Chapter 9: The Truth Revealed

The Beacon Dance – a formal event meant to give the huntsmen and huntresses of Beacon a night to simply relax – was originally meant to have been planned by Team CFVY. But when their latest mission, a simple hunt mission, ran into overtime, it fell to Team RWBY as the second choice. Weiss and Yang gladly took on the job, their combined knowledge of etiquette and hard partying working together well.

Until they started arguing of course.

"Weiss, that's too many doilies!" Yang exclaimed. "Seriously, are we decorating this place for a party or for old grandmas?"

Weiss glared at her. "Fine. Then I guess we'll just have to get rid of some of the smoke machines. I'm sure we can handle only having one of them."

"What? No. We need at least five of them."

"And yet I've seen you unload about ten smoke machines within the last hour. I'm sorry, but is it normal for club patrons to crash into each other and dance blindly for fun?"

"Well, more smoke machines are still better than lacy junk." Yang shot back, and then they were both arguing. Ruby tried to sigh from where she was sitting, but unfortunately her mouth was filled to the brim with 'samples' of the food they were going to offer. She heard soft pattering, and turned to see that Blake had landed next to her. She had offered to use her Faunus agility to help hang some decorations on the walls. She gave Ruby a look.

"Aren't you going to stop your 'best friend' and your sister from killing each other?" She asked. Ruby swallowed, and found herself gasping for breath.

"Don't worry about it. They're just really… passionate about this. They're not going to start fighting about the dance…" She turned to see that Yang had her Ember Celica and Weiss had Myrtenaster ready for combat. She ran between them, both of the trying to push past her and get to each other. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Stop fighting, stop fighting! Calm down everyone! We can just… have less of both maybe?" She offered in a panic.

Weiss glared at Ruby, before raising an eyebrow. "Ruby, have you been pigging out on the snacks?"

"No? Maybe? Is there food on my face?" Ruby wiped a hand over her cheeks, having it come away with food covering it. She quickly licked it clean. "Yes. B-But someone needs to make sure that the food tastes ok. You don't want to put this much effort into the room and have people not eating the food, do you?"

"…Wow. That was actually a good excuse for eating everything."

"I know." She gave a big grin before grabbing a cloth and cleaning her face. She looked around the room, still smiling. "Wow. This is going to look amazing. I think we've all done a stand-up job."

"We're not done yet. There's still a few things we need to finish off before this could be considered complete." Weiss said. "We've still got to organise the music, get the rest of the balloons set up, and arrange the rest of the seating. And then there's the most important part."

"What's that?" Ruby asked, scratching her head in confusion

"Picking out a prom date!" Weiss said excitedly, sparkles all around her. She sighed in contentment.

"Uh, ok? Well, since you and I spotted each other first, I guess that means we're going together then."

"Not as a team, you dunce. You're supposed to pick someone you like – perhaps of the opposite gender – and come to the prom with them so as to ensure you have someone to enjoy the night with."

"Oh. Do we… have to pick someone?" Ruby asked nervously, tapping her index fingers together.

"It isn't mandatory. But it's seen as much better to arrive with a partner than to arrive on your own." Weiss explained.

"And of course we have to talk fashion, little sister." Yang said, grabbing Ruby by the shoulder. "You absolutely have to wear something nice. No coming to the dance in your combat clothes."

"What's wrong with my combat clothes?" Ruby asked, looking at herself and picking at her clothes with her fingers.

"Well, nothing. But you can't show up to an important dance with clothes streaked with Grimm blood and dirt. You need to look amazing, fashionable, dazzling." Sparkles started forming around her too. "Tomorrow, we need to head down to the shops. I think I saw something there that's just perfect for you." She squealed in excitement. Then she turned to Blake. "What about you, Blake? Want some help choosing a dress?"

"Actually, I've already found and bought a dress I like." Blake replied. "And I found someone to go with."

"Sun." They all said at the same time. Blake blinked in surprise.

"Don't act so surprised. Everyone here can see that you two like each other." Weiss said. "I'll admit, he's a bit too much of a ruffian for my tastes, but as long as you're happy that shouldn't matter."

"Ah… ok." Blake said simply. Whatever else they were going to say was interrupted by Sun and Neptune crashing through the doors. Both seemed out of breath.

"Hah… Hah… Hah…" They both panted, catching their breaths again. The girls gave them time to get the words out. "You guys… aren't… going… to believe… this." Neptune finally managed to say.

"I'll say." Yang replied. "I hope you guys ran from a great distance because otherwise you're really out of shape."

"There are aliens on Remnant!" Sun shouted at them, wide-eyed and excited. "Actual beings from another world. Can you believe it?"

"Wha… Aliens? What aliens?" Ruby asked. She was startled as Sun grabbed her arm.

"No time. Must run. Now." He went racing out the door with her in tow, the others close behind them. "Ok. So we were watching the TV to see if there was any interesting news going on, and there was. They said that some guy named Ironwood discovered aliens not too long ago, and now they're doing a whole article on them tonight. Now. Like, right now."

"In a few minutes, you mean." Neptune corrected. Sun ignored him.

"Turns out that these three aliens have been living here on Remnant for over a month now. A whole month, blending into the population. Can you believe it? How could alien life have hidden itself so easily amongst us? They must use some kind of… infiltration program or something."

"You watch too much sci-fi. It's more likely that they have a similar build to us Humans…" Blake coughed loudly. "…And Faunus, that allows them to simply wear some covering outfits. No word though on what they're here for."

"My money's on stealing our women. Or our men. Maybe they've got chicks amongst them." By now, they had reached the main commons room, with an assortment of TVs set up. And all of them were tuned to the Vale News Network (or VNN for short). Just as they arrived, the last ad was finished, and the opening tune for the VNN was playing. The VNN symbol moved to the corner of the screen, as reporter/anchor-woman Lisa Lavender appeared on screen.

"Welcome back." She said. "As promised, we are now reporting on what is likely the most striking news in all of Remnant History. We now have confirmed – yes, confirmed – reports that life from beyond the stars does in fact exist." The students gasped as this news. Real-life aliens? How was this possible? Where did they come from? What did they look like? "Thanks to the efforts Altesian general James Ironwood, we have managed to identify the three aliens currently on Remnant, based in the city of Vale." Team RWBY looked at each other nervously. "Though despite what many people would believe, these aliens aren't actually that different from ourselves. From the reports we here at the VNN have received, they are in fact from another world much like Remnant. One also populated by humans." The girls felt worry and resignation. They could tell who Lisa Lavender was talking about. Three pictures appeared next to Lavender, showing the faces of three people. One was of a dark-skinned woman with spikey blond hair. The second was of a blue-skinned woman with silvery-white hair. And the final one was of a robot, blue eyes glowing. "These three have been spending their time at the prestigious Beacon Academy, hiding themselves as elite Huntresses known as the Guardians." The students all gasped again at that. "But there's no need to be alarmed. Thanks to strong efforts by General Ironwood and his men, they managed to find out that they are not in fact here to attack us…"


"…Their arrival here on Remnant was an unfortunate accident due to the destruction of a powerful threat known as the 'Black Heart'. In its death throes, it apparently created a wormhole from their world to our own, and they have simply been seeking out their missing vessels and a way back home ever since." Uldren leant forward in his chair, watching the news over steepled fingers. Behind him, also watching the news, were his two lieutenants.

"Huh." Torchwick said. "Aliens, huh? I wouldn't mind getting my hands on their interesting tech. Who knows what kind of strange tricks they've got up their sleeve."

"You would find your mission near impossible." Uldren replied, still frowning at the screen. "Guardians are notoriously difficult to put down permanently. At best you would merely delay them for a few seconds. More if they are fighting alone."

"I thought you would know of them." Cinder said. None of them needed to say aloud that it was due to his strange appearance. Indeed, though differently shaded his skin was a near match for the blue woman.

"Indeed. We are both from the same alternate universe. But we fight on different sides."

"You're at war with them? Then surely you know of a way to kill them permanently."

Uldren snorted. "We are hardly at war with the Guardians. We merely have a frosty relationship with the Last City that they protect. They seek to remain under the protection of a dying god, while we were saved by a creature of Darkness. Though they aren't officially mortal enemies, they both still hate each other with a passion." He nodded. "But yes. I do know of a way to kill a Guardian. Though it will still be notoriously difficult."

"Great. Let us know and we'll get on with looting their corpses." Torchwick said jovially.

"One sure-fire way to kill them is to have them die in an area without access to the Light. A place with large amounts of Grimm, or Hive, or other monstrosity. But we don't have the time or luck to find such an area capable of overwhelming them. So we would have to unleash an orbital bombardment on their location."

Torchwick hissed through his teeth. "Orbital bombardment? Now call me crazy, but it seems a little detrimental to blow up an entire city to kill three people. Three people we obviously won't be able to loot afterwards." He waved his arms to emphasis his words. "I'm all for risks, sure. But I'd like to get something out of them besides hundreds of thousands of dead people and the rest of the world hunting me down."

"Potentially kill them. But yes, you make a very good point. Besides, no nation or force on this world has access to orbital bombardments of sufficient strength, if at all."

"Why do we need so much firepower?" Cinder asked. "Couldn't we just shoot out whatever it is that resurrects them? Or 'borrow' it?"

Uldren turned to face her. "Impossible. The item you speak of – their 'Ghost' – is so vital to them that any attempts to grab it will immediately be taken as an act of aggression. And as long as they have access to Light, they can regenerate from almost anything. An orbital bombardment only works because it causes too much damage for it to survive. Anything less, and it will keep on living. And for such an overt attempt on their Ghost's life, the Guardians will hunt you down and hang you by your entrails."

"Lovely." Torchwick groaned. "So what are we going to do about them?"

"Nothing, for now." Uldren said. "We have all the materials we need right now. Our only objective now is to search those ruins we found for a way back to my universe. Were you will all be richly rewarded for your contributions to The Reef." He turned back to the TV, the news lady still going on about the Guardians.

"Now silence. I must see if they mention anything that could be of use to our goals."


"…With wilfully given permission, Atlesian scientists have discovered that while looking similar to our own technology, their weapons and armour are in face decades or even centuries ahead of our own, able to utilise some manner of energy similar to Dust to achieve impossible acts…" Lisa Lavender continued speaking, but Teams RWBY, JNPR, and Sun and Neptune weren't paying attention anymore. Instead, they were all focusing on Team RWBY and the shocking news they had just delivered.

"So let me get this straight." Sun said slowly. "You guys knew that the badass awesome chicks who have been kicking ass were actually aliens this whole time?!"

"Yeah." Nora said, getting right up in their faces. "You really should've told us that you were buddies with life from outer space. I've always wanted to meet an alien, and you guys never even told me." She pulled back in a huff, crossing her arms. "Some friends you guys are."

"Nora, you've only wanted to meet an alien since ten minutes ago." Ren said in a tired voice. "You've always wanted to meet a juggling Ursa wearing a top hat and speaking in a posh accent. Named Freddy."

"We only learnt that they were aliens the night before." Ruby replied, one hand rubbing her hair nervously.

"Though we've had our suspicions for weeks now." Weiss added, making it out like they weren't oblivious.

"And you guys kept quiet? Dude, this is the biggest thing ever. It's real proof that we aren't alone in the universe. There's actual life beyond the stars, waiting to find us." Sun said excitedly.

"And where there's life, there's hot chicks." Neptune added.

"From what they've shown and told us, most life out there wants to kill us for simply existing." Blake said waspishly. "They've yet to meet a species that hasn't wanted to kill humanity. So in all honesty, I'd be happy if the rest of the universe stayed far away from here."

"What I don't get is why they're suddenly on the news." Yang said. "Do you think Ozpin found out about them? Or maybe they had to talk to get their ship back. I'm pretty sure that any kingdom that got their hands on a working spaceship would be over the moon with joy."

Ruby pulled away from the group. "Well, we aren't going to find out why standing around and listening to the news. Let's go and get it from the horse's mouth." And she led the charge for the dormitories.


"…Another discovery made is that this is not, in fact, the first time alien life has found its way to Remnant." Lisa Lavender continued saying. "In fact, thanks to studies by both the Guardians and Atlesian scientists, we can now confirm that the legends of The Star and the Shadow both refer to beings from beyond the stars. One came here to help uplift us, while the other came for the intent purpose of destroying everything the former held dear…" Bianca sighed as she watched Tyrion's feed of the news.

"Can't believe that they put us on the news." She said, cradling her head in one hand. Behind her, Ti'ana was moving the drawers and the bed to cover the door. Behind it, they kept hearing the sound of banging.

"What'd you expect?" She said, barely straining as she lifted the heavy bed onto its end, slamming it against the door. "To him, just the three of us should've been an easy capture and interrogation. Instead, we managed to kick his men's asses with ease, two of us escaped, and you managed to break free and nearly made it out. He's not gonna let this go without some retribution." She dusted off her hands and leaned against the wall. "His pride's been wounded. At least he didn't try to arrange an interview with us."

Bianca snorted. Yeah, that would've been harder than capturing them in the first place. "Bet he wouldn't be happy if we mentioned that he's got a captured spaceship right underneath Beacon. Some people might take offence to something like that."

"They would. Especially since my scans show that it was captured over two decades ago." Little Light added. They both stood there, listening to the people trying to get in. Ti'ana wondered what they all wanted in for. Probably to ask questions, or insult them for not being 'human'. Yeah, probably something stupid like that.

"How's Katie doing fixing up her ship?" Bianca asked after several seconds, turning away from the screen. Lisa was currently talking to an expert of legends, asking him how the presences of aliens alter them in any way.

"Let me check." Ti'ana replied, Little Light already calling her up. Katie's voice sounded loud and clear.

"…Goddamn piece of fucking crap!" She cursed loudly. "Get in. You. Stupid. Piece. Of. Junk." She growled. "Look at the scuff on the paint. And what the fuck have they done with the fuel lines? Why were they even hanging in the first place? I swear, if I find the asshole who messed with my ship, I'm gonna grab the nearest combustion engine, and ram it right up their…" Wisely, Light or Dinklebot ended the call at that point. Ti'ana looked at Bianca.

"…So yeah. She's not taking this well." She summed up. There was a knocking sound coming from the window. With a hand wrapped around their guns, they turned as one. And they were surprised to see Ruby pressed against the glass, waving wildly as she gripped the wall. Ti'ana quickly opened the window, and Ruby fell on top of her.

"Ruby? What the hell are you doing out there?" Ti'ana asked, even as she pushed her aside. She looked up and squeaked as more people fell on top of her, grumbling as she struggled free. "And why are these guys here too?"

Neptune hugged the carpet intently. "Oh thank god. Oh sweet, sweet ground. Why is it that everytime we go to see someone on the second floor, we can never go in through the door? Why is it always the window?"

"Because the door's blocked by everything in the room." Sun said, spotting their barricade. "Man, those guys are really keen on talking to you guys."

"Talking, or lynching?" Bianca asked, checking that there was no one else before closing the windows again. "Ok, let's just get this out of the way. What do you guys want?"

"For starters, why are you guys the biggest story in Remnant all of a sudden?" Yang asked. "You acted like you were trying to stay under the radar, not become news headlines."

"We didn't really have much of a choice." Ti'ana replied. "Well, no actually. We did have a choice. But the alternative was that we'd get hunted down and thrown into labs. This seemed like the easier option… At least, at the time."

"We discovered a 'coded' message about Katie's missing ship, and a larger vessel known as a Ketch. We all went down to investigate, but it turned out to be a trap. Luckily, we managed to fight our way through and escape. For the most part." Bianca said.

"Bianca got captured. We went to rescue her, she rescued herself; Ozpin revealed that he already knew we weren't from Remnant; and General Ironwood had to let us go."

"But not before making us agree to discuss certain non-classified information with his men. And agree to this whole drama." She waved a hand at the door.

"Ironwood has an alien vessel?" Blake asked suspiciously.

"Yeah. A Ketch belonging to the Fallen. They were chased here by their own people."

"And he's been hiding it all this time? Why would he hide that but not you guys?"

"I think he's a bit sore that we whooped his men." Ti'ana answered.

"And because we ended up having to kill some of them." Bianca added.

"That too." They all stood there in awkward silence, processing what they've heard.

"So… What now?" Ruby asked. Ti'ana shrugged.

"Ironwood's begrudgingly agreed to help us find anything that could help us get home, in exchange for information and helping your people hunt down the White Fang active in Vale. But until then… Not much really. At least we don't need to skulk and sneak around anymore. I'm telling you, Titans are not built for sneaking."

"So you're just going to stay in your room until Atlas needs your help? Doesn't seem all that productive." Weiss said.

Bianca gave her a strict look. "Well unless one of you guys has a way to get those guys off our backs, I think that's all we can do."

"You could try just talking to them. No one said that they're planning on killing you three for being aliens."

"Actually, several comments online have highly suggested such an act." Light piped up. "Their reasoning ranges from 'they are actually an assassination group sent in to help their overlords take control' right down to 'they're aliens'."

"Yeowch." Sun said, wincing in sympathy.

"And why do you care?" Yang asked. "I mean, it's not like they can kill you guys."

"Just because we can't die doesn't mean that we're ok with people killing us over and over again." Ti'ana said.

"Wait, hold on." Neptune waved his hands in the universal 'time-out' signal. "You guys are incapable of dying? You're immortal?"

"I wouldn't say that we can't die. It's just that dying isn't so final for Guardians." Ti'ana shrugged. "Still a pain though."

"Maybe you should let us talk to them." Ruby offered. "We could find out what they want."

"Yeah." Yang agreed. "And if they want to lynch you guys, we can kick their asses."

"Yeah. Fight time." Nora said excitedly. The two Guardians looked at each other and shrugged. Well, it was better than being under voluntary house arrest. They and their ghosts helped to move everything out of the way, allowing Yang and Ruby to open the door. Immediately they were assaulted by many voices practically screaming. It was difficult to tell, but they managed to pick out some lone voices amongst the hubbub.

"What species are you?"

"Can your ships really go to outer space?"

"What food do you eat?"

"Are you guys from another planet in the solar system?"

"Did your people crack the moon?"

"Are the Hive alien invaders?"

"Can you show us how you really fight?"

They were all asking questions. Good ones, bad ones, but nothing suggested that any of them were here in order to attack them. Ti'ana poked her head round the corner, and the crowd started screaming louder, almost buffeting her with questions. Right. Her helmet. She had forgotten about that. But if all they want is answers, then maybe that was they really needed. She stepped into the doorframe, pushing Ruby gently to one side. She cleared her throat, and everyone went silent.

"Ok then. We'll answer some of your questions then. Just… just try to stay calm."


"…However, there are many uneasy questions that must now be asked from learning that we are not alone in the universe. Among those questions is a new look at the old, now heavily forbidden, question on whether or not Faunus are indeed as natural as they have claimed. Many scientists researching such answers believe that the answer itself is not what's truly important, but whether which side created them. Another, more pressing question, is whether the Grimm and the few Hive encountered in the Forever Fall Forest are the only agents of 'The Shadow' active on Remnant. If not, there could very be an attacking army waiting for a signal to commence attacking as we speak…" Ironwood watched the news impassively, mind already whirring as he pondered how this will change life on Remnant. They will need to start placing some form of early-warning system into orbit as soon as possible of course. If they had that to begin with, perhaps they would've caught the Guardians before they were prepared. Or more likely, it would've just been a bigger bloodbath than it already had been. Behind him, he heard the door open with a hiss. He didn't turn to greet his visitor; he already knew who it would be.

"The citizens need to know the truth Ozpin." He said. "They need to be aware that we aren't alone out here."

Ozpin frowned. "And yet you were willing to keep the existence of the Ketch and all the Fallen knowledge on board hidden." He was watching the news as well. "I noticed that Miss Lavender didn't mention anything about either of those."

"The Ketch and all its information is safely in our hands. The Guardians though, are wild cards." He explained. "Besides, you and I both agreed that we couldn't say anything about alien life when we claimed the ship. You said that it would be too dangerous without proper investigation.

"And you said that it was too dangerous to let it fall into the wrong hands." Ozpin took a sip of his coffee, watching as the news showed two angry crowds facing off against each other, officers standing between them. One quick glance showed that one crowd was adorned with animal ears and horns and features, while the other had only signs. "And yet the simple act of confirming that we are not alone has already done incredible damage."

"Those rumours aren't my fault." Ironwood argued.

"But they're happening. Just the act of admitting that we have already met aliens and that they created the Grimm has almost undone all the goodwill humans and Faunus have made since the Faunus Rights Revolution. People are already saying that they should take the Guardians technology for ourselves. I've received several emails from people who are upset that I have had aliens working at my academy."

"You're exaggerating. And as for that last one, well you've only got yourself to blame. Glynda told you that it was a bad idea. I told you that it was a bad idea."

"And without that 'bad' idea, you would've had far more bodies to bury." Ozpin gave him a stern look, before sighing. "Ironwood, let's stop pretending this is about the truth, or public safety, or any of the other reasons I'm sure you've prepared to justify this. You're upset and angry that men died under your watch for no reason, and you're leaking info just to spite them. This is all one big temper tantrum."

Ironwood clenched his fists. "…They were good men. Strong dependable, brave. They would've given their lives to defend Remnant from any threat, no matter how great it was. And they gave it in vain. Those Guardians butchered them, and we had to let them go." He finally turned to face Ozpin, frowning deeply. "And what about their families? Could you honestly say that you could look them in the eye and tell them that their children were killed in a 'freak Grimm attack'? Or by White Fang soldiers?" Ozpin looked away, his answer evident. Ironwood released a breath he didn't realise he had been holding. Now that his anger was gone, he just felt drained. "It just felt easier and more fulfilling to just blow their cover. I'm not entirely happy with what I've done, but I can't take it back now. I have to live with my choices." Ozpin turned away, heading back for the door. He stopped though, when Ironwood called out to him. "Was this how you felt about our teams? ONYX and JETZ? How we were the only two survivors?"

Ozpin nodded. "Always." And he left Ironwood on his lonesome.


Katie normally wasn't controlled by her emotions (not like Ti'ana and Bianca could be at times at any rate), preferring instead to be guided by what seemed the most fun at the time. But that didn't mean she was incapable of getting angry. And right now, the mangled parts of her ship were making her very angry.

"Grr. Stupid… thing." She growled, holding onto a fuel line. It was supposed to thread through several plates and link up with a compressor attached to the underside panels. But instead, it was currently caught between two cracked panels, wedged tightly enough that it seemed likely to be shorn in two. Normally she would just have Dinklebot digitalise the fuel line and materialise it within its proper placing. But he was currently busy finishing up welding the wing back on. She slapped her hand against the cracked metal, before forcing her fingers into the gap. She thought she could hear her servos whine as she forced the metal apart, just enough to get the pipe out. It started moving, dangling down some more as it was freed up. She adjusted her grip, getting ready to grab the pipe and push it up…

As she moved her right hand, the straining metal was too much for her. It wrenched free of her grip and closed like a clamp on her left hand. At the same time, the fuel line ripped against the jagged metal, fuel spraying out of the opening at full burst right at her face. Her pain receptors lit up, and she yelled just in time to get a mouthful of fuel. She tried to pull free, but she was caught. She could only stand there and fume in sheer anger.

"Ghost!" She cried out angrily. "Ghost, get your floating ass over here!" She cursed some more as she tried to wrench her hand free, the receptors blaring in her head. Where the hell is he? "Ghost!"

"I'm coming already." His voice sounded in her head, his annoyance highly noticeable. "Pardon me if I want to make sure the wing doesn't fall off like…" His voice stopped. Turning slightly, she could see him staring at her predicament. "What happened to you?"

"What does it look like happened? My hand is caught is this death-trap. Now get me out of here this instant." She winced as she turned too much, the servos in her wrist grating.

"You know, it wouldn't kill you to say 'please'." Dinklebot replied, floating over to her trapped hand. On the way, he pulled apart the metal around the fuel line and sealed it, stopping it from blasting them.

"Dinkle, I am mere seconds away from hacking my arm off. I am not in the mood for pleasantries." He tutted, but wrenched apart the metal widely enough to pull free. She gasped as she did so, cradling her hand as she crouched down. You didn't need to know Exo physiology to notice how dented it was. But even as she gazed upon it, the metal that made up her flesh started smoothing out, and an exposed wire threaded back in. Her receptors stopped flashing, and she stopped feeling any pain.

"How about I finish off this area?" Dinklebot suggested. "There's still some panels on top that need aligning. As long as you don't force anything, you should be able to fix them without my help."

"…Fine." She muttered, hopping off the platform she was on and heading for a nearby ladder. She climbed up, muttering under her breath as she took in every dent and scar in the metal. Damn those Atlas pricks, wrecking her shit like this. And guess who had to put the whole thing back together again. Her.

And despite Dinkle's assurance that this would be easier, the panels refused to stay shut. He floated up to her side and said something, but honestly she wasn't paying attention. She was too busy trying to push some kind of shield generator back into its slot.

"Come ooonnn." She growled, pushing down with both hands. "Just another inch. I just need you to go down an inch more." But no matter how much she twisted and turned it, it refused to go down. It was when it wouldn't even turn that her temper, already frayed by the fuel line, finally snapped. "Goddamn piece of fucking crap!" She cursed loudly. "Get in. You. Stupid. Piece. Of. Junk." She pushed down with every word, venting her frustration and outrage. "Look at the scuff on the paint. And what the fuck have they done with the fuel lines? Why were they even hanging in the first place? I swear, if I find the asshole who messed with my ship, I'm gonna grab the nearest combustion engine, and ram it right up their fucking ass!" A beam of light hit the generator, twisting it to the left and dropping it. The panel closed over it, smoothing over as it closed. She took a deep sigh, flopping back and lying down as Dinklebot hovered before her. If she had to guess his expression, it would've been sheepish. "Easy, huh?"

"If you think that's bad, Ti'ana was on the line when you started exploding. I tried to tell you, but I don't think you were listening." He said.

"Great." She sighed again. "What I wouldn't give for a Tower Hanger crew right now. I mean, have you seen some of the scrap that they get working again?"

"Really? I thought the rumours that they could make a ship out of a wire frame was just boasting. In that case, please don't inform them that I did most of the work. We Ghosts have standards we must uphold." His eye blinked as they heard the sound of steps on metal. She materialised her Bad Juju. Normally, the odds of getting attacked in a hanger bay would be pretty slim.

Then again, normally the entire world didn't know that she wasn't really human.

She levelled her rifle with the top of the ladder, waiting for whoever was climbing up. Piece by piece they revealed themselves. A slightly off-kilter pink bow; curly orange hair with a large cowlick; vibrant freckles; a cheerful expression turning scared…

Katie blinked. "You. You're the girl from the first night." She didn't pull her rifle away. "What the hell does Atlas want with me right now?"

The girl stopped climbing. "They don't. They don't want anything. In fact, they don't even know I'm here. I haven't been ordered to do anything. I mean, to you. Right now. I'm sure they've probably got some order ready involving you, but I haven't…"

"Stop right there, calculator." She interrupted her. "I have been having a really shitty day right now. My ship is damaged; we've had to reinstall practically everything; I am drenched in fuel, which is currently trying to work its way into my servos; and I got my fingers jammed between two jagged pieces of metal, so if I weren't a Guardian that would mean that I would likely have a piece of scrap for a limb. If you've got something to say, then say it already. If not, stop bothering me." Instead of doing as she ordered, or even getting frightened, the girl actually seemed even happier. She was jiggling on the step.

"Yes." She squealed. "That's exactly what I'm here for. Oh, this is so exciting."

Katie looked at her in confusion. "What are you, a masochist? You came here to get insulted?"

"Oh, no. No, no. I… I uh…" She shook her head slightly. "You're the first machine I've encountered that hasn't given me a pre-programmed answer."

"Ah." Dinklebot said, understanding. "She wants to chat with another fully-realised artificial intelligence."

"Dinkle, you know that Exos dislike being referred to as 'artificial' intelligence." She scolded him. But despite his word choices, he was probably right. Maybe. She looked back at the girl. "Are you really the only one of your kind?"

She nodded. "I am the only machine on Remnant capable of generating an Aura and creating responses to situations in real time. And now that I've met another, I am not leaving without some answered questions." Katie stared at her some more, before holstering her rifle. Taking this as consent, the girl climbed the rest of the way and sat down next to her on top of the ship. She was still jiggling a bit, blatantly excited. "Oh, we haven't done introductions." She held out her hand. "My identification is Penny. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"…Katie-8." She replied, shaking her hand once.

"Well, it's nice meeting you in the flesh… so to speak. I have so many questions for you." She moved to speak again, but Katie covered her mouth with a hand. She could feel the vibrations of her words through her hand for a few seconds before she stopped.

"Look Penny. I get that you're fit to bursting with questions for me. But you need to take this slow. Ask one at a time. I can't answer multiple questions at once. I'm not some kind of super-computer or Warmind." She pulled her hand away, and Penny visibly slowed herself down.

"Ok then. First question. Who made you? Who made the Exos? You talk like we're a species, like we…" She petered out, likely aware that she was still asking too many questions at once. Katie let her pass on that.

"Don't know how much I can tell you. We were built centuries ago, back during our Golden Age. Hell, we're not even sure what we were built for. But a lot of info suggests that we were soldiers linked up to Warminds. An eternal defence system and army, all rolled up into one. Then again, some intel also suggests that we used to be humans, uploading their brains into mechanical bodies." She shrugged. "All we're really certain about is that at some point, a sub-routine called Deep Stone Crypt gave all of us full sentience and intelligence. Not just the ones who had been human before." She chuckled. "There could've been plenty of problems with your robot servants becoming self-aware, but the Humans apparently took that in their stride. Not one mention of a human/Exo war of any kind."

"So… who makes Exos now?"

"No one. We can't… reproduce in any form. There's only so many Exo in existence, and every one we lose is a permanent loss. All knowledge on our construction was lost in the Collapse. All we've got left is how to fix what's broken."

Penny frowned. "But that would imply that you guys do know how to build more Exos."

"It's not the bodies that are the problem. It's what's up here that's impossible." She tapped her on the head. "There's no surviving algorithm, and our systems change so rapidly that no one can scan it without getting a hundred things wrong. The only reason we aren't extinct already is because we can be fixed, and we're a bitch to kill." She leaned back. "Next question."

"Oh. Well…" She went quiet. "Nevermind. It's stupid."

Katie gave the Exo equivalent of a raised eyebrow. "How about you let the resident Warlock be the judge of that? Ask away." Penny responded with a very human expression of biting her lip. The amount of servos and piston needed to do that… whoever built her wasn't planning on making a production line out of her.

"It's just about your name. Katie-8. Does that mean that you are the eighth Exo to have been designated with that name?"

"Oh, no. Though I understand how you got to that conclusion." While she would've never considered being asked that, she was dreading having to talk about it. "It's just…" She shook her head. "We Exos have been around since everything went wrong. The Collapse, the Dark Ages, the Faction Wars, the Foundry Wars… Have you ever heard of humans wishing that they could forget the horrors they've seen?"

She nodded. "General Ironwood says that it's a side effect of PTSD."

"Well, since our brains are simply systems, motherboards and coding, forgetting things is a hell of a lot easier for us. Wipe the slate clean, forget everything. Sometimes we've wiped from the sheer damage we've taken in a fight. We call it a reboot. The number next to our names refer to how many times we've done it."

Penny stared at her in shock and surprise. "You've… You've done it eight times?"

She nodded. "That's what my system tells me."

"But… But we are the sum of our memories and actions. All people are. To reboot yourself… It's like you've died. And now someone else is walking around in your body."

"Whoa. Hold your horses kid. Not every reboot is a comprehensive one. Most of the time, we keep our personalities and distinct memories. It just… removes memories we don't want to keep." She looked away, staring at a scratch on the ship's surface. "Most of them are things no one wants to remember. The only time I tried to dig down to them with another Exo, it turned out that he had been a head executioner for a madman. He killed himself as soon as he remembered. As in splatter his circuits against the wall." She closed her eyes, remembering when she came across the crime scene. "It taught me a very valuable lesson. Nothing good comes from bringing up an Exo's past. It's better to just live in the here and now."

"…I'm sorry." Penny finally said. "I'm just not… used to the idea that you're so much older than me. I figured that anything as advanced as us would be only a few years old, not centuries."

"It's ok." Katie said wearily. "But how about we just focus on the present for now?" She reached out to touch Penny's cheek, her sensors informing her so much about the quality of it. "Your creator certainly spared no expense on you. You're the first machine I've met with synthetic skin."

She nodded, looking pleased. "He hopes that having this will allow me to blend in with everyone else, and increase my database through interaction with people."

Katie smiled as an idea came to her. This creator of Penny's… if he's like any other scientist, then he'll be very interested in meeting tech similar to his own creations, if only to see what differences were made between them. And she was very keen to meet that man capable of creating the first proto-Exo of this world.

"Say, you don't suppose I could meet this creator of yours?"


(2 Nights Later)

Roman Torchwick walked with purpose as he passed through the late night crowd, slipping easily through the masses. Partly it was because he was trying to keep a low profile – Though most people would hesitate to report a man like him, there was always the odd 'do-gooder' who felt the need to report his every appearance. Such was the price of being infamous in Vale. But the other reason was that he knew exactly where he was going – He's been down this path several times before. He took a left turn down into the alleyway, exiting out on the other side before walking around the cul-de-sac and taking a different alley back onto the road he had been on before. From there, he slinked through the crowd crossing the road to pass through a third alley, which deposited him not far from a flickering streetlamp. People never bothered to complain about it, and whenever the City Council sent someone to check it, it always came up green. He glanced down at his timepiece. Right now, it was 9:58. He whistled tunelessly to himself as he crossed the street to the lamp, leaning against it as he twirled his cane. He stood out far too much there, the only thing on this street lit up. He checked his timepiece again. The seconds counted down slowly. 9:59 and 52 seconds… 54… 55… 56… 57… 58… 59…

As the clock struck 10 hours, the lamp next to him flickered off like clockwork. The soft crunch of tires against the road made him stand up. In front of him, barely visible to the human eye, was a pitch-black van. Two dark shapes exited it, standing on either side of him. Neither made a sound. Rolling his eyes, Roman went through the motions. One of the men collected his cane, his pocket watch, and his scroll. The other wrapped a band around his head before placing a pillow case over his head. They both then escorted him into the van. By the time the light had flickered back on, the van and its occupants were gone.

Roman didn't bother memorising the turns of the trip. He had quickly found out that the van took a different path every drive. Sometimes it would take only ten minutes to reach their destination. Other times it could be half an hour or more. But they always made their way to the same non-descript building, where the inside could've belonged to any building. Plasterboard walls, cheap desks, movable trolleys… everything built to be moved in mere moments. This time was no different. The van pulled to a stop. The guards escorted him to a hard metal chair. Clamps sealed over his arms and legs, leaving only his head free. Seconds would pass without any noise. And then the hood and the mask would be pulled away, leaving him blinking in the intense light. And opposite him was a blurred shape, its gender and features unknowable.

Roman smiled as he tried his best to appear relaxed. "I see that my suggestion for something more professional than a pillowcase was ignored yet again." He said, looking directly at the shape before him. "Along with the thought that maybe you don't need to lock me into this chair everytime I visit. In all honesty Julius, I'm thinking that you don't like having guests over."

The shape harrumphed, and the blinding light was turned off. Now they were lit by more normal lights, allowing him to see more clearly. The man before him was old. Much older than anyone else he had met. He had the stooped back and wild beard and hair of a stereotypical grandfather, his eyes bulging behind wire-rimmed glasses. His get-up was finished off by a woollen vest over a tweed shirt, the hem tucked into his too-tall pants. But behind those eyes was the instinct of a dangerous man. He wouldn't hesitate to make unexpected visitors disappear forever.

This seemingly harmless old man was Julius Primrose, the best hacker in all of Vale.

Julius licked his lips before speaking. "Why waste time and good money on some expensive hood when the common touch works just as fine? The problem with you, Torchwick, is that you're far too concerned with your image, using drama for drama's sake." He tapped at his armband, and the restraints were released. At the same time, four guards stepped out of the shadows, their bodies adorned with the cracked and scarred plating of the 130 range Atlesian Knights. Two immediately took up position next to Julius, while the other two kept close to Roman.

He snorted. "This coming from the guy who favours meeting under a broken lamp at ten on the dot. We both like drama; I'm just willing to admit it."

"Enough." Julius interrupted. "I'm assuming you're here to procure my services again." One droid handed Torchwick back his scroll. He went through it until he found the specifications for what he wanted.

"You'll like this order Jules. A worthy test of your skills for… well, quite a long while."

"That's what everyone says."

"Ah, but I'm speaking honestly. A first, I know, but it happens." Julius frowned, wanting him to get to the point. "What I need from you is a program that can do two things for me. I need it to be able to hack the CCT and pull out everything Atlas has on 'unusual data', transmitting everything back to my computers. But at the same time, I need it to hack for Vale City security codes in a way that it's obvious, but looks like we're trying to hide it at the same time. Think a genius like you can do that?"

Julius smirked, a nasty glint in his eyes. It was at moments like this that he stopped looking like some kindly grandfather, and more like a killer. "Unusual data? Roman, please don't insult us both by assuming that I'm dim-witted. You're interested in the aliens. And if Atlas knows more about them than they're telling us."

Roman's own smile became thin-lipped. "Should've known you've heard about them."

"Heard about them? I doubt there's anyone on the planet who hasn't been talking about these Guardians." He walked over to a debilitated computer, tapping it once to bring up holo-screens. Entire reams of data scrolled by in a flash, pictures and graphs appearing and disappearing. "The fact that we aren't actually alone in the universe? It's the most talked about concept since scientists started wondering where exactly the Grimm come from. Seven million people fear what they represent. Nine hundred thousand are cooking up conspiracy theories. Three hundred and fifty thousand are currently plotting on killing the aliens before they can take over. And none of it shows a hint of slowing down anytime soon. The Vytal Festival's been completely overshadowed by this news." He turned and looked back at Roman, eyes glinting nastily. "But one has to wonder what exactly a formerly small-time crook wants with that data."

Roman decided it was best to lay some cards on the table. Keep Julius sated for now. He gave him a disarming smile. "Let's just say that I'm the face for someone else right now. Someone who's very keen on getting this kind of info. Someone intrigued by the idea of life beyond the stars."

"Someone who knows more about these aliens than the rest of us." Julius interrupted. A shiver ran down Roman's spine. Damn him for being so intuitive.

"What makes you think my employer knows more about them?"

"Because he wants to create a smokescreen, make Atlas think that they found your little hack while the real work remains hidden. You wouldn't do that unless you're worried that these Guardians could figure it out and trace your virus back to you. And killing them can't be on the table, or else you'd just do that instead. What's one little breaking and entering compared to the death of alien life?"

Roman sighed in frustration. "You want to know what we know." He guessed.

"Yes." Julius said bluntly. "However, I'm willing to make a trade." He tapped at his computer again, and different data appeared. "Nothing about this makes sense. Why would Atlas announce Alien life if no one outside of Ironwood's organisation were aware of them? How do they know so much already?" He pointed to a list of names. "All these men were killed in the line of duty while working under General Ironwood. According to my own data, they were all safely within the borders of Vale at the time of their demises. Some were even killed within their 'secret' base. What happened, I wonder?" He turned back to Roman. "This will be my trickiest coding yet. Things would work much smoother if I were secure in the knowledge of receiving access to their data as well."

"Well darn." Roman sighed dramatically. "I'd love to help you out there Julius. Really. But some more paranoid people might suggest that you'd be willing to sell this data to the highest bidder if given half the chance. And if you were to see something that could suggest a threat to Remnant… Well, I know that the Council would be the last people you'd tell about this. But the more paranoid of us might not feel the same way. Couldn't you just live with the knowledge that you managed to bamboozle advanced aliens and their supercomputers instead?"

But Julius wasn't swayed. "In order to 'bamboozle' these aliens, they'd need to be aware that I was there in the first place. And your precise instructions are most likely meant to make sure that they never bother to look at my coding." He shook his head. "No. If you and your employer aren't willing to let me look at whatever Atlas is hiding from us, then I'm afraid that I'll be charging triple for this job. I'll satisfy my bank account if I can't satisfy my curiosity." A raised eyebrow was Roman's only outward sign of shock and outrage. Julius wasn't cheap at the best of times. Having to pay up triple was going to stretch their funds to their limits.

"I suppose what my boss doesn't know can't hurt him, right?" He said carefully, giving a forced grin. Julius replied with a triumphant look. He sat down at his computer and immediately got to work, streams of data flowing over the screen like water.

"A personal rule I made for myself is that I'd never sell information the moment I receive it." He explained, barely looking up from his work. "You'll have a week from when you receive the data before it's on the market. Long enough for you to be done with whatever you want. Now, was there a specific date you want this completed by, or just as soon as it can be done?"

Roman smiled as he flicked a lien card through the scanner before him. "We want this ready in time for the Beacon Dance." He replied.


Well, I guess that the cat's out of the bag now.

I don't really know what made me decide to start with Ironwood informing the press about the existence of the Guardians. Maybe it was that I wanted to get away from having them coming up with silly excuses all the time. Maybe I thought it would shake things up a little. Maybe it was just that it seemed funny to me. But it's happened. Remnant knows that aliens exist. And as you can tell, quiet a number aren't all that happy about it.

Shame that it means that Ironwood doesn't look much better now. I suppose that's something I'll have to work on when a chance finally pops up.

Now, I don't know if I explained this before anywhere, but Ironwood and Ozpin in this story were part of two separate Huntsmen teams who managed to find a way down to where the Ketch was. They were attacked by the Fallen while exploring, and had to kill all of them to survive. But given how they had to fight all their crew without knowing what they could do, they lost plenty of members. By the time they took out the Archon, Ironwood and Ozpin were the only survivors. I don't actually have a clue what any of their members would've been called because I was just focusing on having team names that had their initials in them and sounded like colours. I'll probably work backwards from that.

The virus ide originally came up before Episode 3 came out, but luckily for me I had already came up with a good reason for why Cinder was putting it in. And of course Roman doesn't want the Guardians to know about it. Story wise, the only thing you encounter that's able to block your Ghosts is Rasputin, a Warmind able to match a species that can predict the universe with 100% accuracy. Anything else gets hacked (but not without alerting every enemy within the area to your work). A man-made virus, no matter how advanced, is barely going to be a road bump to a Ghost.

And finally, I want to talk about Episode 3 of RWBY Season 3. Seeing Qrow in action was awesome, and it made me realise that my Guardians are actually outclassed compared to a fully-trained Huntsman. I do have plans to try and even the odds, but right now I feel that a Guardian's biggest advantage is that they can keep coming back, winning through attrition. At the same time, when my Guardians get back to Destiny, I might have to up their opponents just to make it fair again. We'll just have to see where this story takes us.

Next time though, we're finally gonna see the Guardians wearing something other than armour. Yay!