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ENMY Chapter 90 - Fourth Crusade (Part Two)

Chapter Synopsis: The Kingdom of Vacuo is about to enter its most daunting challenge since its conception. Salem is launching the Fourth Crusade. A war to end some of Remnant’s greatest warriors, including Team ENMY. Assistance from Atlas is on its way, but will the Fleet arrive in time to make a difference?

Only one thing is certain. Whatever happens in Vacuo will echo the events to come for the rest of Remnant.

Series Synopsis: Team RWBY is disbanded, and Yang must find herself new allies. For her, that might very well be yesterday’s enemies. Joining up with the likes of Emerald, Mercury, and Neo, the four will comprise Team Enemy(ENMY).

Links to read the series: Ao3 or FF.net

Or hit the jump below

The Fourth Crusade (Part Two)

My life for Ire.

It was afternoon, but the skies above Vacuo suddenly dimmed to the dark shadowing overcast of night.

The sun faded into obscurity. Instead, the shattered moon took its place. Its size much larger, more closer than any had seen in a very long time.

“Do you remember, Titan?” Salem sneered to her opponent across the sands. “This is the night I laid waste to everything you ever built. The night I brought ruin to everything you ever loved!”

“Yes, I remember. Which is why, I will not allow you to do the same to these Children of Remnant!” Titan declared.

The once golden sands of Vacuo dyed a soft shade of blue and purple. Stars in the sky shimmered with a haunting brightness. The kind astrologers used to foretell a great calamity approaching.

Although the battle between Grimm and the Kingdom’s warriors still waged with savage fervor, a small pause pervaded the battlefield. The phenomenon of the immortals’ duel garnered a hallowed awe by all. And the great pieces of the moon drew ever closer towards the world.

Salem’s curse mimicked the Cataclysm of ages past on a smaller scale. Even so, the damage it would cause would be nothing short of catastrophic.

I will not fail again, Titan told himself.

Those who have entrusted their lives to me will not allow it.

Titan’s body warped into that of a merchant, heavily-obscured by a brown cloak. From his backpack, he drew a few ordinary looking beans.

The man bent down and whispered a quiet incantation to the kernels resting his palm. They sprouted vines to the sound of his voice. He then, curled them into his fist, touched them once to his forehead, before tossing them into the ground a few feet ahead.

Immediately, there was an explosion of green vegetation. Giant beanstalks sprouted from the sand, intertwining into the sky and towards the falling moon. Once it reached its height, the flora branched out like a freshly cast fishing net.

“I must thank you for one thing, if one thing only, Wicked!” the Magic Bean Seller shouted. “You’ve offered me a chance at redemption!”

“You’re still the same fool you always were! Do you truly think yourself capable of changing anything?!”

“I will! I’ve found my calling, as late as it was!”

“Your world will end again!”

“No! You’re wrong! And this isn’t my world! IT IS THEIRS!!!”

Salem poured more of her Magic into the curse, as if to refute Titan’s claim by force. Every negative emotion she could dredge, increased the potency of the Cataclysm’s replication. Likewise, Titan infused his counter curse with the lifeforce saved from previous incarnations. He thought if this was the moment his long life led up to, he would gladly forfeit it all for a glimmer of hope against all hope—an odd against all odds.

The sound of the great collapse racked the continent like a tectonic plate shift. A tidal wave of sand blew everything and everyone in the vicinity off their feet. It was the eternal battle between unstoppable force and immovable object at its grandest.

The beanstalk caught the moon in its grasp, but only momentarily. The force of the falling world continued to descend. Its mass broke away the weaker branches, only leaving the strongest stalks to contend. Pieces of the moon were repelled, while others struck the earth like meteors.

Titan felt a sharp numbness set in. Committing so much of his energy into a single stroke took more than its toll. His mind began to haze at the edges. But still, he maintained his strength.

“I can feel you fading…” Salem narrowed. “Had you fought without spending yourself on that fruitless endeavor, you may have stood a chance. Alas, your sacrifice was all for naught. Stopping Behemoth only delayed the inevitable.”

Out from Salem’s back, the head of a great serpent burst out. Its body wriggled and writhed, trying to shake itself loose from the Witch’s flesh. When it was fully freed, it expanded rapidly in size.

With one pounce, it sunk its teeth into the base of the beanstalk, gnawing away at its roots.

“A pitiful effort your so-called redemption has become,” Salem snickered. “The same old mistakes in a few new ways—like dividing your power among the Maidens. I see the foolish belief you chose to place in these Children was never a lesson you planned to learn from.”

“Do you ever shut up!”

Glynda pointed her riding crop to the beanstalk and began reconstructing some of its fractured pieces.

“If you think we will entrust the Wizard with Vacuo’s safety alone, you are sorely mistaken.”

Minerva conjured the form of a fiery phoenix to do battle with Salem’s serpent. Its flaming talons and beak cut wounds all over the reptile’s scales.

She is right, Titan. You do not stand alone, several voices within the immortal resounded.

There was a rousing cry, and the legions of Vacuo’s warriors rallied to fight the Grimm once more. Waves of projectiles launched into the hordes of Salem’s army. A portion of the gunfire concentrated on the Witch’s serpent.

Never alone.

Part of Titan’s body phased out with a violent ripple. While the main maintained the beanstalk, a previous host wearing a silly-looking fez and bowtie stumbled clumsily onto the ground before popping back up.

“Ugh! Which one am I?” he began touching his face. “Nose, hair, FINGERS! Still got them! Yes! Excellent! You! The angry one with the eyebrows!”

“Excuse me?!” Glynda gasped.

“Yes! The thing you’re doing! The timey wimey!”

“The what?!”

“It could use more wimey! I’d do it myself but we need to conserve as much energy as possible, and this—“the man pulled out what appeared to be a sonic screwdriver from his tweed jacket. “—does not work on wood. But what it can do…! Whoopsie daisy!”

The man pointed it at Glynda’s wand, and she suddenly felt her spell refine and focus. Her time reversal spell accelerated the repairs of the beanstalk to match the speed of its destruction.

“‘Oh, he’s cool. He did a cool thing’. You’re making the ‘he did a cool thing’ face, by the way,” the man gloated.

“How…?! Who are you?!”

“I’ve gone by many names. Different body, different name. If I remember correctly, this one was…Doctor?”

“Doctor? Dr. Who?”

“Never get tired of hearing that one.”

X X X X X

“Damn it! What the hell is that old lady thinking?!” Yang shouted her frustrations.

“Your godmother’s always been short a few screws. But this is worse, even by her standards,” Raven clenched her teeth. “Still, we can’t lose our composure. We both saw the vision. They should be able to hold out a little longer before the prediction comes to pass.”

Although her mother’s words were reassuring, there was an almost imperceptible quiver to her bottom lip. Yang could read the worry all over her face. An anxiety that threatened to swallow her if she didn’t constantly temper it.

“We’ll save her, mom. We’ll save Temujin.” She took Raven’s hand in hers.

“Yes, of course,” her mother sighed. “The question is how.”

“Can you slice us open a portal?”

Raven was about to say yes, when something held her tongue. There was a visible resistance to her movement. Invisible strings no one could see.

“Damn it!” she cursed. “It would count as direct interference against Salem! I can’t do it without breaking the contract!”

Yang tapped her in-ear communicator.

“Hey, operator. Did you get that?”

“Yeah,” Emerald answered. “Heard it all…!”

“How’s Neo?”

“Your wifey’s running on fumes like the rest of us. If you’re asking her to fast-track you back to the city, it ain’t happening right now. Just stay put, I called you guys an uber driver, who happened to be close by.”

“How are you and Merc?”

“We’ve got our hands full …!”

Yang heard gunfire in the background, as well as the random cries of bestial creatures.

“Em? What’s going on there?”

“Grimm. Lots of ‘em…! Trying to come through the crack Behemoth left in the wall. Also, some of its giant ass baby larvae are still around. Annoying fuckers.”

“How bad is it?”

“Let’s just say, we also got word parts of Salem’s armies are breaking off from the North and South to come here. So, uh, just a few shades shy of complete shitstorm.”

“And you need to hold there until more of Vacuo’s military makes it back. There’s no way you can help Temujin?”

“Not without letting Grimm overrun the city.”

“…Do you need me?”

“You won’t hear me say no, but... Your ride’s there.”

Just then, Yang and Raven spotted a light-traveling aircraft in the distance. In little to no time, its wing thrusters kicked up a wave of dust, as it came to a hover at the cliff’s edge.

The sidedoors opened to show Ilia.

“There better be a damn good reason I’m playing chauffeur in the middle of a fucking war, or you’re not getting on this boat.”

Yang only gave her a dead stare.

“Blake and Temujin.”

“…...Get on the fucking boat.”

X X X X X

Nai had never waged battle like this before.

The Grimm were intricately coordinated, their movements vastly complex. Whatever weakness certain species possessed were annoyingly paired with another species that could more or less compliment it.

There was an organization and strategy to the monsters Nai never thought possible. Not the Crusaders, not even his own people could achieve this level of coordination. It was a most formidable army, if it could be called that. A legion of darkness which surpassed imagination.

Who could control such a force of nature?

But the man already knew who. The one called, Bean. He would have gone after the enemy’s commander himself if he could pinpoint where the boy was. But as Nai stared out into the endless hordes of glowing red eyes, he knew such an idea was impossible.

We’ve managed to stall them somehow and Behemoth has been slain.

Better not to test our fortunes.

Retreat should be the priority.

The moment he finished the thought, a Moredread cleaved through the soldier beside him. It turned its attention the Khan’s way. The sword interlaced into the Grimm’s muscle fiber raised high once more.

Nai reacted immediately. He was well-versed in dealing with the Moredread. While they were fortified in a dark parody of medieval-like armor and literally armed with a claymore, they were not without weakness. The non-sword arm was a particular safe-zone to move to.

But as Nai strafed to the Moredread’s weakside, a scorpion’s tail almost stung him on approach. It was there, he noticed a baby Deathstalker wrapped around the knight’s gauntlet. With its top carapace facing outward and pincers snapping, it looked like some macabre shield.

Just then, a line of Moredread bearing Deathstalkers of their own, charged the front lines. They “shield bashed” the Vacuo vanguard, followed by a downward strike with their swords on any who lived through the first blow. And just like that, the Kingdom’s battalions staggered.

This isn’t good.

The rhythm of our army is being disrupted.

As if drowning their fears with rage, a Faunus warrior gave a mad cry before rushing the Grimm’s shield wall. His squadmates followed, trying to pry a break in the formation. But with uncanny unison, the Grimm gave way to a small concave and decimated the squadron in two short blows. The line reformed like a watery surface.

“FALL BACK! TO THE CHASM!” Nai ordered immediately.

War drums and horns resounded. The battalions showed signs of wanting to continue, but eventually gave in to their leader’s instructions.

To stop the Grimm from pursuing, a small flock of airships flew overhead. Some were taken down by the flying Grimm in the process, but those remaining deployed bombs to cover their allies’ withdrawal.

Exploding Dust dotted the space separating Vacuo’s military and the Grimm. The monsters ignored their baser instincts by not pursuing mindlessly into the fire. In fact, holding their position until the conflagration dissipated somewhat.

Damn!

Not even the barest of losses given.

“Pan! Assist the retreat!” Nai passed additional orders.

“You’ve got it!” shouted a lively response.

The former Headmaster of Signal Academy pulled ahead of the battalions and activated his Gravity Semblance.

Ahead, separating the army from the city walls was a wide chasm. Nai had chosen this location for the battle specifically for that reason. It was one of the only natural obstructions protecting the city and the perfect place to cover a retreat.

As Vacuo’s army approached, gold lights enveloped them like tiny fireflies. Their steps became weightless, as they jumped the fifty-meter gap with ease. Pan’s Semblance, with the assistance of a godmother device, allowed the battalions to defy gravity and leap to safety.

Once they were all across, their ranged units set up coverfire for the aerial.

Now, we only need to worry about the Grimm in the sky for the moment, Nai thought.

It will take hours for the main host to maneuver the chasm.

…

In a safe distance away, Bean watched the progression of events from the view points of Grimm he was linked to.

Stratagem is well-adapted.

General Nai’s ability requires reassessment.

However.

The Grimm around the boy rushed past, making their own way to hit the city, but he paid them no mind. He only looked down at the flute held in his hands with a troubled gaze.

It was a disturbing little artifact. The instrument was dyed in a bold ebony finish. Varnished bone crusted the lip and finger holes. The cursed pipe was once a Nightmare Class Grimm classified as Hamelin. But after Salem’s experiments, she converted the Grimm’s original form into an object. A feat Bean found the Witch was all too familiar with.

Regardless, the boy pressed the recorder to his lips. A devilish melody was born as soon as he breathed life into it. The kind of music that enticed those who heard it to move and follow against their wills.

…

In that moment, Nai watched an eeriness pervade the other side of the trench. He wasn’t sure at first, but he thought he saw the sands moving.

Then the bright red eyes of the Grimm became clear. They were much smaller and quicker than the ones of Bean’s standing army. It was like a flood of glimmering rubies skittering across the ground. And like a flood, the bodies collected into a river.

The tiny Grimm latched onto each other, forming an extension into the chasm. Some of them fell into the abyss, while more continued to squirm into the construction connecting one side to the other. Nai could barely make out their figures now.

They were Ratten, a rat-type of Grimm. Usually nothing more than pests individually, but they did carry the potential to swarm and plague if left unchecked. But Nai couldn’t have known they would be used in this way, much less an army capacity.

“Take them out!” he ordered, snapping his soldiers out of their stupor.

Rows of guns were brandished in new formation, barrels leveled at an even angle. The concerted rings of Dust rounds being loaded into firing chambers traveled down the ranks. The shooters opened fire for a sparse two seconds, before great booms impacted across the way. Thunderous crashes fell among their numbers.

On the backs of giant rabbit Grimm, Moredread knights struck down at the crouching shooters. A circle of blood and death reaped in their unexpected surroundings. And before the Vacuo military could react, the Moredread’s mounts leapt to another section.

All the while, the Ratten finished the first of their bridges. The tiny scourge rushed Vacuo’s warriors immediately—engulfing, consuming, until there was nothing left but barebones and trace amounts of flesh.

Nai himself, was being blanketed by the critters. They bit into his poisonous body, and died, but took pieces of him with them. They were especially dangerous for the rest of his battalions. The Ratten’s small bodies made them difficult to hit, and when they did manage to find purchase, the Grimm’s large numbers easily made the deficit for any one killed.

Nai never doubted the courage of Vacuo’s people when they met adversity. No matter the situation, he knew their warriors would fight to their deaths. Armies lived and died by their morale, and his battalions would only fall with spirits high.

Still, he prayed silently that this would not be the end.

“Is there nothing left we can do?”

X X X X X

“Are you quite finished?” Salem scowled at her opponents.

The Witch didn’t have the same level of strategery Bean had, or the same room to maneuver, but her Grimm still displayed an uncanny coordination. The dark army was beginning to best the warriors of Vacuo in the Southern theater.

Titan recognized the way the scales were tipping. Their side was also aware of the dire situation playing out on the Northern front, as well as the impending hordes bent towards the city’s West Wall.

“I will be fine on my own!” the Magic Bean Seller yelled to his comrades.

The immortal’s appearance shifted to a man with jade-white, taoist robes. A feathered fan materialized in his hand, and he brought it up with a heavy motion.

The beanstalk entered a deadlock with the moon, while its roots solidified its foundation. A great many stone formations rose from the sand, extending across the battle line. The rock curved and split, trapping Grimm attempting to get through. When the construction finished, a stone sentinel maze separated the two armies.

“…Alright, I’ll give you that. Very impressive,” the Doctor said slightly perturbed, while putting away his screwdriver. “Used up a lot of our incarnations’ energies in that, but I suppose it couldn’t be helped.”

He then, turned to Glynda and Minerva.

“We’ll hold off Wicked here. In the meantime, you should order your lot to reinforce the Western Wall. Oh, but the two of you have somewhere else to be…”

The man raised his brow to something behind them.

When they turned, they saw a mysterious green police box.

“Don’t worry, there’s enough room—”

“It’s bigger on the inside.”

X X X X X

Another of their airships spun and crashed into a smoldering wreckage in the sand. The Grimm under it were smashed into nothing but ash. When the pilot exited the cockpit, he let out a fierce scream, fighting the monsters swarming him before succumbing to their endless claws and bites.

Nai was barely keeping the battalions together. He managed to pass orders between fending off the Ratten and the mounted Moredread, but it was obvious where the battle was headed. His people were quickly being overtaken.

There was a feeling of inevitably donning on him and his army. They could not outrun Bean’s Grimm, not by air or ground. It was becoming all too likely their forces would not only be routed, but wiped out entirely.

As Nai banished the thought for the umpteenth time, an odd undulating whir caught his attention. In the empty space where the sound came from, a rectangular object faded into existence. From the green box, two women stepped out.

With riding crop and wand in hand, they simultaneously cast a thunderous cloud over the whole area. The wide-range spell hailed ice and lightning across the swarms of Grimm. A counter to the numerous, but fragile bodies of the Ratten.

“Go!” Minerva shouted to Nai. “Gather our people back behind the walls and enact siege defenses!”

Nai nodded, and resumed ushering his armies to the city.

As she watched her fellow Khan retreat, Minerva couldn’t help but wonder.

Where is Temujin in all this?

She said she wouldn’t join us in the South, but she isn’t here either?

I know she didn’t take part in Behemoth’s extermination.

You senile buffoon.

“What in the hell are you thinking?!

X X X X X

“Temujin, I’m so sorry,” Blake apologized with tears in her eyes.

“Hmph. What are you apologizing for, while swinging your sword in my face?!” Temujin snapped, as she used her cane to deflect another one of Blake’s blows.

The previously quiet throne room of the Hanging Gardens had turned into a private arena.

Temujin herself, faced her former proteges in Adam and Blake. The two always worked well together, their movements combined always produced a high-paced lethality. An aspect Raven and Temujin fostered themselves, to their current regret.

Adam dashed forward at an opening, but abruptly crashed to the ground. His body convulsed as he gasped with pain.

“Kill…ME…!”

His body was being torn apart by Temujin’s territorial Semblance, but only short of fatal. On the other hand, Blake moved freely to attack. The weakness of Temujin’s Semblance was exposed to them earlier, as it could not target more than one opponent at any given moment.

“KILL ME!” Adam coughed blood.

“Peh! Don’t give me orders, you brat!” Temujin scolded. “I don’t need to kill you or Blake in order to stop you. Don’t underestimate me!”

The elder Faunus stabbed her cane through Blake’s clone, before throwing an Aura-enhanced dart into Blake’s thigh when she reappeared. But the wound quickly healed with unnatural speed, forcing the dart out onto the floor. A dark mist billowed from the regenerated cut in the flesh.

“You have to kill us, Temujin,” Blake pleaded. “We can’t resist Salem’s control. There’s no other way!”

“No, I’m sure there is,” the elder disagreed easily.

“You’ll die if this keeps up! You can’t handle both of us at the same time!”

“Don’t be stupid. You two won’t be the end of me.”

Temujin glowered from the pair to the Rakis siblings fighting Camlann a certain distance away.

Seeing how they neglected Blake and Adam completely, it’s obvious what they saw in their vision.

So, I am to meet my end at the hands of Camlann, am I?

Temujin discerned the situation with an appraising glare. The siblings were obviously trying to keep the Grimm and her separate. She could imagine how it would likely play out. Death at the hands of her “supposed” mortal nemesis.

Rather fitting if the Grimm truly is the reincarnation of the Crusaders’ ill will.

Mouse, Knives, Summer.

I’ve carried on through so many misdeeds without so much as any care or regret.

My ego made weapons of my people to break against my enemies.

I can no longer fight properly, even as I send more lives to their early graves.

I cannot stand beside them at their final moments.

An old fool with a missing eye and leg.

There’s only so much until someone as stubborn as me gets the message.

It is no longer in me to fight the wheels of fate…

…

Camlann, king of the Moredread Grimm barreled down on the Rakis siblings like a warbound locomotive. Its stature was comparable to an Ursa, but its strength and arsenal were beyond any measure. With its grossly swollen sword and shield, it charged Mouse and Knives relentlessly like a mad bulldozer.

The siblings were small and light. Their blades vibrated with a magnetic hum, as they shrieked them across the Grimm’s armor. Usually their daggers could cut through the toughest bone, but it was not so in this case.

Knives and Mouse crisscrossed against its shield a second time. The sound of countless strikes could be heard, further evidenced by the sparks scattered from the friction. Camlann’s aegis was formed of the densest material layered over. And despite that, the Grimm dragged and swung it around as if it weighed nothing.

The flat boulder of the shield almost caught Knives with its edge, but the girl slipped just underneath it. She purposely baited the attack, dodged, and then brandished her karambit all along Camlann’s unprotected arm. But all the good it did, but cut shallow grooves into the Grimm’s armor.

The claymore came chasing after her, but Knives made her escape like a ghost, almost floating out of its range.

Mouse couldn’t stop but marvel at his younger sister’s movements. He was sure Knives’ consciousness was still in there, but Summer’s co-possession curbed her unnecessary tendencies. There was an experienced hand guiding his sister’s fighting style, as well as an unnerving agility that wasn’t present before.

“Mouse, I need you to follow my lead,” Summer said. “Use your short-term Precognition to match with me.”

“Do you have a plan? As this rate, we can’t defeat Camlann. The prediction is going to come true!”

“We don’t need to beat it, just stop it long enough for the others to get here.”

“And in the instance, they do make it in time. What could they possibly do?”

“Hm,” her sister flashed him an aged smile in a youthful face. “If there’s anyone who can defy the future, it’s them. It’s why I brought them here in the first place.”

“…I don’t have any choice but to believe that, don’t I?”

“Nope!”

And with that, Knives launched herself at Camlann once more, trailed closely by her brother.

…

Temujin watched the Rakis siblings’ fight from afar. She deciphered their intentions as clear as day. She also saw that they might die trying to save her.

Can’t have that.

Temujin locked her cane against Blake’s two swords. There was an obvious conflict in her opponent’s body. Blake was clearly trying to resist Salem’s influence. The strength of her and Adam’s attacks were only half, if it was that much. But it was still enough to keep Temujin in check.

“How do the contracts work, hm?” she asked, paying little mind they were crossing weapons. “It seems Raven has more leeway in her actions.”

“I can’t tell you…!” Blake struggled to reply.

“So long as she acts within the confines of her set conditions, she seems to be able to move freely. Are the contracts you and Adam hold by different in some way?”

“Adam and I broke our contracts…! This is the price of defying the Witch…!”

“Ah. Interesting. So the price of breaking your contracts is complete obedience? How faithful are you to her orders?”

“We don’t have a choice…! Our bodies are acting on their own…! That’s why you have to kill us!!!”

“I’m getting tired of hearing you say that. Back to the matter before, how faithful are you to her orders. What were they? Something along the lines of ‘do everything it takes to end Temujin’s life’?”

Blake scrunched her face, all but conveying the answer.

“I see,” Temujin nodded. “Well, then. What if I were to tell you the Rakis siblings foresaw the means of my demise? And it was Camlann who accomplished the deed. Not you or Adam.”

Blake blinked with confusion, before her consciousness shifted in and out of awareness.

“No!” she tried to shake her senses clear. “It’s a lie!”

“It’s not a lie. The best way to end my life is to let Camlann do it.”

“STOP IT!”

“In order to accomplish that, you should get Mouse and Knives out of the way.”

“WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?!”

As angry as Blake was, Temujin felt the remaining strength fade from the girl’s swords. She stepped back in disbelief, making no impression of restarting the duel. Her actions completely outside her control.

“NO!” Blake shouted, trying to will her body forward.

But nothing came of it.

Temujin observed the phenomena a while longer, before confirming her suspicions.

Hm, I see their orders are a little easy to manipulate.

Just as well, I suppose.

Salem will get what she wants in the end.

Temujin let down her guard and released the territory binding Adam.

The young man got uneasily to his feet, wearing the same pained expression as Blake. Both showed a sorrowed disbelief at what Temujin was making them do.

“I’m sorry, Blake, Adam,” she said to the two in turn. “I am truly sorry it came to this.”

Against their wills, Blake and Adam set off for the other side of the throne room. The two joined the fight with the Rakis siblings.

“I am sorry.”

X X X X X

As Yang, Raven, and Ilia rode the airship to the city, they could see the harrowing situations unfolding from a distance.

There were Grimm pouring over the dunes to the North. Minerva, Glynda, and Nai were retreating with their armies and securing siege defense at the Northern Wall.

Titan was holding back Salem and her forces in the South. The retreating Vacuo army was setting up their own siege defense, while sending reinforcements to the Western Wall. And it was there, the three’s airship flew just overhead.

The burning carcass of Behemoth was still in the process of dissolving into the wind. Fiery wreckage dotted the break in the wall and a little into the city. Grimm were swarming through the gap, which fighters on the inside were making use of as a funnel. Though, even with the tactic in place, there were so many of the monsters filing through, the defending forces risked being overrun at any moment.

And there were more Grimm on the way.

Yang felt her stomach lurch as she tapped into her comms.

“Hey, Em! You there?!”

“Oh. That you idiots, up high?” Emerald’s radio crackled more than earlier. “How’s the view?”

“There’s more Grimm closing on the gap!”

“So, we figured.”

Below, they saw a herd of Boarbatusk Grimm roll into a spinning ball, and ram into the wall repeatedly. More of the structure collapsed at the impact. The break in the wall crumbled further.

“Emerald!!!”

“Yeah…! *Hkrgh!* Fuck! We saw…!”

Immediately, Yang saw three figures move to counteract the new influx of Grimm. They maneuvered to prevent the Boarbatusk from causing further damage. But as effective as they proved, their enemies were repeatedly surrounding them.

“EM!!! HEY!!!”

“Don’t worry about us! Just get to Temujin!”

“But what about you guys?!”

“We’ll hold the choke…! Get your ass over there already!”

“Emerald…”

“Don’t worry. Worst comes to worst, we’ll make a run for it…! We’re good at that, remember?”

“…Make sure you do.”

“Obviously…!”

Yang pretended not to notice how tired Emerald really sounded. She then, heard a few taps on the radio, which could only be from Neo.

“I love you too, babe. Let me know if I need to double back,” she replied. “I can’t lose you.”

“I know. I will,” Mercury interrupted.

“Haha…!” Yang chuckled. “Don’t die out there, Merc. Still need to open that weapons shop.”

“Yeah, which reminds me. We are getting paid for this gig, right? Make sure Temujin stays alive long enough to pay our reward?”

“You got it, bud.”

Yang waited a moment, before she turned her gaze from her team to the Hanging Gardens ahead.

She had been holding it out, but the deep sinking feeling in her chest was starting to give way. There was no telling when the Grimm would finally break through the West as easily as it could be from the North or South. The girl tightened her fist and felt Aura strain at her summons. She barely had anything left in the tank after Operation Gun Dog, Behemoth, and subduing Inna.

Yang long learned to never stop fighting until the very end, and in no way was her spirit dampened. But the truth was becoming clearer that today may be their day of days. If it was, she wondered if Cinder and Weiss would order Team ENMY’s retreat before then. She wondered if they would obey it if it came down.

Can we still win this?

Yang stared to the back of the cockpit, where Raven absentmindedly tapped the hilt of her sword with impatience.

No, we have to.

I don’t know how, but we will.

I don’t care how bad it looks or what future Mouse and Knives saw.

I can’t let things end this way.

I won’t!

As if reading Yang’s thoughts, Raven noticed her stare and nodded solemnly.

No.

I’m not the only one who won’t let things just end this way.

X X X X X

Back at Atlas HQ, the Queen regents and Board of Directors watched the increasing direness of Vacuo’s situation with widened eyes.

“How far out are the reinforcement Fleet?” Cinder asked for the update.

“Fifteen hours ma’am,” the adjutant replied. “Three hours for the light transport sortie.”

The officer neglected to tell her it was probably the fifth time she asked in the last half hour. She could see the Black Queen was barely keeping herself from shouting the orders.

At that moment, a small blip ringed on her tablet.

“Ma’am…” the officer called uncertainly.

“What is it?”

“The light transport, Swordfish is requesting permission to proceed ahead of the group.”

“Patch them through.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

With a few key commands, the adjutant secured a line to the team onboard the Swordfish vessel.

“Hey, head honchos!” Coco Adel’s image flared on the projection. “Give Team CFVY the go already. With this ship, we should be able to make it within the hour.”

“Your team is tasked primarily with Team ENMY’s extraction, NOT as a reinforcement element,” Cinder snarled.

“Yeah, but you haven’t given them the order to tail it yet. So, what’s the fuss in letting us get there early and waiting?”

“And if they needed emergency evacuating, but you were neutralized while ‘waiting’. What, then?”

“We can still do our job and help Vacuo.”

“You’re only one team.”

“Weiss! I’ll cut my commission in half if you let us go right now!” Coco shouted.

Cinder turned to her fellow Queen, who had her eyes closed in deep thought. When she opened them, the girl glared right at Coco’s hologram, as if they were speaking in person.

“Nothing reckless! Your primary objective is to assist Team ENMY. Understood?”

“Loud and clear!” Coco whooped.

Weiss looked to the teammates behind her. The image was fuzzy, but she could see Velvet, Yatsuhashi, and Fox show signs of relief. It may have been her imagination, but she might have seen Velvet mouth a small thank you.

“Be careful, Team CFVY,” Weiss cautioned.

“Roger. Team CFVY out,” Coco confirmed.

The White Queen breathed a troubled sigh, intentionally avoiding Cinder’s gaze. Rather than waiting, she extended the first words.

“I think there was a fifty-fifty chance Team CFVY was going to disobey orders, and fly ahead.”

“I would have put the odds closer to eighty-twenty,” Cinder smiled.

Just then, a number of blips came in requesting communications.

“What is this?” Weiss muttered.

“M-ma’ams,” the adjutant started with a small hitch in her voice. “T-they’re requests to sortie ahead. All light transports are saying they are ready and willing to burn their fuel reserves to arrive at Vacuo ahead of schedule. The same requests are being made of General Ironwood and Captain Trafalgar of the main fleet.”

Weiss was struck silent for a moment.

“……If they do that, they won’t have enough Dust for the journey back should the worst happen.”

“They know, ma’am,” the officer nodded, trying to keep a straight face. “They’re aware and requesting permission.”

Weiss looked to Cinder for an explanation, but was only met with the same confusion. The officer then, patched the main projection into what the reinforcement Fleet was viewing.

They were images of Vacuo’s people fighting relentlessly against the Grimm, as they were being torn apart. Many raged, many cried, and they fought harder for the ally who fell mere moments ago, only a few feet away. There wasn’t a single warrior on the battlefield that wasn’t covered in wounds.

Another soldier fell. Her partner took their weapon and slew the Grimm with it. And then, they also died.

What precious few airships Vacuo possessed, dropped like flies. The pilots, who knew their deaths were imminent, made sure to steer their crafts so they would land among the enemy. Any survivors of the crash fought, while missing their limbs.

Emerald, Neo, and Mercury could be seen battling despite their exhaustion. They were surrounded and outnumbered, but held themselves to keeping the choke in the Wall under control. Nothing but the sheerest of wills moved them now. Blood stained their figures head to toe.

“Emerald…!” Cinder bit her lip.

She was ready to pick up the communicator and order their retreat. There was never a time she was closer to doing it than now.

…

Yet, she couldn’t bring herself—and she wasn’t all too sure why.

“Cinder.”

The Black Queen felt Weiss’ hand hold hers. The cool touch alleviated the pain she didn’t notice from her nails digging into her palm.

“They’ll be fine. Help is on the way,” Weiss told her.

“…I know.”

“They won’t fight alone.”

“No…”

“…They won’t.”

X X X X X

Before Mouse could understand what was happening, dark mist clouded his sight. There was a violent vacuum that dragged his body across what felt like a world over. And then, his feet hit solid ground, sliding upon landing.

“No! What?!”

As he spun to take in his new surroundings, he recognized that he was somewhere in Vacuo’s bazaars. Empty stalls and vacant roads were all he could see. The residents and workers had long been evacuated to the bunkers.

His sight eventually settled on a large shadowy cat with smoke billowing its body. Mouse understood what had happened. Blake had warped him away from the throne room.

“NO!” he cried.

“I’m sorry,” a girl’s soft voice could barely be heard.

And then, Blake’s figure vanished with a puff.

…

Summer was at her wit’s end fighting Adam and Camlann at the same time. Using a body that wasn’t hers had its limits. She was also unable to access her Semblance.

As she dodged within a millimeter of having her head cut off by Camlann and her forehead sliced open by Adam, she made a hasty jump back. Summer touched a hand to her hair, and found it a few locks short.

No.

I’m cutting it too close.

If this wasn’t hard enough, if I get hurt once, Knives will wake up.

I’ll lose possession immediately.

As Knives curled her hands in frustration, she heard a voice come from the other side of the throne room.

“Summer!” Temujin yelled. “Stop risking her life!”

“And maybe you should stop trying to give up yours!”

“This is no joke! I will never forgive you if any harm comes to her! Do you hear me?!”

Even though it was Knives’ body, Temujin could see the outline of Summer’s appearance behind her. An older woman, with an overpowering presence despite a gentle nature. A calm determination that reminded her too much of Shepherd.

“You can’t just be brave for yourself, Temujin,” Summer said. “I used to think I was responsible for other’s lives too. But Raven, your daughter, taught me people’s lives are their own.” The woman smiled sadly. “And it’s always their lives to risk. You have to have the courage to see it through on their behalf too.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about! This will be meaningless if I lose her. She and Mouse must lead our people.”

“It’s you who doesn’t understand. I’m pushing her body beyond what it’s capable of. Knives is asleep, but I can hear her. She’s screaming, begging me to fight harder—to push harder.”

“…”

“You may have given up, but she hasn’t. I want to grant her wish to its end.”

“Oh, you’re granting wishes now?”

A cloud of dark billowing mass exploded from the empty space and Blake emerged forth. The light in her eyes was glazed and distant. Her face was vacant of emotion, yet something seethed below the tone.

“Salem. Long time no see,” Knives greeted.

“Summer Rose.”

“Still have the spare time to chat, even while fighting Titan?”

“Please, the Old One possesses all the threat of a bothersome mosquito. In fact, I believe the only true adversary I have left in this pathetic remnant is the one standing before me.”

“Wow. Flattered, but I’m not really here,” Summer chuckled.

Blake went silent for a short moment.

“…How did you do it?”

“You’ll have to be more specific,” Summer grinned.

“I should have known. Raven couldn’t have broken the first contract on her own. You helped her. How?”

The little girl stared blankly back, before shrugging. As if to imply she still had no idea what the other was talking about.

“Hmph,” Salem scoffed. “I doubt you could perform that feat now. This isn’t your body.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Shall we test it?”

“I’m game, if you’re game, Sally.”

Blake glared with an intensity like she could burn a hole through her. But Knives only smiled back with the sort of fierce defiance only a child could have before a deity. It was a duel daring the other to make the first move. A decision to call Summer’s bluff, or concede.

“…Hm. I believe our fated moment will arrive soon enough,” Salem grinned. “A time where we won’t be communicating through proxies, but a meeting face-to-face.”

“I’ll be waiting,” Summer answered.

“Hmph.”

The Witch moved her gaze from Knives to someone past her.

“I believe this is the first time we’ve been formally introduced. I am—”

“I know who you are!” Temujin hacked a large spit to the side. “You’re some dusty, ancient cunt, who wants to be forever young by possessing younger people.”

…

The figure of Knives bent over, clutching her stomach in pain. Summer was trying to stifle her uncontrollable laughter, but was failing. Abrupt snorts escaped through the hands and they would not stop.

“I knew I’d find you insufferable,” Salem scowled.

“And I knew you’d be a boring, pretend-goth, edgelord!”

“…”

More painful cries from Knives echoed the silent throne room.

…

“You like that?!” Temujin glowered. “Ilia taught me that one. I have no idea what it means, but it felt right. And it felt good.”

“Are those truly the last words you wish to part your life with?” Salem asked.

“I have a few more. There’s a list somewhere.” The elder woman started patting her clothes. “Must’ve misplaced it. Had some other good ringers for you.”

“Enough.”

In that moment, three things happened at once. At the Witch’s command, Camlann charged Temujin with his claymore thrust towards her head. The blow was stopped by Summer, who barely caught the sword between two daggers. But her strength alone would have been easily overwhelmed. The only thing that kept her from dying was Temujin activating her Semblance.

The Grimm knight groaned with an unearthly bellow through the slits of its mouthguard. Its surrounding environment worked to kill it, but as testament to its strength, it did not collapse like so many others. Camlann had more than a hardiness found in many of its class. Its entire entity was birthed by the malice held towards Temujin. The final breath of countless Crusaders, who cursed the Great Khan’s name.

In a sense, Camlann was the pinnacle of what a Grimm was.

Even in the face of Temujin and Summer’s combined strength, the monster made one heavy step forward after another. And with that single repeated motion, strained everything Temujin and Summer had.

While the contest of wills proceeded, Blake paid the scene with a light applause.

“A valiant effort. Almost poetic.”

““…!””

Neither Temujin or Summer could muster a comeback. Stressful breaths escaped them in short, stuttering heaves. Sweat coated their skin with increasing fatigue.

“This is exactly reflective of our so-called War. You cannot possibly win, yet you struggle nonetheless. Allow me to enlighten you on a little fact, Temujin.”

“…”

“I know full well what your death will bring. The Faunus will cry with outrage. They may even fight my Grimm back for a time. I very much expect it.”

“…”

“But hold no illusions with you, when you make your journey into the afterlife. Vacuo’s time is over. Its end is not just a certainty, but an eventuality.”

“…I’ll…! Kill…! You…!”

“Tsk tsk. Offer your life to the masses as much as you like—”

“For there will be no victory in strength.”

X X X X X

Emerald was reaching her breaking point.

Her Semblance was stressed to its absolute limits. There were too many minds, too many senses she was coordinating at once. She was constantly flirting with the threshold of a complete brain meltdown. But at the sign of five Vacuo soldiers watching a new break in the Wall form, she pushed her Enchantments harder.

Emerald tried to separate her physical perception from her mental, but she couldn’t shut out the cluster headaches that formed. Her nose was bleeding, practically able to hear the little droplets touch the ground. She inadvertently shuffled her feet, because she almost lost conscious along with her balance. Her shoe knocked slightly against one of the four Godmothers she burned through.

The Western Wall was crawling with Grimm. Its Dust lining worn through the endless tidal waves of creatures sacrificing their bodies against it. The turrets, which used to be the main deterrent, had long been destroyed. And more Grimm climbed over the ramparts with each passing second.

Still, the warriors of Vacuo defended the choke point. Mercury and the other aerial units took down countless of their flying counterparts. Neo was reduced to using the bare minimum to slay the Grimm with the other foot soldiers. Nothing but her physical agility and swordsmanship to commit, but hundreds of their foes fell nonetheless by it.

Emerald felt a stray bone projectile cut her cheek, and almost slipped her mental link. The warriors she coordinated with, sensed it and immediately went to shield her. No care given to their pre-existing wounds.

It was a desperate battle. A miracle in itself they were somehow managing with the forces they had. News over the comm channels told them the North was facing a similar assault, but without the gap in their Wall.

“Em, you need a break!” Mercury told her.

“And who’s going to make this work if I don’t?”

“This fight isn’t going to end any time soon. We’ll need you for the rest of it.”

“Yeah, except Bean’s putting his focus here. I can tell by how the Grimm are moving. If he’s masterminding these fuckers, the only way we hold him off is I keep masterminding our guys back!”

“We can brute force it till you catch a breath.”

“…Oh, hallelujah. Guess I’ll be getting that break after all. You and Neo get your asses back here too.”

Mercury didn’t have to ask why Emerald had a sudden change of mind. About a dozen Atlesian light crafts answered the question for him. One particularly silver-nosed ship, the first to arrive, rained a relentless barrage of machine gun fire from above.

Androids were deployed all around the funnel area, providing support to Vacuo’s warriors and Team ENMY.

After the Grimm’s waves were subdued somewhat, Emerald noticed a lessened coordination. Bean diverted his attentions back to the North theater, as soon as Atlas reinforcements arrived.

“Fffffuck…!” Emerald retracted her mental links and staggered back a few steps. “About freakin’ time these guys showed up.”

Behind her, the Swordfish landed. From its passenger doors, a team of familiar faces stepped out.

“Hey, Emmy~♪ Been a while, huh?” Coco waved. “Do we get a thank you for pulling your ass out of the fire?”

“If I remember right, we should be square from some shit back in Atlas.”

“Nah, you’re remembering wrong. I’ll send you an invoice for our services later.”

“Asshole.”

“Come on. You know you can’t let money stand between good friends.”

“That’s exactly something I would do, and is that what we are?”

As Team CFVY approached, Mercury and Neo joined Emerald. The two teams crossed, and a number of high-fives were exchanged.

“Tag, you’re in,” Emerald groaned.

“Take a knee, kiddo. You’ll owe me,” Coco grinned.

“You guys got energy drinks in that thing?” Mercury pointed to the Swordfish.

“I would not drink it. They taste awful,” Yatsuhashi replied.

“The worst tasting ones are the best ones.”

“That is…completely untrue.”

“Thanks so much for your hard work, you guys,” Velvet said with heartfelt gratitude.

Neo smiled tiredly, and gave her a light pat on the butt.

“Ah!”

Go get ‘em.

“Er, yes. We will!”

Trading places with ENMY, Team CFVY went into the siege defense with a furious motivation. Meanwhile, Emerald and the rest of her crew collapsed into the Swordfish’s interior.

They knew their break would only last half an hour at most. The main Atlesian Fleet was still far away. What reinforcements arrived would not hold out until then by themselves.

Mercury knocked over a nearby cooler, and started draining energy drinks into his open mouth.

“Dude…” Emerald could only comment.

“Don’t judge. You want one?”

“No.” She eyed a thermos with her name on it, along with the price of five-thousand lien written jokingly at the end. “Coco’s special ice coffee. Good shit.”

Neo rummaged through the cooler and found a few ice cream bars set aside for her. It appeared Velvet had left a thank you note next to it as well.

As their team took their long-deserved break, they practically inhaled what they considered their late lunch. Too tired to eat, but forced whatever they could into their stomachs. They watched from a safe distance as the Wall remained a desperate battlefield, ready to jump in at any moment.

There was no talk. They couldn’t afford to. And their thoughts of Yang were obvious, and didn’t need voicing.

It was everything they could do to recover and then will themselves back into the fray.

Half an hour. A time that passed all too quickly, and at the same time, not fast enough. They would not rejoin the fight if they had a choice. No one in their right mind would.

But what they wanted was not what the world needed. Vacuo needed its warriors. Remnant needed its Enemy.

Mercury chucked another empty can into the street, before he began chugging a new one midstride. Emerald stretched her neck and pressed her knuckles to her temples. Neo moved silently, without any excess motion.

She bade one look in the direction of the Hanging Gardens. Even if it was brief, catching a glimpse of Yang was enough to lift her spirits.

“Oh, there ain’t no rest for the wicked,” Emerald sang.

“Money don’t grow on trees.

I got bills to pay, I got mouths to feed.

There ain’t nothin’ in this world for free.

Oh no, I can’t slow down, I can’t hold back.”

“Though you know, I wish I could.”

X X X X X

“No, there ain’t no wish for the Wicked. Until we close our eyes for good~”

Salem murmured the last part of the song, while watching the events swirl around her. The landscape around them drifted in and out without rhyme or reason. A world at a crossroads of all the available paths fate could turn.

She stared at the multiple incarnations of Titan littering the ground. Each with bated breath, trying to stay conscious after their lengthy fight, which eventually brought them to the Never Realm.

Salem waved her hand and summoned the events happening around Vacuo like multiple memories playing out.

Her army in the South resumed its march after dragging Titan out of the physical plane. Vacuo’s Northern Wall was facing heavy siege from the Grimm under Bean’s command. And now, more of her forces were being committed to the crack in the West.

“And, so falls the great and mighty titan,” she said with sarcastic flair.

“I’ve lived long enough,” the Old Ones responded in unison.

“I wasn’t speaking of you. I was referring to Vacuo and…” With another wave of her hand, Hanging Garden’s throne room surrounded them. “…her.”

Camlann was advancing ever so slowly. Summer mustered every strength she could to stop the blow from reaching Temujin, and Temujin was doing all she could to save Knives.

“This is the part where you would normally run. So, why haven’t you?”

Titan’s bodies felt the Witch’s curse quicken in their blood streams.

“…You truly mean to die.”

“Hah…! You sound almost disappointed with my defeat!” the Old One spat back. “I thought you would be delighted.”

“Oh, I am. I just assumed there were still a few more vain attempts in you before the end. Some last-ditch efforts, but alas—I once again find myself overestimating my age-old adversary. As if my impression of you could be any lower.”

“This fight has been over for me…long before Vacuo.”

“Indeed,” she sighed. “Look at them all, Titan. So small. Their very conceptual awareness is flawed.”

“Is it? I rather think it is the opposite.”

“This world is at an end. It’s been at its end for a while, before they were even born. Remnant is a ghost, a flawed byproduct of a figment that was never meant to be. You know this better than anyone.”

“What I know is wrong.”

“You still believe?”

Salem made the images spin like a twisted carousel. Every life lost in real time flashed before their eyes. Bodies going cold, the souls leaving their vessels, the last beat of their hearts before their final breath extinguished.

“They are entertaining little creatures. So weak, but very much entertaining,” the Witch admitted.

“Yes, they are. As weak as possible, but also as strong as when it requires. Never too much, never too little. Just right,” the Wizard rasped.

Salem cocked her head with suspicion. A paranoia flitted her expression, before she shook it away.

“No, this is enough. In Oberon’s memory, in your brother’s memory, I thought I could hold one decent conversation with you before you died. But true to form, you speak of nothing but foolish drivel.”

“Feeling lonely? The only immortal left will be Masa.”

“I’m sure I’ll find a way to cope with your loss.”

““Hahaha!”” an echoing cacophony of the reincarnations laughed.

In the midst of the immortals’ banter, one reincarnation separated Qrow from the others. The two had fled the battlefield ahead of time, and masked their presence.

“It’s about time you made your exit, Qrow.”

“What are you talking about, Oz? This isn’t the deal.”

“The rest of us will manage on our own. Your task is far from over.”

Ozpin took Qrow’s hand, and pressed something into it. The veteran Huntsman turned it over, examining it with intense curiosity.

It was a gold knight chess piece. A familiar artifact Qrow had seen once before. Something he spotted in the corner of Team RWBY’s dorm back at Beacon. Apparently, they had been used as Relics in their entrance exam.

“You know, I’ve granted so many wishes over the years,” part of Ozpin and part of Titan mused. “This may be the first time I’ve entrusted another with my own.”

“Titan…” Qrow could only mutter.

“Please, bring this to Yang Xiao Long. This is my final request.”

“……What is it?”

“Hm.”

Ozpin put a hand to his chin and chuckled lightly.

“I believe your niece referred to it once as,”

“A cute little pony.”

…

The reincarnations all paused in their laughter. They sensed Qrow leave the Never Realm, making for the Hanging Gardens in his shapeshifted form. Their Relic firmly in his possession.

“I’m a bit tired,” Titan sighed. “But I think I do have one more ‘vain attempt’ in me,” he smirked at Salem.

The Wizard arranged quick transportation for Taiyang Xiao Long with his last bit of influence on the physical world.

And with that, I have fulfilled the wish Summer made to me, which I refused so long ago.

If only I had tried to grant it from the beginning, maybe I wouldn’t have pushed her away.

Too late for that now, I suppose.

Together, the reincarnations of the Old One rose to their feet. A reverent green light encompassed them all. Their expressions steeled with a hallowed resolve.

“SO, THE END COMES!”

The swarm of past lives attacked the Witch like an army bent on its own destruction.

And the death of the Immortal Titan came to pass.

X X X X X

Blake blinked.

Her pupils dilated and readjusted, while in the throne room. She opened and closed her hand to test her reflexes. The sensation of the possession was now completely different.

Ah, so he destroyed the vessel with that last move.

Vain attempt, indeed.

Merely accelerated my transference to this one.

The Witch gave a low, rolling laugh.

Before her, was still the stalemate between Temujin, Summer, and Camlann. Adam was the only one to really notice the change in Blake.

Salem could barely control herself. She couldn’t stop laughing. Her shoulders shuddered and her cheeks were starting to feel sore. And then, she noticed something odd, which put an end to her fit.

Light tears trickled down her face.

…

…Am I actually mourning that old fool?

I hated him.

And, still.

“I’ve had enough of this,” the Witch growled. “I am growing tired as well…old friend.”

She bit her lip, and was overcome with emotions she hadn’t felt in centuries.

“We will find our peace. You, your brother, and I. Not in this lifetime…”

“…but the next.”

X X X X X

“You’ve done enough, Summer!” Temujin shouted at the small back defending her. “Take Knives, and leave!”

“I won’t!” Summer refused. “I have promises to keep…!”

“You need to let whatever needs to happen, happen. You said yourself, other people’s lives are to do with as they please.”

“That’s only true for people still willing to fight! You resigned to your fate, so it doesn’t count…!”

Temujin could feel her Semblance waning, while she argued with Summer. There would soon be nothing to stop Camlann from running Knives through, and herself after. She wondered what else she could say to plead the woman into leaving. She wondered if it was possible at all.

“Summer…please. Take Knives and go.”

“The answer is still no,” Summer shook her head vehemently. “Nope!”

“You’re so foolish. I’ll never forgive you.”

“Nope! The stupid thing would be to leave you here on your own. And that’s a mistake I’ve already made…!”

“…”

“Nope! We can still do the right thing!”

Knives and Summer’s eyes shone with a twinkling silver. A vision of the future was deviating from its set course. The memory shaped and aligned to something Summer once saw in a dream. Yang and Raven were close. Qrow was on his way. Taiyang was exiting a green police box outside.

“They’re going to be here soon, Temujin. If you want to give up after this, that’s fine because I might actually join you. But not before my team’s had their turn!”

“…What are you talking about?”

Summer’s mischievous grin grew from ear to ear.

“STRQ Team’s last mission!”

#rwby #yang xiao long #emerald sustrai #neopolitan #mercury black #raven branwen #qrow branwen #taiyang xiao long #Summer Rose #TEAM STRQ #ENMY

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