Chapter 19: Capture
With her suit now powered up, Ruby twirled Crescent Rose rapidly before slamming it into the ground with a resounding crunch of the asphalt shattering beneath its weight.
She felt recharged, and she was itching for a fight.
Weiss had already dove into the backline White Fang fighters, while Ruby was left to face off against Ilia.
The Chameleon Faunus whipped her suit's tail as it curled back, the two of them in a momentary deadlock.
"If you're not going to make a move then I will," Ruby grinned, her suit whirring to life as its mechanisms spurned off, accelerating her movements. She shot off like a deadly bullet toward Illia.
Caught off-guard by the sudden burst of speed, Ilia tried to dodge the attack by ducking low, but Ruby's scythe was a feint as her right hook came ploughing through the air, connecting with Ilia's gut and sending her flying.
"Shit!" Ilia cursed, using her tail to dig into the ground to stabilise her flight. Once she came to a halt she sprung into the air, using the tail as a spring, as Ruby was already on her, the scythe swinging wide as it narrowly missed her.
"Fuck you're fast," Ilia hissed, stabbing down with her tail as it transformed back into a blade that cut through the air, electricity crackling along it. Ruby tried to deflect with Crescent Rose but the tail wrapped around it. Caught in the snare, Ruby tried to wrestle free only for Ilia to send the electricity surging outward, electrocuting her.
"ARGH!" Ruby cried out as the charges wreaked havoc on her suit's systems.
"I got you now!" Ilia grinned as she retracted herself along the tail, spiralling toward Ruby with her suit's claws extended for a slash.
"Heh," Ruby grinned through the shock, as Ilia could see her eyes through the visor.
"Oh fuck…"
As soon as Ilia came within range, Ruby shrugged off the electricity and smashed into her with a high kick that rubber banded her against the tail grip forcing her to recoil as Ruby used Ilia like a paddle ball, kicking her back and forth through the tail's grip that was still anchored around Crescent Rose.
When Ilia finally managed to wrench her own grip free, she realized it was a grave mistake. With Crescent Rose free, Ruby set it to sniper form as she shot three-photon blasts at her, the charges singing through the air and exploding onto her.
Meanwhile, the commotion had drawn significant attention from the streets as people were now stopping and crowding around. More and more White Fangs were showing up to reinforce their ranks.
Weiss had just taken down the last five when another ten showed up. It was like an endless swarm.
"Where the fuck are they all coming from?!" she screamed in frustration.
"It's our city, where do you think?" A new voice, deep and rumbling with sinister intent reverberated behind her from the shadows.
"Huh?!" Weiss spun around, barely catching a glimpse of a black and red cloaked shadow in the crowd before it disappeared.
-Across The Space Port-
Silver was flying through the air at Mach speeds, as much as his suit could take. He had a horrible feeling, something in his gut gnawing at him.
He knew Ruby could handle herself, hell if anyone short of Adam showed up she would be more than fine.
Which was the damn problem.
If Adam showed up…
He checked his suit, "ETA five minutes… come on… Ruby, just hold on…" he accelerated his suit as it sonic boomed across the skies. He was moving at such speeds that the nearby transport shuttles in the air were shaken off course from his tailwind.
-Back in the alley-
Ilia was left a smouldering pile on the ground, her suit charred and smoking from the photon blasts that hit her square in the face.
Ruby was brushing some of the char marks off her suit when Weiss turned around looking alarmed.
"Ruby! GET DOWN!" Weiss cried out.
Ruby, thinking that the fight was already over, was completely unprepared for the arcing red slash that came out of the shadows, hitting her square in the back and sending her crashing into the alley's right wall.
"What the fuck was that?!" Ruby groaned, trying to get up from the rubble, but the force of the impact made her legs feel like jelly.
"Ilia," the voice said, as the figure emerged from the darkness. He was tall, with blood-red hair and a White Fang mask on his eyes. He wore a long, tattered black cloak that draped over a blood-red exo-suit.
"I thought I trained you better than that?" he lowered his gaze to Ilia on the floor, kicking her lightly before shaking his head and turning to Ruby and Weiss. "UFSH's top dog out here in my city? Well… I can't say I was expecting this."
He adjusted his visor like a pair of glasses and paused, "Oh… right my mistake. Ex-dog."
Ruby snarled and used Crescent Rose as a crutch. Her suit was going haywire, the blast of energy had shattered her Aura in one go and hit her main circuitry. The suit was struggling to even read her environment. The blast wasn't Photon, Ion, Ballistic or anything she'd felt before. The only thing similar was… that time Silver had punched her back on Romulus.
She didn't need to ask who this was. She knew exactly who he was. Almost as infamous as Silver, with hundreds of reports in the UFSH database with a multitude of terroristic crimes on his head.
"Adam Taurus," she said cautiously, gearing up to fight.
"I shouldn't be surprised you know who I am. I'm sure the UFSH has been dying to get their hands on me for years," he chuckled, flicking his hand as a red katana flashed out of the darkness and into his hand. "Of course, you were all too preoccupied with a certain Silver Flame to encounter me."
Ruby's eyes widened slightly.
"If you're here then I'm sure he's sure to follow… but he and I…" he drew his sword, "We have a score to settle… and this isn't the place."
"What the hell do you…?!" Ruby was couldn't finish her sentence as in a flash of red, Adam was already behind her, his sword aiming for her neck.
Narrowly ducking out of the way she swung Crescent Rose upward but the lack of balance caused her to stumble and miss.
Adam capitalized on the misfortune by stabbing down, ripping straight through the back of Ruby's suit and sinking the sword into her abdomen.
"RUBY!" Weiss cried out as she threw off several soldiers and tried to rush for her captain.
"Schnee, you're also a prize catch but… I think I'll leave you alive…" he retorted, catching Weiss's stab with the flat of his blade. As soon as the attack hit the blade glowed blood red as energy began to collect.
"What the…?!" Weiss didn't even finish as Adam ripped his sword through the air and the energy erupted from it, blasting Weiss into the alley wall opposite to Ruby's crash.
"Get off of my vice-captain!" Ruby cried out, coughing up blood into her helmet as she struggled to her feet, with one hand on her wound she tried to rush at Adam but he easily caught her blow, throwing Crescent Rose out of her hand and stabbing her again in the leg, then ripping it off along with a sizeable chunk of flesh before stabbing her shoulder and kicking her to the ground.
"I don't want you dead, I need you to drag him out…" he grumbled, throwing her to the side.
Ruby felt the intense pain of her body tearing as she struggled to stand, blood dripping from her leg as she felt her anger flaring intensely, "I SAID GET OFF!"
As she screamed her body started to flicker red as she suddenly burst into petals, reforming on Adam's head and crashing her fist right through his visor.
The man recoiled as he remained standing, surprised at her power, "Oh… I see. You too… well it doesn't matter if you don't know how to use your Semblance." the energy from the impact charged his blade as he swung it at Ruby.
"NO!" Weiss cried out, climbing out of the rubble and jumping in front of the attack, as the red energy cut through her body, leaving a long gash along her torso.
Adam, amused, adjusted his visor, the broken half showing a single blue eye behind it, "Schnee… you couldn't just sit quietly…" he was about to move forward when something flashed on his HUD.
"Looks like I'm out of time…" He swiftly moved toward Ruby, almost teleporting behind her and hitting her on the back of the head with the butt of his blade.
"You… won't get… away with this…" Ruby squeezed out, as her vision faded to black.
"On the contrary," he smoothly grabbed her and put her on his shoulder like luggage, "I already have." he looked toward Ilia and then toward the soldiers.
"Grab her, leave the Schnee," he ordered his minions.
Weiss, bleeding out on the floor tried to get up, "S-Stop….!"
"I wouldn't move too much if I were you. Unlike your friend here, that one is fatal." He started to walk out of the crowd, "When Silver gets here, tell him that if he wants his pet back, he should come to the place where he got hurt the most. He'll know what that means."
Weiss could only grit her teeth as her vision faded to black as well.
-Silver ETA 2 minutes-
Silver blitzen through the skies, desperately fighting the gale force winds to get to her. "Almost… there…" he struggled, the g-force ripping a force through his suit.
He was so close, that he could spot the crowd of people dissipating, the White Fang soldiers crowding around the area.
"FUCK!" he yelled out, pushing his suit faster.
Just then something came flying out of his side vision, a bright indigo colour that streaked across his vision… but his trained eyes caught it.
Like a frame-by-frame shot, he saw it close up.
It was an indigo Exo-Suit with black tiger stripes on the helmet and a pair of metallic wings on the back that accompanied a set of pastel purple-coloured jet engines.
Silver's blood ran cold, as every ounce of his body froze, his flight pattern faltering ever so slightly.
"No…" he whispered, "Why are you here?!" he yelled out to the skies as the suit whizzed by.
The Exo-Suit saluted as she said through the coms, "Hey, Scales~" her voice was smooth and velvety, like a dark temptress. Music to the ears but laced with vile poison, a toxic murk that wrapped its noose around Silver's throat and dared him to resist.
"Lyla," he seethed, caught between rushing to aid Ruby and the new girl Lyla, he grit his teeth, "I don't have time to deal with you!"
As soon as he said that, several flashes of red flew out of the alleyway as he saw Weiss get flung against the wall.
"NO!" he made a direct line, shooting off toward them when Lyla zipped in front of him, a pair of clawed pastel purple gauntlets flying up to block him, sending him flying back.
"Aw~ Scales, you know better than anyone that I deserve all of your attention," she purred, flexing her claws.
"OUT OF MY WAY LYLA!" he summoned Asura and got into a drawing stance.
"Temper, temper~" she wagged her finger, "So fiery… but that's what I loved about you," she purred again.
Silver didn't say a word as he pulled the trigger on Asura, shooting forward at blinding speeds, slashing as a long stretch of fire arced from the blade.
Lyla narrowly dodged with her eyes wide, "Guess you're not playing around, huh? It's been five years, Silver, and the only thing you give me is hostility. Can't say I didn't enjoy that 'rough' side of you too."
Silver slashed upward, continuing his strike as she blocked with her claws, keeping him locked in place.
"What's your aim, Lyla?! Why are you here?!" Silver snarled, "You still working for Adam?"
"Yeah, bullheaded as he is, he still has uses," she cooed leaning in, "What say we drop this and go catch a movie? Then head back to my place?"
Silver snarled behind the mask and visor, pushing back against her, "No, I never want anything to do with you ever again!"
"Aw," she pouted, "Here I was hoping to rekindle that old flame, Scales."
He shoved hard against her, kicking her in the gut and trying to regain his space, "What the fuck are you even after here?!"
"Just stalling~" she answered.
Silver's eyes widened as he looked toward the site again, spotting no more commotion, "FUCK!"
"Looks like my job is done. See yah around, Scales," she blew a kiss toward Silver before flying off.
Silver, wasting no time, flew down to the site, not even daring to spare a glance in her direction.
Weiss felt like her entire body was giving out, her consciousness fading in and out as she tried to open her eyes. She was still lying flat in the crater, her torso split and blood seeping from the wound.
Two White Fang soldiers were coming toward her, armed.
One of them looked down at her, "What do we do with this one?"
The other shrugged, "Boss said to leave her be, we need to move."
"You sure? It'd be a shame to leave her like this…" the first one spoke, his voice carrying subtleties of something far more sinister.
"Are you stupid? That's a Schnee! You might get rabies or something," his partner elbowed him. "Then again… it has been a while…"
"I don't know… I'm sure the boss wouldn't mind if…" he never got to finish that sentence as Silver came crashing down onto them. Asura's blade sliced clean through his neck as the head rolled onto the floor, body slumping to the floor in a disgraceful heap.
"OH FUCK! SILVER!" the other shouted but he too was silenced violently as Silver grabbed him by the throat.
He looked around, spotting Weiss on the ground and freezing. Desperately he looked around for Ruby but only found craters and blood.
"WHERE DID THEY TAKE HER?! WHERE IS SHE?!" he released his grip on the man's throat and grabbed his shoulder instead, squeezing so hard the bones audibly crunched.
"AAAHHHH!" the man screamed, "I DON'T KNOW!"
"Then you're useless to me," Silver glowered, throwing him to the ground and stepping on his throat, crushing it. He had briefly contemplated sparing their lives but he'd heard the conversation. Those sickos deserved death.
With the bodies lying cold on the floor, he rushed to Weiss's side and analyzed the wound, "Weiss? Are you still breathing?!" he asked, half-panicked, half-pleading.
"Alive…" she rasped out, "Better… late… than never…" she coughed out.
He grit his teeth, "It's going to be okay Weiss… I can save you just… this is going to hurt okay?"
"Whatever… just do it," she said knowing what he had to do.
Silver reached out his Exo-Suit's hand and summoned a flame, as he began to cauterize her wound.
"AAAARGHHH!" Weiss screamed out in pain as he sealed up the gash. Eventually, she passed out from the pain.
Once it was done, he scooped her into his arms, "Alright let's get you out of here…" he whispered, glaring at the bloodstains on the walls.
He was going to find her… no matter what it took.
-Back at the Solar Flare-
Weiss was in the infirmary, and the Solar Flare's ship doctor, Blake and Yang were next to Nova and Hex as they all stood around Weiss.
"Her vitals have stabilized thanks to the captain's quick work. With some rest and recovery she should be back up to normal within the week," he said putting away his tools. His work was done, and with nothing more to do, he left the room.
"I… don't have a week," Weiss rasped, her eyes shooting open as she grabbed onto Silver's arm, "We… need to move… now!"
"Easy Weiss," Yang's expression softened as she moved to help her friend, "You just survived a near-death experience, you shouldn't be moving."
She shook her head weakly, "No… time. Ruby… danger."
Silver narrowed his gaze as he leaned in close to hear, "Where did they take her, Weiss?"
"He said… the place you got hurt… the most." She rasped out.
Hex who was listening closely froze up as her gaze was locked onto Silver, "Is that…?"
"Shatterstar," Silver said gravely, his expression unreadable behind the mask, Hex, however, knew the implications behind that place.
"What's Shatterstar?" Blake asked curiously, sensing the disturbance.
Hex hugged her arms to her body, "Shatterstar is a dead galaxy almost outside of the range of the explored universe. About 3000 years ago to date, the star in that galaxy went supernova, detonating all of the planets in space leaving a string of debris and chunks of floating rock. It's a glorified asteroid field."
Yang frowned, holding Weiss's hand, "What does the White Fang have to do with a dead galaxy? All the planets are gone so what they have a mining base?"
"No," Silver said with a stern tone, "All except one. Shatterstar Exo Planet 4-8, is the only one untouched by the blast. The heat tore the planet's atmosphere but the dead star exploded a number of asteroids covering the planet with Dust."
"How… do you know all that?" Blake asked, suspecting something.
Hex sighed, "Captain… you need to tell them."
Silver clenched his fists and snarled before calming down, "Six years ago, before I was a big-time pirate. Our crew used to have another member."
"Lylac Liliana," Hex said the name with such venom you could swear she was dripping with poison and hatred. "Everyone called her Lyla for short."
"To make a long story short, we went there to gather dust, it was a long-winded treasure hunt. Our first big break. Too bad Lyla had other plans," Silver continued the story, "Sold us out to a bunch of mercenaries, literally stabbed me in the back. Took my eye and my arm."
"I sense some serious tension here, if it was a backstabbing, wouldn't the great Silver Flame be able to handle that and a few mercenaries?" Yang folded her arms.
"I wasn't as strong back then as I am now, and…" Silver trailed off, seemingly not wanting to continue the explanation.
Yang gasped, "No way…" she put the pieces together, "Damn… that's rough. Getting stabbed in the back by your girl."
"Ex," Silver corrected her curtly, "Last time I saw her she left me for dead on a dying planet and disappeared into the stars. Figured I was done with her… turns out she's back."
Hex did a mental screech, "Wait what?! That cunt is back?! Point me at her I'll rip her throat out…" she glowered.
Blake recoiled, "Woah," she'd never seen the mild-mannered Hex get so angry.
"What the fuck she's doing with the White Fang is anyone's guess." Silver grumbled, "Hex, set course for Shatterstar… we're full on raid."
She saluted, "At once sir."
-Remnant, United Forces Space Hunters Head Quarters, Vale City, Beacon-
Salem sat in her office, sipping a cup of coffee when she got a call she wasn't expecting, especially not at 3 in the morning.
Raising her eyebrow she perked up, "Onyx? What's stirred you up enough to call me at this hour? Found any news on our little dragon? Or is it our missing team?"
"Both, check this out," he responded, a snicker in his voice as video popped up on Salem's holo-monitor. It showed the fight between Ruby, Weiss and Ilia, then Silver fighting Lyla in the sky.
"Interesting, and where did your little pet take them now?" she asked, "I can think of a few locations Adam would go."
"Exo plant 4-8 in the Shatterstar galaxy. You know the one, right in your territory."
"Wow, give that boy a treat next time you see him... he really set the stage for me." she ended the call, walking to the window of her skyscraper tower she stared into the night sky, her eyes honing in on a single star system, faint and out of reach.
Her eyes turned black, her skin turned pale, as her teeth grew ever sharper. "Black out the sun and devour the stars, make your entrance, my pet."