The Wilted Rose

Chapter 74: Two Options

Amity colosseum

6:05 PM

The Fall is Here

Red Hood Pov

Pyrrha threw her arms out, as if she was trying to push something away from her. Penny had just sent her swords at Pyrrha when Pyrrha reacted. Before I even had a chance to even process what I was watching, it was over. I couldn't tell if the crowd had gone silent or if I had somehow lost my sense of sound from the shock. 

It only took everyone three seconds to even realize what they were looking at. One moment of shock. One moment of apprehension. And one moment of fear, realizing that Penny laid in pieces on the arena floor. 

Ruby sank to her knees and I just stared at Penny. She was looking towards the tunnel that Ruby and I were in. All I could focus on was her eyes going wide before they dilated and stared out into space. It felt like she was staring at me. Accusing me of this happening to her. 

In a way, it was. There's plenty of things I could have done to stop this. One of them is not worrying about Mercury. If I hadn't taken that time for him, I would have made it. This was entirely my fault.... 

I felt numb looking at Penny. I felt like I was looking at Roy again. Knowing that this was the second time I failed to save a friend. I felt my head throb, as if it was trying to sooth what I was feeling but all it did was snap me back into the moment. Suddenly, a burning rage that I had buried deep since I had came to Beacon reemerged. It came out every now and again but this time, it was here to stay. This was going to be worse than Atlas. On que, the howls and roars of Grimm from the surrounding areas rang out loudly, despite how far away from the ground we were. 

Ruby: ....P-Penny....

Ruby started sobbing and that was the moment when I broke. I screamed out, ready to inflict indiscriminate violence on whatever or whoever got in my way. The months that I spent here, healing and being happy was over. Y/n Rose was buried once again. He wasn't needed anymore. In my rage, I started critically thinking and taking note of the situation. The most obvious was the video feed. It was still active. 

There was several reasons this could have been but the most likely was that Neo and Roman were in the wrong place. Atlas had already lost total control. That was why the Knights turned on the soldiers. It was so Cinder could contain the situation so it would be too late once everyone realized something was wrong. Taking it further, to my knowledge, Ironwood never scrubbed the transmit tower after Cinders break in. That was probably our fatal mistake. 

Ironwood had proven me right in the worst way possible. They couldn't be trusted and now, because of the incompetence from both Atlas, Ozpin and unfortunately, myself, we all were about to pay the price. I should have just had Neo and Roman come with me. It was already too late to stop Atlas' loss of control. Now they were on their own against a ship full of hostile mechs and League assassins. It was a total fuck up on my part. 

Almost as if it was too confirm my thoughts, the video feed flickered to reveal a black queen chess piece on the screen. The same as with the Knights, and my scroll from months ago. It caught everyone's attention. I knew that this was it. This was the start of the fall of Vale. Cinders voice rang out over the speakers. The anger growing at the sound of her voice. 

Cinder: This is not a tragedy. This was not a accident. This is what happens when your trust, your safety, your children, to men who claim to be your guardians, but are in reality, nothing more than the same as any other. Power hungry. Selfish. Incompetent. Our academies headmasters wield more power than most armies, one of them had the audacity to have both. They cling to their power in the name of piece.... And yet, what do we have here? One nations attempt at a synthetic army mercilessly torn apart by another star pupal? What need would Atlas have a soldier disguised as a innocent little girl? I don't think the Grimm can tell the difference.