RWBY: Advent
"The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown."
H.P. Lovecraft
Prologue
My mother once told me that even a fly could save the world. She never lived long enough to see what I have become. Overworked and constantly fatigued, she passed away while I was just a mewling. I thought perhaps the Faunus needed saving, but along the line, I came to realise that it's not just us, but the entire world that needed saviours. People may pray to whatever gods they like, but they alone will not help us. It is by our efforts that we survived thus far. Evolution can only go so fast, but I feel that we, the people of Remnant, are ready to take the next step. Thus, I ask for all to look towards the heavens and the great beyond.
General Ironwood had a pile of files on his table that morning, and a quick check of the messages on his Scroll confirmed his worst fears: more paperwork. Sure, it was something that every politician and department head had to do, but he simply could not understand the need for paper and pen in the digital age. What robots and digital assistants could have done in mere minutes, he had to do all that for the next couple of days. Sighing, the general sat down on his chair and did a quick once-over. Most of the files were after-action reports on the Battle of Beacon with several of them sent by Ozpin himself, though most of them were nothing too important.
One by one, he tossed the files into his desk's drawer, not bothering to read the rest. After all, all he saw were 'Battle Reports', 'Possible Sightings', and 'Guard Requisitions'. So many problems, so little time to rest, thought the general. Grimm attacks were one thing, but with White Fang still posing a threat, he could not take any chances. The military machine has to keep going, borders need to be watched, and streets have to be cleared of sympathisers. He initially objected ideas of rounding up the Faunus for 'loyalty inspection', but with increasing reports of White Fang militants operating in Atlas and sabotaging Dust mining operations, James reluctantly relented. Thinking about it made him reach for flask, and he took a short but bitter sip from it.
When he reached the last folder of the pile, the general paused as his right hand hovered over it. Unlike the rest of the folders, this one had been stamped with a 'Classified' on it. Frowning, James took it and opened it up. It was not from military command; instead, it was from the Atlas Institute of Technology, an affiliate of the Atlas Academy. Some of the defence contracts of the past were given to AIT, but those were mainly minor ones while the Academy handled the bigger projects. To have a classified file coming from AIT was puzzling, but James read on. Barring the tech babble and jargon that littered throughout the document, he understood that a researcher from AIT had discovered an important power source on the continent west of Vale.
Before James could continue reading his report, he heard a knock on his office's door. He looked at his watch. It was half past midnight. His eyebrows furrowed and James drew his revolver from his holster.
"Come in," he called out while pulling back the firing pin.
The door opened up, and a figure walked into the office. James found himself staring at a pair of soft yellow eyes, and they looked back at him. He could see anticipation in them. The lights in his office were turned off save for a single lamp that hung over his desk. While he could not see who the figure was, the figure walked up close enough so that the general could see she was wearing a pair of high-heeled shoes and transparent black leggings. Occasionally, a black tail swung into the light before retreating back into the shadows.
"And you are?" James asked while gesturing at the Faunus.
"The researcher who just came back from Borea. I see you've already started reading my report, sir," she said with a purr to her voice.
"Ah," James replied with a nod. The grip on his revolver loosened but it was still pointed at her direction while hidden underneath the desk. "I'm assuming it's something big?"
"Far bigger than what most of us could imagine. Some lament the expedition to be a waste of time and resources, but we proved them otherwise," the Faunus said.
James cleared his throat. "That will be up to me to judge," he said. "By the way, what're you doing here in the middle of the night?"
"I simply couldn't wait," she said after a brief chuckle. "And good news is no news if it isn't conveyed in a timely fashion. We've already been stuck on Borea for a few months past our intended return deadline."
"Well, we've all been busy with an...issue."
"A very unfortunate one to boot," she added. "Which is why this thing has to be top priority."
"Again, this will be up to me to judge," James retorted while he tapped his desk with a finger. "Now, I'd like you to tell me, in your own words, why I should put this as Priority One. If you can convince me, I'll consider it."
He heard a 'hmph' come from her and her eyes became slit-like. Again, his grip on the hidden revolver tightened. "Dust powers Remnant, but Dust is useless outside of it. My team and I found something that will not only outclass Dust, but also bring us one step closer to the heavens."
James raised an eyebrow. "Go on."
"We found an abandoned mine on Borea, probably left behind by settlers who once lived there."
"Does that correspond with the energy signatures we detected a year earlier?"
"Yes, it does, but those signatures do not belong to Dust."
"What are they then, pray tell?" James asked.
The Faunus paused for a moment before retrieving something from her pocket. James's eyes widened as he saw her produce a glowing jade-coloured crystal. It was contained within a glass container, and she put it on his desk. He saw that her hand was gloved. The general holstered his revolver and pulled the container closer to him. It looked nothing like a Dust crystal, but more towards the looks of quartz.
"Best you not break the container, sir. This thing is highly energetic."
"What's it called?"
"Unknown. No records of such crystals existed in any journals or books. I believe we stumbled upon something new," she replied.
"So how do you know it's better than Dust?"
"We had a generator with us that took two Dust crystals to power. I did a test in which I replaced them with the new crystals we found. The generator...got fried."
The general creased his mouth. Power generators were hardy equipments, and to have them so easily fried just like that, there was no doubt it was fantastic news. But a question still remained. "When you said it can bring us one step closer to the heavens, do you mean it can operate in space?"
"Fascinating, no?" was the answer he got from her.
"You mean you're telling me you managed to build a space vehicle in a span of two years and successfully test it, even though we have no prior knowledge of space travel?"
"Not a space vehicle, sir," she hissed angrily. "We attached the crystal to a high-altitude balloon with power readers attached to it. Normally, Dust crystals would start faltering by the time it reaches the lower edge of the thermosphere. But this new crystal kept showing consistent energy readings. Even after reaching the balloon's highest altitude limit, the crystal never faltered in power output. That says a lot!"
James rubbed his chin and nodded his head. "I see. Well, it is promising, but I still cannot allocate anything to this project yet. Atlas's security comes first."
"General Ironwood, I beg you to reconsider –"
"After that, I will look into this and see if there's a suitable project we can assign to it. Good evening to you."
"Sir –"
"That would be all, ma'am," General Ironwood said with finality in his tone. "I said I will be the judge of it, and this is my judgment. Leave my office now, or I'll have security escort you out."
Her eyes became slit-like again. James handed her back the glass container, but the Faunus researcher had already turned around and left the office with a hiss of frustration. James sighed and took a drink from his flask again until it was empty. He looked at the container and tapped it gently. The crystal in it seemed to react to his action, but other than glowing slightly brighter, it was still. Better keep this, he thought. If White Fang got their hands in it, it could be problematic.
There is still so much to do, and tonight, there will be no rest for the vigilant.
End of Prologue
A/N: This is just a prologue to introduce the story, so it is meant to be short. This story also diverges from Volume 4. Given that I'm new to RWBY, I may make some mistakes in regards to canon, so feel free to point it out. Other than that, I'd love to hear your thoughts, ideas, and comments. Happy reading, peeps!