RWBY & All associated trademarks are property of Rooster Teeth (RIP Monty Oum)
I claim no ownership of anything except my own original characters.
I am making no money from this.
Chapter 121: Don't Think About It
Weekends were of no particular importance in the settlement of Pikesreach there was work which needed to be done seven days a week and so its' inhabitants were compelled to work, although Zirconia was certain that the new leadership she had helped instil at Nero's behest achieved its' results through less brutish and heavy-handed methods than the despots and tyrants calling themselves Hunters from whose grasp Pikesreach had been taken; though to Zirconia it seemed a moot point in the face of Aefen Cruor's activities. The Creatures of Grimm were likewise relentless in their efforts and attentions and although there was yet to be another assault of the frightful scale as the last large attack, which had seen Aefen's cult follow the Cyber-Grimm and Gestalt-Prime themselves into battle to keep Pikesreach from being overrun the defences had to be fully manned and maintained at all times; a reality which rendered concepts such as a weekend without work entirely unfeasible but did allow Zirconia's subordinates and patsies time to more thoroughly integrate themselves with the peers they had been instructed to watch closely.
Zirconia herself had found herself huddled in the closest thing to a cross-legged position that her uniquely designed cybernetics would allow whilst staring at a screen.
The Grasshopper Faunus had sequestered herself away in the latest small and secluded building she had been using as a temporary residence, keeping all doors and windows closed and locked to lessen the chances of her being overheard and also to give herself more time to hear and react to any intruders who might be sent by Aefen Cruor to arrange for something to happen to her which would no doubt be explained away as an accident, a possibility which continued to keep Zirconia on edge.
The building in question was not one that had ever been intended for living and sleeping in and as such was uncomfortable and stifling in the oppressive heat of Menagerie, more so with the windows closed and Zirconia had been forced to remove the mask she wore, using the opportunity to comb and otherwise attend to her much-shortened hair which would only have reached her shoulders were it not swept back so dramatically whilst also considering shedding some of her armour layer and outer layer of clothing before ultimately deciding against it in favour of preparing for an incoming video call.
Another part of Zirconia's instance on remaining mobile was that she was, at present the only person at Pikesreach who had the ability to communicate with Nero and others in Jidhir Town, a fact which had clearly been deduced since the arrival of her small batch of reinforcements and she was intended to do everything in her power to keep her means of communicating with the outside world, even in such a limited capacity from being sabotaged.
It would also serve as a warning, if the repurposed airship comm system she was using were taken or destroyed then she would know that an attempt on her life was imminent.
"Zirconia, darling" the voice of Damascus Nero stirred Zirconia from her own thoughts but failed to fill her with the sense of relief that it might have done even a week ago "It's good to see you, I trust you're well?"
"As well as expected considering the circumstances" Zirconia fought to keep her tone from being too openly acidic or disparaging though it was obvious that her father in all but name and blood had heard everything that had gone unsaid; his pallid and gaunt, scarred features sagging for a moment with a look of hurt sadness before he rallied himself and managed a faint, lopsided smile to accompany an attempt at the usual back and forth the two of them shared.
"If the attitude is your idea of teenage rebellion Zirconia then I do think you've left things a little late, still at least you didn't start smoking" the two regarded one another on their respective screens in their respective dimly lit rooms, sharing tired looks until Zirconia managed to roll her mismatched eyes and Damascus continued, voice laden with concern "Are you Okay?….I trust the reinforcements that were despatched from Jidhir Town have reached you?"
"They have" Zirconia nodded slowly "I am….As well as to be expected"
"Zirconia" Nero's voice was one which urged caution, though it was not a reprimand and rather a response to the Grasshopper Faunus's obvious weariness with everything about her current situation. Hearing the familiar tone, one which in simpler tones might have been used as a response to her studying through the night in order to prove a point to herself Zirconia fought the urge to visibly wince and shiver as she swallowed a lump in her throat; that she still saw Damascus Nero as family and loved him so dearly made her current predicament and moral conundrums all the more unbearable and rather than address the concerned voice she chose to focus on more practical concerns and take solace in them.
"I've began working the reinforcements into the existing formations within Pikesreach" she kept her quiet, rasping words even "Working alongside Aefen's people in order to gather information and keep watch for any signs that her work has progressed, or that she plans to betray you for other reasons. The troops working alongside the people of Pikesreach are similarly keeping watch for signs of a rebellion, whilst also actively trying to halt the spread of Aefen's cult"
"That's excellent news" Nero nodded, pushing aside lank hair that had fallen in front of his face and wearing a smile that was now more genuine albeit no less tired "I'm proud of you Zirconia, you're doing well"
"Thank you" Zirconia fought to keep her voice from wavering, wishing that she could accept the compliment without her stomach churning at the thought of the plans she had found herself a part of; the knowledge that Aefen was using the people of Pikesreach as an expendable resource and that Nero was tacitly allowing her to do so.
"What of Aefen?" the former Chairman asked, sensing that Zirconia was not her usual self and wished to keep herself focused on important matters and obliging her; though making a mental note to contact her more often and keep a closer watch of the young woman who was in his mind his daughter in every way that mattered in case he had misjudged and place too much upon her shoulders.
"She stopped using prisoners as test subjects days ago" Zirconia answered, making no effort to keep the open relief from her voice at that fact only for her own pessimism to rear its' ugly head and provide unwelcome answers to that particular riddle
"It could be that her work has stalled or it could be that she's made a breakthrough of some kind that has limited her need for new subjects….I apologise for not being able to give more specifics; Aefen keeps her labs under constant security and I haven't been able to get inside, although I am in the process of appealing to someone who can get access more easily"
"Be careful"
"Of course" Zirconia answered the almost instinctive comment with equally reflexive haste.
"This could potentially be excellent news" Nero's quartz coloured eyes brightened, a look of ecstatic madness flitting across his gaunt and thin features for a moment "This could be the moment Zirconia, we must be ready to act….The final piece is almost in my grasp, I know the Atlesians have it. We'll have to begin making preparations"
"I see" Zirconia answered tonelessly, an obvious lie and attempt to soothe Damascus's wavering composure. He was yet to reveal the specifics of his final plan, the single master-stroke which would supposedly justify everything which had come before it and in truth all Zirconia could truly see at that moment was that someone she loved, cared for and respected suddenly seemed so much less than they had once been.
The knowledge that this was likely exactly how she herself had appeared to Athena-Jade when the Cyber-Grimm had been unleashed in Neo Vale only made the stinging in her heart worse.
"I know you have your doubts and I know I ask a lot of you" Nero murmured "All I ask is that you trust me Zirconia….I know that none of this is easy and that all of us have sacrificed something of the people we were when we began this, especially you….Just a little further and it will be done, our bright new tomorrow will be here and the people of Remnant will thank us"
There such conviction and such gentleness in those words, coloured as they were by the halting and faintest stuttering traces of Nero's old speech impediments that Zirconia found herself silenced for just a moment, all of the horror and distrust and grief she had been carrying with her washing away for a single moment of calm and clarity.
It was over all too soon.
"If things are so close then perhaps we should take more decisive action now?" Zirconia asked, uncertain of exactly what action she hoped Nero would suggest, only that it would reassure her further that he had not become something entirely unrecognisable in his own grief and desperation.
"We need to be cautious" Nero shook his head "Especially now that the Hunters seem to have gotten wise to some of my larger efforts at expansion….The fools at Spinnenheim were seen and reported on and Adel and her ilk have begun repositioning the Hunters currently in Menagerie, with their own reinforcements no doubt already inbound from other Kingdoms"
"Are you safe in Jidhir Town?" Zirconia asked, a genuine spike of worry coursing through her.
"At the moment I believe so" Nero nodded thoughtfully "It seems that these were simple tactical errors and necessities in the field which have been used against us, none of the settlements we have reached out to know where we're based and none are actively trying to work against us"
"What happens if they do?" Zirconia asked, words leaving her in a hushed whisper before she could stop them; after a moment of silence she squared her shoulders and pressed on, her features morphing into a scowl which pulled her scarred flesh taut and saw her pink and orange gaze boring into Nero's quartz "If one of the settlements decides not to accept your offers or tips off the Hunters….Will the people there be experimented on for the greater good like the rebels here, or will they just be silenced?"
Nero's expression was stern, cold and somehow beneath it all frightened, the look of a man aware that he was losing his grasp on everything including his loved ones and even himself; but who was unable to turn off of the path he had started down. His voice cracked when he answered, his entire body seeming to sag under some unspeakable weight
"I sincerely hope it doesn't come to that my dear"
The knowledge that there was a plan of action laid out and that they would play a part in it had sparked something almost profound in Team MARS.
For the latter half of the week the four of them had been an unstoppable force both in and out of class, training incessantly and applying themselves with a fresh vigour and almost fanatical dedication to their studies in an effort to be as ready and prepared as possible for what would soon be upon them. The subject of upcoming missions had been broached by various Professors and the Third Year students, now taking elective courses had been informed that they would be expected to play a more active role in the planning and implementation of the operations they took part in rather than simply shadowing more experienced Hunters; this revelation had seen Team MARS's peers follow suit and begin pushing themselves further as well, though none quite so far as Team MARS whose activities had become a topic of discussion and no small amount of well-meaning and friendly banter over just a few short days.
That joking had stopped after Team MARS had utterly outclassed and outshone all challengers during combat training on Friday, with Regalia even leaving Wolfram Ironside; the usual star of that particular class flat on his back.
Now however the weekend had come and the team, like their peers whose upcoming missions might not be so perilous had chosen to unwind a little; the four of them having made good on their earlier plans to spend some time helping Cornflower Blue settle in to her new home by accompanying her into the city, something which would make transporting furniture, clothes, groceries and other purchases much easier but would also allow the still-traumatised woman to feel safer in such a crowded place.
"You never told me that your friends were so polite" Cornflower exclaimed happily as the initial introductions were concluded, reaching up to teasingly ruffle her sons' hair "How on Remnant did they end up with a little urchin like you?"
"Really Mum, really?" Stygian sighed, rolling his electric blue eyes at the display of motherly teasing which would have been at home almost anywhere on Remnant and which drew various smiles and chuckles from the rest of Team MARS, with Athena-Jade being the first to speak up
"You didn't tell us your Mum was funny Stitch"
"Oh I think I like this one" the elder Mouse Faunus gave a bright and plainly mischievous smile to her son, whose only response was a wordless groan of discomfort at the predicament he was being placed in.
"But on a more serious note" Cornflower breathed out "Thank you, all of you for everything"
"It's what we do Miss Blue" Astra answered solemnly, the note of pride in their voice carefully measured as the Deer Faunus understood that it would not do to seem as though they were bragging or overconfident when discussing the ordeal they had rescued her from.
"I don't just mean saving me from the Grimm in the wasteland" Cornflower shook her head "I don't just mean today either, thank you for doing everything you can to help Stitch-"
"Mum, please" the younger Mouse Faunus seemed ready to disappear into the folds of his oversized jacket at this point.
"Boy you know good and well that a life in Pikesreach didn't prepare you for a life in the Kingdoms" Cornflower shook her head "And I wish I'd done better by you, these friends of yours have clearly helped"
"Heh, that wasn't actually us" Regalia chimed in, wringing her hands nervously.
"My old team, Team TRQS" Stygian offered by way of an explanation "We split up after Neo Vale, but I'm still in touch with 'em….Want me to give 'em a call"
"All in due time" Cornflower's smile brightened again as she gestured to Team MARS with a single sweeping gesture "Your friends think I'm funny and I want to get to know them a little better….Have you kids eaten?"
"We have Miss Blue" Astra nodded
"But if you wanted something then Regalia knows every good place to eat in the city" Stygian offered, the compliment to Regalia's knowledge of the city being partly in jest but still honest enough that the Racoon Faunus nodded happily.
"I was being polite" Cornflower answered, her body language and expressions as she spoke immediately becoming another similarity between herself and her son which the rest of the team could identify "And I am perfectly capable of cooking….Although I'll admit the cupboards are somewhat bare right now"
"We can fix that" Stygian answered eagerly.
"Sure, but we should probably make it our last stop" Astra offered, giving a slight shrug as eyes turned towards them "Things will start defrosting otherwise, and if we're buying furniture and stuff then we may as well buy that first so it isn't weighing down on top of things"
"A good idea" Cornflower nodded, privately finding her friends new compatriots a far more agreeable, polite and well-rounded bunch than the brash and uniformly cocky fighters-in-training her had been surrounded by at Pikesreach "But if it would make things easier for you then perhaps I should leave furniture shopping for another time? It's not like this place is unfurnished, but it is only intended to be a temporary accommodation and I don't want to keep it from someone who needs it more"
"It's not problem at all, we can pick some furniture and keep it disassembled so it's easy to transport whenever you move into somewhere and get settled, just message Stitch and I'll move it for you" Astra answered happily "I've got plenty of space in the truck….which still needs a good name"
"You Hunters do love naming things to make them special don't you?" Stygian gave a bemused smile, one which only widened as the Deer Faunus snorted and nodded towards her son.
"Have you heard what Stitch named his sword?"
"Oh you named it? I didn't know that" she turned and folder her arms across her chest
"I'll remember this, you guys know that right?" Stygian grumbled.
"Is it rude?" Cornflower sighed "Is that why you don't want me to know, are you making jokes about swinging your weapon around in front of-"
"MUM!" the younger Mouse Faunus exclaimed, utterly aghast at the turn the conversation was taking; whilst around him Regalia hid her face and tried to muffle her laughter, Astra showed no such mercy and openly cackled until tears streamed down their face and Athena-Jade flushed scarlet and choked on air as she she looked around as though uncertain of where to put herself.
"I had to think of something, it was just the first thing that came to mind" Stygian shrugged, still not making eye contact with his mother as he mumbled the words which were only audible with the keen hearing of a Faunus.
"It's just a really dumb pun" Athena offered, joining in the teasing even as she came to her partners' rescue.
"Thank you" Stygian fought the urge to give Athena a playful but rude hand gesture; knowing better than to do so in front of his mother to whom he turned and asked "So are we gonna head into the city then, we're ready whenever you are?"
"I'm ready" Cornflower answered "Will you four be staying for dinner once we get back?"
"I'm afraid Regalia and I can't Miss Blue" Astra apologised "We already have plans for later"
"Oh well I wouldn't want to interrupt you two lovebirds" she chuckled, having easily interpreted the glances that the two teens shared even if they were refraining from holding hands or being overly affectionate in front of their newest friends' mother.
"AJ, you wanna stay for dinner?" Stygian asked without thinking
"Absolutely" The Bear Faunus answered equally readily and rather than comment on the interactions between her son and his new partner, who was vastly different from what she would have expected from the product such a famous and wealthy family Cornflower elected to simply unlock the door to her temporary apartment, keeping her keys between her knuckles instinctively as she replaced them and then allowed herself to be led out towards the car.
Walking down to the courtyard took only a few minutes, the chatter between the group naturally quieting down as the proceeded out of politeness and consideration for the people whose apartments they passed until finally Cornflower stepped out into the bright and fresh late morning air; unable to entirely shake the feeling of sudden importance about herself, flanked as she was by four seemingly very capable student Hunters who were leading her towards what could only be Astra Mars's truck, an utterly monstrous vehicle with a vivid red paint-job made more garish by the black flame pattern enveloping its' hood and front wheel-arches whilst in the bed at its' rear was a jet-bike which seemed to have been made from parts of an airship.
"Well, I can certainly see why you wanted to name it" Cornflower noted as she regarded the somewhat gaudy thing "Will there be enough room for us?"
"Oh yeah, plenty of room" assured her.
"Actually" Regalia spoke up "I'm thinking I might take Clunker and meet you guys there….I haven't been able to really ride since classes started again"
"Okay sure" Astra leaned over to kiss their girlfriends' cheek "See you in the city"
From there Cornflower watched, whilst making her way towards the passenger's seat that Astra offered to her with a gesture as the Racoon Faunus managed to unfasten her own vehicle from the bindings that had been securing it and then haul it down onto the ground in a single motion that spoke of incredible physical strength. A moment later the older woman was left utterly dazed and speechless by the sheer noise and spectacle of Clunker roaring and screaming into life before tearing off into the street with a jet of quickly subsiding flames in its' wake and Regalia's Russet's giddy, whooping cheer echoing behind her.
"LET'S TURN AND BURN!"
Cornflower's first coherent thought as the sound of Clunker was steadily replaced by the lower, throaty growl of the trucks' engine was that she suddenly remembered why she had spent much of her time as a younger woman so utterly enthralled by Hunters whose ranks she would never join.
They were simply impressive in a way that was larger than life.
Pantheon's body sat almost entirely motionless upon the throne of the Grimm General; their towering and monstrous form merged with the centrepiece of their domain upon the ocean floor through the membranous tissue that had one been wings yet had since atrophied and devolved into nothing more than a living cape, nerves and capillaries grew and stretched between Pantheon themselves to the pulsing and obsidian web of tissue which had weaved itself across the throne formed from the wreckage of a crashed and sunken aircraft and that web was in turn serving as a connection point of its' own; accommodating more than a dozen Synapse Grimm whose tendrils phased in and out of tangible reality at the points of contact and produced a constant, roiling miasma of darkness which hung low to the ground of room whose walls were formed of crystals and despite this apparent impermanence the disturbing, Squid-like abominations remained firmly tethered in place with no more movement than a faint and buoyant bobbing in the air as they fulfilled their function.
Pantheon could see everything.
Their physical form had been slowed to the point of a catatonic stasis, almost truly suspended animation broken only rarely by slow and deliberate breaths as the body of the massive Alpha Grimm functioned of its' own accord at a tectonic pace and poured out winding gouts and contrails of smoke from a snarling maw which hung open and slack. The consciousness of the Grimm General was not only elsewhere, but it was in fact at multiple places at once as Pantheon surveyed the most important and active of the theatres of war across Remnant, of which the majority were concentrated on the island of Menagerie.
Things had changed and Pantheon was certain that it was the work of Gestalt-Prime, the would be usurper.
For some time now Pantheon had been aware of the Cyber-Grimm, the foul and abhorrent spawn of of the younger sentient Grimm's union with humanity appearing around several smaller nests of humans to tackle the Creatures of Grimm that harried and pressured them in what Pantheon had first assumed was an obvious ploy to distract and redirect them; after the way Pantheon had lost the initiative at Pikesreach by falling for what had been revealed to be a ruse or something similar it seemed that Gestalt-Prime had deduced their older and more powerful Grimm's intentions and was now working to keep their true base of operations from being found by setting up countless other decoys and trying goad Pantheon into rash actions, undoubtedly so that Gestalt-Prime and their allies could attack elsewhere in a display of animal cunning and sleight of hand.
In recent days however Pantheon had been forced to reconsider the situation.
Indeed it had been days since the Grimm General had returned their mind to their own body as the severity of the situation demanded their direct attention and justified them further abandoning their previous abstinence from interfering in the cycle of creation and destruction directly. Creatures of Grimm had been felled by the thousand all across Remnant, with several Spawning Pits being destroyed in short order and Pantheon's initial assumption had been that Gestalt-Prime had managed to deliver some critical blow which had gone unseen and that the usurper was now challenging Pantheon openly with a crushing first salvo.
The reality had been arguably worse, Hunters had come to many of the settlements where Pantheon and Gestalt-Prime's forces had recently locked horns and began indiscriminately opening fire on every Cyber-Grimm and naturally made Creature of Grimm the encountered; this development being followed up by yet more Hunters prowling the open stretches of Wasteland where they were normally reluctant to tread and attacking with equal ferocity whilst clearly searching for something. The result of this was that Pantheon lost yet more of the forces they had managed to muster on the island of Menagerie but also that Gestalt-Prime's forces were forced to retreat. Or perhaps allowed to retreat, if Gestalt-Prime were truly cunning; as it occurred now to the Grimm General that their opponent might well have intended all along to draw two forces with whom they sought to wage war into a conflict with one another, weakening both and readying them for a killing blow that would come later.
Even as the Hunters continued to reposition themselves across Remnant, shoring up defences in places which had been harried and terrorised for years Pantheon became aware of other problems, further afield but somehow intimately connected to this ongoing battle; there were stirrings of activity in other Kingdoms, Pantheon's flying monsters flocking around coastlines and soaring as close to the walled cities as they dared informed the Grimm General through psychic connections of the Hive-Mind that flying machines were being prepared and that forces were being prepares in the Icy Kingdom of Atlas and everything in Pantheon's instincts screamed to them that those forces would soon make their way to Menagerie.
Leaving Pantheon with important decisions to make.
The Creatures of Grimm would of course harass and assault the incoming threat as much as possible, though given the sheer amount of destruction such machinery was capable of unleashing, to say nothing of the Hunters within it was likely that those efforts would amount to nothing at all at that in short order Pantheon's already depleted forces on Menagerie would be forced to contend with the attentions of both Gestalt-Prime's growing menace and at the same time more Hunters than were usually present on the island at any one time. The answer was a simple and obvious, yet nevertheless infuriating one which enraged Pantheon even as they began sending out the mental impulses and urges required to put their plans into action.
It was not in the nature of the Creatures of Grimm to be on the defensive.
Monsters across the island Kingdom and its' wastelands began to pull back from the hunts, battles and ambushes they had been embroiled in; with the majority of their number being called back to the Spawning Pits from whence they had come so that they might defend what assets Pantheon still had on the island. Those same primordial abysses of living darkness were compelled to create and birth more nightmares made flesh in ravenous, shrieking waves until their sheer volume eventually provided an advantage whilst those Grimm which had originally been vomited forth by Spawning Pits which had since been destroyed were sent to either seek out places where enough of a psychic echo remained to begin forming new pits or else sent to converge with amphibious Grimm which Pantheon was simultaneously spawning from oceanic Spawning Pits and compelling to make landfall at unguarded points on Menagerie's coast in order to create more enemies for the Hunters to engage with and provide ruses and distractions of their own. The Hunters were an old foe and one which Pantheon understood, they could be dealt with piecemeal and kept from achieving any real victories with nothing more than a skilful management of the tools and assets currently at Pantheon's disposal; the Grimm General was however being forced to abandon their search for Gestalt-Prime's primary lair and the means by which they produced their vile Cyber-Grimm, a fact that the younger sapient Grimm would no doubt make impressive use of.
Pantheon was loathe to give such a boon to their enemy but was forced to concede that if a war was to be fought then they would need to ensure they had the numbers and resources to do so.
Though the Grimm General vowed to return to the task at hand in short order.
In Stygian's mind the day had gone well thus far and showed little sign of changing.
Venturing into the Capital City of Port Alistair with Team MARS and his mother had been entertaining and eventful, yet not in any ways that had caused stress or worry. At present he, his mother and Athena-Jade were once again in the small, single-bedroom apartment whilst Astra and Regalia had ventured off for a date that Stygian was not sure about the specifics of, but would certainly learn about later given that Astra was a prolific gossip who also seemed to delight in showing off and hyping up their girlfriend and partner to a degree that was both hilarious and utterly adorable.
Even with just the three of them however the apartment had felt smaller and more crowded as his mother had indeed bought several items of furniture such as drawers and wardrobes which were currently being kept stored, unbuilt in their boxes for the time being and taking up part of the already small living room; more hefty items such as a sofa would likely not be bought until Cornflower had a more permanent place to live arranged and was more fully on her feet again although she had still been wowed with the casual ease with which Athena-Jade had hauled several items of furniture over a single shoulder and carried them up to the floor Cornflower lived on by using a glyph as a platform and bypassing the stairs entirely.
Stygian was sure that Athena had been showing off at that point but had chosen not to say anything about it.
"Thanks for today AJ, for everything….It means a lot" he murmured, he and his partner were currently alone in the living room with the noise of a television program that neither of them were currently paying any attention to providing some ambient noise whilst dinner was being cooked and Cornflower, who was adamant that at least one of Stygian's friends experience what she was capable of in the apartments' more modern kitchen now that she actually had good food to work with was currently putting away some of her other purchases; it transpired that despite being away from the Kingdoms for roughly two decades she had never officially been declared dead and upon proving her identity she had been pleased to learn that her bank accounts had accrued a decent amount of Lien in interest, far from enough to consider herself rich but enough that she could remain above water for at least a while.
"Dude" Athena managed to breath the word out with sincere kindness than it should have held "It's nothing, you're a friend and we all needed to do something other than train or we were gonna go crazy and besides….You Mum's cool, I enjoyed hanging out with her"
"Wow" Stygian made a dramatic gesture, even as his broad smile made it clear that he was joking "You're gonna keep hanging out with my Mum aren't you….I'm not even your partner any more, I'm just Cornflower's kid"
"I think I just might" Athena teasing, matching the blue-haired young man's tone and energy "I'll have to give you a juice box and tell you to go and play in your room or something"
"If I ever go to Atlas I'm gonna make your brother and sister like me more" Stygian winked an electric blue eye to which Athena responded with a pout.
"You suck, you suck so bad" she gently punched Stygian's shoulder with a gloved hand "Just not my niece, she needs to think I'm the cool Aunt"
"Of course, there're lines. I'm not a monster" Stygian gasped in mock horror and outrage at the suggestion whilst also using his height advantage to try and ruffle Athena's hair in retaliation "Have you got any pics of your niece?"
"Arctus and Diamond haven't sent me any new ones in a few days but I can't get some, I'll either text them or Mum" Athena's answer came distractedly as she used a glyph to keep her partners' hand at bay and then overcame his height advantage with a casual but effective shoulder barge from a sitting position which resulted in a small amount of playful scuffling and grappling for no reason other than that it was enjoyable.
Only for it come to a halt at the sound of a door opening, at which point the two of them were quickly sat once again at opposite ends of the sofa, bolt upright and looking inexplicably guilty as they pointedly refused to make eye contact with one another.
"Okay, how do I look?" Cornflower's voice was loud and clear, a declaration of her presence as much as a question before the woman herself strode into view, cocking her head at the sight of the suddenly strained body language between the two teenagers on her sofa "Am I missing something?"
"Nope" the answer came from both Stygian and Athena-Jade in perfect unison and Cornflower could only laugh at it before gesturing at herself in general and the new attire she wore as if to reiterate her previous question.
"You look cool" Athena answered without hesitation, further cementing her favourable position with her new partners' mother.
The elder of the two Mouse Faunus had discarded the ill-suited summer dress she had worn earlier that day in favour of navy blue jeans which were well-fitting and practical, held up by a brown leather belt which was sturdy and equally sensible with a variety of pouches adorning it for storing her scroll, purse, keys and also the taser and knuckle-duster she had bought for self-defence. Her jeans were tucked into a pair of black boots with blue laces which reached almost to her calves, their heel and toe plated and soles sporting enough of a platform to make her appear taller. Cornflower also wore a simple and pale blue and cream coloured blouse with a chequered design which she had paired with a short-sleeved jacket of patchwork black and brown leather, the two garments been worn almost as a single item with the blouses' sleeves rolled up over so that their cuffs covered those of the jacket and several buttons undone, allowing the collar of the blouse to fit over that of the jacket; doing so allowing her display both some of the tattooed markings she had been given during her years at Pikesreach just had Stygian had previously done even though her own tattoos were of a different design and significance and the plethora of bangles and bracelets now adorning her wrists. Most striking of all was the wig she wore, a mass of cascading black curls with tips coloured a pale blue and gold.
Stygian realised that his mother did in fact look incredibly cool.
"I probably look like I'm trying to relive my college years, I have no idea what people think is fashionable right now" she laughed, expression faltering as she caught the way her son's eyes lingered on her wig
"I wasn't sure if I could pull blue hair off as well as you do son, besides its' just until my hair grows back enough to hide the tattoos….I like those ones a lot less than the others, besides they'd get ruin my chances in a job interview and my chances are slim as it is"
"You're already thinking about getting back into work Miss Blue?" Athena asked, clearly surprised.
"Pikesreach doesn't tolerate the idle" the older woman answered, expression darkening for a barely perceptible moment before smiling as she added "Besides, it'll be interesting to get back out into the world and see what I've missed, meet some new people"
"I hope it all works out for you, you deserve something better than what you had" Stygian nodded as he spoke "What kind of work would you be looking for?"
"Anything that isn't farming and has weekends off" Cornflower snorted "Before I left to come to the island I worked in an office, but with how much all of the scrolls and things have changed I'd probably have too much to re-learn….But anyway, enough about me. What about you two, did you get partnered up randomly in your third year or did you already know each other and ask specially?"
That there was clearly an obvious answer that his mother was hoping for might be mortifying, were it not for how saddening the truth of the situation was; though Stygian still tried to find a positive spin.
"My old team disbanded at the end of our second year….After what happened in Neo Vale. My old partner Tiger transferred to another team so she could work with her brother, he lost someone and she needed to be there and the other two people decided that it wasn't what they wanted any more" the younger Mouse Faunus had to pause for a moment at that but pressed on "I actually met Astra first, briefly at an airship terminal, but I met the rest of the team when they came over for the tournament and we hung out pretty regularly….I needed a team and they had a vacancy"
"Oh" Cornflower turned to Athena, utterly aghast at what she seemed to think was a grievous faux pas "I didn't think, I didn't mean to bring up something so painful….Did you lose someone close to you?"
"My old partner, she didn't die though" Athena's eyes dropped and the leather of her gloves creaked audibly as her fists clenched and her claws strained against them "Sometimes I really wish she had, it'd be easier than hating her for what she did"
"Mum" Stygian whispered "AJ's old partner was-
"Zirconia Shadowmoon" Athena interjected, looking up to meet Cornflower's eyes "Zirconia Shadowmoon….I loved her, I trusted her, I would have done anything for her….And she betrayed us all"
"You poor girl" Cornflower's hand flew to her mouth and instinct took over, propelling her forward to wrap her arms around the Bear Faunus's massive shoulders only to halt as she felt the young woman stiffen under the sudden contact; pulling back Cornflower cleared her throat and forced her voice into something more jovial "Let me just take a look at how dinner's doing, I don't want to burn anything"
Cornflower stepped away and for a moment the only noise was that of the television, with the silence which stretched between Athena and Stygian seeming to overpower it by orders of magnitude.
"AJ?" the dark-skinned young man asked cautiously "Are you okay?"
"Yeah" Athena sniffed, only to let out a bitter and watery chuckle "No...Damn it, I'm sorry Stitch, I can't believe I just said something like that in front of your Mum; she must think I'm-"
"AJ" Stygian slid closer and gently placed his hands on her shoulders, turning her to face him "Don't worry about that right now….Are you gonna be okay? There's a very real chance that you, or any of us could see Zirconia at Pikesreach….Are you up to it?"
"I….I'll have to be" Athena reached up and wiped her eyes "Part of me wants to ask her why and make her give me a real answer, one that isn't just Nero's sales pitch but another part of me just wants to grab her and shake sense into her and then another part of me never wants to see her again….I think….I think I still love her and that a part of me always will Stitch"
Stygian had no words, instead he swallowed a lump in his throat and simply held his arms out for a hug which Athena readily threw herself into; her strength nearly overwhelming him as she wrapped her arms around his chest and buried her face in his shoulder whilst the mouse Faunus simply patted her back and provided a warm and comforting presence.
The moment lasted until Cornflower returned, her arrival sending the pair scurrying to opposite ends of the sofa once more to avoid any allegations.
Upon dropping Stygian, Cornflower and Athena-Jade, along with their truly impressive amount of shopping back at the low-rise apartment blocks Astra had taken the opportunity to enjoy the rest of their afternoon taking Regalia on a date, with ideas on where to go and what to do having formed as the day progressed.
After loading Clunker back into the bed of their truck Astra had taken Regalia to the beach where the sun was passed its' zenith but the waves were still warm and though there were a small handful of fellow Breaktide students present they endured only minimal interruptions and intrusions upon their privacy before they had managed to find some privacy on a quiet stretch of sand which had been rendered secluded by the rock formations around it; a place reminiscent of a beach party that Team MARZ had attended in their first year at the invitation of Fox Alistair. It was there, after disappearing for a short while and returning with ice cream and a bag containing towels amongst other things that Astra had made a discovery that should not have surprised them as much as it did considering where their partner hailed from.
Regalia was a terrible swimmer.
The Racoon Faunus had given no indication that there would be any problems, happily changing into a modest swimsuit Astra had purchased for her along with some trunks for themselves and the towels whilst Astra themselves held the hooded cloak she had been wearing around her shoulders up as a screen to ensure that she had privacy whilst also averting their own eyes. Once she had followed Astra into the sea however it had quickly become apparent that a life out in the wastelands had given Regalia little chance to learn or practice swimming and her ability to do so was limited to an instinctive flailing paddle which quickly saw her dipping below the water until Astra had pulled her back to safety; utterly mortified despite Regalia's own lack of concern. What had followed was an enjoyable time where Astra had tried to teach Regalia to swim, with limited success before the two had retreated back to the sand, drying themselves and enjoying the afternoon sun until they had been distracted by a video call from Astra's mother.
Who was currently howling with laughter at the story which had just been recounted to her.
"Oh my gosh….Astra I cannot believe you, how did it not occur to you that someone raised away from the sea might not be a good enough swimmer" Myrtle Mars shook her head in disbelief, utterly dumbstruck by the apparent lack of common sense before turning her attention to Regalia, whose mass of grey-brown hair was unfastened and untamed as it dried "And as for you, I thought you were cleverer than that; I thought you were the one who usually put the brakes on Astra's worse ideas"
"Heh, I guess I didn't think it would be that bad" the Racoon Faunus shrugged before looking away, strongly reminded of her own mother by the admonishment "I just wanted to try something new, it seemed fun"
"Oh don't let me spoil your fun, I don't meant to fuss" Myrtle laughed, the reptilian Faunus adjusting her work uniform as she prepared to leave for an evening shift "But you've been Astra's partner for years now, we've met, you've eaten at our home and you two are dating now….I'm going to fuss over you, especially if Astra accidentally drowns you"
"Thank you, it's fine though honest" Regalia beamed, swallowing a lump in her throat at the realisation that she was being told indirectly that she had been accepted into Astra's family whilst beside her Astra merely groaned at the ridicule they were being subjected to.
"And I am so glad I was right about you two" Myrtle beamed "Not just because I bet Felix twenty lien, everyone could see the way you two were looking at each other last year and now look at you….You look so happy together and-"
"Mum please for the love of everything" Astra flopped back onto the towel, hands both covering their face and massaging the points where their antlers protruded from their skull whilst Regalia held the scroll, from which their mothers' disgruntled huff could be heard.
"What have I raised, you won't even let your mother be supportive or a romantic" Myrtle sniffed in faux horror before her voice became more serious "But besides all of this, which is sweet, really; how are you kids doing? I know everything that happened over the summer took its' toll on all of you, especially your other friend….How is she doing?"
"It was rough for AJ, rough for our new member as well….We'll have to introduce you to Stitch some time" Astra admitted, pulling themselves back up into a sitting position "How is Fluffy anyway? Haven't heard from him in a few weeks"
"Your brother is busy as always" Myrtle sighed "I thought with Arctus and Diamond having a child now that Felix might have slowed down for a while, but then everything happened at the tournament and Hunters are needed more than ever….Even if some people don't see it that way"
"Is Felix coming Menagerie?" Regalia asked with sudden hope, she was rather fond of Astra's brother "It sounds like a lot of the problems are finding the way to the island-"
"Don't you go telling me things like that, my heart can only take so much" the older woman gasped "No, no Felix, Helios, Eagle Arc and her wife and a few others are still in Vale for the time being; they're some of the best but they can't be everywhere at once even if they're needed everywhere"
"Tell him to call when he gets a chance though" Astra beamed, something lighting up in their sea-green eyes at the thought of hearing from the blonde Lion Faunus in the near future.
"Will do" Myrtle nodded "Now, I've got to head out to work….So I'll leave you two to enjoy your afternoon, you two take care now"
"Love you Mum" Astra waved, an action Regalia seconded before the video feed ended and the Deer Faunus set the scroll aside on the edge of the towel; for several moments the two of them remained silently content, each happy to simply enjoy the moment and one another's presence until Astra broke the silence.
"So, is there anything you wanted to do?"
"Heh, no more swimming" Regalia beamed, leaving Astra to simply drink in the sight of her; the swimsuit he had bought was a simple and modest two-piece in a shade of purple that complimented her well; after sharing a dormitory for so many years the Deer Faunus had a good enough idea of the clothing sizes their partner wore to make the purchase but had shied away from buying anything that might be deemed overly sexual for the simple reason that they did not want to make Regalia uncomfortable or be considered a pervert; the fact remained however that with her impossibly well defined abs on display Regalia looked incredible and Astra couldn't help but stare. The Racoon Faunus returned the favour, taking in the sight of Astra's lean and toned muscle as her eyes roved across their chest and studied each of the scars and discolourations she found there.
"Are these all from first year?" she asked reaching out and tracing a discoloured patch where skin had burned and torn away "When you got hit by a rail-gun?"
"Yeah" Astra nodded, unable to make light of the memory or the experience; the physical pain and the amount of recovery time that the injuries had required were severe but nothing at all when compared to the fact that the Deer Faunus's actions that day had almost ruined their friendship with their partner. Without thinking Astra took Regalia's hand in their own and gently kissed her knuckles, which the Racoon Faunus used as an opportunity to draw closer so that the two of the were knelt on a single towel and mere inches apart.
"Don't do that again, please….You don't need scars to be cool" she murmured before kissing Astra's lips and then, in an instinctive and thoughtless action of her own that she would no doubt question to herself in private later on, leaned down and kissed a feather-light trail downwards across several faded scars.
Which drew an entirely understandable reaction from her partner.
"Regalia" Astra's breath hitched as they gasped her name out, pulling her up and into a slow, passionate kiss before breaking away and offering their girlfriend a husky look "You wanna try something risky?"
Even with her limited experience Regalia, suddenly overcome with her own desires understood perfectly what was being suggested.
"Will anybody see us?" she asked, a last lingering shred of nervousness remaining in the face of her excitement and simple want; Astra casually looked around and gestured to the rocks and sea that surrounded them with no sign of another person in the immediate vicinity before offering a seductive smile.
"Nope"
And then the two of them were kissing again.
Ever since they had first managed to find some privacy at the beginning of the week, wherein Regalia had utterly blown Astra's mind the Deer Faunus had been eager to repay the favour and in service of that notion they eagerly tore their lips from hers and eagerly attacked her neck and collarbone, then kissed, bit and nipped at toned skin all the way down her chest and midsection, taking care to pay proper attention to the abs that they so often admired before finally hooking their thumbs into the bottom of the Racoon Faunus's bikini; pausing as a new idea occurred to them.
"Turn over" Astra murmured, voice low as they kissed at her hipbones and thighs; drawing a whimper from Regalia who quickly complied and rolled onto her front, instinctively pulling herself onto her hands and knees.
"Arch your back" Astra's voice was no more than a whisper now as they pulled the bikini bottoms down, using one hand to guide their girlfriend into the desired position and the other finding purchase in the coarse fur of her tail, stroking her in a way they knew she enjoyed.
"Astra, please" Regalia panted out, her arched position leaving her biting down on her own knuckles as her voice threatened to betray her completely whilst behind her Astra moved themselves into position, moving at a deliberately slow pace.
"Just tell me what you need okay?" Astra's voice was gentle, the loving kindness contrasting with what they were doing and yet making the moment all the better; Regalia nodded wordlessly and shifted her position slightly to urge her partner onwards.
And then she felt Astra's tongue, spreading her, finding every sensitive nerve, leaving spots of colour dancing behind her eyes whilst tearing gasps of moans of pleasure from her which were muffled as she bit down on her own fist and the towels they had been laying on and leaving the idea of speaking coherently at all a distant memory as Astra showed off the benefits of the tongue piercing they had acquired over the summer.
Night was once again falling on Menagerie and within the walls of Pikesreach the sound of the first howling of the wastelands' nightly torments could be heard above the sounds of slowing activities, especially closest to the heavily fortified walls of the occupied settlement where Zirconia had once again found herself.
The Grasshopper Faunus was anxious and she was wary, with all of her instincts save for one urging caution and that solitary exception being a reckless urge to throw herself forwards on the path she had chosen, one that had been magnified to a dangerous degree and given licence by her earlier conversation with Damascus. The man she loved like a father was slipping, losing everything that had once made him a visionary and so easy to admire and Zirconia found herself feeling trapped; with Nero's darkening morals and willingness to sink himself into mires of ambiguity for the greater good on the one hand and the insanity of Aefen Cruor on the other, with the twisted scientists plans and motives remaining unknown in a way which sent a chill down Zirconia's spine at the mere thought of what her fellow masked woman might be doing with those she had taken from the population of Pikesreach.
It was time for answers.
To that end Zirconia made her way up onto the outermost wall and loped purposefully along the ramparts of the settlement, noting with some small sense of satisfaction as she passed that many of those taking watch or in the process of preparing themselves for a night of manning the walls' weapon emplacements no longer pointedly avoided her or turned their backs as she walked by, with a few going so far as to offer small but respectful nods of acknowledgement.
Seeing the change in the response her presence elicited the young woman, to proud to outwardly admit how lonely she was though fully capable of understanding the realities of her misery in private found herself standing straighter and taking care to ensure that the twin capes trailing from her hips billowed out behind her in a suitably dramatic way and that her armour was properly aligned; her preening came to a halt a moment later as Zirconia came to the simultaneous realisations that with her mask in place her scarred and black-clad form was not an appearance that would ever invoke hope in the way a Hunter should and secondly that opinions towards her had likely been changed solely by the efforts of Nugget, which undeniably soured them.
Though the young rogue swallowed her pride along with her other feelings as she sought out the Chicken Faunus in question.
Team NUGT were easy enough to find, the four of them had once again sequestered themselves away in one of the more favourable positions on the wall although this time it was in fact where the four of them were supposed to be. It would be a stretch of the truth to say that Zirconia's fellow former students of Breaktide were actually attending to their duties with any dedication when she encountered them however there was at least an effort being made, with one of Nugget's team-mates actually bothering to keep watch of the settlements' territory with their weapon at the ready whilst two others had set up a grill that seemed to have been made from scavenged metal and was likely unhygienic to some degree and were cooking for both themselves and other members of the night watch, which allowed them to speak with and subtly influence the locals just as Zirconia had hoped for. Nugget himself was sat at a small, makeshift table and talking animatedly with members of a gunnery crew stationed nearby on the wall, pointing to a map of the area with one hand whilst using the other to swill his gold jewellery in a cleaning solution intended for heavy machinery.
The Chicken Faunus caught sight of Zirconia's approach and waved off the people around him before rising to his feet and donning his jewellery and making his way towards her, meeting the Grasshopper Faunus halfway at an otherwise vacant stretch of the ramparts.
"Come here often?" the Chicken Faunus waggled his eyebrows and Zirconia fought an overwhelming urge to punch him the throat, instead keeping her rasping words low and icy as she regarded him with utter contempt.
"I was about to commend you for your work thus far….But clearly you're less interested in getting yourself back into Nero's good graces than I thought"
"Is that what you think this is? I'm trying to marry in or some shit? Nah, I'm just bored and you're hot….But sure commend away" Nugget sneered, testing Zirconia's resolve to a point where she was forced to inwardly recite a mantra that the Chicken Faunus was a means to an end and that simply kicking home the wall and down onto the maze of razor-wire below would complicate things exponentially; she was unable to remain entirely aloof and detached however and so retorted with a simply observation.
"You never used to act like this at the academy Nugget, do you think you have something to prove here?" the Chicken Faunus bristled, hand brought up for a gesture that never came and mouth working silently until eventually he dropped into a skulking slouch and grumbled.
"Whatever, you said I've done good….But we're not even are we"
"It's not a matter of even, it's a matter of you proving yourself, proving that you can be trusted again and that you can be useful to the movement after your mistake with the escapee" Zirconia countered, framing her manipulation of her former classmate in such a way that it rankled her sensibilities less, if only slightly so.
Nugget grimaced at the answer, since he and Zirconia had come to their arrangement only a few short days ago he and his team had already gone to great lengths aid the newest reinforcements from Jidhir Town in integrating themselves, in turn allowing them to both begin limiting the spread of Path of the Apex Being and their demented ideology and also allowing more opportunities for important conversations to be heard and reported on to Zirconia herself; though the Chicken Faunus was entirely correct in assuming that more was to be asked of him.
"So what's the deal then?" he demanded irritably "Come on, I'm not stupid….And I know you think I'm a scumbag but if you want me and my team to stick our necks out then you've gotta tell me what I'm risking it for"
"Thus far I've just been assessing whether or not I can trust you to follow my instructions" Zirconia answered bluntly, deciding that there was some kernel of truth and fairness in her old classmates' complaint "What I'm going to ask you to do is something that I need to know I can rely on you to do properly, without arousing suspicions"
"Okay, I'm listening" Nugget folded his arms across his chest and gave him a wary look"
"I want you to begin using your influence on the people around you and begin trying to directly involve yourself and your team in Aefen Cruor's business without tipping her off that you're doing it on my behalf, I need her to trust you enough to allow you into her workshop"
"Why?"
"Because you're an immoral parasite who plays both sides" Zirconia answered without hesitation, unable to bring herself to regret the choices of words even if she hastened to move passed them "If it were anybody else, especially anyone who has been seen interacting with myself then it would be seen for what it is; all you have to do is convince Cruor that you've seen that she's the winning side and that you're willing to commit….Stroke her ego"
"I get that" Nugget shrugged nonchalantly, even if something defensive crept into his tone "I hedge my bets, I keep my options open and do what's best for me and my people; that's why I joined up with Nero in the first place, it's better than fighting Cyber-Grimm….I mean why do you want us to spy on the doctor?"
"Nero wants me to spy on her, I need more eyes in more places to do it effectively" Zirconia answered easily, hoping that the mention of a higher authority for the Chicken Faunus to cosy up to would help "He thinks that she's using the resources and people afforded to her as a means to further her own goals, ones that are not necessarily aligned with our own and I can't simply force the issue"
"She's got too many people here" Nugget nodded.
"Exactly" Zirconia nodded, not willing to mention the possibility of interference from Gestalt-Prime lest it scare him into rescinding his offer to help.
"Okay cool, I can have my people do that….Just make sure the boss knows that it was me that helped" Nugget's features contorted into a wicked smile for a moment before he added "I get the feeling this is important and time sensitive?"
"It is" Zirconia nodded, seeing no reason to lie "Depending on what exactly Aefen is doing of course, but we should work on the assumption that time is against us and that the stakes are critically high….Just like they were in Neo Vale and I refuse to lose everything again, not this time"
Upon realising that she had said those last words aloud Zirconia turned and strode away; choosing to believe that she simply appeared enigmatic rather than heartbroken, traumatised or afraid.
The screaming wasteland winds that plagued the night went unheard within the deepest confines of Aefen Cruor's laboratory and the masked and twisted scientist worked without interruption.
Her innermost sanctuary was protected as always, even more so now that her work had produced viable results and for days now Aefen had remained locked away, shunning food and sleep and forgoing her duties as the High Speaker of her fanatical cult with excuses hidden behind flowery language which had grown ever more overwrought in its' half-hearted absurdity. Entirely inaccessible now that Aefen had given up any pretence of being more than a single-mindedly obsessed devotee to her own private cause her lair had been locked and was secured by several Cyber-Grimm in addition to those which had been stationed within the laboratory for some time, serving as her personal bodyguards; with the security being bolstered to the point of almost being overkill by the presence of not only Gestalt-Prime themselves roosting atop the roof of the building, joined by their remaining Shroud Variant which alternated between preening, prowling and lurking whilst stationary like some horrid mechanical gargoyle but also the recently repaired Man-Eater Variant slithering throughout the building whose considerable size Aefen had failed to properly make used of whilst occupying it.
And yet despite her security and her recent successes Aefen, like all who were driven by such pursuits of excess found any sense of peace entirely beyond her grasp.
"Interesting, very interesting indeed….And not without potential to be instructive, if not immediately useful in of itself, but what I can't fathom is why?" the masked woman, in an almost perverse juxtaposition against her surroundings and the situation in which she had found herself seemed more lucid and calmly methodical than many of the followers would have recognised. Once again watching from within the supposed, but mercifully untested safety of her control room Aefen watched with eyes that itched and burned with tiredness though the woman was far too disciplined to remove her mask and rub them and risk even the most minute chances of any contamination, either of herself or any surface areas that she might come into contact with; her lips were more cracked and dry than even their usual pitiful state and licking them only highlighted how similarly dry her mouth and tongue were, with each movement she made being accompanied by either a rumbling growl from her stomach or a faint spell of dizziness wherein her ears rang uncomfortably.
Yet she refused to be betrayed by her own body and simply pressed on.
Following the success of her initial foray into using test subjects with unlocked and active Auras the masked cult leader had wasted no time in seeing if her results could be replicated, taking another two bright-eyed hopefuls from the midst of her followers; choosing people whose absence would not hinder any daily operations too greatly and convincing them that some special qualities they possessed had seen them selected to be raised up, made into the Apex Beings so that they could be a shining example to others of what it was to be without fear or weakness. Convincing the two had been almost laughably easy and they had allowed themselves to be locked into place without complaint, the first hints of doubt only seeming to occur as the roiling, shifting masses of soon-to-be symbiotic Grimm had been forced down their throats.
And by then it had been far too late.
Both experiments had been successful which left Aefen with a trio of what she had come to realise were not, in fact the true perfect hybrids that she had endeavoured to create although she was loathe to call them something as base and undignified as 'Grimm-Zombies', each of which was a distinct entity unto itself.
The first of the new pair had seemingly erupted outwards in their transformation, flesh bubbling and expanding into a translucent sac filled with viscous and unrecognisable organs and interwoven networks of flesh and fungal tissue; vast amount of the bioluminescent mushroom-like growths emerging from the various folds within the now jet black skin of the creature which hag sagged to the point of consuming their legs. The specimens upper body remained vaguely humanoid in appearance, although anything that could have identified it as a particular person had been sloughed away to produce something skeletal whose spiked carapace armour seemed more intended for holding the beasts' rupturing form together. A mutilated slug-thing with feeble arms and a human skull that propelled itself by means Aefen would rather not consider.
The second specimen was something almost opposite, her body seeming to decay and be pulled inwards as if consuming itself as it was transformed by the Grimm tissue entering her system; being reduced to a skeletal form wrapped in ragged shreds of black skin like a papery, leather habit or cloak whilst her limbs had lengthened and distorted, growing new joints wholesale until every motion of the scuttling specimen was painful to watch whilst at the same time her jaw had distended entirely to allow for a thick and muscular tongue lined with hooks and barbs whilst spine and ribs had exploded and slashed their way outwards to form a tangled mass of bone-blades which even now seemed to move as though intending to eviscerate anything drawn close to them.
As terrifying as these creations were they were uninteresting to Aefen in their own right, indeed the twisted scientist had been ready to simply write them off as total failures; handing already creeping towards a control that would see the testing area purged with fires hot enough to away any lingering trace of Grimm tissue.
Then she had seen the interactions between the new specimens and her skulking, tentacle-mouthed creation from days prior.
The current source of her mystification was not that the three Grimm-Zombies interacted as though they were pack mates, or something akin to it despite being obviously entirely different orders of being for that was something she had seen in Grimm hordes and was a well enough documented thing be unsurprising; nor was it the oddly human gestures that the trio had shared, resting foreheads together and even briefly seeming to hug one another with some lingering vestiges of self forcing their way to the surface even if Aefen had refused to believe it could be so at first.
It was the fact that they had begun to merge.
After studying the behaviour her hand had once again flown to the emergency control that would incinerate everything at the sight of thing strands of Grimm-tissue stretching from a point of contact between two of the specimens ad they broke apart, pulsing and writhing until it became a stable webbing-like and rubbery flesh; Aefen's hand only being stayed by an intense curiosity which saw she was willing to gamble her own life along with the lives of every other person in Pikesreach to sate. Several hours had passed and the situation showed little sign of changing; if anything the three specimens had begun to slow in their movements, each of them gradually inching towards a state of torpor as their bodies fused piece by piece in an incremental process that would likely take days, possibly weeks to reach any sort of conclusion and which Aefen could end at any point if the need arose.
"I wonder" she licked at dry lips and once again found little comfort or moisture, turning her focus away from the scene itself and towards countless readings and streams of data that she was receiving; tired, pale green eyes narrowing beneath her mask as she tried to find some common threads from which to being weaving a hypothesis.
The realisation that her specimens were slowly dying felt like a slap in the face.
It was all she could do to keep herself from raging at the uselessness of it all and yet the idea made a sickening, infuriating amount of sense to her; her Grimm-Zombies had survived for long enough for their apotheosis to be given some coherent form but it was clear that little, if anything of humanity remained within and they were in truth simply uniquely shaped Creatures of Grimm rather than what Aefen had hope to create, namely a human being with all of the favourable attributes of the monsters which stalked Remnant. The reason that the specimens were merging was likely a simple effort to either cannibalise one another or pool their resources, spreading like a rot or any other fungal thing as their ominously glowing caps gave off a steadily increasing miasma of spores.
Despite her disappointment Aefen resolved to study the process for a while longer.
In the meantime she turned her attention to the matter of new candidates, quickly realising that if her own fighters with unlocked Auras were not up to the task of surviving the transformation then there were precious few people in Pikesreach who might be suitable subjects.
Though Aefen was sure she could find a pretext to have any of them donated to her research, it would just take some time.
Author's Notes:
Oh boy oh boy, we're really in it now aren't we?
So Vol.07 last until Chapter 126, but the finale is gonna start with 123….So we've got one more chapter before we really start wrapping things up for this volume.
And when I tell you that this is gonna change things just as much as Vol.06 did you should believe me.
But anyway, let's summarise shall we?:
Imagine 50/50 odds of being used as a human experiment and still no weekends off.
Seriously, having to keep moving because the person you're spying on knows you're spying and will probably try to have you killed at some point can't be good for your mental health.
Also, rereading this whilst in the midst of a heatwave is honestly making the heat worse.
Even when they're at odds Nero and Zirconia are fun to write, honestly the fact that Zirconia has lost faith but is still searching and scrabbling frantically for a reason to carry on following him just adds an entirely new dimension to it.
Even now Nero's acting like a Dad, even as he goes further off the deep end he's making a mental note to check in more often.
No more prisoners as test subjects, but Zirconia hasn't noticed that a few of Aefen's own people are missing.
Preparations to take something that the Atlesians have, interesting.
Coco has already put Menagerie's Hunter into motion like she planned to; which is in turn forcing Nero to break off his efforts and move people around to avoid being caught.
Zirconia asked the big question, what are we gonna do to the people who don't want to live in your new world….And that was definitely an unsatisfactory answer right there.
There's a plan, Team MARS know that they're gonna be involved so naturally they're on form and focused now; all that energy that Astra would likely have devoted to doing something dumb is being spent on training instead.
You know damn well that AJ, Astra and Regalia were absolutely on their best behaviour in front of Cornflower.
AJ especially making a good impression.
At this point I don't know if I should name Astra's truck or have the fact it's got no name be a running gag.
Let's be honest….he definitely thought about making a dick joke when he named his sword, he probably only stopped when Ren gave him a disappointed look.
Overall it was just a nice scene for us to enjoy before things start going to hell, honestly Cornflower's response is on its' surface how a lot of people see Hunters and really it's no mystery why she became a Hunter Groupie in her 20s….They're just cool.
I will not miss writing scenes with only one character and no dialogue, especially when they're just place holders and checking in with characters so we don't forget them.
It is fun to see how Pantheon looks at the situation from their position and perspective and makes some utterly incorrect guesses though, just because they don't have the advantage of being able to talk to Gestalt-Prime or any Hunters.
Pantheon is actually out here assuming Gestalt-Prime is playing all kinds of 3D chess, meanwhile Gestalt-Prime is actually bunkered down waiting for Aefen to finish her job and most of what Pantheon is attributing to them is actually Nero.
But now Coco has moved the Hunters to where the Cyber-Grimm were the Creatures of Grimm are getting caught by both Cyber-Grimm and Hunters, which means that whilst Pantheon has by far the most expendable bodies, they're also taking the most losses….In a fight that nobody else knows that Pantheon is even a part of.
And those extra Hunters Winter promised are inbound.
So in short Pantheon is pulling back, castling up but when they go back on the offensive again it's not just gonna be for skirmishes.
AJ showing off with both her glyphs and the fact she's built like a tank is great.
"I'll have to give you a juice box and tell you to go and play in your room or something" look there's some connotations there….If you know you know.
As an Uncle….Do not fuck with the cool Uncle status, there are lines and rules of engagement.
The scuffling and grappling followed by immediately trying to look innocent when Cornflower came back in the room; if you want to read things into it then I won't stop you.
Let's just say it….Stitch's mum is a bit of a Milf.
She's gonna be living her best life, new home, new job, new everything; let Cornflower be happy 2023.
"Or did you already know each other and ask specially?" Oh she is absolutely instigating here and you love to see it.
Oof, Zirconia is definitely still hurting….So the finale is gonna be fun.
Oh come on now, it's practically promised that AJ and Hops are gonna get a reunion at Pikesreach, all that matters now is the circumstances.
Chilling at the beach sounded like a great idea….But seriously, Regalia is definitely not a great swimmer.
Regalia is however gung-ho enough to try it anyway.
This is the first time Astra's Mum has spoken to Astra and Regalia on screen since the two started dating….So naturally she gets to be excited about how sweet it all is.
No Team FADE on Menagerie, not just now at the very least.
Yeah Astra might know Regalia's sizes off-hand but there's no way you can buy a bikini for someone else without looking like at least a little bit horny.
….But, speaking of horny.
Yeah sure, it was your mind she blew Astra.
So yeah, Astra arched Regalia up and ate that pussy from the back because Regalia absolutely deserves nice things.
Zirconia is having the monologue of brooding Victorian and getting herself embroiled in schemes and counter-schemes whilst her old friends are hanging out with families or on the beach having oral sex...I mean can it be any clearer that she chose wrong here?
So Nugget has been as good as his word, Zirconia has been using his influence to get her own people into better positions for espionage and it's worked….because Nugget will do anything to advance his own position with a power structure.
But he is such a dick.
Honestly Zirconia's comment about "You never used to be like this" was such an easy way to shut his bullshit down.
And this is Zirconia's plan, this is what she wanted Nugget on her side for….Because it's true, nobody would suspect a thing if he were the one to start cosying up to power.
The fact that he's self aware enough to get it makes it worse, but also funny.
So, for the people who want Nugget and his team to get a bad ending….does this sound like it's gonna end well.
Also oof, Zirconia's gonna do something reckless because she waited to tell Athena everything and it all went wrong.
Yay, more scenes with almost no dialogue.
Aefen is so exhausted her crazy has circled back around to being functional again….But also yeah, I don't care how tired you are, don't take your PPE of to rub your eyes at work, dickhead mistake.
Okay so she called the first one her Apex Being but now she's had it for a few days and made more she's realised it's still not what she wants really.
Also, we're definitely calling them Grimm-Zombies….And I want you to know that a Cordyceps type Grimm infection was literally one of the first things I wrote down as a potential threat back when I first started planning this story out before I'd even come of with the rough ideas for any of the characters.
So we've got one that's a slug monster and the other has even less of its' skin left than the first one but is also basically made of knives….Cool but not what we're looking for.
Okay so to condense it, Aefen was hoping to create a Grimm hybrid that still has its' human identity in tact….Imagine like an end point for Cinder's Grimm arm; what she's actually got is probably something closer to the Hound, except the Grimm is supposed to be symbiotic and there's not really enough left of the host….So the three of them of latching onto each other and merging as they eat each other alive in a feedback loop.
All whilst giving off spores….Because of course it's gonna get nasty.
So people with an unlocked Aura weren't enough….Now, who might be stronger than a random person with an unlocked Aura….Hunters maybe?
Thank you to MajorBrony95 for their review on the last chapter.
Yeah, the going in all guns blazing approach would absolutely have been far too risky...But also, playing smart gives the villains time to move their last few pieces into place.
Winter is a product of the Atlas military.
Oh yeah Nugget is every flavour of dickhead, because he kinda has to be...cos if what I've got planned for him happened to a character that anybody liked there could be an outcry; even now it's gonna be fucked up.
Oh yeah, Aefen's idea is worse than Apathy for one very simple reason: Apathy aren't contagious.
As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.