This is the last 'normal' chapter of the year. The next time Gems releases, it will be on our anniversary- the 27th of December.
And don't expect anything else.
…
Why are you looking at this text like that
I'm not gonna torture you on Christmas
Jeez
…
STOP!
Anyways, here's your chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
Cinder's warpath was as bloody as one would expect when it came to her, bodies strewn about and property damage values skyrocketing. For some reason, she felt this place was...familiar. Like she'd been here before, but she couldn't remember when.
The fact that she was angry, not just at the Wave but at this place, probably meant it wasn't a very happy memory.
The first, but small, casualties were the guards at the side entrance. She didn't even spend much time on them, summoning up flaming scimitars and cutting them down without a second thought. The two suited thugs barely even had time to raise their guns in defense. With two quick slashes, the door into the cave was completely melted from the heat and the Fall Maiden just walked on in.
At the same time, Lemon was interrogating the other three members of the Hong Kong gang, blissfully unaware of the walking inferno coming for her.
"So you used to work for Vulkanus, hm?" Lemon asked, almost amused, "Shame about him. From what I heard, he and I would've made good partners."
"Like water and oil," Tuck scoffed.
"See, if I didn't know better, I'd say this was his job. So, lemme ask you this instead. When'd you start working for the Spider?"
"The Spider? Do we look like we're sporting their ink?" Cricket asked.
"And hey, weren't her daughters at your auction? Why not go after them if you think the Spider's involved?" Tuck added.
"A simple answer for both questions actually. Plausible deniability. Malachite just loves hiring mercenaries for jobs like this. Sent her kids as a means to throw off suspicion. You see, she and I, despite being on peaceful terms publicly...how shall I put this? We absolutely fucking hate each other," Lemon said casually, "She despises how quickly I rose to power and I hate how much she's obsessed with knowing everything about everyone. Info broker, I know, but there's a line."
"Cool. I really can't find it in me to care about drama." Cricket said. "So, cut the bullshit and tell us what you want out of us."
"Well, for one, info out of you. If you are working for Spider, I'd like to be reimbursed. If you're just stupid enough to actually want to steal from me? Well, you know what happens to people who don't pay their debts to the Hana," Lemon threatened.
"They-" Marton began.
"No, no, let the boss say it," Sil cut Team SMMK's muscle off, "She's been practicing this."
"They're made examples of. But ahh, I'm torn. Normally people have a set way to strike fear. Raddock's strength, the Albains' poisons, The Hearth's cloak and dagger routine-"
"Which is why I'm here," Abigail smirked as she stepped out of the shadows, serrated scimitar in hand.
"But me? I have options," the Wave's leader continued, ignoring Abigail's interruption, "And they're all so good!"
"We're not working with Little Miss Malachite and her hallway dwelling twin daughters." Skywdd frowned. "We're just a bunch of vagabonds wandering around. We're through with the organized crime life!"
"Not a good life to live. Dunno how you can sleep at night, knowing what you've done and who you've ruined." Tuck scowled.
"Quite soundly, actually. Because I'm not some low-level thug who just thinks they're untouchable. Sil, my options," Lemon ordered with a smirk.
The rouge Huntsman nodded and tapped a few buttons on his Scroll. At the far right of the massive room the trio were held in, two massive doors, reminiscent of hangar bays, opened up. Behind the first was a collection of caged and sleeping Grimm of all sizes. Manticores, Beowolves, Creeps, a Geist, even non-Mistralian species like Sabyrs were behind bars. The oddest part was how calm they all seemed to be, like they accepted their new predicament. Behind the second set of doors, the trio caught a glimpse of what could only be described as an outright mecha. Streaks of its original red paint job dotted the now dull-gray chassis of a towering four-legged, insectoid robot.
"Can't decide?" Sil asked.
"No. Could go for the Grimm but which one to use is the next question," Lemon pondered.
"Those Grimm...you're controlling them, aren't you?" Tuck pondered, "That's why they're not trying to break out. You're using the necklace, aren't you? And I'm betting you rose so quickly because of it. That necklace lets you basically domesticate the Grimm, organize them and make any hit job look like a random Grimm attack."
"My, you're smart," Lemon gave Tuck a look, "I hate that."
"Not that hard to figure out. I found footage of the 'accident' you arranged for one Javi Pastel," Tuck sneered.
"Shit, really?" Sil asked, "Thought all the footage was long gone in those caves."
"Give the kids credit, they went in there and survived," Mina said.
"You'll be surprised what we put up with." Tuck said. "And I can say, you've made the biggest mistake of your careers."
"And why's that?" Lemon scoffed.
"Because. You didn't capture ALL of us."
"Oh, right. Your little friend. The fire-starter. Counting on her to show up, honestly. It'd be in poor taste to leave the job half-finished, wouldn't it?" Lemon smirked.
"You think it's gonna be that easy? Just catch her like she's any other thief in the city? Your lackeys tapped our call, they can tell you how much of a badass she is!" Cricket taunted.
"Hm. Quite the high opinion of her. She must know how to spin quite the lie," Lemon said, ever so casually.
"...what?" Skywdd asked.
"Hm? Oh? You...you didn't know? Of course you didn't! How could you! It's not like you always have the luxury of up-to-date news as, what did you say? vagabonds."
"The hell are you talking about?" Tuck demanded.
"Weeks ago, Haven Academy was attacked by Salem and her forces. They were stopped by some group called 'the Outcasts', associated with Ironwood and his goons. Bunch of poster children for his cause, really." Lemon smirked
"Rex..." Cricket whispered.
"The terrorists were stopped, but one was reported missing. When did Amber join you?"
"A fe-" Cricket began, but she was cut off by the sound of a massive explosion rocking the entire Wave base.
"Hold that thought," Lemon rolled her eyes and pulled out her Scroll. She called up the perimeter guards and waited for it to ring. She didn't even wait for them to speak first when someone answered.
"What the hell is going on out there?" Lemon hissed in annoyance, "If you tell me one of the Dust generators blew again, I'll-"
"You'll what, Lemon?" Cinder cut off the crime boss on the other end of the line.
"Well, well, Miss 'Amber.' Me and your friends were just talking about you! Wondering when you'd get here and join the line-up."
"Funny, but, I don't think the goons I melted will be laughing."
"Oh, is that the head bitch, herself?" an oddly familiar voice asked in the background.
"Yes, it is. Lemon, be so kind as to put us on speaker," Cinder politely asked. Without even really thinking about it, Lemon obliged.
"HEY PYRE! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE WITH HER!" Raddock bellowed from the other side of the line, "YOU BACKED THE WRONG FUCKING DROMEDON THIS TIME BITCH!"
"Raddock?" Abigail asked in shock.
"YEAH THAT'S RIGHT! I'M HERE! AND I DON'T APPRECIATE! GETTING FUCKING TAKEN FOR A GODDAMN FOOL! " Raddock yelled. Lemon had to hold the phone away from her ear.
"You're gonna go hoarse with all that screaming." Lemon huffed. "But...do hurry, Amber. I am 'spilling the tea' on you."
"First off...don't use that phrase. You sound ridiculous. Second, I assume my friends are with you so I'll just say this. Don't listen to a word that comes out of her mouth," Cinder said, barely even realizing the wording she just used. Her friends?
"Assuming you two can get to them alive. You haven't even met the proper welcoming party," Lemon said, looking at the members of Team SMMK and Abigail before nodding. That was their cue.
The five of them ran off, ready to face Cinder and Raddock. Do or die.
"You really think sending a bunch of children who pride themselves on being the best will do anything for you, Miss Lemon?" Cinder asked. "Turn on your cameras."
Lemon scoffed and patched the feed of the security cameras into her Scroll. She turned her back to the restrained trio and began to watch. She saw some of her dedicated lower rank thugs fighting Cinder. Saying that Cinder "melted" the other grunts Lemon sent her way was not an exaggeration.
Lemon's confident look turned to worry, as she flipped through the cameras. Carnage and death, all around. If this Amber was who she thought she was...
Lemon shook her head. "Just some big talk. Let's see if you can back up your threat."
Cinder slashed through one poor thug's rifle as if it were paper. With a swift motion, a superheated obsidian sword pierced the criminal's chest, leaving behind a neatly cauterized and smoldering wound. Cinder pulled her weapon free, before ordering Raddock to secure a side passage to ensure that no one else could get the jump on them. The Hana leader nodded and broke off from Cinder, letting the Maiden walk on ahead alone.
"You can come out now. Team SMMK. With a name like that, ambush tactics are just expected," Cinder sighed boredly. "So, I've prepared accordingly."
Without any real response, a barrage of shots were fired out from Cinder's left and right, courtesy of Khaki and Mina. The Fall Maiden easily brought up obsidian shields to block the crossfire, the hardened glass letting the bullets bounce off.
"Is that it?" Cinder yawned.
Cinder saw something shimmer in the distance. She held her hand out, and easily cut the wires. Marton yelled out as he charged in and tried to bash Cinder with his iron club.
"DIE!" Marton yelled, but Cinder simply touched his weapon and watched it heat up and turn to a molten heap.
"Fitting last words."
Cinder's hand grabbed Marton's weapon, reforming it into one of her trademark blades. She sliced-
Only for Mina to jump from her cover and fire off a web at Cinder's weapon. The spider web wrapped around Cinder's whole hand and weapon, conveniently turning it into more of a bludgeon than a slice. Marton got smacked away from the hit instead of being outright killed. Cinder growled and turned up the heat, singing away the webbing and summoning up a second sword.
"Ok...you first, arachnid," the Fall Maiden hissed, before launching herself at Mina.
Cinder easily sliced through Mina's webs with her fiery sword and avoided shotgun blasts at close range. Cinder began to swing wildly with both arms, acting like a living war God. She wasn't fighting this hard to save her friends, no, she was fighting to show Lemon she meant business.
"Mina!" Marton yelled, as Cinder continued her wild onslaught. She was hitting every possible weak point and cracking her Aura like an eggshell. A few more hits and-
With a distinct sound akin to glass breaking, Mina's Aura shattered.
Mina stumbled backwards, powerless. Cinder smirked, adjusting her grip on her blade.
And then she sliced Mina's head in half.
Mina stood there for a moment, the remnants of her iron mask clattering to the floor. What was left of the spider Faunus' face was frozen in an expression of shock, her mouth silently gaping for a breath she'd never get to take. The corpse fell to the ground soon after, but not before Cinder looked over her shoulder to watch the body fall with a sadistic grin on her face.
"Who's next?" the Fall Maiden taunted.
Khaki immediately drew her weapon and began to fire bullets, raining hell upon the girl. She was screaming, crying and enraged, all of her usually well-controlled emotions now erupting forth thanks to Cinder unceremoniously killing Mina. The Fall Maiden easily avoided the gunfire, not letting her smirk drop.
All that time running with those kids, I picked up some tricks. Cinder thought to herself before she slashed Khaki a few dozen times.
The girl's Aura shattered in turn, leaving her open. Khaki tried to fire off some shots at Cinder point-blank, power through the immense pain she was in. Cinder couldn't care less. With a swift motion, she slashed three more times at Khaki and just stood there. First, Khaki saw the barrel of her gun clatter to the floor, nicely cut from the Maiden's heated blades. The weapon piece was soon followed by both of her arms.
Khaki screamed, but did not bleed. The heat cauterized the wounds immediately. The screaming was soon halted by Cinder sticking a sword through Khaki's head.
"I can't fight with you blubbering in the back. It ruins my focus." Cinder huffed. Her body count was climbing.
"What the fuck...how...how are you doing that..." Marton asked in abject terror. With his club melted, he quickly scrambled before picking up Mina's shotgun-axe and aiming it at Cinder. Sil was scared as well, but rage was taking over more than fear. Khaki and Mina might not have been the best of people, by any stretch of the definition, hell none of them really were, but they were still his teammates. He flicked his wrists and prepared to eviscerate the Fall Maiden. His wires were almost impossible to see, though one stray beam of light shining down on one and you could see the reflection.
But not through his Semblance. He just needed Cinder to charge. First he'd use his Semblance, blind her. With any luck, she'll run right into the killing field he's set up and all he and Marton would have to do is clean up the mess that'd be left behind.
"You're a close range fighter. I'm not sure you're the best shot," Cinder hummed, taunting Marton, "But what do I care?"
Cinder slammed her hands on the ground and superheated it. Spikes of obsidian shot out like bullets, and stabbed Marton's body like a pincushion, giving him no chance to retaliate.
Marton coughed up blood as the spikes pierced his body, but Cinder carefully noted that some of her spikes were actually split apart by some invisible weapon. Sil's wires, she realized. She couldn't help but chuckle at the irony of it. That was a trap most likely meant for her, some sort of shield she would be "recklessly" thrown into and be sliced apart. It just turned her own projectiles into buckshot. The icing on the cake was Sil's expression of total horror as he realized how much he'd fucked up.
"Your desire to save them reminds me of someone I hate, but with you it's so overshadowed by my overwhelming power. You truly don't believe that you can save them, don't you? So you helped me speed up the process." Cinder taunted as she walked over to Sil, "Thank you. Sincerely. Saves me some time."
"You...what...what the fuck are you?!" Sill yelled, lashing out with his wires in a last ditch effort to rend Cinder asunder.
Cinder held up her bandaged hand. This would hurt like hell, but it'd prove a point. The wires sliced the hand to bits, and it hurt like hell, but she managed to power through the pain.
Sil smiled a bit, seeing the wound he inflicted. He finally had an advantage over her. But just as soon as he gained that confidence, it faded. He watched in pure horror as Cinder's hand slowly regrew.
"Inhuman." Cinder hissed an answer to Sil's earlier question.
The leader of the now decimated Team SMMK's horror only grew when he saw what was leaking out of the wound Cinder had so casually inflicted upon herself. It wasn't a shower of crimson as one would expect, but instead a stream of black smoke, Grimm smoke.
"N-no...that's not...you're not...your arm-!" Sil panicked.
Cinder rolled her eyes as her arm finished regenerating. She lashed out, grabbing the rogue Hunter by the neck, raising him up high. Her grasp was tight, firm enough to crush a windpipe like an empty soda can. Cinder smirked as she choked the life out of Sil.
"Your Semblance. Shadow manipulation right?" Cinder asked, knowing she couldn't get an answer, "Well then, let shadows be all that you'll see." With a swift application of pressure and a quick jerk of movement, Sil's neck snapped.
Sil's lifeless body hit the ground. Cinder hummed in disappointment. Not the bloodiest battle she'd ever been in, but truly one of her most 'one sided'. Cinder ripped off some of Sil's jacket, and wrapped it around her hand to hide her Grimm arm.
Her eyes drifted down to Sil's weapons. "...Hm." Cinder said, picking his gloves off his corpse. "Such an interesting weapon."
On the surface, they seemed to be nothing more than your average everyday glove, but upon closer inspection, one would see the mechanical components and spools of mono-fillament wire that let Sil slaughter people as easily as a puppeteer makes marionettes dance.
"Maybe a back-up...?" Cinder pondered.
Cinder put it on her hand, and hummed. "It looks nice. I'll use it better than he ever did." Cinder smirked, before she noticed a camera.
From the other side of the camera, Lemon had a horrified look of despair on her face.
With how hooked Lemon was to the screen, she had absolutely no idea that Tuck was already working on freeing himself from his bindings. With a single bandage cutting away the rope bindings, it was slow progress, but right now, slow was better than nothing.
Raddock dropped another body on the ground, the thug's face so bruised and bloodied he was unrecognizable. Honestly, he wouldn't care for names even if they did give them. He only remembered the seven gang members by their strength. Weak. Weak. Useless. Weak as shit. Weak as hell. Weak as fuck. And moderately strong. But none were a champion like him.
"I swear, Lemon really can't hire good help." Raddock huffed.
"Of course she can," a familiar voice said, stepping out of the shadows with her scimitar at the ready, "She has me and the Hearth after all, doesn't she?"
"Pyre," the Hana boss growled. The Hearth's head spun her blade a few times in her hand, like she was mocking Raddock from afar and, knowing her, that was the exact intention. What's worse, knowing Abigail, she'd have "friends" in the shadows, ready to stab the brute in the back. What was honor to an assassin, anyway?
"Hello, Raddock. Still cage fighting and chasing that indescribable nirvana of strength or whatever you believe in, I see." Abigail hummed, looking around. "It seems no one can satiate your need to fight."
"Mocking my creed? Really wanna test me when you're already on my shit list?" Raddock growled.
"Oh but you make it oh so easy," Abigail mocked, "Besides, we both probably know whatever that kid used to sway you was fake."
"Maybe…but if you're still asking me why I'm siding against Lemon, especially after that? Who's the real idiot between us?" Raddock huffed, pulling his weapon out from his jacket pocket. At first it looked like it was nothing more than a baton. One button press later, however, and that baton shifted into a full-on flail complete with reinforced chain links connecting the handle to the earth-Dust infused head.
"A bit petty aren't we? Or just trying to compensate? Ah, things never change, do they?" Abigail chuckled like the smug snake she was. The wild brawler lunged at Abigail, flinging his massive flail at her head.
She easily ducked under the strike and raced to the side, giving a signal to her hidden allies. Two Hearth assassins, each clad in dark but rather fancy looking robes with dark red trimming, lunged at Raddock from behind with poison-laced daggers at the ready.
Raddock swung his mace around and immediately took them out. He furiously roared as his weapon knocked the unwanted extras into the wall. "YEAHHHH! WEAK SHIT STRATEGY LIKE THAT IS NOTHING!"
"Oh, is it?" Abigail smirked. Her assassins were nothing more than a distraction. She was right on top of Raddock now, slashing at him with her scimitar and landing a good few blows on him. His Aura flickered, but he quickly and easily kicked the assassin guild leader away. He reached into his pocket, hoping to bring some fire of his own to the fight.
"Looking for this?" Abigail said, holding up the fire Dust crystal in her hand.
"Fuuuuuuuuck..." Raddock growled.
"You forgot about my Semblance, didn't you? Handy thing to have," Pyre chuckled. While the head assassin had rushed in for her strikes, her Semblance had activated. With his focus on her, Raddock didn't notice a hand reach out from Abigail's shadow and pickpocket him for his Dust.
"Yeah. Handy thing to have." Raddock said, slamming his hands together. "But I learned something about myself recently. All my rage has a nice, convenient, little outlet."
"You mean your pit fights?" Abigail scoffed.
"Nope. Berserker," Raddock grinned behind his mask.
"Berserker?" Abigail asked. That word seemed familiar. Where had she heard it before? Raddock's Aura began to light up and his boar mask seemed to meld into his face. His Aura was violently flashing a dangerous color, before the Auras of those around him were also doing the same.
"W-what the!?" Abigail gasped as she saw her own Aura flash,"The hell are you doing!?"
"I LITERALLY just told you! See, here's the fun part! I don't need to find a ring for my fights. THE WHOLE FUCKING WORLD'S ONE BIG FIGHT CLUB FOR ME TO ENJOY!" Raddock roared before laughing maniacally.
Abigail grit her teeth. "Good to know." Abigail rushed forward, and slashed at Raddock's chest.
Only for an airbag to blow her back. Abigail was blasted backwards into the nearest wall. As she recovered, her mind began to race with a single question. How did Raddock copy that? That was Semblance belonged to one of her men, but he was far outside of Raddock's range.
"Aw, what's the matter? Can't fucking TOUCH ME?!" Raddock yelled, pulling his flail back and lashing out with it. Abigail managed to avoid the direct hits, but some of the ground shaking shockwaves that resulted because of the hits threw off her balance.
That was another one of her men's moves! But he too was lying in wait. He could enhance the vibrations a weapon could give off with ease.
"A bit too overpowered for my tastes!" Abigail yelled.
"Oh quit whining!" Raddock laughed, "You're taking the fun out of this!"
Abigail quickly understood what Raddock had done- this power up had expanded the range of his semblance by five or sixfold. He could now make use of what was once such a limited range.
"Now!" Raddock yelled, lunging at Abigail again. "I'M GONNA CRUSH YOU!"
Abigail brought her blade up to try and block, but Raddock was faster than her. He copied another of her men's Semblance, a speed booster. She saw he was about to throw a left jab so she easily swerved out of the way of the hit...only for his fist to connect with her gut anyway.
"Oooh, illusion Semblance! Not really my thing, but gets the job done," Raddock grinned.
He hit her with his left, not his right as she thought before. That was so...so...
Funny.
Abigail stumbled backward, chuckling and chortling. She couldn't help it.
"And one more because I thought you could use a good laugh before I knock your face in," Raddock said, letting his rival just laugh uncontrollably.
"Y-you...you bastar-ahahahaha!" Abigail laughed, falling on the ground. That damn bastard used another stolen Semblance from an underling of hers, one that had the ability to make people laugh by touching them. She didn't realize that the laughter could be increased by force.
Raddock grinned, dragging his flail over. "There we go."
He was about to raise his flail and crush her head under the weapon, but stopped. This was fun but not quite what he wanted. This was one-sided, far too one-sided for his tastes.
"You are the luckiest bitch in this city. Second maybe, right behind Amber," Raddock sighed, before simply kicking Abigail right in the face, knocking her out.
"You better ask for a rematch," the Hana leader grumbled.
Why did he just knock her out, you may ask? This man was a monster. He had a history with her. They hated each other. Sounds simple enough. But even with Raddock, he believed in a fair fight. Maybe that's why his Semblance let him mirror others. Some part of his soul wanted truly equal footing in a brawl. At least, that would be the philosophical answer.
He'd flipped the advantage on Abigail using this Berserker Semblance of his. But the thrill of battle comes from your opponent being equally as skilled as you.
"Now...where the fuck is Amber?" Raddock asked, leaving Abigail behind.
The sight of 'Amber' in the doorway was horrifying. She wasn't limping nor was she covered in blood. To Lemon, the mere thought of being in the same room as her was horrifying enough.
"No grand reception? You made it sound like the must-see event of the century, my 'execution,'" Cinder grinned as she walked in. Lemon clutched the necklace around her neck and, unseen by all, had the gem within activate with a slight blue glow.
"Your men are dead. Team SMMK is dead. Raddock's probably done in Abigail by now. You're the last one standing, Lemon." Cinder said, walking over to Lemon's desk.
"I-I know who you are. I-if you don't stand down, I'll…I'll tell them!" Lemon threatened. "You care about them, you monster. How do you think they'll take the truth!?"
"Lemon? That would be more of a threat...if I didn't plan on telling them before I leave," Cinder summoned up her blade and was about to charge in, only to stop in her tracks when she heard the sound of metal and stone being wrenched free from their positions.
"The hell is that?" Cinder asked.
"That's the sound of my babies and my toys." Lemon grinned, easily switching from her terrified mask to her sadistically satisfied real tone, "I'm not sure you'll last long against them, but~! That remains to be seen."
As she finished her sentence, the first bay door was thrown open by a massive fist. Cinder watched in surprise as a massive metal and stone Petra Gigas emerged from the bay that held all the Grimm specimens. The Geist mask in the middle of the golem glowed with a distinct blue, just like the Creeps from the cafe.
Cinder stared at it boredly. "Hm. A Geist."
"You're not frightened? Geists can be some of the strongest Grimm in the region!" Lemon yelled.
"I'm sorry, should I be?" Cinder shrugged, "Do you have any idea how many Geists I've actually killed? And if it was shock value you wanted, why'd you send two Creeps after me?"
Cinder turned her focus back to the poltergeist Grimm and looked it over, "Always so easily meltable." Cinder held up her hand and unleashed a stream of flames.
The flames struck the stone golem, but, much to her surprise, the Petra Gigas charged through the flames and brought its massive, stony fist down at Cinder. She dodged out of the way, letting the rock slam into the metal floor.
"Hm. I see." Cinder said, before she looked at Lemon. She was clutching her prized artifact like a pearl necklace. Cinder smirked at her and rushed at the Petra Gigas. She formed swords behind her back, and launched them all at the Grimm.
The weapons shattered against the stony form of the golem. Despite what one might think, this beast's brains weren't made of rock as well. It knew its own strengths and weaknesses. As long as the mask was protected, then it could still fight. After defending itself from the onslaught, the Grimm charged and began to swing at Cinder with its massive stone limbs.
Lemon took a few cautious steps away from the fight. However, unfortunately for her, she stepped too close to Tuck. His bindings snapped off as his bandage managed to cut through them. He leapt out at Lemon and jabbed her in the face with a mean left swing.
"You forgot what I can do, didn't you?" Tuck grinned as the Wave's boss hit the floor. She hissed and quickly pulled out a gun, firing off shots infused with lightning Dust.
Tuck's bandages around his arms unfurled, as he quickly pulled himself and the others up to avoid the salvo. He was quick enough to dodge them.
"And you forgot that I'm still a gang boss! Didn't think I'd be armed?!" Lemon yelled, taking more shots at the trio.
"No! We just thought you'd be a better shot!" Cricket said, positioning herself. She nodded at the others, and they nodded back. Cricket forced all the energy she could muster into her legs, before launching herself at Lemon. The three of them went flying at Lemon- this was their signature team move.
Cricket slammed into Lemon's body first. "ROCK!"
Then Tuck slashed at her with his bandages. "PAPER!"
And then Skywdd flew at Lemon, his arms crossed in an X-formation. "Scissors!" He said, slamming into her.
Unfortunately for the crime boss, her Aura wasn't exactly the strongest, especially compared to someone like Raddock or Cinder. Those last three heavy hits were enough to send her flying. Unseen by Tuck and the others, the necklace had actually come undone by the bandage slashes and skidded away from the Wave's boss and under some nearby crates. Lemon thudded to the ground, but quickly got back to her feet. She growled, not having time for a drag-out brawl.
"Looks like...I get to use both today," the Wave boss grinned as she made a dash to the second storage bay.
Cinder avoided more of the Grimm's random punches, and decided to play her trump card. "All I have to do is wait for you to punch me again." She said, secretly deploying her new strings.
The Grimm huffed and reared back its fist, falling right into Cinder's trap. The Petra Gigas threw its punch and watched in surprise as the massive hunk of rock that was its arm was cleanly cut in half.
"Thank you for the opening." Cinder smiled, raising her hand. Her stolen wires sliced right through the Petra Gigas with ease.
The stone form fell apart with each stone crumpling to the ground. The Geist itself managed to escape from Cinder's gaze, but she was happy enough since she'd beaten it.
"Everyone ok?" Cinder called out.
"Y-yeah. We're all good. Lemon got away, though." Tuck said, keeping his distance from Amber. Cinder looked at Tuck.
"You think she wasn't lying, don't you? You really think I'm not who I say I am." Cinder said.
"Want me to be honest?" Tuck asked.
"...please."
"I first started to think you were hiding something during our planning session. You seemed a little too experienced with dealing with gang bosses," the Osmosian crossed his arms.
"A-ah. Well...first time my skill at scheming actually sold me out. Damn it," Cinder shook her head, but she had a bit of a smile on her face.
"Amber- is it true? Are you connected to Salem?" Cricket asked. "Have...have we been harboring someone even worse than…than any of these gangsters?"
Cinder looked away. Usually, she'd take pride in all of things, but, as with most things here, it was different. She couldn't actually bear the thought of them…rejecting her. But in the end, she knew this would have to happen.
"...go." Cinder finally said after a long silence, "This isn't your fight anymore. I'm sorry to have dragged you into this."
"So it is true then, huh?" Skywdd asked.
Cinder didn't answer, but that silence was all the Hong Kong needed. Before they could actually start on their way, the doors of the second storage bay opened. Several mechanical footsteps echoed out as the Atlesian Spider Droid made its way out of its hangar with Lemon at the helm.
"None of you are going ANYWHERE!" Lemon yelled over the war machine's loudspeakers.
"Ohhhh, what the fuck?" Cinder asked.
"She has a mech, of course." Cricket sighed. "Every insanely wealthy bitch has a mech."
Cinder scowled as the heat from her hands began to rise. She propelled herself off the ground and towards the cockpit. She didn't have TIME for this nonsense. There was no reason to expend effort on such a minor threat. Nobody had been a challenge; instead, they had been a nuisance or an impediment. She was tired of it.
It was time for her to clean up this mess.
Right as she was about to land her fist hit on the mech, stones were ripped from the wall as a second Petra Gigas formed right next to Lemon's stolen mech. Cinder didn't even have time as the creature, still under the necklace's influence, slammed its fist into the Maiden and sent her flying. Cinder rolled across the ground from the force behind the punch, her Aura flickering since she was hut by a literal ton, or more, of pure stone.
Cinder's golden eye started to burn brightly, as she forced herself back up. "If you want to prolong this, FINE! I'll make sure your death is painful!"
At this point, the Hong Kong trio knew it was time to leave. Cinder looked back at them, one last time. She knew she'd never see them again. They were probably horrified at who she was- just like Rhodes. They were seeing the true vindictive and evil side of Cinder, the one that would destroy her enemies and LAUGH afterwards.
And they ran away from that monster.
Outwardly, Cinder was still just as furious at Lemon and the Grimm as she was during any fight. Behind that mask of wrath though, there was a slight tinge of...was it regret? The Fall Maiden hadn't felt regret since...actually, the exact time escaped her recollection. That feeling did strike at her heart a bit, but she pushed it aside. She could handle emotional self-reflection later.
Right now, she was gonna entomb Lemon in that over-sized tin can she was piloting. Speaking of the Wave boss, she made the first move. The mech held its cannon-arms forward, the barrels charging with the trademark cyan energy of Hard Light Dust. Cinder began to run mere moments before it began to fire. Shot after shot tore through the ground behind her. Lemon was a lousy shot in that soon-to-be smoldering wreck. Her partner Grimm was less so. It "shed" some of the stone of its form and fired them out as projectiles much more accurately than Lemon's cannons. Cinder actually had to stop running for a moment and form a glass shield that cracked in a few places from the high-speed rocks. Lemon grinned as she saw her target stop and turned one of the mech's shoulder cannons towards Cinder and fired. The blast hit dead on, engulfing the Maiden in a plume of smoke and flame.
"Done in by fire. Ironic!" Lemon cackled. If it could, the Grimm would be giving the crime boss a deadpan stare. This fight wasn't over that easily. The sound of flesh being pierced caught the Grimm's attention, making it move closer to the smoke to investigate. Much to its and Lemon's surprise, Cinder's Shadow Hand stretched out from the blast zone and slashed at one of the exposed joints of the spider mech, not with its claws but with a glass scythe blade seemingly stabbed into its palm.
"Done in...by fire." Cinder repeated, eyes manic and crazed. "I like that idea." Cinder began to spew flames from her mouth and hands, slowly turning from orange to blue. Cinder was ready to do anything to win, to kill Lemon and dance upon her charred corpse.
And it was working.
"What...what are you-?!" Lemon yelled from inside the mech. The thermal scanners in the cockpit were going crazy as Cinder's ambient temperature rose higher and higher. The blue flames the Maiden was projecting nearly blinded Lemon as she saw them on thermal, like being right next to a flare as it went off. The scythe blade that Cinder had embedded in her Grimm-palm was quickly coated in the blue flames as well, giving the weapon a very demonic appearance.
"What am I? Ohhhh Lemon, you absolutely stupid bitch," Cinder began, "If you're asking that, maybe you really didn't know my real name. I'm Cinder Fall, the Fall Maiden herself. I brought down Beacon Academy from the inside and crippled Haven so badly it'll be a miracle if those gilded doors ever open AGAIN! You're just some wannabe kingpin, just like Torchwick. He served his purpose, and let me remind you of what happened to him. He's the meal of a flock of Grimm. By the time I'm done here, you'll have served your purpose too. As my FUCKING REBOUND!"
Lemon, in a panic, opened fire with everything she had in that mech. Cannon shot after cannon shot rang out from the Spider Droid, tearing up the area where Cinder stood.
Cinder rushed around the blindly fired salvo, and sped at the mech. She needed that bitch to die fast, but didn't want to risk destroying the necklace. What was the best weapon to make sure that could happen?
Well, time to see why that silver eyed brat likes these things so much. Cinder held out her hand, and made a massive obsidian scythe for her to wield.
This was the weapon that would execute Lemon. Not the most elegant weapon she'd ever constructed but it'd work.
The Petra Gigas tried to take a swing at Cinder as well, but the Maiden simply used the stony arm as a springboard for herself. She sliced through the arm after leaping off it. The momentum from the leap lead her into a spinning slash before she landed on the neck of the Spider Droid, scythe-blade impaled in the armor plating. Fortunately for Lemon, the cockpit was in the more heavily armored head, but her situation was still dire. She tried to swat Cinder off like a fly, but the Fall Maiden simply dodged out of the way and, in a quick motion, sliced the cannon barrels in half and watched the two pieces of metal clang to the floor.
"GET OFF ME!" Lemon screamed, trying to throw the Fall Maiden off as if the mech was actually a bull. All Cinder needed to do was jab her scythe into the mech deep enough to give herself a stable handhold. The thrashing mech accidentally backhanded the Petra Gigas, making it stumble and fall onto its back.
Cinder had her opening. With one more deep breath, Cinder rushed towards the cockpit, blazing like the demon she was. She'd break the glass with EASE.
She jabbed her weapon into the mech's head, missing the Wave boss by a few inches. Lemon let out a shocked gasp, before the sound of tearing metal filled her ears and light shone down on her form as the protective armor was peeled away. Cinder reached in and threw Lemon atop the mech, pulling herself back up in the process. She easily pulled the scythe blade free of the mech's armor and slowly approached the now helpless Wave leader.
"W-wait t-that business about the bounty! Had I known it was actually you, I never would've suggested it! T-trust me! I'm not that stupid!" Lemon pleaded.
"Not that stupid? You still let your lap dogs off their leashes for the promise of a paycheck," Cinder growled. Her Grimm arm stretched out and grabbed Lemon by the neck. The Wave's leader was lifted off the ground as Cinder simply held her scythe out to the side, blade pointing up. The Fall Maiden gently positioned the criminal right above the exposed weapon.
"Goodbye, Lemon. If you see Torchwick in hell...tell 'im that his little mute sidekick's on the way," Cinder grinned and dropped Lemon. The Wave's boss landed on the scythe's blade, impaling her through the neck. Cinder pried her blade free of the corpse, almost tearing Lemon's head off in the process, before she simply kicked the former leader of the Wave off the mech.
Cinder gave a sigh of relief, before leaning down to pick up her prize, the necklace.
"All that trouble, all that sacrifice, all that bloodshed...was worth it, for you. The new ace up my sleeve," Cinder said, holding up the necklace.
The sound of stone crumbling caught Cinder's attention after she secured the piece of jewelry around her neck. The body of the Petra Gigas collapsed and the Geist controlling it emerged. The misty cloak that surrounded its body was torn in places, but from what Cinder could tell, those wounds were older than this fight. Actually, it didn't seem like this guy had taken any recent damage. Its eye was still a solid blue, still such an odd color for a Grimm.
"You're...resilient. Interesting quality, especially for a Grimm." Cinder noted, as the Geist approached her. It was larger than most Grimm- this was most likely an Alpha, or something similar. Cinder hummed.
"I'll keep you around." Cinder said. "You have use to me."
The Geist bowed its head, accepting its new role as Cinder's new follower. She turned to leave, but the sound of footsteps approaching reached her ears.
"Oh you've got to be joking," Cinder growled. The first person to arrive was Raddock from one door. The next was a group of survivors from the Wave, no doubt coming to serve as Lemon's reinforcements. They froze when they saw Lemon face down in a puddle of her own blood.
"...hooooly shit," Raddock said, awestruck.
"She suffered. Not as long as I hoped, but still satisfying to hear," Cinder held up her head. "Now listen to me, you lone stragglers and followers. I run Lemon's operations from here on out. If you want to run, go ahead. You won't get far. If I can easily slaughter your leader, her best operatives and the lot of you...I will not hesitate to do it."
"Keepin' the name?" Raddock asked.
"Um...what?"
"The name. 'The Wave' doesn't work for you," the pig-masked kingpin crossed his arms, "So if you run the place now, maybe you give it a more fitting name."
"I don't need some stupid name to build up my notoriety." Cinder said, pulling down her hood and removing her bandages. She dropped them on the floor. "The name 'Cinder Fall' will be enough to send the message."
"W-what!? YOU'RE Cinder!" Raddock said, before laughing. "That explains why you're so goddamn crazy! How did I not fucking see that?!"
"And...you think that's funny?" Cinder asked.
"Well, I mean, a little. Not an insult, just, can't believe it took me this long to figure that out," Raddock chuckled.
"Hm." Cinder frowned.
"Don't worry. Any friend of Salem...is a friend of mine."
"What?"
"Oh, she never said? Ah, figures. Putting it bluntly, this ain't the first time I've worked with the lady. Couple of years ago, she hired me and some of my men to deal with someone. A Hunter, some fox Faunus? The way she talked about him made it sound like she wanted him dead, buuuut she stressed that he be brought in 'alive,'" Raddock explained.
"...interesting." Cinder smirked.
"It's a crazy small world, isn't it? But I'm sure as hell along for the ride. ALL of us are." Raddock turned around. "RIGHT!?"
"Oh, uh, y-yeah! Sure! You're the boss, Cinder!" one of the unnamed Wave thugs said, followed by murmurs of agreement from the others.
"Good. Call up the Albains. Time for their payment...and a new deal," Cinder grinned.
It was a few weeks later when Cinder heard the news about Atlas. Something about a starman that had appeared in the sky and was fought off by the Outcasts. Interesting, to say the least.
"Tennyson's crazy powerful, from what I've heard. Is it true?" Raddock asked, as Cinder, now dressed in a fine suit, watched the footage.
"Yes. I nearly killed him." Cinder said, picking up a glass of wine. "But, then he shocked my eye out, so..." Cinder took a deep breath. "Karma."
"Ok that explains the eye. What about the arm?" Raddock made a small gesture to it.
"His girlfriend," Cinder answered simply, "Ruby Rose. Such a perfect couple they make. I'll have to make sure they die at the same time. Don't want them waiting for the other, now do I?"
"You are fucking evil," Raddock grinned.
"I know."
"Speaking of Grimm, what happened to Floyd?" Raddock said.
"Stop calling him that. He's a creature of vengeance. Not a middle aged man." Cinder said.
"Well we can't keep calling him a Geist. He's our Geist! He's gotta have a name," Raddock countered.
"Yes, but could you not think of something better? Like...I don't know, name any demon from a religion. Leviathan, Baal, Mephesito, Set..."
"Those are cool, but a bit on the edgy side for what's basically a Halloween ghost tuned serial killer."
As if on cue, Floyd phased through the door that led into Cinder's meeting room and bowed.
"Speak of the devil! So, you dealt with that little disturbance?" Raddock asked the Grimm, like it could answer. Instead, the doors behind Floyd opened and two figures stepped in.
"If you mean us," Melanie Malachite said, annoyed at being called a disturbance.
"Oh hey...Li'l Miss's kids. Why the fuck are you here?"
"We heard the rumor, but wanted to see for ourselves." Melanie said, scanning Cinder up and down. "Nice suit."
"Thank you. It's from Zeusonian." Cinder said, putting away the footage. "But I doubt you came all this way here to see a rumor. What's your angle?"
"Not so much an angle as...ok, being blunt, our mom wants to say thanks for offing Lemon," Miltia said, "But in this town, someone's word alone isn't enough."
"A gift? How thoughtful...bring it in then," Cinder sighed.
"Can't. It's too big," Melanie said.
Cinder raised an eyebrow. "Too big...hm." Cinder looked to her Geist assistant. "Possess something big and lift the gift."
The Geist nodded, before it flew off. Raddock smirked. "Can't find good help like Floyd anywhere else."
"Stop." Cinder sighed.
"You named it...Floyd?" Melanie asked.
"His idea," Cinder sighed, motioning to Raddock.
"Well...either way, we were told to show you the gift since it technically comes in two parts," Miltia added.
"What even is this gift?" Cinder asked. "You can tell me. I don't care for surprises."
"An airship," the Malachite twins said in unison.
"Complete with top of the line forged security codes," Melanie added, "to get you into Atlas."
Cinder blinked. "You're kidding."
"We're not." Melanie said. "Burn that damn place to the ground. Ruins an otherwise beautiful skyline if you ask me."
"Just don't destroy all the armories. If anything, Atlesian weapons will be even more valuable with a limited supply. Could make a fortune off just one Paladin," Miltia added.
"I can't promise that." Cinder said, standing up. "But what I can promise is that I will purge Atlas of all the filth and wretchedness it holds. The city will be nothing but ash in my hands when all is said and done."
"Glad to hear it."
"So, guess I'm in charge while you're gone, boss?" Raddock asked.
"No. You're coming with me." Cinder said. "Salem's next move is coming soon, I can feel it. We'll go visit her, see what happens...and perhaps she'll allow the rest of you to serve her."
However, that didn't sit well with someone else. Almost like he heard the idea, Floyd reappeared, phasing through one of the walls. In his clawed hand, he held, of all things, an airship pilot's cap.
"You wanna come with, instead?" Cinder asked, raising a brow. As if to answer, Floyd just put on the hat.
"...how the hell does that thing know what a hat even is?" Melanie muttered.
"Fine." Cinder sighed. "You both come with me. Happy?"
Floyd tipped his hat, as Cinder groaned. "You're so annoying."
"Oh come on. He's not that bad! He's like our mascot!" Raddock chuckled.
"...this is gonna be a long flight," Cinder said, walking out of her room and past the Malachite Twins, "Let the Albains know they're in charge while I'm gone."
"We're not working for you." Melanie said.
"Don't care. Do it." Cinder said, as she slammed the doors behind her.
As the Fall Maiden, Raddock, and their pet Geist made their way to the ship, Cinder couldn't help but wonder...
"Raddock...any," Cinder sighed, "Any update on the others?"
"You mean your friends?" Raddock asked back, "Not a word on 'em."
"So, there's no sign they...got away safely." Cinder said, avoiding eye contact.
"Yeah. Those kids are tough, though. They worked under that Vulkanus dude." Raddock said. "Dude SUCKS at arm wrestling, but he at least had some power and influence. He knew how to whip them into shape."
"When you say that...that's not literal, right?" Cinder asked. Raddock's next words would probably decide the alien crime-lord's fate if Cinder ever met him.
"I mean...as far as I know. He and I did some deals here and there, but I wasn't close with him."
"Was he of any use?" Cinder asked.
"He had some alien connections." Raddock said. "Then the Atlesian forces overextended themselves, threw him in jail and took out some of his associates. Probably stepped on a few toes when it came to jurisdictions."
"...so he's in their custody?"
"Up in that shining city of theirs, yeah," Raddock confirmed, "Along with some other criminals they REALLY shouldn't be holding. Few different aliens, some...pirate from what I heard."
"If only we had the time. Such a shame," Cinder shook her head, "Ah well. I'm sure they'd thank me either way for what I'll do."
Salem held out her teacup as Zs'skayr poured her some. "Thank you, Zs'skayr." Salem said, sighing as she lifted it to her lips.
"I never expected you to find enjoyment in something so trivial." Zs'skayr scoffed.
"Why wouldn't I?" the dark queen asked, her eyes fixed on the Seer that lay neatly on the table before her. From its perspective, she saw Cinder and Raddock walking through the base's hallways towards the hangar.
"Her constant string of failures?" the specter suggested.
"While I am disappointed...I find it interesting how hard she's willing to work to return. She knows her place is by my side," Salem chuckled and took another sip of her tea, "Though her newfound friends, this Hong Kong gang, I believe Raddock referred to them as...they could prove problematic."
"To your plans?" Zs'skayr's eye went wide in disbelief.
"To her continued loyalty. Keep up the ruse for now. I wish to see how this all unfolds before revealing the truth of Cinder's survival. Cass has been on such a winning streak with her missions lately. I'd hate to see that go."
"You're going to take care of that gang, aren't you?" Zs'skayr hissed with a wide grin.
"No, no. They're out of the way for now. If they ever cross our gaze again though, it'll be a different story. But the way she pushed them away makes me wonder if she did it to protect them...or to focus on the bigger picture." Salem remarked.
"I see..." Zs'skayr hummed. Just because a kill order wasn't given, doesn't mean that he couldn't at least keep tabs on the trio. He was sure Salem would appreciate it, even if it wasn't implied in her words.
And who knows, if push comes to shove with their resident fallen Maiden, those vagabonds' lives could serve as excellent leverage.