Patriot-112: Another RWBY idea of mine. This time the main focal character is a pure OC of mine. I know I promised a Jaune Arc fic, but this idea suddenly bashed it's way into my head, so... anyway, let's begin. Also, all rights belong to RoosterTeeth, enough said.
Prologue:
The Maiden
"You understand what you have to do?"
"Yes, Lady Blaze,"
"Repeat it to me,"
"Dismantle the White Fang, piece by piece. Eliminate any Grimm that I see. Protect the individuals under the designations RWBY and JNPR. Eliminate the following individuals: Adam Taurus, Mercury Black, Emerald Sustrai, Cinder Fall, and finally, the Grimm Queen Salem,"
"What are you to do, when seen?"
"Evade capture as much as possible,"
"What are you to do when cornered?,"
"Fight back 'til I'm free,"
"What will you do when captured?"
"...End it, if no avenue of escape is available,"
"...And what will you do, when all objectives are achieved?"
"I...choose what I deem satisfactory"
"You're taking a big step into a larger world child. You were well trained in the sword, your shield, and your semblance, but never let cockiness rule you. You will feel conflicted in your choices, but in the end, you will achieve victory...from this point on, until you die... you are Doré Arkos,"
Docks of Vale
The shipping docks of Vale were quiet as a large assortment of Dust containers of the Schnee Dust Company lie in wait for the trucks that would take them to warehouse in downtown Vale. Normally, this much Dust would require a large amount of security guards to protect from thieves...but for some odd reason, there were no sign of any guards of the SDC anywhere, nor any Atlas soldiers, or local dock guards.
This was noted by an individual who was watching from the roof of a warehouse. It was a woman by the shape of their figure, clad in what looked to be to a dark yellow combat dress, with a steel breastplate, gauntlets that covered the entire forearm, and, under the hem of the dress, full articulate leg armor.
The physical features that could be seen, where her pale white skin, and golden blonde hair which was secured into a lace braid sock bun, tied off by a red ribbon. Her face on the other hand, while half hidden, only from her mouth down was seen, the rest was obscured by a visor style mask, which was colored red with gold vine plant design, which did well to hide her eyes.
Another thing to note, were the weapons she was carrying. On her back, was a bronze plated round shield which at one part, had the noticeable end of a gun barrel, while at her side, was a classical longsword, which was well crafted, and looked sharp enough to cut through the toughest metal.
The eyes of the masked woman narrowed as she looked at the shipping dock.
"You'd think the SDC would have, at least, a few dozen guards protecting their most valuable product," she said, while sighing in exasperation, "My expectations of the Schnee family are starting to deteriorate further rather rapidly."
"It is likely 50 percent possible that A. the SDC is extremely incompetent when it comes to their security." Said a computerized monotone voice, "Or B. someone in the higher echelons of the company is bribing the guards not to be here tonight."
"Or both...," said the woman, just as she heard the sound of jet engines overhead and spotted a Bullhead VTOL flying about the docks before it descended and landed on the clear space of the dock. "...and right on time. Just as Lady Blaze said,"
"Are you...alright?" the voice said worriedly at the woman's depressed tone.
"I'll be fine," The woman said, "Let's get on with it, shall we? Wouldn't want to keep our target waiting..."
Roman Torchwick.
Thief, crime boss, and egotistical ass, was leading one of his biggest heists yet, which was stealing containers of Dust owned by the infamous SDC, from the Vale shipping docks. He was told by his contact that the containers will be out in the open, and unguarded, thanks to a little...persuasion on their part.
Of course, they could've of least given him better help than these supremacist morons from the White Fang. Sure, they had senses any Human would kill to have, since the White Fang are entirely made up of the Faunus race, but they were just so. DAMN. DUMB!
'Sigh, why the heck did that chick give me these animals to use for this job?' he thought to himself, after he just berated a White Fang member with a tow cable, who can't tell the difference between his ass and head. However his thoughts were interrupted as a blade was placed dangerously close to his throat.
"What the!? Oh, for the love of-"
"Don't move!" ordered the person, a young woman wearing a gothic style outfit with some inklings of a ninja. Her hair was long and black as night, yellow cat like eyes, and was wearing a black bow at the top of her head.
"Whoa, easy there little lady," said Torchwick, just as the White Fang noticed the unexpected guest as readied their weapons. The young girl then untied the bow, and removed it, revealing a pair of cat ears that showed she was a faunus, which surprised the other Faunus.
"Brothers of the White Fang!" Blake Belladonna shouted for everyone of her fellow Faunus to hear, "Why are you aiding this scum?"
As the Faunus became slightly hesitant, a new voice was heard.
"They're aiding him, because they have no choice."
Everyone turned to the source of the voice, and on top of a shipping container, and with the shattered moon of Remnant behind her, was the woman. The illumination from the moonlight, made the sight of her appear to be like she was another being.
"Unfortunately, that doesn't excuse them of the other crimes they committed," she finished as she drew the blade in her left hand and slipped the shield onto her right arm. "And they must be punished,"
Roman's eyes along with the White Fang grunts all widened at the newcomer. This didn't go unnoticed by Blake.
"Oh, come on!" the crime lord shouted, "You again!?"
The woman's mouth curled into a smirk at the man's outburst.
"If I can't mess up your current boss' big plan for this city, who will?" she said, making Blake blink at that, while Roman's eyes widened even further.
"Wait, wha!?"
"That's for me to know, and for you to never know," the armored woman said, just as the sound of more Bullhead VTOLs were heard as they flew over the dockyard. "Now then..."
With that, she threw her shield arm around, launching the metal disc like a missile which hit the jet of one VTOL, but then the shield came around and took out the other engine, causing the aircraft to crash to the ground.
Everyone's eyes widened at that, including Blake's, until Roman used Melodic Cudgel to blast the ground in front of the cat Faunus, sending her flying, and then turned to the Grunts.
"Well, what are you waiting for!?" he shouted while pointing at the woman who destroyed the Bullhead, "Kill her!"
The White Fang wasted no time as they either shot at the woman or charged at her with their swords. The woman jumped from the top of the container, her shield, emblazoned with a crescent moon and spear, blocking the dust bullets being fired at her, and landed on the ground before charging at the grunts.
"HAAAAHHHH!"
With a quick swipe of her longsword as she cleaved one Faunus' head off in one sweep, before nimbly dodging another attack and stabbing another in the gut. She kicked the corpse off her blade, before jumping and cork screwing over a attempted stab from another, before she delivered a strong kick to his head.
After landing on the ground, she heard the sounds of guns cocking and turned to a group of White Fang who all aimed their guns at her. But then she threw her shield at them, the round disc hitting them all in the head, while bouncing off them like a pinball machine, knocking them out, and then it returned to her like a boomerang.
Watching this from a lamp post, a blonde haired monkey Faunus could only look on in astonishment.
"Whoa! Okay, that's badass!" Sun shouted, as he joined the fray, as he used his signature weapon to fight Torchwick.
"Oh, fucking Oum, why won't you piss off!" Torchwick, contrary to popular belief, was actually once a huntsman. Of course, that was decades ago, when he wasn't jaded and decided crime paid better.
He was beginning to think that was a very bad idea, as while he was holding the two off, they were getting VERY close to taking his head off.
Both of them.
He's just glad the mysterious knight lady is busy dealing with the White Fang, to focus on him at the moment. However, that didn't mean he was scared of her.
Eventually, he got away before he heard a familiar voice. "HEY!"
"Goddamn it, not her." He looked to a rooftop, finding little red scythle there, cloak flowing as she spun the weapon around before the blade hit the rooftop.
"Oh, hey Red! Isn't it past your-SON OF A BITCH!" Blake's sheath nearly took off the man's head, forcing him to duck.
"Pay attention to me, scum!" the Cat Faunus shouted as she used Gambol Shroud's pistol form to fire a barrage of dust rounds at the thief.
"If that blade had connected, I would've been VERY upset!" Roman growled, because let's face it, NO MAN wants their junk cut off.
The White Fang idiots finally fell to the ground, some dead, others simply humiliated.
VERY humiliated.
"Killing you is optional. But I don't see any reason not to." The knight made her approach, causing alarms to go off in Roman's brain like Stuka sirens.
A rather distinct sound that signalled fear and an urge to RUN THE FUCK AWAY. So he did, to one of the only remaining Bullhead VTOLs. All the while, a certain copper haired girl was destroying the other two Bullheads he brought along, via a green laser beam of DOOM.
"Okay, these kids are just getting weirder and WEIRDER! Plus more scary..." he said as he closed the hatch and the transport took off.
The woman seeing the thief take off, now decided it was time to leave.
Torchwick was an annoyance at best. Killing him wouldn't change anything, and he was more useful afraid.
After all, she had her mission, and him interfering with Teams RWBY and...JNPR...would cause more problems than she needed. So, after securing her weapons, she proceeded to run to the edge of the dock and jumped into the water, swimming the hell away.
Thank Oum her armor is made up of a lightweight, and water proofed alloy.
"I don't care what you're offering me. Besides your head on a pike. I will not give you shit."
"I need you to help me because we now share a common enemy Sapiens."
"Oh, you mean to tell me your Grimm Queen Bitch finally turned on you. Well boo hoo for you, that's what you get working with people with a devil/doomsday complex."
"What I have planned will be beneficial for both of us!"
"And what exactly do you want? I'm not in a position to give anything."
"I know what you can do. All you need is blood, or a hair sample. Anything containing DNA."
"I'll still need a second donor. A clone wouldn't live past its' birth having only 80% of its' genes."
"I have a pair in mind. This will work and everything I've caused will be undone."
"You're serious. Fine. But once this is done, I will kill you for all the shit you've caused me."
"I can do that."
"Are these my...?"
"Yes... these are your parents, my dear girl,"
"And...you're saying that they're..."
"They've been dead for years. Your mother died a martyr, even though she didn't have to, while your father died in a quest to avenge her,"
"...would they...would they have loved me? Even though I'm..."
"Perhaps. I didn't know them personally."
"Stop filling her head with fairy tales. She's a binary clone that you ordered me to create. I'm surprised you're actually getting attached, cunt that you are."
"She needs to know who and where she comes from! She may be a clone, but that doesn't change the fact she's still human!"
"Even though you were the- AHH!"
"If you even DARE finish that sentence...!"
"You...still...need me...you fucking whore..."
"GAH! Be lucky you still are needed, you fucking mad scientist!"
"Luck? No. Necessity. You need me to make sure she reaches maturity without deforming, and you need me to train her."
"I know that... But she will still have her humanity intact."
"Whatever you say. But let me ask you something. Why didn't you just leave?"
"What?"
"Why didn't you just leave when you got what you wanted at Beacon? You injured that girl so she wouldn't chase after you again, you didn't have to shoot her in the fucking chest and then burn her body to ash."
"I was a fool and too stupid and blind to think, only reveling in my new-found power."
"...You deserve to die, and once this is over...you will. You can't put up a fight against me anymore. Not that you could in the first place."
She coughed as she got out of the water. Her armored dress was soaked, and heavy as she pulled herself out onto the pier, far away from the SDC dock that was now crawling with VPD.
"Damn cops are slow," the woman growled out, "What good are they if they're too lazy to get here in time."
Her head turned only to find a mixed bunch of people. A boy with black hair in a green outfit, a girl with orange hair and a white battle dress...
Her eyes widened when she spotted the other two. A blonde boy in white armor over a black hooded sweatshirt with a sheathed sword on his waist, and a redheaded woman with Spartan-like armor.
It was them. Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos.
And they were looking straight at her!
She was fortunate her mask was still on, otherwise they would've seen her eyes wide in both fear and longing. She immediately began to stand back up as she turned to run away, but her soaked armored dress wasn't helping matters. Not to mention the energy she used up from swimming.
"Shit!" she cursed, "Why now?"
Her situation was made worse she heard one of them speak up.
"Hey, who's that?"
She finally got to her feet as she began running. She couldn't see them. The scientist was right: they would see an abomination, a perversion of their blood.
She was just a clone, a weapon he made to kill the enemies of humanity. He was cruel, but truthful. And he was always right.
'They won't see you as human. You're a product of human DNA, but that's it. All you are is your maternal donor's semblance and body and your paternal donor's hair and aura reserves. You are a weapon. Never forget that. NEVER FORGET, LITTLE KNIFE!'
Those words kept ringing in her head as she continued to run, not noticing the group chasing after her. Tears began to leak out of her eyes, as she desperately tried to get away.
"Gotta get away...Gotta get away," she kept repeating. However, in her rush to get away she didn't notice the simple pipe that laid in front of her.
She tripped, and her head slammed into the concrete. And unlike last time, she hit her head hard enough to knock her out.
She drifted in and out of consciousness, catching sight of Nora Valkyrie's face as she felt her mask come off.
"HOLY PANCAKES! She looks like Pyrrha!"
Her head throbbed, as she tried to move, but unfortunately, for some reason or another, her body refused to cooperate.
"Whoa crap! She's right!" she heard another voice say, "Only...she has blonde hair,"
She was ready to die. But she didn't.
She just fell unconscious.
The loud footfalls of a suited man were heard as a mercenary commander entered Beacon Academy's halls. The man's armor hinted at a man that would tear apart a Grimm with his bare hands.
And he had.
Ozpin owed him for this. Vale's council wanted to talk to him for security, and the old man wanted to talk to him personally afterward. While he believed that continuing training hunters was outdated, he still respected the old coot enough, where he doesn't try to sugar coat and bullshit him.
He finally arrived at the meeting room where the Vale Council was preceding, and the three people looked to him.
"General Kylos." one of the councilors greeted, and the man nodded.
"I'm a busy man, Councilors." the man said flatly, "Get to the point quickly. The Allfathers have a meeting in two and a half hours, and I'm one of them."
"Very well. We've had a major crime wave recently, and your forces can help divert resources from the Grimm threat to deploy hunters to assist the police." FINALLY, a major contract that would prove that the days of the hunters were over.
"I'll expect payment on a monthly basis. 500K lien. A drop in the bucket compared to Beacon's funding." He said, and the woman councilor nodded.
"That's reasonable, General," she said, "And while you're doing the contract, we also decided it was in our best interest to inform you that the bounty for Roman Torchwick has doubled. And since he was spotted at most of these robberies...we thought it best if you were informed..."
Kylos nodded at that, "At least we'll get a good bonus out of this,"
The man's helmet comm activated, and he told Sovereign to send a force of Ravens to Vale. They had a contract. Now to deal with Ozpin.
He mused about the bastard as he left, heading for Beacon. Ozpin and he had clashed on several occasions, with Ozpin barely coming out on top. But he never suffered injury thanks to his specially designed armor. The Gears were trained to kill hunters.
"If that is all Councilors, I will take my leave," he said, and the Councilors nodded, before one fo them spoke.
"One more thing, General. During the duration of this contract, we advise you give Professor Ozpin and General Ironwood your full cooperation," the man said, "Despite your concerns, and the advancements in technology, Hunters are still needed as long as the weapons they wield are upgraded."
Kylos only smirked, which wasn't seen by the council.
"Those days will end sooner than you think."
The General entered Ozpin's office, decked out in his battle armor. "Professor Ozpin."
The gray-haired man smiled. "Sapiens. Welcome."
"Never call me by my first name, artifact." the man growled, "Why the hell did you call me here; I have better things to do then entertain the last generation of your kind."
The Headmaster sighed at the man's bluntness.
"I need your help with something." he said honestly, "Several of my students have found someone...unique."
The General blinked at that.
"Unique as in...how?" he asked, and the Wizard took out his scroll and placed it on his holo-table. After pressing a button, the image of a young woman, probably a teen wearing a set of armor from possibly the old days but looked more modern, was laid on a bed with a bandage on her head. While her eyes were closed, Sapiens took note of the blonde hair, which had minor red highlights.
"Pyrrha Nikos with a dye job. So?"
"Pyrrha Nikos is actually on her way up. And you know better." The elevator doors opened, and in came the girl in question. Sapiens studied her hair for signs of damage associated with hair dye.
He found none, though she was intimidated by his presence.
Good. She should know she was of a dying breed. Soon the Gears would replace the hunters.
"Headmaster...who is this?" the girl said, slightly on edge.
"This is General Sapiens Kylos, commander of the Gears of War. Recently, Vale has hired their services as a security force to assist-"
"Stop bullshiting, Ozpin." Sapiens growled, "I'm here to do your job. Only better."
Ozpin could only sigh at the General's gruff attitude before turning back to the girl.
"So Pyrrha, I assume you know why we wanted to talk to you?" the headmaster said, and Pyrrha looked at the image of the girl they found. For some unknown reason, she felt a certain feeling to be with her. And she wasn't the only as her team leader and partner, Jaune, also felt the same. She nodding her head.
"Yes, it's about that girl," she said.
"Yes?" Ozpin said, as he motioned for her to continue.
"She's ...familiar." she said, with some slight uncertainty, "I'm not sure how-"
"That is why I called the General here." Ozpin interjected, "He is an expert in genetics, and should be able to identify her."
"Lead the way." Sapiens said, and Pyrrha nodded as she led him back to the elevator.
The doors shut, and Pyrrha tried to strike up a conversation with the general. "So...why don't you like Hunters?"
"Resources are wasted by your kind. It takes 15 years to fully train one of you. It takes 18 months for a collection of Gears. And my recruits can kill a Goliath by themselves. Can you say the same?"
Pyrrha could only narrow her eyes slightly at that. She didn't like the way this man was clearly stating that Hunters were a waste of money. In her views, money was replaceable. Even though she was a celebrity, she didn't enjoy it that much. Both the money and the fame.
"For all the resources wasted by 150 huntsmen and huntresses, I can train thousands of Gears. Time and numbers. If done my way, the Grimm would have been extinct centuries ago. Instead, we cling to a tradition that should have died out." The doors opened, and Sapiens marched out, Pyrrha beginning to really hate the man. The trio walked to the room that the girl was in, and it didn't take long as they arrived, and Team JNPR was there, with Jaune near the bed. When the young man heard the door open, he stood up from the chair, along with the rest of the team, as they spotted their teammate, along with Ozpin and the general.
"Headmaster!" Jaune said.
"Children. This is General Sapiens Kylos of the Gears of War." The man's helmet came apart and retracted back into his backpack, revealing an old man's face.
"Your last generation of hunters, Ozpin." Sapiens said as he shook his head, "I'm disappointed. They would have made excellent Gears."
"Excuse me?" Ren said, not showing anything that he was insulted.
"He is of the belief that we are useless," Pyrrha said, while frowning, "Barely able to hold the line against the Grimm."
Sapiens scoffed as he pulled out a metal case, pulling out advanced medical equipment. "Seeing as you lost Mountain Glenn when we would have held and exterminated the Grimm, you're not exactly proving me wrong."
The Hunters-in-training, all felt insulted by that, and Nora looked ready to bash the old man's head in, but Ren stopped her.
"General, I highly suggest we put the clash of ideals aside for the moment." Ozpin said, while Sapiens removed the gauntlet on the girl's left arm.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he said. He pulled out a needle and drew a small amount of blood before hooking a small medical computer into the school network, and injecting the blood into the device.
The blood was broken down, and quickly compared it to the entire population of the school and Vale.
Two matches were found. And everyone's eyes widened, especially two in particular, as the names and pictures of the two were shown:
Pyrrha Nikos, and Jaune Arc.
"What...the hell?" Jaune said in complete shock, while Pyrrha's hand went up to her mouth.
"Interesting." Sapiens said, as he looked at the results.
"That's all you have to say?!" Nora shouted, "Jaune and Pyrrha are parents!"
That caused the two to blush at that.
"She's sixteen years old: they're slightly older. She's not their child, not naturally." Sapiens stood tall, putting his equipment away. "She's a binary clone: their genetic material was used to make her. And unless I'm mistaken, this is MY work."
"What?!" Everyone shouted.
"The genetic code is too perfectly combined: no genetic drift associated with natural birth." Sapiens explained, "Only the Gears have access to that technology, and I have refused to use it."
Everyone looked to the girl, who still laid peacefully on the bed.
"Where exactly did you find her?" Sapiens ordered, and the Team immediately began how they found her at the pier, near the same location that the SDC heist was at, however, it was at this moment that a certain cat girl heard the commotion and looked inside, and upon seeing the girl and recognizing the armor, her eyes widened.
"Her?!" Sapiens pulled out his handgun, which was oversized and clearly powerful.
"Miss, you will leave. Now." the old man said, his voice showing he meant business.
"I was there when she fought the White Fang at the docks! Who is she?!" Blake demanded, before Sapiens pulled the trigger, sending a 50 caliber round shooting past her bow.
"Blake!" Pyrrha shouted in worry.
"Leave before the next round goes through your head." He said threateningly, "And these are aura-penetrating rounds: they WILL kill you."
"Sapiens, I would appreciate you NOT kill one of my students!" Ozpin said, and looked at the Faunus, "Miss Belladonna you said she was there. Explain to us, everything you saw."
Blake then recounted her personal mission in investigating the string of robberies that had been plaguing Vale, which led her to the docks, where she found out the White were truly behind the robberies but was concerned that they were working with Torchwick of all people, and then she explained how the woman turned up and how she fought them.
"Interesting."
"Are we done?" Sapiens said, "I have better things to do."
Ozpin glared at Sapiens. "Our problems are between US, General."
"Then I believe we need to settle them. Now." He pointed the gun at Ozpin, but the sound of a grenade launcher being cocked caught his attention.
Nora was pointing her launcher at him, with Ren and Pyrrha joining the fray, while Jaune had his sword ready.
"Idiots. I was trained to kill hunters. My armor's designed to survive anything. But you're right. I'll deal with you later."
He then put his gun away and turned to the girl on the bed.
"However, I'll probably send someone to pick her up," he said, "Need to keep an eye on her and if she proves too troublesome, we'll have to terminate her,"
That didn't sit well with the two young hunters.
"She is somehow the daughter of two of my students." Ozpin protested, "She is not going anywhere."
"My Gears will be in town, Headmaster." Sapiens insisted, "I WILL keep an eye on this little weapon."
Jaune and Pyrrha immediately felt an unexpected overprotectiveness for the girl lying not three feet from them.
"Weapon?" the Arc grounded out.
"She's genetically engineered." Sapiens stated, "That means she was meant to fight. Nothing more."
Pyrrha immediately switched Milo to Rifle form and aimed it at Sapiens' head.
"Touch her and I WILL hurt you." She growled out.
Sapiens actually took the threat seriously. "Really? I'll be entertained. I've killed bigger fish. Team STRQ were the only team that I actually feared, and even they couldn't get me when I was paid to kill them. Couldn't kill them, but the point remains. I am better than you. And I always will be."
"...N-No...," everyone gasped and turned to the bed as the bed and saw the girl with her eyes half opened, but they held a vicious glare. "You...will not...TOUCH THEM!"
With a thrust of her left hand, with black energy surrounding it, the General was slammed against the wall. Ozpin and Pyrrha's eyes widened, recognizing the Polarity semblance in an instant. And since the General was wearing metal armor, it sucked to be him.
"FUCK!"
He used the powered servos to point his handgun at her, but Blake jumped onto his arm, forcing him to abandon the attempt, but this wasn't over.
"Do not assume this is the end, Ozpin." He discharged his suit's magnetic field, allowing him to escape. "And you have all made a mistake."
As soon as he left, everyone's attention was on the girl, who looked ready to fall over, but not before looking at the people who could've been her parents if they had lived. The said students all looked at her, before she said two words.
"...M...Mama...P...Papa-," with that, eyes rolling back into her head, she fell to the side but was thankfully caught by the two. Pyrrha moved a strand of her hair out of her face, while Jaune held her, and saw the pained expression on the girl's face.
She was shivering, but it was not of coldness, but fear. She was afraid.
But of what?
Allfather Susan Goldsmith, at 64 years old, was one of the eldest of the Allfathers, and one of the five women to carry the title that went with the founders of the Gears of War. Like all members of the Gears, she rejected her old name, and chose one that reflected the old naming nomanclansure.
The Gears rejected the color naming rule, calling it limiting, and they chose their names post-founding.
And when Sapiens entered the Sovereign's conference room, he looked like hell.
"Sapiens?" the woman asked, as she and the others looked at the man in question, his armor looked bent to shit, and he was sporting a bleeding lip, "What happened to you?"
The man sighed as he took out his personal scroll.
"I've discovered a little something during my meeting with Ozpin," he said,
Jason Terrance, the second eldest Gear, just behind Sapiens, rose an eyebrow. "Like?"
"Some jackass decided to create a binary clone." said Sapiens, causing the eyes of the Allfathers to widen, "And of two hunters. She's trained in their art, as well as that of a Gear."
"Fuck! How? You locked down that shit years ago!"
"Meaning someone's been poking around. Allfathers, this is our chance to bring Remnant into a new age. A united Remnant, where the Grimm and race lines are a thing of the past. If we can make the Vale Council realize we are superior to the hunters, we can finally bring the coalition to life. A dream we have been working towards for 40 long years. For a united world!"
"But what of the clone?" said Susan, "And who were the donors?"
Sapiens then placed the scroll on the holotable and pressed the button, which showed a picture he managed to take of the girl, when she was awake, along with the pictures of Jaune and Pyrrha.
"Two hunter students. We can use this against Ozpin. After all, WE didn't make the clone, and Atlas agents have tried to steal our secrets so many times."
Sapiens was considered an ultranationalist, but he preferred the term unificationist. After all, four kingdoms needed to be united under one flag. This so-called peace era between the kingdoms was making them complacent and there were signs of discord between the pacifists and the so-called alarmists.
"Careful Sapiens," said another Allfather, "Your rivalry with Ozpin will come back to bite us, and it could possibly be your undoing."
"This isn't about Ozpin! Just because this bitch landed in his lap is a bonus! This is about our goal! We have a chance to finally depose the Hunter's Guild in one of the four major Kingdoms! Once we are their source of protection, we can finally kick those old bastards out. The old ways are dying, bleeding Remnant dry! That's why we founded the Gears: to change that! We MUST take advantage, or it will take another 40 years before we have our chance again! WHO IS WITH ME?!"
The Allfathers looked at each other before they all nodded.
"Alright Sapiens, we'll follow your lead," Susan said, "but if this begins to turn into a blood bathe we're pulling out. You DO remember what happened to the Wolfwatch?"
The Wolfwatch were a paramilitary organization who tried the same thing the same thing the Gears were trying to do... only they failed and most of their members either went into hiding or now work as freelance mercenaries.
"We will not make that mistake. We have watched. We have waited. And we will only act when we are READY. That time approaches. But you are right to caution. If this backfires, the Gears will break. But it will not backfire."
"You haven't failed us yet."
"And I do not intend to fail us now!"
"Lady Blaze?"
"Before you go Doré, I have one more thing to give you,"
"Th...This is...,"
"It was your mother's. I have no doubt that she would've wanted you to have it."
"Thank... Thank you,"
"Listen to me. No matter what Sapiens says, clone or not, you're still a human, and Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos are your parents. Do you want to know why I gave you the surname Arkos?"
"Yes."
"Because it is their names. Arc and Nikos combined. You are their child. Do not forget this."
"I won't. But-"
"Tune him out. He's a bitter old man because I denied him his greatest wish."
"..."
"You'll find out in due time. Also, remember what I said about the powers."
"They're to be used wisely, and to be used in the dire of circumstances,"
"Yes...good luck my dear. And remember..."
"The Aura is with me,"
Doré opened her eyes. She was in a medical wing, clearly better maintained than anywhere she had been, even on board the GNS Sovereign, the carrier flagship of the Gears.
Of course, that was a ship on WATER, and the Gears never took off their suits.
What few of them were left, anyways. Blaze said Cinder had helped wipe out the Gears, though they did not go down easily. It took hundreds of Grimm to kill the trainees one on one, with the seasoned Gears taking more powerful Grimm to kill before the Allfathers, the greatest Gears of all, could be killed.
It took millions, if not billions of Grimm before the Gears were reduced to nothing more than a few demoralized men and one bitter, angry bastard.
She grunted before she attempted to sit up, only for her to realize a hand was on hers. She turned and her eyes widened at who was next to her.
It was Pyrrha. Her mother.
'No, she's not my mother. She's my donor. ...I need to get out of here!'
In case you hadn't noticed, Dore is just as bad as Shinji Ikari: problem is, Shinji tried to summon the courage to face his fears. Dore isn't. Over a decade of being told by a man who could kill you and your mentor like you were nothing did that. She quickly looked around, glad that her armor was still on her, and soon spotted her sword and shield.
'Aurea Mors!' she thought in her head happily, glad to know that her weapons were still here. Lady Blaze had the sword forged from the remains of both her donors' respective weapons, Crocea Mors and Milo, while the shield is a modified variant of Akouo, which has a SMG built into it, with the grip of the gun acting as the handle of the shield. She carefully removed Pyrrha's hand from her own, and got off the bed, and headed over and placed her weapons back on her person. She even took special care of a pouch on her belt.
She looked back to the bed and saw the redhead sleeping. She felt the need to say goodbye to her, but she really HATED saying that word. She shook her head, having no time.
And she had to escape.
Staying here wouldn't help her mission. And if the Gears caught her, they wouldn't let her live.
After all, Sapiens mistreated her.
The girl quietly left the room, but getting out of Beacon wasn't going to be easy.
Team JNPR wouldn't let her go without a fight, and Team RWBY...Blaze said to avoid them. Especially Ruby Rose.
She calmly began walking down the hall of the doing her best to avoid any medical staff. Even with the clinking of her armored boots and leggings, she was still undetected. Training with people who wore armor their whole lives was a boost. She finally made it to one of the side exits, and opened the door, however, as soon as she opened the door, the alarm sounded.
"DAMMIT!" she shouted and bolted out.
If she was thankful to Pyrrha for anything, it was her body build: she was fast. Really fast. But not fast enough, as she caught Weiss Schnee, one of the two respectable Schnees of her generation (Winter was military, and cared little for race as such) looking at her as she rounded a corner.
As she was trained as a Gear, she learned to curse like one, and used one of Sapiens' favorites. "Oh, fuckery!" She ran down another corridor before the rest of Team RWBY joined the chase.
"She went down here!" The Heiress shouted.
"Let's get her before she gets to the docks!" Yang Xiao Long shouted, and the quartet went after her.
Dore continued to run as she zipped through the corridors, dodging students, and faculty staff alike. She was unfortunately spotted by Professor Oobleck, the 'caffeine addicted moron' as Sapiens affectionately called him.
"Young lady!" She leaned forward, doing what the Gears called a 'roady run': it increased her speed and kept her head down as she ran out of the building before she blind fired her shield SMG, which forced RWBY to take cover.
A Gear she was trained as, and she knew how to fight Hunters. She finally made it outside, and saw the courtyard, and beyond that, the docks. She was almost home free, especially since she saw a Bullhead begin to land on a dock. Wasting no time she increased her speed, running as fast as her legs carried her.
'Almost there! Almost there! ALMOST THERE!' she repeated constantly in her head. Praying she will get there in time.
Her footing was lost almost instantly.
"FUCKERY!" Glynda goddamn Goodwitch! WHY did it have to be her?!
She opened fire with the SMG, putting rounds downrange, Glynda trying to deflect them with her own shield, which blocked the dust bullets. But unfortunately was forced to let Dore, who continued her dash toward the Bullhead.
She smiled knowing she was almost out. But then she felt something metal and smash into the armor plating of her back which sent her flying and landing in a heap.
The hit and the landing made her lose her grip on her shield, and caused her to gasp in pain. The landing also caused her blonde hair to come out of it's bun.
"AHH! Shit!" Dore cursed as she tried to get up again, only for something or someone to grab onto and held her down.
"Don't run! We're trying to help you!"
Dore's attempts to flee only got worse as she heard Pyrrha's voice, knowing she was the one holding onto her.
She couldn't stay. She HAD to get away!
"Please!" Doré actually begged, "Let me go!"
"Don't move!" Pyrrha pleaded to her, "We won't hurt you! I promise!"
"Miss Nikos! Hold her still!" she heard Glynda's voice, "I'm going to give her a sedative to calm her down,"
"No...STOP! You don't understand!" Doré screamed desperately, as she heard more footsteps, and felt more people grabbing onto her to keep her still, "I need to leave! My mission!"
"Grab her!" Doré tried to make them get off before a needle found its' way into her neck, sedatives entering her bloodstream. Unconsciousness beaconed, and she was in no position to resist its' call.
"Okay, what the hell is going on?" said Yang, as Pyrrha and Jaune gently move Dore onto her back. "Who is this girl and why are you guys-?"
"I believe I can answer that question," everyone, except the two 'parents' of the clone, jumped at that.
"Who said that!?" Weiss shouted.
Nora rifled through her pockets, finding a scroll.
Unlike theirs, it was stark and almost military, the only decoration being an eight-sided cog with a skull inside it.
Pyrrha's eyes narrowed: that was the Crimson Omen, emblem of the Gears, so called because it was claimed the original was made from the blood of the Allfathers.
Her scroll was Gear-issue and she was a binary clone made using Gear technology. Who WAS she?
Nora then opened the scroll and a holographic image of an Teal colored AK-130 appeared.
"Greetings, I am G.A.I. Model # 1436-7921, Advisor. But you may call me Anders,"
"You're a Gears AI?"
"I was programmed by General Sapiens Kylos, Allfather Prime. However, my programming was altered by a woman in a mask, so my loyalties to the Gears of War no longer exist. Doré Arkos is my mistress now."
Nora's grin returned as she heard the surname. She nearly spoke up before Anders ruined her day.
"My storage device is designed to cause extreme pain if I deem it necessary. Keep your thoughts to yourself, please."
"Oh, and what if I say-" The scroll activated, electrical energy arcing through her body before she started having a seizure.
"The Gears developed anti-aura technology 14 years after the end of the World War. This was designed to counteract and turn a Hunter's semblance against them."
"N-No...fair," Nora managed to utter out before she collapsed, dropping the scroll which was caught by Pyrrha.
"You said her name is Doré?" Pyrrha said, and she saw the A.I. nod.
"Yes, that is the name her mentor gave her," the construct said, "However, I believe we need to get indoors, there could be Gear agents in the premises. I suggest we go to Professor Ozpin's office. There is critical information I need to deliver to him as well."
"And why exactly should we trust a Gears AI?"
"My mistress' mission is rather important, and I am familiar with Gear operations. In fact, as of this moment, 5 Royal Raven-Class helicopters are inbound from GVS Sovereign."
The young Hunters-in-training, and Professor's eyes widen.
"Well, that's enough incentive for me!" Jaune said, as he, with Pyrrha's help, lifted the limp Doré into his arms bridal style. "Let's get going!"
With that, the two teams and one teacher ran for the main campus.
The contra rotational helicopters flew over Beacon, their quad rotors loudly sending air down on the school's roof before they dropped fully armed Gears into the Emerald Forest.
While helicopters were a known technology, they were almost never used, excepting of course, by the Gears, who used the King Raven and Royal Raven, the former of which was a smaller, dual-rotor version of the Royal.
Ozpin knew better then to assume that the Bullheads could take on the heavily armored choppers: they were actual VTOLs with military-grade armaments. Bullheads can be modified to carry weapons, but they were transports first, gunships second.
The elevator opened as Glynda, along with Team RWBY and JNPR, and Dore entered the office. The said girl in the Arc's arms.
"Place her on the sofa if you please, Mr. Arc," Ozpin said, and Jaune did exactly that, Pyrrha and the rest walking along.
"Miss Nikos, the scroll," the Headmaster said, and the Spartan nodded as she handed the Gears scroll to him.
The scroll activated, and Anders reappeared. "Headmaster Ozpin."
"I'm quite surprised the Gears would let her have one of their prized AIs. They guard their technology almost zealously."
"The circumstances were beyond the Gears' control, Headmaster, as you will learn."
The Headmaster raised a brow at that, "Well then, what do you have to tell me?" he asked. The A.I. nodded at that.
"Accessing personal log of subject: Lady Blaze," he announced, and soon the image of a woman wearing a red trench coat, and wearing a full face mask appeared.
"If you're watching this message, then either Doré is dead or she's in the care of Ozpin. I won't bother with a long, drawn out philosophical debate and just say this: Ozpin, you bastard, you were right. And I had to make a deal with the devil to undo my mistakes. The devil is someone you know: the Gears of War. Thankfully, the Grimm have bled them dry, and Sapiens had no choice but to agree to my terms."
Everyone blinked at that, until the woman, Lady Blaze, continued.
"If you found out already, or haven't, then let me tell you. Doré is a clone of Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos, but, the kicker is, she's not from this time," she said, making the people gathered widen their eyes, "Doré was born, 13 years from the point after the 40th Vytal Festival took place... it ended disastrously, because of me,"
She pulled up an image. "Cinder Fall, Emerald Sustrai and Emerald Black orchestrated the fall of Vale. Tighten security around the CCT towers: the AI has a protocol that will counteract the virus she will attempt to upload if you can't stop her from getting inside. Which, knowing her...knowing me...she will. Do NOT tell her my real name."
Ozpin shook his head. Cinder Fall had a change of heart?
"And a word of caution: Doré is suffering a side effect of the cloning process, in which she has memory flashes from the donors when she sleeps. They've been helpful in her training, but there are also... unpleasant memories. She even feels the phantom pains they suffered."
Both of the 'donors' winced, mostly Pyrrha. "And there is the...other problem. Sapiens refused to see her as human, only a weapon he could use to avenge his precious Gears. And despite my best efforts, she sees herself as less than human. I make only one request, beyond not interfering in her mission."
Her eyes narrowed behind the mask. "Make that bastard pay for it."
They begin hearing whimpering coming from the sedated girl.
"N...No...please...," she gasped out, "You...already... have what you... came for... Don't do it... Don't do it!"
"Do what?"
"For clarification: Pyrrha Nikos was killed during the Fall of Beacon," Anders said, causing the two mention hunters to look at the A.I. in shock, with said redhead paling in horror, "Sapiens, in Lady Blaze's words, was a cruel bastard. She frequently relives the day Pyrrha died. The man developed a vindictive in his old age."
Ozpin's dislike of Sapiens grew. The Allfather clearly didn't know the difference between necessary pain and cruelty.
Pyrrha and Jaune immediately went to Doré's side, who was still whimpering.
"No... Mother... No!" as she was talking, her hand slowly rose up right in front of the Spartan champion.
Driven by emotion... and motherly instinct, she gripped it, holding her hand in comfort.
"All the information you need on Salem and her pawns is inside. Unfortunately, this means, Ozpin, you will have to drag RWBY and JNPR into this. Force the Gears to fight the Grimm while you plot to save humanity from that queen. That is all. Good luck."
The message ended as everyone looked to the sofa, as Pyrrha continued to try and comfort Doré who by now had tears coming out of her eyes.
"Shh, it's okay, Doré," the champion whispered, "It's okay..."
"Professor Ozpin," Jaune spoke up, his hand still placed on Doré's head, "Forgive me in advance, but I don't want that bastard anywhere near her,"
"Seeing what he did to her, I agree. But the Gears are in Vale now." Ozpin always treated his war with Salem like a chess match.
The Gears of War added a third player to the table. This was only going to end badly.
Patriot-112: And the beginning of a new RWBY fic. I could call this my third one, alongside my Warning from the Future, and my currently, in the works, Jaune Arc project.
Ron the True Fan: And introducing the Gears of War, based, of course, on the heroic Gears from the series of the same name, but these Gears are not on Ozpin's side, as you've noticed.
Patriot-112: Yup, and let's just say, they're gonna cause some VERY big problems for our heroes.
Ron the True Fan: They already HAVE. But that's for later.
Patriot-112: Right, so, until next time! Oh, and before I forget...Profiles!
Name: Doré Arkos
Age: 17
Gender: Female
Race: Human (Clone)
Eye Color: Emerald green
Hair Color/style: Blonde with red highlights/mid back length/braided bun
Build: Athletic/Toned
Semblance: Polarity
Birth: 13 years after the Fall of Beacon
Also Known as: The Golden Rogue; The Maiden Knight
Personality: Calm and Collected, is hesitant in making friends. Suffers from internal grief due to the belief that she is just a mere clone of Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos, and will never be seen as their daughter.
Weapon: Aurea Mors (Sword and Shield SMG combo, former based on Caliburn, while shield is based on Akouo but with Doré's personal emblem carved on the face.)
Bio: Born 13 years after the Fall of Beacon, and three years after the end of the Salem War, Doré Arkos is the clone daughter of the late Huntsman and Huntress partners: Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos. She was raised by a reformed Cinder Fall, who under a different name, and wearing a mask, trained her extensively since she was seven to kill her past self, and her former mistress Salem, who had betrayed her. She is sent back to the past, however she has difficulty accepting who, or what she is, believing herself to be an abomination. And thus, she believes, her death will make them happy.
Appearance: Maiden Alter Ego: Saber from Fate/Zero, blue part of outfit is colored white, wears a Saber Alter style mask to hide half of her face, and eyes. Unmasked: Looks like a blonde haired Pyrrha.
Name: Sapiens
Age: 68 as of RWBY S3, 93 as of alternate future
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Eye Color: aquamarine
Hair Color/style: graying black-blonde; short balding
Build: semi-overweight/athletic with a slight gut
Semblance: none recorded
Birth: Vytal
Also Known as: fucking mad scientist, Sapiens Kylos
Personality: Serious, moderately insane, supergenius, intolerant of stupidity
Weapon: Lancer assault rifle Mk 2 (7.5mmx75mm caliber AR-15 pattern long rifle w/chainsaw bayonet) multiple other weapons
Bio: The most intelligent man on Remnant, Sapiens is a skilled warrior, having served as a mercenary using a uniquely designed assault rifle he designed to operate against Grimm and human targets. Innovations he is responsible for include time displacement technology, cloning and AI, to name a few. While old and having never used his semblance, he is still deadly in combat, having trained multiple mercenaries in the art of the Lancer, and in more traditional combat arts. He believes that Hunters are inefficient compared to his elite mercenaries, the Gears of War, as it takes 15 years to train a Hunter compared to the 18 months for basic Gear training.
Appearance: out of combat, slacks with dress shoes and white lab coat over a simple shirt; in-combat, COG-issue Gears armor, semi-powered, Carmine variant
Patriot-112: And done! Until next time folks! Later!