MARZ Rising

by FandomPariah

It's been thirty years since Ruby Rose saved Remnant from Salem and almost a decade since it was saved again. Salem is gone yet the Creatures of Grimm remain and now a new generation of Hunters are ready to begin their story... By enrolling at the Breaktide Academy of Menagerie where they'll be trained by legends including Team CFVY and Ruby Rose herself. Part 5 of the Spiral-Verse

110. Pikesreach

RWBY & All associated trademarks are property of Rooster Teeth (RIP Monty Oum)

I claim no ownership of anything except my own original characters.

I am making no money from this.

Chapter 110: Pikesreach

The settlement of Pikesreach had been envisioned as a new frontier beyond the Eastern Fringe, the furthest border of what had been settled and considered a part of the Kingdom of Menagerie; it had envisioned as something verdant and beautiful, a settlement that might rival Maiden-Gate were it not for the unnatural prosperity of Nickel Polendina's home.

A mere cursory glance at Pikesreach in the present would suggest that whilst the settlement had weathered all adversity and continued to sustain itself that vision for the future had long since faded.

The promised oasis within the blasted wastes of the island had been less than anticipated, as had the demand for the hyper-conductive metals which could be mined and refined locally. Local wildlife and invasive species harried efforts to grow crops and livestock at every turn at the floundering village had been founded too far from the support of Menagerie's other burgeoning settlements to receive any meaningful aid; leaving the open to attacks from bandits and the Creatures of Grimm which had come from all sides and with painful regularity until a change was wrought upon the town. The Hunters that had accompanied those original intrepid settlers, through impassioned appeals to reason, force of will and charisma and then through simple force had ousted the nominal leaders of the group and declared that Pikesreach would be under their command until such a time that they could be declared safe; such a declaration had never come and instead Pikesreach had been transformed into a garrison cut off from the Kingdom of Menagerie and still ruled by those Hunters who had come to see the place as their own feudal fiefdom where the only laws were those which they passed themselves.

As the sun began to rise over Pikesreach and its' territory signs of the iron grasp with which order was kept could be plainly seen.

Many of the towns' farm workers were being directed out into the fields beyond the settlements' walls, tall stone things reminiscent of the keep of some ancient castle albeit fitted with more modern embellishments such as searchlights and weapon emplacements to bolster the layers of obstacles such as razor-wire and hedgehog-traps to keep Grimm or approaching vehicles at bay.

The workers themselves were a collection of lean and haggard folk ranging from late teens to the outer edge of middle-aged, most clad in simple but well-made and durable, practical clothing and sporting a distinctive series of tattoos given to them to denote their role and place within Pikesreach and its' structure; with the settlement having over the years developed an ethos wherein purpose and duty surpassed all else, trumping any other bigotry or distinction that might arise whilst at the same time fostering a sense of loyalty to the whole and the Hunters who stood above them.

Ahead of and around the farmhands and manual labourers who carried their tools between them with a sense of grim camaraderie befitting the unpleasant hour and gruelling work ahead was a single Hunter, the figure wreathed in armour and resting a hand on a sheathed weapon appearing almost mythical in how regal they appeared in comparison to the fighters they led; a collection of more well-muscled but still wiry and weary looking folk who tended towards being younger, each of them keen-eyed and clutching at a collection of sharp, blunt and ranged weapons and each baring a collection of rounded, swirling geometric designs which denoted their station.

Whilst the Hunter gave instructions and served as an imposing figure, a reminder to the workers that they were being observed; for their own protection as much as for the good of Pikesreach the settlements' warriors, who had been trained by Hunters but would likely never be considered their equals began to split up and take up various strategic positions from which they could secure the area, with several amongst their number taking care to observe certain workers more closely. One such worker was a woman of roughly middle-age whose peers took care to distance themselves from her for reasons that seemed apparent enough to go unspoken; a dark-skinned Mouse Faunus whose hair had been cut short and who sported an additional layer of tattoos unlike those of her peers which reached across her scalp in a spidery display.

As a Faunus the woman was gifted with keen eyesight and it was she who saw what the fighters, with their attention firmly fixed on her did not; figures moving towards the territory of Pikesreach at an impressive speed, approaching from the west where it was still dark.

"Someone is approaching!" she raised her voice, ensuring that she caught the attention of as many fighters as possible and not only those who had taken to watching her movements and who seemed ready to dismiss and silence her before the first word was even fully formed. The effort was rewarded and the Hunter of the group himself raised a hand to still the fighters before gesturing in the direction of the supposed encroachment.

"I don't have Faunus eyes….Someone trustworthy, what do you see?" at the booming and imperious command a younger fighter, a Faunus teen far too young and inexperienced to be taken seriously in normal mattes agilely leapt onto the shoulders of an ally and called out an answer.

"Black robes, armour, weapons, suits of armour bigger than an Ursa….They have vehicles and….I don't known what the things they have with them are" the admission earned a round of taunting and laughter from older fighters until the armoured Hunter raised a hand to demand silence again, brow furrowing in concentrated agitation as he drew and unfurled his weapon; an overwrought mace that could double as a large-calibre machine gun with an underslung ammo drum.

"Describe them" he said simply.

"The fly but not quickly, keeping pace with the others….Big, monsters….Like Grimm, but metal" the words hung in the air ominously for a moment that stretched out ominously; the fighters and the workers they were escorting sharing looks that grew steadily more concerned as one of their vaunted Hunters offered no words of encouragement and instead pondered a course of action against a thing which defied understanding. Pikesreach was cut off from the Kingdom of Menagerie, not by annexing or official hostilities but instead by conditions of its' leaderships' own making; there was no CCT within the settlement, no information or free exchange of information and so the people of Pikesreach had never heard the name Damascus Nero and nor had they never heard of something called a Cyber-Grimm.

Their introduction to the concept was a violent one.

Screams of panic and outrage filled the air as laser weapons were fired from multiple points to converge upon a single target and in little more than an instant the Hunter; one of the ruling elite of Pikesreach who granted its' people safety, clarity of purpose and firm leadership was utterly obliterated as a swarm of Cyber-Grimm launched their barrage, shattering the man's Aura, reducing his armour to molten slag and tearing through his body with searing beams of light before he had ever even seen them clearly.

"Defensive positions!" one of the fighters screamed "Fighters hold the line! Faunus, we need your eyes! The rest of you run and sound alarms!"

"One of their trucks has stopped!" the woman who had first announced the attack yelled, her word now being given merit "They're unloading….I don't know what it is; another monster but this one is- It's running straight at us!"

The revelation sent a palpable chill through fighters who began to realise that they were entirely unprepared for what was to come; the Faunus who could see the beast they had been warned of being the first to take a step backwards in retreat until the sword of an older warrior at their backs reminded them that even without a Hunter the line would be held.

The thing itself was a Cyber-Grimm variant enjoying its' first field-test and deployment; one which had been designed and bred for a specific purpose and in many aspects varied greatly from those which had come before it, suggesting that the commonalities between earlier Cyber-Grimm might be matters of styling on the part of the late Albion Herringbone rather than anything intrinsic to their nature.

It would easily be a dozen feet tall if it were to stand upon its' hindlimbs yet instead it stalked along the ground at a frightening pace upon eight elongated and many-jointed limbs formed a mixture of pistons and bulging, powerful sinew with layered armour, each limb ending in a three pronged claw which seemed to be able to reform itself from a taloned foot to a grasping appendage with which to manipulate its' surroundings. The limbs were arranged into two quartets at either end of a body that was segmented and writhing, its' overall appearance like some monstrous fusion of bear and centipede with exposed ribs beneath it and interlocking layers of ridged, metallic armour overtop. Its' carapace- laden thorax was mounted with a pair of cutting-lasers on mobile, but atrophied and skeletal armatures, far smaller and more viscerally horrific in practice than the larger weapons used by other variants along with the single spear of bone and fused metal arcing forwards to protect its' skull.

The things' head was the most unsettling of all; a hollowed machine cranium with a single, blinking and malevolent red optic had been used a starting point as with other Cyber-Grimm yet this rested upon an extended and prehensile neck and was fitted with an oversized jaw which opened horizontally. Each mandible was larger than a forearm and allowing the thing to unleash its' primary weapon, a long tongue which could extend to several dozen feet in length, prehensile, grasping and crackling with Lightning Dust as it lashed wildly around.

Aefen Cruor had called the thing her 'Man-Eater' and it existed for the sole purpose of seeking out and eliminating high profile targets on a battlefield.

The sight of it coming crashing relentlessly forth signalled the beginning of the battle for Pikesreach.

---

Morning sunlight streamed through the windscreen of Astra Mars's truck as it drove through city streets at a reasonable pace, the Deer Faunus taking care to follow all traffic laws simply because they were uncertain of how much alcohol from the previous evening was still lingering in their bloodstream even with the benefits of Aura and the idea of a bigoted police officer using the current tension within the city as an excuse to pull over a Faunus who was also a Hunter, only to be given justification when Astra failed a breathalyser test was a deeply unpleasant one.

After a departure from their childhood home the previous afternoon which still left a twisting, wretched feeling in their stomach whenever their mind wandered towards it Astra had set off in search of their older brother, the famous Felix Xiao Long and found the Lion Faunus aboard the Nemesis Kharybdis; the vessel belonging to fellow Halo Academy Alumni Team GORE which served as their official residence and base of operations and was currently docked at the cities' port.

It was the ship upon which Team MARZ had taken their second official mission and this prior introduction had been the source of unexpected conflict upon Astra's arrival. Carcharodon Gore, captain of the ship and leader of both this team and the last remnants of his tribe, a proud member of the Anima diaspora had swiftly cornered the Deer Faunus and began a ruthless, forceful interrogation to satisfy in his own mind that they were no spy and had been unaware of Zirconia's treachery, specifically the act of sabotage she had performed on the ship. Upon receiving this assurance to a satisfactory degree however the fearsome Shark Faunus had offered his sincere condolences for the loss and the betrayal commiserating with Astra about treacheries he had been forced to endure and this had been the change in atmosphere needed to mark the beginning of a pleasant evening which had gone some way to lift Astra's spirits. The open deck of the ship had served as the venue for an impromptu gathering and small leaving party consisting of Astra, their brother and Felix's close friends and surprisingly to Astra Professor Qrow Branwen of Halo Academy who had regaled the group with countless stories of famous Hunters throughout the decades, both tales of their exploits and hilarious anecdotes whilst the group enjoyed grilled and fried fish, caught and cooked by those who called the ship home and the several drinks from which Astra was still recovering.

All things came to an end however and now Astra was drawing near to the airship terminal which would take them to Port Alistair, where they would be able to drive to Breaktide Academy without having to wait for an internal flight within the city for the first time. It was a process that was taking longer than it otherwise might have however, a combination of Astra's unfortunate timing seeing them forced to contend with the tail-end of rush hour traffic and the simple fact that many major roads within the sprawling Hive-City were still closed which forced them to take a route they were unfamiliar with and approach the airship terminal from an unfamiliar angle.

Though they were most certainly familiar with the two individuals waving at their truck in an obvious effort to have them pull over at the side of the road where their own vehicle, an old and several times repaired station wagon whose chassis was a patchwork of panels taken from other vehicles over the years.

Astra's parents.

"Hey….Didn't think you were running off to Menagerie without saying goodbye to your folks did you?" Redwood Mars asked, a carefully measured amount of playfulness laid over the obvious nervous tension in his voice; the older Deer Faunus adjusting the stained overalls he wore and tying them off around his waist to better soak in the morning sunlight in obvious effort to keep his hands busy whilst Astra looked from his father to his mother, Myrtle meeting her child's gaze resolutely.

"Just wasn't sure what else there was to say" Astra admitted, cursing the way that even this sounded like an accusation when directed at their parents.

"Well we still wanted to talk with you" Redwood sighed

"Dad….Look, I stand by what-" Astra fell silent as their father enveloped them in a hug, the smell of oil and metal enveloping the younger Faunus as the two of them kept their antlers apart; the feeling Redwood wrapping a burly arm around them being followed a moment later by the feeling of skin with patches of scales as Myrtle leaned in close and joined the moment.

"We know" Redwood nodded as he pulled back "We know that you're gonna do what you feel you need to do, we know that you're gonna live the life that was meant for you….I'd like to just pass it off as a Hunter thing, but I made a business and a trade for myself in this city back when most people still thought a Faunus owned business must be run by the White Fang; so it's safe to say you get some of that grit and determination from me"

"Look at me Astra" Myrtle's words were gentle, faint as she cupped their cheeks and met them with an intense look "I am so proud of you….I just want to be able to say that at your graduation and not your funeral"

"Things are different now kid" Redwood chimed in, casting a disdainful eye around the city that he had been born and raised in throughout its' various iterations "You know it, I know it….I've always had my worries about Hunters and I've never hidden that; hell I agreed with some of what Nero said when I spoke with the man I won't lie about it; but he's made things worse….Grimm attacks all over Remnant and crime waves in every city because every bastard and lowlife knows that Hunters are swamped dealing with the Grimm"

"And those….things" Myrtle whispered "How anybody could look at them on the CCT, let alone see them attacking people in the city and think that they were anything other than the work of a madman-"

"Yeah" Astra nodded "Things are different, things are tough….But so am I-"

"Just promise us that you'll be careful" Myrtle breathed out "That you won't do something reckless because you feel like you have to save Remnant by yourself"

"I've been telling you since I first let you work under the hood of a car Astra" Redwood took over again, gently waggling the younger Deer Faunus's antler "No amount of busy is worth cutting corners and taking risks-"

"The risks I take are worth it because they involve saving lives" Astra answered candidly "And I know that I'm not gonna be saving Remnant on my own….I've still got some people I can trust"

"Hey" Redwood laid a hand on Astra's shoulder, seeing the way sea-green eyes flickered downwards at those words and the brief look of quickly swallowed pain at the mention of their erstwhile friend "Don't bottle all that up, its bad for your digestion as well as your head"

Astra couldn't help but snort out a small burst of laughter, enough to break the spell of tension still lingering over the family reunion and prompting Myrtle to pull her youngest child back into another hug, this one crushing in its' firmness.

"Look at us" she sighed with a shake of the head "My baby is going away to college again and here we are, ruining what should be a happy moment by airing dirty laundry at the side of the road….We're worse than the trash talk shows the girls I work with watch"

"I'm glad we did though" Astra admitted "I didn't wanna leave things like we did yesterday"

"Neither did we" Redwood noted "Your brother guessed it'd be good for us to talk it out so he told us when you set off and which route you were taking"

"He still loves telling tells and running to Mum" Astra snorted, earning themselves a playful swat from their mother.

"I remember when you first met Felix, he was all you'd talk about and you'd follow him wherever you could" the reptilian Faunus chuckled "Look at how you've grown. I love you Astra, so be safe on Menagerie and don't forget to call home"

"Love you too" Astra squeezed their mother tighter before pulling back and turning to their father "Both of you. I promise I'll call as soon as I get out of whatever meeting Professor Adel needs me for"

"And don't be shy inviting Regalia into those calls as well" Redwood gave his child an approving nod.

"You got a job you want her advice on?" Astra asked, trying to play the comment off until their mother waggled their antler as their father had done a moment ago and gave them a knowing look which quickly gave way to a smile.

"Now I think we both know who you were talking to at all hours for the first few weeks of summer….It's sweet"

"And she won a bet" Redwood smirked.

"And on that note I'm outta here" Astra laughed, enjoying one final hug from their parents before climbing back into their truck and setting off once more. Spirits lifted immensely as the basked in the warm feeling of knowing that whatever lay in wait for them at Breaktide Academy their relationship with their parents was in a better place that it had been and than they had feared being forced to leave it. The pleasant fuzziness which brought a bright smile to their face which even congested traffic could not overcome was made all the better by the reminder that soon enough they would see Regalia Russet again.

Astra realised in an instant just how much they had missed their partner and best friend in recent weeks.

---

To Zirconia Shadowmoon the bulk of the fighters defending Pikesreach were simply too pitiful to hold any animosity for, even as they tried with everything they had to kill her.

Her only points of reference for what this reputably totalitarian and hellish settlement produced in terms of warriors were the rumours espoused by the few members of roving tribes and bandit groups who had encountered its' natives and the Mouse Faunus Stygian Blue who had escaped from a life within its' walls; with the undeniable talents of the latter having clearly gone some way to skew Zirconia's metric and expectations.

The latest assault came from a trio of attackers she realised might be younger than herself, each of them carrying weapons far below the standard or capabilities of Sunriser Cain which she currently held at the ready in its' close combat form; each weapon a simple rifle with an attachment far larger than a bayonet that would allow the gun to be used as either a spear of halberd. That the weapons were not automatic and that parts of them were constructed with wood left the Grasshopper Faunus barely suppressing a sigh as sprinted forward and weaved between gunshots to meet the oncoming charge; her first opponent falling as their attempt to thrust the blade affixed to their guns' barrel at her face was countered by first slipping around the blow and beneath her attackers' guard to slam her left elbow into ribs and underarm. With the teen staggered and gasping Zirconia continued from her position standing side by side with her foe by thrusting her left palm into a rifle that was now barely held by limp and twitching fingers before spinning clockwise and striking the foe across the back with enough force to leave them strewn across the ground.

With respectable tenacity and determination far outweighing their talents the remaining pair threw themselves at Zirconia with wild stabs and slashes which the rogue Huntress was quick to counteract, realising as she did so just how terrifying she must look in the early morning gloom with her current attire and fluid grace combining to give her the air of some nightmarish wraith.

One of the pair feinted with their bayonet before swinging the butt of the weapon like a club, letting out a fierce war cry which tapered off into a frightened gasp as Zirconia blocked the blow almost dismissively, her Aura barely rippling as the wooden stock of the rifle splintered around her arm with swift retaliation coming in the form of Sunrise Cain shattering a shoulder and collarbone, bringing the foe to their knees where a scream of pain was silenced by a kick to the chest which sent them toppling back head over heels.

Reflexes saved Zirconia before Aura might need to as the last of the trio came howling at her from the side on a doomed but committed bayonet charge intending to plunge their blade into her flank and pierce organs; the Grasshopper Faunus once again proved her superior skill by throwing herself into an acrobatic, cartwheeling motion entirely based on the fighting style of her former partner which allowed to leap over the barrel of the rifle and in the same motion land a spinning kick to its' wielders' chest at which point she deployed the mechanisms within her cybernetic limbs which allowed her scale sheer walls and used them to hoist the attacker into the air and then slam them down into the ground.

The attacker whimpered as Zirconia loomed over them, foot on their chest and weapon at the ready.

"We didn't come here to hurt you….We came here to help you, to free you" she paused, forced to accept that she was far from adept at heroism and that any of her former friends would be better suited to reaching out to the people of Pikesreach "Run back to your people and spread word amongst everyone, we only came here for the Hunters"

With Zirconia let her captured and pinned foe rise and flee, taking the opportunity to take stock of the larger battle and realise just how chaotic things had become.

They were yet to breach the walls of the town, something which left Zirconia wondering if the fighters being sent out against them were in fact simply those seen as disposable chaff by the corrupt Hunters who had taken control of the place whilst more capable fighters were held in reserve; it was a consideration given weight by the fact that they were yet to encounter any more of the Hunters they had come to dispose and yet at the same time they had already lose one Cyber-Grimm and several vehicles, including mech-suits to long ranged attacks in the form of snipers and artillery pieces on the settlements' walls.

As a result the battle had become a brutal stalemate in the patch of land that could loosely be described as route between the settlements' farmland and its' defences, the heavier weapons of the two sides trading blows in the form of lancing beams of light and explosive shells which ripped into battlements and tore trenches into the ground beyond the perimeter of Pikesreach, setting crops ablaze and adding an additional danger to the middle distance where the dry, parched earth was stained with the results of the slogging meat-grinder that the fighting had been reduced to.

Nero's forces were far better equipped and had the benefit of having several Hunters amongst them, Zirconia being joined by Carmesi and Team NUGT however the rest of their forces were a ragtag bunch with variable and questionable levels of skill and experience whilst the defenders had the benefits of cohesion and a unified front, the ability to outnumber their attackers by at least four to one along with the clear benefits of having pre-made defences to slow the advance.

Zirconia realised that they ran the risk of being party to a bloodbath, something which they were deliberately trying to avoid and so, just as another explosion shook the ground and sent a wash of flash spilling out over everything around her she raised her rasping voice to a yell; her mask already filtering out the smoke that stained the morning sky.

"CARMESI! WE NEED A CHANGE OF PLAN!….THEY'RE SETTING FIRE TO THEIR OWN CROPS, WE DIDN'T COME HERE TO FORCE THEM INTO A SIEGE!" her forceful demands were silenced and yet punctuated as another attacker came screaming at her only to be disabled and left clutching at a broken elbow.

"Here, take this and put fires out. Save your home without dying for it" she murmured as she pressed Ice Dust crystals into their uninjured hand before striding away to continue her search and finding Carmesi only a short distance away; exactly where she had expected to find the brutal Komodo Dragon Faunus.

In the midst of butchering all who stood against him.

"CARMESI, I SAID-" Zirconia was interrupted by a bellowing, bestial roar as the burly reptilian man swung the large of his two weapon in a downward sweep to deliver a monstrous blow to the chest of an already downed opponent; rending through flesh and bone with a single strike to spatter fresh blood across his already stained face and chest and add another lifeless body to the trail that marked his path. He turned to Zirconia, shoulders sagged and heaving with ragged, panting breaths and sharp teeth bared, regarding her with a murderous bloodlust which seemed to stretch the hellish crimson of his eyes out beyond his irises.

"Don't be a fucking optimist on a battlefield girl!" Carmesi's low, rumbling voice became "They're going to keep throwing people at us!"

"Do you think these kids they're sending are being given a choice?" Zirconia screamed back "They're being caught between two sets of Hunters! We need to be better than them!"

"Then stop bleating about being better and figure how to do it!" Carmesi roared, punctuating the demand with a shotgun blast which felled an oncoming attacker.

The ready violence left Zirconia's stomach churning and heart hammering, cold sweat trickling down her temples as she swallowed thickly, palm clammy is grasped at her weapon and breathing shallow as she peered through the fog of war at the defences of Pikesreach; taking them in their totality before calling back to Carmesi.

"If I cover you can your Semblance break their walls?" Carmesi paused and considered for a moment before nodding

"Flanking manoeuvre Zirconia, cover a wide area….I'll take their gate, it's weakest point" the Grasshopper Faunus nodded in agreement and understanding, raising her hand and gesturing to the nearest of Nero's fighters whilst Carmesi began to move into position and do the same in order to ensure that their forces understood the spirit of the plan without giving away their intentions.

Once she had moves far enough from the older Faunus to give some cover to her intentions, all whilst the two of them moved forwards until they reached the outer edge of the hedgehog-traps and razor-wire that slowed their advance, avoiding incoming fire as she went Zirconia finally began to channel Phantasmagoria. Mismatched irises glowed as the blackness of her pupils diffused and spread to engulf the whites of her eyes and all around her; extending out further than she had pushed herself before a field of darkness began to take shape and enclose herself, Carmesi and dozens of other fighters from either side of the conflict within it until eventually they resided within a featureless void entirely beyond the reach of the outside world.

An illusion that was quickly tested as the defenders of Pikesreach attacked.

"They're firing blind into my Semblance, they don't care about hitting their own people!" Zirconia forced the exclamation out through gritted teeth as she sunk to one knee; the pain of overexertion as her Semblance spread across a swathe of the battlefield being exacerbated by the lancing agonies which left her eye twitching in a way which pulled the scar tissue of her face taut of several bullets and lasers cutting into her Semblance from the outside and revealing it to be a trap rather than a shield.

"GET READY!" Carmesi roared and Zirconia had only a moment to brace herself before her world was ripped out from beneath her in a cascade of blinding pain and nausea which left her sprawled and shaking on the ground. The Komodo Dragon, seeing the extremes Zirconia had pushed herself to had chosen to answer in kind by dropping to the crouch and unleashing himself without restraint; his palm becoming the epicentre of a wave of jagged spires and blades erupting up from the earth like stalagmites of pure, bloody Aura.

"Come on, come on get up!" Zirconia wretched but managed to keep herself from vomiting within her mask as reality slowly slid into focus around her again as the pain of having her Semblance so violently shattered and the feedback it caused subsided. As she blinked spots away from eyes that had been rendered sensitive and forced her ears to make sense of the countless streams of input she realised that Team NUGT were surrounding her, the Chicken Faunus who led the team trying to pull Zirconia to her feet whilst his team-mates provided cover fire.

The fight had continued but now there was a change in its' pace and ferocity which Zirconia, in her dazed and befuddled state could not accurately put into words even as she saw its' cause plainly in the morning sun. Carmesi's Semblance had torn a clear path from where he had stood through the defences, walls and main gate of the settlement and into Pikesreach and whilst there were still enough guns and defenders remaining to cut down some of the attackers it had become clear that the tide had turned and the Hunters who ruled this place with an iron fist would now have to stand and fight.

"CHARGE THAT BREACH!" Carmesi thundered out, sending a chorus of cries up from the forces he and Zirconia led; the Grasshopper Faunus herself pausing for a moment as her efforts to get her feet under herself were halted by the choice of words. A breach was colloquially used to denote that the Grimm had successfully entered their target and it was only as the metallic, chainsaw shrieking of the Cyber-Grimm filled the air before they collectively swarmed forwards to lead the charge and deliver a hammer blow to their reeling foes that she realised how hauntingly accurate the description was.

Zirconia watched as Aefen's so called 'Man-Eater' variant bounded and slithered ahead of the rest, prehensile tongue lashing out and found herself wondering if all of Nero's efforts to liberate Remnant would be so hideous.

---

Athena-Jade returned to consciousness with a start and upon doing so became immediately aware of a deeply unpleasant stiffness in her neck, back and shoulders; which as she began to blink away the confusion which often plagued her upon waking with an ease which left her wondering just how long she had slept for the Bear Faunus realised had been a symptom of the fact that she had fallen asleep half-sat and half-sprawled. Particularly Athena had awoken at her workbench with the manors' workshop, having managed to remain balanced on a small stool since drifting off whilst a clearing in the parts, dirty oil rags and mountains of blueprints marked where she had fallen asleep with her face pressed against the bench itself.

It was clear that Athena-Jade's insistence to her mother that she had needed to work on her weapon had been genuine and the Bear Faunus's annoyance at herself and her unflattering position, along with the vague concerns about what exactly had started her awake were pushed aside the moment her mind began to order itself enough for her to remember the previous evenings' sequence of events; a moment later the blueprints and other miscellaneous items were pushed aside to reveal that beneath them her prize lay gleaming and completed.

A new weapon.

"Not bad pest, definitely worth at least some of the all-nighters" Athena, still not as awake and alert as she would have liked slipped from the stool at the sound of the voice behind her; quickly finding her feet and whirling around with her hand flying to a hefty but not potentially lethal spanner which she reared back with the intention of throwing at the intruder only to halt herself with an urgency that left her heart thundering in her ears and entire body suddenly numb.

"I am so sorry" she mouthed upon realising what she had been about to do, sinking back onto the stool with trembling knees. Stood behind her had been the probable source of whatever disturbance had roused her, her older brother Arctus Slate clad in a comfortable sweater and jeans rather than the usual combat attire in which he was usually seen, his weapon nowhere in sight whilst sporting a beard that was far from as well groomed as his normal standard.

More importantly however was the fact that in his arms he was holding his newborn daughter.

"Don't ever do that again" Arctus's words were blunt and stern with a measure of implied force, a perfect blend of the tones that each of their parents would have taken; and then suddenly he was offering his sister a warm and gentle smile "Figured someone should come and wake you up, otherwise you wouldn't resurface for the whole day"

"You suck" Athena mumbled weakly, any enthusiasm she might have been able to dredge up sapped by her fried nerves, eyes still unable to meet her brothers' "Where's Dee?"

"Diamond's getting some sleep….This one was up all night and decided everyone else should be as well. I wondered if a trip to Auntie AJ might help things" Arctus gave his sister a careful look, studying her in a way which AJ pretended before he nodded to her newly completed weapon "Wanna swap for a second?"

"Absolutely" Athena managed a genuine smile now, reaching out happily to take her niece and cradle the small bundle of blankets with immense care, cradling the baby girls' head in the crook of her right arm whilst Arctus reached over and took the mass of steel in his hands, inspecting it interestedly.

"Oh this is some really nice work….You named it yet?"

"Heartbreaker. Seemed like a good successor to Mould-Breaker" Athena answered without hesitation, only to falter as she saw the way the older Bear Faunus peered at her in open concern for a moment before pointedly turning back to the weapon in his hands.

Heartbreaker, as Athena had named it was clearly intended to transform into a laser cannon to be fired from the waist much like her previous weapon however its' melee configuration was a vast departure from her old hammer; the cannons' barrel collapsed downwards with additional layers of insulated plating sliding into place to form a handle or shaft of a suitable enough to be wielded with two hands though with Athena-Jade's strength it was likely she would be able to carry it with one. Above the handle was a broad and cylindrical cross-guard which clearly served a greater purpose, namely that of being the drum like compartment in which the laser cannons' inner workings and power supply were stored, all compressed down into a more manageable puck of armoured steel from which a blade emerged. The blade of Heartbreaker was was the length of an arm and broader than two hands at its' widest point, single-edged and clip-pointed with its' cutting edge comprised of interlocking and retractable segments and the false edge of the blade backed by an adornment which would clearly serve as the cannons' handle. Where before Athena had used a hammer to differentiate herself she now carried a bladed weapon that appeared closer to a naginata with a shortened handle, or a particularly over-designed sword with elements Arctus could recognise as being taken from weapons belonging to several other members of the family including himself.

Before her brother could begin questioning her about the specifics Athena turned her gaze away and instead fixed her newborn niece with the brightest smile she could muster, a surprisingly genuine one as the baby burbled up at her and reached out to grasp at a gloved finger.

Selenite Moonstone Slate had been born somewhat premature but ultimately healthy, leading to several jokes within the family about her being the first of a new wave of vertically challenged Schnee women in the making; she had grown as expected and without complications however, with a skin tone somewhat lighter than her mothers' yet far from the ghostly whiteness that the Schnee family genetics produced almost uniformly. The babies' features were something Athena studied for a moment before similarities between her own, her brother and fathers' as though Selenite were what each of the Bear Faunus of the Slate family might look like without their snout-like Faunus features; full-lipped and with a strong-brow that promised a pout or stern glare that would put any member of the family to shame. Her eyes were the same crystalline blue of the Schnee family and the few wisps of hair present of her head were pale, though whether they would grow to be the snowy white of Arctus Slate or the silvery colour of Diamond Sustrai-Black remained to be seen. As she reached up at her aunt Athena's smile widened, taking in the sight with a giddy excitement tempered by a bitterness at the time she had lost in her crumpled and miserable state; realising that this was in fact the first time she had properly held her niece. A distraction quickly came in the form of stubby fingers wrapping around one of Athena's own, with a soft sensation which led Athena to realise that her nieces' hands were covered by a pair of mitts.

"She's got claws like us?" she asked.

"Yeah, had to cover 'em up so she didn't scratch her face with 'em….You were the same actually" Arctus beamed happily, gently setting Athena's new weapon down before continuing in a carefully measured attempt at keeping the same jovial, nonchalant tone as he nodded towards her gloved hands "I take you didn't outgrow it as much as we thought?"

"I hurt someone Arctus" Athena's voice was suddenly hollow and her expression distant "I hurt….Her….I didn't mean-"

"So you're keeping 'em covered" her brother sighed, moving closer and leaning against the workbench; Athena, suddenly uncertain about the wisdom of holding a baby tried to hand Selenite back to her brother only for Arctus to use the motion to gently stroke his daughters' hair and then squeeze his sisters' gloved hand before pulling back, leaving Athena-Jade to hold her niece as they spoke.

"I get it AJ….At least I think I do, but if I can give you my honest opinion….I think you're being a little hard on yourself considering the situation you were in" Arctus paused for a moment "We all make mistakes and some of mine have almost gotten people killed"

"I worked so hard…..I did so much to try and be more than the family name, to try and to it in my own way" AJ's voice cracked and wavered "And I messed it all up; you think I don't see the stories and articles? All anybody thinks about now is whose partner I was-"
"And those people were always parasites" Arctus gave a distasteful snort at the mention of the press and journalists who had hounded their family for as long as either of them could remember.

"They're not wrong though" Athena sighed bitterly, distracting herself with cooing playfully at her niece for long enough for Arctus to study her and have several details slide into place.
"So that's what all of this is about" he gestured at his sister in general "The new look….The hair doesn't look like you, the outfit definitely doesn't I mean when the hell do you wear skirts? The weapon's a really nice piece of work but how many times did you specifically say you didn't want a sword….Specifically one that looks anything like mine?"

"Yeah I was a little shit….Sorry about that" Athena-Jade managed to chuckle weakly as she muttered the words.

"Come on squirt don't shut me out here...it's me" Arctus implored; only for Athena-Jade to rise to her feet and gently press Selenite back into his arms so that she could splay her hands wide and gesture to herself.

"What do you want me to say Arctus?" she gave a bitter laugh "I suck, I suck so bad I am the suckiest….I suppose I just decided to be the ideal Schnee, Slate, whatever. I tried to do my own thing and figure out who I am; turns out I shouldn't have bothered. Who I am is a joke, a complete failure of a Hunter who can't even see a threat when it's literally sleeping in their bed next to them, let's traitors get away and then cries about the fact they got close!"

The words echoed through the workshop dangerously.

Saying it out loud left Athena feeling hollow and brittle in a way nothing else had, her breathing harsh and eyes wide as she and her brother stared at one another until finally the older Bear Faunus adjusted the way he was holding his daughter so that he could offer his sister a hug.

Prompting Athena to bury her face in his shoulder and let out a single trembling sob which opened tore down floodgates that had been cracked and rebuilt in a never-ending cycle since the moment Zirconia had abandoned her.

---

With the walls of Pikesreach breached Zirconia had managed to refocus enough to enter the settlement proper; only to have her suspicions violently reaffirmed and be shown that this would be where the battle truly began as the Hunters who ruled over the settlement, each with decades of experience entered the fray in person.

If it were not for the Cyber-Grimm, the Grasshopper realised, the assault would likely have already failed.

The buildings had the look of being developed from a standard template in a way which rendered them unique; likely having been initially intended as prefabricated and modular, possibly even temporary things of the uniform variety which could be seen all across the outer territories of each Kingdom. Years of repair and personalisation had taken place however, roofs and arches and doorways all replaced with local materials and a shared general aesthetic carried over from the stony, fortified wall around them. Pikesreach was a hardy place with even the smallest of its' single story dwellings serving as a small garrison or emplacement if needed; furthermore Zirconia and her allies had not, despite appearances come as conquerors and so their instructions had been to cause as little damage as possible in their attempts to liberate the place from the Hunters.

Circumstances which the locals were using to their advantage, seeming to realise that houses were not being simply levelled by the Cyber-Grimm even as snipers fired from within them.

"WE ONLY WANT THE HUNTERS!" Zirconia yelled, trying to raise her voice above the thundering chaos in the desperate hope that she could turn enough of the people of Pikesreach against those who ruled over them, that she could succeed here where she had failed in New Vale. Instead she was answered with a deafening explosion and a wave of concussive force which threw her to the ground, twisted and flaming shards of jagged metal leaving her Aura fluctuating as they collided with her body painfully.

'Ice! Magnetic!' Sunriser Cain announced itself as Zirconia turned and fired the weapon in its' long-barrelled pistol form in the direction of the explosion which had been barely more than twenty feet away and had left her sensitive ears ringing painfully. One of the few remaining mech-suits that had escaped the battle of Neo Vale had been destroyed and its' pilot had almost certainly been consumed in the explosion and granted what was a mercifully quick ending as an individual wearing the flamboyant and awe-inspiring garb one thought of when picturing a Hunter fired a weapon that appeared equal parts artillery piece and battleaxe down at it; Zirconia's Dust based discharge created a field wherein the flaming detritus was magnetically dragged and coalesced into a single heap and doused by the Ice Dust.

There was a single moment where the Grasshopper Faunus and the Hunter locked eyes with one another, each recognising the other as a threat to be brought low and preparing in the same moment to aim their weapons for an opening strike only for the Hunter to be snatched from the roof with a scream of terror as one of the Cyber-Grimm hurtled through the air like a comet of steel, flash and murderous intent.

Zirconia blinked away her confusion, shaking herself and trudging onwards through the embattled settlement as she was forced to confront once again the differences between simply Hunting the Creatures of Grimm and an actual battle in a militaristic campaign against other people, along with the visceral realities of the Cyber-Grimm.

Her heart hammered and her body seemed to thrum with an electric energy as she took in the bloody chaos around her; a flash of crimson in the distance showed her where Carmesi was as he unleashed his Semblance once again and likely tore through several opponents. A cursory glance in any direction allowed her to watch in fascinated but detached horror at scenes that she would gladly use her Semblance to cloak from her sight but yet could not bring herself to look away from, be it the sight of a single Hunter who was already visibly bloodied and critically injured fighting a losing but admirable battle against three Cyber-Grimm at once, the bodies of several former gang members laying lifeless and shredded by heavy weapons from the perimeter wall which had been turned inwards to rip through Pikesreach itself or the sight of those same weapons being reduced to smoking scrap by Team NUGT who were in the midst of enacting violent retribution on those who had operated them.

Eventually Zirconia's distraction cost her and the Grasshopper Faunus was struck in the face by a blow that seemed to come from nowhere.

"YOU WANTED THE HUNTERS! WELL ONE OF IS RIGHT HERE!" a woman's voice declared and Zirconia span, evading fluidly and with practised ease as urgency allowed her to focus her senses to a single point and goal; shifting her weapon into its' melee mode and blocking several strikes before she and her new opponent were brought to a halt by their own momentum, weapons crossed and coming face to masked face. Her adversary was a woman in a featureless mask that had likely once been gleaming chrome but was now chipped away and dirtied; worn beneath a ragged and hooded grey robe beneath which Zirconia could see glimpses of the heavy and practical armour that the Hunters of Pikesreach seemed to favour, possibly made from alloys using the same hyper-conductive metals found in the area which comprised Stygian Blue's sword. Her weapon was a brutal looking thing, the length of a rifle flattened and reshaped into a shaft whilst its' stock had unfolded to reveal two large halberd blades facing in opposite directions whilst the space between them was filled with whirring, grinding and rotating implements.

"You made Pikesreach a dictatorship" Zirconia rasped through clenched teeth as she held her ground, quickly realising that her opponent was strong enough to overpower her.

"We made it safe" the woman hissed back with equal strain in her voice, making no effort to deny the claim but instead adding "What have you made it? Easy pickings for the Grimm that's what!"

"It won't be!" Zirconia declared, unsure of why she felt the need to so fiercely justify herself to a random enemy "We're going to keep Remnant safe, from Grimm and from people like you!"

With that she unleashed stored power within her cybernetic limbs and rocketed forwards, forcing her foe onto the defensive and unleashing a barrage of kicks which she followed with one of the attacks which had become a calling card during her time as a student, Fire and Lightning Dust combining to sweep an arc of destructive force through the air.

"WE DID WHAT WE HAD TO DO!" The Huntress bellowed as she hurled herself up and over the attack to fall upon Zirconia with crushing force and a flurry of blows which forced the younger Huntress back with every hastily blocked impact, letting loose a furious tirade as she did so "All that infighting, all the politicking and double-dealing and doubting when we had Grimm at our gates and no help from anybody else! We did what we had to do! We took charge as Hunters, we gave people security and we gave them a purpose and a structure that they can rely on because it doesn't change; all anybody has to do is what they're told and all they have to worry about is how to do it better!"

"You're disgusting" Zirconia spat icily, true hatred welling up in her as she thrust her weapon at her opponents' masked face only for the older Huntress to retaliate with superior speed and timing, slipping around the blow to slam the shaft of her own weapon into Zirconia's stomach and leave her doubled over before a blow to the back of the head floored her. Before she could rise she was kicked onto her back and felt terror, primal and undeniable as her opponent drove her weapon downward to sink its' twin blades into the ground at which point they began to close in on themselves and bring the mass of whirring and grinding tools inexorably closer for what would be a gory decapitating blow.

"The ends justify the means" the Huntress let out a ragged pant "And I think making an example out of you is pretty justified right now-AARGH"

Her threats were cut off by a scream of pain as lightning began to course across her body, the thrashing and struggling woman ripping her weapon from the ground in an effort to defend herself as she was dragged clear and across the ground. Zirconia, still shaking and on the verge of hyperventilating managed to drag herself to her feet and watch in abject horror as she saw what became of the woman; a sight that would likely disturb her more than anything else she had witnessed in Pikesreach.

The Man-eater in action.

The Cyber-Grimm variant had wrapped its' tongue around the Hunters' midsection and used it to hoist her into the air and slam her into the ground which forced her to drop her weapon and left her dazed and disoriented whilst the entire time it maintained its' use of Lightning Dust, turning the prehensile appendage into an excruciating weapon which worked continuously to steadily deplete its' victims Aura to the point of breaking. With the Hunter largely helpless the Man-Eater perched on its' four rear libs whilst using the upper four to pin its' victim to the ground by holding each arm and leg, exerting enough force to make it abundantly clear that it could tear a human apart with ease should it so choose and from there it deployed to two laser cutters mounted on skeletal armatures on its' armoured carapace, the Huntress letting out frightened shrieks as her weapon was destroyed and her armour was neatly, frighteningly accurately cut and peeled away.

Zirconia waited for the killing blow but it did not come, instead the Man-eater simply held the Huntress in place and with a sickening feeling in her stomach the Faunus was put in mind of a hunting dog or something similar, deliberately keeping its' quarry alive so that it could be brought back to its' master and happily exchanged for a scratch behind the ears and yet, repulsed as she was by the thing Zirconia suddenly knew what she needed to do.

Striding forwards with all of the menacing calm she could muster she crouched down and looked into the now exposed and terrified face of the Hunter and spoke in a cold, dead and unrelenting voice.

"All you need to do is what you're told" she turned the woman's own words against her "Have the people of Pikesreach stand down. Have the other Hunters surrender"

The Huntress complied, screaming in fear that made the demand far more believable.

---

Travelling from Neo Vale to Port Alistair and the island Kingdom of Menagerie had taken several hours but had thankfully passed without incident or the attentions of the Creatures of Grimm.

The journey had allowed for Astra to mentally compose themselves as much as possible in the face of an unknown that almost certainly would not be overcome with the kind of daring heroics that they often favoured; the time spent secluded in a quiet part of the airship where they would be unbothered by their fellow passengers, quietly thankful for the absence of both their fellow students of Breaktide Academy and incoming initiates whom custom and a sense of mild superstition dictated were not supposed to meet with other students until after the formation of their own teams. Upon arriving at Port Alistair's cross-Kingdom airship terminal the leader of what was no longer Team MARZ, a distinction that would likely continue to pain them for some time, retrieved their pickup truck from the cargo hold of the massive craft and made for Breaktide academy with haste as instructed and it was there that they had met with Deputy Headmistress Velvet Scarlatina.

"As you can see thing haven't changed so much whilst you've been away. Some more comfortable chairs have been added to the common areas, some of the bridges between towers have been given some upkeep….there's some more gum and graffiti which we can and will get to the bottom of" Professor Scarlatina was as jovial and pleasant as ever, the ragged-eared Rabbit Faunus having always been one of Astra's favourite teachers due to the sheer technical brilliance and vision she often showed and the easygoing yet productive atmosphere of the campus workshops and fabrication facilities whilst they were under her instruction.

At present however the conversation felt forced and Astra struggled to find their place in the natural flow of it, instead simply peering around the campus as they followed Velvet through its' hallways and reacting almost as if they were seeing it for the first time after so long away from the campus that had been envisioned as an institution, a fortress and a sanctuary but also a home and a museum where the works of Hunters across Remnant and throughout history could be venerated, sea-green eyes widening in recognition almost ceaselessly as Astra refamiliarised themselves with the various displays and exhibits lining the more well travelled hallways.

Eventually Velvet seemed to pick up on the unease from the student she knew and remembered as exuberant and energised; taking a moment to match their silence and study the Deer Faunus whose hair she noted was currently without any of its' usual striking dyed colour and lowering her voice to something more reserved, without the feigned nonchalance or the expectation to return it.

"Astra, are you alright?"

"Yeah" they answered reflexively before shrugging, staring dead ahead to avoid meeting their teachers' gaze and taking a moment to consider before giving a more honest answer "I just….I assumed that this was about me meeting the new member of Team….My new team-mate. The message never said that though and AJ and Regalia aren't here so now I'm wondering-"

"You're not in any trouble and your team is being restructured, not disbanded. You were correct in your initial assumption" Velvet answered bluntly, quietly cursing the stringent security measures and secrecy that were now imposed on academy business.

"Okay" Astra visibly brightened up at that, the tension receding from them like a tide "So what's the deal?"

"A fourth member for your team and a new partner for Miss Slate has been found, you'll be meeting with him in my office" Velvet explained "The decision is effectively final unless upon meeting with him you can provide a concrete reason for us to reconsider….Something that will, as much I don't want to sound like I'm strong-arming you have consequences for your team moving forwards-"

"Then AJ should be here….It affects her the most" Astra interjected bluntly, arching an eyebrow and fixing their teacher with a defiant and questioning stare which Velvet could only respect.

"Agreed" she nodded simply "However you are the one been asked to make the decision as leader, out of a concern for Miss Slate….Damn it all, fuck being professional about this, Athena's ability to be impartial all things considered.

"Okay I get it….but I don't like it" Astra noted, making no effort to sugar-coat their criticism of their teachers' decision "It sounds like you're accusing-"

"It's a decision that was made out a concern for your team-mates' well being Astra" Velvet answered, tone somewhat snippy as she bristled at the insinuation before continuing in a more level tone "The situation your team has been placed in is a delicate one and one that will no doubt have difficulties. I want you to know that Counsellor Daichi has already expressed an interest in seeing each of you; this is currently not mandatory but strongly advised. During the next few days I expect you to bring your new team-mate up to speed regarding how things are done at Breaktide, a miniature orientation of sorts and begin working to integrate them into your team dynamic as much as you can without the others present. You have free reign of the academy until the incoming initiates arrive at which point I will ask you to avoid them….Out of tradition"

"Thank you….And of course" Astra breathed the words out, aware of themselves enough to know that there would certainly be value in speaking with the towering but gentle member of Team CFVY; even with the afterglow of their earlier reconciliation with their parents still buzzing warmly in their chest and the eager anticipation of seeing their friends again filling them that they were still not in the place they would like to be. From there Astra drifted into silence again and Velvet was content to allow it as the two of them made their way higher into the central tower at the heart of Breaktide Academy which housed Team CFVY's home and the offices of senior members of staff until finally they reached the Rabbit Faunus's office, where Velvet gave the courtesy of knocking on her own door to alert Astra's new team-mate of their ally before opening it.

"Astra Mars, I'd like to….Well, I suppose reintroduce you to-" Astra barely heard her, instead staring almost through her directly at the young man who had been waiting within the office; hopping to his feet and offering a bright smile as the door opened.

His attire had changed, conversely covering more despite Menagerie's scorching climate though given that the Mouse Faunus was a native to the island Astra felt that it was hardly their place to question the decision.

He wore pants that seemed to be midway between sweatpants and legging, breathable and flexible, hugging the muscles of powerful legs but with a looseness around the joints to allow for the freedom of movement his style of fighting required whilst also being made of a durable material, their colour a deep black which was offset both by the armour fastened to his shins and the equally armoured footwear he wore, both comprising gleaming silver though the sporty and sleek looking sneakers were primarily a deep, royal blue.

The young man's Faunus attribute of a hairless mouse tail was presently wrapped around his waist where it would not be in the way whilst his upper body was clad first in a blue under-shirt which would likely have been loose fitting were it not for the more securely tightened armoured vest, resembling the kind worn by security staff to halt knives but with an eminently more refined appearance and its' silver armoured plates clearly visible. Over all of this was the garment which had given Astra pause, where before he had worn a trailing leather jacket off the shoulder to serve as a cape the Mouse Faunus now wore a garment which appeared at first as though it were something a firefighter might wear; robust and made of a black material with royal blue stripes that were almost reflective, hooded and reaching beneath its' wearers' knees with a slit running up its' back to give everything below the waist the appearance of being twin-capes Astra realised on a second glance that the slightly oversized garment was in fact built to mitigate heat, so much so in fact that its' interior sported its' own cooling system much like something Laser Greenback had previously sported; all whilst also integrating a harness for the katana slung across his back.

The effect of the garment being somewhat detracted from by the presence of studded shoulder pads clearly salvaged and repurposed from his previous jacket.

Around his neck he wore two necklaces, one a simple cord holding a meticulously carved blue stone whose mottled surface featured several shades and had been shaped into the geometric and inscrutable symbol that served as its' wearers emblem whilst the other was a simple rope of tigers-eye beads.

The Mouse Faunus's hair had changed in style somewhat but was still the same royal blue colour. A pair of braids hang in front of the young man's face in a way which perfectly framed it whilst the rest of his hair was arranged in artfully handled cornrows which had been deliberately left unfinished so that a sizeable amount of afro hair remained tied back into something resembling a loose ponytail.

With so much of his deeply dark skin covered the young man's series of hypnotically swirling and cryptic looking tattoos were all but hidden from view entirely, though as his chiselled features morphed into a bright smile which reached his electric blue eyes and he greeted Astra with a familiar rich and confidant voice there was no mistaking the identity of the Deer Faunus's new team-mate.

Stygian Blue, formerly of Team TRQS.

"Don't worry Professor, we were friends at Halo for a while….Good to see you again Astra"

---

The sun had already begun to set on Pikesreach by the time reinforcements arrived and to Zirconia, whose body still ached and throbbed with the aftermath of the days' fighting and who was beginning to suffer from the dizzy weariness that had set in after so much effort and so little food or proper rest their arrival could only be seen as oddly ominous; the sight of a fresh wave of vehicles and incoming Cyber-Grimm, including heavier and power dangerous emerging over the horizon with the gold and blood-red streaked sky behind them serving as an almost perfect mirror for the dawn attack which Zirconia herself had been a part of.

That Damascus Nero himself was not part of this relief and would not be arriving for several days yet only served to make the young woman more uneasy.

Eventually however Zirconia forced her stoic and aloof composure, or at least the believable enough mask to portray it back into place and rose to her feet. She had, in an effort to remain useful and continue contributing whilst also distancing herself from the ongoing efforts to liberate Pikesreach from its' Hunters taken up a defensive position on its' walls; taking watch from the remains of the same gates that she had helped Carmesi to rip open and watching as locals, under careful watch and with help from fighters under Zirconia's command began the task of repairing the weapon emplacements or else at least ensuring that they posed no risk whilst out in the space between the farmlands and the main settlement itself fires were doused, wreckage was cleared away and bodies were gathered by their respective sides.

Standing up from where she had been perched, a position so close to the way she had often brooded on the roof of Breaktide Academy that the similarities were almost perversely laughable she turned and caught sight of Team NUGT gathered close by and nodding at the incoming reinforcements, turning her attention towards them just as their leader, the Chicken Faunus named Nugget chose to

speak.

"They took their time getting here?" he gave a nod and an irritable scowl in the direction of the sunset and Zirconia surmised that he clearly felt the various cuts and bruises his team had suffered in taking their objectives were an indignity they need not suffer.

"They had their own job to do" Zirconia counted dully, realising that her former classmate whilst a capable fighter had not earned the trust or status to have larger battle plans explained to him "You've noticed that despite the fact dozens or people have died and that there were fires which could likely be seen from some distance away there haven't been any Creatures of Grimm honing in on Pikesreach"

"Oh….They were watching our back" Nugget nodded, he and his team looking mildly shamefaced.

"Precisely; against both the Grimm and any Hunters in the unlikely event that the Kingdom of Menagerie, or anyone acting independently decided that the smoke and explosions were worth investigating" Zirconia paused for a moment to consider "When they arrive begin coordinating with the people leading their operation, have them begin bolstering defences here….Pikesreach lost too many of its' own fighters and the others have been deliberately kept from learning to defend themselves. We have work to do"

"Hey, you're not the one in-" Nugget's annoyance faded quickly into the distance as Zirconia turned and hopped from the damaged remains of the perimeter wall without sparing the Chicken Faunus another word or glance; leaping first onto roof and then leaping across several more buildings before landing in a space that she supposed could be called a street, though the layout of Pikesreach was so far removed from the neatly organised cities she was used to that even the initially haphazardly arranged Port Alistair seemed perfectly logical by contrast.

Her pace slowed as she made her way through the battle-scarred Pikesreach and found herself taking in every sign of the violence she had visited upon the place, morbid and rapt attention fixated on every bullet-riddled exterior wall and cratered roof that had been used as a vantage point; at the face of every inhabitant of the settlement whose eyes wandered from the Cyber-Grimm to Zirconia herself, some new breed of nightmarish anti-Hunter they were unprepared for with expression whose sheer variety at least managed to give the young woman some hope for her convictions. There were those of course who glared at her with seething hatred, those who would likely spend the next few days performing whatever last rites were practised here for their loved ones and yet at the same time there were others, including many of the children who stared in quiet confusion and barely hidden wonder.

Though Zirconia was not naive enough to be believe that she was safe here by any stretch and so hurried onwards towards her goal; finding Carmesi in the middle of what might have been a town square.

The Komodo Dragon Grimm was flanked by stone-faced soldiers whose armour was worn and stained with the dust and blood of the battle whilst behind him the Man-eater variant Cyber Grimm slithered its' segmented and monstrous mass into a position it found comfortable, moving with unsettling sleekness and fluidity. They were gathered upon a raised platform which served a stage of decent size, the entire affair seeming to Zirconia like an almost deliberate parody of Aefen Cruor's stage from which she addressed her fanatics and gathered before them were what Zirconia assumed to be the majority of Pikesreach's inhabitants. Climbing up to a raised position so that she could better see she noted that several Cyber-Grimm were hunkered down behind buildings where their handlers had gone some way to making the less obtrusive whilst still having the beasts on hand should the situation spiral out of control; though it was the figures gathered on the stage before Carmesi that made Zirconia's blood feel as though it were ice in her veins.

Each of the Hunters who had ruled over Pikesreach, bound gagged and kneeling.

"People of Pikesreach!" Carmesi's low, rumbling voice boomed out triumphantly as he made a show of striding between the captured Hunters "We come in peace"

Zirconia fought the urge to laugh at the sheer absurdity of the statement, an absurdity which Carmesi plainly understood as he took a moment to allow for waves of mutterings and disbelief to pass through the crowd before he raised his hands to continue.

"I know, I know that it seems hard to believe given the circumstances but my allies and I represent a man with a vision for the future, a man who wishes only to free Remnant, all of it from the hold of Hunters who have used their power over the innocent and the threat of the Grimm as leverage against Kingdoms and settlements for far too long….Hunters who let evil go unchecked and unpunished so that they might always have a boogeyman to scare us into compliance" there was something hateful in that last statement, bitter and vindictive which Carmesi let out a snarl at the thought of but pushed on

"That man, along with our other allies will be here amongst you in a matter of days and a bright new tomorrow will come to Pikesreach with him! We will give you the means to defend yourselves from the Grimm or any others who might wish you harm, you have seen our Cyber-Grimm in battle; we will teach you how to use them and how to fight with other weapons, any who wish to learn. We have food and medicine, Dust, lien and machinery to spare along with knowledge and experience….We will make Pikesreach greater than it ever has been under the control of these men and women who ruled like Kings and Queens over you! Any of you who wish to join our campaign to liberate all of Remnant will welcomed, the rest of you will be free to live your lives as you see fit with no roles forced upon you….All we ask in return is that none of you attempt to leave this settlement and that you cooperate with our efforts to help you"

Carmesi waited a moment longer and Zirconia watched as he gestured to the Man-Eater, bile rising in her throat and hands suddenly trembling as she realised what was about to happen; finding herself frozen in place and powerless to do anything more than watch.

"This is our gift and our promise to the people of Pikesreach. These Hunters will trouble you know more-" with that Carmesi stood aside and the Man-eater Cyber-Grimm unfurled itself and deployed the armatures on its' armoured back which held its' laser cutters; twin beams of light flaring into life as the weapons were activated. A moment later a wave of gasps, screams and other sounds of mortification were torn from the gathered people of Pikesreach as their rulers and protectors were felled in a single, grisly swipe of the monsters' weapons; searing light burning and carving through flesh and bone in a single pass to leave decapitate each of the Hunters before any of them could attempt to flee of fight. It lasted a single moment and yet it felt as though an age before Carmesi finished his declaration, uttering words which seemed more bleakly absurd than the previous assertion of coming in peace.

"You are free now"

Author's Notes:

So, two chapters in and I'm already having fun….Everybody else having fun?
I've gotta say I am on a massively productive streak at the moment, I'm writing a few weeks ahead of posting and right now, while I'm typing this the most current chapter I've posted is 107….I genuinely think that by the first time I post 109, the first chapter of Vol.07 I'll be more than a quarter of the way through the volume.

But anyway, let's summarise shall we?:
The eponymous Pikesreach, birthplace of Stygian Blue….Now we finally see it; the comparison to better protected and well connected places like Maiden-Gate felt justified and we will see Nickel Polendina and her stomping ground again this volume.
I really tried to keep away from slavery and plantation imagery when showing the conditions in Pikesreach because given that the unnamed character we focused on was a black woman it really would have felt uncomfortable to write and also out of sync with Stygian's previous descriptions of the place.
On that note….No prizes for guessing who that woman was; or then why she's treated as untrustworthy or what those additional tattoos mean.
They have no idea what Cyber-Grimm are, if they did they would have known to just surrender on the spot in the fact of an unwinnable fight….They got a pretty good introduction to them though, that Hunter got absolutely wrecked.
Ah yes Pikesreach absolutely practices the tried and tested approach of shooting their conscripts for cowardice or desertion.
The Man-eater….A truly horrific beastie; it actually started out as a general idea for an Anteater Grimm but got steadily more and more twisted as I went on and gave it a specific role within the Cyber-Grimm; some definite 40 Tyranid influence in there as well.
So yeah Astra is now worrying about the possibility of being stopped because they look like a Hunter as well as being Faunus….Which makes their choice to drive with a hangover even stupider; gather round kids, you can still fail an alcohol test the morning after because you're actually still drunk.
So that's where they went after their argument with their Mum last chapter and yeah I feel like Carcharodon would have choked out the first member of Team MARZ he got a hold of after hearing about Zirconia; it's honestly just a good thing it wasn't AJ 'cos that would have broken her.
Redwood Mars's pickup truck is an absolute piece of shit...Which makes the fact he got Astra theirs even better.
Astra needed that win, they're gonna need that win….And their parents are good people with absolutely reasonable concerns and yeah some of Myrtle's lines feel a bit guilt trippy but y'know what; she's allowed to not want her kids to die after she's already lost one of their Dads and seen both of her kids in critical conditions.
"No amount of busy is worth cutting corners and taking risks" Astra's Dad just being my chance to soapbox for a second.
Some people I can trust….Some.
Felix once again running to the parents, still a Momma's boy….Which given he's got three of 'em.
Astra's parents are absolutely adoring the idea of Astra and Regalia; they are the biggest Scrapmetal shippers and called it straight away.
Yeah those first three grunts got absolutely dog-walked by Zirconia because they were absolutely never gonna be trained to take out a Hunter….And one of 'em had a wooden weapon.
I really wanted to stress from the moment we saw Zirconia in the midst of the fighting that this was not something she was trained or really mentally ready for, this does not look or feel like being a hero….I was going for war movie vibes, a bit of Saving Private Ryan.
Of course she found Carmesi in the middle of ripping someone's whole chest cavity out, what else would he be doing….He is a believer in Nero's message, he would probably see a lot of these fighters as misguided and ultimately honourable people worthy of saving; but at the same time he is just brutal when he fights, go back and re-read the Vol.01 finale.
Props to Zirconia for realising that they were fighting conscripts and acting accordingly though.
That tag-team attack with Zirconia and Carmesi was supposed to just feel wrong in comparison to other tag-team moves we've seen; it involves her actively setting herself up to have her Semblance and therefore her soul damaged.
A scene about an all-nighter, written at 1am.
Yeah AJ very nearly made a fuck up which would absolutely have seen her disowned at the very least….We'll chalk it up to having just woken up.
Also, Arctus has been a Dad for a few weeks and got the Dad voice down.
"Heartbreaker. Seemed like a good successor to Mould-Breaker" oh there it is, that gourmet pain….But it is still a cool weapon, laser sword that has absolutely got some tricks I'll pull out later.
As someone who absolutely loves being an uncle, that moment with AJ was just a matter of me tapping into some core memories.
Well her big brother saw through her in half a second and oof, AJ is absolutely hurting on a deep and fundamental level….That hug is not gonna fix it really.
Just the transitions between AJ and Hops, really driving home that absolutely neither of them are happy with how their break up is going.
Visually Pikesreach would be an interesting place if I had any artistic skill at all.
The firefighting with the Ice and Gravity Dust is a small thing but it brought a smile to my face.
See things like that Hunter and Zirconia having a moment of staring each other down, only for the Hunter to just get snatched up and snuffed ties into that Saving Private Ryan feel; war is unfeeling and your heroics do not matter when something can just destroy your whole position.
But we do of course still get a Hunter fight….I was writing this around the time of Vol.09 episode 09 and we'd just seen Summer, so there's definitely a bit of 'Evil Summer' in that nameless Huntress design.
And her weapon is just fucking evil.
Zirconia had another chance to argue her point against a Hunter and well she's not exactly much of an orator or debater….Even as fucked as Pikesreach is, you can still see the rationale for how and why it went the way it did.
But now we get to see what the Man-eater is really for….And boy is that thing fucking scary, there's that Tyranid influence and honestly the exact image I had in mind when I had the original anteater idea; just something that snatches and neutralises it's prey.
"All you need to do is what you're told" was cold.
So Astra is back and too nervous for small talk….Felt like a good chance to refresh people with the overall aesthetic and vibe of Breaktide.
I think Velvet handled the situation and dealing with Astra pretty well.
But the most important part of the scene, what we all came here to see is the teams' new member and it's honestly so heavily foreshadowed that you should definitely have seen it coming: Stygian Blue….I actually planned this from the moment he was first introduced.
Stitch's old look was a mix of Jinx and Finn from Arcane with a little of Eric Jamal of Coast Contra thrown in; his new look takes a lot of inspiration from Erik Killmonger, which therefore includes influence from DBZ Saiyan Armour and also the concept art for Static Shock comic by Nikolas Draper Ivy…..Which is where the modified fireman's coat type garment idea came from, that's actually something Nikolas mentioned taking as an inspiration on Twitter
The tiger eye beads though, homage to Tiger.
Zirconia, superstitious no….poetic absolutely.
Really trying to drive home here that this whole situation is fucked and she is out of her depth.
There were other forces from Jidhir Town in reserve, which makes sense from a tactical standpoint especially in Remnant where Grimm means that you will pretty much always be at risk of getting hit from behind in a protracted fight.
Take in everything about Carmesi's presence and the way he had everything set up and then balance it against "We come in peace" I honestly laughed when I wrote it.
But you've gotta admit, his speech wasn't a bad one; he's probably better at getting the message across than Zirconia because he actually believes the message more….And let's be real, he told people who'd been living under dictators that they'll be getting food, medicine, fuel, funding, weapons and training and THEN immediately followed it up with an execution of their dictators.
"You are free now"….That might just be the coldest line I've written and there was no point ending the chapter any other way.

Thank you to MajorBrony95 for their review on the last chapter.
Yeah, we will see Nora before the mid-point of the volume; we were actually meant to see her in the next chapter but I changed the way that scene worked.
Yeah the villains have all got their various goals and are eager to fuck each other over to get what they want….But what if I told you that all of them are underestimating Nero; 'cos yeah he's just a normal guy in a world full of monsters and super-powered fighters, but he's had time to plan, he's used to running large operations full of backstabbers and more importantly: He knew who and what his allies were when he started working with them.
The team will be "Team MARS" for the next part of the story, but the title won't be changed.
Zirconia's wavering, it's just a matter of what finally pushes her.

As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.