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I am making no money from this.
Chapter 41: Despatch and Dispatch
To say that Rowan Oralie's mind raced as she regained consciousness would be something of a misrepresentation of facts.
In truth the redhead mercenary and all-round villains' mind was so addled and muddled by the various sensations and new information imposed upon it that it could manage no more than disconcerted trundling and vague, barely coherent sputtering thoughts for several moments until Rowan mastered herself; taking the various stabbing, burning and aching pains that made up the majority of her awareness and using them as reference points to ground and focus herself with a low, growling hiss that escaped through gritted teeth.
The smooth sound of well oiled mechanical joints and hydraulic pistons lurching into motion reached Rowan's ears and was followed promptly by the sound of weapons being made ready which forced her to finally fling her eyes open, though her senses remained useless to her with the influx of information; breath sharp and ragged and with her heart hammering in her chest whilst its' rhythm was echoed by a bleeping machine close to her side she prepared to defend herself against whatever attacker had come.
Only to be calmed by an unfamiliar voice, soft yet unwavering halting the situation before it could devolve.
"Miss Oralie I assure that you are safe here and will not be harmed. I am invoking client confidentiality, leave us" the sound of heavy, mechanical footsteps trudging away reached Rowan's ears and prompted her to finally sit upright as her eyes began to adjust to the glaring lights of what could only be a hospital. It seemed that she had been transported out of Grauerstein Correctional Facility to receive treatment which spoke to the severity of her injuries in a way that was let further credence by the various tubes fitted to her body both pumping fluids in and dredging them out again alongside various diodes and other sensors connected to her at various points. Rowan quickly realised that her access to medicine had not come without protection and oversight however as she felt the cold metal of a shackle around her wrist securing her to the hospital bed whilst the metallic footsteps and primed weapons had belonged to a pair of Atlas Knights of a fairly recent model, a security measure added in lieu of an Aura dampening collar which she also quickly realised was suspiciously absent.
All of this was pushed aside as the redhead focused her attention of the figure before her, a woman of indeterminate age and a largely unremarkable appearance; clad in a pencil skirt and suit jacket whilst holding a notepad and a pen at the ready with something in her expression which Rowan couldn't quite place, though the experienced criminal could easily recognise a lawyer when she saw one and swiftly surmised that this woman was far more capable than her unassuming appearance would suggest.
"So is this court appointed or do I have friends I don't know about?"
"I'm your new court appointed legal aid, everyone has the right to legal council and a fair hearing in Menagerie; though the lawyer previously assigned to your case elected to hand it over to me for personal reasons" Rowan might have let out a snort at that, the reason that her previous aid had been bought off and threatened despite already being utterly useless being so obvious it needed no obfuscation however in that moment she could not force herself to do so, instead she caught something in her still unnamed lawyers' expression shifting at the word friends which caused the criminals' deep green eyes to narrow with suspicion.
"What happened?" she demanded, voice cold despite the dehydrated scratchiness to it.
"Let's focus on the basics first" the, presumably older woman answered "I am Missus Grise and I've been waiting for you to wake up since you were transferred here following a riot at Grauerstein….You've been unconscious for several days, you were deemed a high enough risk that sedatives were mixed with your Aura stimulants to keep you unconscious whilst you recovered; your injuries were severe Miss Oralie, organ damage, broken bones, torn muscle tendons and internal bleeding along with lacerations-"
"I asked what happened" Rowan's voice grew more irate as she resolved to give this stranger nothing until they cooperated with her.
"Very well" Missus Grise nodded "I regret to inform you that over the course of the riot that several of your co-defendants in some of the charges levelled against you were killed….I would not be at liberty to discuss this were it not for the fact that more than one of them had listed you as a next of kin, a Mist….
Rowan was numb and then as the feelings came rushing in she silently wished for the numbness to return.
Forest green eyes stung and prickled with tears that the woman hardened by years within the abject horror and desperation of poverty, violence and incarceration had thought herself long since devoid of the ability to give. That the gangsters and sell-swords she had gathered to herself, a collection of miscreants she had only ever allowed herself to consider in detached and professional terms had by contrast seen her as some form of familial or even parental figure broke something within her, some icy and previously inviolate barrier which had allowed her to act without hesitation or remorse and with its' shattering she saw the face of the rogue and disgraced Hunter who had taken her in as something of an apprentice; allowing herself to feel and imagine the bitter sting of their disappointment, not at her countless crimes, but at everything else she had allowed herself to become.
And with that that realisation came rage, a poisonous, burning hate and fury that was made all the more intolerable by its' impotence. Rowan had never managed to fully decipher the identity of the benefactor whose service she had been pressed into; the information she had been in the process of acquiring for herself aboard the Dread-Hulk which would likely have added to what she had managed to decode and infer had been taken by the Hunters who captured her and now the redhead saw a truly unappealing future ahead of her; worse even than a life contained within the walls of a prison Rowan realised that her unseen enemy would use their capital and resources to have her returned to Grauerstein Correctional Facility where her death would be swift and violent once she was cast back into the midst of the criminals she had made enemies of.
Words began to fall from her mouth even before the realisation that she knew exactly what she needed to do had fully formed.
"The riot was a set up" Grise looked confused and appalled in equal measure by the notion and so Rowan laid it out in clearer terms "The whole point of the riot was to create enough of a smokescreen for people who wanted me and my people dead to find us and make their move….It's exactly what my crew did to them at Faunus Pride; I knew it was payback as soon as I saw they'd brought acid for me-"
"I must advise you that whilst I am your legal representative, the Atlas Knights may still be able to hear us and you are still confessing-"
"I know exactly what I'm doing and what I'm saying" Rowan interrupted "You wanna be my lawyer, cool….If you want this case to go to trial then I'm gonna need you to follow two very simple instructions"
"I will do everything in my power" Rowan saw that same flash of something powerful and commanding in her lawyers' eyes again, now finding it reassuring as she took it as a sign that Missus Grise meant exactly what she had said and could be trusted insofar as any lawyer could.
"Firstly you need to do everything you can to keep me here, in the hospital….If I go back to Grauerstein, or any other prison there's gonna be another hit on me. Too many people think I know too much and guards don't get paid enough to not look the other way"
"Are you suggesting-"
"Can you do that?" Rowan cut the lawyer off with a stern look "Because if not then there's nothing else to talk about. I'll die within two days if I go back to Grauerstein, a week if its' another prison. If they come for me here I can swipe a scalpel or something and at least have a chance of making a run for it"
"I'll start having injunctions filed immediately" Grise answered firmly, seemingly having the mettle and wherewithal to handle the gritty realities of the world in at least one regard. At this point Rowan faltered, words catching in her throat as she once again saw the face of the Hunter whose weapon and name she had carried with her when there had been nothing else that an unjust world had been willing to give; screwing her eyes shut for a moment before forcing herself to betray the code of pragmatic and self-serving ethics which had for years acted in the place of her conscience.
"The second thing I need you to do is contact Councilwoman Coco Adel at Breaktide Academy….Tell her I'm willing to cooperate"
Monday had come with the regularity which often left its' arrival feeling premature, with classes which had been cancelled due to the absence of Breaktide Academies' faculty returning with a fresh sense of gusto and commitment from all involved. Despite this expected level of lethargy and good natured joking about the resuming drudgery of classes much of the student body were both glad of the sense of normalcy following an attack that had shaken all of Menagerie and been broadcast on news reports all across Remnant in snippets of shaking, indistinct footage filled with flames, screams and glowing red eyes but also they were secure in the knowledge that they had used the break from classes wisely and productively; Team MARZ leading by example in that regard as the four of them had spent the considerable daylight hours almost exclusively in Port Menagerie aiding the ongoing relief efforts for those displaced from Midpoint before returning to the academy only for Astra, much to their team-mates concern to simply continue training and studying for new ways to unlock their elusive Semblance with a relentless drive and stubborn single-mindedness.
Though they were paying for it now with aching muscles and heavy, itching eyes whose constant irritation was, in a cruel sense of irony the only thing effectively helping them to stay awake in the comfortably warm lecture hall where the dull drone of conversation between their current teacher and whichever student they in the midst of discourse with would otherwise have seen the Deer Faunus slumped over in the seat as sleep inevitably claimed them.
Not that this stopped Wolfram from trying to keep their attention directed somewhere at least.
"Hey….you still with us there babe, you've been out of it since Grimm Studies?" Astra would have mumble out a hopefully coherent answer how tiredness was nothing to do with the fact that they were dozing off during a General Academic Studies class and that the issue was instead that they were simply bored by the subject; whatever witty quip they had hoped for was ultimately left unsaid however as their already muddled mind was brought screeching to a halt at the way Wolfram reached over the back of their own in seat in the row ahead to gently cup Astra's chin and lift it upwards so that the two were making eye contact in a gesture that brought a flush to the Deer Faunus's cheeks with its' intimacy no matter that they were already dating.
Earning them both sidelong glances and exasperated mutterings from the rest of both Team WULF and MARZ.
"This is becoming unconscionable" Athena-Jade huffed, verbose Atlesian vocabulary not quite conveying what a simple curse might have.
"It's fucking embarrassing, just don't tell them to get a room" Diabla scoffed, the two girls' partners both nodding and wearing wicked grins in response to the comment until both Athena and Diabla seemed to realise that they had openly agreed with one another about something and were left wearing disbelieving, almost suspicious expressions that only increased Laser's amusement to a level that threatened to disrupt the class until Laser elbowed him firmly in the ribs.
"Heh I'd give you a one-liner to use here but I don't really watch that many romance movies" Regalia noted as she watched the moment between the two team leaders unfold, the dry delivery of her line leaving Laser in need of another swift elbow to silence him; this time coming from Diabla whilst Wolfram and Astra finally broke their lingering eye contact in order to playfully give the Racoon Faunus whom even Wolfram now considered a good friend the finger.
"So, what were you saying?" Astra finally managed to concentrate to some degree however that focus was, in a departure from their recent unwavering focus, directed away from classes and self-improvement for the time being.
"I was gonna ask if you've got any plans for tonight?….You can't be training again tonight, you're gonna collapse" Wolfram answered, stormy grey eyes showing a flicker of concern towards Astra's behaviour which was, even in the usually brash young man-of-actions' mind veering away from impressive and praise-worthy into something else entirely; especially as it limited the time the two of them could spend together.
"I was thinking about it" Astra answered, fighting to keep a challenging note out of their voice before pausing for a moment then continuing to add "But I can probably afford to take a rest day….or at least go a little easier"
"You wanna do something tonight?" Wolfram offered, usually grim features breaking into a hopeful smile "Date night?"
"Maybe" Astra managed a warm and contented smile at that, ignoring the continued eye-rolls and head shaking from their friends as they considered the idea despite their exhaustion; finally toying with one of the points of their Mohawk as they made a suggestion with a mildly abashed air "Actually….There's still probably a ton of work that needs to be done for Midpoint-"
"You wanna help out?" Wolfram surmised to which Astra gave a sheepish nod and a smile which easily overruled their boyfriend's momentary misgivings "Yeah, okay sure….Wasn't what I was planning but that can definitely work"
"It's important work, it needs to be done….those people need help" Astra shrugged, showing a sense of purpose that amounted to something far greater than their recent self-absorbed pursuits of greater power; a sense of duty and loyalty to the idea of what it meant to be a Hunter which Wolfram could only be in mild awe of. Astra Mars seemed to live for the ideal of being a hero to and the betterment of their people, be that in the form of their involvement with things such as Faunus Pride or in their current desires.
"Okay….then I'm in" Wolfram nodded without further question, swallowing thickly at the sudden light in Astra's eyes before flashing a bright smile "If it's important to you then it's important to me….Anybody else in?"
"Heh, all of Team MARZ are gonna be there" Regalia answered without hesitation, puffing her chest out in pride at that fact whilst Athena and Zirconia both nodded in silent agreement.
"We're all gonna be there" the gruff and fierce reply could only have come from Diabla and as her friends and team-mates turned to look at the Mantle-born girl they each saw a dangerous gleam in her fiery orange eyes that almost dared anybody to defy her.
"Darlin' we were all gonna say yes anyhow….even the varmint wouldn't spit in the eye of people hurting, even if he is a darn chiseller" Ursinia noted gently, ignoring Laser's silent gesticulating "Those folks lives are held together with a lick and a promise, you don't need to get yourself all fired up like that"
"Sorry" the word left Diabla's lips on a slow exhale, with only the slightest traces of abashed regret on her features before she seemed to retreat into herself with her usual imposing scowl settling into place as she gave the simplest explanation she could offer "But you're right Ursinia….those people have lost everything, had their entire lives uprooted; I know what that feels like. Nobody else"
"I get it" Laser murmured, nasal tones reduced to a suddenly serious hushed whisper "I mean….life in the Overspill was always hard, nobody should have to risk getting thrown into something like that"
"So it's settled then?" Astra asked "We're all heading to the open market after class to carry on working on the relief efforts"
"May as well find other ways to help besides kicking ass" Diabla's answer seemed the clearest and most concise of the chorus of assents and confirmations that Astra received, their ongoing lesson almost completely forgotten; the comment from the young woman who had taken to wearing the fiery orange braces of her combat attire with her otherwise immaculate uniform going to show just how much she had grown of late and how much her continuing sessions with Counsellor Daichi, bolstered by the presence of a real support network for the first time in her life were allowing her to grow as a person.
That her mindset was so far removed from Astra's recent way of thinking did little to deter the Deer Faunus.
Attempted murders were a frighteningly common occurrence in Blackwater Cove.
Such acts of violence being committed by a licensed Hunter was fortunately a far more rare occurrence though it could be said that this was more a product of the cities' limited supply of Hunters than any greater sense of morality; even rarer still within the confines of Blackwater Cove was a Hunter attempting to commit an act of murder whilst acting in their official capacity rather than in the heat of the moment during an altercation or in the service of a more corrupt paymaster upon abandoning their oaths. It was natural then that the target of such a loyal and worthy Hunter's wrath could only be a rogue Hunter, one whose crimes and treachery had earned them a bounty that did not specify whether they were to be brought in dead or alive.
Major Grapeshot noted with a mix of chagrin and perverse pride that this latest would be assassin had opted exclusively for the later.
"Jolly good show!" he exclaimed as he avoided a whirlwind of incoming blows with speed far beyond what his years and stooped frame would suggest before readying himself for another exchange. The former military man had been returning from grocery shopping when the attack had come, a mundane necessity even in this unforgiving place that was so far removed from the Major's illustrious career that the activity, in his opinion failed to give situation the gravitas it deserved. The Huntress was a far younger woman, perhaps closer in age to Carmesi though still even his junior; declaring herself and her intentions with all of the vigour and bravado of one who had only graduated the academy a few short years ago and was yet to have the grit and muck of harsh realities ground into her very being. She was slender, willowy and sprightly with agile movements made all the more pronounced by the dramatic, flowing and entirely impractical garb that she wore in place of armour whilst she was given a wild edge, that of a crazed but still formidable berserker by both the way her bright orange hair whipped and flowed around her and the weapons she carried which were a pair of war-hammers wielded one-handed as though they weighed nothing at all and were each capable of being reconfigured to form a Dust-based and highly destructive pistol.
Which was exactly what she did.
"You're coming with me dead or alive Grapeshot!" she yelled, voice betraying no hint of fear of uncertainty which Grapeshot, were he more inclined to consider it would have deemed as admirable but sadly mistaken. As it was the rogue Huntsman simply evaded the attack by leaping behind a parked car only to wince at both the impact against his old and strained knees and the way the vehicle tipped almost entirely over onto him as it was torn apart and set ablaze by a pair of shots; leaving the Major retreating from the new inferno and at the same time inwardly amazed at the level of barbarism and debauchery that must regularly occur within Blackwater Cove for its' citizens to be so unnerved by a battle to the death between Hunters in broad daylight that they had simply retreated away from the immediate area without panic or fanfare or apparently even bothering to call what passed for a police force within the lawless cesspool.
"I wasn't aware that bringing me in alive was an option you were entertaining dear girl!" Grapeshot called out, chortling despite himself as he returned to his feet and used Magnificent Ivory in its' cane form to support his weight as he adjusted his safari hat with his free hand; the relaxed and almost lackadaisical demeanour being set against the way his sharp eyes roved the flames and smoke for any sign of movement until finally his unnamed attacker made the frankly amateur mistake of announcing her intentions with a wordless battle-cry. Her Aura flickered a sulphurous yellow as she leapt through the towering Dust-fuelled flames that spilled from the wreckage of a car, giving Grapeshot cause for a smile which turned the corners of his well groomed Imperial moustache upwards.
This battle was not nearly so close fought as he had feared.
For all of her gusto and righteous conviction the young woman allowed her technique to be consumed by simple and artless desperation; her leap carrying her into a high arc that saw her crouching in mid-air with her weapons held high in their hammer forms for a crushing blow whilst Grapeshot, positioned between the burning car and a graffiti ridden wall remained calm and poised to take advantage of her hubris. Firstly he clutched Magnificent Ivory and thrust the base of the cane upward in order to force his opponent into a hurried and wild attempt to course correct whilst falling in order to avoid a blow to the gut and then, leaning in to his previous attacks with reflexes honed over decades the older Hunter adjusted his grip on his weapon, holding it sideways like a quarterstaff in order to first block the woman's falling hammers and then in a pivoting motion hurl her overhead so that her body crashed against the wall with an outward explosion of dust and fragmented brick. Despite her weakened Aura continuing to fluctuate around her the Huntress remained determined and defiant, using natural athleticism and a youthful energy that had long since abandoned Grapeshot in order to press her feet against the wall in attempt to back-flip away from it and force her adversary into a pinned position.
Guffawing at her tenacity Grapeshot instead adjusted his grip and used his weight and strength to throw his opponent aside once again though this time he allowed the motion to carry him in the opposite direction with equal force; sending the pair hurtling left and right so that the still blazing wreckage of a car and the building it had been parked outside of were now to their sides, framing the battle as Grapeshot came skidding to a halt and his opponent, whose name he had never learned landed in a crouch, already preparing to spring forward for another attack.
Grapeshot was ready for her.
As soon as lithe, coiled muscles unleashed their stored energy the rogue Hunter shifted his weapon to its' rifle form and activated his Semblance, harnessing its' duplicating power and focusing on the Ice Dust round that was currently chambered within it. A single shot rang out, only to be multiplied into a deafening cacophony that converted the inferno into a wintry landscape far removed from Menagerie in an instant; flames were doused and frost and icicles covered every surface whilst Grapeshot's gaze passed over all of this and instead remained focused squarely on the young woman who sought his demise. Her Aura had broken, as was evidenced by the way her weapons clattered to the ground whilst she staggered forward several paces in a final, futile attempt to act before sinking to her knees and clutching at several expanding crimson stains that soaked her clothing, each evidence of where a jagged fragment of Ice Dust had ripped through suddenly unprotected flesh and cut deep.
"A jolly good show" Grapeshot repeated, lowering his weapon "However not quite up to snuff I'm afraid dear girl. This need not be the end of your story however; you certainly have the derring-do I like to see in fresh-faced Hunters, the rest will come with experience….That will of course depend on us coming to an understanding in regards to certain-"
Grapeshot was silenced by the way Carmesi Hueso announced his presence.
The Komodo Dragon Faunus was nothing more than a blur of motion, a flitting shadow and a flicker of something half seen in the ice before suddenly hellish red eyes were boring into Grapeshot's aghast gaze as the Huntress let out a choked, agonised gasp as dark blood splashed onto the frost-covered ground. Grapeshot needed a moment to process before realising that his young accomplice had attacked from behind, taking Vindication, his swept forward and curved machete and thrusting it through the young woman's back and out through her chest at upward angle which displayed just how claw-like the weapon truly was as it lifted her upward.
"What are you-"
"What we need to do" Carmesi interjected, paying no heed to the cracking, grief-filled and barely coherent fury in Grapeshot's voice "This one caught you almost at our front door, the last one was waiting for us….We need to relocate, we need to act-"
"This is-" Grapeshot's voice failed him, despite all of the younger man's promises and the violence they had enacted together watching the Faunus he had seen as a partner so callously execute a fellow Hunter, one perhaps to have been Grapeshot's own child had life taken a different course left bile in the old soldier's throat.
"This is what was needed….We can't afford mistakes, we can't afford mercy. Do not think for a moment that I enjoy this. They're not working together and coming after us as a unit yet, but they'll start soon" finally Carmesi showed some emotion, eyes looking anywhere but at his partner or at the results of his work in a display that proved there was something recognisable left within him; some scrap of decency which understood how far they had fallen in pursuit of a noble goal.
Such thoughts were scoured away by a whimpering, weeping sound from the Huntress, blood burbling from her lips as she continued to fight against what the fearful look in her eye assured Grapeshot that she knew was inevitable and it was all the rogue Hunter could do to keep himself from breaking down sobbing with her; instead he managed something comparable to mercy as he rounded on Carmesi once again.
"For pity's sake man!" he barked "She's a Huntress not some common scoundrel….Give her a better ending than this! Damn and blast make it quick, she shouldn't suffer!"
"You're right" Carmesi pulled his blade free, as gently as he could manage such a thing though the atrocious sound that came with the action was enough to force Grapeshot to turn away; this was a kind of violence and treachery far removed from what he had agreed to and the promise of a bright new tomorrow for Remnant was beginning to ring hollow.
Unable to bear the sound of the Huntresses final, desperate breaths as Carmesi granted her the closest approximation of a mercy kill that he could manage out in the middle of the now blood-soaked street where it seemed that no law enforcement would ever arrive the older man spoke, questioning his allies' presence if only to have another sound to distract himself with.
"You returned earlier than expected….You have news of our quarry Old Chap?"
"Not good news" Carmesi growled "I needed to reload and resupply….though the matter of the last body we needed to dispose of is settled at least"
"You found it then?" Grapeshot pushed onwards, unwilling to think of how many Hunters they had killed so far and how many would have to follow "The hybrid-"
"I found some of the packs it controls" Carmesi interjected "They fell back from Midpoint and covered their tracks, military formations, precise work with decoys and traps laying in wait….its' as smart as we feared, perhaps more so"
"That is….Unfortunate" Grapeshot murmured, unable in that moment to make any quips about games being afoot or other such trite nonsense "I presume you have some suggestions?"
"We make an appearance at Midpoint" Carmesi answered bluntly.
"What in the name of all that is decent do you plan to do there man?" Grapeshot demanded, already sickened by imagined answers that were quickly forced back to the depths of the mind that had conjured them only for the older man to be caught by surprise when the Faunus spoke.
"Help them" he said simply "There may be a standing presence of some sort there but Coco Adel and her people will have returned to Port Alistair by now….We need information and no matter what we're accused of by the Council the fact remains that the people of Midpoint need help, there will be follow up Grimm incursions on what's left of the settlement. We hold the line for them, keep our faces unseen and simply wait until people that saw our target for themselves start to talk to us; it's hardly the kind of Grimm people forget"
"That is….remarkably level-headed of you Old Chap" Grapeshot breathed out slowly, keeping himself calm "We take what we need from our current base of operations and depart for the field at once….I dare say that we've overstayed our welcome here in Blackwater Cove and I shan't miss the place one jot"
"Agreed" Carmesi nodded, cleaning and sheathing his blade before gesturing to the body of the Huntress he had killed "It would be a good place to get rid of the body as well….throw it in the wreckage, nobody will have the time for a proper autopsy of someone with a hole in their chest"
And with that simple sentence Grapeshot's ideas of a noble action, offsetting the sins the two of them had committed in their work were extinguished entirely.
The sun had passed its' peak several hours ago though in Port Alistair the air was still comfortably warm with a breeze that kept it from becoming stifling, a pleasant late afternoon climate for the students of Breaktide Academy who had journeyed from their campus into the Capital of Menagerie itself in order to lend what aid they could to the ongoing relief effort for the people of Midpoint.
Where Teams MARZ and WULF were managing to find ways to alleviate the morose reality and monotonous drudgery of the task at hand.
"Think fast!" Laser's exclamation offered a split second warning before the blonde Vaccuan hurled a pair of old, but still reasonably well-kept sneakers in Astra's direction for the Deer Faunus to catch and add to the pile of clothing and footwear that was fit to be donated to those in need; the sneakers, which had been tied together by their laces being prevented from landing across their antlers by the swift action of Wolfram who was nearby snatching them out of the air.
"Can you just think in general….And don't let me catch you stealing shit from here" the leader of Team WULF grumbled, the annoyed tone they had been taking with Laser in almost all of their recent interactions of late coming to the fore with their last words, though before the reasonably pleasant mood could be ruined Astra themselves reached over and plucked the offending items from their boyfriend's grasp, studying them for several moments as a look of recognition slowly crept across their face.
"Holy shit….I haven't seen a pair of these in years" they murmured
"What, a pair of sneakers?" Regalia asked, leaning over her partners' shoulder to see what the fuss was about as she joined the conversation; the rest of their group of friends gathering around and showing a similar level of interest.
"This brand used to sponsor a Hunter I was a massive fan of" Astra admitted, suddenly squirming at the revelation they were giving as it detracted from the image of coolness that they attempted to project "I mean when they were in the Vytal Tournament I'd stay up late to watch….I actually had a pair of these as a kid, the Hunter was a friend of Fluffy; he's actually Fluffy's boyfriend's old partner"
"Oh I know who you mean" Athena-Jade nodded, being well acquainted with the now-famous Feline Faunus in question rather than simply knowing of Nyanza Angora through both his exploits within Team NEON and the movie adaption of them, movies which were routinely trashed and ridiculed by those with first hand experience. Many of Team MARZ and Team WULF lacked Astra's enthusiasm however and as the group slowly returned to their task of sorting and packing clothes within the vast, open market place which had been converted to a makeshift distribution centre for the relief efforts it was Ursinia who spoke up first, stinger rattling as she shook her head with a good natured and snorting chuckle.
"Y'all city kids confuse me, all that money on fancy shoes that ya daren't gut mud or water on; these here boots of mine should outlast about half a dozen pair of sneakers"
"'cos only sneakers made for Hunters are meant for what we put 'em through" Wolfram noted reasonably.
"Besides, it's not about the shoes really" Athena-Jade sighed, rolling her eyes at the friend who clearly did not understand the childhood obsession "It's about the Hunter….Come on, you wanted to be a Hunter as a kid; you had your favourites right? We all did?"
"My Dad" Wolfram said simply and without hesitation, an answer that none would challenge or comment on.
"Was always mighty fond of the Arc sisters" Ursinia admitted as examined and disregarded a thoroughly abused jacket that was in no state to be given to a new owner "Don't see me wearing their armour though"
"Just the giant sword" Athena noted in a sing-song voice common to all teasing siblings, earning herself a round of laughter that Ursinia's own wordless sputtering in response to the truth of the Bear Faunus's claim only exacerbated; the moment lasting until it was reduced to a hushed silence as Zirconia promptly turned the tables on her partner.
"So who was your favourite Hunter….You don't use a sword like your parents, brother or Aunt Winter" Athena-Jade's pale and rounded features flushed a deep red as her eyes were quickly averted, looking anywhere but at her friends; particularly the partner whom she was still struggling to overcome her growing attraction to and Astra who currently wore a mischievous grin as they already knew the answer. Eventually Athena mumbled out a response that went unheard only for the Deer Faunus's grin to widen.
"Speak up, share it with the whole class"
"Ass-hole" Athena huffed before repeating herself more clearly "It was Diamond"
"Your sister in law?" Laser asked, rummaging through the pockets of a pair of jeans as he spoke.
"Oh come on I was a kid, my big brother left Atlas and started sending pictures of his new partner and she was the coolest person I'd ever seen and then I met her in person and she was…." Athena trailed off, shoulders sagging, pouting and lightly stamping her foot in a sulking gesture as she grumbled "Okay fine, my sister in law was the first girl I had a crush on; go ahead get it out of your systems"
Team MARZ and Team WULF promptly obliged her and the air was filled with laughter and clashing voices as each of Athena's friends unleashed a torrent of well-meaning and light-hearted jokes.
"Well rich kid….You might wanna fix your hair and breath, your date is here" Diabla's low and gruff tone cut through the rest of the taunting, the fierce and belligerent girls' words missing much of their former hostility towards the Atlesian and leaving only her apparently natural lack of friendliness in place. Athena's blue eyes darted around in response to the comment and if any of her friends had paid more attention they might have noticed the way her gaze shifted instinctively towards Zirconia and lingered on her partners' curvaceous form for a brief moment before finally spotting what Diabla had meant, namely that Diamond Slate, formerly Sustrai-Black was approaching.
"Dude, how's the sorting coming on?" she addressed Astra, treating Team MARZ's leader as the overall authority amongst the eight teens simply because they had been the one to approach her and offer to help and also partly because she understood that giving the Deer Faunus responsibility for a task that they could manage would help with their ongoing issues.
"There's a lot we can give to the people" Astra answered brightly "A lot of it's ready to load up"
"Good" Diamond nodded, glancing at a tablet in the hand of her black-painted cybernetic arm "I'll have someone start loading it all up….I've got another job if you're interested?"
"Sure!" Athena piped up with sudden enthusiasm that her friends shared knowing looks at and tried not to laugh, despite the innocence of the Atlesian girl wanting to help the sister in law she admired.
"Normally I wouldn't ask you but Felix is at the academy, I need Arctus here and Eagle and Carcharodon are working on the ship; something's not right with the computer system" Diamond sighed "The Hunters who were supposed to be riding with the next shipment called in, can't make it; personal reasons….It's heading to Midpoint itself so you're probably not gonna get back until the early hours of the morning-"
"We'll do it" Astra answered.
"What about classes tomorrow?" Zirconia asked pointedly, to which Astra shrugged.
"So we miss first period maybe, I'll explain it to the professors; they won't mind" the reasoning seemed to resonate with the group though there were still questioning looks exchanged between certain members until Diamond spoke up again with a nod of approval.
"I can message the academy myself, or pass word on to your brother. The truck you want is over there….Woodpecker Faunus called Chip, tell him I sent you"
"You got it" Astra nodded before turning to their friends "You guys coming?"
"Well it was supposed to be a date" Wolfram shrugged before gesturing for Team WULF to follow as he fell into step beside Astra; Team MARZ quickly followed suit and took their customary positions around their leader, though each of them seemed to be harbouring a sense of unease which it almost predictably fell to Athena to voice.
"Okay spill….what're you planning?"
"What?" Astra treated her to an affronted look "Seriously? You just heard Diamond ask us for a favour?"
"Yeah but why did you accept it rather than go back to the academy and train tonight?"
"Because I'm not a prick?" Astra answered, unable to keep a disgruntled note out of their voice.
"We're not calling you a prick" Regalia assured her partner "It's great that you want to help people….It's just that, well we've been worried about you pushing yourself too hard lately and we were wondering why the sudden change?"
"You guys do trust me right?" Astra asked slowly, waiting for the nods of assent from their friends before letting out a sigh and giving them a nervous smile "Then don't worry it about it; I know what I'm doing"
It was equally predictable that it was Athena-Jade who pointed out that asking them not to worry only made the worrying in question more likely.
Breaktide Hunter Academy of Menagerie was a truly magnificent sight in the late afternoon sun, the golden rays beaming down and casting the gardens, outdoor training areas, landing pads and recreational areas such as sports courts that made up its' grounds along with the many towers of its' main building and the walkways stretching between them in a golden glow which gave the already awe-inspiring campus an air of grandeur. This carried to the interior, especially in areas such as Headmistress Coco Adel's office where the light of the setting sun created brilliant patterns in dazzling colours as it shone through the windows and stained-glass, domed roof of the academies' highest tower where her family home was also located.
Such displays did nothing to change the fact that Felix Xiao Long, a famous and immensely well-respected Huntsman and leader in his own right felt as though he were an eighteen year old student once again every time he set foot inside the office and at that moment the fact that he and Coco Adel had been joined by Velvet Scarlatina only seemed to amplify the commanding presence of the Headmistress.
"Nothing?" Coco asked as she lowered her ever-present sunglasses and arched an eyebrow in the direction of the younger Hunter she would openly admit she had an undying respect for despite her own far greater years of service; the Lion Faunus has after all fought Salem herself and won. Felix himself let out a sound of wordless annoyance, running their cybernetic right hand through their dirty blonde curls before answering.
"Nothing….Either they've been scrubbed clean or Rowan encrypted the information in ways that we've never seen before" the Lion Faunus shot the offending items a look of annoyance, them being the series of hard-drives that had been recovered from the cargo ship captured by the colossal Dread-Hulk; the same vessel upon which Rowan Oralie had been captured and the treachery of Grapeshot and Carmesi had been revealed, their cases damaged where they had been roughly prised open and dented both before and during the conflict with sell-sword.
"Eagle couldn't find anything?" Velvet murmured, rabbit ears twitching in surprise and curiosity despite one of them being severed midway, to which Felix gave a shrug in mild irritation despite the obvious lack of any aspersions being cast about his partners' abilities; Velvet was after all distantly related to Eagle Arc by marriage.
"We specialise in hunting Grimm, not organised criminals" Felix sighed "Besides Eagle and Carcharodon have been busy working on the ship….There's been something slowing down our computers since the attack; most likely Carcharodon has changed something without asking Eagle or Onyx first and it is a minor difference but it needs fixing. Eagle said that since she hasn't been able to crack it then you and Aunt Penny should try and she'll come to your workshop to help out when she can, you cracked that battle robot together a few months back right?"
"That was more Eagle's raw stubbornness than anything" Velvet noted with a fond smile "But I'll certainly do what I can"
"We need something to go on" Coco noted "No doubt the Grimm's attack on Midpoint has motivated the people we're looking for as much as it has us….We need to know who's behind Carmesi, Grapeshot and Oralie and what on Remnant they want with that Grimm; it's dangerous enough already"
"Oralie still not talking?" Felix growled, mechanical tail swishing in agitation behind them.
"I haven't had time to bang my head against that particular wall" Coco snorted, barely masking her frustration at Rowan's resolve "Between politics and running a school there's a lot of things to focus on"
"I understand that" Felix nodded "Right now Midpoint is a priority, it's something we can actually do something about….If there's nothing else you need then I'm going to head back into the city; Diamond told me that she sent Team MARZ and WULF with one of the drivers, I'm planning on being there when they get back"
"That's going to be a long wait" Coco noted with a note of something close to concern "You haven't spoken to Astra yet?"
"Not really, I haven't really had a chance….Honestly I don't know where to start lately; I love the kid but I honestly don't recognise 'em half the time"
"Yeah, my brother had a phase like that" Velvet noted, voice taking on a more upbeat note as she added "They'll be fine, they're a good kid really….It's just a matter of channelling that energy somewhere productive; maybe some more unofficial training?"
"If you think it's for the best?" Felix shrugged with a reluctant and uncertain look before giving a final goodbye gesture to the two women and making his way towards the door of Coco's office; opening it to reveal Fox Scarlatina, the child of Team CFVY waiting behind it, tall and lanky frame leaned against the wall casually whilst black-furred rabbit ears drooped forward as if to imply that he had not been listening in to any important conversations intentionally. As Felix treated the teen to a fist bump, a gesture that would no doubt reassure the admittedly arrogant boy of his own self importance Fox himself gestured to his mothers as if to imply he wanted to tell them something important.
"I'll be with you in a…." Coco trailed off, the sound of her work scroll; the device that was so rarely turned off that it made separating work and family scrolls largely performative catching her attention. Staring at the incoming call she quickly saw that it was not a saved contact but one that she still recognised vaguely, the number belonging to the office of one of the public lawyers acting on behalf of Menagerie's criminals.
"Velv can you take care of Fox, I'll be with you in a sec" she shot her partner and their son apologetic glances before fighting to keep her annoyance at their necessity from her tone as she answered the call "Hello?"
If Velvet had turned to look back at her partner of thirty years as she left to see what it was that Fox had deemed worthy of her attention then the older Rabbit Faunus would have seen shock slowly creeping across Coco's face, to such a degree that it would have been comical were it not terrible before finally it was replaced by the faintest glimmer of daring hope as a lawyer named Grise passed on vital information.
Rowan Oralie had almost been murdered in prison and now the criminal was willing to talk.
The trucks which supplied much needed goods and resources to the beleaguered yet impossibly resilient souls who had refused to abandon their homes in the town of Midpoint had arrived as evening gave way to night, the sun slipping below the horizon late as was common on the island Kingdom and allowing its' warmth to be replaced by the freezing winds that whipped across Menagerie every night.
Teams MARZ and WULF had left the trucks shortly after arriving at Midpoint.
"I still think we should have helped them unload" Zirconia noted, a comment which drew a smile from Athena even as the Bear Faunus noticed the way her partner shivered; still not entirely accustomed to the fluctuating climate of Menagerie despite spending so many nights playing her violin on the roof of the dormitory tower, something which left the snowy haired girl fighting the urge to offer her jacket, sleeveless as it was and remind herself that she had committed to not pursuing her feelings for the Grasshopper Faunus in favour of keeping things platonic and not risking the smooth-running of Team MARZ.
"Wouldn't have made a difference" Wolfram shrugged, providing Athena with a much needed distraction "The trucks are still gonna leave at the same time anyway, there's a schedule to keep….We can help 'em load stuff on later if you really want but first I wanna get something to eat"
"And you think you're gonna find a pizza place still open for business here?" Laser's laugh had a sneering note to it, a derisive edge in retaliation to the way Wolfram had kept him at arms' length ever since learning about the blonde teens' semblance. As he spoke the Vaccuan scavenger gestured broadly to their surroundings; Wolfram and Astra were hand in hand as though their expedition could still be considered a date whilst leading their teams through streets littered with shattered glass, overturned vehicles and other miscellaneous debris though thankfully any bodies that might have lay in their path had been removed and buildings lining the streets bore an equal amount of scarring courtesy of Gestalt-Prime and its' horde of monsters.
"There's probably a soup kitchen for the people that stayed" Wolfram noted, his knowledge of how things operated on Menagerie being greater than that of his friends by virtue of being the only one of them to be born and raised in the Kingdom, Regalia's status as a nomad making her something outside of its' citizenry "I'll be honest though I don't wanna take food from those people….If we don't see anywhere open then fuck it, I can get my own food"
"That's disgusting" Diabla's gruff muttering drawing attention to the scowling brawler and reminding her friends that she was, in a turn that seemed to contravene the rest of her attitudes, decidedly squeamish and uncomfortable about catching and preparing animals to be eaten.
"All that training in Atlas and you puke when it's time to skin a rabbit" Wolfram couldn't help but flash a bemused grin in Diabla's direction, not that he would ever dare taking the teasing to any level of genuine mockery; the Mantle-born powerhouse of Team WULF offered some pithy grumblings about their being no wild rabbits in the tundra and the Atlas military having functioning supply lines yet Wolfram has forced to turn his attention elsewhere as he felt Ursinia's hand on his shoulder at the opposite side to where Astra walked hand in hand with him, the Deer Faunus remaining silent with a thoughtful expression.
"Partner y'know good and well that I aint gonna get yellow bellied about finding our own supper" the Scorpion Faunus tipped her hat back to look Wolfram in the eye more fully "But I don't think just wandering out there less than a week after that thing we fought at Hammerfall was here is a good idea"
"Ursinia's right" Regalia chimed in to announce her presence, hands rubbing together nervously like those of the Racoon she shared traits with; her own bushy grey-brown tail standing upright behind her as she continued "Heh….even if that Grimm isn't here there's still other Grimm, one attack always brings more that get drawn to the negative emotions….Besides, you might not be the only thing hunting rabbits"
"Elmer Fudge is a cartoon character Regalia" Astra noted, breaking their silence to deliver the quip with a wink.
"She's got a point though" Wolfram admitted with a sigh "Menagerie Coyotes get big and….not to be morbid but the amount of bodies here will definitely have drawn some"
"Shame….I wanted all of us to head out there, it's why I agreed to come; I've been thinking about this for a few days-"
"What in tarnation-"
"Oh come on Astra I thought you were-"
"You suck so bad, I cannot believe that-"
"Alright everyone shut up!" Wolfram barked, silencing Ursinia, Regalia and Athena-Jade before their tirades could build momentum with a burst of the forceful and commanding presence that they had once relied on, though of late had found less use for; seeing that their fellow team leader would be allowed to speak without interruption even if daggers were being glared into Wolfram from all sides the armour-clad teen turned to Astra.
"Babe" he sighed, eager as always to see what Astra had planned but knowing it would not be well received "What are you planning?"
"It's a long shot" Astra raised their hands as they prefaced their explanation with an admission "But hear me out okay….We know that the Grimm that attacked Midpoint, the same one Team WULF fought is what Carmesi and Grapeshot are looking for; we know that-"
"Oh I see where this is going" Regalia palmed her face in exasperation.
"Listen to me!" Astra's voice had an almost pleading note to it now "We have been the ones to give Professor Adel, Team FADE and everyone else pretty much all of the information they've got to go on! Literally all they've done is take down that one robot-"
"You make that sound easy" Athena noted with a scowl, miffed at the belittling of her brother and sister in laws' efforts.
"I'm not saying that" Astra pressed on "I'm just saying that everyone is so busy holding what's left of Midpoint that they haven't had a chance to look outside it….I'm not saying that we're gonna bring Carmesi and Grapeshot in, that we're gonna save the day for everyone; but what if we could tell Felix and the others where to look….Hell what if we could bring even one of them in if we found them?"
"What you're talking about is….an exceptionally high risk for, most likely no reward at all" Zirconia rasped out cautiously, only for Diabla to scoff.
"She's too polite; she means this is dumb….Might be one of your worst plans"
"Damn it now look, you've got me agreeing with Diabla" Athena almost managed a smile in the direction of the girl who had once terrorised her so completely as she lambasted her team leader, only for Astra to visibly bristle as defensiveness prepared to manifest itself as open aggression until Wolfram intervened.
"You won't have much time" he noted reasonably "The trucks won't wait for us, so you won't be able to look far before you have to turn back….Team WULF can wait here and try and stall to get you a few more minutes but it won't be much"
"You're on board with this?" Laser questioned, the tone of his voice causing Wolfram's arm to raise up for a backhanded slap to his team-mates' jaw which he forced himself to refrain from delivering, no matter how much the Semblance-stealing boys' presence unsettled him of late and instead he managed to grind out an answer, the words losing some of their measured consideration with his irritable tone.
"I trust Astra, maybe it's a long shot but it's one worth taking….If it doesn't go anywhere then we still know more than we did, that makes it worth trying. We're talking about people who as far as we know want to weaponise that thing we thought….If we're not gonna try then we should all just admit we're not cut out for being Hunters, that we're all just cowards-"
"Partner I'm mighty fond of you but by Dickens you aint ever gonna try call me yellow again y'hear?" Ursinia's tail twitched in her partners' direction in warning; Wolfram nodded in understand whilst beside him Astra eyed their own team with clear nerves.
"So if Team WULF hang back it's just us….You guys in?"
"You are our team leader" Zirconia gave a resigned sigh along with her dry words and the faintest roll of her mismatched eyes whilst she lifted her faded grey cloak into its' usual place over her lower face.
"I think this is dumb" Athena huffed as she fell into place beside her partner "But I'm not about to let you go off and be dumb on your own"
"Thanks" Astra managed a weak smile before turning to Regalia "What about you?"
"I don't know" the Racoon Faunus's eyes were downcast and filled with sadness "I keep trying to talk to you and get you to listen and understand that what you're doing isn't working, it isn't helping you but you just keep at it, you don't take anything I say seriously and I don't know how long I can keep going along with it….I know you're the leader but, this doesn't feel like we're partners"
The silence at that was profound.
"Okay" Astra breathed out slowly, the single word wavering with an emotion that they quickly clamped down on; not trusting themselves to express it as they placed their hands on their partners shoulders and waited for the slightly taller Faunus to look at them.
"I'm listening" Astra said firmly "If you tell me that it's too dangerous out there and that there's nothing to find that makes it worth looking for then I'll forget the whole idea….But I need to know, I can't just ignore a chance; so I need you to tell me that this isn't worth it"
"I….I can use my Semblance" Regalia swallowed thickly, sensing what it was Astra wanted from her whilst at the same time being slightly overwhelmed by the Deer Faunus's sudden intensity; as though their entire being had been focused on the task of proving themselves to themselves.
"Thanks" Regalia barely heard Astra as she searched for a suitable vantage point, the darkness little trouble to Faunus eyes that had been further honed by years within the dim and cramped bowels of the Aiktishaf and the starlit expanses of the wasteland. Within moments she had scurried up a drainpipe still attached to a largely demolished wall which she had pounced from to reach a larger building which in turn allowed her clamber even higher until she could finally see beyond the devastation of Midpoint and out into what lay beyond.
"Warriors….Come out to play-ay" Regalia whispered as she lowered her goggles and engaged her Semblance of 'Look-See', focusing on the single thought of 'enemy' and slowly turning her head only for her blood to run cold and her heart to leap into her mouth with a shock that almost sent her toppling to the ground below as she caught sight of an oscillating purple and gold pinprick of light somewhere in the distance, a glow which only her eyes could see as 'Look-See' responded to her desire. She had know way of knowing exactly who or what she would find out in the wastes, but it was clear that Astra was right and that they had to investigate.
Suddenly Regalia found herself cursing her own curiosity.
Carmesi Hueso and Major Grapeshot had abandoned the vehicle they had secured for themselves a short distance away whilst they attended to the macabre task of disposing of a body.
The vehicle itself was a roughshod yet remarkably resilient thing replete with countless modifications making it more suitable for its' task that both of the rogue Hunters were forced to admit they had never considered, yet these changes would also make the vehicle; effectively a heavily armoured dune buggy with all-terrain wheels, redesigned suspension and a turret fitted with a harpoon and a more lethal weapon far too conspicuous and so the men had agreed that the buggy, which they had taken from a safe house belonging to one of the many criminal factions they had first taken from the control of Persian Green and then subsequently left for the authorities once they had outstayed their usefulness would have to be kept from the view of the people of Midpoint as it was obviously something more in line with the work of a poacher than that of a Hunter.
Following this agreement the two men had agreed that hauling the remains of the Huntress they had killed, a woman they had learned was named Sulphur, Sully to her friends into the remains of Midpoint was far too great of a risk; no matter how thoroughly Carmesi had rendered it down into unrecognisable components of burned flesh and bone. Instead they had stopped under cover of darkness a little more than a mile out from their destination and begun digging a grave for their victim; it was shallower than Grapeshot deemed proper yet the old veteran had insisted upon some degree of propriety which Carmesi had chosen to indulge despite how unbecoming it was for the Huntress, ostensibly a good woman's last rites to be administered by her murderers. The Komodo Dragon Faunus was sombre as he once again stated that he had no desire to murder Hunters, but the bright new future their benefactor planned to build could not be hampered and the reverent conviction in the younger man's tone, something almost gentle in comparison to his usual fierce rumblings had almost convinced the former Major to ask precisely what the Benefactor intended and what Carmesi knew of it.
And then they had been attacked.
The arrival of the Creatures of Grimm had been anticipated and even in its' suddenness had not caught the pair of treasonous Hunters entirely by surprise. The first warning had come in the form of rattling and sibilant hisses and snarls followed by dark shapes flitting through the night before finally the glow of hateful red eyes, slitted and filled with hunger and malice had revealed the nature of the attacking monsters; a reptilian tide comprising largely of small and ineffectual Grimm such as Creeps bolstered by small King-Taijitu whose undernourished and malformed appearances rendered them barely worthy of such a grandiose name. It was clear to both Grapeshot and Carmesi that these were largely the trailing and straying dregs of some larger attack, the Grimm too weak and feeble to fight their way to the front of the ravenous horde which the pair of Hunters put down with contemptuous ease despite being vastly outnumbered until the true nature of the threat revealed itself with a whistling of chill winds and a darkness more complete than the night itself rushing overhead before a much more dangerous Grimm entered the fray.
A monster known as the Swooping Death.
The Creature of Grimm largely resembled some manner of flying or gliding lizard save for the fact it could stand, at least for periods on its' hindlimbs to reach a height almost twice that of the average man even when hunched and peering about with ill-intent. The lizard Grimm's body was sleek an aerodynamic with its' smoothed, almost oval skull resembling a stone that had been eroded by rime save for the ridges which housed its' jutting nose and baleful eyes, the maw filled with a darting forked tongue and rows of dagger teeth and finally the row of independently moving and twitching quills sprouting from the back of its' head leading down to an equally slender and agile looking body covered in scales of an iridescent black which shimmered in the light of the broken moon and skeletal armour laid over what appeared to be various vents and naturally occurring panels which the monster used to adjust itself in the air. Its' forelimbs were long and reaching, ending in three-fingered hands complete with some monstrous corruption of a suction pad; the circular segments at the end of each digit smoked periodically and let off an acrid stench as the secreted some corrosive liquid which reduced even the dusty ground of the wasteland to a bubbling slurry. From these forelimbs lose folds of translucent and bloody-red skin laced with ebony veins could be seen, drawn close around the sleek form the Swooping Death like robes whilst on the ground these folds allowed the Grimm to glide on the air currents its' own body created and channelled through its' various vents and were connected at their opposite ends to the Grimm's lower legs which also ended in long, wide-set digits yet were far more muscular in appearance, suggesting that they would allow it to simply launch itself into the air with a powerful leap whilst the tail of the monster, a long and lashing thing covered in segmented bone armour lined with serrated fins which doubled as slashing blades served to stabilise it somewhat.
"Well this is a rum do….Though perhaps it need not be" Grapeshot's voice turned thoughtful as his indignant harrumph gave way to more measured tones which were not shared by his accomplice.
"I fail to see how this won't be a problem" he unsheathed Vindication and Retribution, twirling the weapons restlessly as he stalked to the side to outflank the Swooping Death "We kill the Grimm and it's going to draw attention-"
"Yes Old Chap, attention to the fact we killed a Grimm….So long as that's what the people of Midpoint are focusing on then perhaps they won't pay to much attention to the faces of the people who saved them from such a beast" Grapeshot's moustache twitched as he gave a satisfied smile, breath misting out before him as he hefted Magnificent Ivory in its' rifle form "Come now old sport, let's be about our business"
A single shot was transformed into a barrage by his Semblance and the military man struck nothing but air as the Swooping Death took to the skies with a powerful leap.
"It's fast!" Carmesi exclaimed, crimson eyes narrowing into enraged slits underscored by a ridge of craggy scales as he scanned the darkness, weapons still at the ready.
"Damn and blast!" Grapeshot thundered, letting off another Semblance-fuelled volley in equal parts annoyance at being so handily outmanoeuvred and an earnest attempt to draw out the silently gliding terror that stalked them from above.
"We'll hear it" Carmesi growled "Whistling, the air moving through it when it dives at us; get out of reach of its' forelimbs-"
"I am more than twenty years your senior man! Not some fresh faced recruit!" Grapeshot barked back, irritable at everything about the situation, not least the fact that the Swooping Death announced its' attacks with a sound remarkably like that of an incoming shell or rocket.
Before their strained conversation could go further that same whistling sound, underpinned by the hissing of the monster filled the air once again.
"ABOVE US!" Carmesi and Grapeshot readied their weapons and fired yet found their opening salvo blocked, whilst at the same time the Swooping Death itself, jaws and smoking fingertips opened wide was sent veering off course; both unexpected events stemming from the same cause.
Namely the appearance of an unmistakable glyph, circular and glowing appearing between the rogue Hunters and the Grimm.
"It seems we have company" Carmesi gave a savage and toothy smile, sheathing his smaller blade and turning to face Team MARZ just as the four teens came skidding to a halt some distance away. The glyph vanished and Athena-Jade Slate unsheathed her oversized hammer; to either side of her Regalia Russet and Zirconia Shadowmoon followed suit with their own weapons though it was Astra Mars who set the pace and tone of the unfolding situation by charging forward, Buckshot Ares unfurling along their forearms and deploying its' twin Gatling guns to unleash a punishing maelstrom of firepower which ripped through the air and space between Carmesi and Grapeshot, who were forced to take cover as the Deer Faunus opened fire on the Swooping Death and sent the aerial horror wheeling away with a furious shrieking, spitting hiss as bullets ripped into its' form.
"Rather a brash display" Grapeshot noted, the conversational and jovial way he spoke causing Astra's eyes to narrow further; the anger in their sea-green eyes seeming to shine when set against their dark make up.
"I think they're planning on bringing us in" Carmesi chuckled, voice darkening to a rumble that was felt as much as heard as he gestured to the ragged scar across his chest whilst speaking to Athena-Jade "I've done nothing other than what was needed, none of it was personal or done with enjoyment….But this right here, it hurt"
Carmesi fell silent as Zirconia stepped in front of her partner, mismatched eyes incandescent with silent fury.
"Yeah we're planning on bringing you in" Astra confirmed, pushing as much swaggering bravado as they could muster into each syllable "So either you can come quietly, or we're gonna make you wish the Grimm had eaten you"
"So" Regalia readied her shotgun, all misgivings and ill-will towards her partner forgotten at that moment "Go ahead punks….Make my day, heh or my night"
The two rogue veteran Hunters and four first year students braced themselves, an electric and heavy atmosphere forming between them as each prepared for what would surely come next whilst above them all the Swooping Death prowled silently, seeking out another angle of attack that would turn the stand-off into a three way battle.
The night had become more complicated than anyone had expected.
Author's Notes:
First of all: HAPPY NEW YEAR! Let's hope 2022 goes well for all of us.
So, we're starting the year off in style; a Mexican stand-off between the good guys, the bad guys and a monster of the week Grimm.
Despatch: The act of sending off something, like Felix dropping off the hard-drives, the charity deliveries and Dispatch: To kill a person or an animal, like Carmesi and also like someone is gonna have to do to the Swooping Death.
Also we're starting 2022 with a Cliffhanger/two-parter, because why the hell not.
But anyway, let's summarise shall we?:
Every time I have a character wake up in a hospital bed I think of Evangelion.
So Rowan needed to have her Aura dampening collar removed in order for Aura stimulants to work and allow her to recover after the attack, it seems reasonable that an armed guard of Atlas Knights (Or Menagerie Knights as the case may be) would be protocol in that situation.
Also the urge to have the Knights say "Roger, Roger" was definitely there.
Grise is not gonna be a recurring character, just someone who needed to exist to move things along and tell Rowan that her people had basically been hunted down in the prison.
I'll take shots here fuck it, the disgraced Hunter whose last name and weapon Rowan took was still a better role model than Rhodes was to Cinder.
So Rowan is going to snitch….And even here she's doing it for vengeful, spiteful and self-serving reasons because that's just who she is.
"Monday had come with the regularity which often left its' arrival feeling premature" might just be the most relatable thing I've ever written.
Astra really has forgotten one of the basic rules of fitness, either you can pick a rest day or your body can pick it for you.
He cupped the chin and lifted….Tumblr will certainly have something to say about the inherent homoeroticism.
You know it's bad when AJ and Diabla agree.
Considering the end of the last chapter Astra's tone when they asked to head back to the Midpoint relief efforts should have told you something was up.
Out of everyone I feel like Diabla gets what having your life completely ruined feels like the most, Laser comes from a total hellhole but that's just where he's from, he never lost anything to end up there and the Academy is probably the closest thing to a real home he's had.
It was also a nice chance to show off that Diabla really is growing as a person.
Did anyone think that the Huntress was gonna survive?
Grapeshot is that upper crust kind of criminal, he's Hunted all manner of Grimm but what goes on in an inner city and how much of it is low level corruption done right out in the open is something he's not ready for….Like the villain in "Last Action Hero" when he comes to the real world.
Bastard that he is the old man can handle himself.
….Carmesi is something else entirely though.
He's a ruthless, brutal bastard but Carmesi does make solid points, he's not like Tyrian or Cinder or even Watts in some degree and taking pleasure in his job; it's just a fact that the Hunters Coco sent are getting dangerously close to catching them and that they will eventually start working together and split the bounty.
I want you to know that if Carmesi cutting that Huntresses' throat was hard to read then good, it was supposed to be.
Grapeshot was fully ready to believe that Carmesi was going to go to Midpoint and kill and torture his way through the town to get information but no, he's a vicious son of a bitch; but we've only ever seen him be needlessly cruel to other criminals.
"Nobody will have the time for a proper autopsy of someone with a hole in their chest" is he wrong?
A lot of this scene felt like filler but at the same time those relaxed, normal conversations are where characterisation can happen and let's be honest if your story is all plot and all major threat then it loses some of its' effect.
Wolfram stop being a dick to Laser challenge 2022.
Astra being a massive fan of Nyanza Angora, member of Team NEON is a callback to FADE: Legacy.
My spellcheck didn't recognise Daren't as a word but I refuse to believe that I'm wrong on this one.
Ursinia isn't from the same village as the Arc family, but one that's probably very similar to it.
The fact that AJ's Bi awakening came from her older brothers' partner who would go on to become her sister in law is something I've been waiting to drop into a conversation just for laughs.
"Well rich kid….You might wanna fix your hair and breath, your date is here" oh that was low.
I keep making little asides about there being something off with the Nemesis Kharybdis ever since the fight with the Dread-Hulk, when Carcharodon half-noticed some extra alerts and warnings and nobody has pieced together what I'm setting up yet….there's a plot twist coming at the end of this volume.
And now Astra is going to Midpoint, which is what Felix point blank refused to let them do last chapter; whilst Astra is also planning something….Yeah the don't worry about it is starting to ring a little hollow.
So now Coco and Velvet have the hard-drives which Rowan had been trying to get information from, although they've been encrypted in a way that's stumped even Eagle.
"My brother had a phase like that"….Your brother joined the White Fang because you did Velvet.
Of course Little Fox is gonna be swaggering around the campus for days, half of the students would almost faint and ask Felix to sign something if he looked in their direction.
But now Coco knows that Rowan is ready to do business, fun times.
Yeah lending the pretty girl your jacket is cute, but kinda pointless when you wear a sleeveless jacket.
Wolfram seems less bothered than the others about what's happened but it's not him being a dick, he just knows how efficient Menagerie is at recovery jobs; he's lived on the island his whole life and this probably isn't the first time he's heard of a settlement being wiped, it's bad but not world-changing.
The Elmer Fudge jokes was too good to pass up on.
And there it is, we all knew Astra was up to some stupid shit.
Astra's main character syndrome is really getting dangerous now….They're going full Riley Boondock "Life isn't a move, but then I started thinking….What if it
was?"
Regalia and Astra are gonna have a serious blowout before long.
I need some more movie quotes for Regalia to use.
I think we all knew that Look-See was gonna find something, it really was inevitable.
Yeah dropping a body off in the wastelands is all well and good until you remember that the wastes are full of actual monsters, hyper-predatory wildlife, raider gangs and Nomad Clans with their own laws and customs.
On a related note yeah, having you funeral performed by your murderer is absolutely a slap in the face.
As for the Swooping Death….you have no idea how long it took me to come up with an idea for a suitable 'Boss fight' Grimm before "Flying Gecko" occurred to me, the idea is honestly pretty similar to the real animal, its' membranes acting almost like robes when it's on its' back legs is kinda like a Skink character from Warhammer and instead of the gripping pads lizards have on their toes it has acid-touch.
Grapeshot and Carmesi being reduced to constant bickering is a sign of something that is my deeply held belief...that evil will inevitably eat itself; optimistic perhaps but I stand by it.
Carmesi smiling at Team MARZ's arrival….you'll get it.
Zirconia stepping in front of Athena was a nice little touch.
And now we have a Mexican stand-off for a cliffhanger….With Regalia dropping one of the most classic movie lines of all.
Thank you to Lurkweed and SumoSnipe for their reviews on the last chapter.
I'll be entirely honest that pun was completely unintentional and I use as evidence the fact that if I had wanted to make a pun, I would've made a better one.
See if it wasn't for Ruby's Semblance I think Carmesi is probably skilled enough to take her in hand to hand, Grapeshot has the experience but he'd hesitate before he took the shot out of an honest respect for her...It's all academic though since neither of them would be able to land a hit on her.
Super close to Coco would mean either a member of Breaktide's staff or someone already in Qrow's inner circle so I'll come out and tell you that you're wrong here...But an interesting guess.
As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.