Losing Hope

by Shadlos

(Before reading, please see the Disclaimer/FAQ chapter post to see if this is right for you). Fate can be cruel & dark, especially when falls on the members of team RWBY. A hellish, dark, & long ride awaits as existence's darkest threat forces them through events beyond their wildest imaginations. A story of corruption, a story of a fleeting world...a story, of Loosing Hope

3. 87 A

"A Window to the Past"

I...don't know exactly what I'm dreaming about...but I know I'm loving it. I'm in some sort of strange, half-asleep state, with my mouth open, drooling in my sleep. I can then faintly here a familiar, female voice. "Hey Ruby...c'mon now dear...you've got to wake up..."

"Hwaaahhh..." I muffle still asleep "Just a few more minutes mom...". I then hear a giggle "How cute. If you want to sleep in, that's fine...just remember what you can expect with that if you follow through." Suddenly, I know the exact identity of this voice, and awake immediately, and start flailing under the covers in panic. "I'M UP, I'M UP!" I say quickly, and in my flailing I've tangled my bed sheets up with the one over my bed, and wrapped myself up in the process. I flail wildly to try and untangle myself, and the whole sheet comes down on me. I flail a bit more, finally freeing myself. I give a sigh of relief, as I lay on my left side, and use my right arm to move the covers off my head. Parting them away...I look into the mischievously smiling face of my sister. Immediately, I spring onto my feet to show I'm awake...which wouldn't have been a bad idea if I wasn't in the top of a bunk bed. As I spring up, my head hits something above me, and I'm immediately dazed. My vision gets blurry as I see little birds flying circles above my head. I stumble on my bed a bit, before falling off, and into the arms of somebody. I lie in their arms, dazed, a few minutes, looking up into oblivion, and I shake my head, clearing my vision...I'm in my sister's arms, and she's still giving me that smile. Immediately, I jump out of her arms and onto my feet, in my pajamas, and stand tall at attention with my right hand to my head in a salute. "Ruby Rose wide awake, sir!" I say in a quick panic. My sister chuckles "at ease, soldier girl. You've done nothing that needs reprimanding for...yet."

"Uh, well..." I stammer, sweating a little "Is...are...we...am I sleeping late?"

"No, not even." She replies, crossing her arms. Blake and Weiss are behind her, Blake sits on the lower bunk while Weiss leans on the nearby wall. Both of them look concerned at me. Yang looks directly at me "but you've still got to get a few things done, lil' sis..."

"L...Like bathroom stuff? Shower, teeth brushing, right?"

"I think that general stuff. You need to get ready for the big assignment today, remember?"

"Yep!" I say with a little hop, and smiling, much more at ease with the thought of today in my head. "Checking out that one place in the southeast today. Hopefully we'll find that hideout of theirs!"

"Right..." Yang said, stroking her chin. "Although I think the professor said it wasn't Mountain Glenn...there was another city nearby, though. What did he say it was again?"

"He said even he didn't know." Blake finally speaks "He said that despite him knowing so much about the history of Remnant...nobody in the world knows how that city came to be. It was there before Mountain Glenn was established, already in ruins. It's just known as 'The Dead City' to scholars and the rest of the world alike. I guess if there's any location for a crime hideout, it's there...or, Mountain Glenn."

"So...riight...seek and destroy...I remember..." Yang says.

"Well, yeah, but that's not the main point." Weiss interjects cautiously. "It's bigger than that, remember?

Ironwood's military detected some sort of massive power radiating there from time to time. Power similar to that of an aura."

"So...we're not just going to find and destroy the hideout, but also-"

"That's just it. It might not be the hideout after all."

"Then why are we going!?" Yang huffs. "To discover some sort of strange new energy or something? And why all the top-notch equipment and the military presence?! I mean, we've got to wear those freakin...earbud...microphone...camera-things! We're going to be watched every second by the military, especially old man up top" she says pointing upwards, towards the top of Beacon's tower "And you KNOW how I feel about uninvited or unapproved interruptions and visitors to MY personal time".

"Well, just think." I say to my sister. "It...could be something they're doing. Maybe it's a weapon or something? A weapon of mass destruction or the like?"

Yang snickers. "Weapons of mass destruction...fun."

Ruby...heh, she's staring wide-eyed at me, having gotten exactly the side message I meant with that phrase. "Uhhh...so...I'm gonna go ahead and shower and stuff, kay?" she says, fearful again, before flying out of the room into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. I shake my head, and turn towards Blake and Weiss. With the sudden realization they're stuck with me, their eyes turn wide a moment, they look at each other, then start behaving a little nervous. Weiss rubs the back of her head and Blake looks down. I snicker again "Hey, Blake." I say. She quickly looks up "Yes? What?". I motion over to her bookshelf with my head, my arms crossed. "Kinda sad we'll be gone for a while. I was hoping on reading the rest of that book with you...after all, it is your favorite, right?"
"Uh...yeah." she says "It...is a good one, but I think I can last a little without that".

"Well, we only need necessities so..." Weiss interjects again "I...think it'll be a practice in patience!"

"Aww, that's adorable." I say. "So, what about you? Going to miss being the queen of the castle?"

"Wha?..." Weiss stammers "N..I...uh..." I chuckle to myself, and then hear the sound of shower water running. I look towards the bathroom door, then towards Ruby's bed, which is still messy. I snicker, and then simply call out "Ruby! You forgot something!"

Immediately, Ruby knows what I mean. She flies out of the bathroom using her semblance, rose petals are scattering everywhere as she flies up to her bed and makes it in seconds, before flying back down. Right as she passes me, I reach out and grab behind her. There's a high-pitched shriek as Ruby flies back into the bathroom...and her towel in my grasp. The door slowly opens, and Ruby's head pokes out of it fearfully. I look at her towel. Just like her pajama bottoms, roses all over. "H-hey!" Ruby says "C...can I have that back, sis?"

I look at her towel, then hold it by it's longer end, twist it about a few times, then wrap it around my neck like a scarf, and cross my arms, giving a smug look to my sister, who's looking terrified at me. We stare at each other for a few moments, before I hear Blake behind me. "You can use mine" she says to Ruby quickly. Ruby gives a very quick, high-pitched squeak in fear of "thank you" before quickly slamming the door. I turn around towards Blake. "Aww, good kitty!" I say "that was nice of you to do that".

"Yeah, well...we can't be late, so...that, and...your plan there wasn't so bad either." she says trying to defend herself. I smirk "of course it wasn't." I reply, holding part of Ruby's towel with my right hand, then bringing it to my face and sniffing. "Heh...she did a damn good job with her laundry this time" I say, taking another sniff. The others look incredibly fearful at me, but still keep their cool...heh, if only the mission were a few days away...I've been wanting to try a few things, but, I guess like my snow princess said, it's an exercise of patience...oh well, I'm OK with that. I haven't kicked enough ass recently, so it would be nice to go ahead and go back to beating the shit out of people like I love to do. I throw Ruby's towel over Blake's head, who hastily throws it off, and I crack my knuckles with a grin. "Ahh...I've actually missed a huntress's line of work." I say. "Guess that's why we're all here at Beacon, hmm?"

Weiss and Blake agree with me by giving me a slow nod.

I'm scared about what I might see when I come out of the bathroom, but I emerge to see Yang nowhere present, and Blake with Weiss, both breathing relieved. Yang left early because, as she apparently told them "I feel like my stomach is eating itself", so she went for breakfast early. We followed after, a little reluctantly. Once we were done there, we were to report to where our transports were waiting outside. We weren't the only team on this mission. Team JNPR was coming as well. As we approach our transport, we see Team JNPR already boarding theirs. I then look towards Yang...and She's looking at Pyrrha, who's the last boarding the transport. My sister licks her lips as she watches Pyrrha board the ship...and I somehow gain a strange amount of confidence. I flick Yang in the ear and give a low squeak, as if to say "hey, you can't! We need to focus here!". She turns and looks down on me with a glare that makes me feel absolutely minuscule. I turn towards the transport again and quickly hop aboard and into my place...with Yang sitting next to me. I give a shutter, gulp, and put my hands directly on my knees, and take a deep breath, and try to pretend nothing's wrong. We take off quickly, and begin the transport. It will be at least an hour's ride...n..next to my sister. I try to think about other things. Like playing Remnant: The Game, the upcoming Vytal Festival, taking down those crooks, cookies, strawberries, our dog Zwei, and the-

I give a low squeak as I feel my sister's arm go behind my shoulders, her hand resting on my left shoulder. I slowly turn to her, looking to my right...and she's got a soft smile. I...is she...She gives a relaxed smile with a bit of a sigh, and upon seeing her eyes... I do similarly. She is! She looks into my eyes "y...you know I'm still your sister, right?..." she asks me. I nod in response to her "Yeah...I know you're still Yang in there. I still love you sis..."

"T..thank you for putting up with me." she says with a tear coming down her left cheek. When I was young...I was too little to understand what was going on when Yang got back late from her friend's house years ago. Why there were police at the house, why Yang was crying so much...why dad was so angry...and...now that I do...It's the only reason I hold even stronger onto my sister...and I can't believe Weiss and Blake are so sympathetic about this, too. It...it's not Yang's fault she's like the way she is sometimes...but when I see my sister shining through, and not...whatever that terrifying event in the past had created...It makes it so much more worth while. Yang rubs the top of my head, then scoots down in her seat a bit, before closing her violet eyes. I...If anybody else at Beacon found out about Yang...I..I don't know if she'd even be allowed on campus grounds anymore. For once in a very long time, I scoot close to my sister, knowing it's safe, and lean my head on her shoulder. I'm...crying a little bit i'm so happy. Weiss and Blake are looking at me with soft, rewarding smiles. I...it's all worth it in the end, I think...no...I know so. I close my eyes shut, and then begin to rest, before once again falling asleep.

A few jostles of the aircraft wake me. I move my head around on Yang's shoulder at first, eyes still closed, but the jostling prevents me from sleeping again. We must be descending. I slowly open my eyes, and everything's blurry at first. As my vision clears, I note...Yang's face above me. I smile weakly at first as my vision is still cloudy, then clears...and I see her dark violet eyes, and the grin on her face. Immediately, it's with this I realize...what's up, and where my head is. I immediately panic, falling off the lap of my sister and onto the floor of the transport. My sister bursts out laughing "My dear, sis. You've got to be more careful and anticipate when Yang Xiao Long is around...and when Lilith Xiao Long is instead".

"W-well she was!" I say, and she raises an eyebrow. I suddenly panic in fear with what I've said. "So you're telling me I had a slip-up, and she showed up?" she asks. "N-no!" I stammer, as Weiss and Blake look on fearful for me. "It's j-just that I fell asleep and then kinda-"

"Shhh..." my sister says, putting her finger to her lips. "It's ok little sis...don't cry. Don't worry. I only say what I do to scare you, you know. I wouldn't dare do anything I said...besides, I don't know how to do what I threaten, actually. Besides...I like seeing you happy, and after all, Yang still comes back every time she needs to, right? Maybe I let her come out this time. I hope you liked talking to her, you know...talking to me".

"O...of course!" I say smiling with a big, fake smile, that is somehow convincing. "You're my big sis! I'll love you forever!"

"Of course you will." she replies. "You show me how much you love me, and I you, plenty". I shudder at this last utterance as I crawl up into a seat between Weiss and Blake, across from my sister. She grins at us, crossing her ankles, then giving a stretch, adjusting...her chest, then looking out the window. I turn to Weiss and Blake. "Since when did this happen?!" I whisper low. "Since she woke up about ten minutes before you." Weiss says with a worried look "We were going to try and wake you, but she...wouldn't let us in the slightest way attempt..."

"D...did she do any-"

"No." Blake says. "She just sort of...stroked your hair and looked at you...I...well..."

I look worried at my sister, then down towards the floor of our transport. "You...you two are some of the kindest people I've ever met." I say, to which they seem surprised. "You...I don't understand why you didn't...why you never told anybody about Yang...and how you go through this...and still stand".

"...Well, I guess even a story like yours and Yang's...can break even the hardest of stone hearts." Weiss says smiling. "I...i'm not the nicest girl at times, I know, and even to you...but...knowing the struggle of you and your sister...I...I have...such a..." Weiss seems at a loss for words. She brings both her hands together, folding them, and rests them in front of her face a moment, pausing, before then just shaking her head "I just can't be angry. Something like that...reminds me that I really didn't have the worst of lives, as I thought I did...and...then when I remember how I treat you sometimes...I'm really, really sorry, Ruby. To be honest, I don't know how you stood through so many years of this."

"...I doubt even those I knew in my past would be as barbaric to do something as similar to what happened to your sister." Blake says "despite the fact that...it was indeed a Faunus who..." she's incredibly uncomfortable, but smiles "...I...guess I...just...like what Weiss said. I...I can't look at you and...not feel something towards you, some sort of sympathy. Seeing and being with you and...Lilith...there's something more to what meets the eye there. There's something that...just is more off than what's obvious about it all...but, on the bright side..."

"a bright side to this all?" I ask.

"To this mission...knowing Lilith...you should be able to see much more of Yang."

I smile weakly. "Well...true. Yet, I don't...I don't know how you can put up again and again with the-"

"The same reason you do and have." Weiss says.

"Because it's not Yang doing it." Blake finishes for them both. "I ask you, Ruby, hold on: we're here with you. Who knows...maybe, one day...there might be a way to get your sister back...and...one day, if Lilith doesn't have Yang as a back up...then that will be the day she pays with her head".

I smile at them, and they return it. Suddenly, I hear her voice "My my, you three...isn't it bad to gossip about somebody who's listening?". We freeze. Directly to my right, in the seat next to Blake...my sister sits there, leaned in as we are...the look on her face...she's heard everything. She grins at us "When we get back to Beacon...you three...are in BIG, BIG trouble...". We're wide-eyed at this, when then Lilith seems distracted by something, and looks up and over us. Her face is...well, fitting. "...Well holy shit..." she says "...I guess that's The Dead City...".

We turn around slowly and look out the window. Below, the ruins of the mysterious city...they give off a strange, eerie aura...a malevolent aura. I shudder as I see the nearing landing zone, and the ominous city growing closer and closer...we land near a small base of operations within what appears to be the ruins of an old apartment complex. We exit our transport as Team JNPR exits theirs, and the ships fly off. Instinctively, we head inside and find the main "control room", for lack of better words, stationed in the lobby. There are Atlas soldiers there, as well as a woman in white who looks a lot like-

"Winter!" Weiss says, running up to her sister. Winter turns, and smiles upon seeing her sister, who stops around five feet away. "Greetings, sister. A pleasant surprise to see you here."

"Yeah, I know, right? So...why are you here?" Weiss asks.

"The majority of that is classified..." Winter replies "But of what I can tell you, i'm basically your military liaison for this assignment. You don't mind, do you?"

"No, not at all!"

"I thought not. How have you been?"

"Great! My studies have been well, I'm in the top of my class and-"

Winter smacks her sister in the head. "Child, I did not ask you of your performance" she snaps, then smiling again. "I asked you how you've been. Have you made any friends?"

"Yeah!...I have!" she says with a brief pause, turning, and gesturing to us and team JNPR. "These here are all my friends! And those three there- Ruby, Blake, and L-er, I mean Yang, are my team-mates!"

Lilith caught Weiss's slip-up, and eyes her for a few moments, before Winter moves closer our way. Lilith immediately acts as if everything's normal, as Winter now stands in front of me. "So...you're the Ruby Rose my sister has been writing about, hmm?"

"Y-yep! That's me!" I say, my nervousness with meeting new people setting in. "So...uh, Weiss has wrote about me to you, huh?..."

"Quite..." she looks back at Weiss "You...weren't too far off with your description."

"Is...that a good or bad thing?" I ask. Winter looks at me "Well...we'll see". She begins to walk past me, but puts her hand on my left shoulder as she passes, and speaks low to me. "My condolences." she says "about your sister..." she then continues to walk past me. I look wide-eyed at Weiss, who immediately knows what her sister has told me. "You TOLD her?!" I said angrily to her low. "Not everything!" Weiss said. "She said that Yang's name sounded familiar, and when I said you were sisters, she said she remembered hearing about that case on Patch! I swear, that was it!"

I look into Weiss's face...she's telling the truth. I sigh. "sorry...i guess it's just more public than I thought."
"at least to those in law enforcement, I think..."

I look at Winter as she passes by Lilit...no...Yang! It's definitely my real sister! Her eyes are a lighter shade, and the way she looks around at things differently...it's my sister! Lilith must have grown weary of Winter and backed off for now, for some reason. Finally, the briefing starts. "Now...I'll cut to the direct point. This isn't just a seek and destroy mission. Yes, we've received intel that there might be a criminal hideout of sorts in the region," Winter explains "It's because of something else you might have heard. An energy coming from this reason."

"What's so special about this energy?" Pyrrha asks. Winter shakes her head "...we don't know what it is. From our measurements, they're...catastrophically powerful. Something that could hint to a weapon of some sort...and yet...It's incredibly similar to a vastly powerful aura."

"You think there might be some sort of...aura weapon here?" Weiss asks her sister. "We're open to nearly any explanation..." Winter says "but that's what we believe is most likely...yet, it doesn't behave like a weapon firing. It's timing is sparratic. There's no pattern to when it begins to emit, how long it begins to emit, the only thing in common is the power levels...which are immense...?" Winter's looking up at Pyrrha, who seems to have something in her mind. "Does this ring a bell to you, Pyrrha Nikos?"

"Hm?!" Pyrrha says, her name suddenly bringing her back to reality. "Well...when you said that phrase...how there's nothing really in common with the energy emissions...for some reason, I...pictured in my head the scenario of something violently resisting captivity".

"You think there's something alive out here making these emissions?"

"Well...you said that the energy is incredibly similar to that of an Aura...and only a living being can have one. We...might be dealing with something that we could...perhaps...converse with?"

Winter stares down Pyrrha from across the table. "...your reasoning isn't flawed...but...if it were an aura, that doesn't explain the Grimm's behavior towards it".

"The creatures of Grimm are reacting to this energy?" Yang asks. I hold back tears as I hear my sister speak on her own accord. Winter nods, and brings up a holographic map. "Strangely enough...there aren't many creatures of Grimm here as one would think there to be. Each red dot you see here is some manner of Grimm." upon the map, there are many clusters of red dots, many of which are so close that they seem to form one irregularly shaped mass. "This was two weeks ago," Winter explains "On a Tuesday. Keep your eye on the Creatures of Grimm. You'll be able to see the energy's epicenter fairly soon."

All seems fine on the map, when suddenly, an orange circle suddenly appears at the circle of the map and quickly grows to a massive size. The second the orange field intersects red on the map, the Grimm flee away from the source of energy...save for a few. From two different patches of red, two large red icons are heading towards, deeper into the field of orange. "Are...those Goliaths?" I ask. Winter freezes the feed, then touches and highlights a singular red dot. "THAT is a Goliath" she says, and brings it next to one of the anomalies. In comparison, the unidentified Creature of Grimm is larger, and is moving faster. "So...are these new Grimm?" I ask. Winter is uncertain "To discover a new species of Grimm this late...would be disturbing, but it is plausible. Yet...I still wonder why they, if they are Grimm, why they're the only ones that gather in this area when the energy emits..."

"Where is this area where the energy seems to be emitting from?" Ren asks.

"Somewhere within a Ten-mile radius of our current location." Winter responds. "But we're away from the epicenter...the direct epicenter, anyway. That's why the plan is to search for any sort of location or source. You two teams will take the east and west today. If we can, begin to search the north and south. This source of energy has to be identified. If it is dangerous...it must be dealt with."

"...is there any idea on how this energy effects people?" Blake asks. Winter gives a slight delay "...no. That's why I say exercise caution. Again, we know nothing other than the fact that it's very powerful. It's caused no effect to the area around us, but again, the effects on non-Grimm living beings is unknown."

It's a hard fact to swallow for us all. Soon, we receive that equipment Lilith was dreading. It's similar to a singular headphone, hooking over our right ears. A camera, audio recorder, and tracking device are also with it. Once we have these equipped, our teams split up. JNPR in the West, RWBY in the East. We've walked about twenty minutes when Winter comes over the communicators. "First communication test. Team RWBY, how's communication?"

"Hearing you clear as day." I say, putting my hand to my ear. "Are we coming in fine?"

"Your visual and audio is clear, and your tracking well on our systems." Winter responds. "JNPR, can you read me?"

"Loud and clear". Jeanne confirms "We can hear Ruby on our end too".

"Good, you're also online. Final check, how are your signals?"

"Strong and clear". A voice says. I immediately recognize the voice, as does everybody else. "Professor Ozpin?"i ask.

"Now now, Ruby." he replies "We're just observing on our end for now."

"It's This way we can make an immediate assessment in case the source of the energy and how to deal with it" I hear another voice say. It's General Ironwood. I hear Weiss give a slight huff. "Three for three?..." she says low.

"I heard that!" snaps over the communicators. I sigh with a smile "Well, just means that we're coming in clear, right?" I ask

"Crystal." She replies in a calmer tone.

"Now, this is more than just identifying a simple anomaly" Ozpin states "as you may obviously guess. Due to it's footprint, any and all options and explanations are on the table, granted recent events. This is just a precautionary threat assessment. Once we find out what our anomaly is and deal with it, you all return and life can continue as normal. There's nothing to be afraid of."

"Can I quote you on that?" Yang asks.

"Not quite yet." he replies.

"Alright. Guess we'll start putting these to good use. We'll keep advancing East for now."

"Right, and us West." Pyrrha replies.

"Stay safe." Winter says "We'll be watching. Over and out".

I look at the other members of my team...especially Yang, who's smiling warmly at me, a few tears on the verge of coming down her cheek. She nods in agreement, and then I turn towards Weiss and Blake, who do similarly, as we press on.

Meanwhile, Ozpin, Goodwitch, and Ironwood watch on. "Are you sure your students are ready for something like this?" Ironwood asks. Ozpin takes a drink from his mug "These are among the best and most qualified of my students. They're all we need for this quick assessment."

" 'Quick Assessment'!" a voice rebuttals. "Regardless of what you say, I WILL quote you on that".

They turn to Qrow, who leans on a nearby pillar. Glynda is irritated with his presence, as to be expected "Do you have anything to do other than just second-guess everything, you drunk?!" she snaps. "Now now, Glynda-" Ozpin tries to calm her down with, but Qrow interrupts him. "I'm not second-guessing. Just pointing out the obvious". He pulls out a flask and takes a large drink. "Just because your nieces are out there-" Glynda tries to argue, but is cut off again.

"Just because my nieces are out there doesn't mean a thing, no offense to those two."

"Then what do you call this operation?" Ozpin asks.

" 'Nothing to be afraid of'." Qrow quotes with an angry tone. Ozpin doesn't reply. "You KNOW where I'm getting at, don't ya, Oz? There's only ONE thing that comes close to that power we've picked up, yet even that is dwarfed by whatever's out there."

"So are you saying-" Ironwood tries to say, but is interrupted.

"By all evidence, yes. Whatever's out there is exhibiting power beyond that of a Maiden. Yet what I want to know, is why the hell are we looking into it, other than curiosity? Is it really just that?...or is somebody looking to see if they can get their hands on it?"

"Now I can assure you that there's no such a scheme going on." Ozpin replies. "This is more along the lines of as you said, curiosity, than a power-grabbing spree..."

"Heh, maybe. I just don't like the idea of fucking with something that could beat the hell out of the gods we already know." he replies, taking another swig from his flask. "None of us do." Ozpin says.

"So, what if on our little 'hide and seek' mission here my nieces end up finding something that really screws us over, huh? Something better left alone and undisturbed?" Qrow blurts.

"Then it will be dealt with accordingly when the time comes; and if necessary, protected."

"Pfft, we're doing such a good job with protecting powerful things already, aren't we?..."

"Yes, we are-"

"Are NOT. You know what's going on. You even used that as defense for this whole field trip. You're sending innocent youths into a completely blind situation, with the only objective to find power stronger than gods. Frankly, if this does turn out to be something, I don't think you're gonna like what's going to happen next."

"I already don't." Ozpin firmly states. "Yet we cannot look past this. As soon as we get the clearest of ideas what's going on out there, we'll act accordingly to it."

"Heh...I can understand you, Oz...but i've just got one hell of a bad feeling about this. Ya know...really having my doubts on this one."

"...you're not alone in that regard." Ozpin replies, adjusting his vision back to the feeds on his screens.

We must have been walking for a few minutes. We walk down one of the ruined streets when suddenly Blake stops. I stop and look back, with Yang and Weiss. "What's up, Blake?". Blake looks around a moment, then brings her right hand to her ear. "Hey, Winter. Are you picking up a low humming on my end?"

"No, you're clear on my end." she responds. "It's probably just a minor technical issue".

"I'm...not so sure...one sec."

Blake takes off her earpiece and looks around. After a couple seconds, she puts it back on her ear. "It's not a technical issue." she states "I'm hearing a low humming".

"We're not detecting anything from our end from your unit." Winter replies. "You're sure you're hearing something?"

"I'm sure. Do you hear it?" Blake says, looking at us. We listen to the area around us. "...i can't hear anything, Blake." I say.

"I've got nothin." Yang says.

"Maybe it's this wind." Weiss says, as a gust of wind blows, and the streets howl with it. Blake shakes her head. "It's not coming and going...it's constant. And...I...think it's slowly getting louder."

"The energy isn't radiating..." Winter says "...but be careful, and proceed with caution."

We begin to move several feet forwards, except for Blake. She shakes her head. "No, I won't."

We turn back as she says this. "Blake! Move forward!" Winter orders.

"Negative! I'm not moving!" she snaps over her device.

"Do as you're ordered! Now!"

I try to say something...but then...I hear it. A low hum...and from Weiss and Yang, I hear it too. "SHH!" I snap over my own communicator...Winter herself is now picking up on the low hum...suddenly, my vision starts getting foggy, and my head begins to hurt. "My...head..." I say, holding my head with my left hand. Weiss and Yang start suffering similar symptoms. "Get over here!" Blake says, and we rush over her direction. The closer we get to her, the lower the hum gets, and the less severe our symptoms are. We've gathered near her, when suddenly, the humming gets louder quite quickly. We all fall to our knees and hold our heads, covering our ears. There's now a loud ringing in my ears, and I can't hear anything. I hear what sounds to be Winter's voice, but I can't make out anything. My vision is incredibly foggy now. Suddenly I hear what sounds like Ozpin, Goodwitch, Ironwood too...and...my uncle? Their voices are panicked and with urgency, but I can't hear them still over this buzzing. I look up at the others...and towards Blake...behind her, from out of thin air, a large, dark shape materializes. Blake looks up at me and my look of terror. I quickly point behind her and scream.

"GRIMM!"

Blake looks behind her, only seeing the creature's black foot, and it's enough to get her to move. She suddenly leaps forwards, leaving a copy of herself behind her. The Grimm slashes where Blake once was, slashing the decoy in half, before suddenly disappearing into thin air again. Seeing this, we quickly struggle to our feet and run our original direction as fast as we can. We can't hear the buzzing anymore, but Blake can. "Did it just...disappear?!" I stammer

"It's doing more than just that." Ozpin states. "...it's dematerializing."

"T...that's not possible, is it?!" Weiss panics.

"It's a Grimm. There's still plenty we don't know about them!" Ozpin responds again. "And if it's using dematerialization in order to hunt it's victims...then it's completely invincible until it goes to strike."

I'm terrified by this. A Grimm that's...invincible, invisible, and can only be damaged when you're at your weakest. "Blake!" I call to her, and she nods. Quickly, she removes her bow covering her ears and tries to pinpoint it's location. She suddenly focuses a direction. "There!" she points back to where we just where, before suddenly turning around "and...there!" the direction where we were heading originally...she was picking up on another one?! We're cornered between two invincible Grimm, which slowly close in on us. Suddenly, Weiss seems to realize something. "Blake!" she says "Point out the closest one!" Blake listens again, then points back towards where we were first attacked. "That one!" she calls. Weiss draws her weapon, the clip of which turns, and then fires a blast of electricity from the tip, which flies the direction of the attacker. Suddenly, the electricity strikes something, And the Grimm is suddenly visible. Around 30 ft long, bipedal, with two long arms, boasting three massive, white-and-red claws that must be 6ft long in and of themselves. It's got a small head atop a long neck, and the entire body is covered in black feathers, a mane of which goes down it's neck, forms what looks like wings on it's arms, and a tail fan at the tail tip. It screeches in immense pain from the voltage, and then suddenly drops to the ground, dead. Weiss then turns the direction of the other Grimm and launches another bolt of electricity. Once again, the new Grimm is shocked into revealing itself, but the bolt itself too indirect of a hit to kill it. I pull out Crescent Rose and give a single shot, which hits it's head, and delivering an instant-kill. I turn to Weiss "Nice going..." I say "But...how did you know that would work?"

"Heh..." she gives an uneasy sigh "Blake's not the only one who likes to read in her spare time. I remember reading once about how magnetism and electricity can effect ions and the like. Then, when Ozpin said that the Grimm were dematerializing...the way they did, it looked as if they were doing it using vibrations to do that...so I just put two and two together and...boop! Dead Grimm."

"heh...pretty, wealthy, and smart." Yang says "you cover all bases, don't you?"

Weiss stamps her foot in annoyance. There's a chuckle from Ozpin "Now now, Weiss just remembered something crucial and acted upon it, that is all. Although, what might work best on one of those...Shadow Reapers -As we'll call them for now- would be an electromagnetic pulse. Both of your teams have one half of this Grimm's surefire death: you're lucky to have the comrades you do by your side. Either way, this is alarming. In the area where unknown power was detected, the first seen individual Shadow Reapers were discovered and killed. With that other Grimm that was detected from satellite feeds undoubtedly roaming the area as well...stay on high alert. Who knows what other kinds of new acquaintances you'll meet. Stay sharp."

It's another few minutes of walking, but nothing too major. Over time we run into a few already known Grim: a pack of Beowolves, some Ursai, and then we ran into a pair of Goliaths...who we're still dealing with. The professor wasn't kidding when he said the only thing my weapon would do is enrage one of these things. We can't really find a weakpoint on these things. They take blows from my enraged, semblance-empowered sister quite easily. We try attacking their legs, but to no avail. All we're doing is causing a big commotion. I manage to land on the ruins above one of the Goliath and I fire several shots to try and shoot it's eyes out...but it's not exactly cooperating. At least, not with us. It's pal, on the other hand, is a different story. They really aren't mindless after all, as they try and lead us into the attacks of their partner, or into each other to give them an opening. The goliath i'm shooting at charges the building I stand upon, and I jump off and give several slashes down it's back as I evade the strike. Nothing. The Goliath turns towards me and bellows at me...and I then hear something else bellow back. It's not a Goliath. Whatever it was, it came from behind me. I evade the Goliath that keeps Weiss and I busy, while looking back towards where Yang and Blake deal with their own Goliath. The bellow of response came from that direction...and soon it's maker emerges. Right as their Goliath attempts a charge at Blake and Yang, something bursts from the ruins behind it. Another Grimm...and this one isn't playing nice with other Grimm. A vicious head with a massive sword-chin bursts out of the ruins and attacks the Goliath behind the head, biting it, while also embedding the sword-chin's blade deep into it's flesh with ease. The Goliath screams in pain at it's attacker, who I can now get a good look at. It must be at least 60ft long, with a somewhat rounded head, and vicious jaws. The bottom jaw, of which I mentioned, has a large, blade-like chin that must be 3-4 ft long. At the top of the head, two horns that curl forwards. Starting at the back of the head and throughout the entire body, black feathers adorn it, with white armor plating occasionally appearing on the sides, and several plates rising up on the middle of the back in defiance of the feathers below. It's arms are somewhat long, two-fingered, and have some wing-like armor plating to them, although not majorly. At the end of it's tail is a large, claw-like spike...which I heard our professor once say the technical term of which is...thagomizer? Good night, I probably butchered that. The newer Grimm actually lifts the Goliath off the ground as they slide forwards, before slamming it on the ground again, killing it. The other Goliath roars in anger that it's partner has been killed, but also by another Grimm. The newer Grimm looks up at the Goliath who dares dispute it's actions. It rips it's jaw free from the dead Grimm and roars, the blood of Grimm still fresh on it's blade and teeth. "T...that thing's killing other Grimm?" Weiss says in shock as she stands next to me, safely away from the conflict. Yang and Blake have made it over safely to us by now. "T...that's...unheard of." Winter stammers over the communicators "It's...barbaric, even among Grimm standards!"

"It doesn't care anyway..." I note. "Just look at the way it's acting...it's a Tyrant among Grimm."

"...Tyrant..." Ozpin states in response "...Quite."

The elder Tyrant roars angrily at the Goliath, who charges. The Tyrant avoids the attack with surprising ease, and stabbing the Goliath in the back flank with it's tail-claw, and pulls it back, as if reeling it in. The Goliath breaks free, turns around, as the Tyrant looks at it, it's body curved in a C-shape. The Goliath charges again, and the Tyrant lunges forwards, running it's chin-blade through the Goliath's skull, and embedding it's tail-spike in the creature's spinal cord. It's a brutal way to go, for sure. I'm terrified by this thing's sheer brutality. It rips the Goliath free from it's chin, using it's tail spike, then dis-lodges it from the thagomizer itself, before bellowing into the sky. Suddenly, my sister slides back on some of the rubble we're resting on, and the Tyrant looks our way. Ozpin orders us to run, but looking at the eyes of the Tyrant, something tells me otherwise. "NOBODY MOVE!" I snap low, just as they were all about to take off, and end up resting in uncomfortable positions. The Tyrant slowly approaches us. "What are you doing?!" Ironwood orders "Fall back! Now!"

"It's partially blind, if you look at those eyes!" I snap back low. Ozpin then knows what I'm trying to state. "It's got sight-based movement..." he says "If they move, they're as good as dead. It won't stop chasing them so long as it would see them still moving!"

The Tyrant's chin-blade tip is inches away from me. I'm lying as still as possible. The wind blows, but the movement of our clothes and hair isn't enough to trigger an attack. It must think of them the same as moving foliage...but bright. It growls as it sniffs near us, before snorting in the face of Blake and Yang...it doesn't see us. It turns, then goes back to it's kills, and begins cannibalizing it's victims. We scoot down below the wall of rubble...we're pinned. If we get out to move, we'll be seen. Winter comes over the communicators. "JNPR, assist RWBY immediately! Buy them some time for them to escape!"

"R-right! We're coming!" I hear Jeanne say. I look at the other members of my team, but then, locking scared faces with Weiss...I myself come up with an idea. "Hey, Weiss?" I say.

"What?" she snaps back in slight fear.

"I've got an idea...this is a weird question, but..."

"What? Spit it out!"

"...do you have anything shiny you don't need?"

Weiss's eyes widen...she gets what i'm saying. She reaches into her pocket, and pulls out...what looks like her company's credit card. "Wait, that?!" I ask, imagining the millions that could be accessed with that. Weiss crosses her arms and huffs "went shoe-shopping the other day and found I'm declined and refused for anything. As much as I like my father's money...i don't need it. Take this stupid thing."

She hands it to me, and I actually hear what sounds like a chuckle from Winter. "Thanks...Blake, think you can punch a hole in it with your weapon real quick?"

"That and one more for you." she says, holding up...an extra bow, unraveled as a ribbon. She uses the tip of her sword to punch a hole in the card, then she ties her ribbon through it, and hands the finished result to me. I take it in my hand, then stand up a little, looking for a good location...i see one atop a semi-distant ruin, atop a beam sticking up just beyond the Tyrant's reach. I turn towards them, and eye my sister. I smile uneasily "now, sis..." I say "You better be proud of me if this works...this is going to be the most...Yang-ish thing I've ever done". She smiles at me, appreciative to talk to me. "Well...you've got to grow up sooner or later, sis. Sometimes that involves making stupid decisions and doing stupid things. Make me proud".

I nod, then, activate my semblance and dash towards the feeding elder Tyrant. I run several quick circles around it, which immediately gets it's attention, as it roars and snaps at nothingness in confusion. Then, knowing I have it's attention, I make a mad dash towards the distant beam, doing the fastest parkour I've ever done in my life, and doing a massive leap of faith, hanging the card on the beam, and disappearing from the Tyrant's view. It looks around for a few moments the direction I dashed off towards...then it happens. The noon-time sun's light is reflecting off of Weiss's card as it turns in the air, suspended. The Tyrant falls for the bait, and gives a growl as it slowly walks towards the false object. I fly back over to my team, directly into my sister's arms, and after a brief celebration, we take our opportunity and flee. We continue a while longer, and Winter's decided that we're on a better track than JNPR, since we've run into these new Grimm, and has decided they are to follow behind us until we stop to meet up. It's been almost an hour since our Tyrant encounter, and we haven't seen another one, but ran into a few more Beowolves. We walk down a different city street, when there's suddenly a massive screech of interference over the communicators. I immediately give a slight shriek and hold my ear as the brief sound emits, before disappearing as quickly as it came. I look at the others. "I wasn't the only one who got that, right?" they nod their heads, and from the looks on their faces, they also had similar pain. "What is with the interference today...?" Winter asked "Was that on your end, general?"

"Quite..." he says annoyed. "I suggest when the day's search is over, repairing these things".

"Yes, sir. I'll see to it it gets done".

We take a few more steps, then take a right down a different street. At first, all looks "normal"...it's a ruined street...but Weiss freezes. I turn towards her "What is it, Weiss?" I ask...her look is of pure fear, and she slowly points ahead in the street. We turn and look...and soon our face matches her's...lying in the street...is Pyrrha, apparently dead, head facing away from us, on her stomach. My eyes are wide, and I slowly bring my right hand to my ear. "P...Pyrrha?" I get nothing but static over the communicators for a response. "Pyrrha?...hello?!"

I then hear my own voice...emanating from where Pyrrha lies on the ground...she...she's...

"Oh my god! Pyrrha!" I cry out with tears, and dash towards her.

"PYRRHA WATCH OUT!" Jeanne calls to me, and I intercept and counter the strike of a younger Tyrant that we've come across. It's not alone. It's got three other ones to back it up. As young, they seem social and pack-hunting, only around 25 ft long, and cunning: quite a contrast to their elder version that team RWBY ran into. They lack as much of a chin blade,have more extensive feathering, and no armor plating at all. The young Tyrant attacking me once again lunges at me with it's jaws open, but I bash it's head aside with my shield before stabbing it in the head with my weapon in it's spear form. Stabbing it in the eye, it's an instant kill. Strangely, these ones have much clearer vision...I take only a split second to look over the new species of Grimm I've just slain, before I'm quickly drawn to the one Jeanne's struggling with. It attacks violently and wildly again and again, striking wildly like the juvenile it is. I rush to Jeanne's aid, and leaping atop the beast with between it's shoulders, and slashing at the back of it's neck repeatedly with my weapon in it's shorter sword form. The younger Tyrant thrashes wildly with me on it's back, trying to buck me off. I hear a scream from Jeanne, and the Tyrant turns in flailing towards him, only to have Jeanne finish what i've started, decapitating the inadequate, although troublesome, young Grimm. I jump off as the body collapses, and turn towards Jeanne with a warm smile. Ren and Nora have finished off their opponent as well. I turn towards the dead bodies of the Tyrants...Shadow Reapers...Tyrants...all seen for the first time in this city. Something's not sitting well with me. "Hey, now why does Team RWBY get to have all the first-time fun with the new guys, huh?!" Nora argues "I feel like I'm being left out".

"Ehh...not really." Jeanne says "You'd probably be doing exactly what I think Yang might be doing: charging in blindly."

"Aww but that's the fun part! Not knowing what i'm fighting and figuring it out for the first time!"

"That is, until it fatigues you and cuts you in half" Ren replies.

"O...oh right...yeah...we got lucky with that Shadow Reaper..." Nora says rubbing the back of her head. "...if you hadn't caught on to it early, Pyrrha...well, thanks!"

I smile. "It's nothing, really. Just looking out for my teammates."

Jeanne and the other smile at me, but then, Ruby comes over the communicators "P...Pyrrha?".

Her voice is terrfied, I quickly put my hand to my ear "Yes? Hello? I can hear you."

"Pyrrha?...hello!?"
"I'm right here!" I say "I can read you loud and clear, hello?!"

"Ruby!" Winter snaps "Pyrrha and JNPR can hear you fine, what is the-..."
"Oh my god! Pyrhha!" Ruby says, and there's suddenly static on her end. My eyes are wide in fear, and dart around a second "Winter? General? Professor? Anyone?"

There's nothing but static on our their ends. I turn towards others...something is definitely not right. Immediately, we start running team RWBY's direction.

I'm running directly towards where Pyrrha lies. I collapse on my knees just before reaching her, and stop, looking directly at her...she...she's really dead...Weiss, Blake, and Yang are right behind me...and just as terrified and shocked as I am. I reach out my hand to try and touch Pyrrha, as if to confirm to myself this horrid fantasy...my hands are inches from her back...then, suddenly, there's a flash of a black mist, and suddenly, something's being swung at me. I barely avoid it, rolling onto my side and standing, weapon drawn. The others have also avoided the attack. I look towards Pyrrha's body and...it's standing...but...it's not Pyrrha...whatever it is...it looks exactly like her...if she were a Grimm. This creature looks exactly like Pyrrha, but with black skin, black-and-white armor, red hair with black highlights, red eyes...and a Grimm mask...It's wielding it's weapon, and standing...exactly as if it where Pyrrha...this...this is definitely a new one. Suddenly, it shifts it's stance, and tilts it's head. It's eyes focus on me...then on each individual member of the team...of the four of us, it focuses on Yang and I the longest...then, it smirks. It retracts it's weapons, sheathing them, then stares directly at us, with an evil, smug look...from the communicator feeds and their stunned silence...Winter and the others must also be watching. Yang's angry "what's so funny, huh, you monster?!" she interrogates. It gives a low, malevolent chuckle, sounding vaguely similar to Pyrrha...then slowly raises it's right hand, and points towards a large, ruined skyscraper in the distance. We look at the building, then direct our attention back to it, which continues to point and grin. "What's so special about-" halfway through my sentence, the Grimm suddenly vanishes into a black smoke that disappears, not like the dematerialization of a Shadow Reaper. I sit there in stunned silence, staring off into oblivion where the Grimm once stood. The others and I are too shocked to move...just then, Yang shifts her weight on her feet, and brings her hands behind her head. I turn to her and...her eyes...it's Lilith. She moves her elbows up into the air as if to simply shrug at me, but I know what she's up to...using Yang's stunned silence to get some time to herself. She snickers "Dopplegangers, eh?" she says. "Great. Who to trust now? Seriously. Like, if they jam the feeds so that we can't hear Winter or Oz sayin' they're fake, do we just fall for it to see if they drop the guise? What if that was a younger one, and not an 'elder'? What if others or 'elders' can remain disguised, even as they attack? Do we just start murdering each other?"

"Yang!" I snap. "IF you knew your allies, then you'd know we wouldn't be attacking each other in the first place. I'm hurt, Yang, that you'd even think I'd try to attack you".

I feel powerful now, even if I'll regret it later. Lilith can't snap back the way she'd like without blowing her cover in some way, shape, or form...unless if she...no, she's...cunning, but not stupid. Lilith looks at me, then down to the left, and holds her left arm. "I'm sorry, sis...just worried" she says, lying through her teeth, but putting on a convincing show. "I...I really AM sorry, sis." she says "I'm...just a little edgy with all this new stuff in this strange place. I don't want to loose you."

"Likewise, I wouldn't like to loose Yang Xiao Long, either."

Lilith continues to put on her show, but I know she's growing angrier and angrier with me. "Such behaviors are common in a strange field of battle, it's alright" Ironwood assures us. "As for now, wait there until Team JNPR catches up. Then, head for that building. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" I say, before then our earpieces shriek again for a few seconds. I tap mine a couple times...feels like it's busted, or out-of-order again...wait...I turn towards Lilith, only to suddenly see her flying at me. She grabs me with her right hand by my neck and lifts me up, her eyes red and her hair aflame. "YOU LITTLE TWAT!" She roars. "YOU'RE SO DAMN LUCKY I DON'T SHOVE MY FIST UP YOUR CUNT RIGHT NOW!"

I'm scared, but somehow, I still keep my bravery and boldness. "Heh, thought you loved me, sis. Didn't think you'd want to hurt me, let alone kill me. So you've got a blood fetish, eh? Necrophiliac? What's next? Beastiality?"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, BITCH!" She says, shaking me once. "The fuck do you know anything about being a real woman? Look at your damn self! These fucking tits!" she says using her free left hand to grab my chest hard, and I flinch in the pain. "Have you even hit puberty yet, ya damn lolicon!?"

"Heh, you should know my body inside and out sis, like you boast all the time. Then again, as my sister..you should more actually be knowing what's going on with me all the time".

"SHUT...THE FUCK...UP!" she twists her hand to the left, then lets go. "You...loose the damn bravery, capiche?! Just because we're out on a damn mission doesn't mean shit!"

"Heh...speak for yourself, sis."

Lilith growls very angrily. Suddenly, her hand flies up my skirt, and I immediately feel her hand under my...my eyes widen as she chokes me while violating me. She licks her lips in intense satisfaction, before throwing me on the ground, still choking me, and continuing to violate me, pinning me down with her weight. She's giving me some sort of sadistic grin unlike something I've seen her do before. Suddenly, Weiss pulls out her sword and points it at Lilith, assuming a battle stance "FUCK OFF, WHORE!" she roars. Lilith hisses at Weiss "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" she snaps "AND YOU PUT THAT SHIT AWAY BEFORE I RAIL YOU IN THE ASS WITH THAT THING'S HANDLE!"

"Try me."

"If I can't do it out here, it'll be back at Beacon...you bitches will pay so fucking much for trying to usurp me!"

"Under this madness?! You can do more than go fuck yourself in the literal sense!"

"You'll be hanging by your ankles, bitch!"

"Heh, as I said, try me".

"You won't do it, though. Not if Yang's still locked away in here. You'd break Ruby's heart, you know?"
she huffs angrily, her hand still moving profusely as I struggle to keep from screaming or making some sort of utterance, clenching my teeth. I've been through this a thousand times, and I'm still not used to it. Weiss growls at Lilith knowing she's right, but won't stand down. Blake also becomes aggressive "Lilith!" she orders, but Lilith snaps back quickly "Shut up, pussycat! Or your pussy's next!"

"Team JNPR's coming, remember? They aren't far behind. I'd stop this shit if I were you." Lilith eyes Blake, then myself, before pushing herself off of me and onto her feet quickly. She shoves her fingers into her mouth, then yanks them out and licks her lips. "I'm not done with YOU, sis." Lilith growls. "You three be on your best damn attitude...that way I have plenty of fucking time to calm down. If I calm down, I lessen my punishment, maybe even forgive and forget, alright?"

She turns then starts walking away. Weiss and Blake are quickly on their knees and to either side of me as I sit up. With my hands on my knees, I look to the sides slightly. To Weiss on my left, then Blake on my right, before looking at Lilith as she walks away...I immediately sniffle once, before finally bursting into tears, covering my face. Blake quickly wraps her arms around me tightly...she's just as tired of this as I am. Weiss, who's also having tears flowing down her face, but holding them back well, stares angrily at Lilith. "How the fuck can you call you her sister?!" she demands. Lilith stops, then turns, as her hair extinguishes and her eyes return to normal. "Shared blood is all that matters, isn't it?"

"Genetic relations are shit." Weiss spits "It's just a natural stepping stone to help form a bond. You don't deserve her as your sister, nor do you even view her as that. You just call her tha-"

"I call her what she is, Whitey. Now do me a favor, snow princess, and shut the fuck up so I can calm down".

Blake and Weiss help me to my feet and I need their support to stand at first, with my legs so wobbly from shock. Eventually, I manage to calm back down, and i'm actually a little sick on my stomach from crying so much. Weiss gives me a drink of water, after which, I throw my arms around her in hug, one of the few she genuinely accepts and returns to me. Soon, Team JNPR rounds the street-corner. We start briefing each other on what's happened, minus the current event with Lilith, minus Lilith herself, who walks around a distance away from us, pacing back and forth.

"Winter, do you copy?" Ironwood says over Ozpin's shoulder. "Yes, General." she replies. "The interference is still to much, we're trying to patch back in to JNPR and RWBY, but we're still blocked..."

"What exactly is causing this interference?" Ozpin asks.

"Sir...the energy. It's radiating low near their location in low waves...it's bouncing-back the signals, but we'll keep trying."

"Well...at least the damn destroyer of worlds has woken up." Qrow states, noting the low energy emissions being shown on the screen where the teams have gathered. "Maybe it's excited it has company? Who knows? Maybe it's been lonely."

"Will you be quiet?" Glynda snaps, but Ozpin cuts her off from saying anything else. "Hold on" Winter suddenly says "We...we'll be able to patch into one of them for a second...Pyrrha Nikos, hold on..."

Suddenly, Pyrrha's unit goes live again, but the teams have no aware of it being on. "So, you actually had a run-in with a Shadow Reaper?" Weiss asks. Pyrrha nods "You and Ozpin were right. Polarity was enough to damage it into appearing. Once it became tangible...it wasn't much of a threat, surprisingly. They're surprisingly agile when solid, and those claws still deadly, but not so much to the degree of when they're empowering their attacks with vibrations..."

"Heh, that's something..." Ruby says. Jeanne tilts his head. "Hey...you alright? You all kind of look..shaken up. Was it really that bad? The Doppleganger?"

Weiss, Ruby, and Blake look at each other for a few moments...and then Ruby nods. "It's not that." she says. "...it's something else. You know how we told you about Blake being a faunus?"

"I'm...ok with you guys knowing, off-the-record..." Blake interrupts for a moment. Pyrrha nods "Yes...is there something else you need to tell us?"

Ruby doesn't say anything at first, but hesitates. "Heh...it's hard for the girl to describe what happened to her sister, even at her current age." Qrow says "I can't blame her. I still get pissed off when I think about that shit."
"So...so it was Yang Xiao Long..." Glynda says, bringing her hand to her mouth. Ozpin nods slowly "I've known myself about that event for a while now...and I'm inspired by how firm they've stood throughout these hard times...sometimes it takes the darkest of events to forge the brightest and strongest of bonds."

Ruby...she's been looking down at the ground, then looks up. "...what i'm about to tell you is beyond a doubt hard to believe...and...if anybody...like Ozpin or one of the teachers finds out...I'll...I'll be fucked."

JNPR is shocked to hear Ruby use such language. Ozpin seems somewhat surprised by what's he's just heard, and then quickly taps a button on his panel "Mute your communication for now" he orders Winter, who does so. "R...Ruby, what are you saying?" Pyrrha asks. Ruby shakes her head, which slowly droops. "...do...any of you possibly recall hearing of a certain case on an island called Patch several years back?..."

"Vaguely..." Pyrrha says with a slight shudder. The other three members of her team don't seem to know. "Wait...what happened on Patch?" Jeanne asks. Pyrrha takes a hard gulp. "It...a young girl went over to her friend's house to play, like she had done several times before. Yet, this time...when she went over, her...her friend's father, in a drunken rage he...he...had his way with her." she explains, struggling for words. "Y...you mean...that" Ren says, and Pyrrha simply nods. "It...got a lot of attention, especially with the father being a faunus...no offense, Blake."

Blake gives a strange, sympathetic smile "Heh...non taken...it's fine...just fuel for the flame..."

"Why...do you ask of this?" Pyrrha asks. Ruby pauses "...because that girl was Yang."

Team JNPR gasps. "Y...Yang...Yang was that girl?" Jeanne asks, and Ruby nods. "But...Ruby." Ren says "That...that wouldn't be anything to grant you the ill will of anybody! People...especially us, we sympathize with you on that. Truly, we're sorry, but why-"

"It...it's not that. That was the trigger." Ruby says.

"T...trigger?" Jeanne asks.

Ruby looks up, tears in her eyes. "H...haven't you ever looked at my sister and noted something off?...more specifically...sometimes her eyes are darker?..."

"I...I always thought it was just the light..." Pyrrha says "but...what does that have to do with anything?"

"...shortly after all that...Yang...secretly changed. She...started acting different. She...started calling herself 'Lilith'...and...then sometimes...she'd act like Yang...and the way she'd look at me and hold onto me when she was 'Yang'...it was out of fear and desperation, as if she was cherishing sharing even the slightest of time with me...I...Yang doesn't show it, but she's got some sort of...extreme multiple personality complex...she's got another persona, Lilith Xiao Long, that's been brought up from that event."

Team JNPR is stunned silent "A...are you sure it's not just your sister's way of coping?" Ren asks wearily. "no!" Ruby snaps low "She's not in denial of it! She's there! When Lilith's around, that's when her eyes are the darker shades of lavender and red. The lighter colors- that's my sister. Yang, she...she only comes out, most often, when things have to be done that Lilith hates. Yang and Lilith share a few things in common, other than a body...a like for picking fights, acting haughty, being a flirt, freespirit...but in and of itself, Lilith hates fighting and field work. She lets Yang do that...and those are often the only times when I can see my sister again, the times when I can never speak to her."

"I...is she making this up?" Ironwood asks. Qrow's looking dead at the face of Ruby on the monitor. "...look at the face on my niece, and tell me if she's lying." he says...his tone alone is confirmation he believes every word coming out of Ruby's mouth. Ozpin is disturbed "Ruby...she's not one to lie about anything...bend rules, yes...and i'm a little for that...but...she wouldn't lie. I know your niece that much".

"R...Ruby...what...how does that do anything to your detriment other than..." Pyrrha says. She believes Ruby, but struggles to understand what she says. Ruby lowers her head. "It...It's because...Lilith...she...s..she..."

"She's a SKANK!" Weiss snaps in anger low. This draws JNPR's attention, but Ruby simply holds up her right hand, both to calm Weiss down, and re-gain attention of JNPR. Ruby brings her hands to her face, and rubs it a few times, before finally pausing, but keeping her eyes in her hands. "...when I was 8...and Yang 10...I remember playing in my room with her, while dad was downstairs. Yang...Lilith...she looked disheartened, disappointed. I asked her if she still wanted to play. She said she did, but...something else. And...and then...every year since...L...Lilith..." she takes a long sigh, then lowers her hands, and slowly raises her head...her face...it's expression can't be described, with a strange smile upon it, tears down her face. "...she's been constantly raping me".

...nobody says anything. Team JNPR stares blankly into the face of Ruby, who continues her strange smile, before giving a slight...huff, of sorts. "Heh...didn't think...heh" she sort of just shrugs, flopping her arms by her sides. "...figured. Too much to take in, too much to swallow?...heh...fuck it..."

she droops her head and shakes her head, and begins to slowly turn as if to walk away. "Ruby, wait..." Pyrrha says, and Ruby looks up at her. "Y...you're...telling the truth?"

Ruby sighs. "Look at my face. Hear my voice. Look me in the eyes: then tell me if i'm lying."

Team JNPR continues staring at Ruby...but shakes their heads. Ruby sighs again "...i know it's hard to believe...but Lilith's consistent about it...plus i'm not the only one who suffers from her...behavior."

"You're...not the only one?" Nora asks. Blake and Weiss look down, and rub the back of their heads. "W...wait...you...you two as well?!" Pyrrha stammers. Ruby laughs low once, tears in her eyes. "Y...ya know...one time when I was 11 I grew really tired of it...while we were outside playing, I jumped Lilith with a pair of scissors, only to stab Yang in the leg instead...I...I only keep going knowing that Yang's still in there being held hostage. I...we managed to convince dad Yang tripped on a branch, but when Lilith came back around...I was in deep...I still am..."

"Ruby...she really needs somebody to stand with her throughout these times." Weiss says. "And...well...though that leaves us in the path of Lilith...it just lets us sympathize with Ruby even more."
"If Ruby suffers..." Blake says "...we suffer. Ruby can't go through this alone any more."

Team JNPR looks into the eyes of Ruby...Ruby sighs, then turns, looking towards Yang. "Hey Yang!" she calls. "What, sis?" Lilith says, turning.
"We've got some strategy and stuff to discuss, could ya come over here a moment?"

Lilith rolls her eyes and begins walking over. Visible to all...her eyes change to a lighter shade. She stands next to her sister now, and appears ready for conversing. "...Does she hurt you?" Pyrrha asks suddenly. Yang's eyes widen "w...what do you mean?"

"Does...does Lilith hurt you?"

Yang's eyes move to her teammates and sister, a look of pure fear and rage, as if she's been betrayed. "I told them because we told them about Blake!" Ruby says "I...I just have a feeling that...they...can help, they should know".

Yang...she's shaking. She slowly lowers her head, before lifting it. "...she doesn't hurt me." she replies "It...it's just like I were watching a giant screen all the time, strapped into a chair, and unable to move...and unable to close my eyes. Unable to look away...I see everything".

"Y...yang..." Ruby utters barely.

"S...she rarely speaks to me." Yang says "but...when she does...it when she's doing things to my teammates...she taunts me. That's all she ever does. Tortures me psychologically day and night. Makes me do the heavy lifting. Forces me to watch her in action...like...earlier..."
"...Earlier?..." Jeanne asked.

"...you remember my banter with Yang before coms gave out again, right?..." Ruby says "that was actually Lilith, and me standing up to her. She doesn't like it when her position as 'alpha' is challenged...she...like, really doesn't like it. Puts her into a...'rape-state' very easily...she actually attacked me before the four of you got here".

"S...so recently?" Pyrrha asks. Ruby nods "Lilith...she doesn't really care when or where...heh, I've...gotta hand it to her though...I don't know how she hides all the shit she uses on Weiss so well..."

"W...what do you mean by that?" Jeanne asks. Weiss sighs "let's just say Lilith views violating me not as that, but rather...correcting me and training me to be a proper, young, aristocratic woman...if that makes any sense".

"T..th...this has to be a lie!" Glynda snaps angrily, obviously disturbed by what she's heard. "T-this has to be! Not here! Not at Beacon! There's no way anyth-". A sharp metal sound cuts her off in her tracks. Qrow's been leaning on Ozpin's panel...and he's crushed his flask within his hands in anger. "Ruby wouldn't lie about shit like that." he states low, but obviously very angry "anybody else maybe...but not my niece." he keeps his hands clenched tightly. "This is something so fucked up even my drunk-ass mind couldn't even come up with something like this. Why didn't you say anything, Ruby?...Why didn't you tell anyone sooner?"

"...how could she?" Ozpin says blandly. He's obviously very upset as well, but holding it very well, as if to keep the situation under control. "Her sister is being held captive. If she lashes out at the captor, the captive suffers instead. If she threatens the captor, she and her sister suffer instead. Who would naturally believe such a claim without either seeing enough of the scarce evidence, or having suffered with her? Let alone, the only ones who believe her are those that know her own persona. Ruby herself is innocent of everything...her sister as well...they're both...as well as Ms. Belladonna and Ms. Schnee... all at the mercy of an intangible third party". Just then, Qrow pushes off Ozpin's panel and starts walking towards the elevators. "Where are you going?!" Glynda demands. Crow turns "Things are getting outta hand...somebody oughtta chaperon this field trip."

"There's no way you-"

"Glynda..." Ozpin says, raising his hand, before looking at Qrow. "...For once, and no offense, I feel this is best...he might actually cause some good in addressing this situation. After all...these are his nieces we're talking about".

Qrow nods "...thanks Oz. I'll keep my eye on the show." he says, holding up his scroll for a moment, before turning and heading out the room. "...Is that really a wise move?" Glynda asks "To have him confront Y...Lilith?"

"Better than any of us." Ozpin replies "If we were to confront her...Ruby, Yang, and Lilith would get the wrong idea. Especially Lilith: she could try and play Yang and admit to everything to ruin their lives even more. Not to Qrow, though. He's somebody closer to Yang...somebody who can probably reach her in there".

Ironwood has remained silent for the most part, eyes closed, head down. He opens his eyes and looks up at the screen. "Winter, do you copy?"

Winter...she's bent over her panel, head down. She doesn't say anything at first...but she murmurs something. "Winter? Do you copy?" Ironwood asks again "Speak up!".

"I...I..." Winter stammers low, barely audible "I...I let you go to Beacon...I...sent you to Beacon because I supported...I sent you off only to be...". A single tear falls from Winter's hidden face onto the panel below. Slowly, her fingers begin curling into fists, and then she suddenly pushes off of the panel, causing quite a clamorous commotion as she begins to storm off. "WINTER!" Ironwood orders, and she turns towards him angrily. Her face is distraught, and she's barely holding back tears. "You will not go out into the field after them! Understand?"

"Excuse me, SIR?!" She demands "With all due respect, SIR, the hell can you tell me what I can and cannot do when it comes to my sister?!"

"Winter you cannot go out granted the current situation!"
"Under what authority?!"

"Mine." Ozpin states. Winter growls in response "I don't report to YOU, sir.".

"Perhaps not, but you're not in the right state of mind for this at the moment. You are emotionally compromised...of which I can sympathize with...but, you cannot go out and confront her like this. This would only lead to the wrong objective."

"The wrong objective, sir?" Winter questions "My objective is quite clear: get my sister away from that lesbian pedophile, and send her to prison where she can rot."

"In the process, tear apart a friendship, a sisterly bond, shatter worlds, and send an innocent girl off to prison to rot alongside a guilty fiend. You've seen the evidence, Winter. That's exactly what Lilith wants."

"Then why can't I go out there?! Why does her uncle get to go out there and I can't to protect my own blood?!"

"...It's not that, Winter. Qrow is going, as of now, simply to meet up with you and the others back at base camp for now. And as to why he's doing this...what if rather than Lilith be with Yang, she was in your own sister?"

"W...what?"
"Think for a moment. What if Lilith wasn't in Yang, but rather, Weiss? How would you act then to your own blood being the one to commit such acts, yet, at the same time, innocent, and unable to cry out for help? Do you think she'd try and confide in you? If so, what would you do to your own sister, Winter?"

Winter stares into Ozpin through her monitor. She looks down, seeing her fists by her side, closes her eyes, then lets her fists uncurl. She solemnly moves back to her position near the monitors, and sits down, folding her hands together, elbows on the table, then resting her fists on her forehead. She takes a few moments to herself, then motions to a soldier beside her. "Get me something to drink." she says, to which he gets up and moves off. "There we are." Ozpin says "We cannot let our emotions influence our judgment too much".

"With all due respect, sir," Winter says, glaring up at her screen past her clenched fists "I need to break my two week dry streak".

Ozpin raises an eyebrow at this. "Well, then...alright" Ironwood replies upon hearing Winter say this "Just don't have too much."

"...Don't count on it, sir." she replies.

After a few moments, we've regained our composure. I can't believe Team JNPR...well, I wouldn't say they're OK with the situation...but to know we have their support...it means so much to me, to Yang as well. Our communicators pop for a moment, before all goes clear again. I hold my hand to my ear. "Hey, anybody picking us up again?"

"We hear you loud and clear..." Winter says, and it sounds like she's taking a drink of something at the end of her sentence. "You ok?" I ask.

"I'm fine" she replies "Just thirsty...that's all".

"What was the interference about this time?" Pyrrha asks. "The energy is radiating." Winter replies "It's radiating from the tower the Doppelganger pointed towards."

"It...it is?" I ask, as we all turn towards the tower.

"Indeed." Winter responds "head to it immediately, and proceed with caution."

We proceed towards the ominous tower. There's an ominous, dreadful air around us now as we approach the ominous, evil edifice that rises before us. Soon, we're at it's base...but without any idea of where to go now. Then, we hear what sounds to be a feminine, mischievous giggle. It takes us a moment, but then, we find the source. To our right, sitting up a little ways on the ruins...Pyrrha's Doppleganger. It dangles it's legs off the side, while resting her hands and arms on the edge it sits upon. It looks down upon is with a strange, malevolent grin. Pyrrha eyes her Doppelganger in shock at first, before growing angry. "What are you here for?" she demands. The Doppelganger taps the wall it sits upon with it's heel a few times. Below it's feet a distance down, two massive, cellar-like doors lie below. I look up at the Doppelganger "...down there?" I ask, to which it gives a slow nod. We slowly approach the cellar doors, and the Doppelganger watches us for a few moments, before standing, turning, and walking into the darkness of the ruins. Yang grabs the doors and attempts to force them open, but they're rusted shut. I look over my shoulder. "Hey, Pyrrha. You think maybe you could help Yang out?" Pyrrha nods, and attempts to use her polarity control to help Yang force the doors open. Nothing happens at first, before I then try to use Crescent Rose to try and help pry the doors open as well. This ends up being a bad idea. After about five minutes of trying to use Crescent Rose as a crowbar, it flings me straight at the wall of the ruins. I land like a bug smacked onto a wall, before sliding off. Blake runs to my aid with Yang, but I get up fine, my head only hurting a little. Weiss decides to lend a hand this time. She then starts using what looks like one of her Gravity glyphs, but instead of intensifying gravity on the door, it greatly lessens it. The door buckles a bit, trying to rip free of it's hinges, but still, nothing. Pyrrha, Yang, and Weiss still try to open the door together. Once again, with Crescent Rose in my hands, I slash once at the hinges of the doors on the right. The door buckles more. Finally, after about five more minutes of struggling, the door bursts open. The left door flies open, while the right one flies off it's hinges and into the sky. There...is immediately an ominous chill down my spine...something that terrifies me...something...very, VERY unnatural. The only thing illuminated by the light from above is the small stairway, and a slight bit of the unnaturally dark hallway itself...we hear footsteps. Soon, the face of Pyrrha's Doppelganger emerges, staring up at us. It grins, then bows slowly, and motioning behind itself...it speaks.

"Welcome Home"

The...voice...sounds like Pyrrha's with some sort of strange, unnatural undertone. It terrifies all of us. "Welcome to YOUR home?!" Yang demands. The Doppelganger smiles, and looks up, pointing at...Yang.

"Welcome to your home."'

Yang...is frozen solid. She doesn't know how to react to that. We look at the Doppelganger...it's as if it's waiting for us to simply walk down the stairs towards it and the darkness. "H-hey!" I say, scared, but angry. "We're not going down unless you and any of your pals down there aren't in there! Deal?!" It grins at me.

"Deal...After all..."

"A...after all what?!" Yang snaps. The Doppelganger gives a very strange, evil look.

"This has been the day that we have been waiting for."

W...what does it mean by that?...suddenly, there are more footsteps...and soon, next to Pyrrha's Doppelganger...one of my own image. Then, one of Weiss emerges...then Yang...Blake...Jeanne...Norra...Ren...even ones of Winter, Ironwood, Ozpin, my uncle, and ...yet even they aren't the last of them...deep in the darkness...there are more red eyes of Doppelgangers. There...is an entire army of humanoid Grimm in front of us. Pyrrha's Doppelganger starts slowly making a devilish, sharp-toothed grin...then, there's a massive howl of wind as all the Doppelgangers turn into a singular black cloud-like mass, which rushes out the doors at us. We fly backwards, landing on our backs, as the cruel howl goes on, the swirling pillar of black shooting up into the sky before dispersing...it goes on like this for at least ten seconds, before the pillar finally dissipates. "JNPR! RWBY!" Winter orders, fear in her voice "Do you read?!"

"W...we hear you, b-but..." I...i'm scared beyond all relief, shaking profusely...i'm not the only one, neither is Jeanne...each one of us, to some degree, is terrified. "T..Team RWBY is to investigate the underground chambers! Team JNPR! Set up an above-ground perimeter, understood?" Winter orders. We all acknowledge her order in some way, shape, or form. Some of us give verbal confirmation, the others just nod or the like...we're all terrified. I look at my sister and quickly hug her tightly for a moment, which she gives me a firm, re-assuring embrace in response...I let go of her slowly, then Weiss, Blake, Yang, and I approach the dark underground's entrance. I look back at Blake "T...think you can lead the way?" I ask.

"I...I'll do my best." Blake says, as she reluctantly, but surely, begins leading our descent...It's pitch-black at first...I can't see anything soon...i'm just walking in darkness. We continue down this dark hallway for a few moments, before I hear Weiss make a noise, some sort of low hum, then something grabs my arm. I almost scream, but I hear Weiss's voice "It's me!" she says. This...eases me a little. "What's up?" I ask. "Hold on..." Weiss replies...soon, I see a blast of fire...no, it's Weiss's weapon, but cloaked in flame, acting like a torch. Blake's face is illuminated by the warm, amber glow. Looking behind me, I can see Yang directly behind me. "I can't do this for long." Weiss says "But Blake wanted me to do this because...of that." she points to the right...there's a long, dark, decrepit stairwell. It goes down into the abyss, spiraling down in a square shape."Some of the railings are rusted, broken, and...well...it'll be one hell of a fall...it goes down quite a ways." Blake says. "so...I...just hold hands for now...it's not going to be easy." Weiss extinguishes her weapon, and I hold my hand back so Yang can grab my hand, and she does, holding on to me firmly. "Alright..." I hear Blake say "just...be careful. Weiss, you follow my every movement my arm's telling you, alright?"

"Y-yeah, right." she says, a little scared.

"Good. Ruby, Yang, do similarly. If we can keep things fluid, we should avoid any hazards along the way down...take your time. It'll be a while."

I hear footsteps...we're moving. Soon, I can feel Weiss's hand lifting, and I follow it as it goes through the darkness. I do my best to follow Weiss's hand exactly, and Yang follows behind me the best of her ability...it's a long, slow descent into complete darkness...after about 15 minutes of this, I feel Weiss' hand level out. "We're on flat ground again..." I hear Blake say "Hold on a sec. I...think I see something. Weiss, i'm going to let go, alright?"

"Right...y...you be safe."

"I'm only walking a couple feet ahead, I shouldn't be gone long, and you should still hear me."

I then hear what sounds to be Blake walking away...she walks about...fifty feet away, then I hear the clanking of metal, and the sound of switches, levers, and buttons being interacted with...then there's no noise for around five seconds, before the sound of something hitting metal, which startles me into a yelp. Then, there's a mechanical hum, a buzz, and then a flash of light...Blake's got the power back on...the sparse lights on the ceiling show a dark, stone hallway...with multiple smears of blood of and scratches in different locations, and an iron-bar gate that blocks further advancement. I...I'm frozen stiff. It's like some...sort of scene from a horror movie. "I...is this an old detention center?" Weiss asks, noting the iron-bar door. "Maybe..." winter says. "Just...be careful. There's got to be blood and claw marks here for a reason...you may not truly be alone down there". Yang turns to me and sees me frozen stiff, eyes wide, pupils shrunken, standing still in fear. She puts her hand on my shoulder "Hey...we'll be ok. I know you're scared: I am too. Don't worry, we'll be alright". I nod quickly at this, before then there's a noise that scares me half to death: a short, loud, siren-like noise that lasts less than a second, and then the iron door in front of us slides to the side. We advance through the door, and down the hallway...sure enough, it's an old prison or asylum of some sort, all underground. We walk into a main cell block...and I get the complete creeps. There's three whole levels here in the cell block...and every cell itself is empty. I scan the area wearily, and look into a cell...and see what looks like a note on very worn paper. Slowly, I walk into the cell, pick the paper off the floor, then walk back out into the block where my team awaits. I look down into my hands and read the tattered paper.

" I
The hell does she call herself our heroine for? How is she breeding monsters here, alongside him, and dares call herself our savior? Why does she support him? Why am I here? Snatched away from the playground while watching sis...why, why did she bring me here? I hear the screams, the pain, the roars of anger. How is he doing all this? I...I'm so scared...My sister...she's only seven...I can't...let them...

I II III IV V VI VII VII VIII IX

X

Hell no, they came for sis. I tried to fight back, but the glare on her face...the faces of the...no...I...I was to scared to even show my sister i'd die trying to protect her...they dragged her away while she kicked and screamed...and I was too much of a coward to do anything. Not even to beg...

XI

What have they done to you Marie?How could they have turned you into...the way you look at me...you still know me. There's no love in your eyes...only hate. Y...you...I guess this is it then. Killed by my own sister...my own little twerp of a sister. Heh, mother did always favor you. Now you really get to tear me apart...just know I'll be doing my damnedest to make you feel any pain as you kill me! I'll...never understand what he and that blonde-haired bimbo of his are doing with this place...but...at least this place taught me...how much more natural I feel to be angry..."

I stare at the paper...there's blood and claw marks on the edging towards the bottom...I look up at Yang...she's...very uncomfortable. Undoubtedly, she remembers what the Doppelganger said...and then hearing "blonde-haired bimbo" in the note...she's staring off for a moment, then shakes her head. "It...it's just some sort of sick shit pulled by a Grimm." Yang dismisses angrily "That's all...sick shit by a sick creature".

Yang refuses to hear me say anything to try and disprove her own theory...with that barrier made, we decide to explore the catacombs of the old detention center...whatever was going on...people were getting tortured here, from what we can tell. Every time we approach a new metal door, there's the same beep, and the door opens itself, never to shut again...I'm...very creeped out, but I keep going. We must be getting closer sooner or later. Finally, we make it to another set of stairs, a more direct flight. It goes down about 50 ft to another level. We take the stairwell down, and walk down this lowest floor...the hallway goes in an L shape, turning off to the right up ahead. To the left, what appears to be a large, glass window 15 ft in length...with dried blood staining from the inside. I...try my hardest not to look. I pass by the window and look down the hall...it ends after going only fifteen feet or so, the rest of the hallway haven collapsed in. Weiss casually, but reluctantly, turns her head towards the bloody glass...then takes a step back in a gasp. I...turn towards the window...it's largely covered in blood...but...at a few locations...I can see through, making out slight bits of the room...and I see a girl with pale brown hair inside. She seems my age, and wears a blue sleeveless shirt with blue jeans...she's strapped to a table with her arms and legs outstretched in an X-position...It's the first dead body I've seen...and...I don't like it...wa..wait...I...i think my eyes decieve me at first, but...no! Her...her chest is moving. "Sh...she's alive?!" I say dumbfounded and terrified. "Get her out of there, now!" Winter orders. We rush to the door to try and open it...nothing. Yang then puts her full weight into busting down the door, and the metal door rips off it's handles onto the floor. We storm into the room, me leading the way a-...

…...

...w...what...what the...

Thh...there are metal debris littering the dusty floor...in the center of the room, a large table, to which the girl is bound to with metal shackles of a strange material...and on the table...the scorched pattern of what appears to be a pentagram or something similar...and...her...feet are towards the door and window...and...directly to her left...our right...there's writing on the wall...in blood.

"DON'T WAKE HER"

I...i...I'm too scared to move, no matter how hard I try. I can't move...The other three move slowly to spread out through the room...forcing me to move as well...I...slowly move towards the front of the girl...I...i look at her face...her appearance...her hair...and...it...I slowly look up "Y...Yang...d...doesn't she...look like you? Vaguely?"

Yang looks at the girl with a strange face...a mixture of fear and anger. "Y...yeah...s...she does." Yang says "Vaguely...sorta...kinda..."

"Hey!" Winter orders. She's also distraught, but trying to keep composure. "Free her!"
"Huh?!" I ask. "B-but there's writing on the wall in blood and she's-"

"We can see she's alive, and our readings are saying...she's the source of the energy." Winter says. N...none of us say anything as that sentence sinks in. "RWBY!" she orders "You four will do as your told! Free her!"

Instinctively, each one of us goes for a separate shackle to try and break it free. Pulling and banging first...it does nothing. Hell, it doesn't even wake her. Yang's getting angry quickly. Soon, she goes from slamming and trying to pry open the shackle violently to punching it over and over again, trying to break it, but to no avail. I put my arm in front of my sister and pull her back, to which she uses the opportunity to calm down a little. "We can't open them." I state "Attacking could cause her physical harm, and even...even Yang can't break them open...I...would like to request a few moments to try and understand the situation."

"Fine." Ironwood states "About five minutes at the least."

I look at Weiss...she's visibly shaken...we all are...but...we...take a slow, reluctant search around the room. Blake starts searching clutter-filled drawers near where she stands...but there's nothing but trash in them. Weiss starts examining the floor...probably to keep from looking up...Yang...she...does a mixture of everything...she's...very emotionally compromised right now from everything. I turn...behind me, the writing in blood on the wall. Just below it, another desk with drawers...but...there's a book on top of this one. An old, leather-bound book with worn pages...bloody, worn pages. Scratched into the leather top is "READ ME NOW". The scratching on the leather top is frantic, as if the writer etched in every single fervor of itself to try and get you to read the book. I slowly pick the book up in my hands. "H...hey." I said "Look...look what I found."

"We'll have you read it later." Ironwood says "for now, report back outside immediately until a strategy can be made about the current situation." We hastily agree towards this, and begin quickly moving out the door. First Yang, then Weiss, Blake, then myself – or not. Right as I go to try and leave the room, a strange wall of energy materializes and bounces me right back into the room, and I land on my back. Blake, Weiss, and Yang quickly gather at the door and look on. I...somehow...I get the stupid idea to try and throw the book at them, through the door. They dodge out of the way of the incoming book, but once again, the energy materializes, and it bounces the book back into the room, at my feet. I...i'm so scared I fly out of the room, unimpeded this time, into my sister and start crying. Yang holds me tightly...she knows how scared I am. "Hey, hey..." she says "You weren't this scared with the Shadow Reapers, and especially not the Elder Tyrant. Why are you so scared here?..."
"B...because I just am!" I cry. Yang rubs my head "Come now, you're our leader. We can't have you acting like this...stop crying, please. I know you're younger than us, but...sometimes you act more mature than us as well...especially me. You...you're the bravest person I know, Ruby...so...be strong for me with this, ok?"

Y...Yang...calling me the...s...she would know, wouldn't she?...I...I get some sort of courage unlike even what I had to stand up to Lilith...and my tears dry. I look at my sister and nod. My sister views me so highly...I'll make sure she views me like this every time she sees me...brave...the bravest person she knows...because...I...i've already been through the worst...with Lilith. Ozpin comes over the communicators. "I...guess we're in a bit of a situation, then..." he says. "We've got nothing else to do, Team RWBY...read the book."

R...read the book...we're told to read the book...In resolve, I turn around, and walk back into the room, and pick the book off the ground. The others enter the room with me again. I turn towards them with...some sort of strange resolve...and open the book slowly, reading aloud, the frantic, but legible writing.

"If you have this in your hands, and are indeed reading this...then this place has indeed survived across time itself. Please, hear me as I explain...this...is all hard to believe, but you're probably wondering who wrote this...granted how situations will play out, most likely...you know me. My name is...Ruby Rose."

I...i'm frozen. M...me? I...I wrote this? I look down into the writings of the book...the writing...it...indeed, does...look like mine, vaguely, and faded...I...i'm shaking again, but I keep reading.

"No, this isn't your imagination, and this isn't a cruel joke. I am Ruby Rose, leader of Team RWBY, friend to Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna, half-sister to Yang Xiao Long. Using this book, I speak to you from across time and space itself to warn you of what you see now. You're probably wondering who this girl on the table is...Yang, you're there, aren't you, sis?...Her name is Celeste. She's my niece...your daughter."

I...look up again...the stunned silence of all...is only coupled with the strange, terrified look from Yang. S..she...this...this girl...is Yang's daughter...and my niece?...I look at the unconscious girl...before slowly reading the book aloud again.

"Yes, Celeste Xiao Long, your daughter. I, as have stated, am from the past. No, not some sort of strange time travel...i'm still 15 here. I am of a past run. 'Past run' you ask?...Remnant is the name of the world we live in, the name we gave it...but Remnant is not all to our world. The entirety of our world...Remnant included...makes up the dimension known as Epsylan. We're not the only dimension in existence...but i'll get to that later. What you need to know: a dimension only lasts so long. Once it reaches an ending point, after so many great years, the dimension breaks down and restarts. Each time, there are subtle changes to the plot. Maybe now you know what I mean by 'past run': I am from a past Remnant which no longer exists... Ino longer exist. I...I beg you, future hunters and huntresses of Epsylan: no matter how hard this story may be to hear, please, continue to hear on. This story...as...strange as it is...as impossible as it is...it is the truth. Please, I beg of you...hear my story. Hear yourstory...and prevent what's been set in motion by the past to destroy the future...and yourselves."