Chapter 7: Unleash the Light


Ruby groaned as she forced herself to listen to Professor Port's tedious lesson. His lessons always seem to involve more storytelling than actual facts. And they're all about his skill as a former Hunter. And she was pretty sure that most of them were made up.

"…And so, after several gruelling hours chasing each other through the canyons, I finally managed to corner the beast in a dead end. He threatened to charge me down, but I was craftier than him. I fired upwards, dislodging several large boulders stuck overhead, along with the tower nearby and the natural bridge. The beast tried to kill me first, but it was too late. And so I managed to capture my long time arch nemesis, Edgar." He stood back up properly instead of leaning forward. "Until some buffoon took offence to my trapping it and decided to free it. And his companion killed it as it ran." Mercifully, the bell rang loud and clear. "Ah, I see. That concludes today's lecture. Be sure to read up on today's chapters for homework. We will be having a test on them next lesson." The class groaned as they heard that.

"Boy, his stories are getting wilder with every telling." Yang said, grabbing Ruby by the shoulder. "I've never even heard of a cow Grimm before."

"I think he was making it up." Ruby replied. Sure, there were probably some species of Grimm that she hadn't heard of yet. Powerful and dangerous ones. But the idea that there was a giant cow Grimm out there that apparently had a grudge against Professor Port himself sounded ridiculous. She turned around on the spot, wanting to make sure everyone was together. Yang was right beside her. Weiss was checking her reflection. Blake was… was…

She was just leaving the classroom, head buried in her scroll and looking determined.

"Oh no." Ruby said to herself. The last time she saw that look, Blake had nearly worked herself to death trying to figure out what the White Fang were doing with Torchwick. Please don't let it be happening again. She pulled herself free of Yang, and moved quickly to Blake's side. "Hey Blake. You doing ok?"

"Huh?" Blake looked at her, startled. "Oh. Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. There's just…" She looked around at everyone before leaning in. "Get the others and meet me in our room after our next class." She whispered. Then she was being carried off with the crowd, away from Ruby.

Ruby still felt worried though. She didn't want her teammate to start self-destructing like that again.


"Alright Blake. We're all here and accounted for. What's this big thing you want to talk to us about?" Yang said as she closed the door behind her. And for good measure, she locked it too.

Blake turned towards them, clearing her throat. "While I was focusing my efforts on discovering what the White Fang were up to…" She started saying.

"You mean obsessing over the White Fang." Weiss interrupted.

Blake nodded at her. "Point taken. Anyway, I had gotten in contact with an old colleague of mine from back when I was with the Fang. He's retired from it now, but he keeps his ear to the ground in case they start going too far."

"And he replied, didn't he?" Yang guessed.

"Yes. According to his info, the White Fang have started outsourcing to other groups on Remnant. Not just Vale, but Atlas, Vacuo, and Mistral too."

"Wow. This is… really, really big." Ruby said lamely.

"It is. But he's provided me with the name of the group helping out here in Vale. The Red Lotus."

"Hmph. A major crime organisation comprised of degenerates, scumbags, and monsters." Weiss explained. "And coincidently, its hierarchy is mostly comprised of Faunus now."

Blake didn't even bristle at that. "Half of them were Faunus that the old White fang considered too dangerous to be associated with. Guess the new leadership is recruiting." She tilted her head quizzically. "But how do you know about them?"

Weiss looked away. "Father… tends to keep an eye on any organisation mostly comprised of Faunus. In case they start becoming an ally of the White Fang." Blake nodded, understanding.

"So there's another group out there helping Torchwick and the Fang with whatever stuff they're planning." Yang summed up. "We gonna go and blow them up or what?"

"We could go to the authorities instead with this." Weiss suggested, being the voice of reason. "Just say that we're an anonymous tip off or something."

Blake shook her head. "Wouldn't work. The cops would want to know how we found out about this, who our contact is, things like that. And that's assuming they're even willing to trust an ex-White Fang member. And on top of that, the Red Lotus has people on their payroll. The only reason their former leaders were replaced were through bigger bribes, or going missing." She turned to Weiss. "And I'm certain your father would notice you borrowing enough cash to beat their prices." She turned back to the others. "If we're going to stop them, I'm afraid that we're on our own."

An idea started forming in Ruby's head. This could be a good chance to show Miss Aqua just how awesome she is. In fact, it might be enough to get her to decide to call a Ghost and have them make her a Guardian. She was practically drooling in excitement.

"Well, there's always…" Yang started saying. Ruby interrupted her before she could suggest someone joining them.

"Come on guys. We're Huntresses in training. We can handle a few gang guys with ease. We'll head out tonight when it's dark and drop them off at the police before it's even curfew. You'll see."

The others looked at each other worryingly, but shrugged. It wasn't like that wasn't what most of them had planned to do anyway.


Tyrion was in the middle of his patrol that night, eye roaming round the grounds for anything interesting. But quite a few times he was drawn towards the moon high above, the shattered surface visible to all. He wondered how such a thing could've happened. Did Remnant at one point have people living on the moon, just like back on Earth? Was the damage caused by the Darkness, or the Hive? Did it get destroyed clearing away their Hellmouth? Or was the damage done when the Darkness arrived, a symbol of its fury and sadism? Without any information, everything was simple guesswork. Just like figuring out what happened during the Collapse.

He also pondered what happened here with The Traveller. On this world, when the Darkness arrived, He ran away to another galaxy. Or another dimension. Yet on Earth, He stuck around to fight back. Was there something about Earth that made them unique? Or did the Traveller just choose their world to stop running and to stand and fight? Tyrion wished that He would wake up, if only so they could get some answers. Turning his eye back to the grounds, he halted suddenly. Four people, hidden by shadows, were running out of the grounds. Towards an area marked on his map as a land-based passage to Vale. They were too far away for him to catch up to, but something made his check somewhere else. Perhaps it was his 'gut', as Bianca would call it. A niggling feeling that two things were linked.

When he arrived outside team RWBY's window, he found their room completely empty.

"Bianca? We've got a slight problem." He said through his connection to her, his voice instantly transmitting to her head. He heard her snuffle in response, before yawning loudly.

"Tyrion?" She replied blearily. "Can't this wait till morning or something?"

"Afraid not. I believe that team RWBY is sneaking out of Beacon."

"What?" She said in surprise, sounding alert now. "Where the hell are they going?"

"To Vale. Or at least that's what I'm assuming, given their current path."

"Keep following them. We'll be with you as soon as possible." He heard her cursing, likely trying to untangle herself from her sheets. "Ti'ana. Get your blue ass out of bed and…" He cut her off, focusing on following the girls. He just hoped they didn't hop into a vehicle or something. While he was pretty fast, there was no way he could keep up with them if they did that. Luckily for him, for now they seemed content with just running the rest of the way there.

Until they took a turn off the path. A turn he had marked as leading to a launch pad. With a Bullhead waiting there.

Clever. He thought as he moved to catch up to them. But he heard the rotors moving, and suddenly he was worried. "No, no, no, no." He said to himself, rushing to at least get to the ship before it left. Maybe he could integrate into its… His thoughts were disrupted as it suddenly lifted off, the gust blowing him away. He spun for several moments before righting himself, still feeling dazed. Shaking the dizziness away, he could only watch as Team RWBY flew away.

He looked up as he heard something hover over him, seeing the undercarriage of Ti'ana's Phaeton. He silently cheered. The hunt wasn't over yet.


"What the hell are those four even doing, sneaking off like this?" Bianca asked, tracking their ship from higher above. The Phaeton's radar dish easily picked up the Bullhead's transponder, heading towards downtown. "Leaving in the dead of night, stealing an airship. What's their game?"

"Who knows?" Katie replied, shrugging. "Maybe it has something to do with the White Fang. Those kids seemed determined to deal with it on their own."

"We can give them a scolding after we've followed them." Ti'ana said moodily. She was worried now, part of her thinking that her telling Ruby about what Guardians can do motivated her to do something stupid. Traveller-dammit, Bianca was right. She should've listened to her warnings from the start. "Right now though, we need to keep a close eye on them."

"Not exactly easy with all the low clouds." Katie said. And indeed, it was practically impossible to see the city beneath them. Or anything between them and Vale. While it meant that no one could see them flying higher than other ships, it also meant that they had to rely on the radar to keep track of anything. Weird how the clouds formed so thickly over the city. Ti'ana looked at her console again and frowned. At this rate, they were going to be heading outside the city. Where exactly were they going?

"Ok. If they're leaving the city, we need to stop them." She said, pushing down on the wheel. "I'll fly above them, and Katie can drop down inside the ship. Can we do that?"

"Theoretically, yes. It's just something we haven't had to do since… ever." Light replied. Good enough for her. She dropped down out of the clouds, the Bullhead completely visible to them now. She kept getting closer until the underside of the Phaeton was almost touching the Bullhead. "You're up Katie. Try to be gentle with them."

"Will do." Katie replied, her body vanishing into light as she was teleported. Ti'ana turned back to the controls and made sure to stay level and alert. Wouldn't be good for the air currents to push them into each other. A flash behind her alerted her to Katie's return.

"It's empty." She said, sounding worried.

"What?" Ti'ana and Bianca said at the same time, looking at her in shock.

"The autopilot was engaged at some point. They must've realised we were following them and jumped out." Ti'ana scrunched up her face and started cursing under her breath. Shit. Shit, shit, shit. What the hell are these girls even thinking? Just what were they up to? Frustrated, she jerked the Phaeton back towards the city, leaving the Bullhead to keep flying away until it ran out of fuel.

"Great." Bianca spat. "Now how do we find them?"

"I can sync the radar to track their scrolls, assuming they haven't dumped them or anything." Light said as he fiddled with the radar. Four points cropped up on the screen, all close together and moving in a singular direction. "Done. If they've gotten rid of their scrolls though, then I haven't got a clue what to do next."

"In that case, screw subtle. Ti'ana, drop us off over the city. We'll catch up to them on our sparrows. Let's just hope we can get to them before something stupid happens."

They heard a dull thudding sound, like a giant taking a step. Or a cannon firing and exploding. And it came from the same direction that Team RWBY was going.

"You were saying?" Katie snarked as Ti'ana engaged the autopilot system. The ship flew low enough for them to drop down on the ground, already materialising their sparrows. Katie held Bianca tightly as they raced through the near empty streets to their destination.

Please don't let that have been them. Ti'ana worried. Please let that be something completely unrelated.


But when they finally found the girls, when they arrived at a warehouse area that the thud had come from, things were exactly as she had feared.

"How the hell did these guys get a tank in the middle of Vale?" Katie asked in exasperation, the three of them scouting the immediate area. Over several dozen men were in there, working on unloading and loading crates. Inside one of the sheds was a large tank, set up on four spidery legs with red lights running down the sides.

And in the center of the area was Team RWBY, tied up and injured. Their weapons were lying several feet away. Too far for anyone to grab before getting shot up.

"Probably the same way that Torchwick did. Money." Bianca replied.

"We need to get those girls out of there." Ti'ana said, bringing up Little Light. She flicked through her menu and changed her sub-class. Her Light felt dimmer as everything had to reset, the meter slowly but steadily rising. "But we also need to get rid of that tank. With it waiting there, we won't be able to stop moving."

"Plus there's a huge crowd of armed guards watching over them. Even my Bladedancer invisibility couldn't get me past all of them." Bianca said.

"We should split up then." Katie said. "I'll go for the tank with my Nova Bomb while you two distract the guards. Ti'ana, that should get you enough kills to pop up your Ward. Once we've got all four of them inside the Ward, then we can pick off the rest at our leisure."

Ti'ana and Bianca nodded in agreement. That plan would work. "Moving in on three… two…" Ti'ana moved her foot forward, and a rock was grounded into dust under it. Hardly loud enough to be heard.

One of the men there, a Faunus, grabbed Ruby and wrapped his arm around her, a large pistol against her head. He turned on the spot. "Alright you freaking heroes, listen up." He shouted. "I know you're there. You've got till the count of three to come out with your hands up, or I'll blow this little bitch's brains out. Her Aura's weak enough that one bullet will be more than enough." Ti'ana zoomed in on her. He was right. Ruby's barrier was almost completely gone. And worse, this guy had full shields himself. Light had rated him as a major. Too strong for a single sniper round to stop him. Not with her so close. "One… Two…"

Ti'ana heard Bianca cursing even as they all stood up. "Alright, alright. We're coming out already. Just don't anything we'll make you regret." She said. Katie and Ti'ana stood up slowly beside her.

Well, no one said that stealth was a Guardian's main skill.

"Get over here." The Faunus said. They walked towards him, making sure not to do any sudden moves. Not until he lets go of Ruby.

"Got a match on him." Light said inside her head. "Remus Bloodoak. Wolf Faunus. Leader of the Red Lotus criminals. Over a dozen missing person reports linked to his name. Be careful Ti'ana."

"It's not me I'm worried about." She said, her helmet blocking her voice outside. They were now standing in the middle of the group, a dozen guns pointing straight for them. Even her shields would have difficulty weathering that kind of storm.

"Guns here. With the rest." Remus said gruffly, pointing to the pile. They threw their primary and special weapons down at his feet. Fortunately for them, they still had their heavy weapons loaded in their ghosts, all with full ammo. If things turned nasty, they'd still have a backup plan.

"Who the hell are you three supposed to be?" Remus asked. "Atlesian soldiers or some shit?" He scoffed. "Well, you're in the wrong fucking neighbourhood. Let me give you three some tips." He waved a hand – the one with the gun – around, pointing to everything. "This place right here? It's mine. Everyone here does everything I say. The law doesn't bother me anymore. They're too busy being scared to come and do anything here. I could be standing over your corpses and telling them that you all walked out of here alive, and they'd parrot it back to me. There are no heroes out here. No one's dumb enough to try. People are afraid of death. It haunts us at every step. And so no one's willing to risk their life just to see me walk free anyway." He threw Ruby back to the ground at their feet. Yang, Weiss and Blake glared daggers at him. "So what I don't get it what the hell you thought coming in here would ever accomplish."

"Who cares?" Another man said. "We've got the Schnee Heiress here. Do you have any idea how much daddy will pay to get his daughter back? We'll be loaded." He stroked Weiss' cheek, and the heiress shuddered.

Remus shook his head. "Phil, Phil. You're thinking too small. Why give her to Schnee for a pittance and get an army on our backs… when we can give her to the White Fang. They'll pay twice as much for her. And then, they could use her to free more of our brothers. Oodles of money and dozens of Faunus for the price of one little bitch."

"You know, my father won't agree to those terms." Weiss said bravely. "He knows that those Faunus will join your foul terrorist army and attack us again."

"Well he'd better change his tune. Or else I'll bet that the White Fang send you back to him in lots of boxes." He grabbed her by the chin. "An ear here. A finger there. A heart in another box…"

There was no warning. No ultimatum. One moment, Bianca was standing like the rest of them, hands in the air. The next, her hand cannon was in her hands and she had buried a knife to the hilt in someone's head. The men shouted and yelled as she started unloading on them, tossing a grenade and letting sub-munitions toss criminals into the air. But then as she was reloading, Remus pulled out a shotgun from his back. He rammed it into her gut and unloaded it, blasting a hole through her back. Bianca screamed as she fell, right before he fired his last shot into her visor. Blood and matter splattered everywhere.

It all happened so fast.

"You see?!" Remus shouted, ignoring Team RWBY's shocked expressions. "This. Is what happens. When you pretend. To be a hero. You just end up in a puddle of blood, while I'm still on top." He turned towards one of his men. "And you. You're supposed to be watching the guns. So how the hell did she manage to get her pistol back?" The guard paled.

"Ti'ana." Bianca's voice echoed in her head. "Is your Super ready yet?"

"Yeah." She replied. "I can throw it up at any time. Just give me the word."

"My sniper rifle's got an over penetrating mod installed. I'll take out the four standing over the girls, and then you throw up your Ward. Katie, you'll start clearing out the guards while Ti'ana deals with any inside."

"Already got the Armour of Light set up." Little Light replied.

"Good. Be ready to move. I just need them all distracted."

"Should I try the kamikaze route too?" Katie asked wryly. But Ti'ana wasn't paying attention anymore. One of the men was watching Blake closely. And her bow was moving. The guard snarled, and stepped towards her. He grabbed the bow and ripped it off, revealing Blake's ears to them.

Remus stopped yelling at the unfortunate guard, and turned.

"Well." He growled. "That explains why you seem to piss me off, girly." He stepped closer menacingly. "So. One of our number… A Faunus… is friends with a Schnee." He smiled evilly at her. Blake, on her part, didn't react.

Until he drove his fist into her stomach.

"You working against your own kind, traitor?" He asked as she fell coughing to the ground. "You like being this girl's pet? Her slave? Huh? Do you?" He yelled this last part as he kicked her. Blake yelled in pain as rolled onto her side, trying to protect it as best as she could. But he kicked her again. And again. And again.

And so Katie and Ti'ana, the only two expecting it, saw Bianca's corpse and her weapons fade away into Light. Tyrion flew higher up, and she was suddenly crouching with her rifle in hand. A loud bang filled the air, and the four standing over the girls had mist for heads. Ti'ana threw her arms outwards, and a purple dome formed around them. Her shotgun appeared in her hands as Katie started shooting people.

Then the real fun started.

"Get down." Ti'ana ordered, even as she punched one guard into Void particles and started unloading her gun into people. Remus ran up to her, his own shotgun turning into a club. He slammed it against her back. The damage to her shields was barely felt. Not with her Force Barrier up. The other guards inside kept shooting at her, while those outside watched as their bullets were stopped dead. She simply kept shooting, the armatures in her gauntlets moving faster than she could to reload. What normally took her several seconds was done in only one. Her punches killed anyone dumb enough to get close. Remus, wisely seeing he wasn't doing anything, jumped out of the Ward. The last guard whimpered as she slammed his head from his shoulders. Team RWBY jumped as the tank fired, its shell exploding harmlessly against the Ward. But they didn't have much time. She quickly snapped the bindings holding them and handed them their weapons. "Alright, listen up. I want you four to get to cover and stay there until everything's clear. Stay. I don't want any sudden heroics from you guys." They all nodded, Weiss helping Blake to her feet. "Now go. Move!" They ran for cover as quickly as they could, while Ti'ana stepped out long enough to throw her grenade. "Light, make me a Striker."

"Switching over." He replied as she ran for cover. Katie and Bianca had made short work of whoever was left. Only the tank was left now, and the few men huddling around it. As Bianca ran forward, her hand cannon was replaced by her Golden Gun. She aimed for one of the legs, and fired a single shot. It melted a giant hole into the leg, causing the tank to stumble. Its shell fired off wildly into the sky. Ti'ana took a couple of pot shots, but her focus was on the stragglers. She skidded underneath before slamming her fist into the first idiot in her path.

But she had primed her fusion glove beforehand.

Arc energy burst out, throwing the poor guy backwards as he disintegrated. She spun around him, burying her scout rifle axe into another guy before punching his friend. The others gained enough wits to start shooting back, and she hid behind a surviving leg. Explosions from above showed that the others were nearly done with the tank. She reached behind her, and Advice materialised into her hands.

"Say hello to my little friend." She called out as she pulled out of cover. The men started as they saw the calibre of her weapon.

"Prepare to die, assholes." Advice said, before she left him loose. The men started running, but his bullets chewed them up like a cheap dinner. She ducked as a large explosion sounded above, and tried to run out before the whole thing fell on her.

She didn't make it.


"Miss Aqua!" Ruby screamed, watching the Guardian get crushed underneath the destroyed tank. Despite her injuries, despite her exhaustion, she still started running towards the wreckage. Tears were running down her cheeks.

This was all going so wrong. It had started off great that night, with them 'borrowing' a Bullhead to get to Vale. But then Weiss had noticed a small drone of some kind watching them. They had decided to engage the autopilot and jump out to throw them off the scent. They had snuck into the warehouse district, ready to ambush the Red Lotus. A few hit and run attacks to wear them down, surprise them with an all-out assault. Easy, simple…

And then it turned out that they had a tank. And far more men than they were expecting. And Remus himself was even tougher than Torchwick was.

So here they were, with them in need of rescuing, and Ti'ana dead trying to save them.

But she saw Miss Gaea die. Her blood was still staining the ground. And yet here she was, walking around and fighting as though it never happened. Nothing was making any sense. What was going on?

"Yo, Light." Bianca called out, kneeling near the fallen tank. "You ready for resurrection?"

"Ready and able." A male voice responded. Ruby gasped as she saw a small floating drone – similar to the one Weiss said she spotted tailing them – appear before Miss Gaea. She held a hand out towards it, and it started glowing. The bits surrounding its eye exploded outwards, floating around it and moving faster and faster. The glow turned into a humanoid shape, and then when it faded, Ti'ana was standing before them. Alive and whole.

"See, that's why you should try and spec into agility sometimes." Bianca snarked. But Ti'ana ignored her. Instead, she pushed past her and approached Ruby. The young Huntress started feeling very nervous. Ti'ana stopped in front of her, helmet hiding her expression. But given how she was standing, Ruby was pretty sure she wasn't happy.

"Little Light. Scan them for injuries." She said to no one. The little drone appeared out of thin air, floating towards Ruby and scanning her with a beam. It then flew over to the others, scanning each of them in turn before flying back to Ti'ana.

"None of them have any severe injuries, though Blake will need to see a doctor about her bruises some time tonight." The drone said, sounding like a real person. Like Penny. "The rest of them have only got some scrapes, burns and bruises."

"Good." She seemed to sigh. But then she grabbed Ruby painfully by the upper arms. "Then what the hell were you all thinking?! This isn't a game Ruby. That creep was willing to kill you all without a second thought. Your teammates could've died."

"I…I'm sorry." Ruby sniffled. Seeing Ti'ana upset with her was just as bad as if the others were angry with her. "I…I just wanted to show how awesome I could be. Catch the attention of a Ghost…"

"There are no Ghosts in Vale." She shook her head and sighed. "We'll talk once we're back on the ship. Help the others up and let's get moving."

"What about Remus?" Weiss asked. "I don't feel all that comfortable with that lunatic knowing about me."

"He's not your concern anymore. Your concern is getting yourself healed, and hoping that Ozpin doesn't punish you four too strictly for this crazy plan." Ti'ana replied.

"No." Blake grunted, one arm wrapped around her stomach. "We can't let him get away. He's supplying Torchwick with Dust. He knows something. I can feel it. This is our only chance to stop him."

Ti'ana looked at her before turning to 'Little Light'. "Well?" She asked him.

"Personally I feel that chasing after a criminal is not the best use of our time." He replied. "But seeing as I'm following you, my opinion doesn't matter all that much."

"He does sound like someone that needs to be dealt with." Katie said as she approached them. "And Weiss is right. That creep isn't going to leave us alone. We've practically wiped out his operations here. He won't take that lying down."

Bianca nodded. "Alright then. We'll finish our fight with this guy and interrogate him. But if we're doing this, then you four need to listen to us. Stay at the back, out of danger. Got it?" Team RWBY nodded.

"Girls, lets break down some doors."


Remus seethed as he made a tactical decision to relocate to another location. Those wannabe Huntress bitches thought that they could kick him out with their damn teachers? He was the Alpha Wolf of this whole damn district. Everyone here feared his might. As soon as he had wrangled up some more men, he was leading an assassination mission right into Beacon to rip their heads off. And then on to Signal for that kid with them.

"Get everything packed up." He growled at one of his surviving men. "We're pulling out… for now." As he said that, the room shook from an explosion. Dust rained down around them. And then he heard the sound of gunfire. The man near him looked at him in worry. "Well, what are you waiting for? Put those bitches down already." The man jumped, before racing towards the fighting. As he did so, Remus headed towards his office. He engaged the security systems as he entered, the thick door sealing shut behind him and the twin turrets activating. He smirked as he took his place behind thick cover. Anyone breaking through those doors was in for a bloodbath. He didn't look up from checking his weapon for any minute damage, even when the screams of his men were right outside his door.

His smirk turned into a frown though, when the door turned into little more than motes of purple light. Along with a sizable part of the wall. In the sizzling circle that had replaced his door, those three adult Huntresses were pointing their guns at him.

"Open fire." He shouted, ducking behind cover as bullets flew. The voice recognition system immediately responded, firing off lead like there was no tomorrow. He looked up to see that the armoured lady's shotgun had unfolded into a shield, purple energy blocking all the bullets. The lady in the robes somehow pulled out a rocket launcher from nowhere, peeking out from behind her knight friend to start blasting his turrets. At the same time, the lady with the cape pulled out a glowing gun made of fire, unloading a single round into the other turret. The whole damn frame melted into a puddle. He started unloading his own shots as the three moved away from each other, pulling the turret in differing directions. He saw his bullets slam into the robed lady's shield, but she fired wildly at his head. As he ducked down, a thunderous chorus of bullets filled the air. And then a groaning sound as the other turret fell.

Now may be a good time to use his hidden exit.

But as he moved to run, another explosion threw him off his feet. His cover was practically disintegrated, the knight dusting off her hands. She turned him over and stomped a foot onto his chest, shotgun pointing right in his face. He looked at them in shock. All that armour and weaponry, and these three tore it all down like it was nothing. What the hell were these ladies?

"Alright dickhead." The knight growled. "We want some answers, and you probably don't want a few dozen rounds to the face. So start talking."

He growled. "Never." He batted aside her shotgun, just as she pulled the trigger. Then he slammed his fists into her armour, pushing her back. But her gauntlets started sparking, and when their fists slammed into each other his arm was suddenly in pain. Lightning arced over his flesh, his Aura saving his hide. But she fired her shotgun again, before punching him again with those gauntlets, and his Aura took a savage pounding. The caped lady fired off her gun, the bullets tearing into his legs. He yelled in pain and fury as he fell down, but then the knight slammed her knee into his head. When the sky had stopped spinning, they were right back where they started.

"Wanna try that again?" She asked him. He shook his head slowly. With his Aura so battered, he couldn't hope to win. Better to play along, and get out through his contacts. "Didn't think so. Now, why are you working for Torchwick?"

"Working for him? Lady, I work alongside him. And only because the White Fang asked me to. He's working for someone with big plans. Plans for a better future."

"Plans that just so happen to require lots of ammunition."

He shrugged. "Sometimes you've gotta break things to fix them."

"Do you know who he's working for?" Robed lady asked.

"Not a clue." He smirked. He stopped smirking as the knight moved her foot to his neck. His eyes bulged as he choked.

"Wrong answer. Try again." She moved her foot back down, slamming it painfully against his chest. He coughed wildly as he got back his breath.

"Alright, alright. I know a bit. More than I should. I actually got to see his boss from a distance. Weird looking guy. Kinda dressed like your friend here." He nodded his head towards the lady with the cape.

"What made him look so weird?" The knight asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." She slammed the end of her gun right into his face. "Ok, ok. Easy now." She moved it away. "The guy had grey skin. Like he was made from ash or stone or something. Except for his eyes. Those were glowing golden." That got something out of them. The three ladies looked at each other, their body movements worried. He saw an opening. "And he will not be pleased to see my operations disrupted. You let me go though, and I'll forget what you three even look like. Deal?"

The knight stared at him for a long time before slamming her gun right into his face again. He looked at her with wide eyes.

"No deal." *BANG*


It was busy in the underground warehouse. White Fang soldiers moved all over the place, sorting out the shipments of Dust they had received from lowlifes and other criminal scum. One of them though was moving around with a message in his hands. He pushed past busy people and large crates, seeking out his target. He found him counting the amount of Lien they had gained from all the thefts. His heart sank. The boss made it clear that he hated being interrupted while counting money. But he'd probably hate the news even more.

"Uh, Mr Torchwick sir?" he said nervously. As expected, Torchwick rounded on him, the end of his weapon pointed right at his face.

Torchwick took a deep breath. "Chuck, I was on a real good roll with counting my share of our payday. So for your sake, I hope that is really, really important."

"We, uh… we got a report from the guys that went to pick up the Lotus' shipment." He handed over the scroll, and the information on it. Torchwick did a quick skim before sighing in anger, putting his weapon down as he did so.

Chuck breathed a sigh of relief.

"Great." Torchwick muttered. "That's another supplier down the drain. The kind of people who can get this kind of stuff don't just grow on trees Chuck. And all he had to do was keep a low profile for a couple of days. Now I gotta tell Cinder about this." He shook his head. "This. Is why. I hate. Working for someone else." He glared at Chuck. "Make sure that the next news is good news. Capishe?"

"Yes Sir." Chuck said, leaving as quickly as he could without running. Torchwick growled in frustration even as he stomped off towards the 'offices'. Damn Cinder, making him come to her. He grumbled to himself even as he keyed in the security codes, heading into a darkened hallway. And would it kill these guys to get some lights around here? He could be walking right past her, and never even…

"Hello Roman." Cinder's voice sounded behind him as she walked past. "I'm assuming that you've got a good reason to see me?"

"Remus got himself killed." He replied sullenly. "We're not gonna see another speck of Dust from his area again. See, this is why you don't rely on animals. They give into their natures, fuck things up, and then we all get in trouble."

"You might want to be careful with your insults Roman. Seeing as how you're surrounded by 'animals'." She replied as she led him down a hall.

"Well maybe if you got me someone good from the White Fang, I wouldn't be so aggravated by their presence." He replied. "Let me guess. We're gonna have to break the bad news to lover boy."

"He's not my lover. He's my employer."

"And that there, that's another grievance I have. Working alone, being my own boss, that was great. I got to make the plans, I got to choose the people, I got to steal the right amount of money…"

Cinder smiled. "And yet you always want more, don't you? Otherwise you'd never have joined us."

"True." He admitted. "But I prefer to take less risks with my money. An extra 10 grand does me no good if I end up in prison while trying to get it. So all of the above, is why I find it a little uncomfortable working for someone else." Cinder found her way blocked by his cane, the end pressed against the wall at head-height. Torchwick leaned in. "But it's also why I hate being the subordinate of a subordinate." He growled. "If you want to keep having my help - and god knows you need me – then I want equal partnership from now on."

She gave him a stern look, the kind that had men fearing for their lives. Roman didn't react. "You want to be my equal." She said slowly.

"I am your equal." He gave her a thin smile. "Why not at least make it official?" He moved his cane away. "Think of it like this. You scratch my back, I keep scratching yours."

She gave him an even thinner smile in return, caressing his cheek. "You really think that you could just walk away if things aren't to your liking?"

He didn't flinch. "I think you're at too critical a stage to try and call my possible bluff." They locked eyes for a while, trying to assess each other's true cards. But then she pulled her hand away with a huff. Torchwick smirked as they kept walking.

"I'll see what I can do. But the final decision goes to my employer. If he says no, then I suggest that you suck it up." She keyed a code into the door at the far end (making sure to stop Torchwick from seeing it), before leading him into a darkened room filled with screens. They were all showing different areas of Vale, some more protected than others. Torchwick raised an eyebrow at this guy's set-up. No wonder Cinder seemed to know everything. Her group had feelers practically everywhere. The screen directly in front of him had an information page up, though he couldn't see what it was about. Probably theoretical ways to use Dust. If he had to think big, that's what he'd go for.

Cinder gave a small cough, and the man looked up. He still faced away from them though, his identity hidden by his chair. "Cinder. What a pleasant surprise." The man said in a soft voice. "Are preparations nearly complete on your end?"

"As close as we can get Sir." Cinder replied, now all professional. "The number of thefts we have done has gotten some of our suppliers arrested. We keep at this any longer, and we might lead them straight to our door."

The man nodded. "Acceptable. We have more than enough Dust to satisfy my interests. Start winding down operations here. Make it appear that the government is winning." He changed one of the screens, showing the two of them in his office. Torchwick looked up to see some kind of mechanical bird watching them. It resembled some kind of crow, or Nevermore. "And I see you brought a guest."

Torchwick smiled. "Greetings. Roman Torchwick. Entrepreneur, collector, philanthropist, and friend of the needy."

The man chuckled to himself. "I suppose all of that is true, if you know how to spin criminal well enough." He stopped laughing. "Outside of these walls you will address me as 'Master of the Crows'."

Torchwick nodded. "Fitting." He pointed at the drone. "I see that you're really going for a theme here. Now, down to business. You see, I'm a self-made man. And like all such men, I'm not really fond of being near the bottom of the pile. I tend to enjoy being right below the top dog. And if I enjoy something, I work much more efficiently."

Master of the Crows tapped the desk top. "Enough with the double speak. What is it that you want?"

"Equal position to Cinder." Torchwick responded immediately. "She gets to be your left hand, I get to be your right hand. How's that?" He gave Cinder a look, and she clenched her fists.

"He has helped us gather so much Dust." She said. "Without his connections, we would not have so many willing to sell it to us. Or so many to take it."

"…Very well." Master of the Crows finally replied. "I suppose if your ego is so fragile, you can get your orders from me instead of Cinder. For now, do what I just told Cinder to inform everyone."

"Start lying low. Got it. Now how about we stop this cloak and dagger 'I'm-a-Mysterious-Stranger' vibe and actually talk face to face. Like how about that big payoff you're offering."

"Cinder hasn't told you?"

"All she said was that I'd have more money than I'd know what to do with. I'd like a little clarification, please." Master of the Crows pondered it, before his chair started rotating. Torchwick's eyebrows raised as high as they could once he saw his appearance.

Skin as grey as ash. Hair as black as oil. Amber eyes glowing like torches. Master of the Crows smirked as he saw Torchwick's expression.

"What if I said that I could make you part of a royal kingdom?" Prince Uldren Sov of the Reef asked.


Ti'ana sighed as she brought her ship to a complete halt, high above Remnant itself. The stars twinkled from the depths of space, and she could clearly see the fractured moon in all its broken glory. Up here, no one could listen in on them. There's been no record on anyone on Remnant achieving space travel of any kind. Satellites, yes. But they were beyond even them now. She engaged the autopilot again, holding them in their place, and moved back to the living quarters of the ship.

"How are their injuries?" She asked Light once she entered. Bianca and Katie were sitting on the chairs, facing Team RWBY who were sitting on her bed together. The Ghosts were hovering over them, beams flickering over their bodies. It had been Katie's idea. If their Ghosts could heal lethal damage on their own bodies, then logically they could do something for the girls. She watched as the bruise on Blake's cheek faded away, leaving the skin unblemished.

Light turned off his beam, floating back to her. "Well they're gonna feel pretty stiff tomorrow. But I believe the expression is 'as fit as a fiddle'." Glad that they weren't injured anymore, she breathed a sigh of relief and sat down on the table itself. The two teams stared at each other for several uncomfortable moments.

"So…" She started off awkwardly. "I guess we've got… a few things to talk about."

"We do." Weiss replied, watching them suspiciously. "And we can start with you three. I've always thought there was something strange going on with you, but now this proves it. Your lies are completely shocking."

"We weren't planning on staying long enough to need them." Katie said. "But we ran into complications."

"So you admit it then. You're spies." Blake said tersely.

"We're not spies." Bianca said. "We're just not from here."

"So where are you guys from then?" Yang asked. "Vacuo? Atlas? Mistral?" The three of them looked at each other before nodding.

"Tyrion. Show them." Bianca ordered. Her Ghost floated towards them, eye already flashing. An image of Remnant, the same view they had when they arrived, appeared before them.

"As you probably can already tell, this is Remnant as seen from space." Tyrion said. Then his beam widened, and a second almost identical planet appeared beside it. "And this is our world. Earth. A twin planet to Remnant if you will. Third rocks from the sun, 71% water, inhabited by the Human Race." Team RWBY stared at them with looks of shock.

"You… You're saying that you're aliens." Yang said slowly.

"Technically, yes." Ti'ana said. "Why don't we give the true story about our world?" The others nodded in agreement.

And so, they told them everything, showing them images when applicable. Team RWBY learnt about the discovery of The Traveller on Mars, how He had terraformed the planet for them. How through Him, they learnt new ways to use technology. How they started spreading outwards through the solar system, inhabiting worlds previously too dangerous to live on. All the things the Golden Age provided.

And more importantly, about the arrival of The Darkness.

They watched in horror as the Ghosts went over the barest details of their defeat. Of their near-extinction. The survivors struggling and fighting to survive on their own planet. Of how it took centuries before they could build the Last City. Then he showed them their last mission. To enter the Black Garden. To kill its Heart. And how in doing so, they were pulled here by mistake.

All four girls were silent when they finished.

"Wow." Ruby breathed. "You've done so much." She looked downcast, as though she didn't know how she could ever hope to match their accomplishments.

"But… But… Why here?" Weiss spluttered. "Why did this 'Black Heart' drag you here?"

"We're not sure, but we might a possible idea." Light said. "It didn't take us long to realise that this world has also been visited by both the Traveller and the Darkness." They looked at him sceptically. "The Traveller gave your people their Aura and the Dust, while the Darkness left behind the Grimm to destroy your world."

"If it wanted us dead, why didn't it just do it?" Blake asked.

"It doesn't want us dead. It wants the Traveller dead." Bianca explained. "The Traveller must've fled to try and draw it off, and it made the Grimm to do the job for it. But your people used your Light to fend them off." This was good news for them. It meant that there is still a possibility that they could win.

"So… Is that how those Hive things got on Remnant?" Weiss asked.

"We don't know for sure." Katie replied. "But I'm betting that's not your most pressing question, is it?" Team RWBY looked at each other, nodding in agreement. "Alright then. Ask away."

"We saw you die…" Ruby and Blake started asking.

"How do we know we can believe you?" Weiss asked at the exact same time.

"What are you going to do with us?" Yang also asked. They looked at each other again as their questions muddled together. Ti'ana tapped at the wall behind her, and the viewport activated. Team RWBY reared back as they took in the view. The emptiness of space. Remnant arching beneath them. The moon so visible before them. At the same time, they all took off their helmets. The girls had already seen Bianca's face before, only slightly surprised that she was fully healed. Ti'ana's face, with startling blue skin and ethereal energy misting from it, got a reaction from them. But it was Katie that surprised them the most. Metal plates shifted as she turned her head, letting them see every detail of it. The light from her eyes was even more blinding than Ti'ana's, making it difficult to pick out the coils and gears that made up her eyeballs.

"You're… A machine." Blake said softly.

Katie nodded. "I am. I'm what we call an 'Exo'. A mechanical construct that somehow managed to develop self-awareness."

Ti'ana looked at Ruby. "Ruby. Remember when I said that my home colony had set themselves up far away from the Last City?" She nodded. "I didn't tell you the whole thing. The Awoken were people who tried to flee our solar system. We managed to get the furthest reaches of our known space but… Something happened. Changed us." She touched her skin. "Made us something else." She pulled her hand away. "And according to records, I left the Reef over 147 years ago." She gave a bit of sad smile. "Of course, I only spent about 30 odd years alive."

"You were dead?" They asked.

"With the exception of Katie, we were all dead at some point." Bianca replied. "It was only because of our Ghosts that we're alive again."

The team looked at the hovering drones, understanding dawning on them. "These things are Ghosts?" Ruby asked.

"We are." Little Light answered. "Intelligences made by the Traveller to seek out those with an affinity to the Light. Sadly however, those with such affinity have been dead for a very long time. Thankfully, we have the ability to revive those we choose."

"How?" Weiss asked, curious. "If they were alive at the time, I could believe that you simply create a copy of their personalities as clones. But how do you revive…?"

"Light." He replied. "Miss Schnee, for us Light is the answer to almost anything. With it, the Traveller turned inhospitable worlds with no atmospheres into places where people could live freely. It defies the laws of physics humans once thought were unmalleable." He bobbed, his version of a shrug. "Honestly, reviving the dead isn't the strangest thing Light can do."

"So that's how you came back. If you get killed again, your Ghosts just bring you back again." Yang summed up. "Handy. I can think of a few fights I'd like that kind of power for."

Bianca leaned forward and gave them a look. "Now. In answer to your final question…" She took a deep breath. "All we want is to find Katie's ship, a way back home, and then we're out of here. The only reason we're even here in the first place is that we got dragged here against our will." She clapped her hands together once. "So, if you guys could help us stay secret for just a bit longer – and keep an ear out for any strange craft that have crashed recently – then that's all we'll ask of you. Alright?"

Team RWBY looked at each other for several seconds, before nodding in agreement. Ti'ana silently cheered.

Just a bit longer. Just a bit longer and they may finally be able to return home.


Ironwood read the report he had been handed just a few minutes ago. The things it said were troubling to him. Explosions in Vale's warehouses. Bodies found dead in scores. Walls shattered, melted, and even gone altogether. Copious amounts of blood everywhere.

And reports of a team of three women, boarding a ship that went straight upwards further than any system could track.

Ozpin was a good man. He was a loyal man, with a good heart, a good head, and willing to do anything to defend the peace. But in times like this, with a highly likely enemy walking free, his desire for knowledge would put them all in jeopardy. Though they could learn much from watching killers walk free… Was the cost of lives worth it?

"Penny." He said aloud, looking up from his report. The young girl stood up, turning away from the spinning globe before her and facing him. "Have you managed to get this machine working properly?"

"Almost, Mr Ironwood Sir." Penny said cheerfully. "The Servitor has always been working. It just needed someone to talk to." She gave it a nervous glance though, eyes lingering on the holes they had cut into its sides to access all core functions. There had been a few… mishaps along the way. It was to be expected, when working with alien technology. But they were making breakthroughs now. Major breakthroughs.

"How long before this vessel is fully operational?" He asked. Penny stood stock still, eyes fluttering as she computed.

"The engines themselves are operational right now. We can take off and fly at any time. But the warp drives took some damage in your fight with the crew. It'll be at least another month before we can begin fixing them."

He nodded. That was better than what his lab boys told him the day before. "What if you had another functional warp drive and someone who knows how to work it?"

"That would likely take us down to an estimated two weeks. Do you really have both of those?"

"I have the warp drive right now. Give me a couple of days, and I can get you our 'expert'. For now, see if you can decipher their maps. They may hold clues as to possible outposts."

Yes Sir." Penny saluted him before turning back to the servitor. Confident that she was hard at work, he turned back to his scroll. A soldier under his command appeared on screen.

"Agent Schwartz. Have you studied all information about the Guardians?" He asked.

"Yes Sir." The masked soldier replied calmly, his voice hidden by a voice modifier. "My analysis is that we need to focus on them one at a time. Divide and conquer. I already have plans for capturing one of them right now."

"Any possible security risks?"

"One, regrettably. In order to get her in our trap, I'll need to lure her down here." Ironwood stopped walking and pondered. On one hand, showing them that they had this technology could be catastrophic. She may know how to work it better than they do, even how to turn it against them.

But if doing so could get them real answers…

He nodded. "Proceed Agent. Lure one of them down here ASAP. Don't take risks, but try not to kill her. I want to at least give her a chance to talk willingly first."

"Understood." Agent Schwartz nodded, before signing off. Ironwood placed his scroll in his pocket, trading it for his trusty flask. He stopped walking outside the large window before him, studying the cave walls around him. A large, pointed bow stretched outwards before him.

With the help of the Guardians, willing or otherwise, this 'Ketch' could be the lynchpin of their global defences against Grimm, terrorists…

Or aliens.


Whew. Finally got this chapter finished. Parts of it still don't feel right to me, particularly the scene on board the Phaeton with the questioning, but it'll do. I could probably work on this for years and still feel that something's off.

But yeah, now things are getting more intense. Team RWBY learn that Guardians can come back from the dead. Cinder is actually working for Prince Uldren of the Reef. Ironwood has a Ketch and is planning on capturing one of our heroines. Big moments all around.

Now, I'm sure some of you are wondering how Uldren (formally known as The Queen's Brother) got the Remnant in the first place. Well obviously the Black Heart isn't the only way to Remnant. It's just how our heroines got there. And I'm sure he'd love to have lots of Dust for the Reef. Given what it can do, who wouldn't?

Hope you guys (and girls) all enjoyed this chapter. Hopefully I can do just as good a job with the next part.