Sarcasm Sage 626…come back to me…you're my only hope…
Anyways, to juxtapose the Top 5 Episodes I Won't Adapt, here's the Top 5 Episodes I Want To Adapt.
…
Come back to me on Monday. Btw, that's gonna be a three parter. So it'll release like:
7/10: Part 1
7/14: Part 2
7/19: Part 3
Anyways, here's your chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
Ben and Ruby were caught up pretty quickly. Ben was their only other way of understanding the alien species. They could've gone to Albedo, but...he was on his rare 'sleep' cycle.
"Armodrillo...gonna be honest, surprised one of his species is here. After I unlocked him, decided to do some research. Found out he's from Andromeda," Ben said.
"As...in the only other galaxy scientists know of? Publicly, anyway?" Blake asked, eyes going wide at that.
"Yep. Homeworld's supposed to be one big desert with a few oases scattered around."
"Enough about ecology- what's the behavioral pattern?" Yang asked.
"They tend to stick in packs, due to the predators that live on the planet. Weaker ones will always 'follow the leader'- aka, the one that can best them in combat." Ben explained. "They become super subservient when they lose."
"Explains NoFace's control over him," Blake said.
"Yeah, no, still hung up on that but we're gonna tackle it later," Ben replied, "But, if you wanna stop him, electricity's your best bet."
"Shock him...god I know we have to if he fights us, but I'm still gonna feel guilty," Yang sighed.
"I mean, I have an alien that can take care of that." Ben held up his watch. "His zaps are like...really hard static shocks."
"Aren't you out on a mission though?"
"What? Nah, we're almost done with tha-" Ben began, but was cut off when a series of explosions sounded out in the background.
"BEN! WE GOT AN ALPHA!" Ruby called out, almost drowned out by the sound of elephant-like trumpeting.
"RPGs at the ready!" Clover yelled in the background.
"Hey, hold on!" Ben yelled, dialing the Omnitrix. He morphed into Frankenstrike. "I wanna fire one!"
Blake and Yang shared a look.
"I'll catch up with you two later! Enjoy your...weird ass date!" Ben yelled.
"...I mean...he's got a point. Weirdest date we've ever had," Yang chuckled.
"Afterwards we can go on an actual date," Blake offered.
"It better have a seafood joint," Blake said. "Now, where would Forest and No Face go?"
Yang shrugged. "There's gotta be one place in Mantle that they'd hide."
"Either they're hiding...or they're getting ready to hit something," Blake suggested, "You heard how much...hate NoFace has for Ironwood."
"Still don't know why. And, unlike Andreas, doubt we're gonna be able to talk him down," Yang sighed, "Here's hoping my Aura doesn't break too early in the fight..."
"If you had to hit something important in Mantle, what would it be?" Blake asked herself.
"...I have a weird theory." Yang said. "So, Forest- he's a massive Robyn stan. So, what's to say he'll try and remove some of the competition?"
"...the election. You think-?"
"He's gonna make sure that when Robyn gets into office, no one's gonna be around to shoot down her policies," the blonde added, "He's gonna take out the other council members. Probably save Ironwood for last given how much he'd have to go through just to get up here."
"That's just crazy. But, then again, that is a guy who threw BBQ wings at you." Blake said. "It's...a believable sort of crazy."
"Oh yeah...thanks for reminding me. I still gotta throw that asshat through a wall or two when we find him," Yang added, remembering that little stunt.
"So, what- do you wanna split up? You check Slate, I check Camilla?" Blake asked.
"Depends on how far apart they are from each other," Yang replied, "If he shows up at either, it'd only be us. And...one person won't be enough to handle NoFace's gaslighting AND Harriet's 'by the book' mindset."
"Crap, you're right." Blake hummed. "Maybe we just need to look at their records or-"
Blake's Scroll started to beep. It was the news app on her feed. Something was happening in Atlas.
Yang's Scroll beeped as well, prompting her to take it out too. It was on all the major news stations in the kingdom, from the Atlas Eye to the Lance of Liberty. The personal mansion of Councilman Sleet was falling apart, like there was an earthquake centered on the building itself.
"...shiiiit, he's already started!" Yang yelled, before taking off, "And if we know, so do Harriet and her hit squad!"
"Crap!" Blake cursed. "We'll never make it there in time."
"Oh, we will alright! Hold on." Yang pulled out something from her back pocket. It looked like a weird demon charm. She shook it a few times.
"What the-"
"Give it a sec." Yang frowned, before Min suddenly appeared before them in a burst of flames.
"WHO SUMMONED ME!?"
"Sup! Need a portal to that fancy Councilor's mansion ASAP," Yang quickly said, "Don't have time for all the details, we're just trying to save an alien that fits the whole 'gentle giant' type."
"Fiiiiiiine." Min groaned.
"D-did you sell your soul to Min!?" Blake yelled.
"What!? No." Yang scoffed. "She offered her services because I managed to somehow beat her at something."
"I swear, I wish I never lost that round of rock paper scissors contract to you." Min grumbled.
"And that is as far as that story will go," Min said, quickly cutting a tear in the air that would lead them right to the politician's crumbling estate, "There you go. One express trip to save a politician. Never met the guy so...hopefully he's better than Jacques."
"I'm sure he'll be 50% more tolerable. He is rich." Yang said, hopping through the portal.
"Thanks again for this, Min." Blake said, patting her on the head.
"Yeah! THANKS FOR INTERUPTING MY DATE!" Min cursed at the two of them.
"Wait, serious-?!" Yang called back, but was cut off before the portal closed, "Ok, remind me to make it up to her."
"Will do. After we stop these bastards," Blake agreed before pulling out Gambol Shroud and making her way into the estate with Yang close behind.
Blake and Yang shifted into their stealth modes- they stuck to hiding behind large collapsed pieces of rubble and walls. Harriet wasn't here yet, or so they thought. Harriet's stealth was always underlooked.
But, in truth, it wasn't really Harriet they had to worry about. She said the name of her backup in that alley and, in truth, neither of them knew anything about the guy.
Locus. For all they knew, this guy could be some sort of Atlesian black-ops stealth professional. He might already be inside.
"Come on, big guy...where are you..." Yang softly muttered to herself.
"C-come on. Please. You don't need to take such extreme measures." A voice pleaded. Blake and Yang quickly and quietly hurried to the source.
"Extreme measures? Oh that's rich coming from you! Mr. 'Let's cut all resources available to Mantle by half!'" the familiar voice of Forest countered.
"That wasn't me! My predeces-!"
"You never fixed it though, did you?!"
Yang frowned. "So, there's a good reason to be mad here. But he's going about it the wrong way."
"Big time. Blake nodded.
"I'm sorry, but HE keeps blocking them!" Sleet said. "Camilla and I fight all we can, but Ironwood and his stupid two seat position controls the council."
"Ironwood," NoFace growled, "Always you...isn't it? Svolota.(Bastard.) He's the last on our list."
"Um...Tree-Man? Why...why are you yelling at him?" Andreas asked.
"I have unfinished business with the general. And this man is our ticket to him." No-Face said. "He's an insect, and we don't LIKE insects. What do we do with them, Forest?"
"Crush 'em," Forest grinned, "Andreas!"
"W-what?" Andreas stepped back in shock, "N-no. I don't want to-"
"I mean either you do it or the boss-man does."
"B-but, I don't want to." Andreas said. "He isn't...icky like a bug."
NoFace stared at Andreas. He raised up his hand and slapped him hard. Even Forest was caught off guard by this.
"H-hey, man! What the fuck!?" Forest yelled.
"Zamovkny! (Shut up!) Or I throw you into the next room," NoFace growls, "Now. Andreas. Either you obey or I can just toss you back in that mine where I FOUND YOU!"
"I hate the dark..." Andreas shivered, but didn't move. "But I'll go back there if it means this 'insect' can live!"
NoFace went silent for a few moments, giving the room quite a tense aura.
And then he started laughing.
"Otzhe, teper u vas roste khrebet! Oy, zanadto malo, zanadto pizno," (So now you're growing a spine! Oh, too little, too late,) the odd creature said, before punching Andreas in the gut hard enough to make him keel over.
Yang frowned. "Okay, NOW we have to step in-"
Just as Yang was about to go feral, a shot rang out. It hit Forest in the shoulder- no, hit was a bad word. It obliterated his shoulder. Forest YELLED in pain, holding where his shoulder used to be.
Andreas' hands shot up and covered his ears, the sound making his ears ring. NoFace turned to see Forest without an arm and growled.
"Lap dogs," NoFace hissed, moving over and grabbing Sleet by the collar.
Yang looked at Forest, laying on the ground. He was writhing in pain, crying his soul out.
"The assassins are here." Yang frowned. "We need to get Andreas out. Now."
"Agreed. You take Andreas, I can try and free Sleet," Blake suggested.
"Right." Yang said, as she unraveled the wire around her hand. She sent it at NoFace, and wrapped it around his leg. With one big yank, she sent him falling face first on the ground.
He called out as his face slammed into the ground, losing his grip on the panicking councilman. Blake whistled to get the councilman's attention and motioned for him to run her way. Seeing no real alternative, he obeyed the instructions. NoFace growled as he got back up, using the crumpled Forest as support. The faceless guerilla's claws jabbed into Forest's back as he stood up.
"Andreas," NoFace hissed.
"T-that wasn't me!" Andreas panicked.
"Sure." NoFace frowned. "You're a nuisance. I thought manipulating you would be easy...but, as I've learned, you're more of a burden than I thought."
"Ma...manipu-?" Andreas began, before another shot rang out and sparked off Andreas' armor.
Yang flinched. Crap, they were trying to take the poor guy out. NoFace looked around, scanning the area.
"Coward. You hide in plain sight...because you know you can't fight me properly!" NoFace called out.
"Well, he does," a familiar and cocky voice said, before walking into view, tossing a knife in his hand, "I probably can."
"Oh god damn it, it's Felix," Yang muttered.
NoFace spun around. "Hm. I'm not interested in you."
"Yeah, yeah. You're about to be, dumbass." Felix said, spinning the blade of his knife like a basketball on the tip of his finger.
"Another lapdog...fine. You look more important to Ironwood," NoFace growled, getting ready to fight.
"Locus, make sure the big guy doesn't interfere," Felix radioed in.
"Copy," Locus responded.
"I'll take care of the 'Big Guy' later. You have something else to worry about." NoFace said smugly, pointing over to Forest's unconscious and nearly dead body.
Felix laughed. "Seriously, man? You're having me fight a corpse?"
"Not a corpse..." NoFace chuckled. The mutated mastermind held out a hand as a piece of his chitinous armor around his wrist sharpened, forming into a spike that fired out like a bullet. Felix managed to dodge out of the way, letting the projectile strike NoFace's accomplice in the back.
But that was what NoFace wanted.
Forest's body began to jitter and shake violently. The blood that pooled out from his missing arm suddenly caught fire like gasoline, before the flames ran up and covered his entire form.
"What the fuck?!" Felix yelled.
"Now?" Yang asked anxiously, having no idea about what was gonna happen.
"I think we have a good distraction. Go!" Blake yelled, as she dashed off.
With that, the two made their move. Yang raced in towards Andreas, while Blake met Sleet mid-way and ushered out the way the two came.
"Go! Go!" Blake ordered. Sleet seemed to take special notice of the cat ears on full display, but the specific emotion wasn't entirely clear behind that look. Gratitude, resentment, the feline Faunus couldn't tell. As the blonde made her way towards Andreas, Locus saw her and did not hesitate.
"Unidentified contact making their way towards Target 3. Opening fire," Locus radioed before taking the first shot.
Andreas' ears perked up, and he heard the sound of the gun cocking. His eyes shrank- that nice lady from earlier, she was gonna get shot!
"Look out!" Andreas yelled, getting in the way. The shot rang out and sparked against Andreas' armor.
The body of Forest suddenly rose up in front of Felix, still engulfed in flames, before the fires extinguished themselves. What was Forest was now a creature that seemed to be made of pure molten rock, with a circular vent on each of his shoulders and a face that just seemed to be three holes carved into a rockface.
"...what the fuck is with this guy?" Felix asked.
Yang grabbed Andreas' hand. "Don't feel like getting caught in the crossfire. Come on!"
"U-uh, okay!" Andreas said. Honestly, out of everyone here, he trusted the blonde girl and her friend the most.
"Locus, what's going on in there?!" Harriet called over the radio.
"Unknown target in the manor, being protected by the alien," Locus said, "Felix is currently dealing with...something. Might need you and Salazar."
"Unknown target!? Great. More conspirators." Harriet huffed. "Whatever. I'll send the kid. I'll take care of the extras."
"Understood. She and the alien are heading for the back exit, no doubt following Councilor Sleet."
"I'll cut em off." Harriet said. "Harriet out."
Locus frowned. "She's delightful as always."
As the strange creature that was once Forest lumbered towards Felix, NoFace turned around and took notice of Andreas' absence. He was about to go searching for him, leaving his new pet to deal with Ironwood's lapdog, when a few shots of ice rang out and froze over part of the creature's exoskeleton. He quickly turned to look at Blake, Gambol Shroud's barrel smoking. NoFace growled as he cleared the ice off his form and bared his claws.
"First the dogs...then their master," NoFace hissed.
Blake fired a few more shots, before disappearing into the shadows. She didn't want to get seen by the two assassins. They'd surely report her to Harriet, and that could result in some serious punishment.
Of course, Felix could tell that NoFace was after someone, probably the councilman. As the faceless assailant chased after his prey, Forest held out his hand, revealing another circular vent in the middle of his palm. A jet of molten lava suddenly shot out of the vent, catching Felix by surprise, but he still managed to get out of the way in time.
"Ok, really, what the fuck is this guy?" Felix growled, before tossing a few throwing knives into the creature. It tanked the hits, letting the blades burry themselves in the abomination's body. It looked down at the knives as they slowly melted off its form.
"...well that's just cheating," the Atlesian assassin quipped.
Felix was just throwing out random bullshit at this point. Bullets, grenades, more knifes. Nothing seemed to phase this guy. All he did was spit out lava and howl in pain.
"I dunno what that faceless bastard did to you, but I am NOT a fan!" Felix yelled.
As the creature was about to fire off another stream of lava, a compact ball of debris suddenly went flying past Felix and slammed into the beast's chest, knocking it back.
"Well, if you're not up to it...why not let me take a stab at it?" Rex said, morphing his Slam Cannon into his sword build.
"...did you just make a fucking pun?" Felix deadpanned, "NOW?!"
"Yeah! And shut up about it." Rex said, pointing his sword at the creature. "So, you don't look all that great, dude. Your fever's so high I can feel it from here!"
"Less lame jokes! MORE SWORD SWINGING!" Felix yelled.
The Forest-creature got back on its feet and roared in outrage, flames now firing off from the vents in its shoulders. With much more energy than before, it raced towards Rex as one of its hands became coated in still hot magma.
Rex swung his sword at it, knocking it back. The lava creature's hands still touched his blade, causing it to melt.
"Great." Rex said, looking down at it. He figured using a sword was no good, so he'd just have to use Option B- Block Party.
He quickly morphed both of his hands into large gauntlets, each one projecting a circular energy shield from them to serve as protection. The shields themselves could take a lot of punishment as, when the Forest-creature came back, they were able to withstand several repeated brutish hits from the monster. Felix drew his Atlesian rifle and took potshots at the thing, watching the bullets piercing the creature's hide, but not really causing it much pain.
"You really need to stop doing that, dude. I think its just making the creature more angry." Rex said. "...plus, it's doing nothing else useful."
"That CREATURE used to be a guy. Some other dude with no face turned him into that." Felix said.
"Well...not a Grimm, so at least we don't have to worry about that," Rex said. But then something caught his attention. As he looked the thing that used to be Forest, he started feeling something off. Almost...almost something similar to when he met the Black Knight from Haven.
But that was impossible. Nanites couldn't do this could they?
Rex looked down at the ground. He wondered. He had nanites in him. Black Knight called him 'special' or something. And the way he could use his nanites to mess with technology...
Was it possible he could...do something with this creature?
"Kid! What the fuck are you doing?!" Felix yelled, continuing to fire at the beast in vain, "I know you said bullets aren't doing much, but neither is just STANDING THERE!" The lava creature continued to pound away at the shields, until Rex decided to take the riskiest move he could. Right as the creature was about to slam down both fists on the shield, the barrier turned off and the creature hit air. With its balance taken out, Rex grabbed hold of the abomination's wrists and focused on the nanites he hoped were somehow inside this thing.
"Please let this work," Rex hoped.
The nanites inside of Rex's body started to counteract Forest's foreign nanites. It was like a bacteriaphage at work- when Rex finally let go, all the mutations on Forest's body had disappeared.
Even the arm that Locus had taken off with his first shot had been fixed.
"How did..." Locus muttered, having watching the whole thing through his scope.
Forest looked down at himself. "What just…happened?"
"Beats me, but I think I just healed you." Rex said, looking down at Forest.
"Huh. Saves the medi-evac," Felix shrugged, "Now, hands above your head. You're under arrest."
"Awww." Forest said, not willing to argue with a guy with a gun.
"Alright, one down, two to go," Felix said, "She'd hate me for saying this buuuuut, kid, you're on chase duty. Go after the boss. Harriet might actually need the help."
"Chase duty? Alright." Rex said, morphing his legs into the Rex Ride. "It won't really be a chase, though."
"Whatever. Just go chase them." Felix snapped.
"Alright," Rex sighed before rushing after NoFace.
Yang led Andreas through the halls of what remained of the building. "There has to be a room I can hide you in or something."
"Andreas doesn't do well with small door frames." Andreas said.
"Uh, ok, ok...maybe we can," Yang began, but was cut off when it sounded like something was rushing towards them, "Oh goddamn it..."
"What? What is it?" Andreas asked.
"Harriet." Yang said. "She…sorta kinda wants you dead."
"W-why?!" Andreas was actually shaking in fear, his armor creaking from sheer terror.
"She doesn't know you! She thinks you're just a big brute," Yang tried to explain, "Gotta hide you somewhere!"
Yang saw a double door frame- it was big enough to squeeze Andreas through. "Quick! In here." Yang said, opening the door.
The Talpaedan lumbered after Yang and, after she was in and he ducked his head, he managed to squeeze through. Though doing that so quickly did crack the doorframe a little. Harriet probably wouldn't notice, what with all the other destruction around the estate.
Yang shut the doors quickly, and waited for the footsteps to pass. Harriet zoomed past, not even acknowledging the room. Yang gave a sigh of relief. "Okay, we're in the clear."
"Um...Miss...er," Andreas started, though he was unsure of his rescuer's name. He'd heard it in passing a few times, but given all the chaos around him right now, it made sense he couldn't recall it.
"Yang. No need for the 'Miss' either, just Yang works," the blonde said.
"Right. So, Just Yang...why does...Harriet want me...gone?" He still didn't get it, completely innocent this one.
"Because of the damage you're causing. She only listens to the facts she wants to hear. It's kind of annoying." Yang sighed. "But you should be safe."
"O-ok. But...NoFace always said that 'Ironwood destroys everyone he meets.' Does that mean she'd kill him too?" Andreas asked.
"I...I don't exactly know what he means. I don't have the full story, but..." Yang said. "But I think it may have some credence."
"N-no. Not NoFace. Would...Harriet kill Ironwood?" the massive armored alien tilted his head a bit.
"Huh?" Yang said. "No, never. She trusts that man like a saint, there's no way she'd ever kill him."
"So...why doesn't she trust me?" Andreas asked.
"It's...complicated."
"It's because I'm helping him, isn't it? He said he'd let me go home if I did some stuff for him..." Andreas said, curling up in a ball. "I miss my family..."
"How'd you get here, big guy?" Yang asked, trying to calm him down.
"I dunno..." Andreas said. "All I remember is falling asleep, and ending up in the dark...and I got scared."
"Ok...ok, better question. Who's waiting for you back home?"
"My pack. My family." Andreas said. "Do you have one?"
"Yep," Yang nodded, "Family's an interesting story. But my pack, well Blake's part of my 'pack' I guess."
"That...that makes sense," Andreas chuckled a bit.
"I dunno how I'd react if I was in your shoes." Yang said. "Being dumped on some foreign planet, alone and being manipulated..."
"What are shoes?" Andreas asked.
"I...long story. Suffice to say, people on my planet aren't as durable as you," Yang smirked and patted the armored and innocent alien on the shoulder. The blonde's guard immediately went up when she heard a loud and cracking impact from the oaken door. She turned and immediately activated Ember Celica. That wasn't Harriet, couldn't be. She'd just kick down the door, not crack it apart.
As the dust cleared, NoFace stepped through the doorway. He made eye contact (?) with Yang, and scowled. "You again..."
"Yeah, me again. Don't even try to hurt him."
"...no need. You'll be enough. Andreas...watch closely and remember well. You're the reason this girl DIES!" NoFace roared and rushed into the fray, claws at the ready. Yang launched herself forward with blasts from her gauntlets and, as time seemed to slow down for these two, each one threw a punch. Chitin-covered knuckles met the metal plating of the gauntlet and then the two began punching at either rapidly. Andreas couldn't look away from the sight as NoFace matched Yang blow for blow. The hits from the faceless terrorist actually made Yang's Aura flare up, but those hits still worked in her favor. Her hair started to glow with that familiar flame-like aura.
Yang dodged and weaved through some blows before she unexpectedly kicked NoFace in the chest. NoFace stumbled backwards, allowing Yang to rush in and land some strong blows. "HYAHHHHHHH!" Yang yelled, finishing off with a shotgun shell to his face.
The faceless foe seemed to bend backwards, acting like his head was blown off entirely. A pillar of smoke rose up from NoFace's head, and seeing him motionless gave off the impression he was done. That was until he jerked back up and slammed his head ton Yang's, causing her to stumble back. He made quick use of the opening slashing away at Yang with a flurry of wild slashes and powerful punches. He even landed two strikes to her gut that made Yang gasp for air, before he landed a roundhouse kick to the side of her head and knocked her off her feet.
"Chas poklasty bolonku zherstyanoyi lyudyny..." (Time to put down the tin man's lapdog…) NoFace scoffed, before marching over to her.
Yang wiped some dirt from her cheek and frowned. "Lucky shot." Yang said, as she held up her robotic arm. "But I won't let you do that again."
Yang coated her fist with fire dust, and dashed towards the opponent. She smashed their face in the jaw, before following up with an uppercut. NoFace grunted- he quickly grabbed his opponent by the throat, and pulled back a fist.
"Spochyvay u shmatkakh, Atlesian." (Rest in pieces, Atlesian.)
"N-no!" Andreas yelled.
NoFace was about to throw the punch, when both he and Yang felt the ground shake. Not in the same constant way that an earthquake would be, but periodic and rhythmic thuds. NoFace turned to the left and was immediately met with an ironclad punch from the usually passive Andreas. The creature gasped as his faceplate began to crack from the jackhammer-powered strike.
"Andreas doesn't need YOU anymore!" Andreas yelled. "Andreas knows that YOU need him more than Andreas needs you! So, Andreas quits!"
NoFace thudded to the ground from the hit. If he had visible eyes, they would be wide in shock. He reached a hand up to his face and touched the cracks in his faceplate, wincing in pain a bit. They actually stung.
Much to Andreas' surprise, NoFace actually started to laugh again.
"NOW you grow a spine! It took you this long to do it! You've been with me for...what? A month or two? And you just NOW find a spine under all that armor?!" NoFace roared, getting back and zeroing in on Andreas.
Andreas reared back, and grabbed NoFace's head. He roared as he jumped up, and slammed NoFace into the ground.
"Andreas was SCARED!" Andreas yelled. "Andreas thought NoFace was only option!"
"And what if I still am? Atlas hates you, others are bound to hunt you," NoFace grinned before his arm suddenly shot up and the sound of tearing metal could be heard. Andreas' eyes went wide and his ears stood upright in shock. Yang's eyes widened in horror as she saw NoFace's clawed hand stabbing into Andreas' side. Somewhat translucent, gray blood, almost resembling oil, began to stream down the terrorist's arm before he pulled his claws free.
"Every armor...has a weak spot," NoFace chuckled.
Andreas dropped to the ground, releasing NoFace from his grip. Before NoFace could even get a move in, a wave of heat filled the room. Yang was...angry. And her hair was turning black in color.
"Your turn girl," NoFace said, completely unaware of how fucked he truly was now.
Yang only needed one punch. One horrible, painful punch to send the message. Yang disappeared in the blink of an eye, and reappeared in front of NoFace.
The next thing NoFace remembered was the pain of crashing through what few walls remained in the house.
As if fate wanted to make NoFace's life even worse, as he sat there, surrounded by rubble and his chitinous armor cracked throughout, someone approached him.
"Well, you look like shit, don't you?" Harriet asked.
"Y-you..." NoFace hissed.
"Guess the kid actually did a good job. Or did your walking tank do this to you?"
The terrorist grinned and took advantage of the situation, weakly pointing a clawed finger in the direction of Andreas and Yang. If that traitorous tank was still alive, Ironwood's lapdog would finish the job. If he couldn't get his revenge on Ironwood, he could at least take that bastard with him.
"…hm." Harriet said. "I don't see anyone there. But, you're pretty banged up right now, so…" Harriet picked up NoFace.
"W-what...they were...they were right...there," NoFace growled.
"I don't see anyone. I'd say check your eyes, but…you don't have any." Harriet said. "Now, come on. There's a cell in Atlas waiting for you."
With one last burst of energy, NoFace tried to stab Harriet in the back with his claws.
Harriet grabbed his wrist, and snapped it. "Don't try it, dumbass."
The mutant cried out in pain as his hand bent backwards.
"Where...where did they GO?!" NoFace growled.
Yang had gotten Andreas back on his feet. "C-come on." Yang said, helping support the alien. "Just a few more feet!"
Blake was already at a secret evac point after ushering Sleet towards the more established safety at the front of his estate. She'd already called ahead to Rook and Elm to bring the Proto-Truk, but when she saw Yang carrying Andreas, with the latter leaking blood, her heart just sank.
"What happened?! Did Harriet-?!" Blake ran over, trying her best to help, but god was Andreas heavy.
"No! NoFace got a cheap shot in." Yang grunted. "Give me a hand here! He's heavy as hell…"
"Trying!" Blake grunted, supporting some of the massive alien's weight. She looked down and tried to see how bad the damage was, seeing the gaping wound in Andreas' side.
"Rook and Elm are pulling up the Proto-Truk in stealth mode." Blake said. "Then we can get this guy…back to the proper authorities and get him patched up!"
"Good! Should be here any-" Yang began, but was cut off by the sound of a weapon being leveled at them. Blake and Yang looked over their shoulder in unison to see sparks of energy around a humanoid figure. Seemingly appearing from thin air, the armored figure of Locus appeared, aiming a drum-magazine assault rifle at the trio.
"What. Are you doing?" Locus asked.
"Ohhhhh fuck," Yang cursed.
"We're lugging this criminal off to a specialized aircraft, and then we're gonna throw him in a cell." Blake lied. "We're honorary Plumbers. We can handle this."
"Blake Belladonna, member of Team RWBY, Faunus, daughter of White Fang founder Ghira Belladonna and Khali Belladonna, present at both the Battles of Beacon and Haven, part of the duo who managed to defeat Roman Torchwick," Locus listed off.
"How did you-?"
"Yang Xiao Long, member of Team RWBY, daughter of Signal Academy Professor Taiyang Xiao Long, present at both the Battles of Beacon and Haven, fought against Cinder Fall and is credited with her defeat," Locus kept his finger on the trigger, "You assume I'm just some rank and file soldier like the rest. While I'm no Hunter like you, in terms of skill, myself and Felix are closer to the Ace-Ops than normal military personnel."
"...fuck, ok, I guess you know alllll about us, huh?" Yang asked.
"More or less. But out of respect for your families, I'm giving you a chance to explain yourselves. Usually I would simply open fire without hesitation when someone goes against orders," Locus coldly stated.
"...like we said. We're taking care of him." Yang said. "He needs to go home. Wouldn't you like the same opportunity if you were in his shoes?"
Locus kept his weapon pointed on the two.
"Guessing that's a no?" the blonde sighed.
"And you know he's not a threat...how?" Locus droned.
"Oh my god, is that helmet like a Stormtrooper's?! Can you not see he is bleeding out right no-" Yang began, but was cut off thanks to a welcome sound. The roaring engines of the Proto-Truk quickly filled the air as the ship made its descent. One of the loading ramps opened before the ship even hit the ground and who else should step out, hanging onto the doorframe but Elm.
"Specialist Ederne?" Locus actually lowered his weapon at that.
"Locus, get the hell away from them!" Elm yelled.
Locus lowered his weapon, but didn't take any steps backwards, "Mind telling me what you're doing with these two?"
"Helping them, obviously. Because it's the right thing TO do." Elm said, as she took Blake's place. "Alright, Xiao Long. Lift with me!"
With Blake free, the Faunus immediately turned Gambol Shroud on the Atlesian sniper. If he was gonna shoot, she'd fire back. For a moment, Locus just stood there, unreadable. Even with Felix, you could read his body language, figure out what he was going for. Not so with Locus. It was like the man had modeled his stance after the androids that supplemented the usual soldiers.
"...Specialist Ederne," Locus finally said, "The target. You judge him to not be a threat?"
"Look at the way he's acting. He'd be lashing out if he was a threat. Or we'd just leave him for dead if we were cruel. He's HURT." Elm snapped. "So, back the hell off!"
"I need you to say it," Locus said, his voice still as monotone as ever, but there was a slight hint of...understanding in his voice?
"God you're even more of a robot than Hare sometimes," Elm sighed, "Yes! I judge him to be non-threatening!"
With that, Locus seemed to finally let up and took a step back, lowering his weapon.
"I never saw you. The Talpaedan escaped before we could capture it," Locus said.
"Thank you," Elm said, as she and Yang eventually got Andreas inside. "It's okay, big guy. We got you, we got you..."
"Who...who...you?" Andreas asked weakly, the first he'd uttered since getting stabbed, "Are...you friend?"
"Yeah, I'm a friend," Elm reassured, gently patting the mechanical alien on the back.
"We will take him to Pietro." Rook said, flipping a few switches to hide the ProtoTruk. "He should be able to patch up Andreas."
Admittedly, Pietro had never had to treat such a large patient before. When Andreas was placed on a medical bed, the poor guy's arms practically scraped the ground and the table actually creaked from the weight put on it. That's not to say he didn't immediately set to work. With some Plumber tech that Ceres had given him, he immediately set about stabilizing the walking tank.
He started that three hours ago.
Yang was pacing back and forth out in the lobby, waiting for any update on the alien's condition.
"You're gonna pave a dent in the floorboards," Elm pointed out.
"I know and I don't care. If Harriet just threw NoFace in a cell, I'm gonna kill that bastard myself," Yang admitted.
"I heard he was arrested." Elm said. "So, looks like the legal system works today."
"So right now, his life hinges on Adreas'," the blonde said.
"A little bit." Elm sighed.
"It's still...nerve wracking." Blake said. "We don't have a grasp on Andreas' biology."
"I...have only the most basic knowledge," Rook admitted, "but even they have a predator. A creature that has been nicknamed a 'Slammoid' by wildlife organizations."
"Slammoid. Sounds like a worm or something." Blake said.
"That sounds about right." Rook said.
"A little worrying that there's something that considers a walking tank as prey," Elm admitted, "Thing probably puts Megoliaths to shame in terms of size."
"Indeed."
The four of them were still waiting for any update, when, thankfully, Pietro walked into the lobby.
"Well? How is he?" Yang asked, almost immediately after the good doctor stepped into the room.
"He's going to make a full recovery. He's just resting right now," Pietro smiled. "He was brave throughout the entire operation."
"Oh thank god," Yang let out a sigh of relief.
"Can we see him?" Blake asked.
"Not just yet. He's still under some heavy sedation, needs all the rest he can get," Pietro answered.
"That's good enough," Yang sighed, as she finally sat down.
"We should probably get back to Atlas, then." Elm said, looking to Rook. "We need a good alibi."
"That we do...should we drag Ben and Ruby into this? Make a grand arrival to aid their mission with the Megoliaths?" Rook asked.
"Eh. I'm sure they'll get it," Elm said, as she and Rook stood up. The Bees watched them leave, and Pietro went back in to check on Andreas.
"...so, think we can talk now?" Yang asked.
"About what I told you before Elm found us?" Blake asked.
"Yep. No military security cams around here that'll eavesdrop on us."
"Well, we're safe now..." Blake said. "So yeah. Let's talk. I'll spare no detail..."
"Alright. So, first things first I guess...when'd you find out about all this?" Yang asked.
"Like I said, it was started by what that alternate Ben said. But...me, Rook, and Min acted on those suspicions during that triple-threat thing we did to take down Nesmith," Blake explained.
"So, they're aware as well." Yang said.
"We found details on us. Detailed files on how to neutralize us, how to deal with Ben, and projects related to some top secret operation." Blake said. "A lot of that was blacked out."
"Redacted shit," the blonde sighed, "...what did...what did it say about me?"
"A majority of your file was incredibly thorough. It talked about your medical history, the inner mechanisms of your arm and how to properly take you down." Blake explained. "There were discussions of putting a bomb in your arm too."
"Ya know...some of the techs always offered to help with maintenance and repairs," Yang began, looking at her arm, "...did it say if the bomb was already in there or that it's just an option?"
"I wouldn't know." Blake said, looking at it. "We'd have to open it to have some proof."
"Right...so in other words, only make repairs myself or with Ceres," Yang said, "Got it...what about you?"
"Sonic attacks. Imagery of canines and Adam Taurus. Threatening you." Blake said. "The list is extensive."
"...imagery of canines?" Yang growled, "He'd go that fucking low?"
"Apparently...Weiss' was just as bad. Threatening Kylie, figuring out a way to disrupt her summoning, a special type of sniper round made specifically to ignite Myrtenaster's Dust cartridges. Locus would be the one to take the shot as well."
"His own fucking daughter." Yang said, disgusted. "How are we still working under him?"
"I guess the same could be said about why the Justice League is still a thing," Blake asked.
"...I'm sorry?" Yang blinked in surprise.
"Oh, uh...I heard Ruby and Ben talking about it one day. Think they were arguing with Rex and Marrow about it? Batman had plans similar to these and they were arguing about 'If he broke their trust this badly, then why is the league still around?'" Blake rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.
"That makes sense because it's Batman. He has a reason to be paranoid. Ironwood is the head of a military, and has a position of authority. It makes it just...wrong to have such a detailed file on all of us. What wrong have we done? We're not gonna go rogue anytime soon." Yang said.
"I don't agree with it, not by a long shot, but...I do think he has reason to be paranoid. Despite all the talk of him being a 'tin man,' he's still human. He was with us at Beacon. His own robots turned against him, he nearly died."
"So...what? Think those plans are just a byproduct of PTSD?" Yang asked.
"Maybe." Blake said. "He's been through far more than we have. I don't say that excuses his actions. It just makes sense of it."
"I guess but..." Yang sighed, "How the hell are we gonna tell the others?"
"We'll need to just find the best time to do so. It's gonna be hard with how far spread out we are these next few weeks." Blake said.
"Don't we have off for election night?" Yang asked.
"Yeah...?" Blake answered, unsure where her girlfriend was going with this.
"So, the day after, before we go out on any missions, we tell 'em all?"
"Yeah. Sounds good." Blake nodded. "It's gonna be a terrible thing to carry around all day, but they deserve to know the truth."
"Agreed." Yang nodded, looking down at her arm. "I'll take a look at this soon, too."
"I can...I can help," Blake offered, "Probably."
"I know you're not the most technical person, but...I'd like that." Yang smiled.
Blake smiled back and leaned into Yang's shoulder.
"We'll head back. But...I kinda wanna see Andreas before we go," Blake said.
"Yeah. It just feels right," Yang agreed.
Ironwood walked into the interrogation room, looking unkempt and unprofessional. But he didn't care. This matter was worth getting pulled away from the paperwork for.
"He's in there," A guard said, opening the door.
Ironwood's eyes narrowed, as he saw the bastard inside.
NoFace was chained to the interrogation table by reinforced chains that not even Elm could break through. The faceless terrorist looked up to see the general walk in and started laughing.
"Finally deign to see me, eh?" NoFace chuckled, "Your...failed experiment."
Ironwood didn't say anything. He had no words to spare for this...thing, this nightmare from the past. Pulling out his gun spoke more words than he could ever convey. NoFace knew this as well.
"I see." NoFace said.
The terrorist looked around in the cell, noticing that there wasn't a single camera in here. Or if there was, the general had turned them off before he entered.
"What are you waiting for? Or do you want me to give you a reason?" NoFace threatened, "Because I swear to god, if you miss that shot, I'm finding that little 'heiress' daughter of yours and-!"
Ironwood fired the kill shot. NoFace's brains splattered against the wall.
"The past should stay buried." He frowned, hitting a button on a remote. In an instant, the room started to morph around and change.
NoFace's body, now slumped against the table, was taken away as the room was seemingly deconstructed. In a matter of seconds, the room reconfigured itself to appear as if nothing had ever happened in there.
Ironwood hated to admit this to himself...but that threat aimed at Weiss was going to be what he used as justification for that kill. He threatened Weiss and if he managed to escape once, he could do it again, make good on that threat.
Ironwood took a deep breath. His eyes were dark, and his mind was focused.
"Back to work." Ironwood said, walking out of the room.
The soldier standing guard didn't even bat an eye as the general walked off.
Just another secret of Atlas buried back under the snow.
Andreas' eyes fluttered open, as he slowly came to. "W-wh...where Andreas?"
"He's awake!" Someone said, as his senses returned.
"...Y-yang?" Andreas groggily asked as he sat up, the medical table under him creaking from strain.
"We're here buddy!" Yang grinned.
"We got you all patched up. Just a few more days of rest, and you should be heading back home." Blake explained.
"NoFace?" the recovering alien asked.
"He's in custody. I don't think he'll see the light of day for a while." Yang smiled.
"That...good. He...can't hurt anyone anymore," Andreas said.
"And if he gets out again, then we'll just bust him up again." Yang said. "He's not that tough once you know how hard to hit him."
"That's...very you thing to say," Andreas joked.
"Did you just-?" Yang asked.
"Only known you for a day and he already gets you," Blake chuckled.
"How will Andreas get home, though?" The Talapean asked.
"Covered. We have a Plumber ship coming for you in a few days. You'll be brought back home with no issues." Blake said.
"So...so soon?"
"Yep. Just a few days and you'll see your pack again," Yang said. At the confirmation, Andreas started to sniffle a bit, before he grabbed Blake and Yang, pulling them into a gentle, well as gentle as he could manage, bear hug and just began crying.
"Thank you!" Andreas sobbed in joy.
Blake and Yang laughed, and hugged him back. "Careful, Andreas! You'll burst your stitches open if you hug us too hard!"
"I-I will?" Andreas asked, lightening up on the hug a bit just in case.
"Yes, actually. Take it easy, big guy." Yang said, lightly tapping his shoulder.
"O-ok," Andreas nodded, still hugging his two new friends, "Andreas will forever be in your debt!"
In the aftermath of the mission, Yang and Blake made their way back to their dorm and opened the door once they arrived. Ben, Ruby, and Weiss were already back in the room, each one laying in their respective beds, with Ben and Ruby sharing one.
"Woah. What happened to you guys?" Yang asked.
"Megoliath herd...threatened the Amity site," Ruby groaned, "So. Many. Elephants."
"I think the only reason none of them got through was because we had Clover," Ben added.
"And Weiss?" Blake inquired.
"I think she was trampled." Ben said.
Weiss gave a weak, pathetic groan. "Save me..."
"How'd your Armodrillo mission go?" Ruby wondered.
"Went great. Stopped a faceless terrorist, made a new alien friend by saving his life, almost got crushed by that new friend's bear hugs, you know. Nothing crazy," Yang chuckled.
"That sounds like a breeze compared to frenzied Megoliaths," Weiss groaned.
"It...had its own challenges. Happy to tell you later," Blake admitted.
"I've heard a lot of Talpaedans are enslaved, believe it or not...poor guys." Ben sighed.
"So in other words, every hit I landed on NoFace was even more justified. Thanks for that," Yang said as she moved over, sitting on the edge of her bed before she just flopped back onto the soft covers. Blake joined her, just sitting on the edge of it and letting out an exhausted sigh.
"I hope I'm not interrupting your downtime," Ironwood said, minorly scaring Yang and Blake since it was like he just appeared. Minorly, of course. They just jumped a bit in bed.
"Heyyyyy Dad," Weiss groaned, weakly waving to the general, "Please tell me you're not gonna give us another Megoliath mission..."
"On the contrary, actually. I'm letting you all have a little 'downtime'." Ironwood said.
"Huh?" Ben said, perking up. "Why's that?"
"I realized none of you have really had a chance to rest after the Celestialsapien crisis from a few weeks back." Ironwood explained. "So, consider this my 'apology.'"
"Are...are you giving us-?" Yang began.
"A vacation? Of sorts, yes. A cosmic god, Nesmith and Jacques' power play, and now a conspiracy to destabilize the current government motivated by twisted patriotism and a madman's insane grudge."
"He...really seemed to have it out for you, general," Blake pointed out.
"And yet I've no idea who he could be. He's been less than forthcoming with answers. I have some of my best men working on it, but it might take some time."
"Right."
"So, what was that about a vacation?" Ruby's eyes sparkled at the idea.
"There's a few sanctioned locations you can go, free of charge." Ironwood said. "I'll send you all a list."
"Thank you," Ben said, slumping back onto the bed.
"...one of the options wouldn't happen to be Atlas Rests, would it?" Weiss asked.
"You'll need to check," Ironwood smirked, before turning and walking away. He pulled out his Scroll and sent the list to the group's own Scrolls.
"Alright, this is pretty neat." Ruby said, scrolling through the list. "Want in on this, sis?"
"Actually," Blake interjected, "if we can, I might have a different idea. I never was able to visit home."
"Tropical vacation to meet the parents then?" Yang asked.
"If you're up for it."
"Of course! You've seen my family home before and we had raccoons living there, remember? Only fair for me to see yours," the blonde smirked.
"Fair enough, fair enough." Ruby said. "Ben took me to see his parents when we had our last break."
"Wish that could've been a bit more normal but a certain ren faire reject decided 'now's the perfect time to strike!'" Ben said.
"This time should be better. Gotta be, right?"
"Hopefully. Menagerie is pretty tame." Blake shrugged. "So, nothing to worry about."
"Yeah, just a few days at tropical paradises of our own. Sounds perfect," Yang beamed.
