A/N: Hey there, everybody! Happy Sunday and welcome back to the Mesoamerican Arc! As you can see by the title, things are definitely going to be ramping up in this chapter, so I suggest you hold on to your seats! Trust me, there's a reason why I had to delay this chapter by a few days, and you're gonna see why. With that said, this is…
Chapter 27: The Battle of Teotihuacan
…..
It had been several hours since the Omni-Hunter's fateful, if somewhat unexpected and tumultuous encounter with the Mayan gods of death and war. Needless to say, some of them were still reeling from the experience, but for the most part, they were very hyped about it as well. And they were even MORE excited for what they would be doing next. But, over the course of those hours, they had also been rather busy. For one, they had returned to the Rustbucket III to tell Cooper what had happened, and while the blonde genius was intrigued… he was also a bit skeptical.
"So lemme get this straight;" Cooper pressed his hands together. "You guys, within the span of a single morning, ACTUALLY managed to meet not one, but TWO gods?"
"Sure did, Tech Head." Coco said with a sly grin. "And YOU missed out on all of it."
Suddenly, Ruby bounced forward and showed her scroll to the genius. "And just so we're on the same page, here's proof!"
Cooper peered closer to the scroll and his eyes widened at the sight of Four Arms and Rex both battling a large, skull-faced being that towered over both of them, taking him aback. "…Huh, he's exactly how you described." He faced the group again and crossed his arms. "Maybe there IS more to this god business than I thought at first…"
"Really looks that way." Coco affirmed with a wink. "So, how do you feel about missing out on all that NOW, babe?"
The genius could only give a shrug, jabbing his thumb back toward his armor that was covered by a sheet. "Honestly, the fact that I managed to get THIS thing done in that time, I'd say it was pretty worth it." Coco and the others deadpanned at him for that remark. "…What? It's my baby."
Coco couldn't help but roll her eyes. 'Yeah, I'll give you a baby…' However, after playing that back in her head, what was originally supposed to come off as snide suddenly had a double meaning now that she thought about it. '…I mean, maybe in the future, but… bah, semantics.' She shook the blush away from her cheeks and refocused onto her boyfriend. "Tech Head, I swear, I need to get you outdoors more. I'm proud of you for finishing off the suit and all, but you missed out on the meeting of a lifetime!"
"Hey, I'm sure that I'll get the chance to meet more gods." Cooper raised his hands. "Besides, we're going to try and find another one right now, aren't we?"
"Indeed, we are." Ben affirmed. "Pretty soon, we're gonna head out to the ancient city of Teotihuacan to see if we can't get the Feathered Serpent's attention." He nudged his head over to all of their vehicles, which had their luggage inside. "But first, we've gotta drop our stuff off at the hotel we'll be staying at. So c'mon, let's get that done before the sun sets…"
However, Gwen waved a hand to her cousin. "You guys go on ahead. I'll meet you at the hotel…" Her eyes changed back to glowing pink as her entire being began to do the same. "Like I said, I gotta head back to that library and get those books back in their proper places…" And, just like that, the Anodite was gone, having disappeared in a flash.
There was a brief pause before Blake realized something. "Wait, you went to a library WITHOUT me?"
"Told ya!" Velvet piped up.
And thus, after promising Blake that they'd stop by the library later, the Omni-Hunters loaded up into their respective vehicles, with Rex taking Weiss on his ride so that everyone would be accommodated. The gang then all made their way back to the city of Mérida and checked into their hotel, with each team taking a respective room.
However, a certain thought had crossed a certain Blonde Brawler's mind. 'Maybe I could've convinced Ben to book US a room all to ourselves—' But she cut that thought off after reminding herself of what was said between them and their mothers, bringing her mind back to focus. 'No, not after what we promised yesterday. Mom and Sandra were right, I can't let my hormones do the talking for me. I have to be one-hundred percent sure that I can be responsible with this decision…'
"Hey, Yang!" Ruby piped up, bringing Yang out of her stupor. "You okay? You seemed zoned out there for a sec."
"O-Oh, yeah, Ruby, I'm fine." Yang assured. "Just uh…" GRRRR… The young huntress' violet eyes nearly bugged out at the sound of her own stomach grumbling, making her sister give out a laugh.
"Haha! Oh wow, you really ARE hungry there, aren't you?" Ruby grinned. "Guess your mind must be focused on food, huh?"
Deciding to roll with it, Yang nodded and stood up. "Y-Yeah, that's exactly it. C'mon, let's go see what this place has to eat…" Not long after, the entirety of Team RWBY made their way back downstairs and met up with the others in the dining hall… where there was a MASSIVE buffet practically just waiting for them. The Omni-Hunters could feel their mouths watering at the sight, especially those who had gone out into the jungle. Not only were there several Mexican specialties up for grabs, but also more common food like burgers, hot dogs, pizza and more.
Almost immediately, the hungry teenagers practically stormed the table, with each one grabbing a plate and putting as much food as they possibly could on it. The only ones who showed a hint of restraint were Coco, Velvet, Pyrrha, Weiss, Blake, Ilia and Penny, the seven ladies standing off to the side as they watched their compatriots swarm the table. "…You think we'll get ANY?" Blake wondered out loud.
"Those SHIMMY-CHANGERS are MINE!" Nora exclaimed as she reached for what appeared to a platter full of some kind of burritos.
But Rex also reached for them as well. "They're called chimichangas and they're NOT just yours, Nora!"
"…Unlikely." Pyrrha answered the cat girl.
Weiss rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's proclamation, though she had to admit, he had a point. "If Nora's hunger is anything to go by, then I'll be surprised if we get any CRUMBS…"
"That's putting it mildly." Ilia remarked.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry, ladies." Penny beamed, ever the optimist. "After all, the whole point of a buffet is for it to be replenished whenever people take the food, correct?"
Velvet's ears lowered slightly as she saw more food being taken. "Well, yes… but you have to wonder how LONG it'll be before the chefs have more food ready."
Coco couldn't help but smirk at the sight, however. "Heh, if you ask me, this is actually kinda entertaining. I mean, look at 'em go! It's like a competition over there." She then called out to her boyfriend, who was actually among the others attempting to get food as well. "All that work on the suit worked up your appetite, huh, Tech Head?!"
Cooper's eyes widened and he promptly stopped, realizing that he had joined the others in storming the buffet. He blushed and his sights went to his girlfriend apologetically. "O-Oh, sorry, Coco, I didn't—"
"Hey, did I say you could stop?!" Coco held up her own plate with a determined smirk. "If ya keep going, you'd get enough food for the BOTH of us!"
Needless to say, Cooper was taken aback by her proclamation… but his smile swiftly returned, just as determined as she was. "I'm on it!" And with that, he went back to getting as much food as possible for him and his girlfriend.
Blake and the other girls weren't too impressed, however. "Really? Do you have to encourage this behavior?"
"What can I say, Kit Kat? I love competition." Coco winked.
Just then, however, a pink flash enveloped the room, hailing the return of Gwen. The Anodite strode forward with a proud smile and her eyes closed, dusting off her hands. "I'm back everyone! Sorry that took so long, but you wouldn't believe—" But then, she cut herself off when she saw the sight before her; a bunch of her ravenous teammates, including her cousin and boyfriend, all vying for some rather delicious-looking food. Granted, they had all paused when she entered, but at the same time, she couldn't help but notice that Weiss, Pyrrha and Blake were the only ones showing restraint and waiting their turn.
"…Really?" Gwen deadpanned as she grabbed a plate. "I leave for half an hour and I come back to this?" With a wave of her hand, Gwen chanted; "Coercero!" The result was a bunch of mana chains suddenly bursting out from out of nowhere and wrapping themselves around the rest of the team, taking them all by surprise.
"Agh! Gwen! What's the big deal?!" Neptune cried out.
"We're in a hotel, not cave." Gwen asserted as she and the other ladies all began to line up at the buffet table. "The food isn't going anywhere, and all of you definitely don't have any good excuse for acting like savages."
Pyrrha gave a single nod as she passed by her boyfriend. "She's right. I'm especially surprised at you, Jaune. Considering you're a knight, I would think you would have a bit more decorum."
Jaune's gaze immediately lowered in shame, regretting what he did immediately. "…I'm sorry."
"I know." Pyrrha gave him a pat on the cheek for his troubles. "You all may continue when WE have finished filling our plates."
"Until then, I suggest you all reevaluate your manners." Weiss added, shooting her boyfriend a slightly miffed glance. "After all, we all have seen what poor manners can get you recently, right?"
"Aw, c'mon Ice Princess!" Rex argued. "Me attacking Ah Puch was TOTALLY different!"
Weiss merely closed her eyes and faced back to the table, picking up a small salad. "The same principal applies, Rex. Proper etiquette, especially in a hotel, is required in a public place…" She trailed off, however, when she saw that Coco hadn't joined the other girls in getting their food. "Uh… Coco, aren't you going to fill your plate?"
"Psh, you kidding, Weiss?" Coco scoffed, jabbing her thumb over to the now-trapped Cooper… whose own plate was piled high with food. "I gave him a mission and he succeeded." Despite themselves, everyone let out a unified laugh at that.
…..
After Gwen got the situation back under control and everyone had their lunch, the gang spent the next hour or so settling into their rooms until about four o'clock. Then, they loaded back into their rides again and returned to the airport, boarding the Rustbucket III once more. Soon after, they were airborne and headed on a course for Teotihuacan… or more specifically, Mexico City. Since they knew that Mexico City had an airport, they ultimately came to the decision of landing there before driving the rest of the way to Teotihuacan.
"After all, the people who're in charge of preserving the city probably wouldn't appreciate a huge space jet landing right on the Avenue of the Dead like a runway." Kevin reasoned.
"…Avenue of the Dead?" Weiss uttered. "You can't be serious."
Rex, however, shook his head. "Oh, he's serious, Ice Princess…" His sights went over to Penny, giving the redhead a nod. "Penny, mind pulling up a map of Teotihuacan for us?"
Ever dutiful, Penny gave him one of her signature salutes. "Of course, Rex! I'm on it." After a few seconds of standing still and staring into space, Penny's eyes began to glow a more intense green before a pair of light projections came out of them, coming together to form a single holographic screen. And on this screen, was a large map of Teotihuacan, with all of its roads marked and its important landmarks highlighted in red. There was also a river running through the city, which was highlighted in blue. "There we are!"
"Good, now just… don't blink."
Penny tilted her head to the side… and blinked a couple times. "Why not?"
Rex deadpanned as he watched the map flicker in and out of existence before facepalming. "Órale, just… keep staring straight ahead for a few minutes, please?"
"I'm on it!" Penny assured, standing as still as a statue with a neutral expression.
"…It's kinda creepy how she's able to just stand there lifelessly, not gonna lie." Yang whispered to Ben.
Ben smirked and rolled his eyes. "Heh, right. Well, in any case, here's a little map layout of Teotihuacan…" The hero pointed up to the first grey, rectangular building, which had a black box above it that said "Gate 1". "We'll be entering here at the main entrance, which is the closest building to the Temple of the Feathered Serpent…" The hero then directed his hand down to the large red square that was just across from the building, which had a smaller square and a more angular shape in the center of it. "Across from the entrance is where our main focus is; the temple itself."
Weiss noticed the road that was between the temple and the main entrance, and it was indeed marked as the "Avenue of the Dead". "…Huh, guess there really IS a road called that. But, uh… why IS it called that?"
Rex could only give a shrug. "Eh, heck if I know, but what I DO know is that it sounds metal has hell and I can definitely get behind it."
"Also, Mexican culture is highly in tune with the dead as well, so that could be part of the reason." Gwen added.
Jaune approached the map and immediately noticed the two larger structures that were highlighted in red as well. One was directly next to the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, though it was across the river. It was probably the largest structure in the entire city, too, easily overshadowing the temple and the other structure that was adjacent to it. Speaking of, the last structure was located at the very end of the Avenue of the Dead, and it was surrounded by clusters of several smaller structures as well.
The blonde knight pointed to the two structures and raised a brow to Ben and Gwen. "So if we're focused on the temple, then what're these two?"
"Oh, those are the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon." Gwen explained. "They basically served as focal points of the city, and as you can imagine, people held rituals there for… well, the sun and the moon."
Nora's eyes lit up in excitement. "Ooh! Do you think we'd be able to summon Huitzilopochtli and his cranky sister if we went there, too?"
The entire group laughed sheepishly at her suggestion, with Gwen sending her a wave. "Hehe… that probably isn't such a good idea, Nora. Remember, we're trying to PREVENT the end of the world, not make it happen faster. If Coyolxauhqui and Huitzilopochtli were both to be summoned down to Earth… well, I think that would end in a pretty big disaster."
The Pink Dynamo winced and rubbed her neck. "Ooh… yeah, that's a good point. Ix-nay that last thought then."
Ben faced the map once more and placed his hands on his hips, an eager smile quickly forming on his lips. "Well, no matter WHO we end up getting the attention of, I just hope it goes over well. I'd be SO stoked if we could get the Feathered Serpent himself as an ally."
"So would I!" Ruby exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "Just think of all the awesome things he could do! He could literally blow every enemy away with a wind storm! Ooh! Or maybe he could crush them with the weight of his own body! Ooh! Or maybe even—"
"Okay, okay, let's slow down there, Rubes." Yang said, putting her hands on Ruby's shoulders. "Remember, we still have to actually TALK to the dragon first."
Fox crossed his arms and tilted his head. "And before that, we actually have to find a way to summon him." He raised his hands and scanned his blank eyes across the room. "Anyone have any idea how to do that?"
Gwen raised a finger up. "I might. If I can whip up a spell powerful enough, maybe that'll be able to get Quetzalcoatl's attention." She sent her gaze out the window, seeing that the sun was just beginning to set over the horizon, making way for the dark blue of the night sky. "I'm just glad that we're doing this now. Hopefully there won't be too many tourists hanging around the place."
"Hm, I was going to ask why we were doing this so late." Yatsu spoke up, seeing that it was almost six o'clock. "I suppose doing this at night where there's less eyes around IS a good idea."
"Now the only thing we can hope for is that Quetzalcoatl is in a talking mood if we can get him." Ren pointed out. "If he's been slumbering in the heavens for all this time, I doubt that he'd be all that happy getting woken up."
"Eh, I'm sure once he hears WHY we summoned him, he'll be willing to listen." Nora shrugged.
"Again, hopefully." Ilia stressed. "The last thing we want is an enormous dragon—"
"An Enormous "F You" Dragon." Ben interjected.
Ilia narrowed her eyes slightly, but continued nonetheless. "Yes, of course. We REALLY don't want Quetzalcoatl to be upset with us. We were already on thin ice with Ah Puch before, so we really should tread lightly."
Just then, Kevin spoke up from the main controls. "Well, be ready to start treading, because we're here!" The team all gathered around the jet's windows and set their sights down to the ground below… and were met with a rather breath-taking site. It was a sprawling city with tall buildings and more traditional structures alike, the most stand-out being a large palace with an extravagant dome topping it. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Mexico City."
…..
As amazing as the nation's capital was, the group had to promise themselves to take a tour of the city the next day. After landing at the airport, however, Ben and Rex had taken notice of a poster that was promoting something that caught their attention immediately. "Woah, no way!" Rex beamed from ear to ear. "Triple C is having a show tonight!"
"And the main event's gonna be a Women's Title match!" Ben added excitedly, facing Team RWBY as he pointed to the poster. On it, the girls saw two women who seemed to be in their mid-twenties, and both of them wore masks over their faces. One appeared to be a rather angry individual who wore a purple and red mask that had a red V over her eyes, resembling a pair of angry eyebrows as her black hair came sprawling out the top of it. The other woman wore a white mask with purple and green detailing, and her long, magenta ponytail could be seen coming out of it as well. In addition, there was a big gold belt in between them as they glared at one another. "Guys, you've GOTTA take a look at this!"
Yang and Ruby peered closer to the poster while Blake and Weiss stayed where they were. "Huh…" Yang uttered, realizing the poster was entirely in Spanish. "…I can't read this."
Weiss facepalmed and went forward, reading the poster herself before explaining. "The most dominant woman in Triple C, Cindy Slam, will take on the feisty Buena Girl in the main event. Whoever wins gets the vacated Women's Title, and it'll each be their first title reign if either of them wins."
"Ooh! Sounds exciting!" Ruby clapped her hand excitedly. "We should go after we're done in Teotihuacan!"
"Maybe." Blake said as she began to walk after the others. "I'd rather not be up too late, especially after a full day like this."
Ben, however, gave Ruby and Yang a smile and wink. "Well, I know WE'LL go once we get back." The girls cheered in approval before all of them followed after Blake, getting in their respective vehicles to head to the ancient city. Still, it was a tight squeeze, even with Rex and Weiss taking the former's ride with Sun and Neptune as tag-alongs. In the end, though, they all managed… but just barely.
As they drove down the highway to Teotihuacan, however, Ben couldn't help but glance behind him… and see Blake, Ruby, Ilia and Penny all uncomfortably smushed together in the backseat. He then reached down and pressed a big green button on the center console, activating the comm between his and Kevin's car. "Hey Gwen?"
"Hm? Ben, what's up?" Gwen replied.
"Not to be so blunt, but we NEED to get you a car." Ben stressed. "This tight squeeze situation can't keep going on forever."
Kevin piped up in agreement. "He's right, babe. Your grandpa can't keep taking everyone everywhere."
Gwen could be heard sighing, but nonetheless, she also agreed. "I know, I know. I've been wanting to buy a car, but I haven't gotten a good chance. Hopefully I'll be able to at some point down the line."
"I hope so, too!" Nora shouted as well. "Because as much as I love my friends, there IS such a thing as too close for comfort, ya know!"
That got a laugh out of the group as they continued on their way, driving another forty-five minutes before their destination came into view. Ben couldn't help but beam from ear to ear as he saw the massive structures appearing in the distance, their silhouettes backed by the rising full moon over the horizon. "Well guys… there they are."
Ruby gasped as she struggled to get a good view of the place, and immediately, she could see two huge pyramids in the distance, along with several other, newer buildings that were surrounding the entire site. "AH! Oh my gosh, this is amazing!"
"Sensational!" Penny added as she adjusted her eyes to see the structures in more detail. "Ooh… they are indeed quite old… I'm VERY excited to observe them closer."
"And so am I." Ben concurred. "Let's get in there!"
Following that, the team all pulled into the parking lot and regrouped before heading into the front gate, entering the main entry building of the site soon after. Once they had gotten their entry passes, they made their way through the next gate… and were met with a sight that made their jaws drop. Before them laid a city made of ancient stone, a relic of times long ago. The structures that surrounded them were aged and many of them had crumbled, though for the most part, they were all still standing, which amazed them. What else amazed them were just the sheer amount of people there, ranging from tourists to locals, all of them smiling in awe as they took pictures of the magnificent ancient city. Above all else, however, three important structures stood out. The two pyramids, obviously, but then the other one was actually the one closest to them, and it's right where they were headed.
It was a huge citadel that was square in shape, with a huge surrounding wall that had multiple smaller structures surrounding it. The inner part of the citadel was on a lower elevation, and at the very end of it… was the Temple of the Feathered Serpent itself. Even in the light of the setting sun, the Omni-Hunters could make out the temple in all of its splendor, including what appeared to be several animalistic heads sticking out at every elevation. What's more, the temple actually had guardrails on it, and the tourists were all eager to climb up it.
As the team stared at the massive temple before them, Ruby couldn't help but utter; "Woah… this is…"
"Amazing." Yang finished, her breath taken away. "I don't think I've ever seen ruins like this."
"The ones in the Emerald Forest don't even compare." Pyrrha concurred. "These are on a whole other level."
Weiss pointed up to the temple, indicating the heads that stuck out of its sides. "Rex, just what are those, exactly? They look like heads, but for what?"
"Heh, the Feathered Serpent, of course." Rex answered. "I bet if we were to get closer, you'd be able to make 'em out better, but if the name didn't give it away, then those heads should definitely make it clear who this temple is for."
"Hm, interesting." Ren said before eyeing Ben, giving him a nod. "Ben, you were right. Earth has a lot of amazing sights to see."
"Heck yeah!" Nora said with a pump of her fist. "And I can hardly wait until we get to see more of 'em!"
The Omnitrix bearer gave a chuckle and nodded back to the duo. "Heh, trust me, guys. If you think this place is impressive, you haven't seen anything yet. Once we get to Europe, we'll be seeing a TON of old places, some even older than THIS one."
Coco whistled, impressed by both Ben's words and the temple itself. "Wow, neat. Count me in on some of that." She then tilted her head over to Gwen. "So, Red, what should we do next?"
Gwen pursed her lips in thought. "Well… I don't exactly want to do any sort of BIG magic with THIS much people around. I honestly expected most of them to be gone by now." The Anodite trailed off as her gaze went to the top of the temple… only to blink when she thought she saw some sort of ripple in the sky. It was almost like some sort of light had refracted off of something, and it piqued her interest immediately. "H-Hey, did you guys see that?"
"…Uh, see what, Gwen?" Sun asked, scratching his head as everyone else grew confused as well.
Neptune shook his head. "Yeah, we didn't see any—" VVVRRMM! Before Neptune could even finish his sentence, a humming noise graced everyone's ears before a beam of white light suddenly appeared right over the temple, appearing from seemingly out of nowhere. Almost immediately, all of the tourists began to scream in panic, some almost tripping up while running down the temple's steps. "…Uh, I stand corrected."
"D-Do you think it's Quetzalcoatl?" Velvet guessed.
The moment he saw six figures appear in the light, however, Ben furrowed his brow and got on his guard. "Don't think so. Get ready, guys! I think we're about to have some company!" Once the bright light dissipated, the six figures had been revealed… and it was exactly as Ben had feared. Cinder, Rojo, Subdora, Neo, Emerald and Mercury all stood at the top of the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, the five villains all wearing similar evil smirks.
"Hello, heroes!" Cinder waved condescendingly. "Lovely evening, isn't it?"
"Oh, for the love of the gods!" Yang shouted as she glared at the group. "WE'RE ON VACATION! Do you guys SERIOUSLY have to cramp everything that we do?!"
"YES!" Mercury shouted back. "Because you SUCK!"
Blake and Ilia crossed their arms and narrowed their eyes at the group. "If anyone around here sucks, it's all of you!" Blake snapped.
"Yeah, now why the heck are you here?!" Ilia followed up, gesturing to all the running and panicking tourists. "Can't you see that you're scaring people just by being here?"
If anything, the villain's grins only grew at that. "Good! That means we're doing our jobs!" Emerald reasoned. "Besides, we couldn't just let you have a nice relaxing vacation, now could we?"
Kevin reached down and absorbed a stone slab, encasing his body entirely in the substance. "Guess not, but that's gonna prove to be a major mistake for ya. And in case you hadn't noticed, you're WAY out numbered." He raised an eyebrow and asked. "Maybe you shoulda brought your mutant muscle! Where ARE Tweedledee and Tweedledum, anyway?"
Subdora in particular took offense to that. "Farkas and Thaddeus are currently busy helping Doctor Animo with some… preparations."
"Oh, you've gotta be—now ANIMO is on Earth, too?!" Ben smacked his forehead. "Great, now even MORE Ministry members are here!"
Cinder wore a wily smirk at that. "Oh, you think THAT is bad, Tennyson?" Just then, something began to float up from behind Cinder's back… and the team couldn't help but gawk at what it was; a lone Seer Grimm. "You haven't seen ANYTHING yet."
"Is… is that what I think it is?" Yatsu took out his sword, preparing for the worst.
"W-What?" Fox brought his fists up, getting on his guard. "What does she have?!"
Cooper swallowed hard and reached for the energy pistol that was strapped to his leg. "It's… a Grimm. One of those Seers."
"You BROUGHT that thing with you?!" Ben barked.
Rojo gave the hero a shrug. "Well, we had to have SOME way of communicating with the Boss Lady, didn't we?" She eyed the jellyfish-like creature as it floated away from the direction of the setting sun, basking in the light of the rising full moon behind them. "Hm, and it REALLY seems to favor the moon." Rojo nudged Cinder's arm and winked at her. "Guess this means that your theory was right, Cindy."
Penny activated her Floating Array blades, transforming them into their gun forms and taking aim at the villains. "What are you talking about?! What theory?"
"Ah, yes, I should probably explain." Cinder said with a wave of her hand. "You see, when we first arrived in this little world, our Seer nearly died when it was exposed to this planet's direct sunlight. For whatever reason, it seems the Grimm are not too fond of THIS particular sun." She then raised her hand up toward the moon. "However, I had a little theory that if that were the case… then perhaps the opposite was true as well. And lo and behold…" The Fall Maiden gestured to the Seer, which was spinning in midair with a newfound vigor. "It is. And you MUST know what that means…"
Slowly but surely, the heroes' eyes all widened, their faces horror-struck at the implication of what Cinder just said. "No… NO!" Ben hollered as he began sprinting toward the temple. "Cinder, don't you DARE—"
"Boss Lady, one portal please!" With those words from Rojo, a purple and black vortex suddenly burst open directly at the temple's base, making Ben come to a screeching halt.
"AAAAGH!" Gwen suddenly let out a shriek and doubled over in pain, causing Kevin to quickly grab her before she fell to the dirt. The redhead winced as she set her sights onto the portal, with a familiar sickening feeling beginning to take her over. "…It's her."
Ben was about to reach for his Omnitrix, but a certain voice speaking up prevented him from doing so. "Well, well, well…" A cold chill was sent down the spines of every Omni-Hunter present as they all grabbed their weapons, watching on as the portal opened up fully… revealing none other than Salem herself on the other side. She was also accompanied by a man cloaked in black with a dark helmet, one whose hand was glowing purple as he reached it forward. "So, Ben Tennyson. We seem to be face-to-face once again."
"…Salem." Ben spat venomously.
Salem smiled darkly at the hero as he just glared at her, nudging her head over to the man in black. "I'm sure that you're more than familiar with Eon, correct?"
"W-Wait…" Jaune had found his nerve again and pointed his sword at the man. "THAT'S Eon?"
"Sure is." Kevin nodded. "Hey, I thought you blew the hell up about a year back!"
"Psh, hardly, boy." Eon scoffed. "I was merely forced out of your dimension, never to be allowed back in again. I can now only open portals to it that allow OTHERS to go through…" Eon trailed off as a brief pain went through his body, making him wince beneath his helmet. "Ugh, though not for very long. On that note, Lady Salem, I believe we should deliver our package before I start to tire."
"Of course." Salem nodded, facing the green-clad hero again. "I must say, Benjamin, it's been riveting speaking with you again, but for now, I have better things to be doing. However, I realize it'd be rude of me not to give you all a parting gift, so…" The witch raised her hand and snapped her fingers… and from behind her, all at once there came a multitude of Grimm. Beowolves, Ursai, Creeps, Boarbatusks, even some Death Stalkers as well. Ben quickly snapped back around and regrouped with his comrades, all while the beasts all went past Salem and through the portal. "I believe this should be a suitable amount for a first assault. Have fun, children, and farewell…" With that, the portal closed, leaving about what had to be a hundred or so Grimm all congregated within the citadel.
Rojo sat down on the steps along with her teammates, who all eagerly waited to see what would go down. "Now THIS oughta be a fun watch."
The only one who didn't sit was Mercury, giving them all a questioning look. "Wait, we're not gonna get in on the fight?"
"Only when necessary." Cinder said. "Remember, this is only the primary assault. Salem doesn't expect these Grimm to do any of the heroes in, but this will serve as a test for later, more plentiful attacks to come."
Emerald and Neo ushered the silver-haired boy to join them. "Yeah, and besides, Khyber's got his own plan, remember? So c'mon and take a seat."
"Hmph… fine." Mercury relented as he sat down. "But I'm gonna be kicking SOMEONE'S head off down there afterward."
Down by the team, however, they were all gathered together with their weapons brandished, preparing themselves for what would come next. "Okay guys, show of hands." Ruby raised her own hand as she glanced around worriedly. "Who was hoping that we wouldn't have to deal with Grimm on Earth?" Almost everyone raised their hand, with only the Alien Trio not doing so as they were too focused on their enemies. "Yeah, that's what I thought."
"Guys, I know that this looks back." Ben admitted. "But remember, we've all dealt with Grimm before and we've even faced MUCH bigger hoards than this." He sent a small smile toward his teammates, who all began to smile in return. "The Grimm being on Earth DOES really suck, but I know that if we all work as a unit, we can beat these guys back. Now, get with your dance partners…" Ben activated the Omnitrix and with one quick press of the core, he had transformed himself into Diamondhead. "And let's CRUSH these mongrels!"
Yang activated Ember Celica and quickly agreed with the sentiment. "I hear that, babe! It's HERO TIME!" With that, the Omni-Hunters all let out a simultaneous battle cry and charged forth into battle, the hoard of Grimm meeting them all head on.
…..
As much as Ruby was frustrated that their expedition-vacation had been so rudely interrupted by the ministry, a small part of her couldn't help but also be a little excited as well. After all, she had wanted to become a Huntress for as long as she could remember, and a big part in that wasn't just bringing evil-doers to justice, but also protecting them from the Grimm as well. And well… Earth didn't have any Grimm, at least not up until now. So, as she slashed her way through the horde of Grimm with her trusty Crescent Rose, she felt a small part of her come alive again.
She met back up with Weiss, her partner having just stabbed an Ursa in the head and froze it over with Myrtenaster… before then summoning a massive ice wall that impaled several more Beowolves. The two stood back-to-back and Ruby quipped; "Having fun?"
"Not particularly." Weiss replied before creating a series of glyphs in front of her, which then blasted beams of light at a bunch of incoming Boarbatusks. "We came to Earth to get away from this for a while, remember?"
"Well, yeah, but this is the kinda stuff I live for!" Ruby shifted Crescent Rose into its sniper rifle mode and began shooting at another group of Boarbatusks that were rolling toward them, shooting clean through them until there was only one left. It managed to dodge Ruby's shots and had jumped up in order to hit her… but was then punted right out of the air and slammed back into the ground below, courtesy of Yang.
The Blonde Brawler gave a battle cry and slammed her fist right down onto the beast, blasting it point blank with her punch and killing it. With a quick turnaround, Yang sent her sister a wink. "Got you covered, Rubes!"
"Thanks, Yang!" Ruby waved before seeing a certain dark figure rush past her, followed by a Grimm's dying scream. The Hooded Huntress snapped around in time to see Blake, with Gambol Shroud drawn, having cleaved right through the throat of a Creep, decapitating it with ease. "And you too, Blake!"
"Don't thank me yet, Ruby." Blake said as Team RWBY grouped up with one another, all four girls facing out toward the Grimm that began circling them. "We've still got all of these ones to worry about!"
"Right!" Ruby glanced toward all her teammates and nodded. "Then let's get started! Blake, you're with me! Yang, Weiss, Freezerburn!" In a split second, both Ruby and Blake leapt up high into the air, giving the bombshell and former heiress room to work.
Yang's eyes flared up and she slammed her Ember Celica together. "You heard the girl, Weiss-cream! Let's do this!"
With a curt nod, Weiss took a combative stance as all of the Grimm began rushing in on them, only for her to suddenly jab Myrtenaster into the ground and freeze it all around her. Yang jumped up to avoid the flash freeze, but the Grimm weren't so lucky, with all of their paws, claws and hooves being frozen over resulting in them all being stuck in place. It was then that Yang let loose a barrage of bullets from her gauntlets, striking both the ground and the multitude of Grimm below her. With the destruction of the ice, a fine mist was kicked up, along with the usual black mist that came whenever a Grimm was destroyed.
"Blake, Ladybug!" At her call, Ruby and Blake landed on the ground and surged forward at the same time, dashing toward the remaining Grimm that Yang hadn't killed. They weaved through the dazed and confused Grimm effortlessly, slashing through them with their respective weapons.
However, one Ursa, which happened to be an Ursa Major, actually managed to dodge one of Blake's attacks before smacking her away with it's mighty paw, the catgirl having been caught off guard. "AAUGH!" She was sent sprawling backward and would've landed on her head… but thankfully somewhat caught her and set her down. Blake snapped her eyes opened and smiled at the sight of Yang giving her a thumbs up. "Hah, thanks Yang."
"Don't mention it, partner." Yang winked. "Now let's take this big guy down!" Yang pumped her gauntlets and both she and Blake called out; "Bumblebee!" before sprinting toward the Ursa Major, which roared in retaliation. Blake tossed Gambol Shroud's ribbon over to her partner and Yang caught it just as the Ursa went for another strike. But just as its claw came down, Blake used her Semblance and made both her and Yang disappear, leaving shadow clones of themselves which the Ursa hit instead.
Having darted off to the side, Yang leapt up into the air and began shooting Ember Celica, gaining momentum as Blake kept a strong hold of Gambol Shroud. After gaining a good spin, Blake shouted; "NOW!", prompting Yang to let go and be sent hurdling toward the Ursa Major.
"Hey, Papa Bear!" The Ursa Major craned its head up… and was immediately met with its doom. "Have a knuckle sandwich ON ME!" BANG! With a single Fire Dust-fueled punch, Yang caved the Grimm's head in, killing it and making it dissipate into black mist like all the rest. Blake ran up to her and the two shared a fist bump before Yang put her arm around her best friend. "Nice work."
"Thanks, you too." Blake nodded back before noticing Ruby and Weiss running toward them… with a Death Stalker on their tail. "Oh… but I think we've still got trouble!"
"YOU THINK?!" Weiss said as she slid to a halt along with Ruby, the team of four now facing the Death Stalker. "But it's okay! We've faced one of these before, right?"
Ruby smiled and pumped a fist. "Right, we just have to get past that stinger… and I think I know how to do it! Cannonball formation!"
Yang's eyes widened slightly at that. "You sure, Ruby? That's kinda risky…"
"One that we might just have to take." Ruby acknowledged, but still kept her grin nonetheless. "Now, are you girls with me?"
After only a moment's hesitation, the rest of Team RWBY felt the determination of their leader come coursing through them and they all agreed, with Yang taking hold of Gambol Shroud's ribbon once again. Once Yang and Blake had extended the ribbon as long as it could go, Ruby used her semblance to then pull it right back, the three creating a massive makeshift slingshot that was aimed right for the Death Stalker. Once she was at the appropriate length, Weiss created a black gravity glyph that held it in place, giving her partner a bit of a smirk. "Have I ever told you how reckless this maneuver is?"
"Maybe, but it got the job done during initiation, didn't it?"
"…True." Weiss admitted. "Ready?"
"More than ready." Ruby affirmed, pumping Crescent Rose in preparation. With that, Weiss shifted the glyph from black to red and in an instant, Ruby was sent rocketing forward, with Gambol Shroud's ribbon snapping back forward and giving her even MORE speed. Ruby let loose several shots from Crescent Rose, bringing her closer and closer to the Death Stalker as it reared its tail to attack. However, Ruby proved to be faster than the tail and with a single swipe, she sliced it off with Crescent Rose.
With a blood-curdling screech, the Death Stalker began to thrash about in pain and anger, though it didn't last long as it was met with Yang, Weiss and Blake all rushing at it, the three moving along on the former heiress' glyphs. Blake and Weiss swiftly cut off both of its pincers, leaving it defenseless as Yang did it in with one last powerful punch to the face. With that, the Death Stalker fell and dissipated into black mist, with Team RWBY regrouping once more.
"Hah… and THAT is how Team RWBY handles things." Ruby proudly proclaimed.
"Nice job, ladies!" Yang congratulated as they all began exchanging high-fives.
Blake let out a sigh, but kept a firm grip on her weapon. "It was, but we're not done yet."
Weiss was quick to agree. "She's right. Now we have to help the others out with THEIR Grimm as well."
"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about your compatriots, ladies…" The girls all gasped at the sound of a voice that was directly behind them, the team all spinning around with their weapons drawn just in case. However, the moment they saw him, Ruby and Weiss both stopped, shocked at just who was standing there. The bearded man in grey was smiling down at him, and he still had his sunglasses on despite the sun going down over the horizon. "I'd say that they're all handling themselves quite well out there."
Blake and Yang both blinked in confusion and went at ease. "Uh, I'm sorry… who are you?" Yang asked, noticing her sister's stunned expression. "Ruby, do you know this old coot?"
"…Orson?" Ruby uttered. "What're you doing here?"
…..
"BONZAI!" KA-THWAM! With a mighty swing of her hammer, Nora came careening down on a massive group of Grimm, sending them all flying away and killing them instantly. This gave a sizeable clearing for Team JNPR to file into, their redheaded teammate shouldering her hammer with a smirk. "And THAT, my friends, is how you clear a path."
Jaune gave her a commending nod. "Nice work, Nora. Now all that's left is…" He took a quick glance up toward the Grimm that now surrounded them, noting just how many pairs of red eyes were glaring back at them. "…About a zillion more to go."
Pyrrha gave him a sarcastic grin. "Oh, come now, Jaune, it's not that bad."
"I'm sure we can clear these ones out no problem." Ren spun Stormflower around in his hands before taking a combat stance. "So, what's our plan of attack?"
"Easy, we group up and each take a side." Jaune explained. "We work together to take these down and we'll get them all taken care of in a hot minute." The blonde knight took his sheath and put it over his sword, transforming it into its greatsword mode in an instant. "Alright, we ready?!"
"I was BORN ready, Fearless Leader!" Nora exclaimed as she spun her hammer around and slammed its head on the ground, jumping into it before grabbing Ren and pulling him on as well. "C'mon, Renny! Let's take out these fools!"
"W-Wait, Nora, I'm not—" BLAM! "AAGH!" Despite his protests, Ren was too late, and in a split second, he and Nora were riding into battle aboard Magnhild. Jaune and Pyrrha last saw the duo literally screaming into battle before disappearing into the sea of Grimm, their landing accompanied by another explosion.
The couple glanced to one another before giving a shrug. "Eh, nothing too out of the usual for Nora." Jaune figured.
"Exactly." Pyrrha concurred as she raised Milo up toward the approaching Grimm. "So, how do you want US to go about our own fight?"
Just then, several of the Beowolves began charging at the couple, making them go on the offensive. Jaune brought his sword up and cleaved right through one's neck while Pyrrha stabbed another clean through the head, all while the blonde went about explaining his plan. "Ugh! Well, I've actually been thinking…" Jaune eyed his girlfriend as a sheepish smile came to his face. "You can use your semblance to polarize ANY metal, correct?" Pyrrha gave him a silent nod as she shot another Grimm in the head, ushering him to continue. "Well, I was thinking… maybe you and I could pull off some sort of… Fastball Special with it."
Pyrrha raised a brow before raising her shield to block another Grimm's attack, bashing it in the head in the process. She then took Milo and performed a downward stab through its shoulder blades, the javelin piercing straight through it. "A what special?"
"Ben mentioned the move to me once or twice." Jaune explained as he stabbed another Grimm as well. "It's a move where a bigger character launches a smaller yet pretty powerful character at an opponent so that their attack will be more effective."
"Hm, interesting." Pyrrha admitted. "And you're suggesting I use my Semblance on your armor to pull this off?" Jaune nodded back to her, prompting a smile to form on her lips as she tossed her shield at an incoming Boarbatusk, killing it. "You know, that idea may just be crazy enough to work—" GRAAAUGH! The couple snapped their heads around to see an Alpha Creep come charging toward them, the creature's spines on full display as it charged at them. "…Perhaps now would be a good time to put it to the test?"
"Oh yeah, totally!" Jaune steadied himself as he watched Pyrrha raise her hand and focus on her Semblance, her gaze transfixed on him. Before long, he could feel himself being lifted off the ground by his armor, which while a bit awkward at first, he managed to get his bearings quickly. "W-Woah! Haha, okay, I think I'm good!"
Pyrrha's eyes went toward the Alpha Creep as it closed in on them. "Alright, be ready to gain some momentum!" With that, the Invincible Girl began spinning around in place, which in turn made Jaune spin in circles around her. She could hear her boyfriend's dizzy shouting and while it would've made her crack a grin at any other point, she knew she had to remain serious for now. "Jaune, I'm ready! On my mark…" She made a few more rotations as she counted down; "Three… two… one… NOW!"
The redhead released her hold on her Semblance and Jaune was sent sailing forward, careening at highspeed toward the charging Alpha Creep. "WOOOAAAH!" Jaune shook his head and grasped his sword with both hands, focusing up as his gaze hardened at his opponent. "Okay… here goes NOTHING!" Jaune pointed the tip of his blade right at the Alpha's head, the creature finally noticing just how fast he was going. Needless to say, it didn't expect this move, but it still kept going now with its mouth, confident in its ability to kill this human.
SHINKT! GROOAAAUGH! Its confidence was misplaced. Rather than gulping down Jaune in one bite, the knight had stabbed Crocea Mors directly into the Alpha's mouth and through the back of its head, making its boney armor crack as the blade smashed right through it. Jaune pulled his sword out and the Alpha Creep fell to the ground, dead and dissipating into black mist. The knight turned to see Pyrrha running up to him, and he gave her a greeting wink. "I'd call that maneuver a success!"
"Haha, indeed!" Pyrrha laughed as she gave Jaune a kiss on the cheek. "How is it that you always come up with such clever ideas?"
"Eh, they just come to me." Jaune shrugged. "How do you think Ren and Nora are—"
BLAM! The couple set their sights upward, seeing the huge pink mushroom cloud accompanied by many, many Grimm bodies flying up into the air. They could also see a certain green blur dashing through the hordes of Grimm still on the ground, slicing, dicing and shooting through them with amazing speed. With a mighty leap, the green blur, Ren, jumped up high into the air, meeting Nora who was on her way down out of the mushroom cloud. The ninja landed on her hammer and, with a twirl of her body, Nora launched Ren down toward a large Alpha Beowolf, which he then cut right in half by making an X-shaped cleave through it. Ren landed in a crouch on the ground and the Beowolf's upper half fell off its legs, with both parts dissipating a second later.
Jaune and Pyrrha stared at the scene before them, the redhead replying; "I'd say they're doing pretty well."
"HI GUYS!" Nora waved, with Ren smiling over to them. "We saw your combo and wanted to do our own version! Hope you don't mind!"
"Hmph." Jaune huffed as he crossed his arms. "Okay, so maybe their combo was a lot flashier. At least OURS was more practical."
Pyrrha gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Honey, it's not a competition. So long as the Grimm are all dead, then that's all that matters, right?"
With a small sigh, Jaune relented and agreed. "Yeah, you're right. C'mon, let's regroup and give a hand to the others—" BOOM! The blonde knight cut himself off at the sound on another explosion, making him deadpan while Pyrrha giggled a little. "…If Nora doesn't take them all out herself first, that is."
…..
Across the battlefield, a certain monkey boy had taken notice to all of the explosive antics from the team's resident dynamo… and he couldn't help but feel jealous as he held off a Beowolf from biting his head off. "GAH! Ugh, why does Team JNPR get to have the girl that blows stuff up?!" Sun shouted as he staved off the Grimm, using his staff to push against it. The Beowolf then bit down into Ruyi Jingu Bang, which made him all the more angry. "Oh, HELL no, dude! I'm NOT letting you leave teeth marks in MY weapon!"
He kickflipped up and over the Beowolf, striking it in the head with his foot and making it tumble to the ground. Sun then separated Ruyi and Jingu Bang, freeing the gunchucks form the Beowolf's maw as he landed. With amazing expertise, Sun started spinning his weapons and in quick succession, began hitting the Beowolf with strike after strike, with each one unloading another round into its body. Then, with a swift kick in the gut, he made the beast double over before pointing two of the shotgun barrels point blank at its head, shooting and killing it instantly. "Tsk, tsk, see? Ya shouldn't have done that."
"Sun! On your six!" The monkey boy spin around and saw an Ursa starting to loom over him, and he quickly took aim… only for a pair of long blades to suddenly jut out from its chest. The Ursa fell over dead and revealed Penny standing behind it, smiling to him brightly. "Salutations!"
"Hehe, thanks, Penny." Sun put Ruyi Jingu Bang back into its bo staff mode and bowed his head toward her. "Much appreciated."
Penny gave him her signature salute. "You are quite welcome! But it isn't over yet!" She pointed over to a bunch of incoming Creeps before exchanging her Floating Array blades for her Block Busters. "So, shall we take care of these?"
"Thought you'd never ask!" Sun began spinning his staff as he and Penny charged at the horde of creeps, the latter leaping onto them with her large, spiked boot weapons and making them all scatter upon impact. From there, the duo began punting, smacking, blasting and stomping on the Creeps as they continued to try and kill them, but to no avail. But then…
REEEEET! The duo snapped their heads up at the sight of a huge Alpha Boarbatusk padding the ground with its hooves, getting ready to charge at them with its long, gleaming tusks. It also had a back full of huge, sharp spikes, so when it rolled up, it resembled a massive spikey ball. "Oh… that's probably not good." Sun muttered.
"Stand back!" Penny advised before shifting her Block Busters for her Bash Blasters, the two massive cannons aimed right at the massive pig Grimm. "Steady… and… FIRE!" BWAAAAM! A pair of massive green energy beams blasted out of the cannons and struck the Alpha Boarbatusk head on, and with a pain-filled squeal, the beast was reduced to nothing in less than a second. Penny gave a satisfied smile and dusted off her hands. "And that settled that!"
"…You know, I don't think I fully appreciate just how awesome ALL the redheads on our team are." Sun commented. "I should do that more often."
Meanwhile, Neptune and Ilia were dealing with their own problems. The two had met up with a Deathstalker, and the blue-haired boy was desperately trying to stay away from it as he distracted it. Not an easy task. As he kept shooting rounds of Lightning Dust at it, which it actually just kept absorbing using its pincers, he called out to the chameleon girl; "ILIA! Please tell me that you're in position!"
"Almost!" Ilia called back, having climbed up a nearby structure in the middle of the citadel. "Just keep that thing occupied until I give the word!"
"And what word is THAT?!"
"You'll find out! Just bring it this way!" Ilia had to wait a little bit for Neptune to circle back around to her position and lead the Death Stalker back toward her, but eventually, the Grimm was now almost directly below her, with Neptune standing near the structure she was on.
Neptune shifted Tri-Hard into its guandao form and asked; "Okay, NOW what?!"
"Jump!" Ilia saw the boy glance up to her in confusion, but she just doubled down. "Just trust me! Or do you WANT to be Death Stalker food?!" After watching Neptune's eyes shift between her and the Grimm, Ilia watched as Neptune, with all his strength, jumped up toward her, just narrowly avoiding the beast's massive stinger. She then grabbed his hand, and, with a strong toss, flung him right up into the air.
Before he could ask or even shout in panic, Neptune then saw Ilia pull out her Lightning Lash and dive down toward the Death Stalker, whipping it around its large tail and sending a HUGE blast of electricity through it. The Death Stalker screamed as its tail was finally sliced off by the razor-thin weapon, and Ilia snapped her head up to Neptune. "NOW! Aim for its head!"
"…Right!" Neptune pulled down his goggles and raised Tri-Hard up as he came falling back down to the earth below. He did a couple somersaults to build up momentum before finally striking his target, stabbing the Death Stalker through its head and giving it another massive shock. The Grimm fell dead at his feet and dissipated into black mist soon after, a cheer leaving his throat. "Haha! WOO-HOO! We did it!" He raised his hand to Ilia with a smile. "Up top!"
There was a bit of hesitation, but Ilia slowly returned his enthusiasm with a high-five giving him a smile. "Hey, nice job, Neptune. You did great."
"Yeah, so did you." Neptune nodded. "You know… in hindsight, we make a great team with our Lightning Dust weapons. Maybe we should think up some more cool combo moves!"
Ilia blinked as she realized that was a good point. Their penchant for Lightning Dust definitely COULD come in handy in the future. "Hm… you know, I may just take you up on that Neptune. But for now, we should get back to the fight."
Neptune nodded back to her. "Yeah, I can only imagine how everyone else is doing…"
…..
"GRAAAAAH!" BOOM! With a mighty swing of his greatsword, Fulcrum, Yatsuhashi cleaved into the ground beneath him, causing it to erupt into a massive storm of dirt and rock. The shockwave also sent several Grimm stumbling as they charged at him, and in the span of two seconds, they quickly all became buried in the rock and dirt that came right back down on them. Still, even if they were dazed and covered in grime, they got right back up and sprinted forward again, even angrier than they had been before.
Yatsu scrunched his face in annoyance. "Oh, you want some more?!" He reached for his belt and pulled out a vial of Wind Dust, opening up the handle of his sword soon after. "Lucky you, then! You'll be the first to get a taste of Fulcrum's latest upgrade!" He inserted the vial into the handle and closed it up, giving it a twist before the very edge of the blade began to glow a brilliant green color.
The tall swordsman then charged forward, doing a spin while pulling back his blade. "Now take THIS!" With one final spin, Yatsu pulled off a wide slash toward the incoming Grimm, and the moment he did, a huge wave of green wind energy was sent at the Grimm… and like a hot knife through butter, it cleaved them all in half, killing them without a problem. Yatsu wore a big grin at the sight. "HAHA! It works!" He spun his head toward Cooper, who was presently shooting a Beowolf right in the face. "Cooper! Your upgrade was a complete success!"
"Ha! Well what d'ya know!?" Cooper called back before shooting another Beowolf through its chest. "That's awesome, Yatsu! Glad it's working!" The blonde genius then craned his head toward where a certain blind huntsman was brawling with several more Grimm. "What about you, Fox? You test your upgrades yet?!"
Fox paused as he punched a Beowolf in the face and smiled toward Cooper. "Huh, thanks for reminding me!" He took out two vials of Fire Dust and flicked his wrists, opening up two hidden compartments on Sharp Retribution. Fox inserted the vials, closed the compartments, and then slammed the knuckledusters together, making the blades suddenly erupt into flame. "Ooh… I can feel the heat! Must be working!" He grinned manically toward the Grimm and yelled; "Now GET OVER HERE!" With that, the wily redhead began going on a tear through the crowd of beasts, his flaming blades being clearly seen as they slashed through every single Grimm and killed pretty much all of them.
"…Well, guess that answers my question—WOAH!" Cooper tuck and rolled out of the way as a massive Creep lunged at him, the creature growling and snarling at him as he came up to his feet. "Hah… okay, big guy, that's how you want it? Then bring it!" The Creep lunged at Cooper again, the blonde genius holding up his gun in retaliation… but he never got the chance to shoot it. Instead, a massive sword stabbed through it, taking the genius aback. At first, he thought it was Rex's sword, and it was… but it was made of hard light and not metal, so he knew immediately who it was. "…Aw, c'mon Velvet, I had it handled."
"Psh, yeah, sure." Velvet rolled her eyes as the Grimm dissipated, allowing her to shoulder her hard light copy of the Big Fat Sword. "Cooper, not to be rude, but you're honestly the most vulnerable out of all of us here. You're only packing a pistol that probably wouldn't have been able to pierce through that armor in the first place." She placed a hand to her hip. "Also, if you die, Coco will NOT be happy. You know that right?"
"…Okay, yeah, you've got a point." Cooper admitted. "Kinda wish I had my armor right now…"
Velvet sent him a sympathetic smile in response. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, Cooper. Right now, we should—WATCH OUT!" Velvet suddenly whapped her sword around, pushing Cooper away as a massive stinger struck the ground where he once stood. The two backed up as two more Death Stalkers came scuttling toward them, snapping their pincers threateningly.
"Oh, so THAT'S how you wanna play, is it?!" Velvet pulled on her BFS's handle and it shifted into Battle Saw mode, the blade spinning rapidly as she charged in. With a massive jump, Velvet went flying high into the air and raised her weapon over her head, bringing it down with a sharp battle cry. "GYAAAH!" The Death Stalker tried to counter with a whip of its tail… but it was sliced in half without much difficulty… along with the rest of its body. Velvet didn't have time to celebrate her victory for long, though as the second Death Stalker suddenly rushed up to her, raising its own tail for an attack. …But then, a familiar sound graced all of their ears.
RAT-AT-AT-AT-AT-AT-AT-AT! The Death Stalker screamed as heavy fire began unloading into the side of its body, making the whole creature practically fall apart at the seams. Its limbs all fell off and its boney hide broke off in shards as it collapsed to the ground, the red light in its eyes fading as its body disintegrated into the black mist. Cooper and Velvet stood with knowing smiles as their sights went off to the side, seeing Coco with Gianduja in her hands.
The fashionista pulled her weapon up and blew some residual smoke from the barrel, giving the two a wink. "Sorry, did I miss anything?"
"Hah, not too much, babe." Cooper sighed before going up to his girlfriend, putting an arm around her and giving her a peck on the lips. "Thanks for the save."
"No biggie, Tech Head." Coco set her sights over to Yatsu and Fox, the two boys hammering away at the Grimm's numbers by the second. "Hmhm, seems like the boys are enjoying their new upgrades. That was really nice of you to do for them, baby."
"Yeah, well, when they asked, I couldn't say no." Cooper shrugged before his features took a more serious tone. "Ugh, I just wish I had brought MY upgraded suit…" Just then, however, an idea popped into his head. "…But maybe I still can!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small key fob-like device and pressed a button on it before speaking into it. "VADOS, you there?"
"KSSHT—Indeed I am, Cooper!" The A.I. dutifully answered. "How may I be of service?"
A smile came to the genius' face and he asked; "Have your systems fully integrated with that of the Mark 3 yet?"
"I am at 95 percent and counting!" VADOS replied. "I should be ready for action soon."
Cooper nodded, thankful for the answer. "Good. Glad to hear it. Once you're done, I want you to pilot the suit to my location as quickly as possible. We've ran into some trouble and we could use the help."
"Very well, I will be there as soon as possible!"
"Thanks, VADOS, we'll see you soon…" Cooper put his communicator back into his pocket and faced Coco again. "Alright, now that we've got that taken care of, did you see where Ben went, Coco?"
Coco pointed off into a different direction. "Last I saw him she was over—" BLAM! The trio felt the earth suddenly quake beneath them as a massive explosion of sharpened crystals came spewing from the ground below, many impaling several Grimm on their way up. …And it came from the direction that Coco was pointing in. "…There."
…..
Diamondhead stabbed upward through a Beowolf's skull before kicking its body off his arm blade, sending it smacking right into another one before he reached around and grabbed another that had pounced at him. With brutal efficiency, he then smashed its face in with his crystalline fist, doing the same with several more that had come his way. The fact that these creatures of darkness had no souls to their names definitely made it easier for Ben to not hold back against them, especially now since he had to work out some frustrations.
'I SERIOUSLY can't believe that those idiots decided to actually FOLLOW us and RUIN our expedition vacation!' The Petrosapien thought to himself as his teeth clenched in ire. 'Can't I just have ONE normal day back on Earth?! ONE?!' With that particular thought, Diamondhead stomped on the ground and made a whole swath of sharp crystal spikes come blasting up from the Earth below, which in turn impaled many Grimm along the way.
A single Beowolf had managed to escape, however and was running toward Diamondhead at full sprint… only for its vision to be blinded by a green flashing light before a fiery hand grabbed its muzzle. Heatblast turned up the heat in his hand and narrowed his eyes at the beast. "I don't think so." And with that, the Grimm let out a pained howl as its whole face began to melt, and before long, it was just dead.
"…Uh, Ben?" Heatblast snapped around and was met with the concerned gaze of his cousin, who was crossing her arms expectantly. "Are you okay?"
The Pyronite pursed his lips and paused at her question, but eventually answered. "…No, no I'm NOT okay! I just wanted this to be a NORMAL weekend vacation!" He blasted a beam of flame toward an incoming Boarbatusk, burning it to a crisp. "Ya know, explore Mexico, absorb the local culture, maybe meet a few gods on the way?"
Gwen raised her hand and launched a mana disk at another Beowolf, cleaving it in half as it pounced at them. "Yeah, I get what you mean. But that doesn't mean throwing a tantrum about it."
"…I know." Heatblast sighed. "I just… I wish the Ministry didn't follow us."
An Ursa came barreling toward the two Tennysons, but it was immediately crushed beneath the feet of Rex, who came down from above with his Punk Busters. The EVO deactivated them and raised a hand to Ben. "Yeah, I feel ya, bro. But hey, you, me, ALL of us have been in the biz long enough to know that's just how things work in the hero business, right?"
"Yeah… doesn't mean I still can't be a little annoyed by it." Heatblast turned back to the incoming opposition of Grimm with a sigh. "C'mon, let's take care of these things."
However, it was then that a rocky hand clasped his shoulder, and he turned to see Kevin come walking up beside him. "Why don't ya let US handle some of these, Tennyson? Save yourself a little headache?"
Heatblast couldn't help but smile at the kind gesture, but couldn't find it in him to accept. "Thanks for the offer, Kev, but remember, we're a team." He reached up and slapped the Omnitrix, transforming into Cannonbolt. "We do this together, or not at all."
"Always have been." Gwen said as her hands began to glow with mana and she floated off the ground. "And always will."
Rex activated his Blast Caster, the massive whip crackling with blue energy as the dynamo on his back glowed brightly. "Yep, now let's kick the asses of these pendejos!" The with a collective battle cry, the four heroic teens blasted forward into the fray, meeting the Grimm head on. The beasts were hesitant to attack them, sensing the sheer positivity practically radiating off of all of them, but they kept on charging.
What they were immediately met with was a hard hit to their faces courtesy of Kevin, the Osmosian having absorbed Ice Dust into his arms and created a massive spiked ice hammer on one of them. Kevin then slashed through another Beowolf with a massive ice blade, one that was serrated like a saw. "Sorry, pal! Not happenin'!" He saw a Boarbatusk coming at him out the corner of his eye and he stabbed at it with the spiked ice hammer, puncturing a hole directly through its body. "And YOU need to slow your ass down!"
A bunch of Ursa had charged their way toward Rex, only for one of them to quickly end up in his grasp, the Blast Caster wrapping around it and sending a massive surge through its entire body. "Sorry, oso! I'm not on the menu today!" He began spinning around and slapping back several more Grimm that attempted to attack him, sending shocks into all of them before tossing the Ursa back at its friends, the blow so powerful that it sent them careening backward into the temple and they all died from the impact.
As more and more Grimm began to surround him, however, Rex decided to change tactics, bringing out his Bad Axes instead. "Alright, boys and girls, time to take your medicine!" The young EVO was a glowing blue blur on the battle field with his axe blades swinging and taking out Grimm as he went. "Here, lemme AXE you something!"
"Hey!" Cannonbolt shouted as he bounced off the heads of multiple Grimm. "Corny puns are MY thing, Rex!"
"Aw, c'mon dude, it was right there!" Rex reasoned. "I couldn't just let it go!"
"Hush now, boys!" Gwen asserted as her eyes and body began to glow as pink as her hands. "And let's focus on the task at hand, shall we?"
The young Anodite began to let loose several mana tendrils from her hands, all of which reached out and grabbed a bunch of Grimm. Gwen then clenched her hands and made all of the tendrils crush her opponents with relative ease, before then going back for more. This time, however, she ended up pinking up some more, so she decided to bring out an old trick. She gathered up all the Grimm she could and placed them into a large mana bubble, which she then raised up above her head and made it shrink until the sheer pressure inside killed all of the Grimm.
"See? Like that." Gwen said with a proud grin.
Cannonbolt couldn't help but roll his eyes. 'Oh, sure, go for the multi-kill trick. Like we haven't seen THAT before… but it's still pretty cool.' He pushed that thought out of his mind and got back on track, returning to smashing through the opposition. However, as he did so, Cannonbolt also saw Teams RWBY, JNPR, SN, CFVY, along with Cooper, Ilia and Penny all charging toward the battle, all of them calling out to him and his squad. And then… he had an idea. "GUYS!"
"Ben! We're coming!" Yang called back to him.
"No, wait! I've got a plan!" Cannonbolt came to a stop and slid across the ground, pointing to the disorganized Grimm horde. "I'm pretty sure these are the last ones, so I think I can get them all in one fell swoop! Let's round 'em up!"
The Omni-Hunters all brightened up at his plan and Ruby gave him a salute. "We're on it, Ben! C'mon, guys, you heard the boss! Surrounding formation!" Following the lead of the Arburian Pelarota and the Hooded Huntress, everyone began to circle around what was left of the Grimm army that Salem had sent through the portal, which had been whittled down to about fifteen or so. In the end, however, the twenty-one teens all managed to surround the Creatures of Grimm entirely, boxing them in while the monsters backed up against one another.
Meanwhile, up on top of the pyramid, Rojo and Cinder had rose to their feet, with the others also concerned at the outcome. "Oh… I don't like where this is going." Cinder uttered before glancing to Rojo. "Is it time for plan B?"
"Not yet." Rojo pursed her lips and crossed her arms, waiting to see what would happen. "Let's see what Tennyson's planning…"
With everyone aiming their weapons at the Grimm, Cannonbolt rolled to a stop, and Blake asked; "Alright, now what?"
"Now… this." Cannonbolt reached up to the Omnitrix once again and transformed… into an alien that none of the Remnant teens had ever seen before.
This alien was quite small and had stubby arms and legs, with a oval-shaped head. He was almost entirely stark white, aside from the lips and eye lids which were all black. His eyes were slit-shaped and were a bright green, as was the inside of his mouth. There were also a pair of what appeared to be headphones where his ears should've been, though rather than a headpiece, these were held together by a pair of wires that lead to a sort of square-shaped organ on his back. His legs also had what appeared to be speakers near the ankles, and as always, the Omnitrix was centered right on his chest.
The little alien pumped his arms and, in a raspy, reverberating voice, he shouted his name; "ECHO-ECHO!"
Everyone was left surprised by the new… or rather "new to them" transformation, as well as the fact that it was comparatively tiny to many of Ben's other transformations. "Woah! Okay, so what does this one do?" Jaune asked.
Echo-Echo set his gaze up to him and replied; "I. Suggest. You. Cover. Your. Ears." The Sonorosian pointed toward everyone else and reiterated his point. "That. Goes. For. ALL of you. ESPECIALLY. The Faunus. With. Sensitive. Hearing."
Everyone exchanged wary glances with one another, Blake and Velvet especially since they had two pairs of ears. "That… might be difficult." Blake commented.
"Don't worry, I've come prepared for just such an occasion." Gwen went over to the girls and pulled out two pairs of earplugs from her back pocket, handing them over to Blake and Velvet without hesitation. "Put these in your normal ears and make sure your animal ones are well covered. Trust me, you'll NEED to." Once the two ladies were set up properly, Gwen gave Echo-Echo a nod. "Alright Ben! Do it!"
Echo-Echo nodded and, all of a sudden, he began making multiple copies of himself, all of them appearing with green flashes as they surrounded the remaining Grimm. All of the teens backed away and Echo-Echo planted his feet into the ground, with all the copies speaking at once; "Wall…" The Grimm all growled and roared in opposition, unintimidated by the little alien's trick. "Of…" The beasts all began to sprint forward, thinking they could eat these pests up no problem. It would be the last mistake they'd ever make. "SOOOUUUNND!"
All at once, the Echo-Echoes opened their mouths and let loose a massive blast of sonic waves, the incredibly loud noise surrounding the Grimm and trapping them in a proverbial cage of torture. The beasts all screamed and roared in agony as they were assaulted by one of the most painful sounds that they'd ever heard, with many of them reaching up to their heads to try and cover their sensitive ears. Unfortunately, this didn't work for them, and Echo-Echo simply increased the frequency of his sonic blast, pouring it on more and more. Eventually, the Grimm began to convulse in pain, their heads twitching so much until… POP! One by one, the beasts' heads all began to explode, the audio assault becoming too much for them. Eventually, all of the Grimm were dead, and when the last Creep's head finally blew up, Echo-Echo put on the breaks.
He craned his head over to his team, seeing that they all seemed to be alright. Although Blake and Velvet were crouching on the ground, wincing and keeping their hands firmly pressed to their head. "Everybody. Okay?"
Weiss slowly pulled her hands away from her ears, letting out a breath. "I… I think so." She reached down and tapped the two Faunus girls on their shoulders, getting their attention.
"Is… is it over?" Velvet asked. She received a nod from the former heiress and both she and Blake let out sighs of relief. "Hah… thank goodness." The two reached down and took the earplugs out of their normal ears. "Note to self; keep these on us at all times."
"No kidding." Blake agreed before everyone went up to Echo-Echo, the Sonorosian returning his copies to himself before transforming back into Ben. "Also, PLEASE give us a bit of warning before you do something like that in the future."
"Oh, don't worry." Ben assured. "I will, promise."
Just then, Nora suddenly leaped up and gave a victorious cheer. "WOO-HOO! Nice job, guys! We won!"
But Ren shook his head and pointed up to the top of the temple. "Not yet, Nora. We've still got to deal with them." The group craned their heads up to see Rojo, Cinder and the other villains all glaring down at them, quite visibly irritated that they had managed to do away with all of the Grimm.
"Oh, yeah, forgot." Nora muttered before shouting up at them; "HEY! We killed all of your pets! Is that REALLY the best you've got?!"
Ben raised a finger. "Uh, guys…"
Pyrrha pointed Milo up to the six of them and challenged the group. "If you're willing to take a shot at us, we definitely welcome it!"
"Guys, seriously, I wouldn't…" Gwen warned.
"Even if we DO outnumber you!" Sun said with a cocksure smirk. "Might wanna keep that in mind."
Kevin facepalmed. "And… jinxed it."
Rojo and the others all began to laugh up a storm at the temple's peak, the bounty hunter giving her own smirk back to the heroes. "Hahaha! Oh man, well done, twerps! You managed to take down the Boss Lady's little gift!" Her gaze hardened and she spat; "Like we didn't EXPECT you to do that?!"
"The Grimm were simply the appetizers!" Cinder continued. "And now… it's time for the main course!" She reached for a communicator inside of her ear and said; "Send it down!" All at once, the same white pillar of light that the Ministry had appeared in came back, though this time it was slightly behind the six of them. The team all stared on in shock as what appeared to be some sort of alien dog came walking out of the light, and around its neck… was the very same collar that all of the predatory aliens they had encountered before had worn.
"…No way." Ren muttered.
"It can't be!" Ilia exclaimed.
However, Mercury just confirmed their fears. "Oh, trust me, it is. I might not like the owner of this thing, but I WILL admit that it is a good hunting dog." Grrr… Mercury's eyes widened and he glanced down to the Anubian Baskurr, who was glaring and growling at him with a rather miffed expression. "Uh… hehe, I-I mean, no offense."
Emerald elbowed him in the side, glaring daggers at him briefly. "Nice going, you doof." Her smile returned as her sights returned to the heroes below. "But more to the point, you guys are REALLY in for a fight now." She gestured down to the dog-like alien, which in turn focused back onto the heroes as well. "This little guy has a transformation that you're gonna WISH was just a nightmare!"
"Ack! Not this AGAIN!" Ruby cried out. "Just who does that thing belong to anyway?!"
Rojo shook her head with a chuckle. "Hehe, well, with any luck, you'll find out REAL soon, Little Red. But for now…" Rojo lowered herself down to the Baskurr and gave it a few scritches behind the ear, to which it whined in pleasure. "You know what to do. SIC 'EM!"
The Baskurr roared at her order before darting down the steps of the temple, and with a mighty jump, it leaped off the massive structure and began to transform in midair. In a flash of red, the dog-like alien started to become even MORE reptilian in appearance, going from a quadrupedal stance to bipedal in the span of a second. …Well, it was technically bipedal. It stood upright, but still had two hind legs that supported its body. Speaking of, its body began to grow until it was about seventy feet tall, and its forelegs transformed into six pairs of small vestigial arms at its sides, all with red claws just as its feet had.
A dark carapace then began to form on its back, with many rows of massive spikes going down its back until ending at the tip of its tail… which had several more sharp, red spikes coming out of it. In contrast with the rest of its dark body, the head was a bright crimson red, and the beast had a long muzzle filled to the brim with rows of sharp teeth. There was a large spike on the back of its head that swept toward its tail, along with an even LONGER horn that stuck out of its forehead, adding to its overall menacing appearance.
The beast's eyes gleamed red at it landed with a SHA-KOOM! The ground beneath its massive legs cracked upon impact, and the Omni-Hunters couldn't help but gawk at the massive alien predator standing before them. It was as if someone had taken a T-Rex and an insect and mashed both of them into some sort of nightmare creature, and it was terrifying. Even more so… when it belted out a roar. GRAAAAAAUUUURRGG!
The heroes were speechless for several seconds… before Neptune raised his hand. "Show of hands, who wants to run away?!"
"That thing's as big as that Grimmungousaur that we faced!" Jaune exclaimed.
Coco couldn't help but sneer at the sight of it. "Oh god, it's like something put a lizard and a bug in a blender and came out with THAT monstrosity."
Velvet shuddered as she shrunk back toward Yatsu and Fox, the massive predator beginning to stomp its way toward them. "It's… i-it's a—"
"A TYRANNOPEDE!" Yang shouted, which prompted the Tyrannopede to let out another roar and turned its slow plodding into a full-on charge. "And it's headed right for us!"
"This is NOT good." Gwen spoke up, clenching her fists as she prepared herself for one more potential round of fighting. "Anyone got any ideas?"
Without missing a beat, Ben stepped forward, his expression hardened at the sight of the Tryannopede barreling toward them. "Yeah, I've got one…" He eyed the Omnitrix and began giving it an earnest plea. "Alright, Omnitrix, here's the deal; I'm going to be as gentle as I can with you, and in return, you're gonna give me exactly who I want. I don't want Goop, I don't want Jetray…" He activated the device and found the icon he wanted, the core popping up soon after. "I want…"
Ben pressed the Omnitrix down and began running toward the incoming Tyrannopede, already feeling the transformation throughout his whole body. His skin became much thicker and tanner, his arms and legs becoming far more muscular in the process. His head and neck began growing and morphed to have more reptilian features, while a massive tail grew from out of his rear. Just when it was believed the transformation was done, though, he kept growing, with his hide becoming more heavily armored as he grew. His toes became sharper and a set of black dorsal plates came right out of his back, culminating with four sharp spikes protruding from his tail. The massive dinosaur-like alien whipped his tail around as his transformation completed, and he knocked the Tyrannopede right into the large platform directly in the center of the citadel, eliciting a pained groan from the beast in the process.
The Omnitrix-bearer stomped his foot upon the ground and reared his head toward the night sky, roaring his name up to the heavens; "HUMUNGOUSAUR!"
All at once, the Omni-Hunters all let out an uproarious cheer, seeing the Vaxasaurian stand in defiance toward the villains and their new pet. "Haha! ALRIGHT!" Nora cheered. "He's back, baby!"
"WOO! Humungousaur in the HOUSE!" Fox pumped a fist.
The Vaxasaurian glowered up toward the villains, who were still observing the action from the top of the pyramid. He pointed a stern finger up to them and growled; "I'm only going to tell you this ONCE. You guys can come at us with all the assets you want. Be it Grimm or these weird predatory aliens your mentor has. But I can promise you that we WILL beat them all back and…" Humungousaur trailed off when he noticed that the villains didn't seem all that perturbed by his speech. In fact, if anything, they seemed to be even more pleased than they had been just a moment ago, the group all smirking still. "…What?!"
Subdora couldn't help but let out a chortle as Neo gave Humungousaur a cheeky wave, the Merlinisapien poshly covering her mouth with her hand. "Ah-ha-ha! Oh, you stupido dinosauro... you cannot even comprehend the mistake you just made."
"What do you mean?!"
Rojo, Cinder, Emerald and Mercury all began laughing up a storm as they watched the Tyrannopede get up, which Yang immediately took notice of. "Ben! Behind you!"
Humungousaur snapped around and managed to catch the Tyrannopede's jaws just as it was about to bite him in the abdomen, pushing back against the beast with all his might. He then started to wrestle the alien dinosaur to the ground and before long, the two were rolling around across the whole citadel, which the teens had to avoid. In the end, however, the Tyrannopede actually managed to overpower Humungousaur, planting all four of its hind legs on either side of the Vaxasaurian and trapping him underneath it. Then, with its powerful jaws, it picked up Humungousaur and tossed the 60-foot dinosaur over its head with ease, and the hero landed head first into the center platform.
"BEN!" The Omni-Hunters shouted in alarm. Many of them went to charge forward, but Gwen held out her hand, creating a mana field preventing them from doing so. "Wait! If that thing can toss Humungousaur around, then we need to think of a plan first before we go charging in!" she reasoned.
All the while, the villains were laughing up a storm as the Tyrannopede closed in on Humungousaur again. "Hahaha! You get it NOW, Tennyson?!" Rojo guffawed. "We had a feeling that you'd try to go Humungousaur on us… so what better way to counter you than using your natural predator?!"
Cinder gestured to the beast and formerly introduced it. "Meet the Kaosseffexx Ultimasauria! The beast that EATS Vaxasaurians!"
Humungousaur was still in a bit of a daze when he heard this, and all the while, he didn't notice as the beast went to bite him once again. "Oh, I have become error—" CRUNCH! "AAUGH!" The Tyrannopede bit into the hero's leg, drawing blood immediately before giving him another toss… only this time, the landing was much more impactful. The heroes all let out a gasp as Humungousaur was sent directly into the side of the Feathered Serpent's temple, and in the process, many of the serpent heads crumbled beneath his weight.
…..
Unbeknownst to the heroes and villains below, however, this action caused something in the skies above to stir. A pair of gleaming golden eyes opened and a dark figure began to writhe as it awoke from a centuries-long nap, rudely awakened by the feeling of something being amiss in the earthly realm below. He peered down from his heavenly perch and glared down to the ground below, only for his eyes to widen in absolute shock and horror. His temple. The temple that the people of the past built in honor of him so long ago. It was… crumbling, and not because of the progression of time.
No, rather, he saw a pair of massive beings facing off, though one with the long neck and dorsal plates appeared to be in pain as his leg bled a bit. However, he saw that the same massive lizard's body had been the cause of his sacred temple crumbling, and it only got worse when the beast rolled down the side of it.
The divine being was about to unleash his wrath then and there… but then he saw what was upon the beast's chest, and immediately, he halted. A disk-shaped device with a green and black hourglass symbol on it. It was him, the Earthly Protector he had heard about from other gods in his dreams. His beastly snarl was replaced with a smile, he had wanted to meet this child for quite a long time… but the fact that it had to be under these circumstances was unfortunate. He then saw the massive predatory beast beginning to approach the young hero, and it was then that he decided;
'This… must NOT stand!' He reared his head back and let out a massive bellow, one that hadn't been heard in eons, before leaving his resting place and beginning his descent to the Earth below. 'Worry not, young hero. Help is on the way!'
…..
Back down on the ground, Rojo took out Bloodstrike and cocked it, the laser blaster's barrel beginning to light up. "Hehe, alright, I think it's time to stop lounging and start putting that chump Tennyson in his place!" She raised a fist toward her team and hollered; "ARE YA WITH ME?!"
Emerald, Mercury and Subdora all simultaneously roared their approval as they procured their weapons, while Cinder and Neo simply smiled nefariously at what was to come. "Oh, yes please." Cinder's eyes began to flare up with her Maiden Powers while Neo took out Hush's blade, ready to do some damage with the others. However, just as they were about to step down from the temple's highest point, the Tyrannopede suddenly stopped, its eyes on high alert as it craned its head toward the sky above, leaving Humungousaur alone entirely. "Hm? What's going on?"
"I-I don't know." Rojo admitted before calling to the predator. "What is it, boy? Smell something?!"
But at that moment, a loud shout was heard from the hero's group, and Neptune pointed right up to the sky. "HOLY CRAP! Look!" Everyone, the villains included, followed the boy's finger… and they couldn't believe what they were seeing. Forming directly over the top of the temple was an absolutely massive wind funnel, one that was beginning to whip up the air all around them.
"What the hell is that?!" Mercury barked.
"A-A tornado?!" Emerald guessed. "Or maybe a cyclone?!"
Subdora began taking steps away as the funnel grew closer to them… and then a bright light began to shine from within the center of the storm. "Pretty sure tornados do not do THAT, darling! Dobbiamo andarcene!" With that, Subdora disappeared, leaving the others as she sprinted down the pyramid unseen.
Rojo bared her teeth and screamed after her. "Hey! Get back here you—huh?" She cut herself off when she noticed Cinder, her eyes trained directly on the storm with her gaze filled with astonishment. "Cindy?! What's wrong?!"
"…That thing." Cinder muttered. "Whatever it is, I can practically feel it's power!" She snapped her head toward Rojo with a serious glare. "Subdora's right, we need to—"
BAM! Before she could even finish, however, the funnel rapidly descended and then crashed right into the top of the temple… though oddly enough, it did absolutely no harm to it. The same couldn't be said for Cinder and the others, however as they were sent flying off the temple so far that they ended up landing at its base. "GAH! Ugh, nevermind."
Back with the heroes, they covered their faces with their arms as the wind continued to whip around them, with the entire cyclone now shining brightly with the near-blinding white light. "AAGH! Gwen!" Sun called out, the monkey boy holding onto Blake to keep the both of them anchored. "What the hell is going on?!"
Gwen opened a single eye to look at the couple, her expression rather grim. "My guess? …I probably won't need to do that spell." The Anodite set her sights back up to the wind funnel, seeing Humungousaur slowly get to his feet as he and the Tyrannopede simply stared at the sight before them.
Just then, Ruby caught sight of a rather large and slender silhouette come flying down the bright wind tube, a gasp escaping her lips. "W-What's that?!"
But this just served to confirm Gwen's suspicion. "BEN!"
"I know!" Humungousaur acknowledged… just as a pair of massive wings broke through the cyclone, dissipating it entirely and revealing the being within the storm. And the very second everyone saw it, they all went slack-jawed. "…He's here."
"Oh dear." Subdora muttered as she reappeared next to her teammates. "We may very well be in trouble."
Directly above the temple, the heroes and villains were greeted by the visage of a massive serpent, one that stayed airborne even though its massive wings only flapped on occasion. This was likely due to the golden aura that was surrounding it, giving light to the entire area. What's more, this serpent was covered almost entirely by bright, colorful feathers, with the ones on its body mostly being green. Its wings, the tip of its tail, and the crest around its head, however, were donned with multi-colored feathers that ranged from blue, to red, to even gold. What's more, its head was actually donned with an extravagant golden headdress that had black plumage coming out the top of it.
The two groups couldn't really discern how long the serpent was, but they were fairly certain that it could at least encircle the entire temple twice over. And as for its facial features, it was definitely reptilian, though it also had some mammalian features as well, namely its rather pronounced nostrils and the eyes on its head facing more forward than standard reptiles. Its teeth, however, were very reptilian, especially its front most upper fangs that curved down below its lower jaw. With a strong flap of its wings, the serpent reared its head back and opened its mouth, belting out;
GYYAAAAAAOOOOOORRRR!
The being's eyes began to glow more intensely as the crumbled parts of the temple began to glow as well… and within moments, they had returned to their rightful places, almost as if it hadn't been wrecked in the first place. Everyone was left speechless at the massive shining being that was in the skies before them, though its golden eyes were trained directly down to the villains. Emerald was practically shaking in fear at this point. "R-R-Rojo?! W-W-What the hell is THAT?!"
"I… I-I don't…" Rojo didn't have an answer at first… but then she looked back to the temple and she quickly put two and two together. "…No fucking way. That… that CAN'T be! It just CAN'T!"
"Oh, it IS." Humungousaur assured. "And trust me, you just pissed off the WRONG Enormous "F You" Dragon."
Mercury clenched his jaw in apprehension. "That's… that's a DRAGON?!"
Rojo quickly felt her gut sink to her feet as she clarified that. "Not just any dragon, Merc… but the dragon that this temple was built for." The other villains glanced toward her nervously as she continued. "This… this thing is none other than the Feathered Serpent itself, the Aztec god of sky… Quetzalcoatl."
The gravity of that revelation hit the others like a truck, with Cinder whispering; "That… that thing is… a god?" She set her eyes back up to the Feathered Serpent as it continued to glare at them, and she could immediately feel the immense power that was behind that intense gaze. "…I would say that checks out."
Quetzelcoatl growled toward the villains… and what came next made everyone even more stunned than they already were. "I will only ask this once; what are you doing here desecrating these sacred grounds and DESTROYING MY TEMPLE?!"
…..
A/N: …Well, that escalated quickly. Yep, the moment you've all been waiting for is finally here, people! Quetzalcoatl in the… feathers. About time, right? And after everything that just occurred, it's very clear to see that the big guy isn't exactly all that jazzed about the Ministry coming in and causing trouble at his temple. We'll definitely be seeing the consequences of this in the next chapter, that's for certain.
But speaking of said trouble, I think it's pretty clear what Cinder's little plan was. With the sun having gone down and the full moon prevalent in the night sky, the Fall Maiden called in a little favor to Salem as a sort of experiment to see if her theory was correct. And indeed, it was. While Earth's daytime hours are uninhabitable by the Grimm, the night is still fair game. And while this was only a small test run, it leaves the question open; what if Salem were to unleash a GIGANTIC army of Grimm unto Earth in the future? The team were able to dispatch about a hundred or so without much issue while working together, but next time… things might not be so clear cut.
But, with all the Grimm defeated, Rojo decided to pull out one last little trick, with Khyber allowing her access to his Anubian Baskurr. And thus, it transformed into the Kaosseffexx Ultimasauria once again… or as Yang has now officially named it; the Tyrannopede! We'll be seeing its battle with Humungousaur continue come the next chapter, you can count on that.
Speaking of, NEXT TIME! After their formal introduction to the Aztec sky god, Quetzalcoatl decides that for this slight against him and his temple, the villains must face a just punishment; having to fight HIM. As that happens, the aforementioned battle between Humungousaur and the Tyrannopede continues, with a few other members of the Omni-Hunters getting in on the action as well. And as that battle wages, Cooper's new armor finally arrives on the scene, and the blonde genius is ready to show off exactly what it can do. With that said, thanks for reading everybody! I'll see you all next time and as always, stay safe out there!
P.S. I wouldn't take the appearance Mucha Lucha characters on that poster too seriously, by the way. They're not gonna be a MAJOR part of this story, it's just a little tongue-in-cheek reference.
