It's been one year since Volume 9 came out! Holy crap.
Our version is expected to drop in June or July, hopefully. Anyways, here's your chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
Winter looked at the Wanted notice on her Scroll in complete disbelief. All of the Outcasts were now top priority fugitives for whatever reason. This had to be a misunderstanding, maybe a glitch in the system. Or at least, the second would be more likely until she saw "By order of General Ironwood" at the bottom of the alert. Orders were orders but there had to be more going on here. Atlas was doing what was right here, but this was Weiss. What should she do? Kingdom or family?
"Weiss...what did you do?" Winter sighed.
"Is she ok?"
Winter looked behind her to see Penny, looking concerned. She hadn't seen the alert yet, had she? How would she even take that?
"Uh, yes. Yes, she's fine," Winter sighed, trying to rationalize it before she began to walk ahead.
"Winter…I may not be the best when it comes to this, but I know when people are lying," Penny insisted but Winter kept on walking, "Why are you hiding it? Why are you putting that all aside? I can handle-" Penny offered genuinely, hoping to get through to her superior.
"No," Winter took a moment to collect herself before responding, "My personal feelings don't matter. We have orders. I'm to retrieve the power of the Winter Maiden so we can access the Relic. You're here to ensure my safety. Now come on. We've already lost enough time. "
"It SHOULD matter." Penny frowned.
"Penny. The general is making hard choices so we don't have to. For the good of all, not just a few." Winter walked over to take Penny's hands, but she pulled them away.
"I do not see what is so good about any of this." Penny frowned, "Especially about taking the Relic."
Penny stormed ahead as Winter shook her head.
"On that, at least, we can agree." Winter muttered.
Qrow looked at his Scroll, absolutely flabbergasted. Ruby's text had just come in, warning them all of Ironwood's new plan and true colors.
"Declaring martial law..." Robyn frowned, reading off the text.
They were still enroute to Atlas in the Manta, Tyrian handcuffed and kept in a seat. Doom was the mood in the room and Salem's serial killer was barely able to keep that smile off his face.
"We can't let him do this," Robyn said.
"Ms. Hill," Clover interjected, "I'm sure the general understands the enormity of his-"
Clover's Scroll chimed and he quickly checked it. On the Scroll was the wanted poster and the face he focused on right now was right in front of him.
"Clover?" Qrow looked up.
Robyn's Scroll vibrated and she brought it out to see the same Wanted notification. Her eyes narrowed, as Clover got up and began to walk towards Qrow.
"Qrow, I've been asked to bring you in. There's also an alert for the Outcasts arrest-" Clover began, before their passenger cut him off.
"Dinner and a show! I love it!" Tyrian beamed eagerly.
"What!?" Qrow questioned, "Has James lost his mind?"
"He's trying to stop anybody who might get in the way of this inhumane plan." Robyn stood up from her seat and deployed her crossbow, "Looks like he underestimated me. Again."
"Only Qrow is under arrest. After everything we've been through tonight please don't make me arrest you too." Clover frowned.
"Was this all just to use me? Just keep me happy until he turned around with a loaded gun?" Robyn frowned. "I don't appreciate being used like this AGAIN, Clover. You damn well know why I left Atlas."
"We're not going to get into that now, Robyn." Clover frowned. "Now, just lower your weapon, and-"
Robyn clenched her teeth and pulled back against the crossbow's string. In response, Clover drew his fishing rod.
"Okay, cut it out! Both of you. We're almost back to Atlas. Let's talk to James personally and-" Qrow began, being the odd mediator in the situation.
"No no, it's about to get good." Tyrian insisted. In response, Qrow punched him unconscious. Tyrian slumped over, totally knocked out.
"Robyn. Listen." Clover began sternly, "We're on the same side, but whatever Qrow was involved in with those kids was not in line with the general. If you don't fire the weapon, we can all get back to Atlas and we can talk this over."
"Where were these mediator skills, Ebi? We could have used them back in the day." Robyn frowned. "Atlas has never been my home, and it never will be with this willingness to just up and arrest someone without a second thought. Those kids were your allies, people you could trust."
"And I trust the general beyond all else. He and I know what must be done, for the greater good of Atlas. Secrets that cannot be said, things that cannot be shown, I've had to carry that knowledge every day. Most people would break knowing that we are constantly on the edge of oblivion. Whatever those kids did was not for the good of Atlas, simple as that."
"For the good of Atlas my ass! They're good kids! Didn't Watch Boy fight with his life to save Mantle from some giant squid alien? Didn't they all put their skins on the line to stop that maniac Thornmane with his conspiracy?!"
"Those cases aren't relevant right now," Clover shut her down.
"And that's the issue. You throw all other bias out the window the second the general makes a decision. Then that decision becomes your own. You're not your own person at this point! You're an extent of his own will! Just a machine, reprogrammed to think and act like him! Hell, even Coppertop has more of a character than you."
Clover grit his teeth.
"The real purpose of the military isn't to enforce the law, or protect others. It's to show Atlas' superiority over the world. The embargo, the brainwashing, the near lack of individualism, I had to leave that world behind because I saw the truth, and you stayed because you knew nothing else, not because of some petty squabble about not being the leader like you always thought!"
Clover grabbed his fishing rod, and extended it. Qrow was a bit invested in the drama, but was focused on getting to Atlas in one piece.
"What's wrong?" Robyn taunted, "I'm out here telling you the truth. Ironwood's perfect world is totalitarian. Why do you think he holds two seats? Exercises his power at every turn? Arrests anyone that goes against his thinking?"
Clover had enough. He cast Kingfisher's line at Robyn and she fired the bolt in retaliation. The luckiest Ace-Op dodged the bolt which hit near Tyrian's seat. The Mantle candidate shifted her crossbow into a bladed shield form and charged at Clover, who blocked and then immediately shortened the rod, hooked the crossbow and pulled on it, knocking Robyn to the floor.
"Predictable." Clover frowned.
Qrow growled. He drew his sword, and swung it at Clover, who jumped out of the way. He swung again and Clover blocked with his rod, locking weapons with him.
"I wish it didn't have to come to this." Clover sighed.
"It doesn't have to!" Qrow yelled. "For once in your life, just think for yourself!"
Robyn hopped back into the fight, swinging her shield down on Clover's rod, and Clover jumped backward away from the two.
"Hug it out later. We need to take him down!" Robyn said.
Clover sent his fishing hook at Robyn, who deflected it with her shield and sent it towards Tyrian's face. The Faunus' eyes shot open and he lifted his leg out of the way, allowing the hook to break a bar beneath his seat, the same one that the Gravity Bolas securing his wrists was hooked onto with a metal ring.
Tyrian grinned evilly at the opportunity. Time to take advantage of this chaos. Tyrian slid the ring on his bolas off of the broken bar and hurried toward the pilots, excitedly snickering to himself. Clover continued blocking strikes and a crossbow bolt from Qrow and Robyn, when the ship shook, knocking them all to the floor. Hearing maniacal laughter, Qrow looked up to see Tyrian crouched on the ship's console, wearing the pilot's hat.
"This here is my plane now!" Tyrian grinned, "And what I say goes~!" The pilot was slumped over, unmoving and most likely dead. Qrow hurried to his feet, grabbed onto Tyrian's upper arms and shook him.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?" Qrow yelled.
"THE WILL OF MY GODDESS!" Tyrian laughed maniacally.
Tyrian kicked Qrow off of him. He then grabbed onto the co-pilot control stick and jerked it to the side, causing the ship to veer toward the ground. Clover opened the airship's side door and jumped out.
The last thing Qrow heard was a scream and then felt his body crash into something.
And then everything went black.
Albedo and Neo looked at their Scrolls, looks of worry and concern being shared between them. Blaring across the screen were mugshots of all the Outcasts, themselves included, with the instructions to "Arrest On Sight."
And...you still can't reach them? Neo asked.
"No...I can't...which means they don't know..." Albedo muttered, looking back to the scene in front of him. It was Oscar's room in the academy and it was *trashed.* Drawers had been pulled out and their contents scattered on the floor, the sheets and pillows from the bed strewn about. There were even pieces of wrecked Atlesian Knights leading into the room, like a war broke out in this one room, including craters and scorch marks on the walls and floor.
Penny was confused, at first, when she stepped out of the elevator into the secret hospital wing. She had detailed schematics of the entire complex in her database, but this place just didn't even exist. It honestly scared her that this was just hidden here for god knows how long. The White Pawns searched Winter and Penny, but even after the usual protocol, the protector of Mantle was told to wait.
That was three minutes ago.
For any normal person, that would seem short. But for Penny and Eunice? It felt just a bit shy of an eternity. Externally, the android girl was pacing in front of the security checkpoint, each step being watched by the guards. The two Pawns at the checkpoint shared a look, with one shrugging as if to say "No idea what her deal is." Internally, it was a mental talk with Eunice.
I have good news and bad news, Eunice began.
Start with...the good? People usually say to start with the bad but I'm optimistic! Penny suggested.
Alright. The good news is I've figured out why Winter's stress levels are far above the normal. And it's not the Maiden situation.
And what is it?
That's the bad news, Eunice sighed, I managed to look at outgoing transmissions, specifically those with the highest authorization, the general's mainly. The general sent a message to Specialist Bree not even a full hour ago now. He's going to declare martial law in Atlas.
What?! But...but that doesn't-! Penny started.
It gets worse. From what I'm reading...Ironwood's planning to completely ABANDON Mantle. Apply the plan for Amity to Atlas instead.
"WHAT?!" Penny shouted, catching the guards' attention. She awkwardly looked over to them and blinked a few times.
"O-oh, uh, a-apologies you two!" she quickly recovered, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly.
Smooth, Eunice chuckled.
"Penny?" Winter asked, having returned from whatever she was doing, "Is...something wrong?"
"I...think we need to talk...just us," Penny said, nervously eying the White Pawns.
"I think...I think we do," Winter agreed, giving the Pawns the go-ahead to let Penny through.
"What...is Ironwood planning to do once you receive the Maiden powers?" Penny asked.
"Taking it one step at a time, Penny. Hopefully this will go smoothly. I'm not expecting any disruptions..."
"Is that why I'm here? Only this? To ensure this-?"
"Goes well, yes," Winter nodded as she led her comrade into Fria's room. Penny hadn't met the Winter Maiden before, only Winter herself was allowed that honor. But, despite the general's insistence, Winter did let slip some information about Fria. Their talks, the older woman's love of and skill at painting, things like that. At first, Penny thought she would see the woman in her hospital bed, sound asleep. She was right on Fria being asleep, but she wasn't in her bed. Instead, the elderly Maiden was placed in a large, almost coffin-like gunmetal gray container. The lid was closed but Fria was still visible through a misshapen cross-like window.
"What...is this?" Penny asked.
"The ATD. The Aura Transfer Device," Winter answered, her eyes focused on the second, empty pod.
"Aura...Transfer?" Penny asked, her eyes going wide.
"It's...always been a theory that the Maiden powers were connected to Aura. If Fria's Aura was transferred into a...a willing candidate, then that person should become the new Maiden."
Penny put one hand on the closed pod and another over the bow in the middle of her chest. This was how she got her Aura, she realized. The Aura itself wasn't artificial, it was transferred over to her. By her father, no doubt.
"Penny, check the pod's status and Fria's vitals. We need to make sure she's..." Winter paused, trailing before she could finish the sentence, but the message got across clearly.
"...is this how I was made?"
Winter paused. "Penny, I..." she started, but was interrupted by a sudden beeping from the ATD.
"What's happening? Is Fria okay?" Penny asked, immediately turning her attention to the pod's display screen.
"I don't know, let me check!" Winter responded, quickly moving to the other side of the room to access the computer.
The answer, she discovered, wasn't good. Fria's vitals were dropping, not quickly so there was still time, but dropping nonetheless.
"Damn it...we need to get this started," Winter said.
"Winter..." Penny started, but she wasn't getting through to her. Not yet.
Outside, the White Pawns on guard duty heard the elevator begin dinging as it descended, but they were only informed of two visitors. Standard protocol was to always inform the Pawns of another visit and any unscheduled visitation was considered an intrusion. The group drew their weapons, Dust-infused rifles or swords and approached the elevator. One of them even started the start-up sequence for the Atlesian Knights that were in their charging pods. Two sword-wielding Pawns flanked the doorway while four rifle-holders formed a firing squad just beyond the door. A few tense seconds passed before the elevator stopped and the doors slid open.
The Pawns unleashed a barrage of gunfire into that small box, peppering the interior with bullet after bullet of fire Dust. The small explosions went off and dented the back paneling severely. After, in truth, only a minute of continuous fire, the lead Pawn held up his closed fist, the sign to cease fire. The last bullet casing fell to the floor as the shooters all loaded in fresh clips. Smoke still hung in the air from the sheer amount of micro-detonations, making it hard to see. The lead said something in their encoded language, ordering the two sword wielders to venture in and check. The other soldiers all switched to thermal in order to see through the smoke. At first, the soldiers didn't find any traces of someone calling the elevator down...and then they heard a squeaking sound. The duo looked up to see a hatch hanging open to the top of the elevator. Something snapped and that metal deathtrap shook. The Pawns tried to escape before-
SLASH! The last support cable was cut and the elevator, and those still trapped inside, plummeted down the elevator shaft with no brakes. A pillar of flame then blasted out and incinerated the remaining Pawns where they stood, leaving a perfect spot for Cinder to land, surrounded by the ashes. By now, the Atlesian Knights' charging pods began to open, the androids stepping out to aid in the defense.
"...well there's an idea," Cinder smirked as she formed a glass knife in her hand.
With their arm-blades drawn and primed for battle, the Atlesian Knights charged upon Cinder. However, Cinder remained unfazed. She dashed forward with lightning speed, her movements as sharp as a blade. With lightning-fast reflexes, she evaded the drones' relentless barrage of attacks and retaliated with her own powerful strikes. With a fierce glint in her eye, she sliced through their metallic shells with ease, rendering them useless in a single swift motion.
She unleashed a fierce flame with a swift motion of her hand, engulfing the androids in a blazing inferno that left them charred and defeated on the battlefield.
"Worthless drones," the Maiden mocked.
With every drone she cut down though, she formed up a new knife in her hand. After the flames had charred the androids, the disgraced Maiden snapped her finger and the knives exploded into glass shards. The shrapnel tore through the fallen metal shells, much to Cinder's delight. With a slow, yet elegant motion, Cinder grabbed what might have been the controls of a marionette and pulled her new puppets back to their feet.
Winter's gaze shifted from the pod meant for her to the already occupied one. She turned away from Fria the moment she laid eyes on the sleeping woman.
"I...hope it will be painless for her," Winter wished.
"Winter...I did not want to say this, but I feel I must now. Ever since you called me back, Eunice has shown me your stress levels. Double the normal," Penny said.
"Tell her I'm fine."
"Winter, I cannot just tell her you're fine when you're not," Penny replied gently.
"I don't have time for that," Winter said, her voice firm. "I have to protect Atlas, just the same as you."
"Then why are we leaving Mantle behind?"
"What...what did you say?" Winter asked, turning to face her.
"I said 'Why are we leaving Mantle behind?' That is the general's new plan, isn't it?" Penny asked.
"...did Eunice tell you?" Winter asked, closing her eyes.
"Yes, she-"
"So you know about the arrest warrant."
Penny paused.
"What arrest warrant?"
Winter sighed and held up her Scroll. Still plastered across the screen was the arrest order for all of the Outcasts.
"High...high treason?" Penny read aloud, "Ruby, Ben...your own sister. Please tell me you don't intend to follow through with this!" Penny demanded to know.
"I don't know what they did." Winter admitted, closing her eyes. "But it's too late to ask questions. They must have done-"
"They probably didn't do anything wrong!" Penny insisted. "Do you not find this strange? Why do this now of all times!? We're supposed to be working together!"
"I know. But right now we can't ask-" Winter started.
"We definitely should be asking questions!"
"Penny, now isn't the time for our personal feelings to color our judgment!"
"Then what about before? 'I hope this will be painless for her.' Is that not personal feelings coloring your judgment?" Penny questioned.
Winter hesitated.
"Winter, admit it. Even you can't bring yourself to do something like this." Penny said. "I know...I presume this is what brought me into this world, but..."
It took Penny a moment to gather her words properly. Eunice helped a little to get everything set, something Penny was very grateful for, but Winter spoke first.
"I may not agree with it but we still need to...acknowledge our personal feelings, wrestle with them. It's how we know we're on the right path," Winter finally explained, "It's what makes us...human."
"I think our FEELINGS come before orders!" Penny insisted. "This isn't right! We should give the Maiden the chance to choose for herself, not force it! Like my father did...my father...chose to use this machine to make me, instead of whatever plan Ironwood may have had for it."
"Penny, I-" Winter began, before the building was rocked with an explosion, "What was that?"
A second explosion rocked the building and an alarm klaxon began to blare.
"Stay here!" Winter ordered, grabbing the hilt of her sword and running out into the hallway. Though still unconscious, the explosions must have registered with Fria, since she moved her head ever so slightly in response to the noise.
The elder Schnee sister ran out into the now darkened hallway, the only light being the occasional red flash from the alarms. Scorch marks and shards of armor littered the floor, much to Winter's shock and horror. She looked out down the hall and saw brutalized Knights standing at attention with jerky, malfunctioning movements. Behind them all, a very sharply dressed Cinder smirked and lifted her hand out.
"You?!" Winter gasped.
"I guess you could say reports of my death have been...greatly exaggerated," Cinder smirked as flames gathered in her hand. Mentally, Cinder cheered a little. As cliché as it was, she'd always wanted an excuse to say that.
Winter's eyes widened before the flames launched from Cinder's hand. The elder Schnee daughter backtracked and ducked back down towards Fria's hospital. The flames barely missed her and caused a third explosion, putting Penny even more on edge. The door opened and Winter ran in, sword at the ready.
"Winter?!" Penny yelled.
"She's here! Protect-!" Winter started. Before the door closed behind her, one more explosion rang out and sent both Huntresses flying across the room. Janky, uneven clanging footfalls rang out as the smoke and debris settled. Penny and Winter quickly got back to their feet, quickly drawing their weapons and getting into combat ready stances. Penny's eyes went wide when she saw what was coming her way. The Atlesian Knights that would've served as guards, now puppeteered through the use of Maiden magic. Where they once held proper composure and movement, the Atlesian frontline androids were now more akin to mechanical zombies in differing states of destruction.
"Oh, well this is just perfect," Cinder chuckled as she walked between her drones, "Both of Ironwood's puppets in the same room. Speaking of puppets, how do you like mine?" Cinder walked up to one of the controlled drones and cupped its chin in her hand, "I think the resemblance is uncanny, don't you, Penny?"
The protector of Mantle didn't say anything at first, Ruby's words serving as the perfect counter to the message this woman was trying to send.
"You...you were responsible for what happened at Beacon," Penny finally spoke, "For what happened to me..."
"As unfortunately temporary as it was, yes. Now, stand aside or I'll finish what the Archimedian started and melt you down to slag," as if to emphasize her threat, the Fall Maiden's hand was engulfed in flame before the fire was molded into a burning scimitar, "If you really do have emotions...does that mean you feel fear? Did my words scare you?" The Fall Maiden smugly smirked.
"No," Penny said, "They don't scare me. They make me angry." With that, Winter and Cinder were taken off guard as Penny turned to a green blur, racing through the drones and cutting a majority of them down in the blink of an eye. Cinder growled and lunged forward at the nearest glass-controlled marionette. Glass formed around her flaming blade and, with a swift strike, Salem's Maiden blocked the next strike from Floating Array, protecting the glassed Knight. Penny's trusty blades and Cinder's vile sword clashed, neither one giving an inch to the other.
With her free hand, Cinder snapped her fingers and ordered the remaining drones to at least distract Winter. Lacking more refined motor functions at the moment, the drones could only engage in melee. Ironwood's second in command pulled the trigger on her saber and disconnected the second blade within it, dropping it into her hand. With that, she lunged into battle. The drones could only swing wildly, relying solely on whatever numbers they had left after Penny's mechanical massacre. One drone's clumsy strike was blocked by the second blade of Weiss' older sister, giving the specialist the perfect chance to bisect the "undead" droid at the waist. Two more Knights stumbled closer, engaging in a clumsy melee with Winter. It was easy to slice off one drone's arm before decapitating it, followed by a quick stab to the second drone's chest. The other drones were just as quick to fall, but they served their purpose well enough, to distract her.
As for Cinder and Penny, their fight was much more frenzied. All of Floating Array's blades slashed out at the disgraced Maiden, but the glass blades blocked and parried each attack. Two of the blades broke away from the main configuration, moving behind Cinder and lining up for a quick shot. Penny curled two of her fingers and had the blades rush forward, but Cinder was ready for it. Flames appeared beneath her feet and she leapt over the blades at just the right time for the swords to miss her. Flames appeared in her hand and another fireball was launched at Penny, knocking her back and doing significant damage to her Aura. Green energy shimmered across Penny's form but her defenses held strong. Cinder's glass sword morphed into a bow, reminiscent of her old one, with an arrow already knocked. The Fall Maiden smirked and fired off the arrow right at the still recovering Penny. The arrow was parried away by Winter's expert sword skills, but then the elder Schnee sibling was grabbed. Cinder's Shadow Hand had stretched out and grabbed Winter by the chest, pulling the Specialist away from her comrade and throwing her into the nearest wall with a thud. Flames gathered in the palm of the Shadow Hand and a point blank fireball blasted Winter into a darkened medical room, full of medicine and computers all aimed at aiding Fria's condition.
Once more, Cinder's weapon shifted as she lowered herself to the ground. Instead of a bow, she now wielded a double-bladed glaive that she flourished with a spin. She was about to march in after Winter, but a quick, thruster-boosted kick launched her further in and away from Winter. The twice-disgraced Maiden bounced off a wall of computers before a new barrage of punches and kicks landed on her, courtesy of Penny's new speed. It was obvious that androids could be faster than an ordinary human, but this was something else. Cinder had seen it before. She swung at where she believed Penny was, only to cut through air and for the Protector of Mantle to rush in and punch her in the back. Cinder growled, but her anger soon turned to a sick joy.
"Oh, this is ADORABLE!" Cinder yelled, turning and catching Penny's next strike with her Grimm replacement, "You're not just copying humans with that fake skin of yours. You're copying an alien now! I recognized the speed from Albedo. So you must've gotten it from Tennyson."
"I am not a copy!" Penny yelled, striking with Floating Array only to be blocked by Cinder's new glaive, "I am something different. We are something unique!"
"We?" Cinder raised a brow at that, before Penny slammed her head into Cinder's, knocking her back a bit.
Nice one, Eunice smirked mentally. The two artificial beings' mental celebration was cut short when Cinder's Grimm hand grabbed them by the head and threw them through the rightmost wall, taking pieces of the wall with them.
"PENNY!" Winter yelled. Without hesitation, without properly registering the pain in her body, Winter raised her sword and charged forward. Cinder turned to face her, but Winter was too quick. She swung her sword in a wide arc, aiming for Cinder's midsection. Cinder parried the attack, but Winter followed up with a swift kick to her knee, causing the Maiden to stumble backwards.
Winter pointed her sword forward, and summoned forth multiple miniscule Sphinxes that flew towards Cinder like gunfire. Cinder raised her arm and summoned a obsidian shield to block the incoming projectiles, but Winter was already in motion again. She closed the distance between them in a split second, and lunged forward with her sword aimed at Cinder's heart.
Cinder sneered and bashed her shield into Winter's face, shattering the obsidian shield and reforming the shards into a pair of twin blades. The Maiden took advantage of the opening and going on the offensive. Parrying and blocking was all Winter could do to keep herself from being cut apart.
"You Atlas elites are all the same!" Cinder ranted, "You think hoarding power means you'll have it forever, but it just makes the rest of us HUNGRIER!" Cinder lashed out with a cross-slash that broke through Winter's defense. The disgraced Maiden's boot connected with Winter's own middle and, with an extra bit of firepower, launched Winter back onto Fria's now empty hospital bed. Two of Floating Array raced out from the hole Penny had been flung through, but they were swatted away thanks to quick moves from the Fall Maiden.
"And I. REFUSE. To starve," Cinder finished.
Winter groaned as she sat up on the bed, clutching her side where Cinder's attack had landed. She looked up just in time to see Cinder charging towards her, twin blades gleaming in the dimly lit room. Winter gritted her teeth and stood up, holding her sword at the ready.
As Cinder closed in, Winter sidestepped and swung her sword in a wide arc, aiming for Cinder's side. The Maiden blocked the attack with one of her twin blades and countered with a swift kick to Winter's stomach. Winter doubled over in pain, but quickly regained her footing and parried Cinder's next attack.
I'm straining myself. Winter thought. I'm going too far...but I can't let this monster take Fria's power!
Cinder was about to attack again, but she heard the roar of Penny's thrusters, combined with the familiar sound of her accessing her super speed. Cinder's lips formed into a grin as she shattered one of her swords. She held out her human hand and grabbed Penny by the face, taking hold of Winter's with her Grimm hand. Flames roared under the disgraced Maiden's feet, serving as her own form of thrusters as she rocketed towards the nearest wall. She blasted through it, sending debris flying as the three of them exited the tower.
Penny! Vibrate through her hand! Eunice instructed.
Penny nodded, before her body started to move violently. Cinder was caught off guard as Penny slipped out of her grasp.
"H-how did you!?" Cinder growled.
"You said it yourself. I replicated the power of one of Ben's forms!" Penny yelled, landing a powerful axe-kick to the back of Cinder's head. She released her grip on Winter and the Schnee sister began to plummet.
Cinder growled as she lashed out, forming up a new pair of swords and striking out at Penny. The Protector of Mantle's blades blocked the wild slashes.
"I have not gone through all of this, come so far, to be stopped by some TOY!" Salem's Maiden roared in defiance.
"I AM NOT A TOY!" Penny yelled, as one of her swords sliced through Cinder's Grimm arm with ease. Winter gasped, as Cinder recoiled in pain. Winter was now falling towards the ground...
Cinder screamed as her Shadow Hand flailed about for a moment, a torrent of black smoke pouring from the wound. It was only a few short seconds before the arm regenerated, followed by her glass sword forming up again in her hand.
Ironwood's second in command quickly regained her composure and held out her saber before her, focusing her attention not on Cinder, but on her Semblance. If this didn't work, she would fall to her death. Fortunately, her plan managed to work. A Glyph appeared beneath her, the spokes of the snowflake replaced with a stylized depiction of a pouncing lion. From it, a glowing white and blue Manticore Grimm appeared to serve as Winter's safety net. She landed on her new mount's back and steered it back up towards the fight, its wings beating through the night sky.
Penny were now once again engaged in a proper duel, Floating Array clashing with Cinder's disposable weapons constantly. Sparks flew with each strike as they each perfectly countered the other's blows. The disgraced Fall Maiden was about to break through Penny's defenses, but then a blue fireball slams into Cinder, sending her flying back up towards the medical facility. Penny raced up as well, hoping to position herself behind her enemy. Winter's Manticore fired off another blue flame, right as Cinder fired her own flaming projectile. The two fireballs collided in an explosion that blocked the two opponents from the other's view. Cinder flies through the resulting smoke cloud with a battle cry, only to get bashed in the face by the curved horns of the summoned Manticore. Winter and her mount flew past the Maiden, only for Penny to rush in and use Floating Array like a saw blade. Sword after sword cleaved into Cinder's Aura, chipping away at it before the android girl landed a double kick to Cinder's back.
The twice-disgraced agent of Salem was sent flying back down, but she quickly righted herself with the jets of flame under her feet. She saw Winter circle back around for another pass at her. Flames actually seeped out the corners of Cinder's mouth in fury before she flew right at Winter. Penny tried to intercept her but, without slowing, Cinder landed a fire-infused roundhouse kick to Penny's face to knock her away. Penny screamed as she spun in the air. Winter narrowed her eyes and continued charging Cinder, her Manticore mount charging another blast. It looked like Cinder was going to charge headlong into the attack but then she dove underneath the summoned Grimm. Cinder grinned as flames seeped out from the corners of her mouth once again. She opened her mouth and roared, firing a stream of pure flame through the Manticore, causing it to disintegrate.
She's more monster than human- she's faster, too! What sort of training did she do since her disappearance? Winter realized.
Accessing Aerophibian DNA, Eunice said. It's not perfect, but you should be fast!
When did we have time to copy that? Penny asked.
Back at Arrowfell.
Oh, right... Penny frowned, as she flew towards Cinder at mach one speed. She slammed into Cinder, and headed towards a random building in the Atlas base.
"Tin girl's got a tin heart too, I see," Cinder smirked, "Letting Winter fall like that?"
Penny didn't say anything as she slammed Cinder through a glass window, and through the building. Her speed was accelerating. I have to get her out of the city! I'll deplete her aura, and leave her stranded in the tundra!
"I BROKE HER AURA PENNY! SHE'LL DIE IF YOU DON'T CATCH HER!" Cinder yelled between hits.
Penny didn't know if she was bluffing.
"HOW COULD YOU BE SO CARELESS!? HOW COULD A MACHINE BE SO HUMAN!?"
Eunice...please tell me she's bluffing! Penny begged.
Penny...Winter-! Eunice didn't even get to finish. She stopped and kicked off of Cinder to fly back to save her friend. Cinder smirked, her amber eye glowing with ambition as she turned her attention back to the secret medical facility.
"Time for what I'm owed," Cinder grinned.
Penny flew faster than she'd ever flown before. Was that her Aerophibian replicant in action, or were her jets in high gear? Or was it just that her soul knew she needed to go faster?
Winter was plummeting down to the city below, her Aura shattered by the fire-breath move. This was it, wasn't it? This was how she was to die. She...definitely had a few regrets, but she had given her life in defense of this Kingdom. That was enough for her. Winter closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable bone-shattering impact.
And then she just stopped falling.
Winter opened her eyes and noticed she had been caught by Penny. As thankful as she was, if Penny was here, then-
"What...what are you doing?!" Winter asked, "My life doesn't matter compared to Fria's right now!"
"Not to me! Don't you DARE say that!" Penny yelled. If she could cry, there'd be tears in her eyes.
"Penny..."
Claws dug into the metal door, tearing through sheer steel with loud crunches and tears. With a swift motion, the door was ripped from its hinges and tossed aside as if it was paper. Cinder looked down at the older woman resting in the pod. This was the Winter Maiden? Compared to Vernal and Amber, this Maiden was ancient. This wasn't going to be a murder, this would be a mercy. The twice-disgraced Maiden had lost a glove and sleeve in the battle with "Ironwood's puppets," fully exposing her new Grimm appendage. Though there was a difference now. The black flesh of the Shadow Hand had crept up her arm and stopped her shoulder, strands of black sinew reaching out like spiderwebs.
And then Fria's eyes began to slowly open. There were no dreams to comfort her in that rest, just darkness. And now she was staring up at an embodiment of that darkness.
"Good. You're awake. Better you see this coming," Cinder smirked, "You had your time in the sun and now, that time's up."
"Y-yes...I've been waiting here for...some time I think. What...what was I waiting for?" Fria asked.
An orange flame glowed at the side of Cinder's eye.
"Me," the claws on Cinder's Shadow Hand flexed, ready to strike. Salem's agent reared back her hand and thrust it forward, hoping to impale the older woman in the heart and take the Maiden powers right here, right now! But her attempt was stopped. Mere inches from the woman's chest, her hand stopped, grabbed by the wrist.
"No," Fria said, tightening her grip on Cinder's wrist. Blue flames appear at the corners of the elderly woman's eyes, "I had a job to do."
Cinder pulled her arm free of Fria's grip, quickly forming a black glass knife in her hand. She spun it around and brought it over her head, ready to stab right into the old Maiden's heart. A blast of blue energy suddenly slammed into Cinder and knocked her away. But it wasn't just blunt force, no there was a biting chill to that energy. Where it had slammed into Cinder, a thin layer of frost had already settled over her body.
"You're a fresh maiden...aren't you?" Fria coughed, standing back up. "It's been a while since I've had to use my power...I may be a bit rusty, but I can say one thing with pride."
Fria's eyes lit up. "I am so much stronger than you."