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Chapter 143: Blockades and Backroom Deals
When Pantheon's fortress had burst from the depths of the ocean Remnant had almost descended into chaos.
For days there had been panic and riots in the streets in every Kingdom and major settlement as every adult was old enough to remember at least one of the battles against Salem and tolls that they had taken, with entire settlements reduced to ruin and even the Kingdoms' Capitals being subjected to the wrath of the Queen of the Grimm. These riots and the accompanying outpouring of grief, terror and sheer senseless, hopeless desire to rail against a world that seemed to be ending drew tides of the Creatures of Grimm and saw them hammering against defences with a ferocity which threatened to turn the fears of those within into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The Kingdoms prevailed, through the efforts of Hunters and those who stood side by side with them in order to defend their homes and the Grimm were pushed back from their initial assault; giving the people a fresh wave of tentative hope which was further bolstered by the fact that the Witch and Queen of the Grimm herself, Salem was by all appearances still dead and that Pantheon, the monstrous beast responsible for the living fortress of bone, flesh and crystal had thus far made no efforts to send forth a ravening horde of monsters from their fortress to swallow Remnants' coastal cities. Unfortunately however Pantheon's living fortress had thus far proven itself immovable and indestructible; airships and naval vessels both belonging to Kingdoms and privately owned by Hunters had assembled and sought to rain fire down upon the offending mass of spires and flesh only to be kept at bay by both swarms, flocks and shoals of monsters that had been unleashed to defend it and also the fortresses' own ability to regenerate and regrow lost and damaged tissue at a frightening rate.
And so the two forces had reached an impasse.
It had been a little under two weeks and life was, by sheer necessity being forced to return to something approaching normal now that it was clear that the end of days and a Grimm incursion unlike anything seen before was not upon them the people of Remnant began to return to their lives, albeit with various complications caused by the delays to shipping and other things which seemed laughably mundane which Pantheon's emergence had caused. The Kingdoms had been swift and decisive in their response however, with General Winter Schnee of Atlas being the one to coordinate and rally several disparate efforts; integrating them into her own Kingdoms' sizeable contribution to what was now a total blockade around Pantheon's fortress which spanned for several miles in every direction to deny the Grimm General access to both the air and the sea and force the Creatures of Grimm into a stalemate.
Former Atlas Specialist Corvid Xiao Long stared down at the assembled forces with the familiar, twisting know of bitter emotions; primarily centred around the deceased member of Team CLIR Iris Ramal and how her final sacrifice would be for nothing if Corvid allowed Pantheon to achieve a single iota of success or gain even an inch or ground, or water as the case may be.
Her thoughts, well on track to darkening and trending in the direction of what more she might have done to stop Pantheon a decade ago were interrupted by the sound of something erupting up from the waves.
"Lei-Fong Sea Serpent, breaching west of our ships' position" the voice of her Great Uncle Qrow Branwen sounded in her ear thanks to the helmet of the Omega Wing, Corvid's signature battle-suit being worn over a nondescript black and grey flight-suit with a fur collar rather than the Atlas Specialist uniform she had worn for so long. It would have taken Corvid no time at all to spot the source of crashing waves and tumultuous seawater as the vast and obsidian scaled form of a Lei-Fong burst up to attack one of the many ships making up the blockade; a blinding light like a miniature sun building within the maw of the monster only for it to be silenced and sent reeling with the power it had begun to amass fizzling away as countless rockets and lasers struck its' hide at various points, being followed a moment later by the unmistakable effects of an entire team of qualified and capable Hunters unleashing their weapons and Semblances in tandem.
Corvid allowed herself to think for a single, fleeting moment that perhaps her presence might be required until she caught track of movement elsewhere in the depths; a massive disturbance coming from the opposite side which the Omega Wing supplied enough information about for the former Specialist and team leader to swiftly rely her conclusions back to the Nemesis Kharybdis and those aboard.
"Second Lei-Fong coming around on the East, fully developed! Repeat fully developed, it has wings!"
"Understood, Carcharodon is pulling back and readying main weapon now" Qrow answered and sure enough Corvid saw that amidst the chaotic violence that the blockade was once again being subjected to as monsters poured into the air and the water in attempt to force their way through, or simply destroy those who stood against them the Nemesis Kharybdis; the ship that she had made her way to upon losing her job so that she could spend some time with her long-term but long distance boyfriend Onyx rather than simply returning to Patch and immediately trying to rebuild her life was in the midst of pulling backwards. It was not a retreat, the idea that Carcharodon Gore, the Shark Faunus who led Team GORE, the last of the Frost River Tribe of Anima would ever flee from such a battle was ludicrous.
The water erupted once again, revealing a second and far larger sea serpent Grimm which had already matured enough to have sprouted a vast pair of leathery wings from its' back with which it sought to take to the skies and do battle with the airships Corvid had found herself perched between only to be prevented by Carcharodon Gore and the Nemesis Kharybdis as the ship opened fire. The Lei-Fong was sent crashing back into the sea, shrieking and lashing out with its' massive whip like tail as an oversized rail-gun tore a deep and bloody trench into its' inky hide, the first blow in and ongoing assault which continued on in the form of not only ranged weapons but also a booming, deafening roar which shattered bone with its' sheer force and had been delivered from somewhere atop the Lei-Fong itself.
Corvid couldn't help but smile as she realised that Onyx had leapt onto the sea-monster so that he could fight it hand to hand.
Though any amusement she might have felt was cut short in the next instant when a projectile of sharpened bone, roughly the length of her forearm hurtled through the air and delivered what would have been a glancing hit against her skull were it not for the shield generator of the Omega Wing.
"Artillery Shells! Corvid warned "I've got them!"
Without waiting for a response she swooped low and dipped beneath the firefight between airborne Grimm and the numerous warships and fighter craft in the midst of overpowering them, drawing closer to Pantheon's fortress as she did so in order to seek out her new quarry. Artillery Shells as they had been dubbed were a variety of Grimm which had, by all appearances been developed by Pantheon themselves specifically for the task of guarding their fortress and had been a scourge against the crew of the various blockade vessels since the ships had begun to arrive.
Each Artillery Shell was a scuttling and vaguely crustacean mass roughly the size of large car or pickup truck, its' shell and body a single fused mass from which segmented and spindly limbs scarcely muscular enough to support its' mass emerged. The things' lacked any visible eyes or other sensory organs and what might once have been claws had been atrophied down to little more than pointed nubs with which the Artillery Shell could anchor itself as it moved backwards and sideways along the exterior of the Grimm fortress; the reason for the odd gait of the things was that their shells were angled in such a way as to point backwards, a spiralling and rotating mass of concentric and tapering bone segments; each of which was lined with rapidly regrown bone shards which were fed into some manner of barrel at the centre of the shell and fired in punishing bursts which had thus far claimed the lives of dozens of unsuspecting crew-mates across the blockade fleet as they ventured out onto open decks.
They were little match for Corvid and her Omega Wing however.
"Engaging Grimm, advise all airships in the area not to fire too close to my position" she spoke as clearly and without emotion as she could manage, wanting to convey some sense of professionalism even despite her career currently being in tatters and the fact that it was her Great Uncle currently attending to the ships' communications. With the message relayed Corvid focused on the matter at hand and unleashed her twin shoulder-mounter rail-guns into the Artillery Shells; each impact reducing a Creature of Grimm to mist and bone-shrapnel in a violent explosion as their armoured forms proved incapable of withstanding her assault.
With her shield generator charged and primed and Venus Rising, the mace which had once belonged to Iris in her hands Corvid prepared to dive and shatter the rest of the Grimm by hand; some half-formed visions of smashing her way through the living fortress and facing off against Pantheon so that she could finally succeed where she had clearly failed a decade ago and slay the beast which had taken her eye and her friend beginning to take root in her mind.
Yet before she could do so the last of the Artillery Shells exploded, their forms being frozen solid and shattered or simply erupting into flames without warning.
"What?" Corvid demanded, only for the answer her to her vague question to present itself a moment later in to form of a flock of birds of prey which weaved and slipped their way through the chaos untouched by the Grimm. Hellion of Eudialyte of Team GORE, the Dragonfly Faunus who had lost her original body in the final battle against Salem and now existed in an android state not unlike Penny or Nickel Polendina, Qrow's daughter in law through her marriage to Eagle Arc had used her Semblance to control one of the birds and direct the others; having her flock of raptors drop small grenades and Dust-tipped throwing knives into the midst of the Grimm.
Too underhanded and anticlimactic for Corvid's tastes but undeniably effective.
"Corvid pull back, Atlas forces are preparing for a bombardment of the whole area….It'll grow back soon enough but it should divert Pantheon's attention away from making more of anything else"
"Right, the Atlas forces that I had authority to order to stand by or stand down a month ago" Corvid noted quietly, unable to keep a bitter note from her voice before turning and streaking from her current position back towards the Nemesis Kharybdis.
She did not blame her Aunt Winter and not did she blame Team MARS, Corvid was fully willing to accept that she had failed to follow an order and had put students at risk; a decision made to appease her own sense of justice and fairness rather than strategy and one which had very nearly seen her cousin and her brother Felix's half-sibling killed in action, a mistake that Corvid was willing to face to the consequences for.
And if she was honest with herself life aboard the Nemesis Kharybdis was not so bad; at present the vessel was crewed by herself and the nominally retired and still recovering Qrow Branwen, Carcharodon Gore the vessels' dour and stern Captain, Onyx Ursabane whose presence Corvid felt could make anything more tolerable, Hellion Eudialyte and finally Helios Nikos, the man whom Corvid considered her brother in law despite the fact that he and Felix had never married and who was currently holding the ship steady in the roiling water with his gravity-warping Semblance.
A fine crew, though Felix Xiao Long and Eagle Arc were notable in their absence.
Almost two weeks had been enough time for Astra Mars's injuries, particularly their bruised and pulverized face to recover and it had also been more than enough time for the Deer Faunus to grow restless and expectant.
Whilst Zirconia Shadowmoon was being kept under watch at Schnee Manor the home acting as a safe house as it allegedly had before, Team MARS were to the best of Astra's knowledge free to leave at any time; a moot point in Athena-Jade's case and yet the idea of returning either to Menagerie or home to Neo Vale had scarcely crossed their mind. Instead Astra had spent their time repairing and maintaining their weapons within Schnee Manor's sizeable workshop, training when they were not resting and trying to fathom what exactly it was that they were waiting for and what their next move in the fight against Damascus Nero, Gestalt-Prime and the new threat posed by the living Grimm fortress that had emerged at sea would be and how they would convince those in positions of power to allow Team MARS, who could no longer truthfully be called students to take part.
With a small distraction coming in the form of a trip to the Prime Promenade, the major shopping district in Atlas's Capital city which had been largely unaffected by riots and protests.
Most of the team had needed to buy new clothes owing to a combination of their previous outfits being damaged and blood-stained beyond repair during the battle in the tundra and the battle for Jidhir Town before that or else simply being unsuited to the climate of the icy Kingdom; with the trip into the heart of Atlas a few days prior being a much needed break from the monotony and sense of claustrophobia Astra had been feeling despite the obscene size of Schnee Manor, even if the attempt at a sense of normality had been brittle and hollow at best. It was currently early afternoon and Astra had found themselves stood in front of a full length mirror that had already been in the guest room they had taken to sharing with Regalia, appraising their purchases and overall new look with a critical eye.
Despite all odds the last tattered remains of the red leather jacket that they had worn during their first year as a student had survived everything it had been subjected to, although the garment which had already been rendered sleeveless and needed several instances of repair had been so damaged that it had been integrated into a new jacket to keep it from being thrown away; with the red leather vest with its' perpetually popped collar and Astra's personal emblem applied to its' back now being part of a black hoodie whose zip also featured the Deer Faunus's emblem to give it the appearance of being layered. The salvaged jacket was paired with a pair of slim-fitting and artistically torn white pants which were tucked into a pair of heavy black thigh-high boots whose heel, toe and shins were armoured and whose platform soles gave Astra a slightly more impressive height; they had initially considered something more feminine but the idea of wearing a skirt or dress in Atlas's freezing climate was enough for the Deer Faunus to compromise and wear a swooping red sash which reached from their waist to below their left knee over their pants which in turn allowed them to hide some of various ammunition belts stacked over one another at odd angles that the accessory had been draped over.
Astra's make up was much as it always had been, with their sea-green eyes rendered more intense by dark and winged eyeliner whilst their lips were painted scarlet and the tips of their signature Mohawk, in another call back to more simple times as a First Year student had been dyed a bright and fiery red which contrasted with their hairs' natural colour. A new addition had been obtained in a Faunus-owned establishment away from the main centre of the shopping district which Astra had felt compelled to buy something from, namely a collection of silver rings affixed to various points of their antlers allowing them to serve as an extension of the jewellery already adorning Astra's ears nose and tongue.
Just as Astra finished studying their appearance and concluded that they did indeed like the their appearance a knock at the door caught their attention, the familiar sound and weight allowing Astra to identify the person outside with ease.
"You don't need to knock" they called out and before they turned around they saw the door open in the mirror and Regalia step into view.
The Racoon Faunus's face was scarred where Cyber-Grimm claws had torn through her cheek and nose however the injury, combined with the way her grey-brown hair had been cut much shorter to make it manageable whilst still having enough mass to cover her ears and protect them from the cold gave her an appearance of strength. Her customary goggles had been destroyed and the most fitting but ultimately lacklustre replacement she had managed to find had been a pair of skiing goggle with tinted purple lenses which were currently angled off to the side whilst the rest of Regalia's outfit was a blend of her usual styles and a simple practicality to fend off the elements in case the team were deployed into the tundra again.
Part of Regalia's hair was covered by a pale purple beanie hat and her upper torso was covered in a slightly oversized jacket whose tan brown material was both quilted for warmth and waterproofed, whilst also featuring a grey-coloured fur collar. The jacket hung open to reveal that Regalia as ever had elected to were a short tank-top to leave her impressive abs on display however and over this were a pair of braces which served as bandoliers and ammo belts as well as attaching to the practical grey and brown cargo pants Regalia wore with a pair of hiking boots; the pants modified as always to accommodate the bushy tail which swished idly behind her.
A simple look which Astra felt made his partner look incredible all the same.
"Heh, the others are out or busy" Regalia noted "I was wondering if you wanted to get some food and maybe relax?"
"I was honestly planning on training, wanna break these in" Astra gestured at their new boots "Wanna train for a bit first and then relax?"
Regalia seemed to give serious consideration to that idea, with Astra growing hopeful for reasons that ranged from entirely innocent to remarkably less so; they did after all enjoy Regalia's company in any occasion and she was remarkably entertaining and yet straining to train against and routinely pushed Astra to their limits, with the fact that their training sessions had, since arriving at the manor tended to end with them having sex in the shower and again several times in their bed afterwards being an additional benefit.
Before a decision could be made however a voice called out and Astra very nearly swore in response to it; catching themselves as they recognised the voice of Arctus Slate and remembered exactly where they were and what Weiss Slate's reaction to them yelling obscenities in her home might be.
"Astra, Regalia!"
"Coming!" the Deer Faunus called back, giving Regalia a questioning look as they passed her only to receive a nonplussed shrug in return as she made it clear that she had no idea what was happening.
Finding out would be easy enough however and the two of them made their way through the hallways to where Arctus's voice had boomed out from; the main entrance hall of the manor from whence someone could conceivably call out to someone and be heard in most parts of the main building. Reaching the balcony however Astra came skidding to a halt, taking several moments to process what they were seeing before a giddy smile split their face.
"Holy shit no way!" they grinned as they saw that Arctus was stood close to the manors' main entrance and beside him was Diamond who was in the process of handing over Selenite Slate's happily burbling form to a tall, armour-clad and powerfully built woman with golden yellow hair, freckles and crimson eyes who cooed animatedly at the baby Bear Faunus; the woman in question being Eagle Arc whilst beside her, waving up at the two new arrivals was a Lion Faunus with a golden prosthetic right arm and prosthetic tail, a mane of dirty blond hair and overlong canine teeth.
Felix Xiao Long, Astra's half brother.
"Fluffy, no way!" Astra called out as they leapt over the balconies' railings in order to get to the ground faster, Regalia following behind a moment later with a bemused smile.
"It's been way too long kid" Felix breathed out earnestly as he pulled his half-sibling into a brief hug before pulling back and realising that he had to look up to meet Astra's eyes and snorting "Astra, the boots are overkill….Regalia why do you look like you're about to sell me a mix-tape?"
"You two-toned zebra-headed, slime-coated-"
"Easy, easy" Eagle laughed as she halted the playful barbs between Felix and everyone in his sight before any lines could be crossed; taking a momentary break from her adoration of Arctus and Diamond's daughter to grin happily at Felix and Regalia.
"So, you two?"
"Uh huh" Astra nodded wrapping an arm around Regalia who leaned into them, producing a chorus of half-joking 'awws' from the older Hunters until Astra cocked their head slightly and nodded towards their brother "But how come you're here? Isn't your ship part of the blockade?"
"Don't call it my ship Carcharodon will kill us both" Felix snorted before growing a little more serious "Yeah it is, but we figured that with everything happening General Schnee is gonna need all the help she can get so having Team FADE on standby seems like a good idea-"
"So there's a plan-"
"And!" Felix exclaimed with a forced pleasantness "Since my annoying kid sibling can't sit still for five minutes and has a habit of getting themselves into trouble on a grand scale I thought I'd bring something to keep you occupied….Like jangling keys at a baby"
"You're a-" Astra paused before reaching over to cover the ears of the months old baby present "Ass-hole"
"Yeah sure" Felix laughed "But look outside though. You're welcome"
Without further ado Astra and Regalia stepped outside only to be once again halted and silenced by what they found waiting for them. On the grounds waiting to be moved to the manors' spacious garage where Whitley Schnee kept his collection of ludicrously expensive sports cars were a trio of vehicles. One was the Killer-Bee, Felix's vintage and heavily modified muscle car whilst the other two vehicles were equally recognisable especially given their currently tragic state of disrepair.
Clunker and Astra's pickup truck had been brought from Menagerie, in the exact state that they had been recovered.
"Yeah" Astra sighed as they observed the bullet-ridden state of their truck "That's not gonna buff out"
"We're almost on top of our target, are you combat ready?" Penny's voice was soothing to Ruby as the two of them prepared to undertake a mission that was not as routine as it seemed.
Grimm had rampaged across Menagerie as they had elsewhere in the wake of Pantheon's emergence, throwing themselves against the walls of cities and towns that had already been recently battered and tested by the monsters mere days prior however once again the Hunters and their fellow defenders had proven themselves equal to the task and beaten the tide of fangs and claws back until the Creatures of Grimm turned tail and fled. With Hammerfall Outpost not yet ready to be reactivated and with so much of Menagerie's territory having been threatened it had been deemed impractical, if not outright impossible to follow the hordes of monsters out into the wastelands of the island Kingdom and eliminate all that remained, not with so many of the Kingdoms' Hunters offering their services and joining the efforts to contain the unspeakable threat that Pantheon and their living fortress posed and not with the amount of Hunters required to maintain an adequate amount of protection across Menagerie in case another wave of attacks were to come.
A predicament which General Winter Schnee had suggested could be used as an experiment.
"Are the Grimm in position?" Ruby asked, unfastening her harness and stretching as she rose to her feet within the confines of the Pearl, Penny's personal transport craft as her wife stepped away from the cockpit to join her for amount and left the aircraft's AI to attend to piloting.
"Affirmative" Penny nodded "There doesn't seem to be any Alpha or guiding presence directing the Grimm but we have managed to corral the various packs and flocks retreating from Menagerie's settlements into a single force"
"But with Pantheon we can't rule out that the Grimm are being guided remotely" Ruby noted, cybernetic whirring faintly and adjusting as her brow furrowed "Sensational"
She unfurled Crescent Rose within the confines of the transport and took a deep breath; truthfully the experiment would not require her to use her iconic weapon unless things went wrong however its' presence was comforting and Penny, knowing her wife well enough to understand her sudden nervousness and uncertainty leaned close and kissed her cheek gently.
"Good luck"
"Thanks" Ruby managed a weak smile before turning and making her way to the rear hatch she intended to deploy from whilst Penny returned to the pilots' seat. Seconds seem to drag themselves out however finally; after an almost painful amount of waiting filled with doubts and questions a light changed colour and the hatch opened to allow Ruby to leap out into the howling wind.
Then she was falling and the Creatures of Grimm were in view.
As powerful as Ruby Rose's legendary Silver Eyes, or singular eye may be it was an accepted fact that her power had its' limits, or a maximum effective range no matter how high that plateau might be and finding it in order to answer a pressing question was the purpose of Winter's experiment.
The General had naturally called for Ruby to be on standby and ready to deploy at a moments' notice as soon as Pantheon's fortress had emerged however she had fought the temptation to have Ruby immediately throw all of her might at the returning foe straight away; instead wanting to know for certain whether the Silver-Eyed warrior would be capable of extending her power all the way down to the sea floor before showing her hand.
The Creatures of Grimm that had attacked Menagerie had, as Penny had stated been corralled and as Ruby fell through the air she saw that the various packs of retreating monsters had by either their own instinct or subtle design arranged themselves into a single, linear and impossibly vast caravan of monsters; with Ruby falling through the sky at its' head.
And then she acted.
Using her Semblance and her power in tandem was something Ruby had learned to do long ago in order to give herself the gift of flight and she let out a wordless yell of exertion and fury as the familiar pressure began to build within her skull before her vision became washed out and blurry, glowing at the edges whilst her cybernetic eye struggled to adjust to the input. The howling and shrieking of the Creatures of Grimm filled the air and yet at the same time became distant as Ruby unleashed herself with all of her power but in a carefully controlled and directed blast, obliterating tens of thousands of Grimm in seconds and clearing over a mile of space; continuing the attack until finally the light of her remaining eye flickered and guttered out as Ruby was spent and left using her Semblance to control her descent as the ability to fly left her.
Yet the Creatures of Grimm still roared and bellowed.
"Looks like we're doing this the old fashioned way then" Ruby growled, forcing a confident smirk onto her face and burying all of the stomach-twisting dread that had taken hold of her before readying her scythe and peering at the monsters rushing towards her from the distance. She once again became a blur of motion, a crimson streak which left shattered bodies in her wake that the Creatures of Grimm could do nothing to defend against, becoming visibly only in brief flashes as delivered particularly impressive blows that seemed worthy of a momentary victory pose; carving a Goliath from end to end here or decapitating a Boomer just as the Saurian Grimm made to use its' ranged attack and causing it to explode which a blast which claimed the rest of its' herd there.
It took Penny no time at all to come to Ruby's aid and join the assault from the air, the weapons of the Pearl raining a firestorm down onto the remaining Grimm which Ruby weaved and zigzagged between in order to catch the monsters off-guard, their attempts to avoid one fate seeing them met with another until finally nothing of the horde remained.
At which point Ruby allowed Crescent Rose to sag in her grasp and her expression to fall as the reality of the situation could no longer be ignored.
"Penny" she swallowed thickly as she spoke into her comms "Tell Winter that the experiment….the experiment was a failure"
"Affirmative" Penny murmured "We'll think of something else Ruby, it's okay"
"Yeah" Ruby breathed out before looking at the cloud of dissipating darkness that was billowing out across the wastelands with utter dejection being steadily eclipsed by a sense of panic.
The destruction of so many Creatures of Grimm would allow the people of Menagerie to sleep more soundly at night and promise their safety to be sure, but the main purpose of the attack had been to see if Ruby could pierce to the heart of Pantheon's defences and destroy their seafloor fortress from above.
She could not, she simply did not have the range even when provided with an endless supply of Grimm tissue to use her Silver-Eyes against.
Meaning that a more drastic and dangerous plan would have to be devised.
Athena-Jade Slate had joined her friends, with exception of Zirconia on their excursion to Atlas's largest shopping district a few days ago and had in fact been the one to show the rest of Team
MARS around and make several suggestions, whilst updating her own wardrobe in the process to replace clothes that had been lost owing to their being soaked in blood after she had been impaled.
The Bear Faunus's new look had felt like a return to form, a sign that she had moved beyond the heartbreak, betrayal and loss of a few months prior and the crushing blow to her confidence and self-esteem that had come with it; emerging stronger and ready for anything in spite of her injuries.
Most immediately noticeable was that Athena had cut her hair short once again and wore a shaggy, deliberately messy undercut style that she found comfortable whilst her attire consisted of a pair of comfortable hi-top sneakers whose pale, jade-green colour was offset by the dull gunmetal armour plating that had been added to them and a pair of black shorts which displayed a generous amount of Athena's muscular and powerful legs along with the scars which adorned them; the legs of the shorts being wrapped with several pristine white belts which stored a series of pouches for Dust and other small goods. The young woman had considered displaying the scar on her stomach where she had been skewered with similar pride but had decided against it, deciding that whilst her core muscles were well-developed her abs were not nearly so defined as Regalia's and frankly walking around with her legs and midriff on display would almost certainly draw the attention of the media; instead she had opted for a form-fitting black tank-top and a sleeveless white jacket with a broad collar which hung open over it and left Athena's arms and shoulders on display, the Bear Faunus wearing a black harness around her torso to secure her weapon at her back along with fingerless black gloves and a pair of bandanna's wrapped around her upper left arm seemingly to highlight the size of her biceps with one of the accessories being a deep black and the other a bright blue.
Finally Athena-Jade had completed the look by taking a band-aid and applying it across her nose as she often had when she was younger; making injuries she might have sustained appear to be a deliberate statement.
It was a look which left Athena feeling somewhat out of place as she waited in a sterile and pristine corridor of Poly-Tech's headquarters in the Atlesian Capital; the knowledge of what the company produced and the mechanical sounds in the distance being balanced against against the medical scents assaulting her sensitive nostrils and the fact that the members of staff who had ventured into the room she was waiting outside of had been wearing surgical gloves whilst carrying trays of tools that ranged from surgical to industrial in nature.
Athena had known what to expect and had done her best to warn Stygian but still the quiet of the corridor was broken by an unmistakable howl of pain from within the room she had been waiting outside; unable to enter because she was not immediate family. Instinctively she leapt to her feet, rising from the flimsy and uncomfortable chair she had been sitting in and began pacing irritably; knowing that it was foolish to do so and that everything happening just out of her sight was a perfectly routine procedure undertaken by these professionals every day and yet still trying to a catch a glimpse through the window set into the door despite the blinds she knew would bar her from seeing anything.
It was an ordeal that went on for some time, enough that Athena felt she had thoroughly worn in her new sneakers before the door-handle finally rattled faintly and caused her to come to a halt just it opened to reveal a pair of kind-faced individuals she was inclined to think of as doctors despite not knowing their exact qualifications or speciality; one of whom gave her a faint smile.
"Everything went exactly as expected and without complications Miss Slate. Your partner is taking a few moments to adjust and you're welcome to join him, a representative will be present with some paperwork for Mister Blue to sign shortly"
"Thank you" Athena breathed out, maintaining the manners and decorum that had been expected of her as a member of the upper echelons of Atlesian society enough to politely wait for the pair of professionals to pass rather than simply charge headlong into the room no matter how much she might want to. Soon enough she was inside the small room, furnished primarily with what appeared to be a hospital bed affixed to several machines designed to take various readings and measurements Athena could not hope to guess at, the bed surrounded by an opaque curtain which had been pushed back to reveal its' occupant.
Stygian Blue.
The Mouse Faunus wore a weary and somewhat shaken expression but otherwise appeared as healthy as the doctors had promised. Stygian's own recent purchases, largely with money Athena had happily given to him had left the dark-skinned young man once again ready to brave the freezing tundra or any other inhospitable climate in the battle against the Creatures of Grimm.
Stygian's hair had retained its' signature royal blue colouration however it was worn in a series of box-braids more simple than the ornate and intricate styles he had worn his hair in before, primarily owing to the loss of his right arm. He wore simple black sneakers with electric blue laces and a pair of faded jeans had been adorned with various, almost deliberately mismatched pieces of armour plating ranging from white to a gleaming silver whilst his upper body was protected from the elements by multiple layers; a grey hoodie over he wore an armoured vest whilst laying on the bed beside him was a deep, royal blue coat with heavy layers of insulation and yet more layers of mismatched and uneven armour plating integrated into it along with a harness and sheathe for Sharp Cheese.
Stygian had pulled back the right sleeve of his hoodie and had clearly been in the midst of inspecting the item which had caused his discomfort and was the reason the two of them had made their way to Poly-Tech.
A cybernetic right forearm and hand, its' chrome finish unblemished and adorned with various steadily glowing lights; the limbs and its' digits flexing and moving as naturally as any flesh and blood limb.
"How is it?" Athena asked, ready to relay any number of titbits of advice or anecdotes she had heard from her various family members who had cybernetic prosthetics of their own until Stygian rose to his feet, using the new arm to support himself as he did so.
"I know you said, the doctors said, everyone said that it was gonna hurt but I didn't expect it to be that bad" the Mouse Faunus admitted, his tail coiling and thrashing nervously behind him.
"Yeah, sorry about that" Athena gave him an apologetic look "They can't do anything about the pain without risking messing up the connections and if they did that you'd only have to do it again….But it's a one off thing right? They don't hurt like that any time you take them off?"
"That's what the doctors said" Stygian noted, electric blue eyes drifting away from Athena for a moment to regard the limb with a degree of apprehension and uncertainty.
"We could paint it?" Athena offered, words tumbling out of her almost unintentionally "Give it tattoos….Maybe not your old ones, unless you wanted to-"
"Not yet" Stygian murmured quietly "Let me get used to it first"
"Of course" Athena nodded before acting on instinct and reaching out to take the hand and lace the metallic fingers through her own, finding that the cybernetic limb was already operational enough to be warm to the touch "How's the feeling?"
"Just like new" Stygian managed a brighter smile now "And uh….This is definitely a better way of testing than the doctors had"
"Dork" Athena murmured playfully, yet she made no effort to release her hold on Stygian's metallic hand and instead absently pulling the limb closer to herself, an act Stygian seemed to interpret as a sign as he stepped closer to his partner and cupped Athena's cheek with his left hand whilst his cybernetic right slipped from Athena's hand and found her waist.
"Yeah, it feels great" he breathed out and time once again slowed to a crawl as Athena reached up and gently brushed her fingertips against the Mouse Faunus's cheeks; the urge to give into temptation becoming almost overwhelming but still she forced herself to think beyond her current wants and consider the larger picture and the complications it would cause.
"No" she breathed out gently, pulling Stygian's forehead down to rest against hers instead of kissing him which saw Stygian respond by pulling her into a tight and pleasantly warm hug.
"Of course, you wanna talk about it?"
"I don't want to have your tongue in my mouth when someone walks in here with paperwork" Athena answered glibly, making Stygian chuckle faintly and allowing the Bear Faunus a brief respite from the fact she did indeed need to talk with her partner about her feelings now that she had come to accept the fact that she was in love with both Stygian and Zirconia; a reality which threatened to cause complications which the awkwardness following Athena's previous sexual encounter with her partner would pale in comparison too.
"Thanks for being here AJ, I really appreciate it….Pikesreach, we didn't have stuff like this….People my Mum's age might have seen cybernetics before and yeah I've seen people with them like Zirconia and Professor Rose but it's different; most people from Pikesreach our age only saw robotics when Nero and Aefen came and….Sorry, sorry I'm just-"
"It's okay, it's okay I've got you" Athena-Jade reached out and took both of Stygian's hands in hers, squeezing gently "We can talk about it if you need to….Or if you need a distraction we can talk about anything else, over some food when we get out of here?"
"Are you asking me out on a date?" Stygian snorted, a shaky laugh betrayed both his still fraught nerves and the hope he tried to hide beneath his playfulness.
"Sure, why not?" Athena laughed, deciding that no matter how uncertain her future was and how complicated her feelings were that she was Athena-Jade Slate and she would not be reduced to cowering in indecision whilst opportunities passed her by.
Besides, it was nice to be back amongst civilisation and society again.
Zirconia Shadowmoon's cybernetic legs had been returned to her several days ago, either an entirely new pair of limbs fabricated and assembled in an impressive amount of time or such extensive repairs to her existing prosthetics that the Grasshopper Faunus was frankly uncertain. The return of the limbs and thus her ability to walk was a relief which Zirconia could scarcely put into words and yet something about the fact had set the rogue in the processing of reforming herself on edge; her prosthetics had been custom-made for her by one of the companies formerly under Damascus Nero's control and their designs had been confidential and protected to such an extent that even with the considerable influence and leverage at her disposal Winter Schnee should not have been able to acquire and replicate them so easily.
It suggested that things were at play which Zirconia herself was not privy to, a reality which worried her no matter how reasonable it might outwardly seem; she was after all a security risk to every party involved in the ongoing conflicts across Remnant.
She had been playing a violin, not her own but one that had been found somewhere in a dusty and forgotten corner of the manor however that particular train of thought caused Zirconia's hands to tremble enough for the instrument to produce an almost painfully discordant note which Zirconia set it down and let out a long sigh.
"It was never going to be easy….It was never supposed to be" she reminded herself with a hushed rasp before rising from the comfortable bed in the guest room she had been given, one notably separated from those of her friends and strode with her usual graceful but oddly loping steps until she was stood before a mirror examining her appearance.
Zirconia had predictably and entirely understandably been unable to join her friends as they had left Schnee Manor and visited Atlas's Capital, she was in fact so thoroughly confined that even now Weiss Schnee did not want the Grasshopper Faunus to wander around the manor unwatched however; after much pleading and cajoling from Athena her adopted sister, the Crab Faunus Coral Scylla had helped Zirconia update her own wardrobe to something more suitable by ordering clothes on her behalf.
Though Coral had been sure to litter the interaction with subtle threats and insults; which Zirconia had tried her best to not appear too openly amused by.
The most notably change to Zirconia's appearance was that the outer cowling of her cybernetic limbs had sprayed a deep, matte black with their original gleaming silver colour being only visible in the form a thin trim around the edges of each panel; a choice which would supposedly lessen heat-loss if she found herself in the tundra again. Zirconia was once again wearing black shorts layered with a pair of capes hanging from her hips to her knees this time in a steely grey colour, longer pants being made unsuitable for her by the design of her legs. Above this there were hints of layered vests, the first being black and the second a more lacy grey material whose design allowed the first to be seen through it whilst both were partially obscured by Zirconia's coat. The Grasshopper Faunus wore a long and flowing black duster coat, fastened at the waist by a heavy silver buckle bearing her own personal emblem which, when combined with its' split back gave the lower half of the coat the appearance of a second layer of capes whilst also featuring short, cuffed sleeves. Zirconia's right forearm was encased in silver armour, though she had foregone the stylised insect-head shoulder pieces she often wore and on her left hand she wore a black glove with studded knuckles.
Returning to a traditional look for herself Zirconia had once covered the lower half of a face with a long grey shawl which would trail out behind her when in motion and whose tips were adorned with a faint jade green; the accessory hiding her mouth and part of the scars which lined her face. Realising that her hair had grown enough to style it again Zirconia now wore her glossy black locks in a pair of bangs which framed her face and fell on either side of her mismatched eyes, along with a tight bun at the back of her head which was held in place by a pair of thin, almost certainly ornamental silver blades and also the now faded green bandanna which had once belonged to Athena-Jade Slate.
Zirconia had just enough time to decide that she did in fact look rather impressive, all things considered before a sharp knock at the door demanded her attention.
"Come in" she rasped out demurely, adjusting her posture to appear as non-threatening as possible and the redoubling her efforts further when the door opened to reveal that her visitor was none other than Weiss Schnee.
Zirconia had no intention of doing anything which would make Athena's mother despise her any more than she already rightly did.
"I thought we should talk. I brought tea" Weiss declared bluntly, all of the usual subtleties of the power-plays engaged in by wealthy aristocrats being set aside in favour of a directness Weiss had learned during her own time as a student and found that she greatly preferred.
"Thank you" Zirconia murmured, unable to mask her uncertainty at the entire situation and eyeing the tray Weiss sat down with a suspicion which did not go unnoticed.
"Do you really think poison is how I'd do it?" Weiss gave a small chuckle which had little if any malice behind it, a fact which only confused Zirconia further.
"Right now Astra and Regalia are either working on repairing a car or talking to Team FADE whilst Athena is in the city with Stygian somewhere" Weiss let the latter half of that statement linger, clearly gauging Zirconia's reaction "So we can speak openly. Winter tells me that you have managed to provide some useful information-"
"She did?" Zirconia's pink and orange eyes widened as a sudden rush of hope and nervous energy swept through her "Has Winter-I mean General Schnee said anything about her plans to deal with the Grimm castle in the sea, or with Damascus-"
"Not to me" Weiss shook her head slightly, lips pursing slightly at the interruption "I am not a member of her council of official or unofficial advisors….Though even if I was I would not tell you anything about ongoing plans"
"Of course, I understand" Zirconia nodded, her head remaining bowed and her eyes downcast "I simply….I thought I could help, I appreciate the hospitality that you've shown me Missus Slate especially considering the circumstances; I….I just wish I could do more"
Weiss let out a faint snort at that before pressing a mug of tea into Zirconia's hands.
"Oh for the love of everything will you at least look at me and stop acting like a kicked puppy" she breathed out, irritation and faint amusement battling one another in her tone "Where's the Zirconia Shadowmoon who betrayed and fought my daughter? Where's the Zirconia Shadowmoon who led Nero's monsters into battle….This Zirconia Shadowmoon is too pathetic to angry at, it demeans both of us"
Despite herself Zirconia's head snapped up and she offered Weiss a narrow-eyed glare, incensed at the insult whilst Weiss answered her anger with a smirk.
"I….am unsure of exactly what you want here" Zirconia finally admitted, rasping the words out slowly and carefully.
"Partially to apologise. I can admit, I was not inclined to be generous or hospitable to you at all for reasons I'm sure we both understand….But I have been deliberately mean-spirited in some of the restrictions I've placed on you and for that I am sorry" the words left Zirconia reeling, mouth working silently until Weiss used her silence as an opportunity to continue "However I also wanted to properly get the measure of you….Before this we had only spoken via scroll whilst you were portraying a character to infiltrate Breaktide Academy"
Zirconia couldn't help but visibly bristle at that, taking a sip of her tea as a reason to keep her mouth shut and not voice any of the biting, scathing comments she had wanted to, though Weiss still arched an eyebrow.
"Oh, you take offence to an accurate description?"
"It's not wholly accurate" Zirconia countered quietly "My reasons for being at Breaktide Academy were not what I pretended they were but everything else was the truth, the real me"
"And your feelings for Athena-Jade?" Weiss asked, her attempt a light and gentle tone being completely undermined by the sudden fierceness in the eyes that were so like her daughters and yet Zirconia managed to answer without hesitation and with total certainty.
"I love her. I always did and I still do. Hurting her was the hardest thing I've ever done and….I know this sounds selfish considering the damage I've helped to cause but it's my biggest regret"
"I see" Weiss took a sip of her own tea and Zirconia was certain she saw the faint hints of a genuine smile before the older woman's mouth was hidden from view "I had somewhat expected you to say something like this so I suppose I should be blunt….I don't know what future my sister has planned for you or what justice you might face in the other Kingdoms but, if by some happenstance you and Athena are ever to have any sort of interactions again I need you to understand something Zirconia; I will not tolerate any more harm to my daughter. I trust that I don't need to be so crude as to use my Semblance to make my point?"
Zirconia gulped audibly.
"I understand perfectly Missus Slate" she stumbled over the words slightly, her mug shaking in her hands somewhat until she set it down and struggled to meet Weiss's gaze again "In all honesty I did not expect things to go as well as they have for me since leaving Damascus….I expected to be kept in a cell. Anything I get to enjoy now is a gift and an opportunity that I don't plan to waste"
"Of course" Weiss smiled more openly now "Then I only really have one question that I need an answer to; why did you do it Zirconia….Did you ever truly believe that Nero's plans could end well?"
"They were supposed to be about bringing freedom and equality to Remnant….Take away the Grimm and so many other problems fall away with them" Zirconia sighed, allowing herself to be fully honest "He's my father….He's been a parent to me since I lost my parents and I trusted him"
"You poor girl" Weiss breathed out placing a hand on Zirconia's shoulder "Gangrel could tell you some stories about the people we trust not being who we thought they were, I've no doubt he would call Blake and have her tell her own versions of those stories….And I happen to know a thing or two about family not being what had wished for"
"I-" Zirconia paused, unsure of how to react "Thank you"
"Of course" Winter nodded, turning to leave the room but pausing to speak over her shoulder "Oh and the manor does have a rather extensive library, a gym and a workshop. Feel free to use them at your leisure"
Pantheon once again found themselves within their throne room surveying the progress of their plans.
With the reformation of their previously atrophied wings the Grimm General no longer sported the living cape with which which they had fused themselves to the throne of twisted metal and intermingled Grimm-nerves and so instead they perched themselves, wings and tail folding around their hulking and monstrous form and used their Synapse Grimm as both connection points as well as an additional source of what could best be described as processing power; their tendrils which flickering in and out of existence whilst being wreathed in an ebony fog merging with both Pantheon themselves and their throne in order to allow Pantheon to see beyond themselves and direct their forces.
Thus far their plans were progressing at an acceptable rate and even a cursory glance at the gathered forces outside of their fortress would confirm such.
Pantheon's foes were wasting their lives for nothing.
Even now fresh waves of Grimm were attacking from the sea and sky as well as from anchored positions in the flesh and bone of the living fortress Pantheon had created through sheer force of will and though this latest burst of instinctive savagery, spawned and unleashed without any conscious effort on the part of Grimm General would no doubt be beaten back as those before it had been it would doubtlessly ruin and fell some of those who had gathered themselves before Pantheon's might and distract others; keeping dozens of Hunters pinned in place and struggling like captured prey.
Even now keen senses of oceanic predators could scent the blood in the air, its' coppery tang almost lost beneath the acrid smoke of vessels which had been so thoroughly punished by wave after wave of monsters in recent days that they undoubtedly be dragged down into the depths before long, where they would torn asunder and any souls failing to flee them in time would be devoured long before they could succumb to drowning.
What brought the most satisfaction however, a twisted and inhuman smile forming on their skeletal features was the knowledge that their enemies efforts were all for naught. It had been made painfully clear to the gathered forces of Pantheon's foes that for all of their gathered might they simply could not reach them, the Grimm General had retreated after issuing their initial challenge, content to wait and for almost two weeks now barrage after barrage had been rained down upon their fortress from all around and above and yet their enemies had come no closer to victory; their weapons simply lacking the range and power to pierce down to the heart of the living fortress and so were unable to prevent the spires and battlements from regrowing and bursting from the depths once more.
Preventing Pantheon's advances was an equally hopeless endeavour as the Grimm General could not only unleash forces to attack any of the Kingdoms or their outer territories from any of the vast web of Spawning Pits under their sway, a fact that had no doubt been highlighted by the ravenous hordes of monsters that had been drawn to those settlements by the terror of those within but they were also capable of completely bypassing the blockade their foes had sought to surround them with by simply sending the most massive of the seafaring Creatures of Grimm beneath their ships at depths the Hunters and their weapons could not reach. In truth the efforts to contain Pantheon were a farce and the Grimm General suspected that their prey knew it but had simply responded out of desperation, thrashing like gutted animals in a need to retaliate in any way way they could before they were cut down. If they truly wished to Pantheon could end matters with a single cataclysmic burst of violence, one which would admittedly drain them exponentially and would be a drawn out, messy affair which would take them some time recover from but would ultimately be successful wherein they sent unspeakable amounts of aquatic and amphibious Grimm of colossal size out into the depths and had them emerge behind and within the ranks of the blockade to destroy the warships from all sides.
But instead they waited.
They had designed their fortress so that their was a single, obvious angle of attack to be taken in the form of the uppermost spire from which they had first emerged and then they had ensured that the spire was thoroughly defended, its' interior being lined with countless interlocking layers of defences and countermeasures to ensure that it could only be breached if Pantheon themselves allowed it.
The Grimm General had expected their true foe, the would be usurper Gestalt-Prime to rise to the challenge and present themselves so that they and whatever force accompanied them could be lured down into the heart of Pantheon's lair with the promise of facing the Grimm General themselves and destroying the fortress from within, striking at the depths that weapons fired from above could not reach.
And yet Gestalt-Prime was nowhere to be seen.
Granted simply being seen was no longer an indication of anything given that the monstrous Grimm-vessel their would-be usurpers' masters had created could cloak its' presence but to Pantheon it had become apparent that Gestalt-Prime was not lurking, hidden in the skies above them and nor was the Megalodon; the Grimm General realising that if the living warship were indeed part of the blockade around their fortress then it would no doubt have been deployed by now to simply devour parts of Pantheon's lair.
With a low snarl rumbling from their throat to echo throughout their throne room Pantheon rose to their feet and unfurled their wings as they considered their options, coming quickly to a simple conclusion.
They would need to be more insistent in their challenges.
Multiple video feeds flickered into life and as the faces and voices of her most trusted comrades greeted her General Winter Schnee began without preamble.
"Good, we can begin. Status report, any developments of immediate importance?" Winter's eyes scanned the various groups gathered in the screens she viewed on her own computer, from Antonia Arc who was reporting in from her penthouse apartment located above the main headquarters of Poly-Tech, to Lie and Nora Ren in the headmasters' office of Halo Academy whilst Coco who was similarly within her own office at Breaktide Academy, joined by Penny and Ruby and then finally to the last screen where, flanked by Carcharodon Gore and Corvid Xiao Long both of whom Winter had her grievances with and sat in a repaired and modified version of his many-limbed mechanical chair was Qrow Branwen.
"It's good to see you again Qrow" Winter found herself adding, though her relief at the older and more experienced Hunters' presence both in the present moment and also as part of the force mustered against Pantheon was tempered by both a concern for the health of aged man who had already come so close to death in Nero's assault on Neo Vale and whom Winter considered one of her few close friends and unshakeable sense of failure; in her mind the fact that Qrow had been called back into the midst of the battle against Remnants' foes for which he had already sacrificed so much spoke poorly of her own leadership.
"It's good to be back" Qrow drawled, a faint smirk failing to reach his tired eyes "I didn't exactly retire willingly and I won't be able to enjoy it until this problem is solved"
"And we didn't even get you a clock or something as a retirement gift" Nora chimed in, her oversized and owlish cybernetic eyes made more expressive by the various shifting and adjusting panels and filters around them whilst her smile was left lopsided by the scar tissue forking its' way across her face.
"Indeed" Winter injected firmly "But focus. Now is not the time. Antonia?"
"There haven't been any cyber attacks or attempts to infiltrate us or search for the Aura Transfer Machine since your original parlay with Nero; though there has also been no sightings in Atlesian airspace of his ship….The Megalodon he called it?"
"Pretentious bastard" Coco muttered to which Antonia faintly smiled, the woman whose hair had once been the recognisable shade of blonde common to the arc family but had since greyed adjusting the lab coat she wore over a business suit and pressing on.
"We also used the designs, you say Nero himself handed them over? They were exactly as promised and Shadowmoon can walk again and as I said, no malware or anything similar was found in the files….Also I took the liberty of adding a tracking device"
"Don't take them fun out of hunting her down, I want to enjoy it" Coco snarled
"Adel" Winter warned, understanding her anger entirely but needing Coco to set her own feelings aside in light of what needed to be done "Focus….Have there been any further developments?"
"The Grimm have been pushed back" Coco answered "The riots have stopped and things are being cleaned up. A few people might want to use the aftermath to try and make some political plays but right now nobody wants to do anything that risks another wave of attacks; nobody wants an upheaval"
"Neo Vale is in much the same state" Ren chimed in "None of the crime, even perpetrated by gangs that were rumoured to be connected to Nero under his 'Benefactor' disguise seems to be anything more than a crime of opportunity"
"The Grimm are not so easily pushed back at sea, but we relish the challenge and will endure the battles with them" Carcharodon Gore rasped out, the hooded and black-eyed Shark Faunus giving Winter a smile full of jagged teeth whilst opposite him Corvid remained stoic, straight-backed and, wisely in Winter's opinion silent.
"We're handling anything anything that attacks us" Qrow clarified "But that's only surface level; we can't stop anything from just going under us….If we're containing Pantheon at all then it's because they never truly planned to advance"
"Given that they directly offered a challenge to Gestalt-Prime I think we can assume the latter" Winter noted, thoughtful for only a moment before honing on the heart of the matter "Though the same issue still persists….We can't do lasting damage to Pantheon's base of operations because its' epicentre, where Pantheon themselves are undoubtedly taking shelter is also at the seafloor. The question is one of range; which brings us neatly to my next question, Ruby-"
"It was a failure" the Silver-Eyed warrior answered the question before it could be fully asked, sinking into the folds of her iconic but tattered cape with a look of dejection Winter had not seen on the woman since she was a fifteen year old girl, all whilst Penny squeezed her wife's hand gently "I tried to use my powers at their maximum range, through a solid mass of Grimm that we'd managed to corral and it just wasn't enough….The only way I, or any other Silver Eyed Warrior would be able to take out Pantheon's fortress is if we were to do it from the inside"
"At which point you would perish as well" Winter breathed out "The resulting pressure would kill you before drowning….It's not a sacrifice I would ever order, or even ask you to consider however if you were to-"
"We are not discussing this!" Qrow spat, forcefully enough that Winter fought the urge to flinch before casting her eyes to the various screens and seeing that each of her comrades were regarding her with various degrees of shock and anger, with Penny leaning strongly towards the latter.
"Of course, my apologies" Winter nodded "That being said, if experimentation has not yielded the desired results and we have no workable options to tackle the threat Pantheon poses, even whilst knowing what it is they want….Then we have to consider-"
"Just fucking get on with it Winter" Coco glared at the screen over her sunglasses, brown eyes filled with a fiery rage which Winter found herself was not directed entirely at her self "We know what the play is, we've known it since you actually parlayed and didn't just have snipers pick him off….So do it and rip the fucking band-aid off. Consider yourself lucky Velvet isn't here for this, she can't even bring herself to look at you and be civil right now"
"Very well" Winter nodded before entering a series of commands into the computer from which she was participating in the call; employing countless measures of security to ensure that no attempts to pry into devices, gain any additional information or even record the screen to keep a record of who was present would be possible before finally sending out an invite which saw another window open on the screen, the new party having similarly protected their own interests if the moment of lagging and delay were any indication.
"As much as I'm sure that none of us find us ideal, I'm glad that you all see the necessity of this" Damascus Nero noted conversationally as he entered the conference call; taking a moment to take stock of his now fellow conspirators before bushing back his lank, dark hair and continuing "Miss Arc, a pleasure despite everything….I have always been impressed by your companies' work. Branwen I'd expect a warmer welcome from you, it was after all you who first suggested my membership in this little conspiracy of yours-"
"Listen you son of a bitch-"
"Ah Miss Adel" Nero's quartz-coloured eyes positively gleamed as he focused on Coco "My daughter has always spoken highly of you….And if we can all pause in our theatrics and chest-beating for a moment, I am sorry for what happened to your son and I can assure you that I never intended for harm to come to him or any other innocent; I'm not so monstrous as to blame him for your crimes"
"Are you sorry about my wife's eyes as well?" Ren hissed, the sudden ferocity in his voice being enough to set all present on edge; Lie Ren did not anger readily however when he did it was a dangerous spectacle to behold.
One which Nero seemed to have little regard for.
"Not in the slightest" he answered, having the audacity to wave Ren's concerns aside in a glib display which saw Nora rise from her seat "whilst I regret that an innocent had to be harmed headmaster, your wife hardly fits that description….Especially given that I was trying to liberate the orphans you're in the process of indoctrinating into becoming Hunters when she attacked my Cyber-Grimm"
"Enough" Winter barked, slamming a fist down on her desk with enough force to cause the screen of her computer to flicker worryingly for a moment; a reaction which caused Nero's damnable smirk to widen further.
"Of course you're right" he splayed his hands wide "It's my understanding that the Grimm which appeared at sea has proven itself immovable despite your best efforts and now you are proving the necessity of my bright new tomorrow by coming to me for help….So, let's discuss how to best pool and apply our resources shall we?"
Author's Notes:
So first of all welcome to Vol.09, the penultimate volume of the story.
This was a quieter chapter but honestly it was needed, the team were in no condition to jump back into the thick of things and nobody is organised enough to do anything constructive.
But don't worry, there will be plenty of chaos to go around.
But anyway, let's summarise shall we?:
Of course Pantheon's appearance caused panic which turned into riots across Remnant.
So we're starting off with what seems like an obvious and reasonable response in the form of everyone working together and just putting a wall of ships and airship between Pantheon and dry land; which is also where Corey happens to be after leaving the Specialists.
I'll be honest and I'm sure this opinion is controversial but I really don't like the Lei-Fong Grimm that much; there are absolutely better sea monster things they could do.
Everyone who read FADE is currently cheering at Onyx deciding to fight a Sea Serpent Grimm head on.
See I did a hermit crab Grimm of sorts back in Vol.02 with the Dread Hulk but this is something completely different; the Artillery Shells were also teased in the last volume when Pantheon was designing other Grimm….They're not Cyber-Grimm but they're just as designed for a specific task as some of the variants are; in this case picking off the crew of ships in a way that honestly drives home that this isn't Hunting, it's war.
It definitely stings that Corey doesn't have the authority that she used to.
I think you all knew where Felix and Eagle were gonna turn up.
Of course Astra didn't go home.
And of course the riots didn't hit Atlas's biggest shopping district….But because capitalism + robot police.
Long live Astra's jacket.
Yeah a lot of this chapter was new looks for everyone, but honestly it was needed; these will be the final outfit updates for everyone for the last two volumes….But everyone was a bloodstained mess by the end of Vol.08.
Shorter hair and braces/suspenders for her pants lined with shotgun shells….I'm sure a certain demographic will love it.
Of course Astra and Regalia's sparring sessions end up with them fucking.
Okay the manor is probably too big to actually call someone like that, but convenience.
So yeah Team FADE reunion.
Also, Regalia's outfit definitely does give some 90s/early 00s hip-hop vibes; wouldn't look out of place in a Mob Deep video.
Regalia's retort was from Robin Williams in the move Hook.
And Clunker and the truck are back.
Penny and Ruby were told to be on stand by but weren't at the blockade, here's why.
It's a perfectly solid idea, figure out how far down Pantheon is and then get a line of Grimm of equal length so that Ruby's range can be tested beforehand.
And the fact that Ruby didn't have enough range to reach from mid-air to seafloor is exactly why it was smart to conduct the experiment somewhere else; because that is
information that you don't exactly want Pantheon to have.
But on the bright side in my head the mental image of Penny launching an airstrike whilst Ruby is on the ground weaving between everything as it happens in slow motion is just a cool mental image.
AJ definitely needed the new look the most considering that her old outfit was gone midway through Vol.08.
Showing off arms and leg muscle is AJ's thing, Regalia has the market for abs cornered.
She's not being subtle with those bandannas at all.
Of course we're giving Stitch a cybernetic hand, he's not gonna be swinging that katana around left handed.
I debated giving Stygian something utterly snazzy, like a suit or something but then I remembered he's from the same place as Regalia; get that man a coat.
It's been an ongoing detail throughout this series that the first time a cybernetic is attached it absolutely hurts and that taking anything to dull it gives weird readings and gives the limb a faulty baseline to work from.
Stygian absolutely wanted to test the sensation in that hand by grabbing her ass.
Oh AJ is absolutely have to pluck up some courage and have conversations soon.
Zirconia knows that the design for her legs wasn't publicly available, so if Winter and the Atlas military have the specs then it means they got those specs from somewhere.
Zirconia's new look is actually inspired partly by Blake's Vol.01-03 look with a big black coat and her old-school scarf thing thrown on.
And of course she has that bandanna.
I love the idea that Weiss was taught all of the subtle intricacies of upper class society, then went to college with Hunters from largely working class backgrounds and immediately thought "Oh this is so much easier".
"This Zirconia Shadowmoon is too pathetic to angry at, it demeans both of us" might just be the harshest thing I've had Weiss say since the Vol.01 arc of Downward Spiral.
I did consider having Weiss break out a summon to pin Zirconia in place while Weiss gave her a talking to, just to make a point but it did feel like too much.
Zirconia's comparisons to Blake and Weiss are something I could definitely do more with.
New wings means new hardware to interface with the Grimm throne.
"Pantheon's foes were wasting their lives for nothing" is bleak but accurate considering that they're not actually achieving any of the goals they want to or think they are.
Yeah, not only can the Hunters not reach Pantheon, Pantheon can surround that blockade whenever they want; right now they're just letting it happen.
But since Gestalt-Prime wants to keep them waiting….
Cabal meeting and Qrow is back in the picture, mainly because he just happens to be at the blockade.
Of course they put a tracker in Zirconia's legs.
Oh Coco is being extra spiky today.
I think, given the ending of Vol.08, the fact Ruby's plan didn't work and the various people here in this scene; we all knew what was going to happen and why I saved this scene for the end of the chapter.
Winter really said "I can't order you to off yourself….But if you feel like making a noble sacrifice it would be appreciated".
Now Nero absolutely came out swinging with the petty bitchiness here….But at the same time he didn't lie; every single opinion he gave was honest, especially about Little Fox.
Which makes the shot at Nora even worse.
Nero giving Loki in 'Thor: The Dark World' vibes, the "You must be truly desperate to come to me for help".
Thank you to Neil12 and MajorBrony95 for their review on the last chapter.
Happy Holidays
I mean we'll be here until roughly the middle of 2014 and then I've got plans for something of my own.
Jacques's spirit left the astral plane the moment his Faunus grandchild was born.
Yeah, Ruby's a kinder, smaller more honest soul.
At this point cock-clocking my characters is basically one of my signatures.
Yeah, Nero is sort of trying to make a reverse Hound by using a person to control the Grimm, which is definitely nuts but well...In a world as nuts as Remnant you may as well try anything once.
There's still one more Nero and Hops revelation to have.
As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.