Original concept by Korra
Written by MechaG11
Part Two: Remnant Divided Arc
-Chapter 16: Head to Head
Kali Belladonna carries a tray of tea, pushing through the door as she enters the main room of the Belladonna household. Her husband, Ghira, sits opposite to Oscar Pine and Glynda Goodwitch, the three still in discussion.
"The Regime has been trying to enlist Theodore's help for some time now." Ghira informs the two.
"We're aware." Glynda says."Which is why we'll need your help when the truth comes out."
"To quell the oncoming chaos your actions will ensure, yes." Ghira says. "If given the evidence, we'll act with proper cause. I'm sure Theodore and the other headmasters will do the same. But one thing still troubles me, Miss Goodwitch…" He looks to Kali as she nears the table and passes the steaming cups of tea to her husband and their guests, Ghira nodding appreciatively at her as he takes the small cup in hand. "If what you say is true, if Superman is the monster you insist he is...I fear a far worse battle will come after the blight of Grimm."
"If we gather the information we need," Glynda says. "It's likely we'll discover his weaknesses as well."
"Forgive me that your lack of certainty doesn't earn my full confidence on the matter," Ghira admits. "But I understand that it is the one thread likely to bear fruit from what you've explained." He sips his tea before continuing. "If you do discover such a weakness, I will hear out your plan."
Oscar's eyes glimmer for a moment, the boy speaking with a subtle mature change in his demeanor. "Batman has so far served as a brilliant tactician and planner, and has fought this enemy before. I'm willing to place my confidence in him."
"So you both say." Ghira says, before taking another sip of his tea. "This Batman you've allied with...is he a bat-Faunus?"
Glynda and Oscar exchange glances before turning back to him. "He merely wears a costume, I'm afraid." Oscar informs him.
"Hmm…" Ghira ponders, unsure if he approves of that choice.
"Regardless," Glynda says, setting down her cup. "All we ask is that you be prepared. For the sake of Menagerie, and Remnant as a whole."
Ghira thinks for a moment, and then nods. "My daughter seems to trust in your cause, so I will put my faith in her judgment." Kali stands next to Ghira, resting her hand upon his shoulder in approval. "When the news breaks, Menagerie will be ready, and I will be in talks with Shade Academy should its headmaster see to reason."
"Thank you, Chieftain Belladonna." Glynda says as she and Oscar respectfully bow.
"We know you risked a lot to come here." Kali says. "We'll see to your safe passage out, discretely, of course." she says with a cheeky smile.
"I think that was implied, dear." Ghira says with a smile, Kali giggling at him in response. He looks back to Glynda and Oscar. "How is my daughter of late?"
Oscar's eyes flicker once more, his composure shifting ever slightly. "She's been…more than a bit troubled after her friends joined the Regime."
Kali's ears lower. "She cares a lot for them it seems. I'm at least happy to know she's found some form of support in all of this despite being apart."
"Perhaps, when they discover the truth, they will find themselves at her side again." Ghira hopes. "The path to what's right is never easy to navigate. I should know. If our daughter's friends are anything like her, they'll find their way in time."
Images of Blake's eye patch flash in Oscar's mind. He can only hope that, despite what Yang has done, Blake will come to terms with fighting alongside her former teammates again when the time comes. Friends made enemies will have to unite if Remnant hopes to survive what comes next.
The start of evening, somewhere on the outer city of Vale, Taiyang opens up the back of a van after fitting the hat for his disguise on his head. "Alright, it's all set." he tells the Insurgent group.
"Thank you, Ruby's dad!" Nora says happily as she skips into the back. Ren shakes his head, the two adorned with new combat clothing as they head into the van for their mission.
Batman turns to see Blake approach from behind him, the girl wearing a combination of her older combat clothes and Batman's own armor. "Took a bit of inspiration, did you?" he asks her.
"Yeah," Blake says, nodding her head. "I just…felt it was time for a change."
"Hey, for what we could scrounge up, we don't look too shabby." Sun says, hanging off of a tree from his tail before dropping down next to them in his own set of new gear.
Taiyang looks to Batman after Blake and Sun step into the van. "I hope you're right about him, Batman. I'm really sticking my neck out for you by doing this."
Batman looks back, unfazed. "You know what's at stake if I am."
Taiyang sighs, holding is head. "I just...can't believe my girls are caught up in all of this. All I can think about is getting 'em out of there."
"Ruby and Yang aren't bad people." Ren says.
Nora backs him up. "When the truth comes out about that Superman guy, they'll be fighting the bad guys right with us!"
"That's exactly what I'm afraid of." Taiyang says. "We're fighting people stronger than any single huntsman...stronger than any army."
"I've defeated Superman before." Batman responds. "He has fewer true allies here, and even less so once Remnant unites against him."
"Let's hope that's enough then…" Taiyang says. Ren looks down while inside the van, silently sharing Taiyang's concern.
Ilia approaches the van, ready to join the others in her own new combat attire. Nora and Sun gaze at her, noticing the similarities between her armor, Batman's, and Blake's. Ilia's spots turn pink as she feels their eyes on her. "What? I've got Batman's training, don't I? The bracers are part of that."
"I just got 'em cause they look cool." Sun says, gesturing towards her. "Nice bat-symbol by the way! I always thought it looked cool too."
"That's not why I- Ugh, never mind." Ilia says dismissively before stepping inside the carriage of the van.
Taiyang takes his place at the driver's seat as Batman joins the others inside the van. During the drive, he looks opposite of himself to Blake. "It's more than likely that you'll encounter your former teammates on this mission. All of you." he informs them. "Everything hinges on our success tonight. I'm counting on you to all keep your head focused. Even the slightest distraction could lead to us failing."
Blake, Nora, and Ren all wear individual expressions of concern, but Sun turns his head to the side to face all of them. "Hey, everyone that got captured is counting on us. We've got this." he assures them. While his words don't dispel all of their concern, Nora at least manages a small smile and a nod in response.
Looking down at first, Blake's gaze then rises to meet Batman's. "My friends will come around, but you're right. Tonight's not about them." she says. Batman gives a short nod in response, trusting her resolve. After some time, Taiyang allows Batman, Blake, and Ilia to slip away from the back opening of the van. The two groups part ways, preparing to embark on their separate missions.
Ruby and Weiss flip backwards, gaining some distance away from Wonder Woman as Superman watches their training bout. Cyborg remains fixated on several holograms with various floods of information streaming across their panels, the android paying little attention to much else in the room. Wonder Woman leaps towards Weiss, causing the young huntress to block the oncoming strike with her rapier. Wonder Woman smirks and spins around, attempting to sweep Weiss' leg. Weiss catches on, recalling this maneuver from memory of their past sessions, pulling her leg upwards to avoid the sweep. In a surprising turn, Weiss uses the same leg to deliver a quick kick in succession. Wonder Woman blocks the strike, stepping backwards after allowing her shield to take the hit. She stands tall, clearly impressed. "You remembered." Wonder Woman says. "Your ability to utilize small openings in your opponent's movements is improving."
Weiss smirks with a short snicker, wearing her pride on her sleeve. "I've got no choice if I wanna stay ahead of this one." she says, gesturing her head towards Ruby.
"You're just jealous cause I'm cooler than you." Ruby remarks.
Wonder Woman sheathes her sword and stows away her shield. "We'll conclude today's training." she says. "Unless you two would like to try sparring with one another?"
Ruby and Weiss exchange glances. "Hmm, maybe that's not such a bad idea." Weiss says, wearing a face of enthusiasm.
Ruby nods, seemingly into the idea as well. "Like I'd ever pass up a chance to kick your butt!" she says, before zooming over onto the opposite side of their training space to face Weiss.
Wonder Woman joins Superman on the sidelines to spectate the fight. "This should be interesting." Superman says, crossing his arms.
Just as things are about to kick off, Cyborg flinches all of the sudden. "Whoa whoa! Something's shutting down our systems!" he says urgently before his robotic fingers begin to rapidly blur across his holographic keyboard.
"What's going on, Victor?" Superman asks as he approaches Cyborg.
"Someone on the outside is bringing everything down. Sensors, comms tech, automated defenses…" he informs them. "Whoever this fool is picked the wrong person to hack."
"Batman?" Wonder Woman questions.
"Don't know," Cyborg answers. "Could be."
Superman is distracted for a moment. He turns his head slightly, searching for something through his super-hearing. A tremor?
"What is it, Kal?" Wonder Woman asks.
He turns to her urgently. "Come with me!" he says before zipping away in a red blur. Wonder Woman follows soon after, almost blinking away before Ruby and Weiss.
Wonder Woman catches up with Superman in the sky, looking to the distance that has his attention. She watches as a tremendous dark mass emerges from the horizon with a faint green glow behind it. The sound of quakes echo as it marches toward Vale. "What is that?" she questions.
Superman doesn't answer, his focus only fixated on the approaching creature. "Diana, with me!" he commands. She nods, following him without question as they speedily soar through the air towards the monster.
Regime border defense teams rain fire upon the Grimm Leviathan, the towering creature bearing protruding green spikes and pulsating green veins all along its body. It trudges along the land, looking almost sickly as it marches unimpeded towards humanity's stronghold. Green slime trails off of its maw as it slows down slightly. It involuntarily regurgitates a smaller green and black mass, the disgusting matter splashing unto the ground as similarly mutated Grimm emerge from the impact zone. The Leviathan turns its gaze towards a command tower ahead, drawing its head in with difficulty before hacking up another green mass in the form of a rapid projectile. The object soars into the tower, collapsing it from the bottom before impacting the buildings below. More mutant Grimm emerge from the next impact zone, the enemy successfully bypassing the protective wall. The Regime soldiers along the border defense continue to fire upon the beast, some fleeing in terror after seeing the futility of their counterattack, others rushing to the lower levels to protect the civilian population from the Grimm emerging in the streets.
Superman watches as the Leviathan hacks up another ball and fires it into the city. He speeds through the sky like a bullet, curving through the air and clocking the beast with a satisfying crack. The Leviathan's head is knocked back, its green secretions splashing onto the ground below from the sudden impact. It tries to snap its jaws at him in retaliation, but its slow moving body is unable to find its mark against Superman. The creature finds itself punched once again, followed by Wonder Woman slashing her sword across the side of its neck. The monster's green blood flies out from the wound, splashing onto Wonder Woman's arm. The Amazon shouts in pain as she recoils, looking unto her arm which sizzles with the green substance burning on contact.
"Kal, it's blood is some kind of acid!" she shouts. "Our attacks risk more damage! We can't let it into the city!"
"Then we stop it here." Superman proclaims. He soars into the sky, breaking the sound barrier with a loud boom as he circles back around to strike. The Leviathan tries to hack up another ball of slime, before Superman smashes its head from above, trapping its jaws shut. The Leviathan is spun around from the attack, its flipper-like hands on the ground as it coughs and growls. The slime manifested in its mouth is vomited out, alongside several fully formed mutant Grimm falling out of its maw. The Leviathan turns its head, gazing at Superman and Wonder Woman in anger. It starts to rise before it suddenly flings its head strangely. A mutant Beowolf is flung from the giant's maw and cast towards Wonder Woman, the Beowolf tackling Diana as the two descend towards the ground. She casts the creature off of her, now finding herself surrounded by an army of mutant Grimm. She stands undeterred with weapons drawn, facing the monsters head-on in battle.
Superman, not making enough leeway through his punches, pulls back and inhales. He casts his cold breath upon the Leviathan, causing ice to slowly manifest across its torso. The sheer size of the Leviathan prevents it from fully succumbing to the ice, and it manages to aim its head just high enough to shoot yet another green mass into the far side of Vale. Superman aims his cold breath up towards its neck and face, finally beginning to freeze significant portions of its head. He didn't manage to freeze all of its body, but at least it won't be able properly to guide any of its projectiles into the city for a time. Superman turns towards Wonder Woman, calling out to her. "Diana!" he shouts, before zooming towards the Leviathan's feet. Wonder Woman breaks away from the crowd of attacking Grimm, catching up to Superman and casting her lasso around the Leviathan's other ankle. The two fly opposite of the city, pulling with all of their might as they trip up the mutant Leviathan and bring it to its knees. The creature's flippers attempt to scrape at the ground, finding little success in resisting as the two begin to drag it away from the city.
With no options left, the ice around the mutant Leviathan shatters as it finally manages to open its maw for one last roar. Its eyes begin to glow green with a powerful intensity, its body contorting and beginning to spasm. Wonder Woman notices the irregular movements of the creature. "Kal!" she says, calling it to Superman's attention. The two witness as the Leviathan's torso begins to violently inflate in various places, the green veins along its flesh pulsing intensely as they grow full nearly to bursting. The two go wide-eyed and brace themselves as they are enveloped by a blinding green explosion of light.
Minutes ago, back at the Regime HQ…
Cyborg types furiously, each hand attending separate panels representing different systems. Ruby and Weiss look on towards the doorway that Superman and Wonder Woman flew through mere seconds ago, the two exchanging glances and ready to follow. "Sensors back online. What the-" Cyborg says, noticing the enemies' movement. "You two need to get out there, now! There's a whole load of trouble at the border!"
"Grimm?" Weiss questions.
"Lots of 'em." Cyborg confirms.
"Right!" Ruby nods, before turning to Weiss. "Let's go!"
The two girls make their way through the halls, ready to join the fight ahead. A distorted scream forces them to stop in their tracks, the two turning to look back. "That sounded like Cyborg!" Weiss says. Having an uneasy feeling, the two delay reinforcing the border defenses and turn back. They come upon the doorway and rush into the room. Batman, Ilia, and Blake stand above Cyborg. A strange device was implanted into his back as he lay motionless on the ground. The three turn around to see Weiss and Ruby, alert now that their presence is compromised.
"Blake." Batman calls out. She nods to his command, using the larger blade of Gambol Shroud's sheath to sever Cyborg's neck and separating the now deactivated drone's head component. Batman reaches down and recovers the head, stepping back.
"What're you doing to him?!" Ruby demands. Blake steps forward, blocking Batman from Ruby's sight. Ruby clutches Crescent Rose, her frustration clear as day. "Blake, how could you help him? Batman's a murderer!"
"Ruby, I-" Blake utters, uneasy from the confrontation. She grips her weapon tighter, remembering Batman's words before the mission. "Please, just let us do this. I need you both to trust me until the time is right. Then everything will make sense."
"Make sense?" Weiss questions. "Protecting the White Fang? I get that." she says. She raises and points her sword at Batman. "But working for someone like him? Blake, he's a criminal."
"So was I, if you didn't forget." Blake counters. "You found it in yourself to trust me then. I'm asking you to trust me now."
"He killed my uncle, Blake!" Ruby protests. "How can I trust you when it's our job to protect people from killers like him!"
"Blake." Ilia utters, her tone urging Blake to bring this conversation to a stop.
Blake nods. "Batman, go on ahead. Ilia and I can hold them off." she says, looking ahead to her teammates.
"No!" Ruby shouts, before rushing towards them. Blake steels herself, quickly dashing towards Ruby to meet her advance with equal urgency. Ruby bursts into rose petals, maneuvering around Blake and materializing towards Batman. Just as planned. Knowing that Batman can handle himself, Blake uses the opening given by Ruby's recklessness to unexpectedly close the distance on Weiss. She separates Gambol Shroud into two blades, relying on multiple rapid attacks to force Weiss on the defensive. Weiss' training with Wonder Woman proved useful in teaching her to hold her own at this close a distance, but without an opening between Blake's attacks she was unable to use her glyphs in the moment. This was exactly where Blake wanted Weiss, and now she just needed to keep up the offensive and outlast her.
On the other side of the room, Ruby storms Batman with several swings of her scythe. Batman angles himself to the side, protecting Cyborg's head while retreating backwards from the massive weapon's strikes. Underestimating her ferocity, Batman barely steps out of each cleave, even having to utilize the gauntlet on his free arm to block a quick slice from the spear end of Crescent Rose. Ruby reels her weapon back, extending Crescent Rose into its war-scythe mode to send it crashing down on Batman. Her weapon catches in her hands though, confused at the pull she feels against her swing. Looking up, she realizes the middle of the polearm is constricted by Ilia's whip-sword. Too late to react, Ruby is suddenly electrocuted by the connection. Batman finds his opening thanks to Ilia's success, and retreats out of the room.
Weiss is on the back foot, maintaining her defense against Blake, but not slow to realize she's being trapped into this ongoing chain of attacks. She had to do something, and fast. Blake moved as if she was anticipating every move Weiss would make in her defense. She'd have to do something unexpected, but what? She'd need precious seconds to use a glyph or activate a dust charge in her sword, seconds she didn't have. What could she do unless- Weiss noticed something small, the subtle flutter of the ribbon on the shorter blade of Gambol Shroud. That was it! Weiss focuses her sights on the movements of Blake's swords, waiting for the moment when she could act. Blake's shorter blade comes down, and with it the ribbon trailing down the same path. Weiss grasps it, suddenly yanking Blake into her oncoming headbutt.
Gritting her teeth, Blake shakes off the pain and answers with a headbutt of her own. Her forehead hits Weiss square in the nose, forcing a slightly whiny-sounding "Oww!" from Weiss as she steps back with her hand over her it and stumbles back onto her rear. Blake nearly says 'sorry' upon seeing Weiss land on the ground, something about Weiss' tone reminding her of a more casual setting between the two. She stops herself from apologizing in the moment, realizing she just allowed Weiss even the smallest bit of space. Weiss holds her nose, smirking behind her hand as the other touches the ground. Blake is then stopped immediately by a black glyph appearing below her feet. Weiss then creates a white glyph across the room, suddenly halting Ilia's advance and launching the girl into a nearby wall. "Ruby, go!" she shouts. Ruby recovers and nods, speeding out of the room and leaving rose petals in her wake.
Weiss turns to Blake, preparing to cast ice dust and immobilize her. Thinking quickly, Blake draws Gambol Shroud in its gun form and shoots Weiss' sword out of her hand before she could properly arm it. Weiss kicks up in retaliation, knocking Blake's firearm out of her hand in turn. Still connected by the black ribbon, Blake simply yanks the weapon down and strikes the ground with the blade end of the gun, prompting Weiss to evade it with a back-flip and land near her sword. Quickly recovering her weapon, she spins around to attack before being briefly electrocuted from behind by Ilia. Weiss pulls away and recovers, stepping back as she is now flanked on her right and left by her two opponents.
"Give it up, Schnee!" Ilia demands with her weapon pointed at her.
Blake motions for Ilia to stop. "Ilia, you go on ahead. I can take care of this."
"As if I'd just let you do that." Weiss says.
"I'm sorry, Weiss," Blake says. "I can't let you stop us."
Ilia makes a sudden dash for the door, Weiss shouting "Hey-!" as she tries to cast another dust spell. Her sword is yanked towards Blake before it can be properly pointed towards the exit, Gambol Shroud's gun form hooked around the rapier's blade. Weiss shakes of its hold on her sword, and simply faces Blake. Ilia rushes out of the room as the two stare each other down, silently holding their opposing gazes. Weiss could see Blake's razor focus. She knew she couldn't act without Blake stepping in to hinder her. She would just have to deal with her first.
Weiss rushes forward, going on the offensive with a series of sword strikes. Blake had foiled her earlier strategies and tricks. Now? She defers to her pure martial prowess to win. Seeing this, Blake shifts her weapon to its two separate blades to better counter Weiss' sword-play. The two put their newly honed skills to the test, the tutelage of veteran heroes now competing against one another. Blake had to admit that she didn't imagine Weiss could take her combat skills this far with just her sword and body, yet here she was keeping Blake on her toes. Weiss herself was surprised with just how direct Blake was with her approach now, her confidence shining through mere action alone. Come to think of it, she hasn't once seen Blake use her semblance throughout their entire encounter. Blake wasn't just being aggressive, she was carefully conserving stamina as they fought. There wasn't a shred of wasted energy in Blake's movements, something that made Weiss consider just how much more she still needed to learn in combat.
The two clash blades repeatedly before Weiss manages to slide her sword through the gap of Gambol Shroud's sheath, turning and yanking the weapon from Blake's left hand with a swing. Blake in turn dodges Weiss' next stab of her sword, striking her arm and stealing Myrtenaster from Weiss. She turns back to Weiss and prepares to strike with both swords, but Weiss simply rushes forward and tackles Blake. Both weapons are knocked out of her hands, the two Huntresses now fighting unarmed. Weiss uses the moment to lock Blake's feet onto the ground with her stop glyph, trying to wail on her opponent now that she was immobilized. Blake blocks however she can, squeezing in a quick jab of her own on Weiss and breaking her concentration. Blake then rushes Weiss, utilizing a series of strikes straight from Batman's martial arts playbook. Wonder Woman's training came into use here, but Weiss once against finds herself on the back foot due to the simple fact that Blake was faster. First one, then two, and several more attacks slip through her defenses. She laid eyes on Blake as a strong punch slips past her bracing arms, the whole action running in slow motion before her eyes as she came to realize one absolute thing: Blake won.
Blake's fist swings straight for Weiss' face and decks her across the cheek, the heiress spinning as she falls back and lands on the ground. Her aura flickers and then unveils around her body, the last of her energy now depleted from their bout. Blake walks over to her, grasping Weiss and gently turning her over to lay her on her back. She holds her friend's shoulder, uttering "I'm sorry, Weiss." The sound of numerous footsteps nears, causing Blake's gaze to shoot up and her ears to twitch. Regime infantrymen rush into the room to secure it, coming across a lone Weiss unconscious on the ground.
Elsewhere, Ruby is speeding through the halls, unable to find any trace of Batman. She groans, slowly accepting the futility of her pursuit. There were any number of halls, doors, and exits Batman could have used to escape. She didn't have the ability to search them all...but maybe someone else could? Ruby turns and finds her way to exit out of the building, hoping to find one of the heroes to help search for Batman.
Minutes before the Grimm siege on Vale…
Yang and Jaune walk along a street in the more restless side of town, the nearby buildings adorned with colorful lights and the sounds of bustling people despite the late hour. Jaune gazes down at his Regime armor with a look of uncertainty. "If I knew we'd be waiting this long, I would have changed out of this back at the training grounds."
Yang smirks. "Spandex probably wasn't the way to go. There's a reason why Ruby and I only borrowed the 'S.'"
"You guys were always pretty good at the whole combat clothes thing, huh?" Jaune admits. "I'll...probably ask you guys for some pointers next time."
Looking over Jaune's outfit, Yang gestures inquisitively like a fancy fashion designer. "That's gonna be a tall order, but I believe my associates and I can come up with something." Yang teases. She can't help but notice his glum expression following that comment. She nudges him lightly with her elbow. "Hey, what's up? I wasn't being too hurtful, was I?"
"Huh? Oh, no. It's just that…" Jaune utters before rubbing the back of his neck. "I wanted to thank you guys, for being there for me. After Pyrrha and the whole Insurgents thing, I...I guess I just missed having a team."
Yang smiles. "Not a team, Jaune, we're friends." she says, playfully socking his arm. "We're not just gonna leave you hangin' after all the crazy stuff that's happened."
A small smile appears on the side of Jaune's mouth. "Thanks, Yang." Jaune chuckles to himself for a moment. "Maybe I just figured I didn't deserve it. Spent too much time sulking and being useless, you know?"
"Pfft," Yang scoffs. "You know, you weren't the only one." she informs him "But look at us now." she says stepping in front of him and pointing her thumb at herself. "We're standing up and doing something about it right now. You're- We're not useless." she says. "Friends like us fight the bad guys, help each other out, and save our other friends."
"Yeah, well…" Jaune pauses, somewhat glum. "I'm not so sure our other friends think they need saving."
The sound of distant gunfire draws their attention, the people nearby becoming alert to it as well.
"What was that?" Yang asks.
Jaune's eyes narrow. "Something's wrong. Listen."
Yang does so, hearing the initial distant burst of rounds. It doesn't take long to notice the sheer number of them. "Doesn't sound like a small firefight." she comments. She gestures towards the source with a tilt of her head. "Let's go."
"Wait, it sounds like it's coming from the border on the opposite side from us." Jaune notes. "Shouldn't there be alarms or something?"
Yang looks at him worriedly. Despite moments passing from the commotion, no form of public warning is given. "Something tells me that's about to become our job."
Jaune nods, before turning nervously towards the people nearby. "Uh um- Everyone! This might be an emergency, so please calmly get to a safe pla-" The nearby crowd immediately begins to rush away in sudden hysteria. "Calmly…" Jaune utters poitnlessly, his arms and shoulders sagging from the disappointment of being ignored.
Yang meanwhile is already pointing and directing people away from the action, urging them to vacate the streets. "Come on, people, let's move it!" she shouts, beckoning people away with repeated waves of her arm. She turns to Jaune. "Let's go. More people are gonna need-" Her eyes go wide, Jaune turning his head to face what she sees in the distance. A green mass, nearly the size of a small building, soars through the air over their heads like a projectile and crashes into some buildings next to the nearby park. Without a word, Yang immediately runs towards the landing zone.
"Wait, Yang-!" Jaune shouts before tailing after her. After passing around a building in the way, the two come across the impact zone. The green ooze blankets a handful of nearby structures, contact with it corroding the solid brick and concrete surfaces alike. They watch in horror as strange Grimm, somehow even more monstrous in appearance than typically expected, begin to emerge from the slime-like mass. A mutant Beowolf turns its attention to them, and leaps towards the two with a roar. Yang dodges out of the way, Jaune instead choosing to hold his ground. He ducks under a sweep of the Beowolf's claw, before it comes after him with two more slashes. Jaune catches the first arm under his hand with a thunderous impact, before catching the second with his other. "These guys hit a lot harder than normal!" he shouts, before kneeing the creature in the head and cracking its skull.
"Yeah?" Yang says, before turning her attention to a second mutant Beowolf flanking her. She twists around and kicks it in the gut. "Well. So. Do. We!" she shouts as she dodges its next attack, elbows it with her right arm, and then demolishes its head with a flaming left hook. The creature is sent away, exploding upon death with a green splash.
Jaune then looks down at the Beowolf he killed, realizing it's about to explode as well. He gasps for a moment, stepping away and bracing his arms in anticipation the splash. It blows up, the green liquid splashing him slightly despite his retreat. He winces a bit, feeling the small amounts of caustic liquid against his skin and suit. "That's not good." he says. Jaune then peers over to the impact zone, spotting Grimm chasing after nearby civilians. He recalls his training with Yang, albeit only what he can remember from less than a handful of session they had. With is new strength he could now dash and bound at greater speeds. Mustering that speed was easy, controlling it was another question entirely. He wasn't as practiced, but he had to try. With a great step of his foot, Jaune launches himself towards the gap between the Grimm and the civilians. He overshoots his landing a bit, hitting the concrete but sliding into the nearby wall of a building. Grunting, he pushes against the wall and off of it, running towards the Grimm and punching a mutated Creep away before it explodes. He stands at the ready against the rest of the monsters, allowing the civilians their chance to escape. "Yang, we have to keep their attention on us!" he shouts.
Yang turns to see another set of civilians running from Grimm. She quickly judges the distance and fires an explosive projectile at the foot of the monsters. The resulting explosion disrupts their pursuit, drawing their attention to their attacker as they climb back to their feet. Yang stares back, determined and cocking her gauntlets. "That's right, eyes on me." she utters. The people nearby take their opportunity to escape as the Grimm rush towards Yang in retaliation. For minutes on end, the two keep the ever growing Grimm numbers contained as close as they can to the impact zone. Despite fighting with their fists, Yang and Jaune's superior strength allowed them to cast away most of the mutated monsters with the sheer impact of their strikes. The Grimm keep emerging from the nearby crater of green liquid, seemingly endless. The two fighters dash away from their separate fights, their backs bumping into each other unexpectedly. It was easy enough to recover from, given the impact wasn't much.
Jaune pants, unsure if the two of them can really fight the constantly increasing numbers of Grimm on their own. "We could really use Ruby and Weiss right about now."
"Tch." Yang scoffs. "I think this is a great opportunity to get some training in for you." she says with a grin, still facing the surrounding monsters.
Jaune looks over his shoulder. "I don't know about you, but I prefer when my training doesn't have lives on the line, you know?" He turns back around and uppercuts a Creep into the air.
Unbeknownst to the two, nearby in the sky, Yellow Lantern closes in on the impact zone. "Gotcha." he says to himself, zeroing in on the massive pool of slime. He flies into the scene, announcing himself. "Hope you kids don't mind if I take this off your hands." he says, igniting his yellow ring and creating a bubble construct that envelops the large impact crater. The light construct itself penetrates the very ground, Yellow Lantern ripping the mass of land under the crater itself.
Jaune utters a "Wow." as he sees the massive orb ascend into the night sky.
"I'll leave the rest to you two." Yellow Lantern says. He begins flying further into the sky, planning on tossing the entire mass into space once he reaches far enough.
Yang nudges Jaune. "You heard the man," she says. "Let's wrap this up!"
Jaune nods, and the two dash away from each other to hunt down the rest of the Grimm. Amidst the fighting, a familiar feeling crept up in both of the fighters. Considering everything that's happened since the founding of the Regime, something about battling the Grimm together felt...nostalgic. There was no confusion about 'sides' or doubts about their reason for fighting. The Grimm were beings of evil, and as Hunters it was their duty to slay them and the defend the helpless. After Jaune and Yang struck down the last of the Grimm, the two stood proudly. They both exchange glances after the ordeal. Yang eventually smirks at him, and Jaune smiles while shooting her a thumbs-up. They did good, and they weren't afraid to show it.
Just within view, Yang sees a van drive nearby. "That's strange." Yang notes, noticing it wasn't traveling away from the more dangerous areas as most civilians were instructed to do. She squints at the driver, wearing an unfamiliar hat but with a face who she swears she recognizes as her father. "Dad?" Yang utters.
"Yang? What's wrong?" Jaune asks, noticing her concern.
"C'mon!" Yang says, ushering Jaune to follow her as she runs towards the direction the van was heading. The two pursue on foot, the vehicle still faster than their initial speed but not so much that they'd lose track of it. After tailing it for just under a minute, they come across the van parked near a Regime detention center. Yang spots her father, Taiyang, disguised in some worker's uniform. He waves others over towards the van as various Regime soldiers lay unconscious on the ground. It was the sight of a prison break if they ever did see one, made all too apparent when Jaune's eyes widen upon seeing Nora and Ren. Alongside them are Sun, the various White Fang warriors turned Insurgents, as well as the handful of Beacon Professors who were arrested at Beacon. As they flee, a handful of flying Grimm descend upon them. Taiyang crouches before quickly leaping into the air, intercepting one of the winged Grimm with a powerful sweep of his leg. The speed of his movements, despite being brief, were almost too difficult for Jaune and Yang to track. A testament to Taiyang's skill level as a former Huntsman and just how much further the two still needed to grow.
Yang's gaze hardens before she wordlessly rushes to meet them. Jaune almost reaches out towards her, but figures he's too late to make her consider a more cautious approach. He opts instead to follow her lead.
As the two got within earshot, they overhear Ren and Nora arguing. "Nora, we have to go!" Ren shouts urgently.
"We can't just leave these people to the Grimm!" Nora protests. "We have to help!"
Taiyang approaches the bickering two. "I know you want to help, but a lot is riding on this right now."
"I don't care!" Nora exclaims. "You guys can just go ahead without me. I'm not going to stand by and do nothing!"
"Nora…" Ren utters.
The commotion is interrupted as several screeching shots ring out through the air. The flying Grimm are incinerated by several projectiles from Yang's gauntlets, the approaching blonde cocking her gauntlets as she silently walks towards them with a steely gaze.
The three turn to see Yang and Jaune, Taiyang's eyes widening at the sight of his daughter. "Yang..." he utters with visible concern.
"Why…" Yang strains through her teeth. "Why them? Don't you know Qrow is dead because of their boss?!" she yells at the group.
Nora and Ren brace their weapons, on guard after seeing Yang's aggressive stance towards them. Taiyang holds his hand back to them, urging them to stand down. He steps forward with his hands out, trying to appear diplomatic. "Yang, please listen to me. The Regime has been lying to you this whole time."
"So you're just going to trust Batman's lies?" Yang counters. "He's a sneaky coward that just wants to use you guys!"
"You're the ones being used," Taiyang replies. "Everyone in the Regime is. I'm trying to save you from him."
"From who?" Yang asks.
"From Superman." Taiyang answers. "He isn't the hero you all think he is."
A strange distortion of sound bellows behind Yang. "And what, you guys are?" a voice says. Yang turns around to see her mother, Raven Branwen, stepping into the scene from one of her portals. "Because heroes use a Grimm attack to cover their prison break." she posits. Taiyang simply glares at Raven as she speaks.
"That wasn't part of our plan!" Ren protests.
Raven stops and casually places her hand on her weapon as if it were her hip. "That must've been real convenient then. It's the perfect little distraction." she says. "If it makes you feel any better, I would have used it too."
"I'm surprised you bothered to be here at all." Taiyang comments, his tone more serious. "Why the Regime, Raven?"
Raven appears despondent upon answering. "I guess I learned the hard way that you can only run for so long." Her face shifts into a glare. "Something you're all about to learn as well." She draws her red sword from its sheath, preparing to face the Insurgents.
Yang turns to Raven. "We don't have to-"
"Either help, or stay out of the way." Raven interrupts, coldly.
Taiyang reaches out towards his daughter. "You don't have to fight us, Yang."
"Don't pretend like there's a choice." Raven asserts.
Taiyang glares at Raven. "There's always a choice." Without turning around, he addresses Nora and Ren. "If you kids wanna go or stay, it's up to you. I'll distract this bunch so the others can get away."
Ren and Nora exchange glances, first unsure, but wordlessly resolve to stay together. "We'll stay." Ren says.
Sun pokes out from the back of the van and gestures at them. "What are you guys just doing standing around?! We had this entire a plan- Whoa!" he shouts in surprise. With zero desire to stick around, the Insurgent warriors took to the drivers seat and hastily made their exit with Sun and the professors on board. Seeing the van drive away, Raven dashes at blinding speed to stop them. Meeting her halfway with a crashing impact was Taiyang, the two clashing arms together with eyes locked. They are pushed away from each other for a moment, the two former flames bracing for battle before rushing to clash at high speeds.
Yang watches the battle unfold, a flurry of conflicting emotions stirring within her. As she looks on, Jaune looks to Nora and Ren, unsure of what to do. Was he really going to fight them again? Was there reason to? The Insurgents have already escaped, pursuit beyond him and Yang at this point. To Jaune, Nora and Ren weren't just 'insurgents" like the former White Fang. They were his friends. It was then that Regime reinforcements arrive, numerous infantry with firearms flooding in from one of the nearby streets. A handful of groups fan out to neutralize any nearby Grimm, while a central group focuses on the commotion near the detention center. "Visual on the Insurgents!" their commander shouts. "Form a perimeter and switch to lightning dust!" The soldiers scramble as other take aim at Nora and Ren.
Eyes wide, Jaune takes in everything as it unfolds. "Stop! No!" Jaune yells. As the soldiers open fire, Jaune speeds into view, more precisely than he's ever moved before. He stands as wall between them, arms spread as he takes the oncoming fire. The lighting rounds envelop him, but without an Aura to destabilize Jaune manages to endure. His body was tougher now, and he wouldn't hesitate to test its limits if it meant protecting his friends. The automatic fire lays into him, Jaune screaming in desperation as he blocks it all.
"Jaune, no!" Nora yells. She rushes forward and tackles him to the ground. "Let me." she says, standing up to face the soldiers. Using her semblance, Nora draws all of their fire, the lightning rounds impacting her but having no effect. Nora's grip tightens around her hammer, her other hand clenching tightly into a fist. Every shot empowered her, to the point where the oncoming impacts began to make her flinch less and less. Eventually, their shots wouldn't fail to do anything. The Regime soldiers stop firing, taken aback by Nora's unyielding approach. With an astounding battle cry, Nora rushes and barrels through the group of Regime soldiers.
Ren sees to Jaune, lifting him up off the ground. Exhaustion from the previous battle and damage sustained from that last attack left him weak and covered in scorch marks. Jaune manages a smile despite the pain. "Heh, sorry you guys." he says.
"Save your strength, Jaune." he says. "I just...I need you to trust me when I say this was all for a good reason."
Jaune coughs before looking back at Ren. "I hope you're right." he says, still holding faith in his friend's words. Ren looks up towards the battle. Despite Nora's power advantage, he could see the perimeter of troops and distant Regime airships encroaching upon them. It wouldn't be long before he and the others would be forced to surrender.
Yang stares on at the fight between her mother and father, unsure of who's side to take. Her father sided with her uncle's killer, but that wasn't a reason to fight him. For all she knew, he was just being manipulated by Batman. Her mother staunchly fought within the interests of the Regime. She never knew the concrete reason why Raven sided with the Regime instead of retaining her previous absence, but from the look of things her mother had no issue taking things too far. This wasn't a squabble between former lovers, Raven was on a mission and would have sought it through regardless if Taiyang was present.
Yang grunts in frustration, her hair igniting as she closes her eyes and winces. "Just...stop it!" Yang bursts outwards towards the two, surging in between them. With a boom, Yang catches Raven's sword in her prosthetic hand, simultaneously catching Taiyang's kick in the other. The two parents glance at Yang, astonished by her intervention.
"Yang…" Taiyang says, moved by her actions.
Suddenly, floodlights pour in and illuminate them all from above, Regime pilots in their airships using their intercoms to order the Insurgents to surrender. Ren stands and offers his arms up in surrender, knowing that resisting now would be wasted effort. Nora, seeing Ren do this, hesitates before doing the same. Taiyang and Raven are pushed back by Yang. Fully expecting their loss, Taiyang slowly surrenders himself as well. Raven growls through her teeth, swinging her sword at the air in frustration. "I had this you idiots!" she shouts at the soldiers. "Search the city! The escapees couldn't have gone far!" The pilots in the airships take in what she says, eventually scrambling away to search the rest of the streets. Raven, closing her eyes with her brow furled, deeply sighs as she sheathes her sword. Nora, Ren, and Taiyang are escorted away as prisoners. Raven turns and points at the weakened Jaune. "Put him in cuffs and send him away with the rest of them."
Yang protests. "Hey, you can't just-!"
"I don't want to hear it from you!" Raven snaps back, pointing her finger at Yang. "I gave you the chance- No, told you to stay out of this, Yang!"
"Why are you even helping us?! The Regime?" Yang asks in frustration. "Since when have you cared about any of this?!"
Raven turns away from Yang. "You wouldn't understand." she says, deciding to withdraw from both the conversation and this place.
Yang shakes her head. "Maybe I would if you just talked to me! What are you running from?!" Raven refuses to answer and keeps walking. Her mother's silence made her boil. Yang clenches her fist, before violently shooting at Raven in pure frustration. Her attack doesn't go unnoticed, Raven turning suddenly and drawing her sword to produce a dark red portal in front of her. In one seamless move, the projectile flies through the portal as a second one opens in front of Yang, her own projectile exiting out of it and colliding with her in a combustive bang. After being knocked over by the unexpected blast, Yang coughs as she scrambles up through the smoke. She looks on, waving the smoke away to see that her mother is nowhere in sight.
Superman bursts through the slimy green mass, burning from the caustic fluid that coats his body. He grits his teeth, spinning rapidly and shaking off the green slime entirely. He scans the area around him, his vision blurred and still feeling some residual burning sensation in the eyes. The faint sound of Grimm emerging from all directions echoes in the air, mixed in with the sound of automatic gunfire. The Man of Steel's sight clears up, allowing him to fixate on the Regime's border defenses trying their best to hold against the ever-spawning horde. Despite the best efforts of the infantry and nearby Huntsmen, it wasn't hard to determine that the line wouldn't hold for long.
Taking to the air and then using his super-hearing, Superman is able to locate Wonder Woman's heartbeat in the green mass. He tears into it as he flies, eventually finding her unconscious in the liquid. With a clap of his hands, he creates a burst of wind that clears the substance from her body. Wasting no time, he flies her in his arms past the Regime defense line. He sets her down for the Regime infantry to retrieve. "Take her." he commands the nearby infantry. Spotting the commander, he zips towards him quickly and calls his attention. "Focus your forces on the creatures within the walls! I'm going to end this." he commands.
"What're you going to-" but before he could finish asking, Superman takes to the sky once more. The Regime commander simply chooses to nod, and relays the order to his troops.
Superman takes off into the sky and past the broken wall. Below him was the horde of mutated Grimm, and the giant green mass that used to be the Leviathan. What he was about to do was a gambit, but the situation left little other options to consider. Allowing the Grimm to funnel towards the breach in the wall, Superman's gaze turns to the ground as his eyes glow with a blazing red energy. The landscape around the Grimm is illuminated by a red flash, before a massive blast of Superman's heat-vision scorches the ground. The beam violently scrapes the surface area below in a wide array, completely incinerating the Grimm and the green substance. The varying strengths and sizes of the Grimm failed to matter before the tremendous power blasting into them. If it was caught in the wall of red light tearing into the countryside, it was reduced to ashes. In a little under ten seconds, the horde of Grimm was completely gone. Superman glides towards the Regime commander's location, suddenly losing strength and falling to the floor on his knees. That massive blast of heat vision nearly drained all of his energy reserve, weakening him for a time. The infantry around him help him come to a stand, the commander rallying his troops to hunt down the remaining Grimm within the confines of the city
General Ironwood makes his way into the scene with reinforcements and vehicles at the ready. "I want two teams on the wall with earth dust. Plug up that hole!" he commands. As his troops scramble into action, the General gazes upon the glassed landscape left in Superman's wake. He knew Superman was powerful, but this went beyond anything he was aware of since meeting the man. Merely imagining this power being turned on the people of Remnant disturbed him greatly, truly internalizing just how dwarfed in strength they are compared to this otherworldly being.
As Superman walks with difficulty near Ironwood, the two exchange glaces for but a moment before he passes the General. Ironwood tried his best to hide his unease, but his stoic expression could only conceal so much. Superman pays no mind to it, too weakened by his last attack to care. He needed to find Diana or Hal. Either of the two could fly him up towards the sky, just high enough to breach atmosphere and grant him a head-start towards the sun's rays. Ahead of him was a taller building at the end of a long street, someplace he could use as a vantage point to spot either of his teammates. Closing his eyes, Superman musters up the strength to slowly begin flying towards the rooftop.
A chain rattles through the air just as Superman ascends over the smaller rooftops, something catching his waistline and yanking him into a nearby alleyway. He hits the ground with a heavy thud, the green-chained weapon uncoiling itself from around him and retracting into the darkness. "Fate seems to keep handing me what I want." Emerald says as she steps out from the shadows. "Now I've got you right where I want you."
Superman fails to recognize the young woman, gritting his teeth before managing to stand. "You one of Salem's agents?" he guesses.
"This isn't about Salem." Emerald corrects him. "This is about what you took from me!" she says as she extends her arm aggressively towards him. A burst of flames come streaming out of her palm, her eyes glowing with green embers.
Superman is sent backwards by the attack, colliding with the wall and looking down to see his scorched chest. He touches the point of impact out of confusion, inspecting the soot on his hand. "Magic." he concludes, deducing how a mere fire attack could have harmed his Kryptonian body.
Emerald tries to conceal herself with her semblance, but fails to pierce Superman's mind. It was strange. She could sense it there, but could almost feel a resistance against her semblance's influence. "What?" she questions, unable to deceive his perceptions.
"Probing my mind?" Superman says, coming to a stand while holding his head. "It's going to take a lot more than that." he posits, confident in the strength of the psychic blocks he had in place for just this kind of enemy.
Emerald grimaces, but senses something peculiar. She could feel his resistance to her influence, but there was a hint unease within his defense. Like two people pushing against each other, but one would subtly give when pushed for long enough. She wondered if Superman's fatigue affected his mind as well, weakening his mental defenses. If that was the case, all she had to do was keep pushing him to the point where he couldn't protect his mind. She grins, and then readies her bladed weapons. Superman braces for her next move, but is caught off guard by her speed as she rushes towards him. He grits his teeth and blocks, mentally cursing that his weakened state left him vulnerable to speeds that were normally no issue for him. Still, he held his own as Emerald made several swings of her blades at him. The sound of the metallic edge clashing with his forearms scraped and clanged through the alley as sparks flew. The Man of Steel was losing patience though, finding his opportunity to take a swing at her.
Emerald manages to duck under his punch, almost seeming just as surprised as him that she could even manage that. This left Superman open, something she was all too glad to take advantage of. She swiftly delivers a strong knee to his gut, causing him to grunt. He was hurt, but now he was angry. With a retaliatory swing, Superman back-hands her right against the head. The force of the impact caused her body to spin in the air before crashing into a nearby brick wall. "Tch." Emerald sounded with annoyance as she recovered. Superman may have been weakened, but the man still hit like a truck. She couldn't allow herself to grow too confident just because of a few advantages.
Superman charges the girl, moving fast enough that Emerald could see she wont be able to evade in time. She opts instead to reach outwards, blasting a torrent of ice at him from her palm. Superman's body is encased in ice, its magical properties allowing it to properly hold him. Emerald stands and leaps towards him to deliver a double-kick to the chest. The ice breaks, and Superman is sent to a nearby wall just as she was. Emerald spits at the ground. "To be honest, I wasn't really sure I could even beat you when I decided to do this. Watching you, seeing how strong you were, trying to find any weaknesses I could…"
Superman quickly recovers and blows a gust of wind towards her. Emerald manages to leap over it, flipping and landing in front of him. He swings his fists at her, trying to connect as she weaves and blocks his strikes. She ducks past another punch, spinning and landing a roundhouse kick directly to the back of his head. The Man of Steel falls to the ground with a grunt, his vision beginning to blur.
Emerald circles around him. "But when you're like this? Even a Huntress can seriously hurt you." she says.
Superman yells and spins around to swing at her. His fist passes into her smiling face as she suddenly vanishes from sight. He looks around confused, trying to locate her with his various senses. Emerald's strike against his head was a borderline surgical decision, knowing full well that disturbing his sense of orientation and consciousness could tip the balance in her favor and open him up to telepathic influence. Needless to say, her strategy worked. Sight, hearing, touch...Emerald was in control of it all now.
Emerald's Semblance left Superman in a frantic and confused state, unable to locate the young woman after being concussed. Her laughing causes him to snap in one direction and deliver a thunder clap towards the source. He easily destroys part of a building, the wall's bricks crumbling uselessly as he realizes nothing was accomplished. Superman couldn't see Emerald, he couldn't track her distant laughter, and he couldn't perceive the small bundle of storm clouds forming above his head this very moment. With a mighty flash, massive lighting bolts come down upon him. The Man of Steel yells in pain as he is violently struck down.
Smoke emanates from Superman as he lay motionless on the concrete. Emerald circles towards his head, crouching down. "You know what's funny?" she asks. "Saving people was your second biggest mistake. It's the reason you wont be able to stop me from killing you." Superman tries to get up, but barely moves. Emerald brings her blade towards his head and guides it to look up at her. "Your first mistake, the reason I'm going to kill you, was killing Cinder." she softly declares. Emerald raises her other arm, angling her blade to stab downwards at him. She stares at him coldly, ready to end his life.
A single gunshot rings through the alley as the weapon in Emerald's raised arm is flung from her hand. The young woman turns around, alert to her attacker. Standing at the end of the alley was Ruby Rose, her weapon aimed in sniper mode. Emerald glares at her. "You." Emerald says, coming to a stand and walking towards Ruby. She summons a gust of wind to recall her other weapon to her hand. "Of course it's you. It's always you." she angrily says.
Ruby glares back at Emerald, transforming Crescent Rose into its scythe mode. "I'm not going to let you do this." she tells Emerald.
"And I'm not going to let your hero nonsense stop me from making him pay!" Emerald shouts at her, pointing one of her blades at Superman.
Ruby tenses. "This is about Cinder, isn't it? Why would you want revenge for someone like her?! She deser-" Ruby's eyes go wide before she stops herself.
Emerald halts her approach, catching on to what Ruby nearly said. "Go on, say it!" Emerald tempts her. "Say what you were going to say! Show me what a 'real hero' thinks!" She wanted to hear the words. She wanted Ruby to give her a reason to put the young girl in the ground. Ruby glares back and simply grips her weapon, refusing to finish her thought.
Visibly irritated, Emerald decides to forego waiting for a response. "Fine." she says, before rushing towards Ruby.
Ruby launches herself towards the air with a shot of her scythe, placing herself far above Emerald and converting Crescent Rose into a rifle again. Seeing this, Emerald blasts a torrent of ice up towards her. Ruby bursts into rose petals, surging past the frigid beam and materializing herself behind Emerald with her gun facing backwards. Without even looking behind her, Ruby fires off a shot of her weapon straight into Emerald's back and sends her away to the nearby ground. Emerald quickly rolls and blasts Ruby with another surge of ice. Ruby's torso is encased in it, the girl now falling towards the ground and sliding like an ice cube. Leaping into the air, Emerald tries to stomp Ruby's immobilized body. However, with a subtle pull of the trigger, Ruby uses the exposed part of Crescent Rose to launch herself away from the point of impact with a gunshot. Her icy form slides towards a nearby wall and collides roughly into it, shattering the ice she was encased in. Ruby grunts uneasily before raising her scythe, taking a wide swing at Emerald in retaliation. Emerald quickly ducks under it, sliding on her knees past the attack. Turning towards one another, a fierce exchange of multiple attacks produce various sparks that light up the alleyway.
Ruby was performing better than Emerald anticipated, seeming faster and more adept at combat than she remembered. It was surprising to see that she managed to catch up to Emerald's skill-level in nearly half a year since the Vytal Festival. With the Fall Maiden powers on her side though, she was still confident she could defeat the Huntress-in-training. With a sudden thrust of her hand towards the floor, Emerald creates a sheet of ice on the ground to trip up Ruby. Seeing this as she begins to slide unintentionally, Ruby anchors her scythe into the ice itself with a slam, lifting her body onto her weapon and blasting herself towards Emerald in a spinning cyclone. Emerald moves to dodge the attack, strafing away from Ruby's path. Ruby, carefully considering her aim as she spins through the air, fires a shot at Emerald just after she dodges the initial spin.
Emerald grunts in pain as she is shot in the back, turning around with her teeth bared. She slings her weapon and activates its chain mode, catching Ruby's scythe just as she lands on the ground. With her other hand, she blasts a wave of fire towards the girl. Ruby steels her gaze, bursting into petals once again and traveling past the searing flames. Materializing in front of Emerald, Ruby knees her in the face with all of her momentum. Emerald is sent spinning backwards and landing on the ground. She strains as she slowly brings herself to stand.
"Give up." Ruby pleads. "We don't have to make things worse."
Emerald lets out a blood-curdling cry at Ruby as she swings violently towards her. Her deadly swipes were faster, fiercer, fueled by her boiling anger. Ruby was greatly tested by this assault, breaching the boundaries of her training just to parry and dodge every strike. The two were seemingly matched in close combat, pushing Emerald to call upon her Fall Maiden powers once again. She shoots a gust of wind at Ruby to get some distance, something the younger girl had a more difficult time anticipating due to not being able to visibly perceive it. With Ruby pushed away, Emerald decides to end this quickly and extends her weapon into its chain-mode. She swings it downwards, sending the blade towards Superman to end him in his vulnerable state.
Another gunshot sounds, Emerald suddenly getting jerked and pinned against a brick wall. She gasps, slowly looking downwards to see the spear-end of Ruby's weapon impaled into the center of her abdomen. Their gazes meet, Emerald staring wide-eyed at the now panting Ruby. Emerald's green aura cracks open after being pierced by the weapon, her blood now leaking out of the point of impact. Shocked at her own actions, Ruby quickly pulls the weapon out of Emerald and stumbles backwards. Emerald stands uneasily before Ruby, her eyelids growing heavy as her life fades away. Her thoughts dwell on Cinder as she falls, and her last breath escapes her: "I'm...sorry." Emerald lay motionless after thudding against the ground, marking the end of their fight.
Superman looks up towards Ruby, the young girl shivering as she holds her weapon. "I- I didn't- She didn't give me a choice! I didn't want-"
A feeling stirred within him as he watched her existential turmoil unfold before him. In that moment he recognized her innocence, her vulnerability, her strength, her compassion...and she was forced to take a life. For the first time in years, Superman felt pity...sympathy for another. Despite all of his power, this tragedy was something that was allowed to happen right in front of him. Only then did he consider something, a thought that sank deeply into his very being: This fault, this failure to protect this young girl, was his.
End of Chapter 16