Patriot-112: Wow...you all got to this fic really quick. But, that makes me happy!
Now a word of warning...there is a LOT of dialogue in this chapter than what you all saw in the previous version. Yes, I know, to some of you, long dialogue is boring as hell. But hey, gotta keep this long somehow. Anyway, let's keep it going shall we.
P.S.: Spoiler Warnings for those of you who are not caught up to V6.
Chapter One:
Future Nightmare
Beacon Academy Vault
Kingdom of Vale
Hours Later
Professor Ozpin, Headmaster of Beacon Academy looked on as the mystery woman brought in by Qrow and Amber was placed on the bed loaned from the medical wing. The doctors personally picked by him, immediately going to work in making sure she was stable, and keeping her alive.
He was joined by Glynda Goodwitch, telekinesis expert and teacher of Beacon Academy's combat classes.
The third member of the party was General James Ironwood, a cyborg who was loyal to his kingdom and the people of Remnant to a fault, but lacking in asymmetrical warfare experience.
And joining them was the said current Fall Maiden, and of course, Qrow himself.
"Just what exactly happened, Qrow?" Questioned Ozpin as the said Branwen twin sighed, and surprisingly, not once taking a gulp from his flask.
"In all actual honesty, Oz?" Qrow said, before looking at the currently incapacitated woman, "I don't have a Gods' damned clue. I received a tip that Amber was compromised and went to get her, but when I showed up at the place to meet her, I arrived at the aftermath of a battle,"
Amber then took over for Qrow. "She took on three people, one of whom had something that looked to be...Grimm in nature." the current Fall Maiden said, "She almost started what she was about to do before we intervened."
The current Fall Maiden then tapped her chin in thought
"Actually, it was strange really." Amber spoke again, making everyone turn to her, "I was riding on my horse when I felt the fight, then on our way here, and right now, at this very moment, I...I can actually feel the presence of Maiden powers within her,"
The two Headmasters, professor and the brother of Raven Branwen all had raised eyebrows at that.
"But how is that even possible?" James said, but before anyone could answer they heard one of the doctors, who was using a medical scanner feature on his scroll over the woman's chest, gasp in surprise, before his eyes widened in great concern before he rushed back to them.
"We have a problem," The man reported, and turned "Something is...trying to crush her heart and lungs. The scan seems to show it to be Grimm in nature, but...that's impossible."
The group all had wide eyes at that.
"A type of Grimm that can attack a human from inside the body?" Glynda said in horror, "How is that even-,"
Her analysis was interrupted though as the woman began to convulse again, catching everyone's attention, making the medical staff rush to hold her down, lest she hurt herself any further. It was made worse when she began coughing up blood. This caused everyone to begin panicking.
"Shit! Any ideas?!" Qrow shouted "Otherwise, we're gonna lose her!"
Ozpin turned and looked at the table where the woman's belongings were, including her red cloak, her weapons, and finally all of her accessory equipment, and other items. He briefly looks at the weapons before his eyes settled on a pouch on one of the belts. He moved over to inspect it, seeing a medical symbol detailing the Grimm mask of the scorpion like Deathstalker. He then proceeded to open the pouch.
Inside it were at least a dozen syringes. All filled with a kind of white Dust, though it was different than the usual medical versions. He took off the pouch and showed it to the others.
"I believe the pun is 'worth a shot'?" asked Ozpin, and Qrow took one, before walking over and shoved it into her heart, depressing the needle and injecting it into her body. The convulsions stopped and she laid back down, peacefully.
"Ok, I don't want to do that again...EVER." Qrow said with finality, as Ozpin turned to the cyborg Atlesian general.
"James, can you have your best doctors study this so they can mass produce it?" He asked, "We're definitely going to need a lot more to keep her alive,"
James nodded as he took the pouch, before more surprised gasps were heard and they turn back to the woman and their eyes widen as they see a silver glow appear briefly before vanishing.
"...That's impossible." Amber said in shock, "Those...those look like the powers of a Maiden! But...but it was silver..."
Ozpin showed one of his rare surprised expressions, clearly at a loss at what he's seeing.
"We're going to need a blood sample," he said, "That will tell us her identity."
One of the doctors heard him and did exactly that as he took an empty vial and extracted a small sample of blood, before going over to a data processing computer that was there.
"Yeah, because calling her 'Big Ruby' is just damn CREEPY." Qrow said, causing the others to look at him with 'WTF' expressions. The drunken scythe wielder sighed as he reached into his pocket, pulling out a scroll, "Here, I took it out of the carrying case on her belt while we waited for the Bullhead. See for yourself. Not to mention she called me Uncle Qrow before she went completely lights out."
Ozpin took the scroll from Qrow and inspected it, looking over every inch of it, spotting the Burning Red Rose emblem. It was Glynda who spoke out Ozpin's observations of the device.
"That's...that's a Beacon Academy scroll!" she said, "Albeit...it's a well modified one,"
Ozpin opened it, the screen turned on and immediately looked the woman's Identification.
The ID read 'Ruby Rose' along with the age, profession, blood type, and birthdate. Which wasn't possible. Ozpin then looked at the tab on the screen that got his attention the most, a vid file
It was titled 'Play me', which the point was obvious. So, Ozpin pushed the button.
After that a vid screen appeared on the Scroll. It was static at first until the face of the said woman appeared. Wide awake, but looking exhausted, and having a depressed look upon her face.
"My name is Ruby Rose." The young woman introduced, "I'm twenty five years old, born in the Kingdom of Vale, and a former Huntress student from Beacon Academy. If you're watching this, and you're not me, then something must've gone wrong,"
Qrow's first and only comment on the entire affair was this...
"No fucking shit." SMACK! "OW!"
He was just double slapped by both Glynda and Amber. The former with her riding crop.
Ironwood looked to Ozpin, while the said Headmaster of Beacon stopped the video to shake his head.
"This can't be possible." He said, his confusion clear to all in the room, "I have records from Signal: Ruby Rose is 15."
"Perhaps we should just let the video play." Glynda suggested, "It might explain more."
Ozpin nodded stiffly as he continued playing the video.
"To tell my story, I will start from the beginning... Well, my beginning." she said, before perking suddenly, "Be warned though, that I will leave some info out that will be for specific people, mostly personal information concerning Ozpin, and I will leave it to him whether he tells you or not."
The other three blinked at that, while the eyes of the Beacon Headmaster widened slightly.
"On the day I was accepted into Beacon Academy, two years early by the way," she said catching the four off-guard. Of course, they shouldn't be surprised since it was Qrow who trained her, "At my initiation, I, along with my sister Yang Xiao Long, Weiss Schnee, and Blake Belladonna, formed Team RWBY, while several of my other friends, including Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie, and Lie Ren, formed Team JNPR. Our First semester was nothing special, except listening boringly to Professor Port's younger day stories, trying to keep up with Professor Oobleck during his history lectures, and attending battle simulation classes with Professor Goodwitch. Just being the average students, all the while getting ready for the 40th Vytal Festival that school year."
Her mood then darkened instantly. "But when it came, it all went to hell. Cinder Fall, a loyal lackey to a another nutjob named Salem, caused all sorts of hell by sabotaging the tournament and then unleashing the Grimm inside the city and stadium. Somehow, she turned Atlas' new robot soldiers against their makers, like some sci-fi show, which made matters...worse. My sister lost her right arm to that murderous BASTARD zealot, Adam Taurus of the White Fang - by the way, note to self, kill him as slowly as possible - while Weiss was taken back to Atlas, AGAINST HER WILL, I might add, while Blake tried to stay away from us to protect us from Adam, and to go back home to be with her family. Wasn't happy about leaving us like that, but it's the thought that counts."
Her eyes then suddenly took a more somber look. "We...also lost good friends that day," she said sadly as tears leaked from her eyes, "The two most important... were Penny Polendina, a robot girl developed by Atlas,"
James' eyes widen at that, as he thought of the robot girl who was still in Atlas at the moment, but whom he planned to bring her to Vale later for the Vytal Festival. The others looked at the general as different thoughts went through their minds, but decided to wait to ask questions later.
"...And...a-and," they saw how it was difficult for her to speak as she gulped, looking ready to break down, "...a-and Pyrrha,"
That caused everyone to raise their brows at that. Especially Ozpin and Ironwood.
"Wait...?" Glynda said, having heard of the Mistralian regional champion, "Pyrrha Nikos...dead?"
Ozpin was also shocked by this, having heard of the gifted young girl from her Sanctum Academy records. Though a four time champion, Pyrrha was also kind hearted, intelligent, and possessed a great sense of duty. The Mistralian was actually Ozpin's choice if anything happened to Amber. However, he turned his focus back to the recording as the Elder Ruby continued.
"From what Jaune told me...he followed after Pyrrha when she saw Professor Ozpin standing by the entrance to the tower, and just went toward him. They then went down into the vault where they saw a woman, who we later learned was Amber, in some sort of...pod or something like that. I don't know, some medical gadget made by Atlas," She said, making everyone blink, with James thinking on Ruby's words, "Anyways, then Ozpin instructed Pyrrha to enter one pod, while he told Jaune to stand guard...but when he turned away, a few minutes later, he heard Pyrrha screaming in pain, and turned back to see her in another pod, and was clearly in agony...however, because of his worry for her, he didn't see Cinder coming, and she...fired an arrow at Amber's pod, and killed her,"
Amber's reaction was obvious, as her eyes widened in horror while covering her mouth, stifling her gasp.
"Then, after being told by Ozpin to get away, they escaped the Vault together to get help, only for minutes later, they saw Cinder ascend the tower, with no sign of Ozpin anywhere. After they figured out what happened, Pyrrha told Jaune to go get help, and once he realized what she planned to do, tried to stop her." she then blushed a bit, "And...well, let's just say that a woman's kiss is truly the bane of all men,"
They all blinked before finally realizing what she meant, causing the women to blush, and Qrow to actually gave a toast to the young Arc.
"Of course, when they finished, Jaune then told me how she said...'she was sorry' and pushed him into a rocket locker before sending him away to Vale," that actually made all of them more than concerned for the red haired champion, "He called us when he landed in the city, and begged us to save her...I went after her, while Weiss used her glyphs to get me up the tower... I...arrive only to see Cinder put a fucking arrow through her chest, and then she just...burned her body to nothing. I...I-I was filled with so much...anger, grief...and a... terrible coldness... that I... I used my special power."
Cue wide eyes from Ozpin and Qrow.
"Yes, I know about the silver eyes and what they do-" The woman stopped abruptly as she grabbed her chest, covered her mouth, and began coughing violently, making everyone watching concerned. They watched as she quickly grabbed a syringe and inject the same white dust into herself, and the glow of the Silver Maiden Power appeared again as she gasped for air, "...s-sorry about that, I'll explain that later after I'm done with telling you what happens next. When I, unconsciously, used the Silver Eyes' power, I froze the Grimm Dragon at the top of the CCT tower. However, that bitch Cinder still managed to get away... but thankfully, not unscathed"
However, the frown never left her face, as if she wasn't proud of her achievement.
"I still regret not getting to both Penny and Pyrrha in time, even now." she solemnly said, "And I'll forever live with that, for the rest of my life,"
It was quiet for a moment before she lightly coughed. "After the battle, Ozpin went missing both Team RWBY and JNPR were disbanded. The CCT went offline, rendering communications with the outside world impossible, and no repair crew can get close to it, due to the frozen but still alive Grimm Dragon at the top, along with the other Grimm it was drawing in now occupying Beacon. I managed to reunite what was left of JNPR, forming Team RNJR, and we left Patch to hunt her down. It took us over six months to reach Haven, and during that time, we learned of the true Mastermind behind the Fall of Beacon..." The screen switched out to a picture of the 'Grimm Queen'. Everyone looked at the picture of the being that was supposedly the source behind the Grimm. Her skin was pale as bone with dark red veins forming around her eyes, and arms which the whites were colored black and the irises crimson red. Ozpin looked at the image of the woman, and though he had a neutral frown, his heart still felt a twinge of remorse for what happened all those years ago due to his first death, "Then when we reached Haven, after Qrow met up with us at Oniyuri and was injured by one of Salem's minions, Tyrian Callows, we attempted to meet up with Professor Lionheart and try to get any information on Cinder or the Spring Maiden...but, what we didn't know, was that he was working with Salem the whole time, and actually HELPED Cinder and her little posse infiltrate the Festival in the first place."
The five were horrified by that statement.
"W...What!?" Glynda gasped out, pure shock on her normally calm face.
"Leo's...a traitor!?" James shouted, completely at a lost, since he knew Leonardo Lionheart for years. Yes he was of the slightly scaredy cat type, but he never picked him the type to just betray everything and everyone he stood for.
Ozpin, though not new to betrayal, was still surprised that Leo betrayed them...though if he had to guess...it was done mostly out of fear.
Qrow was actually gripping his flask, truly not taking this well.
"Yeah...Professor Lionheart actually helped Cinder in causing all the destruction and grief that descended on Vale...," The Rose Reaper continued, "Though...that was not all he did."
Everyone all felt a chill go down their spines at that.
"Oh shit...what else did he do?" Qrow said
It was not long for him to wait for the answer.
"He also...gave every bit of information of all of Mistral's best Huntsman and Huntresses in the kingdom, including the Academy teachers." she then closed her eyes for a moment before opening them and continuing on, "And with that info, and Lionheart's connections...Salem lead them all into traps, where her agents would be waiting...specifically, Hazel Reinhart and Tyrian Callows,"
Ozpin's grip on his cane slackened to the point where he almost dropped it, while the others of his inner circle and Amber all had varied reactions of shock and horror on their faces.
"No...no, he didn't...," Glynda gasped out.
"He...he helped her kill them," James managed to breathe out as his robotic hand turned into a fist, the servos in it, whirling and groaning, "...every single one...all of Mistral's best Huntsmen and Huntresses...just gone,"
Qrow's anger intensified at that, wanting to go to Mistral, march straight into Haven, and ring that damn cowardly lion's neck. But he managed to keep himself where he was as they continued to listen to Ruby's story.
"It was...a tough fight to say the least. Made worse, by the fact Raven, Yang's mom, was also there," she said, making the Red Eyed Reaper gasp in surprise, even though he shouldn't be, "We almost lost Weiss, when Cinder impaled her with one of her glass spears...though, thankfully, Jaune's semblance, Aura Amplification, kicked in just in time and he was able to save her. Then, another miracle happened, when Blake came back, along with Sun Wukong of Team SSSN, and a whole Faunus Militia, and the Mistral police, led by her parents. The White Fang who were there with Adam were overwhelmed and captured...but that bastard still managed to get away. With the momentum now on our side for a change, I had Yang go after Cinder. She came back later...and had the Relic of Knowledge with her...of course, when Emerald Sustrai saw this, she suddenly screamed and made an illusion...of Salem. It was enough to distract us as they escaped. But one good thing came out in the end...Team RWBY, my team, my friends, my family...we were back together again,"
They saw her take another breath before she continued, "Two weeks of rest went by after that," she said, "After that period of rest, we then headed north, on the Argus Limited, in order to get to the Atlas Military stationed there and then find passage to the Kingdom itself and place the Relic of Knowledge in their vault...unfortunately, we ran into quite the snags on the way there, which involved Manticores and a Sphinx attacking the train, forcing us to split off from Jaune, Nora, and Ren, and separating half of the cars from the engine, then crashing our half...," The four adults, plus one Maiden all facepalmed at that, "... After the wreck, and...learning a few things like Jinn, who is a spirit created by the God Brothers, and who lived in the lamp, we then arrived at an estate called Brunswick Farms...though we later found everyone who lived there all dead...eerily still in their beds, and with no sign they had ever left them or any other signs of struggle,"
Though grimacing at the image, Ozpin and his colleagues immediately began thinking on what might've caused the entire estate to do that. Though the Green Wizard was a little curious and somewhat concerned about the...few things they may have learned.
"We stayed there for the night, though, it was not very comforting." continued Ruby, "Next morning, when we were about to leave, we were all just...tired...like, our willpower was just being sapped away...we even contemplated throwing the relic into the well...theorizing that it would take Salem years to find it."
All the adults were concerned at that part.
"I was just about to, until I managed to snap myself out of it...only to get spooked...by a pair of familiar red eyes that caused me to... Accidentally drop the lamp into the well, ehehehehe" Ruby actually managed to put on a sheepish smile at that, causing everyone to face fault.
"You've gotta be kidding?" Qrow groaned out.
"But thankfully we immediately went after at it...though, everyone was still acting apathetic to the whole thing... And it wasn't long when we found it, and came across what killed the entire settlement...a whole pack of Grimm called...the Apathy,"
Everyone's eyes immediately widened at that.
"The Apathy...of course, their known for their ability to drain willpower from their victims!" said Glynda, having read up on the zombie-like Grimm herself.
"And a whole pack of them...it's no wonder the settlement was so easily wiped out," James commented.
"And second note to self, and to those watching this as well, if I ever go back to that place, drop a 750 pound 110 gallon napalm bomb in the water tunnels and burn the whole lot out!" she advised, and the group agreed with her advice, "Anyway, we almost didn't make it out of there...but fortunately, an elderly lady we met after the crash and stuck with us soon after managed to help me in how to use my silver eyes...the power vaporized half of the pack, giving us time to get out. As we were leaving, the woman, Maria Calavera, revealed to us she once had silver eyes. Though... Tragically, she lost her eyes during her younger days, due to Salem sending her goons at that time to kill her...you probably heard of her, since Uncle Qrow based his scythe weapon off of hers,"
Qrow's eyes actually widened at that.
"What?...No way," he gasped out making everyone turn to him, "They...we...actually met...the Grimm Reaper,"
Everyone was stunned by that.
"If you figured it out, yup, it's true. Maria Calavera, was the famous Grimm Reaper," Ruby said, as she smiled in fondness, "A note to you, if you can find her, please do so. Just show her a little respect...and show her a message I made for her. It will help convince her to come help teach my younger counterpart in how to use her eyes sooner,"
She then paused for a moment, before taking a deep breath.
"After that near death experience, we finally managed to get to Argus, and met back up with Jaune and the others, with us ending up staying at his Oldest sister's place," they then watched as she smiled at the though of meeting the Arc's sister, and her family, before it turned into a frown, and Ruby groaned. "But...when we got to the Military Base...they immediately slammed the gates on our faces, due to the fact that after the Fall of Beacon, the other Kingdoms blamed Atlas due to the fact that Cinder had recorded the hacked Atlesian Knights attacking Vale Citizens, and this in turn forced General Ironwood to have the Borders closed and issued an embargo in place and enforced...and it was made worse considering who was in charge of the base...,"
James actually groaned in irritation at that.
"Oh no, PLEASE don't let it be her...," he grumbled, but everyone heard as they looked at him questioningly.
"And if you're watching this, General...yes, it's Caroline Cordovin," said Ruby, and James just facepalmed.
"...Dammit...," he said, and Qrow asked the question that was on everyone's minds.
"Uhh, someone you know Jimmy?" he asked, and James didn't answer at first, but he soon did.
"Caroline is one of the more...fanatical members of the Atlas Military," he managed to groan out as he massaged the temples of his head, "And when I say fanatical, I mean FANATICAL. Of course, considering she's been in the Atlas Military for an VERY long time, it wouldn't surprise me that all the things she had done in her youth had gone to her head,"
"How long are we talking?" Qrow asked, and James tiredly replied.
"About six and a half decades,"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"You're kidding?" Glynda said incredulously, and the Atlesian general only shook his head.
"I'm dead serious," he replied, and sighed, "And after hearing this and how she is being described...I think it's time for her to retire,"
Ozpin nodded at that.
"That's probably for the best," the Headmaster of Beacon said in agreement before they continued watching the rest.
"Not long after, and being shut out from the base, we had to find another way to get to Atlas," Ruby said, and then scratched the back of her head, "And Jaune, please don't be mad at him, suggested that we...steal...an Atlas airship?,"
All the adults all had dumbfounded expressions on their faces at the Arc's, clearly, reckless plan.
"Uh, okay, is that kid serious?" Qrow asked, "From what I understand, Jim, stealing an Atlas airship is a serious crime in your kingdom,"
"It is...," James said, with a look of utter disapproval, before sighing, "...but, for once, given they would be in a desperate situation, I'll let it slide."
"The plan so far went off without a hitch," Ruby said, "Weiss would pretend wanting to return to Atlas, but in actuality will smuggle in Maria, who is also a pilot, onboard. Blake would turn off the radar and the ship would double back for us...but we didn't count on Adam Taurus showing up and ruining the whole plan...obsessive bastard wouldn't leave Blake alone,"
The adults and one maiden were concerned about that, while Qrow sighed in irritation.
"Okay, I agree with what she said before," he said "Something needs to be done about that guy,"
"And to make things worse...Cordo quickly caught on and came after us in her giant robot and nearly shot the airship down..." she said before frowning in disapproval, "...right near Argus...near civilians...and had completely gone off the deep end,"
Ironwood just grabbed his face in frustration at that.
"Full retirement from public life, PERIOD," The general groaned, while Glynda placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him down.
"And let's hope the next one you put in charge of the Argus base is more...cooperative," Ozpin said, and James nodded.
"Believe me, I will make sure of that personally." James promised.
"Of course, during the time she was busy trying to kill us...," Ruby continued, while sighing irritably as well, "...her staff at the base were watching and, like they were watching a wrestling match and being idiots, began to cheer her on...but at the cost of not watching their radar screens, and didn't see the Leviathan coming before it was too late...and we disabled the giant robot by taking out it's cannon."
Everyone's eyes widen at that, while Qrow just cursed at that.
"Great, a Leviathan...anything worse than that?" he asked, and his question was unfortunately answered.
"And to make it worse, it attracted a a whole horde of flying type Grimm to Argus, including Chimeras and Sphinxes," Ruby said, causing everyone to give Qrow a glare at that.
"What!?" he said defensively.
"Stop jinxing us!" Glynda scolded before sighing irritably before they turned back to the screen, though Qrow did grumble a little.
"Knowing we couldn't just leave Argus to be destroyed by the Leviathan, we double backed back to the city on our...borrowed airship," Ruby said, while enforcing the word 'borrowed', "When we got there, Ren used his semblance of emotion suppression to keep the Grimm off our backs as we got close, then, Weiss used her summoning semblance to summon a Queen Lancer for me to ride on, so that I could move around faster and give me time to use my eyes... it was a close call as I had the lamp with me, and it attracted the big bastard toward me... and in order to buy myself time, I called out Jinn's name in order to stop time, and let me concentrate..."
They saw her smile in fondness.
"And thankfully, she understood, and said that because I didn't seek any knowledge, she said I had a free pass," she said while chuckling, "And so, after meditating on all the good things I had ever done with the people I cared for the most... my silver eyes finally activated, and I froze the Leviathan in stone. Of course, it managed to continue moving and proceeded to try and break itself free, had Cordo not arrived to finish the job. Despite her...questionable fanaticism, she still holds loyalty for the people. And General, if you're somehow deciding to have her retire, make sure she at least gets at least the honor she deserves."
Said General nodded at that, and decided to be not too harsh on the old woman.
"After that, Cordo, surprisingly, let us go, and later we finally arrived at Atlas...though the sight of the entire Atlesian Air Fleet hovering over the city had us worried, as it was arrayed itself as if expecting an attack." This caused everyone to grow concerned at that, most notably Ironwood. "And of course, when we landed, we were met by the General and an armed escort, before being placed on temporary house arrest, much to our chagrin. At least it was better than going to prison,"
She then sighed as an angry frown formed on her face.
"Of course, Weiss' father didn't help matters, at all," she growled, "And then there's her brother Whitley, the little shit who everyone could not stand, not one bit. Even made a very degrading comment about Pyrrha, which caused Jaune to snap and would have beated the little snot to a pulp if we hadn't held him back."
"After that, after speaking with the General on what happened at Haven and getting him to agree on keeping the lamp in their vault, we did exactly that...," the glare on her face returned, "Then, Cinder showed up again, along with Neopolitan, Roman Torchwick's partner. It was made worse when Tyrian showed up, along with Arthur Watts, the true mastermind behind the Atlesian Knights being hacked and turned against us,"
James' eyes widened at that name.
"Wait? Arthur Watts!?" he said in shock.
"Another person you know?" Qrow asked, and the Atlesian General and Headmaster of Atlas Academy nodded, his face still holding the shocked expression.
"He was one of our best scientists until he was caught doing unethical experiments on Human and Faunus test subjects!" he said, as his robotic fist clenched again. "I immediately issued a warrant for his arrest but somehow he anticipated this and managed to escape, even Winter couldn't find him! If he is in league with her, then that means she knows all of Atlas' secrets and weaknesses! And with Leo being a traitor as well, it's a sure bet he gave them his codes for the CCTN, and the entire system is now, most definitely, compromised!"
That... was a scary thought.
"We'll need to change the codes then, upgrade the security software, and quite possibly temporarily shut down the entire system," Ozpin said, and Ironwood nodded, before the Headmaster resumed the recording.
"And of course, they weren't alone as they brought along an entire army of flying Grimm...including a new type of flying Beringels, with Nevermore wings on their backs," Everyone gaped in shock at the imagination of the gorilla type Grimm with wings...and in horror at the thought of an entire army of them. "The battle was tough as the Atlesian Air Fleet was driven to the limit... Until an old friend, I thought was long gone came back, as Penny, 2.0 to be exact, arrived and helped us out immensely. I was of course, happy to see her, but...the happiness was short lived as Weiss' sister, Winter, who we later learned was the Maiden of the same Season, was killed by Cinder."
James' eyes widened in horror, at the thought of his best subordinate, and the one whom he had picked to be the Winter Maiden, perishing at the hands of the psychotic fire witch.
"And to make matters worse, Jaune was captured by Tyrian, and Cinder got both the Staff and the Lamp and taken them back to Salem's Castle in Drache," she said sadly. "Ren and Nora were most desperate to get him back, as were the rest of us. But then Salem sent one of her Seers to us, and said that if we wanted Jaune back, we had to give her the Sword of Destruction that was in Vacuo. And she gave us a month in order to make up our minds...or Jaune will join Pyrrha in the afterlife,"
The four were greatly concerned at that.
"Hooo boy...I have a feeling this will not end well." Qrow said, already knowing how this will turn out.
"We immediately tried to form a plan on how to get both Jaune and the other relics back," Ruby said, "We knew it was not gonna be easy, and it might've been impossible, but, we had no other options available to us,"
"I won't go into more details about the plan, in order to save everyone a headache, and also for you to think of a better one," she said, "After two weeks, and making a few stops along the way, we went to Vacuo, and after a bit of convincing the Headmistress there, we got the sword and made our way to Drache in order to 'make the deal'. *Sighs*...of course, when we arrived, Salem went back on her word on letting Jaune go, and...proceeded to have Cinder kill him, the same way that she killed Pyrrha. And thus the fight ensued, with us dealing with her goons and Cinder, while she went to the other relics, including the Crown of Choice that she managed to acquire after Cinder came back, and she went to Vale to get it,"
Ozpin could only grimace further, as his future failure was getting more and more discouraging, and filling him with more regret of his past actions.
"Before I could go to stop her, Cinder stood in my way once again, and thus we began began our final duel...she...said things, that I can't all say in this one video alone, but...they more often than not reminded me of my failures in the past," she said the last part sadly, before her face formed a steel-faced frown, "Though unfortunately, in her case, that was the last mistake of her life, as with the power of my silver eyes, I destroyed everything Grimm on her, including her Grimm arm, and the parasitic beetle she used to steal the Fall powers. And after seeing her now ravaged body before me, I could only look at her with pity, before I just left her where she lay,"
Everyone looked at Ruby, all of them actually feeling a chill go down their spines at how ruthless she sounded. Though, they knew that in her defense, after losing so many people she held dear to her heart to a REAL psychotic bitch, you tend to get just as, if not more ruthless than the ones who did the deed.
"I managed to find her in the castle, but she already began to summon the God Brothers. I tried to stop her but...it was too late and, they came back." Everyone felt a chill, as they waited for her to continue.
"Salem...not wanting for them to speak just...attacked them, using the power of the Relics to fight them... more specifically, the Sword of Destruction. The God of Light was mostly her target, since she believed he was the reason why she was the way she was," Ozpin actually winced at this, which caught the others attention but they didn't comment on it, "However, the Older Brother was too strong, and she was stopped...but then, the God of Darkness, the younger brother he...he killed his own brother,"
Everyone's eyes widen at that info. Expressions of horror clearly written all over their faces. The most affected was Ozpin.
"...No..." Ozpin breathed out, as his cane dropped to the ground.
"He then started...laughing, telling Salem she and Ozpin had been useful puppets," she said, as she shivered, "This drove Salem into a rage, as she tried to kill him, but she...was then incinerated by the Younger Brother's fire breath, killing her instantly,"
Ozpin felt his heart shatter...despite what she had become, she was still the woman he had loved all those years ago, and who was the mother of his four children, who all were tragically lost on that fateful night, all those countless centuries ago.
"Then to make it worse...he then decided to end his brother's legacy once and for all, and like before, he unleashed a wave of fire which washed over the entire planet...thankfully though, I was protected by Jinn and the Relic of Knowledge, which shielded me" She then closed her eyes as a grimace formed on her face, "But, in the end, everyone else died. And...I was the last one left."
Everyone was not liking were this was going.
"I was the last person to remain alive on Remnant, while everyone else...Human, Faunus, men, women, and... c-children alike were all wiped out...Remnant itself, no more than a wasteland now..."
They watched as Ruby wrapped her arms herself as she began to weep uncontrollably. Her eyes were closed, but tears still managed to escape.
"I-I'm...I'm sorry, everyone...I'm so sorry... Yang... Weiss... Blake...Jaune...Pyrrha...Nora... Ren... Penny... Dad...Uncle Qrow...P-please, forgive me," she sobbed out as the teachers all looked at the broken young woman before them.
Qrow fell onto his knees, as he grabbed his hair in anger. His niece had been through hell, that he hoped she would never have to go through. But unfortunately in this case, it did.
She stopped crying for a second, and she attempted to regain her composure. "That was eight years ago now. The Grimm didn't die as they were originally created by the God of Darkness, but instead turned feral and more vicious after that. Just...more wild. I've actually been hoping one would kill me. One of them nearly succeeded: a Deathstalker. But...unlike ones I fought in the past, this one was incredibly different. One thing that caught my eye was that the colors were reversed, being dominantly white, and it was more well armored. I killed it, but not before it stung me. The initial sting caused me to pass out, and when I came to, I was surprised to be alive and immediately went back to my hideout to find out what it did to me...And to my horror, it wasn't normal venom, but something worse...a parasitic Grimm that I can't even use my silver eyes on." That revelation caused the adults to gape in shock at that info, "And on top of that, like a snake, it's coiled around my lungs and heart...the coughing attacks and convulsions, are a result of that. Eventually, what I call the Strangler WILL kill me, but my unique maiden powers, a gift from a...special few individuals, who I will explain in another video, are holding it back. But they're at their limit: the attacks happen more often. I thus used special White dust developed by Atlas doctors in order to boost my aura and in turn my powers to counter it...however, eventually I'll run out, and... I'll die. Slowly, and painfully,"
That caused Amber and Glynda to gasp in horror, Qrow to grit his teeth in anger, Ironwood's cybernetic hand to clench even harder, and Ozpin to grasp his cane, which he picked back up earlier, very tightly.
"At first, I was just willing to stop using the White Dust and just let the Strangler take me...so I can be with everyone I loved," she said, as more tears ran down her face, "I do not, and still do not, believe I deserve to live after everything that happened. I had failed everyone... my father, my mother, my sister, my friends, EVERYONE."
The adults were growing concerned, seeing as the now older Ruby, had a death wish. They then blinked in confusion as she smiled softly.
"But...then I found hope. Or rather, it found me," she said, before she stood up.
She then picked up the scroll the walked to a certain area of where she lived, before stopping in front of what looked like a bank vault. They heard her take a breath before she pressed a series of codes on the digital pad, before she pressed the enter button. Large clanking sounds could be heard, before the vault door itself opened, and they watched from Ruby's point of view as she walked in.
They then saw what looked like an ornate pillar, like the ones seen in the Emerald Forest Temple, and placed on top of it, was what appeared to be a ornate hourglass sand clock, but what caught everyone's about it, was the glowing green sand in the glass bulbs.
It was Ozpin who put it together.
"...A Relic...," he gasped out, "...but that's...impossible...,"
Everyone was stunned by what the Professor said, but didn't say anything as Ruby once again spoke, as one of her hands reached out and gently caressed the top of it.
"If you're watching this Ozpin, yes, this is a relic...," she explained, "...But, unlike the other relics that were made by the Brothers, this one of a few that were made by one of those special individuals I mentioned, and who gave me my Silver Maiden powers. Who are they you may ask?"
That was definitely the number one question in their minds.
"Well, let's just say the Brothers have siblings," she said, making the adults and one maiden to blink in confusion... before...
"...WHAT!?" they all shouted, scaring the doctors who were still looking over the out cold woman.
"Yes, you heard me, the brothers have siblings...three sisters to be exact!" Ruby said, with extra insistence in her tone. "And they have names too:...Dia, the Goddess of Time, Palk, the Goddess of Space, and finally, Gira, the Goddess of the Afterlife."
Everyone's eyes were now the size of soccer balls as the info they just received made their minds go into overdrive. But still, they didn't say anything as Ruby continued.
"The relic you see right now, the Relic of Time, was made by Dia herself, and if you had guessed by her title...yes, it's a time machine, one I intend to use to go back, and change everything, hopefully to change events, or prevent them altogether," However her face became crestfallen at that, "However, like all Relics, it has limits on how much it can be used. In this case, the hourglass could only be used once every 200 years. Meaning, this will be a one-way trip. And...with my...ailment, something can go wrong real fast. That's why I put together a file on my scroll, as a final gift to you, should I...not succeed. And I would also bring the other two Relics with me, but I hide them, and the hourglass away at secret locations in order to keep them safe."
Qrow looked at the woman on the bed, now feeling greatly worried and protective.
"During the past ten years, since the Fall of Beacon, I've gotten better with more than just my beloved sweetheart Crescent Rose," Ruby said, getting their attention, "I can now also wield swords, handguns, and other weapons...Plus, I finally can do hand to hand. Beat that, Yang! Hehehehe...Ahem, sorry... where was I? Oh yes! And I know how to design and forge armor, and design better weapons."
Qrow couldn't help but smile in pride in how far Ruby would come in her profession as a huntress and a weapon smith.
"The file for the schematics, and the file for the relics and their descriptions and their abilities, are locked under a password... which only I know unfortunately," she said sheepishly, scratching the back of her head, causing everyone to sweat-drop, "Of course, the only hint I can give you is that it's an old nickname I got on my first day at Beacon after an...err...embarrassing moment,"
She suddenly started sniffling, while still smiling all the same. "Dad, Uncle Qrow, Yang, Blake, Weiss...everyone...I love you all. And know that I will NEVER forget you, or the happy times we enjoyed... At Patch, at Beacon, and all throughout Remnant... This is Ruby Rose, signing off. No turning back, now." The vid ended, leaving them all stunned.
"Well...still the same Ruby, in spite of her...brokenness." Qrow said as he looked at the young woman, just as the doctor came back. His face showing disbelief
"Professor Ozpin, the test results came back positive," the doctor said "It's... a one hundred percent perfect match. This woman is who she claims to be. She's the real Ruby Rose,"
It was silent for a moment, before Qrow stood up, and taking a longer than usual gulp from his flask, before putting it away. He then walked over to the hospital bed, and bent down before placing a comforting hand on her head.
"Someone is going to have to tell Tai he has a third daughter." Qrow laid out, while Ozpin nodded in agreement.
"More then that." He said, "We need to protect her. James-"
"I will bring in the best I can spare." the Cyborg said with a nod, "I would assign Winter, but unfortunately, I need her to help look for the ones responsible."
"It would also be a personal conflict: her sister is, or WILL be, on young Miss Rose's team." Glynda pointed out.
That was a given now: Ozpin knew he was NOT changing that. He'd rig the whole thing if he had to: Team RWBY would come into being.
"I'll also send some specialists who I can trust to find that hourglass, and if possible, the other Relics," James said, before reminding himself, "What about the other team? Team JNPR?"
"I don't see why they shouldn't be formed, either." Ozpin said and then looked to Ruby. "She came from a hellish future, with the full intent to change it. And she was willing to die for it."
"Yeah. But she's now VERY vulnerable," Qrow growled out, "That bitch knows that Ruby is no longer able to defend herself. She'll be back for her, not just to finish what she started by taking her Maiden powers, but to no doubt find out what Ruby knows. And if she succeeds, the world's toast,"
Amber stepped forward. "If it's alright with all of you, I'll stay to protect her. In a way, she's a sister. And I'm not going to let her fall into their hands."
Ozpin nodded as the two left, Ironwood nodding to the headmaster before leaving, with only Glynda and himself remaining behind.
"And what about Team RWBY and Team JNPR? Should they know about this?" Glynda said as she looked at the Elder Ruby in concern.
"When they're ready, we'll tell them." Ozpin decreed, "But not one moment before. They're involved, Glynda, whether we want them to be or not."
He then looked at the scroll, and blinked when he saw that Ruby made more than one video entry. Pressing the button, it showed a list with names, which included the said teams as well as a few others, including himself. Ozpin smiled sadly as he looked back at the young woman lying motionless and vulnerable on the bed.
"You truly are an interesting person, Miss Rose," He said, before placing a comforting hand on her forehead, like a caring father to a daughter, "I have no doubt, your mother will be very, VERY proud of you,"
Patriot-112: And done! And the finale of V6 was fantastic! I will not spoil you all, but I know once you see it, not only will it fill you with a sense of victory, but nostalgia of the past volumes as well.
Until next time peeps. Later!