Continued from last chapter…
"What do you mean we're not in Remnant anymore?" countered Weiss, "Do you mean to suggest that we somehow slipped into some alternate dimension?"
"I don't know!" Ruby was frustrated that she might have gotten the team more lost than she could have realized.
"If we are in some other dimension, we may have a hard time getting home," said Blake. Weiss angrily glared at Ruby, "This is why we shouldn't have wandered off!" Tears came into Ruby's eyes. "I...I'm sorry...everyone." She bowed her head and wept softly. Yang came to her side, "It's OK. We're all here. We'll find a way back, together."
"And if we don't?" retorted Weiss.
"I think you're overreacting, Weiss," said Blake, "There's nothing we can do about our situation except what Yang already suggested: trying to find a way back home. If that's not possible, we'll just have to make the most of our time here."
"And Beacon will have to go on without us?" Weiss was becoming increasingly more agitated.
"Maybe," said Blake. Weiss lowered her head and growled in frustration. Before anyone could think of anything else to say, Misato came into the room. "Are you the doctor?" asked Ruby.
"Very funny," said Misato. She sat down on the one remaining chair in the room. "Why are you here?" asked Blake.
"To check on Ruby for one thing," said Misato, "And for another, to ask you some questions."
"Fire away!" said Ruby. Misato cleared her throat, "What is this 'aura' I hear about?"
"It's a manifestation of our soul," replied Yang, "Everyone has one."
"Would you care to demonstrate?" asked Misato.
"Sure," said Ruby. She sat up on her bed perfectly still. One might have not noticed any difference if it hadn't been for the rose petals that had begun to seemingly evaporate from her red cape. Misato observed what transpired with curiosity. However, before she could ask another question, an alarm began to blare loudly. "Another angel now?" Misato yanked out a pager to get what information she could. When she hung up, her face turned grim. "What are you?" she asked.
"We're humans," said Yang. Blake cleared her throat in annoyance. "Oh! Except for Blake. She's a faunus." Yang quickly corrected herself.
"The NERV technicians just detected an AT field, and according to the data, they found it down here."
"Well, if what we call 'aura' is what you call an AT field, then that certainly would explain it," said Ruby.
"But how were you able to summon an AT field?" asked Misato.
"Everyone has one," said Weiss, "Humans, faunus, animals, plants: All of them have auras. Not everyone is adept at using their aura, but everyone has one."
"The only creatures that don't have an aura are the creatures of grimm," explained Blake, "They lack a soul. They act purely on instinct and drive." Misato took a few moments to gather her thoughts. Upon clearing her throat once again, she said, "You say that all humans have this thing called 'aura', but that not everyone is adept at using it. How would one become adept at using it?" Ruby rose from her bed. Approaching Misato, she put her hand on her shoulder. "I'll help you," she said warmly. Reaching into her mind, Ruby tried to remember the chant that was used to unlock someone's aura. Ruby's friend Pyrrha had recited this chant when she helped Jaune, another friend of Ruby's, to unlock his aura. Ruby took a deep breath and began to recite.
For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee.
As Ruby recited, the petals began to emanate once more from Ruby's cape, and Misato began to glow. Once again, an alarm began to blare. Misato once again retrieved her pager from her pocket. When she hung up, her face showed confusion and worry. "Now I'm receiving reports of two AT fields," she said.
"Well, I think that settles it," said Yang, "Ruby just unlocked your aura using hers. Since the alarm went off and detected two AT fields at that time, I think it's safe to assume that what you call an 'AT field' is what we call 'aura.'"
"But how can people have an AT field?" protested Misato, "I've never heard anything like that before!"
"It's possible nobody around here knows about it," suggested Yang. Misato sighed. This was a topic she would have to revisit again later. Right now, she had much more important things to worry about. Taking a deep breath, she cleared her throat, and addressed the group once more, "The doctor will be in to see you shortly. I need to head back to the others to explain this mishap. I'd like to speak with you again on this matter. Farewell." As Misato turned to leave, Ruby sat up in her bed. "What about Shinji?" she asked. Misato turned her head and with a cold voice replied, "Unconscious." Ruby sank to her bed, dejected. Misato left without another word. Everyone sat in cold silence. Yang tried to brighten the mood. "I'm sure Shinji will be OK," she offered. Her words were of little comfort. Both Weiss and Blake were immensely bitter; Weiss because she was stuck in a foreign place and Blake because of Gendo's callous attitude towards his own son's well being. Though Ruby was normally one to be in high spirits, she couldn't help but worry for Shinji's condition. Eventually, the doctor came in and checked Ruby out. He decided that there was nothing that warranted further treatment and sent Ruby and the others on their way. On their way out, they passed by the giant mechanical robot that was known as "Unit-01." Stopping next to the giant monster, Blake asked Ruby, "How do you know that a robot can have an AT field?" Ruby paled. How could she explain her knowledge without betraying her friend? Yang tried to encourage Ruby, "If there's something that you know, you need to tell us." Ruby sighed, "Remember Penny?" she asked.
"You mean that annoying, plucky girl?" asked Weiss cruelly. Ruby felt an urge to retaliate, but instead responded with, "Yeah...her." She scratched her head nervously, trying to come up with words to say. Taking a deep breath, she spilled. "Penny's a robot," she explained, "She was designed specifically to have an aura, so that's how I know robot's can have one." Everyone looked at each other. Blake looked Ruby squarely in the eyes. "Why didn't you tell us?" she asked bitterly.
"Because Penny wanted it kept a secret," cried Ruby, "I...I didn't want to betray her." Weiss stepped forward and put a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Did she tell you why she didn't want anyone told?" she asked.
"She said it was because Mr. Ironwood said so," replied Ruby.
"General Ironwood?! That explains a lot!" Weiss put her hands on her hips.
"What do you mean?" asked Yang.
"General Ironwood is a good person, but he's not the most upfront guy in the world. What's more, he and Ozpin don't always see eye to eye. Ironwood believes that the best defense is a good offense. He's sunk countless money into funding massive armies to protect Atlas. However, Oz believes that such a large military will cause anxiety."
"...and that's the last thing we want." said Blake.
"The fact that Ironwood would tell Penny to keep this a secret tells me that this would probably not sit well with Ozpin."
"I think I know why," said Ruby.
"Why?" asked Blake.
"She was designed specifically for combat. That means she probably didn't have to go to school to learn how to fight."
"And that means that robots like her don't need places like Beacon. She's literally the type of girl who would run Ozpin out of business." Weiss sighed and shook her head, "I just can't believe Ironwood would go behind his back like that." Ruby stared at the ground, trying to figure out what to say next. "Look, I'm glad you told us," said Blake, "...and we'll do whatever we can to help out."
"That's right," said Weiss, "Even if she's not human, she's still our fellow combatant." Blake smiled at Weiss' words. A few weeks ago, Weiss would not have been so open to associating with someone who wasn't a human. Ruby smiled, "Thanks guys." Weiss glared at Ruby fiercely. "You should know that I'm doing this for Penny's sake, not General Ironwood's," she said, "I like his ideals and all, but I do not trust him."
"HEY!" Everyone spun around to see Misato standing behind them. She did not appear to be happy. "What are you doing here?" she asked angrily.
"Just talkin'," responded Yang.
"You do know this is a restricted area, right?" Ruby blushed, "Oh! I'm sorry. We'll uh...just be on our way! Bye!"
"Not so fast!" Misato grabbed Ruby's arm, "We still have a lot to talk about! You're all coming with me!" Without another word, Misato dragged Ruby Rose back to her car, with the rest of the team in tow. With Shinji out of commission, Weiss was able to join them this time, instead of following them using her semblance. Misato drove them back to her own apartment, a rather run-down and shabby building. Misato got out of her car, with team RWBY following close at hand. "Please, mind the mess," said Misato. Once everyone one was inside, everyone sans Misato gawked at the sorry state of Misato's living quarters. Dirty laundry was strewn all across the floor. Beer cans cluttered the kitchen and living room; some were even beginning to stain the carpet. Some other, left-best-unmentioned items were also found on the floor. All of team RWBY was shocked and appalled at the messy apartment, but none more so than Weiss Schnee. "This is a mess!" she said in disgust.
"Hard to believe somebody actually lives in a dump like this," said Yang. Before anyone else could answer, Misato came back from changing into something more comfortable, completely oblivious to what the others had said. She motioned them towards the kitchen, by far the cleanest room compared to the rest of the apartment. "Sit down," instructed Misato. Team RWBY all found a place to sit for themselves, with some being relegated to the floor. Misato popped a beer from the fridge and sat down to address the confused team. "Sorry about the mess," she began, "I just moved in here myself." Taking a sip of beer, she glared at the four young teenagers who sat in front of her. "Why were you in a restricted area today?" she asked. Ruby began to tap her two index fingers together; a nervous habit she had developed over the years. "Well, uh….We didn't know it was restricted," said Ruby as plainly as she could.
"So, I take it you're not from around here." Everyone shook their heads no. "May I ask where are you from?"
"Would you believe us if we told you we're from another dimension?" asked Yang. Misato sipped her beer once more. "No," she replied, "but I wouldn't dismiss the claim either. We've had so much crazy stuff happening around here that the proverbial suspension of disbelief is very strong. If you are telling the truth, would you mind telling us about the place you do come from?" Weiss spoke up this time, "Well, there are four kingdoms: Vale, Mistral, Vacuo, and Atlas. All of us live in Vale, where we attend Beacon academy. All of the kingdoms have an academy dedicated to training young warriors like us to fight grimm." Misato recalled Yang saying something about grimm earlier; she had said the grimm lack a soul, and thus lacked an aura. "How old are you?" asked Misato.
"We're all 17," replied Blake, "Except for Ruby. She's 15. Ozpin let her come to Beacon early."
"And I'll never figure out why he did that," said Ruby. Misato's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Who is this Ozpin?"
"He's the headmaster at Beacon," replied Ruby simply.
"And he thinks using children to fight monsters is OK?"
"You had no problem sending Shinji out to face that 'angel' thing," Blake pointed out. Misato winced then sighed, "I didn't want to send Shinji out there, but it was our only choice."
"Do you know that?" asked Blake.
"Yes," said Misato after a few moments of hesitation, "Speaking of Shinji, he should be released in the next few hours. In the meantime, I assume you need a place to stay…"
"I am not staying in a dump like this!" protested Weiss.
"Well…, we could help her clean it up," offered Ruby. Weiss could merely scoff in disgust. Misato smiled, "Hey, I'd appreciate the help. Thank you."
"So how about it, Weiss?" said Yang. Weiss sighed, "Fine. Just don't make a bigger mess, alright?" Everyone nodded. With everyone working together, Misato's apartment was clean in no time. "Thanks for your help," said Misato cheerfully, "Now I want you to stay here while I check on Shinji, alright?" Everyone nodded as Misato took off. Everyone else let out a long sigh. Suddenly, a familiar 5-note ring sounded. "It's...my scroll," said Ruby.
"That's odd," said Weiss, "If we're truly in another dimension, our scrolls shouldn't even work, right?"
"Yeah," agreed Ruby. She opened her scroll, which was little more than a small, high-tech communication device. On the screen, a message was displayed. It read as follows.
Oh ho! Greetings privileged students. You four should now be finding yourselves in a strange new place. Do not worry, this was all devised by Ozpin as a very special test. You see, in order to graduate, you must learn not only to fight, but to be able to relate with others. Not only do you need to get along with other, but you need to sympathize with others; understand their pains and hardships. You will encounter many different people during your journey. A seasoned huntsman will be keeping watchful eyes on all of you and reporting back on your progress to Beacon. In case you are wondering how you got here, Remnant is filled with invisible interdimensional portals. Thanks to the efforts of our staff, many of them have been sealed off, but some remain for tests just like this. Anyways, I hope you enjoy your time in this foreign place. Sincerely, Professor Port!
"Well, that's a relief," said Weiss.
"Yeah, but how did they know we were going to end up here?" asked Blake.
"Yeah, and how did they know we left the school?" asked Yang.
"Well, this certainly explains why we weren't stopped by anyone," said Ruby. Before anyone could say anything more, the door suddenly opened, and Misato entered. Shinji followed close behind. "Meet your new roomies!" exclaimed Misato.
...To be continued.