I graduate tomorrow! Crazy.
Releases of Gems and Carry On will most likely start to get spread out. So, for the future, Gems and Carry On will go back to a single release chapter per week, split into multiple parts. This will start with the Overhaul arc in May for Carry On, and the start of Gemstones next arc in July. This will also give us extra work time for Gems and Carry On. Sometimes, there will be bi-weekly chapter releases. For things I deem fit. It will usually just extend to Carry On. This arc is gonna end somewhere in May or June, and then it'll return in July.
The reason for this is due to wanting a larger backlog of chapters in the future. I assume my schedule will be drastically changing due to job hunting / the job itself, and that gives me less time to work on it. Just a comparison:
Overhaul Arc: 22 chapters in total
Would roughly last 12 or so weeks, factoring in a vacation. So, until July 30.
If we switch to a once weekly chapter...at least until October. So, enough to write a few more chapters in-between.
And the Gemstones arc has already been to run until Christmas / New Years.
Again, this is a hobby I do, and I'm probably gonna have to make sacrfices...but know this. This is a hobby I will see through, to the end. You will have an ending, I promise...just let me adapt to adult life before going forward.
Anyways, here's your chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
"...it's her." Those two simple words were enough to make everyone's blood freeze.
The group covered their ears as the whale shook, startled by the massive, spine-tingling screech. Suddenly, a blast of purple energy tore through one of the fleshy walls, the resulting blast knocking everyone off their feet except for Emerald. Salem walked through the newly carved hole in the wall and looked at Oscar before turning her gaze towards Emerald. The thief turned to run, but Salem quickly extended her arms, like one of her Shadow Hand Grimm, and grabbed her before she could get far. Salem pulled Emerald close, one hand tightly gripping her arm while the other was resting on the thief's shoulder, as if she was a mother about to scold her child.
"You really have been honing that Semblance of yours, haven't you?" Salem hissed, almost sounding disappointed.
Before the witch could do anything else, Kylie fired several shots at Salem's back, each round tearing into her back and letting Grimm blood ooze from the wound. Salem just sighed, totally unphased by the attack, almost bored by the attempt. She quickly tossed Emerald aside, slamming her into a wall. One of Salem's own glyphs, with that damned stylized eye in the middle, appeared on the wall and allowed several Shadow hands, resembling both Geist hands and some kind of two fingered Grimm hand, to grab hold of Emerald and keep her restrained.
With the unruly child dealt with, the Grimm's dark queen turned and retaliated with a simple snap of her fingers, unleashing a targeted wave of magic. Rex was already rushing forward with his Smack Hands built, but he and Kylie were both knocked off their feet and thrown into the wall by the spell, the impact breaking Kylie's Aura. Mine summoned up some chaos flames of her own and began firing off a barrage, but the Grimm queen held up a finger and the projectiles stopped in their tracks at her command.
"Ohhhh that's bullshit," Min muttered. Salem spun the projectiles around, turning them from purple to the same dark red as a Seer's bulb, and pointed them at the chaos demon. The flames then launched themselves at Min, forcing her to dodge, but two of them managed to hit and knock her back. But the strangest part was that when the fireballs hit, the strength behind them was mostly Salem's. Was that holy water still affecting her?
Yang and Ceres rushed forward, fists at the ready. Salem just rolled her eyes and snapped again, conjuring up several more glyphs that served as landmines. Energy gathered in the middle of glyphs' eyes and when it was released, a beam of pure lightning with the power of a Sea Feilong fired off, forcing the two brawlers to dodge and weave around the glyph.
"Keep her distracted!" Yang yelled to Ceres. Ceres nodded and launched a stream of fire at the witch, creating a burning wall in front of her. Salem raised her hand, expecting someone to leap through to catch her surprise, try for a head on strike. But Yang was smarter than that. Instead of going head on, she charged in through the leftmost side of the literal fire wall and slipped past Salem's guard. Yang managed to parry away Salem's arm and landed a series of quick jabs to the witch's chest, secretly planting a series of small explosives.
Salem raised a brow at, what in the grand scheme of this fight, amounted to nothing more than annoying bee stings. She landed a backhand to Yang's face that knocked her away, ignoring the rounds still attached to her form, and turned her attention to Ceres. After aiming her arm back towards the Archimedian, the flesh around her wrist morphed and tore, reforming into the insectoid thorax of a Lancer. Instead of firing off a traditional harpoon stinger, the organic weapon fired off a barrage of jet black webs. The tarry webbing hit Ceres' hand and stuck her to the flesh and bone-ridden wall of Monstra. The Archimedian tried to use her flames to burn through the webbing, but it was taking quite a while for the substance to give.
Thankfully, there was an ace in the hole.
"Hey, Queenie!" Yang called out after getting to her feet, "You forgot something!"
Salem looked down at the explosives with a look that just screamed a single emotion: unamused. What death via explosion was this now? 40? 400? She was off by several zeroes either way.
With a quick motion, Yang detonated the explosives and wracked the witch's body with a series of small blasts, but their combined power was enough to forcefully bend her body back, probably breaking some of her spine, and rip her chest open. Red-black liquid gushed from the wound before it froze in the air. Salem could fix the wound, but she chose to delay the regeneration for a moment. Salem's arm snapped and stretched out, firing out a strand of black webbing from her palm that caught the brawler's mechanical arm. Yang started to get reeled in, struggling as hard as she could but the strands just would not tear. The blood that geysered out of Salem's chest flowed back into her body, stitching back up the open wound and fixing the blasted ribcage like nothing had happened. The dark queen righted her posture and looked at Yang with a small smirk.
When the blonde was close enough, Salem grabbed that mechanical arm tightly and pulled her in close.
"How nice to meet you face to face," Salem whispered, "Yang."
"You...you know-?" Yang's eyes widened in fear.
"Of course, I do. Your mother's told me all about you and your sister. How is Ruby, anyway?"
Yang struggled against Salem's grip, trying to break free. Her mind raced with assumptions based on those last four words.
"What did you- what did you DO to her?!" Yang yelled.
"Relax, dear. Your sister is safe. For now," Salem chuckled, "Considering my pet hasn't returned, I suspect she's the reason. A small miscalculation, an underestimation. But you, on the other hand, seeing you personally now? I know what I'm working with. And when it comes to you, I won't make such a mistake…"
Yang gritted her teeth and tried to break free, but Salem's grip only tightened. Ceres struggled against the webbing, trying to free herself, but to no avail.
"Salem!" a new voice called out.
The enchantress turned to see Albedo, standing tall. He was glaring at Salem, his red eyes meeting her darkened pools of sheer Grimm malic.
"So you did join them," Salem tilted her head, "And here I thought you and your little friend had reached your limits. How…fortunate. Two traitors in a single day to deal with."
"Let. Her. Go," Albedo quickly turned the dial and slammed down on it, quickly shifting forms from the short Echo Echo to his towering Ultimate form. Salem just let out a short chuckle, totally unphased by the change.
"A simple evolution," Salem shook her head. "I have been alive for millennia, Galvan. I have seen evolution progress in real time. Your self-proclaimed pinnacle is just another rung on the ladder to me. "
Her eyes subtly shifted, moving to focus on something, or someone, behind Albedo.
"Isn't that right, Vilgax?" the witch finished.
Before Albedo could react to that name, his head was suddenly grabbed in Vilgax's massive claws. The warlord lifted Ben's counterpart off the ground, threatening to crush his opponent's skull if he exerted too much pressure.
"'Battle' is giving them too much credit," Vilgax said, before slamming Albedo into the ground twice before tossing him into the nearest wall, "Your Grace."
Yang's eyes widened in horror at the sight of Vilgax standing behind Salem. "What the hell is he doing with you?" she demanded, almost breathlessly. Fear, panic, confusion were all mixed together in her words.
"Oh, Vilgax and I have an understanding. He's here to help me with a little...problem," Salem chuckled, before her gaze locked Emerald, her eyes glowing with unrestrained fury. She threw Yang to the ground with so much force that the brawler's Aura shimmered. "Now...as for you..."
The witch slowly approached the bound thief, drawing it out to instill as much fear as possible into the poor girl. She held out her hand and formed a roilng ball of magic, moving it up so close to Emerald's face that she could hear the energy thrumming. She had no idea what this would do to her if it made contact with her and that fear was no doubt part of the interrogation.
"What did you do with the Lamp?" Salem questioned but Emerald said nothing. She seemed determined at first, but then she looked away when Salem moved the energy closer.
The thief closed her eyes tightly, tears already starting to well up in her eyes. If she opened them now, they would come streaming down her cheeks.
"Where?"
Salem took a different approach. If Emerald wouldn't answer, then surely someone else here would. She snapped her fingers and summoned more glyphs by each of the other Outcasts, Shadow Hands reaching up to bind them. Rook was about to take aim with the ProtoTool but the Hands grabbed and held him against the wall. Salem looked down to Oscar, bound by his wrists and arms, forced into a kneeling position, and approached him slowly.
"Look how you've diminished," Salem sighed, "How you've lessened yourself and for what? These children, this ruined world? You've seen how it barely holds a candle to our old one. Surely you've seen the flaws, the cracks, the impossibility of trying to unite them. So I have but a single question for you."
The Grimm queen inhumanly rushed over and grabbed Oscar's head from both sides, holding her thumbnails threateningly close to his eyes.
"WHY. DO YOU. KEEP COMING BACK!?" Salem growled.
"Why...why do you?!" Yang shouted. The witch turned to Yang, releasing Oscar and focusing all that wrath on her.
"All of this endless death, because something bad happened to you once upon a time?! What the gods did to you was fucked up! No one's arguing that! But no one gets the fairy tale ending they want!" the blonde argued.
Salem stood back to her full right and, with as much grace as she could muster in her infuriated state, seemed to glide her way over to the bound brawler. She leaned down, her expression almost softening as she cupped Yang's chin in her hand, her fingers pressing into the blonde's cheeks.
"That's where you're wrong," Salem said, "I did have my happily ever after. And they took it away from me. I would ask you what you would do if you were in my place, if Ruby or Summer died before your eyes and you were helpless to stop it. But I already know the answer. Don't I?"
"Your Grace," a gruff voice interrupted. Salem looked away from the blonde, releasing her head, and saw Hazel walking towards the scene. The giant of a man marched past Vilgax as he still held stood guard over Albedo, despite the Shadow Hand restraints.
"Ah, Hazel. As you can see, I've found our *uninvited guests," Salem said calmly. Yang was about to yell something, but the witch quickly summoned up a pair of Shadow Hands to cover her mouth and mute her.
"This one," Salem dismissively motioned to Emerald, "was helping them."
The green haired girl looked at the pugilist pleadingly, silently asking him for help, but his face was passive, impossible to read.
"Vilgax? The others are yours to deal with as you see fit. Except Yang, bloody her but do not kill. An idea's come to me. Hazel," Salem ordered before she waved her hand, having the Shadow Hands release only Oscar, "Take the boy back to his cell."
The dark queen walked up to the bound Emerald, forming another surging orb of magic in her hand. With the back of her hand, she caressed Emerald's cheek as a tear of fear rolled down it. The magic was mere inches from her face, the purple energy reflecting in the girl's red eyes.
"As for this one, I'll be handling her punishment personally," Salem threatened.
"Of course, Your Grace," Hazel nodded and marched past his master, right over to Oscar.
"P-please,please no-!" Emerald begged as the bruiser passed, "Hazel...Hazel, please! Please, don't let her! Please!"
Salem gently touched Emerald's tear-streaked cheek with the back of her free hand, almost trying to fool her into thinking she was being comforted. The whirring and thrumming of that energy easily destroyed the illusion.
Hazel strode on with purpose towards Oscar, seemingly ignoring Emerald's pleas and her panicked hyperventilating. He then glanced at the other bound Outcasts- Yang, Rook, Rex, Min, and Albedo- before grabbing Ozpin's newest incarnation by the collar. The Shadow Hands released their prisoner so the giant bruiser could lift Oscar up to eye-level. Hazel looked at the boy for a moment, allowing himself a small sneer, before pulling him close and whispering three words in his ear.
"No more Gretchens."
"W-wha-?" Oscar muttered before the mountainous man dropped him. The farm boy then felt something pushed into his right hand, and when he looked he was surprise to see that it was his cane, the Long Memory.
Vilgax slammed Albedo into the wall again, dropping the human Galvan to the ground. The warlord narrowed his eyes and drew his To'kustar blade. His respirator hissed as he looked over the weapon, almost as if the hiss itself carried an air of approval.
"You will make good practice...for the genuine article," the Murrian growled.
Salem reared her hand back, ready to thrust the orb of surging energy into Emerald's face and begin the more physical aspect of her torture.
"I really don't know! I didn't take the Lamp! I didn't! I swear!" Emerald pleaded fearfully.
"You'll forgive me if I don't-" Salem began, before a swift uppercut from Hazel, of all people, cracked her in the jaw, launching her into the air. The break in her concentration banished the Grimm limbs and their respective sigils, freeing up Yang's Outasts. Albedo rolled out of the way as Vilgax brought down his sword, quickly shifting into Humungosaur and roaring a challenge at the Murrian.
Just as I hoped, Vilgax thought, smiling behind his mask. He rushed towards the Vaxasaurian and let Albedo smack him through a fleshy wall with a mighty tail swing.
Salem, meanwhile growled as a pair of Teryx wings emerged from her back, the new appendages beating in the air to keep her aloft.
Emerald dropped to her knees after she was released by the Shadow Hands, looking up to her rescuer. She watched the now traitorous bruiser throw off his vest before producing a large Dust crystal from one of the pouches on his belt.
"Go! NOW! All of you!" Hazel yelled, before he started to jab crystal after crystal of fire, ice, hardlight, earth, wind, and lightning into his shoulders. His arms, shoulders, and chest now sported a web of glowing Dust scars that faded from one color to another.
"H-Hazel..." Emerald pleaded, looking up at him with tears already flowing.
"Go, Emerald," Hazel said, his voice softer, "Find where you belong. Find Hope."
"So, after all this time, you've decided against vengeance for your sister?" Salem questioned.
Hazel threw out two practice punches, setting his fists blaze, before taking a boxer's stance.
"I'm doing what GRETCHEN would've done!" the heavy-hitter defiantly corrected.
Vilgax crashed into the wall, momentarily stunned by the force of the blow. However, the indomitable Murrian quickly regained his composure, fueled by his relentless determination. He emerged from the debris, his gaze fixed on Albedo with an unwavering intensity.
With renewed fury, the warlord charged forward once again. His massive sword gleamed ominously as he swung it with brutal force, aiming to strike down Albedo and prove his dominance. But Albedo, in his towering Humungosaur form, stood his ground, ready to defend himself against the onslaught.
The battlefield became a flurry of intense action as the two adversaries clashed. Albedo's massive size allowed him to deliver bone-crushing blows with his enormous fists, while Vilgax's sheer strength and proficiency with his sword made each swing a deadly threat.
"Your similarities to Tennyson...it's fascinating. Why wear the face of someone so weak?" Vilgax frowned, thrusting his sword forward. Albedo slapped down the dial, instantly morphing into his Big Chill form. The blade passed through him, thanks to his intangibility.
Albedo smirked, his cold breath visible in the air. "Weakness is a matter of perspective, Vilgax." With a swift motion, he unleashed a torrent of freezing gusts, engulfing Vilgax in a blizzard of frost.
But Vilgax was unfazed.
The fiber-like whip emerged from his arm and lashed out, managing to wrap around Albedo's leg, much to his surprise. With a hidden smirk, the warlord sent a shocking current up into his opponent's body, shocking him. His electrocution was interrupted when a barrage of shots bounced off of him, more annoying than damaging. He turned his eyes to the source and saw Kylie and Rook just blasting away at him. With a growl, Vilgax lashed out, using Albedo as a make-shift mace and slamming him into Rook. Kylie managed to turn to mist at the last minute and let the strike pass through her. True Rebel's blade came down on the whip in a powerful downward arc, cutting into the biological weapon and making the towering warlord feel the smallest tinge of pain. He withdrew the weapon and open fire with a barrage of his own, spiked bio-bombs launching from his arm. A stream of flame erupted and incinerated them, causing them to explode before they reached their target.
With a raised brow, Vilgax looked over to see Ceres, having freed herself of Salem's web and now sporting more draconic features. The warlord couldn't help but let out a small, amused scoff. Ceres readied herself, getting into a fighting stance before, with a blast of flames, she launched herself towards the towering tyrant. He smirked and let her come to him. The last of the Murrians dodged, blocked, or parried every flame-boosted strike that Ceres sent his way. But that was the plan. Vilgax was too focused on Ceres that, when Yang rushed him from behind, he couldn't counter. The blonde launched herself onto Vilgax's shoulders and brought her fists down on his head with an audible crack. She punched both of his shoulders three times before she launched herself off of the fallen despot. The warlord looked and saw a collection of sticky grenades, beeping away and waiting for the detonation signal. Instead of the blonde brawler though, the Archimedian detonated them. A ball of flame appeared in Ceres' hand and she punched it right at the bombs. A massive explosion engulfed the Murrian's head and shoulders in flame and smoke. Of course, that didn't stop him. The wounds just sitched and wove themselves closed, reforming the damaged parts.
While Yang's Outcasts fought her newest disciple, Salem summoned up new orbs of pulsating purple energy around her and commanded the new satellites to open fire on Hazel. Twisting beams of magical energy fired out as her formerly loyal bruiser charged towards her, but not a single beam hit. He just wove through them, keeping up his momentum. When he got into position, Hazel pulled out a pale green crystal and slammed into the ground, unleashing a powerful gale of wind that sent him skyward. Grimm liquid bubbled in Salem's hands before two long blades emerged from them, those of a Cenitaur turned into swords for the dark queen to use. But, Hazel wasn't dumb enough to just charge in headlong without a plan. No, instead, he quickly pulled out a trio of Dust crystals-dark orange, red, and yellow-and slammed them together. The trio of elements combined into a massive spiked boulder with lines of lava snaking across its surface and bolts of lightning jumping between the stony spikes. With as much might as he can manage, Hazel tossed the massive boulder down into Salem.
The dark queen was taken back down to earth by the attack, her Teryx wings breaking and snapping on impact. She wasn't even given the chance to try and get up as Hazel followed and landed on top of her. His knuckles were covered in fire and rock, molten brass knuckles that he used to just demolish Salem. Each hit was enough to send blood flying, that same black and purple blood splattering across the boney landing platform. To try and finish her off, at least buy more time, he brought down both of his Dust-infused fists down on Salem's face, caving in her skull and sending out one more geyser of Grimm blood.
But Salem remained unimpressed. With a swift motion, she lashed out with one of Cenitaur blades and stabbed Hazel through the side. The giant of a fighter didn't even register the pain, even if his Aura did flicker from the minor impalement. With her other hand, Salem raised some of her fingers in a beckoning motion. Another sigil appeared beneath the two, unleashing another swarm of Shadow Hands. These, however, only sported two clawed fingers that clamped onto Hazel's arms and legs and pushed him into the air. Salem's face regenerated, though it seemed one hit dislocated her jaw, so she had to set that right herself with a sickening crunch. The bruiser discreetly looked at something clutched in his hand, before Salem tried to attack again. The bone plate that created a landing platform actually cracked as Salem manipulated the flesh under it to create a lifeless Centinel shaped spear. She was about to throw it at Hazel, impale him then and there, were it not for a barrage of bullets tearing through it and one of the summoned Shadow Hands. Salem's fury flared as she turned over to see the smoking barrels of Thief's Respite.
"Bravery...to stupidity," Salem muttered to herself. She held out a hand and fired off another twisting stream of magical energy at the thief. With his arm free though, Hazel tossed the Dust crystal he was holding on to in front of Emerald. When it shattered, a hardlight barrier shielded her from the energy stream, much to the witch's annoyance.
Emerald, taking advantage of the distraction, quickly scanned the battlefield for an opportunity to turn the tide in their favor. Her eyes settled on a nearby cluster of bone formations, and she swiftly used her Semblance to create illusory copies of herself and the Outcasts, making it appear as if their numbers had multiplied.
The illusions rushed forward, drawing Salem's attention away from Hazel and the others. Meanwhile, Emerald herself moved with stealth and precision, maneuvering closer to Salem. She knew that direct confrontation with the powerful witch would be dangerous, so she opted for a more covert approach. As Salem continued to unleash her magical energy, Emerald focused her Semblance on creating an illusion of a weakened and vulnerable Hazel. The illusionary Hazel stumbled and appeared to be on the brink of collapse, drawing Salem's attention. Seizing the opportunity, Emerald took aim with her weapon and fired a well-aimed shot at Salem's back.
The bullet hit its mark, disrupting Salem's concentration and causing her to stumble forward. Sensing the opportunity, Emerald swiftly closed the distance between them, moving in a blur of motion. With a deft movement, she unsheathed a small blade from her weapon and aimed to strike at Salem's exposed side!
But Salem easily caught the blades and nearly shattered them within her iron grasp.
"You really have tried to run."
Emerald gasped in shock before Salem forced the thief's weapons aside, leaving her open. The witch then reached out and grabbed Emerald's face before ruthlessly slamming her to the ground. The Grimm queen had a calm expression on her face as she raised the thief's head up and slammed it down repeatedly, as if she was trying to recreate what Hazel did to her. Speaking of the man, a vine quickly wrapped around the witch's neck, courtesy of some plant Dust Hazel had stabbed into his hand. Using it like a whip, the bruiser let out a warcry as he lifted Salem off her feet and slammed her first into the ceiling, then into the ground. Salem cut through the vine with one of her Cenitaur blades before landing back on her feet.
"I thought I told you to run!" Hazel growled.
"You're coming with me!" Emerald countered.
"I can't go with you!" Hazel yelled. "There's nothing left for someone like me. Just go!"
Emerald struggled to regain her composure as she slowly rose to her feet, pain coursing through her body from the brutal assault. She looked at Hazel with determination in her eyes, refusing to leave him behind and that sudden bit of compassion was just enough to lower her guard. Salem was beaten badly, but she managed to raise her hand and make a simple gesture. Suddenly, her sigil appeared on the ground and Shadow Hands came out to hold Hazel's limbs and lift him up.
Two smaller sigils appeared beside Emerald, letting two more Shadow Hands grab her and hold her in place.
"Let's try that again...without distractions," Salem said, as she got back to her feet, bones and flesh regenerating. She summoned up two magical orbs and fired off concentrated beams of magical energy. The twisting energy slammed into Emerald's and Hazel's chests and it was excruciating. The two of them felt like a hot drill was boring into them, completely bypassing their Aura. Hazel only winced at the pain, some of it starting to leak through his weakened Aura, but Emerald was taking all of it. Hearing her shout like that, hearing her suffer, Hazel couldn't help but hear another voice screaming as well.
And that sent him over the edge. The Dust energy in his veins began to glow brighter and brighter, along with the crystals jutting out from his body. He struggled against the Shadow Hands keeping him aloft, much to Salem's genuine fascination. For a moment, it almost seemed like his Semblance was...different. There was obviously a flash of Berserker in there but something still felt unique about this. Curious.
Oscar looked over at Emerald and Hazel before he looked down at his cane. He had to do something, but he couldn't, not yet. As he contemplated his plan, he was forced to dodge under another swipe from Vilgax's claws.
"You weren't really part of Tennyson's last battle," Vilgax hissed, "He held you back, no doubt to 'protect you.' What hope does some coddled child have against a soldier?"
"A pretty damn good one. You're not the first 'soldier' I've beaten," Oscar said, before rushing in and cracking Vilgax in the leg with a strike from the cane. He jumped back before Vilgax could crush him underfoot, using the opening the warlord so politely provided him to rush in and unleash a super faster barrage of thrusts.
"Ceres, Albedo! We need him out of the way! Can you-?!"
"On it!" Albedo answered.
Albedo swiftly activated his Ultimatrix and transformed into Fasttrack. With his enhanced speed and agility, he rushed towards Vilgax, delivering a flurry of precise strikes, targeting vulnerable spots on the warlord's body. Ceres engulfed Vilgax in a torrent of scorching heat. The flames licked at his armored exterior, causing him to roar in frustration. While the flames didn't penetrate his defenses completely, they served as a temporary distraction, buying Oscar and the others valuable time.
"Come on everyone, out!" Yang yelled.
Kylie, Albedo, Ceres, and Rex all made for the nearest landing platform and jumped. Fortunately, this hangar bay was actually a bit closer to solid ground. In the chaos of the still on-going war outside, no one really picked out a group of kids leaping away from the Grimm whale. Just as Yang was about to turn and follow, she noticed that it was just her. She turned around to see Oscar looking back at Hazel and Emerald.
"Oscar?" the blonde asked.
"...she'll just come after us," Oscar said, "And we can't just leave them."
"Then we'll need to make this quick. Dunno how long those flames'll keep him at bay," Yang loaded in fresh belts of shotgun shells into her weapons.
"You get Emerald! I'll...I'll handle her."
"Are you sure you can-?" Oscar asked. Before the last word could leave his mouth, Yang's eyes turned red and hair instantly turned black.
Her Berserker form.
"I can handle her," Yang reassured. With a primal warcry, she dashed towards Salem, leaving Oscar behind to rescue Emerald.
As Yang closed the distance between her and Salem, she unleashed a flurry of devastating punches and kicks, each strike fueled by her boundless rage. The ground shook with each impact, and Salem was forced to defend herself against the relentless assault.
Berserker Semblances…nothing more than glorified temper tantrums. How droll, Salem mentally scoffed, rolling her eyes at the display.
The very bones and flesh of Monstra heeded the Grimm queen's commands. With swift motions, she molded the very floor beneath the two fighters into spikes and walls in an attempt to throw Yang off to no avail. The Berserker boost to her strength let her tear through those defenses like tissue paper. On the last one, not only did Yang punch through a wall of Monstra's flesh and bone, she landed a powerful right hook to Salem's face. Hazel and Emerald were released from the Shadow Hands, their chests scorched from the arcane torture that the witch had just put them through.
"...well, isn't that a familiar look," Salem taunted, Yang's fist digging deeper into the witch's cheek. To anyone else, that kind of hit would send them flying or outright knock their head off, but the dark queen was just ignoring it.
"I'll be sure to find Raven eventually...but you wouldn't shed a tear for her, would you?" the witch questioned.
"I'd gladly laugh at her funeral." Yang coldly answered.
Salem's eyes narrowed at Yang's cold response, a hint of amusement flickering across her face despite the blow she had just received.
"Such loyalty among family," Salem scoffed sarcastically.
With a sudden surge of power, the Grimm queen unleashed a burst of magic, creating a shockwave that sent Yang hurtling backward, crashing through the makeshift walls of Monstra. The impact momentarily stunned Yang, but her Berserker form quickly helped her regain her footing.
"Keep it together..." the blonde brawler mumbled to herself, clutching her head in pain.
Oscar, meanwhile, moved and helped Emerald get back on her feet.
"Can you walk?" Oscar asked.
"I-I think so," Emerald coughed, her Aura flickering and even the mana she used for her spells felt off.
"Hazel?"
"...I'll buy you time," Salem's now ex-follower said, taking out a lightning Dust crystal. Before Salem could go after Yang again, a bolt of lightning struck her in the back, courtesy of Hazel. The witch turned around seeing Oscar and the traitors standing there.
This was just getting annoying now. Salem snapped her fingers, letting boney fangs emerge from Monstra's flesh and shooting up to impale all three of them. Or they would have, if they were still there.
"Has anyone ever told you, Emerald, how annoying your Semblance can be?" the witch turned around and only saw Emerald and Oscar with Yang. So where was-? Her question was answered before she could complete the thought, Hazel suddenly blindsided her with a four hit combo. The first hit, augmented by jagged rocky spikes, broke her jaw and the next three all terribly mangled her face. The bruiser was about to land a fifth hit on the witch with his left fist, but she was able to catch it.
"God damn it, Hazel!" Emerald yelled.
Oscar, Ozpin suddenly spoke up, We need to hit her with something…big.
Not while Hazel's still here. We can get him ou-! Oscar countered.
No. We can't. He's injected too much Dust into his body. An overdose. He knew he wouldn't get off this whale. We have to use my cane. It should keep her down long enough to give everyone some breathing room.
Yang's black flames died down as her usual self returned.
"C'mon, we gotta go!" Yang yelled, grabbing Emerald by the wrist and bolting off Monstra.
Oscar turned around to face the battle and extended his cane. Salem held Hazel still and regenerated her head, fixing her jaw with a series of cracks and pops. She threw him back as if he was nothing before she recreated the thorax of a Lancer on her arm again. Instead of firing out webbing, though, a stream of Centinel acid was launched at her former disciple. Hazel quickly pulled out a crystal and used it to create a shield made of Hard-Light to block the corrosive stream. But even that defense could be bypassed. Salem summoned forth more of her Shadow Hands to throw him into a faraway wall, Oscar helplessly watching as the cane was prepared. The Grimm queen closed the distance between herself and her newly traitorous pugilist and grabbed the back of Hazel's head. She then began to slam it into the ground repeatedly, just as she had done with Emerald. Anger was her dominant emotion right now, but disappointment was also present on her face.
"I must admit…I think I knew this would happen someday, Hazel" Salem growled. "You were always the outlier of my followers. You weren't motivated by power, religious zeal, or a petty bruised ego. You were motivated by revenge. But I suppose even that can be tempered…can't it?"
The Long Memory's gears began to glow and a sudden breeze ruffled Oscar's collar and hair. Salem looked over her shoulder at him and realized what was happening. She quickly turned away from her cabal's traitor and tried to glide across the floor towards the newest version of Ozpin. But Hazel, with one last burst of energy, stopped her. He jolted up from the floor and wrapped his arms around her waist, lifting her off the ground. A sigil appeared at his feet and Shadow Hands snaked around his ankles and reached up to constrict his throat. Hazel opened his mouth and revealed a final desperate dead man's hand play, a fire Dust crystal that he crushed between his teeth.
The crystal's shattering set both of them alight, with Salem actually starting to scream in pain as the flames crawled up her body. Oscar looked on hesitantly, some final doubts lingering in his head.
"...do it," Hazel said, looking at the boy, reassuring him of his choice. Like Ozpin pointed out, the former follower of Salem knew he wasn't leaving. The Shadow Hand tightened its grip around Hazel's throat after he spoke, but even as his throat closed from the constriction, his grip held strong.
Oscar readied his glowing cane as Hazel gasped, his eyes becoming unfocused, starting to roll back into his head. The farm boy depressed the lever on his weapon, causing its body to shimmer a bright golden color. A sphere of crackling green magic formed around him, and the immediate area was filled with bright yellow light.
Back in the jail cells of Atlas, just a few minutes before Salem found the Outcasts, Qrow and Robyn couldn't exactly get much sleep. The chaos outside was enough to keep them awake. Jacques was still sulking and Doctor Watts seemed to be relaxing, totally unbothered by the war going on around him. By now, Qrow was feeling much better, the poison having been entirely cleared from his system by this point.
"Robyn?" Qrow asked.
"I'm up. Can't exactly get much sleep with all the jet engines and gunfire going on," the head of the Happy Huntresses answered, "...speak of the devil."
Sure enough, it sounded like one of those jet engines was flying right by the building they were all held in. Jacques just rolled his eyes, wishing he had a pillow to just cover his head with. It'd be better than hearing all of those noises. But something got Qrow's attention. Something about this roaring engine sounded off. The grizzled veteran Hunter wasn't the only one to catch on to this either. Watts nervously shifted his eyes to the far prison wall, recognizing that sound.
"That…that doesn't sound like…" Qrow muttered, before his eyes went wide, "GET DOWN!"
The wall suddenly exploded, launching fire, smoke, and debris everywhere. Stepping through the belated hole was none other than Cinder. Alarms were already blaring as she walked up to Watts' cell. She quickly summoned a glass blade and slashed right through one of the shield projectors that maintained the scientist's cell.
"About time someone came for me," Watts smirked as he hopped off the prison bed. He marched right out of the cell once the hard light shield was down.
"You know, I think this is the first time I'm actually happy to see you," Cinder said, "But now…it's time for you to work your magic for me."
"What're you-woah!" Watts called out as Cinder suddenly scooped the doctor up and slung him over her shoulder in a firefighter's lift. She walked back towards the hole before she heard the door to the prison open up. A trio of Atlesian soldiers burst in, taking aim at Cinder.
"It's her!" one of them called out. One soldier took aim with a rocket launcher and fired off a single round at the Fall Maiden. She smirked and quickly used her powers to send the rocket flying back at its owners. The blast completely obliterated them and damaged the projectors for the other three cells.
"...you good to walk?" Marrow asked, looking to Qrow.
"Yeah…just wasn't expecting that to be how we busted out," Qrow admitted.
Up in his office, Ironwood looked down at the farmlands of Atlas, now turned into a warzone.
"What's the status of the payload?" Ironwood asked, putting two hands to his ear-comm before the whale let out a high-pitched and pain-filled cry and a massive blast of golden light engulfed Monstra entirely.
The explosion further reached into the City of Atlas, knocking back and obliterating some Lancers. The entire scene was engulfed in a bright light and it reached much further than one would think.
Down on the battlefield, Winter led the charge as the Ace Operatives carried the bomb that was to blow up Salem's leviathan, before they were knocked back by that same blast.
At the Schnee Manor, Ben and Ruby were taking a moment alone together when the detonation rocked the house.
Elm, who'd been somewhat restless ever since she'd awaken, was looking out a window at the battle with concern. Weiss opened the door to the room the now former Ace-Op was in with a tray with some food and tea on it, give her something to replenish her energy. When the blast reached them, it nearly blinded Elm and the shockwave forced Weiss to drop the tray entirely.
When the light of the explosion faded away, night didn't return. Instead, the sun of the next morning rose and shone down on the battlefield. In the middle of it, Monstra was obliterated, nothing more than a slowly dissipating carcass now. Its body had been blown to pieces with some of its ribs jutting upward to the sky and pieces of melted flesh clinging onto them. The fields around the whale were covered in a thick haze, with only vague shadows visible through it all. In it, a towering figure, a familiar Murrian, walked away from Monstra with his cape billowing in the wind. He held his hand out in front of him, clearly expecting something. In a small red flash, a Lamp appeared in his open claws.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, as bits of Grimm ash rained down, Winter coughed as she came to, pulling herself back to her feet and just surveying the damage. It was like the aftermath of a nuclear blast, silence dominating everything.
"Is...is everyone...is everyone alright?" Winter asked in shock.
"No injuries here." Harriet huffed.
"What...just happened?" Chiffon asked, confused.
Cammie was staring at the remains of Monstra, eyes wide and mouth agape. "They... They were still inside..."
"Well, good riddance." Nesmith scoffed. "Two birds with one stone."
Cammie was too stunned to even try and counter Nesmith right now. Even Winter would've tried to shut him up for that, but given the circumstances...
"Target destroyed," Ironwood said over comms, "I repeat, target destroyed. Make your way back to the Academy. Unfortunately, we don't have time to celebrate. A new problem's arisen."
"But...that wasn't us," Cammie said.
"We can...we can tell him in person. Load...load that thing back up," Winter ordered breathlessly, "We're leaving."
On the roof of a skyscraper in Atlas, Cinder and Watts stared at the disintegrating carcass of Monstra. Cinder had a look of great indifference on her face, while Watts was just shocked.
"Lord," the doctor muttered.
"He had nothing to do with this." Cinder frowned.
"Any response from the others?"
"I'd think Breach would have the power to transport all of them somewhere safe. Maybe we'll hear from them soon." Cinder frowned.
"If Salem got caught in the blast, she'll come back. It'll just take some time." Watts frowned. "In the interim we need a plan."
"Plan? The plan hasn't changed." Cinder walked a short distance away. "I'm going to rip the Maiden power out of Penny Polendina, because you're going to bring her to me."
Watts tilted his head. "I beg your pardon?"
Cinder scowled. "You said in your message that you have control over Penny."
"I said I had Penny 'under control,' not that I could telekinetically force her to do whatever I want." Watts corrected her.
That was the wrong thing to say.
"What?" Cinder hissed, turning to face Watts.
"Oh for crying-" Watts sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, "I implanted a virus into her, you dimwit. She's on a set path now or at least she should be. As much as I hate to admit it, there seems to be some part of her capable of resisting. It could be the Maiden powers themselves somehow acting as a defense or I'm missing something. Regardless, it's only a matter of time before her mechanical body succumbs to the new programming. She'll open the Vault, then she'll destroy herself and our little Penny problem will be do-"
The disgraced doctor was cut off when Cinder's Shadow Hand grabbed by the collar and pulled him right to her.
"What do you mean she'll destroy herself?!" the Fall Maiden growled.
"Exactly that! Have I been giving you too much credit this whole time?"
"Then how am I supposed to take the power?! I need her alive, you idiot!"
"Very menacing, no, really. But in case you haven't realized this yet, Cinder, my dear, let me say it slowly so you can understand," Watts mocked, "I. Don't. WORK. FOR. YOU."
With a firm grip on Watts, Cinder hoisted him up over the edge of the rooftop, leaving him teetering on the brink of a life-altering fall. Yet, to Cinder's anger, Watts showed not a hint of fear or concern for his own impending demise.
"Please. You can't just threaten me like everyone else." Watts scoffed.
"You think you're so clever, don't you, Arthur?" Cinder hissed.
"Salem sent you to bring me back-" Watts frowned.
"She didn't! I made the choice myself! Besides, like you said, she's busy pulling herself together and I think we can come up with a plan while we wait. First, I'm going to watch you plummet to an unremarkable end. And then I'm going to burn a path directly to the Vault where I will wait to tear that magical puppet to pieces." Cinder extended her Shadow Hand further, dangling Watts in the air high above the streets of Atlas. As the flames ignited in Cinder's free hand, her smile exuded confidence. But the sound of Watts's maniacal laughter snatched away her triumph.
"Oh, of course you are! Because that's just what you do, isn't it?!" Watts yelled. Watts callously released Cinder's Shadow Hand, almost as if he was purposefully condemning himself to a bone-shattering fall. He didn't care what happened next. "How the hell has that worked out for you?! You burst into Fria's room with your delusions of grandeur, convinced that you could take down Ironwood's most fearsome warrior and battle machine. But what did you achieve? Zilch! Instead, that stupid machine ended up with the Winter Maiden powers! And let's not forget your stupid deal with Raven Branwen! Gather all your foes in one place so that you could exact your revenge? What a load of crap! I even warned you about it, yet you still went ahead with your boneheaded plan and look where you ended up! All you had to do was your damn job, but you screwed it up beyond belief!"
As Cinder's face contorted with fury, her Maiden abilities swirled into a raging vortex of blazing orange rage. But Watts wasn't done with his deconstruction of her actions yet.
"You really believe that suffering gives you the right to everything? How dare you! Being strong doesn't cut it, you have to be intelligent! You have to be deserving and worthy, yet all you've ever been is a worthless migraine!" Watts yelled.
Cinder's roar of fury pierced the air, her grip on Watts unyielding. In a sudden, startling move, she flung him aside and strode away, panting heavily. Perched precariously on the roof's edge, she trembled with emotion, a lone tear carving a trail down her cheek. Meanwhile, Watts' breaths came in ragged gasps, his heart racing as he watched her silent breakdown.
The doctor adjusted his tie as he tried to regain his own composure.
Cinder though...those words hit more than Watts could've known. She thought back to all of her suffering, all of her failings. Fria, Raven, Winter severing her arm, even going so far back as to remember those painful shocks from her "stepmother." But her breakdown didn't last long. She was shaken from that mental montage as her Scroll vibrated with a message. She blinked and checked the device. She raised a brow when she noticed there wasn't even a number listed.
"What is it?" Watts asked, having heard the notification ring, "Did someone survive? Someone with Breach?"
Cinder looked down at the text and read it.
Salem tried to wage a type of war she didn't know how to. A war in the shadows and a war in the light are different beasts. I am now in command and I have the Lamp. Find who you can and rendezvous with me...and I will give you Her name. The message was accompanied by an image of Vilgax's hand holding the Lamp.
Watts looked over his shoulder and blinked. "...where did HE get a Scroll?"
"It's from Mercury's phone. He uses burner Scrolls." Cinder huffed.
"That's...actually a smart move on his part," Watts commented, "Where does it say to meet?"
Back on the ruined battlefield, Yang's Outcasts and Emerald were all staring at the slowly disintegrating corpse of the Grimm whale. Emerald was on her knees looking at what was left of the monster with tears in her eyes. Oscar was there with them, through some miracle, but no sign of Hazel.
"He's gone, isn't he...?" Emerald asked quietly.
"I'm...I'm sorry," Oscar apologized.
As the large Grimm decayed into the sky above, Yang received a video call on her scroll. She answered it to see it was Blake, who was biting her fingernail in concern. She brightened up when she saw it was Yang who answered.
"Yang! Thank God you picked up!" Blake said, relieved, "Are you okay? Where are you?"
"Uh...complicated." Yang said, looking behind her. "Kinda punched Salem in the boobs."
Pause.
"WHAT!?" Blake yelled.
"Yeah, no, it's a long story and I'll give you all the details when we get back."
"Blake, what's wrong? Is it another-?" Weiss called, coming into view with Myrtenaster drawn and Ruby close behind.
"Yang?! Oh my god you're ok! I tried calling you so many times and you never answered and-" Ruby listed off.
"I'm fine, I'm fine." Yang reassured. "We're all fine-" She motioned the camera to show the group, with Emerald clearly in frame. Ruby's group paused at that.
"Why's she with you?" Ben asked, appearing in frame.
"Oh, you're awake! Listen, Ben, I know this is the last thing you want to hear right now, but Vilgax is-"
"Working with Salem," Ben grimaced. "We know."
"What? How?" Kylie asked.
"We...we found Penny," Ruby frowned, "And she's hurt. Vilgax and Cinder, they attacked Amity."
"That explains why the message was cut off." Rex frowned.
"I'm sending you a map. You're in the agricultural area. Just head to this access point to reach the red line subway tunnel then follow the route I've drawn for you." Weiss said, tapping a few things on her scroll.
"Got it. We'll be there soon," Albedo said.
With that, the call ended.
"Emerald...are you-?" Oscar asked.
"Y-yeah, yeah I'm coming," Emerald muttered, getting back to her feet and giving one last glance to the remains of Monstra, "...thank you, Hazel."
"We need to move quickly but silently, otherwise we risk being spotted by-" Rook began.
"By Ironwood's soldiers," a familiar voice said. The group went on edge as soon as they heard it, taking on fighting stances, all except Emerald.
"Woah, woah, woah! Easy! Same team!" Flynt tried to de-escalate the tension.
"How do we know that, exactly?" Yang said, weapons aimed.
"We kinda let Ben go earlier! So, make your own conclusions with that."
"We saw Ruby's message," Neon added, "We didn't know what you guys did. Ironwood never said. Then we heard it from Ben, saw Ruby's broadcast..."
"Suffice to say," Ivori chimed in, "I don't feel comfortable wearing this armor anymore."
"No one should." Rex frowned. "Wait till you hear how bad I got screwed over."
"What exactly happened?" Yang asked.
"Well, good news. The Ace Ops think you're dead." Flynt explained, "Heard them talking about it. Cammie seemed pretty broken up about it."
"Cammie's still working with them?" Kylie asked in total shock, "She wouldn't-!"
"She's not," Albedo corrected, "Back when we first made our escape from the academy, she found me, Neo, Oscar, Lev and Ari. She could have turned us over but she let us go. She didn't believe the claims. She's another friend on the inside it seems."
"But she does think you're dead...and for awhile," Neon added, "people'll think Team FNKI's dead too."
"What even happened?" Flynt asked. "Did you use one of your, what are they called, super forms and obliterate Moby Dick?"
"No, surprisingly." Albedo's attention turned to Oscar. "That was him."
"Him?" Kobalt and Neon asked simultaneously.
"With this, yeah," Oscar raised his cane to show off the weapon of mass destruction.
"...I have so many questions," Neon muttered, while Kobalt just stared in shock.
"You guys better tag along with us." Yang said. "We're headed to meet the others back at Schnee manor."
"Fair enough. We watching out for her too?" Flynt asked, gesturing to Emerald, "Still got gravity bolas if ya need 'em."
"Like you said," Emerald muttered, "same team."
"We'll keep a close eye on her. Sorry not sorry for saying this, but...you did sort of frame me for looking like I crippled someone." Yang frowned.
"That's...fair," Emerald didn't even argue, "Guess I go first then, huh? Everyone's guns at my back?"
"Let's not go THAT far." Min frowned, walking over. She drew a sigil on Emerald's back as a safety precaution. "There we go. This sigil will essentially make your body freeze up if you even THINK about harming us."
"Huh," Emerald hummed, looking over her shoulder at the sigil, "Wonder if Hope would teach me that..."
"You'll get your chance to ask her...Iiii think," Min said, "She's been weirdly missing."
"Not weirdly," Emerald corrected as Yang's Outcasts began to move on, "She was never in Atlas."
"That's…concerning," Yang mentioned, "Well, lead the way."