jinn, hasn't changed a bit I see," Ambrosius said with a smile before he continued to look over the data for a good minute or so. With the cracking of knuckles and stretching of arms, the Spirit of Creation got to work, streams of thin blue energy trailing from his fingers as he began to trace out shapes, working in his own mysterious and relatively magical ways.
"Wait!" I quickly shouted. Ambrosius stopped, and I quickly spoke up once more. "Uhh...don't make the portals one-way. Any of them. Oh, and can you add railings to the pathways?" I added, sheepish at almost forgetting those particular details. "Just so nobody falls."
Ambrosius sighed. "Wow, take the fun out of everything, would you?" he muttered as he continued his work. "Anything else?"
I wanted to say 'no' but stopped myself. Was that everything we needed? We got the portal, we're not landing randomly in the desert, we have a way back in if necessary and no one will fall unless…
"I need a way to keep Salem's faction out of the portals, they can't attack the survivors or take the relic- er, you."
"You'll need to be more specific," Ambrosius said with a sigh, getting mildly annoyed now. "How can I differentiate one human from another?"
I bit my lip, my mind running like crazy to think of something. "What about Grimm then? That should stop Salem and her hoard at the very least.."
"Hmmmm…I could easily do that, but I'm still missing what stops them exactly," Ambrosius pondered.
"Ruby's eyes!" I said excitedly. "The light inside of them burns away Grimm essence."
"That would be enough…" Ambrosius mused as he rubbed his chin, thinking it over. "However the rules state that I need to see your example, and given that your friend isn't here…"
I was panicking a little now, without this extra layer of defense we'd be utterly helpless if Salem or Cinder made it in. Still, there had to be something that the average everyday person had that a Grimm wouldn't-
The answer came quickly from memory, and I jumped up. "A soul! They'd have to have a soul to enter!" I shouted quickly. It wouldn't do to show my aura, especially since the Atlesian troops didn't have them unlocked. It was a risk, but it would hopefully be enough.
Ambrosius smiled as he got back to work. "That, I can absolutely do. Normally I'd argue that you shouldn't be able to take ships, clothes or anything else really through these portals in that case…but I'll let it slide since you've been pretty fun to talk to. A little bit of fine tuning here and a bit of bending there..."
I slumped in relief as I sighed. It didn't take long at all - as the portal opened behind me seconds later, with a bright flash of light exploding. I winced from the light for a moment before I came over and examined the doorway - similar to the ones created in the original Volume 8. "Wow..." I muttered to myself.
"Yes, I am quite amazing," Ambrosius said. "Now, before I return to my humble abode, are there any more questions for me?"
I thought about thinking of some more questions, only to shake my head. "No," I finally said. "I have nothing else for now. But I might have some more questions on the other side."
Ambrosius grinned. "Well, then. I eagerly await our next exchange," he said, smiling for a moment before he vanished - the blue mist dissipating as Ambrosius returned to the staff. With a sigh, I made my way out of the vault with the staff in hand, just in time to see Liya unfreeze.
"Heya," I remarked.
Liya ran over, grabbing my shoulders as she checked me over. "What happened?" she quickly asked.
"We had a talk...for a while. Time stops when the relics are activated, remember?" I said before turning around, looking at the portals near us. "The way to Vacuo is set. We can get going."
"And what about-" Yang began, as she and Emerald hurried up the stairs to get to us.
"We can worry about that later. Right now, we worry about getting everyone to Vacuo," I said. I handed the staff to Liya - the Winter Maiden looking down at it in clear confusion. "You bring this directly to Vacuo, the coordinates for the end portal should be right in front of Shade. Got it?"
"U-uhh, yeah!" Liya said. "What about the rest of you?"
"We push the enemy back and buy time. Then we'll make a run for Vacuo," I said. Yang nodded, and Emerald made her way up the stairs, disappearing into the portal. "Let's go."
Liya nodded as well, turning and running into the portal - with Yang and I quickly following into the wall of light.
- city center -
The portals came out of nowhere. Everyone stopped fighting for a split second to see the utterly massive oval of bright golden light just appear out of thin air.
"Vacuo!" Harriet gasped moments before she was hurled off of Hazel's back - right into Marrow as Clover and Elm struggled to pin him down.
"Ozpin, we can't hold back!" Ironwood warned as he threw Jackie to the ground. "We need to get going!"
"And what makes you think I'll just let you leave?!" Salem roared. Her temper had exploded long ago - her features portraying just how furious she truly was. Magic exploded everywhere, with Ozpin dodging and deflecting all the while.
The two of them had moved their battle far away from the others, Ozpin having successfully pushed the Queen of the Grimm back at least a block, plenty of distance for what came next. Ozpin let out a chuckle as he landed in front of his former wife and present mortal enemy. "You won't be around to stop us," he said.
Salem normally would have laughed at this claim. She knew immortality, and nothing but pain. Death was something that couldn't hold her - and she would often regenerate her body faster than they could damage her. But she didn't laugh. She didn't even dare blink as she registered what Ozpin said. "I won't be gone for long," she simply warned Ozpin, for she knew what was coming. Even so, her hands glowed with magic as she prepared to fight.
Long Memory glowed with golden energy as Ozpin spun it in his hands. "We won't need very long," he said.
"Get down!" Ironwood yelled, and he hit the floor - managing to trip Jackie's charge with his own body as Ozpin and Salem clashed.
The resulting explosion was bright enough to disintegrate buildings. Unlike the explosion that utterly vaporized Monstra and all of the Grimm outside the city, this blast was targeted - precise. It resembled less of an explosion and more of a massive cone of energy that destroyed several dozen blocks of buildings and roads - including Salem.
The explosion didn't last long - but everyone on the other side of the blast was sent flying. Qrow and Winter flew into a crashed car while Harriet slammed her head on a stop sign, shattering the last of her aura as she fell. Vine grabbed Marrow and the nearest traffic pole with his semblance, but that soon fell away as well. Elm gritted her teeth as her own feet locked down against the asphalt, just barely holding together from the force as she grabbed Clover by the arm as the blast wave continued to strike them all.
Hazel and Jackie were barely faring any better, having been sent crashing back into buildings or cars with nothing to hold onto in time. General Ironwood was still on the ground, his prosthetic hand gripping the nearest object - a disabled Paladin in the street. His eyes were shut, groaning as he felt the winds threaten to tear his arm off.
And just like that, it was all over. Ears rang and visions were blurred as the silence slowly but surely began to kick in. Ozpin stood silently, directly in front of a massive path of destruction. "Hm," he said. "That went better than I thought it would."
General Ironwood slowly got up, looking around and picking up a scuffed but still operational Due Process off the ground, having been pushed against the Paladin he'd held onto. As he checked his weapon, he heard the sound of crashing. He nearly braced before realizing that the sound was incredibly far away. Was that the wall?
The tin man turned to see what truly had happened. A trench was formed several hundred meters deep, with nothing but dust and ashes floating in the air. The subway system - at least what was left of it in this area, was seen with melted and blasted subway trains and a completely incinerated platform. The buildings at the very edge of the blast zone were completely annihilated as well, with the buildings near that showing clear structural damage from afar.
At the very end of the blast zone was the wall, which had a massive chunk completely gone. If General Ironwood could see any further, he was almost certain he would be able to see the fields beyond turned into nothing but singed dirt. "If we weren't dropping Atlas..." he sighed.
"I apologize, James. I had to be certain," Ozpin said, sounding not at all sorry for what he did. The military general looked back and forth between both Ozpin and the billions of Lien in damages he'd accomplished.
"Let's...just get going to Vacuo," Ironwood said. "Ace-Ops, assess injuries and let's move!"
"What about...Hazel?" Marrow asked, helping Vine move to the portal. Qrow was carrying an unconscious Harriet into the magical doorway, while a dirtied and scuffed Winter followed closely behind.
"We'll worry about him when we see him. For now, we rendezvous with Markus," General Ironwood said as he turned around. Ozpin simply walked by, making his way through the portal with the others.
"And we make our way to Vacuo..." General Ironwood sighed as he took one last look around him - the wreck of a kingdom seemingly staring back at him.
"Goodbye, Atlas," the man thought to himself before he walked through, leaving the kingdom behind.
(AN: The next chapter will focus on Atlas Academy and the fight inside the central location.)