RWBY watches StarCraft 2

by RGQC

When a mysterious portal takes the cRWBY to a strange place with others as well. All of them brought unintentionally to watch a world consumed by war between the three factions and their stories. Will all of them remain the same after being exposed to such a world? (Rated M for Blood and violence as well as to be safe.)

26. Chapter 24 Mobius Factor

Hey guys! RGQC back here with another chapter for you to enjoy! Firstly, I am aware of your comments about why I didn't add Tosh's post-mission cutscene. And now that I have time to think about it, I have concluded.

What the hell was I considering leaving that out?

But what's done is done. So, I'll have added it here. Is that ok? Another thing is whether I should include Ghost of a Chance. And I decided that I shouldn't do it. But perhaps I shall have it once the Wings is done. Then maybe I'll do that mission alongside one of Haven's choices.

Let's get to the comments before we begin where we left off!

Diego3421: High Queen Blake wants Cinder to burn in hell for many things. But the main one was her nearly killing her boyfriend and then husband, and she hasn't forgotten about it. Yup. While I dislike Adam as a weird-ass, crazy stalker, I agree that they should have gone deeper instead of tossing him aside like trash. It's a maybe that I bring him in. Lily despises him for attempting to kill her parents and being a crazy stalker. So, her interactions with Adam will rain from belligerent to outright hostile. Interesting idea. I'll keep that in mind.

J-SECTION-L: I first chose Tosh because I distrusted Nova for suddenly appearing out of thin air and spouting what I believed were lies. And I'm right!

six samurai of dragon order: Well… If we were to think it logically, the Hyperion is too essential to lose and serves as Raynor's mobile base. If you were to ask me it makes some sense to keep it away from harm unless necessary, like in Heart of the swarm.

Ssgtsplatter: Your suggestion is a maybe as I will still follow what I chose. Yeah… Sry about that…

Guest: The one with Tychus in the Odin, my friend!

Dakzillaman: An Archon semblance, huh… I wonder how that would honestly work… Also, FFS! Not again! You guess what the next mission will be! God! BTW Wraiths are cool, but I just find Vikings much better. And Probius will usually hang out in Nora's dorm room unless she wants it to come with her.

Madroo: When we get there, we can expect it.

Luhar1997: Team RWBY and friends have been informed about the long sleep and how United Powers League was a totalitarian government. I doubt I will because I only say I will do the trilogy story. No Coop there. Even then, I'm unsure how to portray it as a story.

As I always do, I do not own RWBY or StarCraft. All these belong to their respective owners: RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth, and StarCraft 2 belongs to Blizzard Entertainment. I only own my OC in this story.

---

The Moebius Factor

It has only been a few minutes since the completion of the last viewing, and RGQC was in a sterile room with white tiles and walls. In it were rows of medical beds that had occupants on them. As RGQC walked towards them, various drones could be seen buzzing around Cinder and her gang to ensure that the Beast had been completely purged from their bodies.

Upon reaching Cinder and her party, who were unconscious, the realm lord's eyes began to glow green for a second before they dissipated. "Good to see that they're mentally recovering from it." RGQC hummed to himself as he tapped their foreheads with his finger.

A flash of aura emerged from Cinder and her party upon the realm lord's finger touching them, and soon they began to stir awake.

"Cinder, Emerald, Mercury. Can you hear me?" RGQC spoke as what he could guess were moaning or whining, leaving their mouths as Cinder was the first to push herself from her medical bed with a hand to her head.

A pained groan came from Cinder as she spoke with discomfort. "Yes, I can, RGQC. Where are we?" Cinder asked as her minions also began to push themselves off their beds.

"You and your friends are in sector 32. My medical facility." RGQC explained as he pulled out a tablet. "Tell me, what is the last thing you remembered?"

"I… I remember Koyanskaya was her name. She brought us to your collection, and we…" Cinder continued rubbing her head as she tried to remember the details.

"That bitch exposed us to something." Mercury cursed out.

"What was that thing she exposed us to?" Emerald was next as her face was paler than her skin.

RGQC's eyes narrowed as all three looked at him for answers. "The Beast. All three of you were infected with a bio-mechanical virus that can repurpose any known conventional material or organic matter to spread its cells."

"When the Beast infected you, it began breaking down your cells and reassembled them for use as living bio circuitry," RGQC explained as all three began remembering every bit of it. "By the time I found you three, the beast had halfway converted you before I managed to purge it from your body and restore your bodies. Koyanskaya has been punished for her actions against you and for failing to ensure my guest does not come to harm. I apologise to all of you."

RGQC bowed as Emerald muttered softly, still horrified at what she went through. "Why did you have that thing?"

"Its origin is unknown, even to us. QAI and I have studied it for centuries and are nowhere close to understanding it. Still, this will also serve as a lesson for trying to do something behind my back. Fun fact, you can't." RGQC explained as his tone became stiff while his eyes turned towards Cinder.

"Especially you, Cinder." RGQC's calm demeanour faded away. "Don't think I know where your loyalties are and why you're thinking of snooping through my collection. I don't appreciate thieves scurrying through the stuff I spent years collecting." Cinder's body tensed up as RGQC continued without hesitation.

"However, you are still permitted to venture through my collection if you are concerned." A sad look appeared on the realm lord's face as he leaned close to Cinder's eyes. "But I understand why you are the person you are. You wished for power so no one could hurt you, correct?"

Cinder's eyes grew like plates as the realm lord leaned back. "When you were but a young girl, you feel powerless at the hands of your abusers. So, to avoid the pain, you seek to claim more at all costs to ensure no one could hurt you again. But you gave that same pain you felt to others. Ironic, isn't it?"

RGQC gave a mirth chuckle. "You are also known for discarding people once they fulfil their purposes. Who's to say your master won't do that to you? The moment you accomplish her goals, who stops her from getting rid of you?"

"You don't know her…" Cinder hissed.

"But I do." RGQC nods as a portal appear next to him. "Salem didn't mention her intention to gather all the relics and destroy Remnant with them. So even if she doesn't kill you, nothing will be left for you to rule over, and you will die all the same, all alone."

RGQC then turned towards the portal and looked at Cinder and her party. "Take the time to think it through. While this seems inappropriate to tell you this, I know you can do right if you choose to. I've seen some worlds where you chose not to impend you're suffering to others despite what you've been through." And with that, RGQC left the three to recover.

"Cinder?" Emerald called out to her saviour, who pondered as Mercury muttered.

"Well, now what? I doubt we can do anything now since he knows us. And your boss wants to destroy the whole world? I know it's shit, but…"

"That's insane." Emerald rubbed her head.

"Silence. Both of you." Cinder growled as she rubbed her forehead. The feeling of pure agony as her body melted as soon as that thing came into contact with them replayed in her head repeatedly. She needed time to think it through, so Cinder slowly pushed herself off the medical bed and gazed upon her subordinates.

"Let us move and leave this place. I need time to think."

An hour later, RGQC was in the theatre room on his chair with a tablet in his hand. As he tapped away on it, the theatre door opened, and everyone entered. "Ah! Wonderful, you're all here." The realm lord smiled at his guests as Ruby was the first to speak."

"Uh, RGQC? How are Cinder and her friends? Is it ok for us to see them?" Ruby asks as RGQC hums as he stands up.

"Fine as anyone is after going through something traumatising." He admits. "I had to modify their memories slightly to make it appear less painful and trauma-inducing, for most patients who somehow survived the infections will be permanently scarred for life."

"I'm surprised you did not remove it entirely." Tai raised a curious eyebrow. Strangely, their host is willing to leave a bit of their painful experience to remain. But Tai guessed that RGQC probably had a good reason for it. Probably.

"Normally, I could," RGQC admits as he keeps his tablet as he lies. "But not all scars can be removed instantly. Some like theirs will take some time, but they will be fine after some time."

"Totally not as a punishment for trying something behind my back. But they don't need to know that. Yet."

As soon as RGQC finished his explanation, the theatre door opened again as Cinder, Emerald, and Mercury walked in. "Ah, wonderful for you to join us, Cinder. I assume you and your friends are feeling much better now?" The realm lord smiled at Cinder, who did not respond to his greetings.

Most students began to express their worries about Cinder and their friend's health, but others, like Torchwick and Neo, rolled their eyes at their return. "Great. They're back. Was hoping they will stay there longer." Neo whispered into Torchwick's ears, who sighed.

"Yeah, me neither."

Yet some of the adults noticed something was off about the realm lord. The smile he gave to Cinder, and her team seemed awfully fake. But it was hard to tell from how enigmatic he can sometimes be, even more so when they could see Cinder staring at the realm lord.

Did something happen while they were alone?

"While I'm glad everyone's concerned about their health, we should begin soon. But since Cinder and her team missed the last viewing, lemme do this." RGQC said before he snapped his fingers as Cinder and her team's eyes glowed.

"Damn, we miss the good part." Emerald pouted once her eyes dimmed. She hoped to witness it if it wasn't for getting placed into the medical bed.

Mercury could only agree as he folded his arms and rested his legs. "Can't believe I'm saying this, but yea, I agree. Unfortunately, we missed the good part." As for Cinder, she sighed as a drink appeared in her hand.

"Wonderful. At least he has the decency to ensure that we catch up."

"With that out of the way, we can begin because my dumb ass forgot to show you guys an important scene which was supposed to happen after the previous view." RGQC sighed as he rubbed his head with what the audience could guess was an embarrassment.

RGQC soon sat on his chair. "QAI, let's not waste any time."

[Understood.] QAI says as the theatre room darkens and the screen lights up.

---

New Folsom has been destroyed, and the political prisoners have been freed. Tosh has also joined Raynor's resistance movement and is training new spectres to use against the Dominion.

"I wonder what those political prisoners will do after breaking out?" Robyn wondered as she took a sip.

"It is likely that those prisoners will go out and spread anti-Mengsk propaganda as soon as they return to their respective homes. There is also a chance that some will join Raynor for freeing them." Penny offered her thoughts as the adults nodded their heads in agreement.

"I doubt Mengsk will be happy about this. We could see them retaliating for this breakout." Blake points out, as many others agree.

Hyperion - 03:53 shipboard time

The screen shows several battlecruisers above New Folsom as the camera slowly pans back to reveal that it is looking through windows over the prison planet.

It was during this process that everyone noticed something.

"When did Raynor have additional capital ships with him?" Ruby points out as the others wonder the same.

"It does make sense for other captains sympathetic to Raynor's cause to join his rebellion against Mengsk." Yang muttered.

"If he does have them, it would make sense that they were elsewhere conducting their own operations while the Hyperion conducts its one. It is possible that they only assemble for large-scale operations like this one." Ironwood suggests as everyone nods, for it makes the most sense.

Soon Raynor could be heard in the background. "Fifty years and no one has ever escaped from New Folsom." The camera then cuts to Raynor watching over as Matt walks in. "But we broke it open in an afternoon."

The camera adjusts as there is a beat before Matt looks at his commander and voices his disbelief at their success. "I can hardly believe we pulled it off."

"Yea. It was one hell of a fight breaking in." Qrow muttered as several of the audience agreed with the birdman.

"But they did it with Tosh's help, didn't they?" Summer smiles as Nora yells.

"With big boomba Nukes!"

"And that."

Matt and Raynor continue watching through the Hyperion windows, and both hear the noise of someone uncloaking behind them as the camera changes to show someone materialising in a red outline. Which soon reveals to be Tosh as he unfolds his butterfly knife.

"For a piece of equipment meant for stealth, they are unusually loud, aren't they?" Coco points out.

"Yup. Still, they are impressive in their stealth capabilities." Pietro hummed as the screen continued.

The screen cuts to Tosh as he lifts his butterfly knife and gives one hell of a declaration. "You guys did good. Now me and my spectres will finish the job. We will kill Mengsk," The screen cuts to Matt briefly before returning to Tosh. "And burn his Dominion to the ground!"

"Wow. He really hates the Dominion a bit too much." Qrow mutters. "I get wanting to get rid of Mengsk but burning the whole Dominion into the ground? That's too much for me."

"But must they resolve to destroy everything to solve their problems?" Ruby wondered as the realm lord spoke.

"Tosh has been through much. And this had brought itself in the form of a massive cynicism streak when it came to the Dominion and society. Even on Remnant, you will have people who believe that the kingdoms are all corrupted and must be replaced with something new."

Ruby let out a sigh as Yang rubbed her back.

Yet Matt walks off as the camera shifts to show him heading towards the bridge console. "Overthrowing Mengsk is just the start. This is about building a better tomorrow." Matt argued as he opened a list of all prisoners released from New Folsom.

"Building a better tomorrow, huh? I wished the kingdoms could do that instead of politicking with each other." Tai mumbled. "Then again, it will take time, even if that's the case."

"We all wished for it, Tai." Glynda nodded her head. "It is just some of us are willing to put ourselves above others." She then glared at Torchwick, who just rolled his eyes.

The camera zoomed on Matt's face as the various names of prisoners scrolled by. "Don't you see?" Matt questioned as the camera switched to Raynor listening to Matt's speech. "We just released every scientist, philosopher and free thinker, that ever challenged Mengsk's rule. That was our real victory today."

Yet Tosh violently disagreed as he threw his knife into the console table with a loud clang that caught everyone by surprise as he leaned in. "You're really that naive? Tomorrow will be a new Mengsk ...and another one after that." Tosh says as the camera cuts to Raynor walking towards the console while Tosh continues.

"Your great shiny dream for a future is just an illusion."

"No, it's not!" Ruby angrily argued. "Even if the Dominion leadership are horrible, not everyone in it are bad people! Others are better if given a chance!" That earned approval from her friends and family.

"Absolutely," Weiss spoke up. "While it is true that a mass murderer rules the Dominion, there are others who disagree with him and are thus locked away in this very place. This proves that change can happen, and it won't have another tyrant take charge."

"Yea! We're with you Ruby!"

"But even then, we can't take it at face value. Look at Mengsk as a clear example. He defeated the Confederacy when they abused their people for power and profit. And once Mengsk overthrew them, he became as bad if not worse than them." Ironwood points out that others reluctantly agree with him while the younger audience's frown.

The screen showed Raynor pulling out Tosh's knife as he stared at it before closing it. The camera changes to show Raynor looking up at Tosh. "So if it's all so bleak, why are you here Tosh? What do you get of all this?" He asked as it cut to Tosh.

"Same thing as you, brother. I don't quit till' Mengsk is dead." Tosh explains his reasoning as it cuts to Raynor frowning as he stares at Tosh's closed knife in hand.

"I guess that means they'll keep fighting until this is over. But destroying the entire Dominion isn't that unnecessarily destructive?" Sun answers honestly.

"Well, if it means achieving your goals, but that brings a question. And then what? What will they do once Mengsk is finished?" Neptune mutter.

Yet Matt sounds disturbed as it cuts to him. "Vengeance doesn't factor into this," Matt argued. "Our revolution is about freedom." He said before Raynor rested his hand on Matt's shoulder.

"You'll see that better future, Matt," Raynor explained as he looked Tosh squarely in the eyes. "But it ain't for the likes of us." Raynor said as he extended his hand to give Tosh's knife back. Tosh looked at Raynor before his eyes went down as he took his knife back. And once he did, Raynor left the bridge silently.

"What does he mean by that?" Penny asked as she tilted her head.

[Raynor concluded that he and Tosh were similar in their single-minded and perhaps self-destructive pursuit of Mengsk, but he believed that they were paving the way for a better future, even if it was one that Raynor and Tosh were not meant to be a part of.]

"That makes sense…" Summer scratched her head.

"But at least they make a better future for others." Ilia mumbles. "Just like the Fang originally intends…"

"Yup," RGQC added in. "Some people can never get used to the normal of life if they have been fighting for it for a long time. They had become so used to it that when they return to normalcy, they can't cope with it."

The camera changes angle to show Matt and Tosh watching as Raynor leaves through the doors. And once he did, Tosh departed as he cloaked away, leaving Matt behind as he exhaled and closed the list of prisoners. The screen then cuts to black.

"Well, at least we know that Tosh is genuine about joining Raynor's resistance movement against Mengsk, even if he is a bit creepy sometimes." Blake concludes as RGQC could be seen tapping on his tablet as a frown grew.

"Huh… That should not be happening at all." He mumbled before standing up. "...I need to go and settle this issue. Something about a fellow realm lord is all I can say." And so RGQC walked through a portal as it vanished.

"What was that about a fellow realm lord?" Yang wondered out, with the others agreeing.

[They request for master's assistance in a complication of theirs.]

"That's incredibly vague." Ilia rolled her eyes as the theatre screen lit up with the following text.

---

Hyperion Cantina

12:48 - Shipboard Time

"Back to the cantina. No surprises there." Torchwick shrugged before summoning himself some water to drink. "Curious about what our resident Spectre has to say now that he is officially part of the crew."

"We're probably going to find out soon." Neo agreed.

The screen lights up to show Raynor back in the cantina as he walks to take a sit before sipping his drink. Raynor told his partner what had transpired as he brought his cup down. "Thought you'd want to hear - Tosh has officially thrown in with our little revolution. He's gonna lend us his Spectres to help out."

Raynor explain. Yet, Tychus sounds more doubtful about the whole thing. "You sure got a soft spot for wayward psychics, Jimmy. Settin' those freaks loose ain't smart. Ol' Mengsk had 'em locked up for a reason."

"I am starting to suspect that Tychus doesn't trust psychic users. Or he sees them as creepy. Which is understandable if we were to see Tosh as one."

"I'm leaning towards the former, Tai." Summer admits.

"Whatever the case, they can't all be bad, yea?" Qrow joined in as QAI decided to give some trivia details.

[In the multiverse, many races can use psychic powers for selfless or selfish reasons and are genuinely not dangerous to the user. However, in some of these realities, using these powers comes at the cost of sanity, and many become psychopathic or clinically insane upon exposure.]

[In a particular reality, those who possess psionic powers can interact with the Shroud. It is a realm of pure psionic energy from which psionic species and individuals draw their powers from. And where those who awakened their psionic potential can see in their dreams. However, the realm is inhabited by powerful beings of pure psionic energy that can be communed.]

"How interesting!" Penny says, her voice full of curiosity. "What are these powerful beings you speak of?" She wondered before a book with a label that advised caution when reading it fell on her lap.

[This book will explain the details of the Shroud in that reality. Caution is advised, for these entities are beyond your world entirely.]

"Oh! I can't wait to read it! When I have the time!" Penny enthusiastically says out loud as she begins observing the cover panels of the book.

"Then, if they are perilous as you say they are, why are you letting Penny read it?" Weiss wondered as her eyes landed on the book in Penny's hands.

[Out of everyone here, Penny has the lowest chance of attracting the entity's attention. For she is… unique.] QAI explains as everyone slowly nods.

(It is because of her robotic nature. Seeing how in Stellaris, only organics can get psionics the traditional way and, thus, have no way of meeting the entities. I do not include the crisis way of doing it.)

"Mengsk locked 'em up because they were just weapons to him. They deserve a shot at livin' their lives outside of a cage... just like anyone else." Raynor explained while Tychus looked unsure for a second before he relented.

"Alright, Jimmy. If you say so."

"Thanks, Tychus." Raynor smiled as the UNN news network on the TV screen began playing.

- New Folsom prison broken open - Hundreds of inmates freed - Later, UNN Special report: inmate-proofing your home - Rebel Jim Raynor involved - This is UNN with Donny Vermillion - Kyla Velassi released from rehab. Velassi: I'm back! -

"Well, that didn't take long," Fox hummed. "Which makes sense since New Folsom is a high-security prison."

"Which Raynor broke open in an afternoon." Coco said as she could hear chuckles from everyone else. "Also, inmate-proofing your home? Do they mean house security?" Coco wondered as she got confused responses and a shrug in return from everyone.

As the camera pans towards the TV, Donny makes his appearance. "Breaking news. Reports coming in today suggest - what's that?" Donny paused only to realise that they were cutting to Kate right now. "We're going to Kate? But I-" Whatever Donny was going to protest didn't matter as Kate took over.

And she appears on the TV screen as the symbol of Raynor's Raiders can be seen behind her on the wall.

"The Dominion's highest-value prisoners are loose tonight after a daring raid broke open New Folsom prison. Dominion Security Forces are on high alert, as some of the prisoners were former members of Project: Shadowblade, which we've discovered to be a subversive offshoot of the Dominion's Ghost program. A number of political dissidents were also freed during the attack." Kate explained.

"Wow, the news does break out fast. Impressive since Raynor's forces are in orbit last we have seen. Or did they leave before the authorities arrived?" Pyrrha wondered as QAI answered her question.

[The latter.]

"Ah, thank you."

The TV cuts back to Donny. "Do we know who did this Kate? Was it Raynor's Raiders?" He asks as it cuts to Kate.

"I dunno, that symbol behind Kate is definitely not from Raynor's resistance." Yang sarcastically commented as more chuckles could be heard.

"The evidence we have suggests it was, Donny." Kate confirms on screen before it cuts back to Donny, who continues his daily propaganda.

"There you have it, Jim Raynor making our world just a little more dangerous tonight. From the UNN studios on Korhal, I'm Donny Vermillion."

"More dangerous for you, more like." Emerald snarked.

The screen cuts to Raynor as he mutters. "More dangerous for the real bad guys, Donny. You should be worried…"

Once the UNN news network ends its broadcast, Raynor stands up to see Tosh watching everyone above like a hawk. And with a slightly furrowed brow, Raynor made his way up to talk to Tosh about the recent mission.

"I hope Tosh keeps to his end of the bargain. Sure, Nova isn't what I call trustworthy, thanks to her allegiance with Mengsk but…" Velvet muttered as she bit into a carrot cake treat RGQC recommended she try.

"I mean, Tosh is shady, but he seems honest despite his creepiness at times," Sun adds in.

Yang glanced at her partner. "What about you, Blakey? Do you think that all Spectres will become as creepy as Tosh here? The white eyes are not helping him at all."

Blake scratches the back of her eyes as she nods her head. "If the procure to make Spectres are similar to how some of us react to medication… I think it will work out, assuming they are trained properly. I think."

And once Raynor reached where Tosh was, he asked the Spectre leader. "I took a big chance with you and your Spectres, Tosh. I hope Nova wasn't right about you." Raynor expressed his worry, yet Tosh finds it amusing as he lets out a single laugh.

"Don't go believing that little girl's lies. The Spectre procedure affects everyone differently, but we're all still human." Tosh explained. "It's our choice whether to become Spectres - not hers, not yours and not Mengsk's. Choice be the only true freedom anyone gets."

"I see… So, people can choose whether they are willing to become Spectres. Unlike Ghosts who don't have that choice at all from what we have been told in the Dominion." Ozpin concludes as his headmistress agrees with him.

"That is good to know. I was worried whether he would be kidnapping people or forcing them into his army."

Listening to Tosh's explanation, Raynor asked him a question that had bothered him. "But can I trust 'em? Can I trust you?" Raynor asked.

However, Tosh assures his worries and sounds thankful instead. "Don't you worry none. We'll fight for you right to the end. All my brothers and sisters - we owe you everything." Tosh explained as a smile grew on Raynor's face.

"Looks like the resistance has the full loyalty of the Spectres! I believe their stealth and subterfuge assistance will benefit Raynor's resistance!" Penny concludes.

"And we can't forget about the Big Boomba!" Nora giggled gleefully.

"Nora…" Ren muttered. "Please calm yourself."

"I am calm!"

With his worries put at ease, Raynor left the cantina as the screen darkened before lighting up again to show Raynor in the armoury. And the first change everyone noticed was the presence of two men in suits similar to Tosh's, with one of them casually leaning on the metal crates behind him.

At the same time, Raynor could be seen talking to Swann. "That Tosh character gave me the data for buildin' more Spectre gear. You sure we can trust that guy? I heard he was into brainwashing or something." Swann expressed his worry, but Raynor eased them.

"Tosh can only recruit volunteers to become Spectres. That's the deal. He works 'em hard so they won't go off the rails when they get their full Spectre powers. No brainwashing involved."

"That's great! Hopefully, they won't go all nuts on everyone." Ruby smiled as Pietro had a thought in his head.

"If I may QAI, had RGQC experimented with Terrazine before?"

[He has. However, such substances are moot and useless to him. However, there are cases in which other realm lords would ingest Terrazine as a form of narcotic. Master wouldn't recommend it.]

"Imagine being so powerful that such substances are drugs to get high off." Qrow chuckled. "Still, though, drugs are bad kiddos. Don't ever take them. If you do, I'll kick ya ass for it."

"I wouldn't put it in such a crass tone, but yes. If any of you were caught with drugs, you would be punished for it. Do I make myself clear, students?" Glynda added in as every student in the theatre room replied.

"Yes, Miss Goodwitch."

"Good to know. Wouldn't want any of those freaks running loose causin' trouble. Aside from Tosh, that is." Swann said as Raynor turned his eyes to the console. As for the camera, it pans towards the Spectres minding their own business.

A second passed as everyone could hear a beep from Pietro's tablet as he took it out and read it to the audience. "It appears that a side-effect of Tosh's Specter training regiment is their increased eccentricity. And this has resulted in many spectres carrying around totems or other trinkets to enhance their abilities."

"How does that work?" Penny asked as she tilted her head sideways.

"I do not know how, Penny," Pietro admits. "Nor do I have a possible explanation as to why."

"Guess we will not know everything." Fox admits.

"Probably for the best." Ghira grunts.

[For those who are curious about what upgrades he has chosen, Raynor has picked three upgrades. Fire Suppression System, Dual-Fusion Welders and Advanced Construction.] QAI could be heard explaining in the background.

[As the name suggests. Fire Suppression System grants all of Raynor's buildings the ability to repair themselves by releasing Fire-suppression drones. These drones are automatically dispatched to extinguish fires and perform basic repairs on damaged structures. However, although these drones effectively do essential maintenance, they do not have a strong enough AI to perform the more delicate repairs.]

"How interesting…" Ironwood rubbed his chin with curiosity glimmering in his eyes as Winter scribbled it down. "I could see a situation where this could be immensely helpful."

[Notice. There's a version of Atlas in the multiverse that has master's interests that possess a similar type of drone.]

Hearing QAI's notice earned most of Atlas' residence interest. "Really?" Pietro asked.

[Affirmative. This version of Atlas has invested much more into its robotics and AI research and created logistical drones to assist its personnel. They also made much more advanced humanoid machine frames called constructs that accurately imitate the human body.]

"Interesting… does that mean these machines could eat food as we can?" Kali wonders as her daughter adds in.

"I think so, mum."

"Wow! That's cool!" Ruby's eyes were sparking while her partner asked a more appropriate question.

"Why, though? It doesn't make sense why they are made to mimic the human body." Weiss asked as QAI continued on.

[We can go into further details of it another time. Dual-Fusion Welders and Advanced Construction are upgrades for SCVs. Dual-Fusion Welders allow the SCV to repair mechanical units or structures at twice the rate, improving their ability to keep damaged units alive in battle.]

[Advanced Construction allows for Multiple SCVs to build a structure simultaneously. Each additional SCV reduces overall build time. Its revolutionary computer allows multiple SCVs to work on the same structure simultaneously. It is vital when trying to get a base up and running quickly or when trying to rebuild a broken defence.]

"As if we need to see an entire base be built faster or something," Torchwick said. "I mean, seriously, this entire world is crazy with how fast they can make stuff! It takes like two to three years to build a house, and then we have these people building stuff in a minute!"

"Don't forget about the Zerg evolving that fast as well and the Protoss just teleporting their stuff over here instead," Neo added with a teasing grin.

"Yea. I'm aware of that." Torchwick mumbled as the screen resumed.

The screen pulled away from the spectres to show Raynor leaving the armoury as it darkened and lit up again. Only this time, he's in the Laboratory talking to Ariel. "Jim, I've been investigating the claims that Nova made about Spectres turning into psychotic killers." Ariel explains.

"So what did you find out?" Raynor asked as everyone leaned in closer. After all, they know that Tosh will train his men so they won't go all psychotic on everyone. But all of them still wished to hear what Ariel had to say.

"Honestly, there's no evidence that Spectres are any more prone to aberrant behavior than ordinary people. A sudden increase in psionic ability could induce a psychotic break, but Spectres aren't the monsters we were led to believe. Nova lied to us." Ariel concludes as Raynor nods his head.

"Good to know we have confirmation about Nova's lie. Still, I found it interesting that a sudden increase in psionic ability could result in a psychotic break. I wonder why that's the case." Ozpin wondered as he took a sip.

"I believe that using psionic powers can be straining on the mind," Glynda adds in. "For example, my semblance of Telekinesis can surprisingly strain me mentally at times. However, enough rest will help me recover from it. It won't be surprising if psionic powers are more potent than mine."

"I had a feeling she would." Raynor admits as he and Ariel said their goodbyes as he soon found himself back the Hyperion's Bridge.

And once he got comfortable, Raynor spoke to his second with deprecation in his tone. "Most days…" Raynor's eyes wandered briefly before looking back at Matt. "I don't even know what I'm doin' anymore. Just chasing my damn tail."

"Is he?" Sun wondered as shrugs were all he got in response.

Yet, Matt disagrees with what his commander just said about himself. "No. We've followed your lead from the start. It's your sense of justice that's kept us on this road." Matt points out.

Yet, Raynor didn't see it that way. "Matt, my interest in justice burned out a long time ago. I've spent my whole life fighting; I've killed, I've ordered good men to their deaths - and for what? Finishing this thing with Mengsk... it's all I have left. It's guys like you that'll build something better after all the smoke clears."

"That's because you gave us something to believe in, sir. I'll never give up the fight. That's a promise." Matt immediately responds.

"Hoping for a better future? I swear Matt is like Ruby in a way. Both are idealists." Tai muttered as Summer agreed.

"They are. And they will be the ones who will build a better tomorrow. Oh, how I'm proud of how far she has gone."

"And so am I." Qrow chuckled.

Matt's response made Raynor smile as he stared at the map. "Matt, bring up the map. We're getting out of here." He said as Matt tapped onto the console.

"Where to next, sir?" He asked as the camera pans to show all the locations they could head next. Yet, there were no new places to go. Only Haven, Tyrador VIII and Valhalla are still there.

"No new planets, huh?" Robyn muttered. Either of these three will be Raynor's next destination. Yet, she has a bad feeling building in her gut, as if she and everyone else will witness something eerie and unnerving.

"Are you alright, Miss Hill?" Robyn heard a voice calling out to her, only to see Penny watching her.

Robyn lets out a small grunt as she answers Penny's worry. "I'm fine. I just have this bad feeling about the next mission."

"You feel it too, huh?" Qrow suddenly spoke as several others agreed. Even Cinder and her gang were getting a bad feeling about their next destination.

Raynor scratched his chin before coming to a conclusion and selecting Tyrador VIII. And it appears his buddy Tychus will be doing the debriefing. "Seems yer Queen of Blades figured out who's been payin us to snatch up all them artifacts."

Everyone's fear and dread were realised that they would be meeting Kerrigan and the Zerg again.

"Moebius' head- honcho, Dr. Narud, claims the Zerg are attacking his main Research Campus on Tyrador. He can't evacuate his people until all their artifact research is safe." Tychus continued as Raynor and Matt looked at each other.

"Seriously?" Yang spoke up, perplexed by this Dr Narud's choice not to get his people out of there. "Why is he not getting his people out of there? Sure, I get the research stuff's important, but really?"

"It must be vital to them if they're unwilling to evacuate until the research is safely secure. But honestly, they should have gotten out of there as soon as possible." Weiss scratched her head.

"Set a course to Tyrador VIII. Let's see what we can do." Raynor ordered as Matt agreed.

"Understood, sir." And that, the screen darkens.

[Notice. One of the old confederacy's first "planned" worlds, Tyrador is famous for its centres of higher learning, orderly streets, and sanitary parks.]

"Basically, a planet full of nerds." Sun chuckled as he poked his partner in the shoulder.

"More like a planet full of intellectuals." Neptune shot back.

---

The screen lights up again to show a rather horrifying sight of a city overrun with Zerg as ruins of buildings can be seen everywhere. There was also an old man on screen with white hair, a moustache and a chin strip. "Commander Raynor! Thanks the stars, you've come!"

"Who's this old man?" Yang asked as Weiss smacked her on the head.

"Yang! That's rude of you!"

Yet QAI ignored their bantering. [This is Doctor Emil Narud, a Dominion scientist who leads the Moebius Foundation.] (Author note. I am aware of Narud's true identity and secret, but just for drama's sake, his identity will remain hidden from the audience until later.)

"He must be an expert in his studies to become the leader of his organisation." Pietro said as those who were from Atlas nodded their heads.

Narud greeted as he continued. "You had a sterling reputation as a Marshal many years ago and I know you'll do your best to help us." Narud explains as the screen pans over more ruins of a city infested with Zerg.

"How many lives were lost already?" Ironwood asked.

[Millions call Tyrador VIII home.] QAI answered vaguely.

"This is… This is some serious infestation. I only hope that most manage to evaluate in time." Jaune muttered in horror.

"I too." Pyrrha agreed.

The camera then cuts to Raynor as he replies to Narud. "Yeah well, that was all a long time ago, Doctor. Looks like you got one heck of a Zerg problem here. Where do you need us?"

"One heck of a Zerg problem is an understatement." Emerald deadpanned.

"Chill lax, will you Elm? He's just trying to light up the situation, can't you see?" Mercury poked fun at Emerald while chuckling to himself.

"I see you're fine after earlier." Emerald stared at her teammate, who just shrugged.

"Sure, it's a horrible experience for all three of us, but it shouldn't hold us back now, wouldn't it?"

Scowling at her followers, Cinder growled for them to shut up. After all, Mercury unintentionally reminded her of the agonising experience she and they had felt a while back. She could feel the phantom pains all over her body. "Be silent, both of you."

The screen then changes to show two familiar ships the audience had seen in that mission to raid trains flying by. All as Narud explains. "We're ready to evacuate, but none of the teams I sent to purge the Foundation data cores have reported back!"

"From the looks of it, I believe those Medivacs will come into play with the lower city infested to the core at first glance," Winter observed as most adults agreed with her.

"Foundation data cores?" Ruby asked as QAI responded vaguely.

[Will be explained later.]

"Whatever those data cores are, Ruby, I think they contain data on the artifacts. And it must be serious if this director seeks to purge them before evaluating." Weiss came to a conclusion as most agreed with her.

The screen then changed to show a building that had a specific design as Narud continued explaining what needed to be done. "I need you to destroy those cores before the Queen of Blades finds them and discovers the coordinates of the remaining artifacts! The fate of the entire Sector could hang in the balance!"

"Queen of Blades?!" Everyone pretty much yelled out.

"That explains the urgency! She's here after the coordinates of the remaining artifacts!" Kali's voice was urgent as everyone agreed with the Belladonna matriarch. That explains why they are here!

As if to make things even more problematic for everyone, the screen began glitching out, much to the initial shock and confusion of the audience. And it didn't take long for Raynor's Adjutant to warn as the console screen changed to show a Zerg hive right as a single Zerg Sac fell towards the ground.

"Class twelve psi-pattern detected. Recommend extreme caution." Raynor's Adjutant warned as the Sac crashed with a boom. And soon, the Queen of Blades herself could be seen emerging from the crash site, no less unscathed.

"That's not good." Ilia voiced out everyone's thoughts. "If she's here, they must destroy those data cores ASAP."

Upon witnessing Kerrigan again, Raynor could only mutter out her name. "Kerrigan…"

The screen then quickly cuts to Raynor as he explains urgently. "Alright then Doc, our timetable's shorter than we thought. We gotta move!" He said as the screen darkened.

(For the added feeling of unease, play the Zerg soundtracks as you read this mission! Because I did! Especially soundtrack 8!)

"Something tells me that this is like the first time Raynor had to fight the Tal'darim and get the artifact first before the Zerg do. Except for this time, they must destroy the cores before Kerrigan can get them herself." Ironwood concludes as Winter agrees.

"It looks like it sir."

"Does Kerrigan know which buildings are the data cores?" Jaune asked as QAI answered him.

[No, she does not.]

"That good?" Ren hummed.

The screen shows Raynor base, consisting of an orbital command, Barracks, a Factory and a Starport. And it only took a second before everyone began to work. SCVs began harvesting minerals while a drop pod came down and released a MULE.

At the same time, the three production facilities that Raynor had begun to build their add-ons while at the same time, Adjutant appeared on screen to give a report. "Analysis of the Queen of Blades' search pattern complete. Calculating her ETA to the closest data core now."

"Much better base setup compared to last time. And a good high ground for a defensive chokepoint." Penny observed.

Before anything else could be done, an audible ping could be heard before Kerrigan appeared on the screen. "You can't leave well enough alone, can you Jim? It was stupid of you to come here." She stated it as fact as Raynor shot back.

"I don't plan on stayin' long, Darlin'. But I'll be damned before I let you get a hold of those artifacts." He said as Medivacs flew in before Dr Narud appeared on the screen.

"I'm giving you control of our Medivacs, Commander. You can use them to transport your men around the city and avoid most of the Zerg." The doctor says as a pair of marines jump out of each Medivac and land on the ground with a thud.

"They might encounter spore crawlers on the ground now that I think about it…" Summer points out as worry grows on everyone's faces before Raven rolls her eyes.

"Didn't you people remember that Raynor has the Hercules dropship available to him?" The Branwen tribe leader points out. "Those things should be able to take hits and keep going without stopping."

"Oh. Right. I forgot he had that." Tai sheepishly rubbed his head as Raven rolled her eyes again, only with a smug smile planted on her face this time.

As soon as Narud ends his transmission, another pops up as a medic inside the Medivac. "Ready for dust off." She says it in a deadpan tone. But soon, panicked yelling could be heard, which caused the four marines on standby to go on full alert.

"Guess it makes sense for them to have a medic piloting it," Sun mumbled as his partner agreed with him.

"It does."

"Hurry! Get to the high ground now!" The screaming came from a squad of War Pigs with Zerglings chasing after them as they released snarls and hisses.

"Right off the pan and into the fire, huh?" Qrow mumbled. "Looks like survivors Moebius Foundation have."

"Those are war pigs," Pyrrha noted. "Did the Moebius Foundation hire mercenaries to destroy those data cores?" Pyrrha then asked as QAI confirmed.

[Affirmative. Their official title is Moebius Security. They are a security force employed by the Moebius Foundation. It was composed of units from several mercenary groups. Doctor Emil Narud sent three teams to purge the Foundation data cores when the Zerg attacked the Foundation's primary research campus on Tyrador VIII. However, as you can see, they failed their objective.]

"And this is one group of the survivors," Ren concluded grimly.

By command, Raynor's marines ran to the ledge and began shooting at the oncoming Zerglings. And upon witnessing that they were rescued by non-other than Raynor's men, one of the War Pig merc marine's yells joyfully.

"The Raiders are here! We're saved!" As soon as Raynor's men assured their survivability, the War pigs immediately turned around and began firing at the oncoming Zergling, and the swarm chasing them was swiftly shot down.

"About time the boss got some help for us. Things' gone to shit with all infestation." One of the War pigs' comments. "Looks like the boss decided to give ya some heal buses. We're gonna need it." Another War Pig joked.

"Heal Buses?" Ironwood frowned in confusion as everyone shared his feelings.

"What do they mean by that?" Robyn asked.

[It was a nickname joke marines came up with. However, the pilots do not take kindly to the nickname. It was reported that a Medivac pilot killed two Marines due to them repeatedly calling the Medivac a "Heal Bus". It has been rumoured that she has undergone Neural resocialisation and has returned to service.]

…

"An overreaction, I believe?" Ozpin was the first to speak after a period of bewildered silence.

[Likely. The subject went through a psychotic breakdown.]

"Okayyy… then…" Yang glanced at her friends, who were still as bewildered as they had been earlier.

"Don't let them catch you saying that. You know how sensitive those ladies can be at times." One of the marines with a dragon on his visor chimed in as he smacked the War Pig on the shoulder. In the next second, they were all sucked up into the Medivac, much to everyone's surprise.

Predicting what was on everyone's minds, QAI responds. [Medivac dropships have a gravity tube that reduces loading and unloading speeds to one-tenth of a second but can only deploy soldiers or machines individually.]

"How interesting… Do they have some technology that allows gravitational manipulation similar to gravity Dust?" Pietro asked as QAI confirmed.

[Affirmative.]

"Their system seems similar to the pneumatic tubes we have back in Atlas." Ironwood rubbed his chin as those, not from Atlas could only look with interest.

"I believe we can tell all of you later." Pietro said as the screen continued.

Once all the marines were in the Medivacs, the dropships flew off, as the camera granted the audience a view of even more ruins of the city and that Raynor's base was on an island. Another thing was that on the top right of the theatre screen itself, a tag appeared that read.

Kerrigan Data Access in: 7:00

"Raynor has seven minutes to take out the first data core, it seems." Kali observed as Ghira noted something.

"Why is that so?" Ghira wondered. "It's strange that she takes this long to access the data cores."

[Kerrigan and her Swarm invaded Tyrador VIII, intending to hack into the cores and locate the remaining artifacts. However, because she didn't know precisely which buildings housed the relevant data, Kerrigan is forced to search every building in her path for the location of the remaining artifacts.]

"That makes sense…" Velvet scratched the back of her ears. "So Raynor has time to destroy the data cores before Kerrigan could reach all of them."

As the medivacs flew across the water strait separating Raynor's base from the rest of the ruined city, not too far away on a helipad were a couple of marines and a goliath.

"Look! Survivors!" Ruby yells as he points at the survivors on screen, waving their hands to garner the Medivac's attention. And not too far from the marines is a building with the design Narud marked to be destroyed.

"Over here! Up on the roof!" One of the War Pigs yells out as the Medivacs fly over and drop their cargo one by one. And as soon as one of Raynor's marine's lands on the building, one of the War pig marines walks up.

"About time that scientist got someone to help. Look, we need ammo badly. All of us." The War pig explained. "The Data core is just there. But we used all our ammo trying to survive the Zerg, and they trapped us here."

Raynor's marine just nods his head. "Sure. Boss wants us to pick any survivors up anyways." As the rest of Raynor's men landed, one of them was carrying boxes of magazines, much to the survivors' delight, and soon all were shooting the supporting structure of the data core.

"Part of me questions whether shooting the data core with armour-piercing rounds will take it down." Blake expressed her doubt. "Then again, we have seen much already. I wouldn't be surprised if they knew where to target to destroy it."

As the marines and goliath continued to lay it down upon the data core, the Zerg attempted to stop them as a Nydus worm erupted from the ground near them and began deploying Zerglings. At the same time, everyone could hear the screeches of a Mutalisk flock in the distance.

"Mutalisk incoming!" A marine yelled out as the goliath began firing its missiles at the oncoming swarm. Explosions ripped in the air as everyone opened fire on the Zerg flyers above while the Medivacs patched up any marine hit by Mutalisk projectiles.

Upon witnessing the Medivac's capacity as a healer and transport, Pietro hummed to himself. "I wonder if we could improve our bullheads to be much more efficient…" He then began typing down on his scroll as the last Mutalisk was cleared from the skies.

"Target destroyed. Firing on the data core." The goliath said as everyone turned their guns back onto the data core and blasted it until they hit an important part, and the entire building began exploding.

Upon the destruction of the first data core, Raynor appeared on screen to congratulate his men as all of them were sucked back up into the Medivac. "That's one down! Keep it moving, boys!"

Yet Kerrigan sounds amused at his charade. "Of course! The Moebius data cores! You won't get the rest of them!"

"Not if Jimmy gets to them first!" Nora shot back as Probius beeped in agreement with her. The same could be said with the other audiences who agreed. However, all of them knew that it wouldn't be easy with Kerrigan.

Raynor cursed at himself at the urgency of the situation. "Ah hell. At least she doesn't know where to find the other cores. We better get to the next one, fast!" He said as the timer for Kerrigan updates to display that they have at least seventeen minutes before Kerrigan reaches the next data core.

"More time to build up and destroy the next core, it seems." Ozpin concludes as everyone agrees with the headmaster of Beacon.

The camera proceeds to follow the Medivacs back towards their base. And it has grown much since the camera was away as SCVs built bunkers at the entrance, and siege tanks were also there. There were also more supply deposits while SCVs worked on air defences.

"How many more of these data cores must Raynor destroy?" Ilia wonders as QAI helpfully provides.

[Two more.]

As soon as the medivacs arrived at their destination and dropped their cargo, a ping appeared as the camera panned towards a Brutalisk on an island for some reason. "Brutalisk! Stetmann wanted one of those things to research. I reckon we can oblige him."

"Great, another of those monstrosities," Raven mumbled as it struck her. "Wait. How did it get there?"

"It just happened to be there?" Yang offered a suggestion, and everyone just frowned.

"That's stupid Yang. Can that thing jump?"

[No.]

"Mysteries of the universe, it seems." Summer giggled as the screen returned to the sound of the ground rumbling.

"And now we got worms to deal with." Blake deadpanned.

As the camera returned to Raynor's base, a nydus worm erupted from the ground just outside and on the lower levels of the island. "Sir, you better do something about that Nydus worm before our base gets overrun!" Matt appeared on screen and warned as Zerg poured out of the worm and headed straight towards the defensive lines.

A fight soon came to a clash as the Zerg slammed head first into the base defences like a tide of flesh and blade. Yet they replied; thanks to the combined efforts of everyone, Raynor soon launched a strike force to take out the worm just outside the base.

Eventually, siege tanks moved into position and began pounding super-heated tungsten rounds onto the worm until it was a bloody paste. As the worm literally spewed blood everywhere before it collapsed and sank into the ground, leaving a tunnel hole behind.

"With that out of the way, Raynor could focus his efforts on destroying the data cores." Penny happily hummed as a new structure could be seen under construction by three SCVs.

This structure soon revealed to be some sort of reactor at first glance, with its quadruple cores that glowed orange as it brimmed with power.

"Ooh… what is that building recently constructed?" Penny asks with interest.

[That building is called a Fusion core. It is necessary to access the Hercules dropship.]

"I see… it must be quite expensive to build." Glynda mumbles.

[Fittingly so.]

At this point, Raynor had numerous medivacs, siege tanks, and goliaths in his base. The audience was also awarded a humous scene of siege tanks slowly floating up into the air before being brought into the medivac. The same could be said with the goliaths.

"It appears that each medivac could only carry two siege tanks," Ozpin observed.

"I wonder how will a Thor be carried?" Sun wondered as everyone looked at him. "What? Thors are huge, true, but medivacs should also be able to carry them, right?"

"Well, I guess they can carry them like a bullhead carries dust crates?" Coco adds in.

Soon, Raynor's medivacs departed the base and headed for the following data core west of their position. But on the way, they ran into another pair of survivors: a marine and a goliath.

"Hey! Hey! OVER HERE!" The marine yells out to signal the medivacs. And once they arrived above both of them. The goliath pilot appears on the screen.

"Nice of you to drop by. I was runnin' low on ammo."

"Someone's rather calm about getting stuck on the roof," Ilia muttered. "Then again, I suppose it's better than panicking up there."

Blake, nodding her head at Ilia's comments, agreed with her. "Sounds about right."

Without pause, the stranded goliath and the marine didn't have to do anything as the medivacs sucked them up. As they moved ahead, a single Ultralisk patrolled the ruined streets below. It was seemingly calm as to the medivacs flying above.

As if to drive up the eeriness of the dead city, a tune began to play in the background, bringing up a sense of dread for everyone. Everyone was unnerved by how lifeless and overrun the city was. It gave some of them flashbacks of Mount Glenn and its fall. Except the one before them is worse.

"The hell is that music, man?" Mercury shivered as the unnerving tune continued to play.

Most of the younger audience have to agree with Mercury and could feel goosebumps crawling up their spines. The adults were more composed, but they were feeling uncomfortable about it. And even Torchwick and Neo were creeped out by the haunting theme playing.

As the camera continues to follow the Medivacs, they quickly pan to show a squad of marines and marauders stuck in the corner of a Zerg base. "Hey, man! Could use some help down here!" One of the marauders called out as the medivacs arrived and dropped their cargo.

"We couldn't reach the data cores! Help us out!" One of the war pigs explained as the camera pans to show a Zerg base between them and the data core.

"Yea! We do this together." Another marine agrees as the siege tanks land on the ground and begins sieging up. "Get ready, boys. They will be coming when they hear our tanks sing!"

"Oh! Big battle time!" Nora grinned as cannons firing shook the ground as explosions rocked the hatchery within vision.

Every round that landed blew chunks off the hatchery as it began to convulse in pain. But that wasn't the only problem as the sound trembled again as Zerg swarmed towards Raynor's army.

"Here they come. Let them have it!" One of the marauders cried out as everyone opened fire and dumped round after round at the oncoming Zerg. Zerglings charged in packs only to get shredded by rounds as siege tanks blasted any dangerous strains from afar to nothing but red mist.

Things got even more complicated when the battle when the ongoing battle attracted the attention of a nearby Infestor that began launching infested eggs at Raynor's men. Shit hits the fan when they hear an Ultralisk screech as it charges straight for the fight.

"Oh shit! Ultralisk!" Yang yelped as everyone could only watch as everyone turned their guns on the heavy assault beast of the Zerg charging in close.

"Ultralisk incoming! Aim for the head and underbelly!" A marine yell out as a hail of projectiles slams onto the Ultralisk's thick carapace armour as it roars with fury.

"I am under the assumption that the armour plating at those places is thinner. Am I correct, QAI?" Penny asked.

[Affirmative. The carapace armour of the head, particularly the mouth and eyes, its underbelly, and around the neck are thinner than the rest of the body. Aiming there is recommended for lower calibre rounds like gauss rounds as the rest of its body will shrug it off.]

"How fascinating!"

As the siege tank rounds pound on the Ultralisk carapace, entire chunks of it break off as the assault beast roars in pain and rage.

"Looks like those upgrades Raynor got for his tanks are working on that thing." Torchwick and everyone else concluded as they watched as shell after shell tore into the Ultralisk. Yet that thing wouldn't stop. Even after it had half face blown off.

Everyone could only wince as they could see parts of the Ultralisk's skull and brain matter dangling off its face. Yet, the beast kept charging and was incredibly close before it ate another siege tank round to the face, and that final shot blew its head into smithereens of bone and brain matter.

Once Raynor's forces destroyed all major threats and a nearby hatchery, they quickly moved on to destroy the next data core. Only for multiple nydus worms to erupt from the ground and let loose their contents of Zerg.

"Ambush. Take out those worms." A goliath comments as the siege tanks get to work, blowing gibs out of each worm. With relative ease, except when one of the Nydus worms regurgitated out another Ultralisk, much to the audience's surprise. Eventually, with all Zerg threats eliminated, Raynor's forces got to work dismantling the next data core.

With a stunning explosion erupting from the data core, as it came crashing and burning, Kerrigan appeared on screen as she voiced something the audience didn't expect her to say.

"I've seen through your 'Doctor Narud's' pathetic charade. I know what the artifacts really are! And they will be mine!"

"Uh… What does she mean by that?" Ruby wondered.

"Seen through his name's charade?" Weiss adds in her confusion.

"Oh! Oh! Is he a shapeshifter or something?" Nora adds much to everyone's bewilderment.

"Well… Nora has been correct the past few times. Perhaps she's correct that Narud's hiding something?" Jaune offers his suggestion as Pyrrha wonders as well.

"It's a maybe… But this world has shown that nothing is impossible."

"I wonder if Kerrigan's telling the truth. If so, what is Narud hiding?" Ozpin wonders as Robyn tosses her hat in the ring.

"Or trying to sow distrust."

"Whatever they are, Kerrigan - I sure as hell ain't lettin' you have 'em." Yet Raynor retorts while his men board their ships and leave the danger zone back to base. Narud himself then pops in to join the conversation.

"That Queen of Blades really is quite a nuisance, isn't she?" At the same time, the time until Kerrigan reaches the data core updates again to show that she now has another six minutes added to her clock.

"Nuisance is not the word I'd use, but sure. Let's go with that." Qrow shrugged as both Ozpin and Ironwood noticed the way Narud spoke. As if his word had a different meaning behind their casualness.

"Ozpin?" "Oz?" "Ironwood?" "General?" Various responses came from their subordinates as Ozpin drank his cup before speaking.

"It is the way Narud call Kerrigan a nuisance."

"I concur." Ironwood nods his head. "Something feels like his statement has a double meaning behind it. But I can't figure out why…"

"I don't get it." Ruby scratched her head as her mother rubbed her head.

"What Headmaster Ozpin and General Ironwood are referring to is that Narud's statement had a second meaning behind it." Summer explained. "Though I too wonder in what way is the hidden message of it."

"Whatever it is, I feel it's a foreshadowing of something," Blake muttered as she got nods of agreement to her theory.

With the second data core destroyed, Raynor's men returned for resupply and recovered before moving out from their defensive island. However, as they returned, Matt appeared on the screen to give an alert.

"Sir, another Nydus worm has emerged close to our base!" Matt says as true to his words. Another Nydus worm erupted from the ground with a screech before Zerg began pouring out of and heading straight for Raynor's defensive lines. As if to drive it further, Kerrigan appeared on screen and began to taunt.

"You never could recognize a lost cause, could you Jim?"

"Boo! Get off the stage!" Nora began jeering at Kerrigan's taunting.

"She seems awfully certain that she can get the locations of those artifacts." Ren observed as Weiss agreed.

"It does. It reminds me too much of Atlas."

"Guess we got to watch her ego get knocked down, huh?" Yang grinned as Blake proceeded to roll her eyes, but a smile grew on her face.

The Zerg came like a tide and slammed like the sea against the defensive walls to hold them back. Yet they were repealed rapidly as Raynor had more than a handful of tanks waiting. That amused everyone to see how fruitless the Zerg's attempts to breach the defences were as siege tanks eviscerated them before they could get close.

"So much for that attack. Also, how many tanks did Raynor build?" Sun amusingly spoke. "Because damn, he had so much the Zerg couldn't even get close to scratching the paint off a bunker."

"What?! There're not enough siege tanks. Never enough siege tanks!" Nora began to cackle as the screen showed countless Zerg getting reduced to nothing but red mist and bits of broken carapace.

"I think Nora's a little excited about the whole siege tanks blowing stuff up…" Yang whispered to her partner, who rolled her eyes.

"I say a little excited is an understatement. But I feel it's more appropriate to call it passionate about those tanks."

As Raynor's forces arrived back at their base, they were redirected to get rid of the Nydus worm releasing waves of Zerg. A Hercules dropship suddenly warped out of nowhere and floated above Raynor's base. It even bares the emblem of Raynor's Raiders.

"Wow, that thing just showed up out of nowhere," Penny muttered with as much surprise as an android could have. "I wonder how much it's carrying capacity.

[The Hercules dropship has a larger carrying capacity and can carry five times more than a standard Medivac.]

"How intriguing!"

Everyone could watch as Raynor's men eliminated the Nydus worm at relative speed before everyone boarded their medevacs. At the same time, a large number of siege tanks Raynor had sitting around drove into the Hercules dropship before it took off and followed the medivacs.

They soon arrived at their destination. The Brutalisk was on the lower end of the island and just a short distance away. But far enough not to alert it to their presence.

"Are they seriously trying to take that thing out now?" Ilia frowned as her skin changed to a shade of purple. Even she could not deny the feeling of terror upon seeing that thing. But, honestly, how did this thing come into existence? It is massive, for goodness' sake!

And once everyone disembarked, every single siege tank sieged up and unleashed a salvo onto the Brutalisk minding its own business. Then, in a crackling boom, multiple explosions ranged on the Brutalisk's carapace as it roared in pain and surprise. It took a second for the Brutalisk to turn its head towards where Raynor's men stationed themselves.

Unleashing an ear-deafening screech, the Brutalisk charged at Raynor's men as everyone opened fire upon the massive monstrosity, aiming specifically for its face. And compared to the first time Raynor encountered such a monster and had to use a creative method to kill it, this time, he had siege tanks to help that monstrosity down.

Lots of siege tanks. And they were equipped with Maelstrom Rounds. It was a massacre, not for Raynor's side but for the Brutalisk. The beast only managed to get within the breathing space of one of the siege tanks before the last shell dealt the finishing blow.

"That was anticlimactic." Mercury deadpanned. "I was honestly betting that thing would rip through at least someone. Not for it to die within reach."

"It kinda was." Coco agreed. "I suppose all these siege tanks made it much easier to deal with such monsters."

"Raynor did build a bunch of them, and those things hit them hard," Sun adds.

Before Raynor had his men leave to destroy the final data core, he had several of them collect additional samples of the now-deceased Brutalisk. At the same time, more medivacs arrived to join the leading group.

It took only a few minutes to extract the samples as everyone boarded their respective dropships and flew further east. Yet as the medivacs and Hercules dropship continue flying high in the skies above the ruined city, Kerrigan appears on screen again and taunts.

"You're even more desperate than I thought. You can't really believe this 'plan' of yours has even a chance of working."

"Oh, it will work, just you see!" Ruby shot back with an annoyed look on her face, and the same is to be said by everyone else. Kerrigan's taunting is getting annoying, and she still has 12 minutes before she reaches the last data core left.

However, everyone could see that it won't be easy as an increasing quantity of spore crawlers were getting in the way. And Raynor had to instruct his men to drop down from the ships as getting in closer by air was impossible with how thick the Zerg had in anti-air weaponry.

There is even the presence of corruptors that would be a death sentence for the medivacs. And while the Hercules dropship will be somewhat ok thanks to its enhanced armour, it's still at risk of going down with how thick the air is with corruptors and Mutalisks.

"Guess they got to do it the hard way." Weiss concludes while Yang doesn't seem so bothered by it.

"With the number of tanks Raynor brought? This will be a blast! For them." Yang giggled as a round of groans emerged from everyone.

"Not again…" Blake growled in frustration as her palm kissed her face.

"Alright boys, we're going into a target-rich zone, so go full auto and show these aliens how we push!" A marauder spoke as everyone moved in and fired at anything moving nearby. And the Zerg reacted accordingly; Zerglings moved in swarms, Roaches erupted from the ground and spat their corrosive acid saliva, and Hydralisk began launching their poisoned tipped needle spines.

Mutalisks also moved in flocks and filled the air with their screeches. The local Zerg did not take Raynor's forces encroaching on their territory very well. Yet they're all held back by superior firepower. Even the presence of brood lords, which did cause trouble for everyone, were rendered dead by goliaths fighting alongside everyone.

The audience could only watch as Raynor's men pushed in closer and closer towards the data core, yet it wasn't without casualties. Several marines and marauders had already fallen to the Zerg, as did a handful of goliaths.

"Yeesh… This is another reminder that many people will die here in this show." Coco grimaces when they witness a marine getting dissolved by acid.

"And who knows how many more lives we will see die in the future." Penny points out as it reminds QAI of the somewhat botched invasion of Char by Prince Valerian. So yes. More people are going to die here.

Thanks to the power of siege tanks eviscerating everything and goliaths to clear the skies, Raynor's forces pushed deeper into the Zerg hive when more medivacs arrived and dropped off more reinforcements of rescued mercenaries which Raynor sent a squad out to look for survivors.

And with these additional reinforcements in play here, Raynor's men managed to destroy both the Zerg hive blocking their path and the last data core left here. And once they did, Narud appeared onscreen to confirm it.

"Confirmed - the final data-core has been destroyed! We should evacuate immediately!" Narud explained as a marine shouted as they evacuated to the medivacs and Hercules before fleeing this ruined city.

"Everyone- we are leaving!"

"Good! This place sucks ass!" Another marine comment as a medivac sucked them up.

"They did it!" Ruby cheered, and so did the others.

"Now it's time to get out of this hellhole!" Sun says as even more people agree with the monkey Faunus.

"Yea, everything here, the ruins and that theme playing in the background's giving me the chills." Neo admits as the Belladonna patriarch agrees.

"Indeed."

The camera pans towards Raynor's base as two more Hercules dropships pick up passengers from SCVs to marines to personals. Then, as if to drive it further than everyone's leaving this god-forsaken place, Nydus worms began to erupt outside Raynor's base.

As the medivacs began to pass over Raynor's base, he asked Narud why Kerrigan wanted those artifacts so badly. "Alright, Doctor - you wanna tell me why the Queen of Blades wants these artifacts so damn bad?" He asked as every building that could fly took off as the Hercules dropships were next to take off and flee.

"She fears their power - just as she fears the Xel'Naga who created them. The Xel'Naga created both the Protoss and the Zerg, Commander. They were the gods of their time." Narud explains as the screen darkens.

"This is new," Robyn comments. "So, the 'Xel'Naga' created the Protoss and the Zerg. But they fight against each other, with the Protoss losing their home world to them."

"Didn't Zeratul speculate that the dark one could be a Xel'Naga?" Velvet points out as everyone feels a shiver crawling on their backs.

"Yea. And he believes that their gods will come back to end them."

"This is too much for me." Torchwick rubbed his head.

---

Yet, to the audience's surprise, the theatre lights did not return. Instead, it continues as the screen lights up to show a damaged welcome sign of New Gettysburg on what they could guess was among ruined debris.

"What is this?" Cinder asks as she gets no reply from everyone or QAI. Our audience was confused about what was happening, while QAI refused to give spoilers.

The camera slowly pulls back before someone cloaked runs over the ruined sign. Said cloaked individual ran behind a ruined wall and decloaked. And much to everyone's surprise, the person was Kerrigan herself when she was still human.

Pressing the coms on her headset, Kerrigan calls for assistance. "This is Kerrigan. We neutralized the Protoss, but there is a wave of Zerg advancing on this position. We need immediate evac."

"Is this the scene in which Kerrigan was left behind to die by the Zerg by Mengsk?" Ironwood asks as QAI confirmed.

[Correct.] QAI said as frowns grew on the audience's faces.

"I guess we're seeing it happen in detail. Just like that speech Mengsk made about ruling the sector. Just great." Qrow sarcastically commented.

The scene cuts to a pocket watch in Mengsk's hand as he closes it and keeps it. Then, as the camera pulled up to his face, Mengsk issued an order that made the audience's blood boil. "Belay that order. We're moving out."

The camera then cuts to a tv screen that shows a younger Raynor with his suit on as he couldn't believe what he had just heard. "What? You're not just gonna leave 'em?" Yet, despite his protests, Mengsk ignores him.

"Betrayed by her superiors… That's… messed up." Tai muttered. "They left her to die, and yet, the Zerg took and turned her into the Queen of Blades."

"All ships prepare to move away from Tarsonis at my mark." Mengsk orders as it cuts to Kerrigan shooting at three Zergling rushing directly at her, with one nearly pouncing on her. Only for Kerrigan to lean slightly and fire a shot into its underbelly as it missed her.

"That was a close one." Coco sighs, though she's still discouraged at the idea of Mengsk betraying Kerrigan and leaving her behind to the Zerg.

As she aimed down her scope for any oncoming Zerg, a Hydralisk spine came out of nowhere and bounced off her rifle, much to her surprise. The immediate hit sends Kerrigan back to cover as the camera pans over to show a Hydralisk smashing through a barricade like it was paper.

The Hydralisk lowered its head and sent another volley of spines at Kerrigan, who shot back at it while retreating from her cover. The camera changes to show Kerrigan fleeing for her life as more Hydralisk spines zipped passed over her head. Kerrigan retaliates as she brings her rifle above and blind fire.

Or at least that was what she thought it was when the Hydralisk chasing her suddenly burst through the ruins before her. The scene slows down as it cuts to the Hydralisk, letting out a hiss before it cuts back to Kerrigan aiming her rifle and firing it point blank.

The first shot tore through one of its mandibles and sent it screeching back. The second round went through the chest, and the third through the neck. Killing the Hydralisk as it slumped onto the ground dead.

"How does that slow-mo shot look so cool and terrifying simultaneously?" Sun explained his thoughts.

Yang agreed. "Yea, it is cool, but can you imagine a Grimm going through walls like its paper? Because that would be terrifying if it catches you off guard."

"Then we got to be thankful that most Grimm are mindless." Neptune adds in.

Kerrigan's gun had run out of ammo as it began making clicking noises. Knowing she needs to leave this place; Kerrigan calls for evacuation again. "Ah, boys, how about that evac?" She asked as her eyes surveyed the surrounding for any Zerg.

Yet the scene then cuts to show Mengsk looking over Tarsonis as Raynor curses and begs him in the background. "Damn you, Arcturus. Don't do this."

"It's done." Mengsk bluntly declared before he turned around. "Helmsman, signal the fleet and take us out of orbit."

"This. This is cruel." Kali could only cover her mouth with her hands to hide her horror.

Mengsk then takes a beat. "Now!" He orders as nuclear explosions appear on Tarsonis as he walks away from the screen. Then, as if to make it more heart-breaking, everyone could hear Kerrigan calling out on the radio.

"Commander? Jim?" The camera cuts to Kerrigan. "What the hell is going on out there?" Kerrigan could only ask what was going only to hear the sound of Zerglings trampling towards her in the distance.

Bringing her empty rifle up, Kerrigan surveyed as the camera cuts to show her from above. As if the sound of the hollowing winds wasn't enough to cause goosebumps to those watching it play out, Kerrigan could hear the stampeding noises of an unknown amount of Zerg in the background growing louder by the second.

Everyone could only silently watch as Kerrigan lowered her visor before the camera cut to what she saw. And she saw a hundred, no thousands of Zerglings all barrelling towards her like an endless tide of death.

This unintentionally caused Summer to suffer a panic attack as how she died began to play in her head over and over again. In addition, her entire body began to tremble as her breathing became even more strenuous by the second.

"Summer!" Tai cried out as she took his wife's hand. "Breath, dear. Breathe slowly."

"Mom!" Ruby and Yang cried out as both threw themselves at their mother. Even Raven stepped in as she kneeled in front of her team leader.

"Summer. Listen to me. Close your eyes, count to five and breathe slowly." Raven explained sternly as Summer nodded and did as Raven told her.

A minute passed as QAI addressed her.

[I apologise for this scene causing you distress. Are you alright right now?]

"I… I am fine now…"

[Master can organise a therapy session for you. It is highly recommended that you take it.]

"I… I will take it. Thank you." A smile slowly grew on summer's face, even if she felt weary.

[I will inform master of what has transpired here.] QAI continued as the screen resumed.

Upon witnessing the swarms of Zerglings upon her, Kerrigan took out her visor as it was made clear on her face. She's going to die, and no help is coming. Kerrigan drops her rifle. She stares at the sky as the camera pulls further away from her.

With no hope, Kerrigan closes her eyes and awaits her end as a swarm of Mutalisks circles above her while Zerglings arrives at Kerrigan's location and dives at her as the screen cuts black.

"Is it over?" Ruby could only ask with concern as she rechecked her mother.

[Almost.]

The camera instantly lights up to show Raynor waking from his nightmare and accidentally knocking over a whisky bottle off the table. Yet the bottle of Whisky did not hit the ground as a hand caught it before it did.

"One hell of a nightmare." Qrow muttered as he looked at his brother-in-law. This was so similar to when Tai discovered that Summer never returned after her mission. It broke him mentally until he managed to get his shit together.

The camera cut to Raynor rubbing his head as a tag appeared on the lower left of the screen.

Hyperion Cantina

03:45 - Shipboard Time

"Early in the morning, this dream must be eating him from the inside." Torchwick muttered.

"Or witnessing what we saw earlier triggered it." Neo adds in.

The bottle of whisky was placed back on the table before Raynor reached out for it, yet it refused to budge. Raynor looks up as the camera cuts to show Matt holding the bottle. "I've been cleaning up after you a lot lately." Matt said as he let his commander take the bottle and pour himself another.

"I can imagine what it was like." Qrow mutters as his eyes turn to Tai.

"Leave it alone, Matt." Raynor behest to his second as he took a drink. Yet Matt did not respond as he grabbed a nearby chair.

"Same dream?" Matt asked. Yet, Raynor snapped, clearly wishing for his second to drop the subject.

"I said leave it alone." Yet Matt did not. He just sat on a chair and tried to console his commander.

"What happened to Kerrigan wasn't your fault…"

However, Raynor didn't believes that was the case. "Which part? Where she got left behind," Raynor paused as he looked Matt in the eyes. "or where she murdered eight billion people?"

"Dude's been taking it hard after Kerrigan's death, huh?" Neptune softly spoke.

"They did fall in love, according to what we know. And Mengsk took it all away." Winter muttered.

"And this has been eating him for years. Knowing she was responsible for the deaths of billions." Ozpin nods slowly.

But despite what Raynor had said, Matt stared at his commander, drowning his sorrows. Then, with disappointment lacing in his tone, Matt shook his head. "Same old bullshit. You ain't going to listen."

Matt then took something from his back pocket and placed it on the table. And it was Raynor's old Confederate Marshall badge. But, of course, once he leaves Raynor's badge on the table, he stands up and leaves. But Matt did not go as he stopped at the door and looked at his commander again.

"Man, do you even see what you're becoming?"

The camera cuts to Raynor staring at his empty cup. "We are who we chose to be, Matt." Raynor mutters as he reaches for the whisky bottle and pours another one.

A beat passed before Matt reminded Raynor that the Raiders needed his leadership. "When you figure it out let us know. We're waitin' on ya." The camera cuts to Raynor picking up his badge and looking at it before it cuts back to Matt, who leaves as the camera cuts to black.

---

"Poor Raynor," Penny noted. "He has to rely on Matt to help him out."

"I'm sure he will eventually recover from this, Penny." Pietro rubbed his daughter's head.

"But till then, we should get going and take a break," Ozpin said as he stood up, only for a portal to appear, and RGQC walked through it. The only issue was that he looked charred and had caught on fire. Scratch that.

His hair is smoking right now, and ash covers his entire body.

"Ok then. Lesson learned. The complication I thought my fellow brother had to deal with was not what I expected." RGQC deadpanned as he stuck his fingers in his mouth before using them to extinguish his hair, still smoking. "It was a prank."

"I don't think this is not a normal prank, RGQC." Penny states as Mercury adds in.

"Yea! You look like a burned chicken nugget." That made RGQC let out a snort of amusement.

"Sure, I do." He said as the realm lord clapped his hands. "Alright, you call can take a break. And for Summer, I must again apologise for putting you through that. And I have organised a therapy session for you." RGQC says as a portal appears next to him.

"Do go through the portal, and your family can come along and join the session. I need a bath or something." RGQC muttered as he walked through another portal he summoned as everyone either left the theatre or followed Summer through another portal.

---

And we are done! Oh man, I hope this was worth it because I've worked at least 2.5 hours daily. Anyways, after taking some of your thoughts into consideration and my fuck up for not adding Tosh's climatic scene in the previous chapter, I decided to include the after-mission events in the relevant missions!

Besides that, I do not have anything else to say either, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. And other than that, if you like my story, follow and favourite me if you want this story!

Do also leave a review of what you think of this chapter, as I enjoy reading it and giving replies to it!

RGQC out!