I'M BACK! Man oh man it's been a crazy week and a bit. *Grabs list* Let's see here, Brexit, RTX, RWBY Volume 4 hype, England being knocked out of the Euros by Iceland.

Seriously though, I'm sorry this is a little late. Turns out writing a triple length chapter with actual less overall writing time is hard.

So let's get back into routine with reviews!

Bam yo done son: Cut Ozpin some slack, he had no idea what he was letting the students get into (Plus plot reasons). With regards to Amber, Ozpin has been keeping that secret for however long he has known. He isn't exactly going to spill that massive a secret and reveal the Ozluminati.

Mr. X: I will try my best.

Kyrogue: Oh no no no, Zeke's death is much harder to watch than Trish's. So much character development :(

Dog: Read on, my friend. I always enjoy your support!

Noob6: So did I, Zeke is my favourite character solely because he could pull his weight as a normal guy in a world of superpowers. When he came back in the DLC for Second Son I loved his interactions with Delsin.

Ready? Get a drink and sit down, this is a long, long chapter. Enjoy!


Cole's Mind – With the RWBY Crew:

Minds were going to burst at the amount of information shown to them. Ozpin stood deep in thought, processing the revelations. Overall, the revelations were disturbing. Beings of power greater than even Maidens, completely free to make decisions for good or bad. Devices capable of destruction greater than any Grimm. These two factors made Ozpin grateful for the relative peace his world possessed, but his anxiety showed. Was it wise to keep showing his students such a horrifying reality? Ozpin was not alone in asking this question, as a voice broke him from his thoughts.

"Professor." Said Glynda in hushed tone, glancing over her shoulder to the students. "I believe we should not show any more of Mr MacGrath's past to the students. I have the feeling what we will see will only be worse than before. And Miss Rose…" Glynda looked round to the young leader of RWBY, who sat uncharacteristically quiet on the sidelines of the students' discussions.

"I share your concern Glynda, but I fear we've let them fall too far down the rabbit hole. Our best course is to ask them what they wish to do." Glynda let out an exasperated sigh, conceding to the Headmaster's logic. With the students, it had taken a good few minutes for the more cynical students to believe Cole was Kessler, Weiss had to be slapped back into sense. Yang had offered but was shot down quickly by Pyrrha, who gave a few gentle taps to the Heiress' cheek. Theories flew as the more vocal of the teenagers debated what they wished to see.

"All we can assume is that Cole tried to copy Kessler and messed up." Yang stated, gaining a few nods.

Nora chimed in with some sense for once. "What I want to know is why and how Cole went from hero to scary pale man."

Weiss waved off Nora's comment. "We'll find that out when Cole comes back. As much as I don't relish watching more tragedy, my curiosity is too great to leave it here."

"Can it really get any worse?" Said Jaune hesitantly. "I mean… the guy's lost the woman he loved, his faith in his best friend, and has to fight a monster even his other self couldn't beat."

"Cole is stronger than Kessler." Ren stated briefly.

"True… but only barely." Weiss argued back.

"We all saw how quickly Cole grew though." Pyrrha let her analytical side for combat speak. "In weeks he bested a man who had been practicing with his powers for decades. Yes he was old, but as far as we know he was in better shape than Alden." Silence let Pyrrha know her point had won her the argument. Brief quiet settled before Yang spoke up with her usual energy.

"All I know is the fight between Cole and the Beast must've been crazy awesome!"

"If the fight between the staff and Cole is anything to go by, it will be destructive." Blake

"Wait, wait. Ozpin and the Professors fought Cole?" Yang interrupted in both surprise and excitement.

"Oh it was awesome!" Squealed Nora with renewed energy. "First Ozpin accidentally angered Cole, so he chucked loads of electricity at him! Ooh, ooh, and then he made arm blades of electricity and fought Ozpin while the staff fired at him. Ozpin kicked his ass!" Yang listened with an entertained grin.

"Ozpin attacked faster than Ruby can run." Ren butted in to add excitement, which made Nora angry. Nora pushed her face in front of Ren's and growled.

"I'm telling the story!" Ren didn't even blink as Nora booped him on the nose then went back to her bubbly storytelling.

"The best part was when Cole did that lightning strike thingy. And the Headmaster blocked it all!" Yang reeled back in awe.

"What?! I know Ozpin is a veteran but… damn."

"You're forgetting the best part, Nora." Prompted Ren.

"Karmic Overload." Every student jumped away from the sudden echoing voice. Behind them had appeared the man in the red suit, hands in pockets and his red eyes surveying the inhabitants of Cole's new world. "Cole's ability to sacrifice some of his power and karma for a temporary source of unlimited electricity."

"Wait… I recognise you!" Blake spoke up, her amber eyes widening. "You're John White!"

"Not exactly hard to tell, but yes."

"Not possible!" Screeched Weiss. "We saw you get vaporised by the Ray Sphere!"

"Cole warps reality and you disbelieve me surviving?" John said condescendingly. Weiss simply bowed her head, muttering unintelligible insults.

The commotion had attracted the staff. Ozpin addressing the arrival. "So if you survived, Mr White. What exactly are you?"

"A fraction of myself. It is not my place to explain who and what I am. But I believe Cole told you I was a Conduit equal in power to him."

"Hold on. Was a Conduit?" Cut in Jaune.

"Correct, technically, I am dead." John removed his hands from his pockets and placed them behind his back, strolling between the staff and students.

Straining to believe the Conduit, Weiss asked the important question. "So how and why are you here?"

John looked up into nothing, answering Weiss' question. "One: part of my power resides in Cole, so I linger as a mental entity. I'm simply too powerful to die completely. Two: To encourage you on, or more specifically, Ruby."

"Why me?" Finally spoke up the quiet leader.

"Because while all of your friends have moved on, accepting the tragedy of Cole's past, you remain fixated on it." John knelt on one knee in front of Ruby, silver eyes meeting crimson. "So now I ask, why?"

"I… uh." Ruby bowed her head. "I don't know."

John smiled warmly, placing a hand on Ruby's head. "Then do not worry, none of what Cole has suffered should harm you. Instead find strength within yourself to press on. There is strength even we Conduits don't have, in a small, honest soul." Ruby looked up and smiled slightly, prompting John to stand tall and float above the rest. In a small, fiery evaporation, John vanished.

"Cole is ready, you will all see me very, very soon." John's voice echoed, fading out as Cole appeared in a strike of lightning. With a small smile, Cole spoke.

"Sorry I took a while. Ready for the rest?" Everyone nodded, secretly curious as to where Cole had been.


Cole's Mind – With Cole:

Running the visions gave Cole headaches similar to being in powered down zones. Retreating into the recesses of his own mind to recharge his strength gave Cole some reprieve from the constant questions. The idea to share his past through visions had been a good one at first, but dragging in thirteen people really strained Cole. Though he deserved it, karma is a bitch after all. Effectively lying down in the endless void with his hands behind his head, Cole recounted the reactions of his students and peers. The fact that Cole even had students to teach and peers still felt weird, but he couldn't help chuckling when he remembered how his mother had lied about him being a teacher.

"I guess it's no longer a lie." Said Cole to himself, letting out a deep, relaxed sigh. Peace and quiet, how long had it been since he had such an experience? Closest he could remember was the movie night he had with Zeke in New Marais. Just him and a brother, relaxing with some brews and a TV. Maybe he needed to have another one sometime. It wouldn't be the same without Zeke, or the movies of his world for that matter. Everything Cole knew was gone, the only tethers to his past were memories or what he dragged with him. Disappointed and slightly down in mood, Cole rolled over and pushed up onto his feet, even though he could've just floated upright. Before he could return though, Cole's thoughts subconsciously melded the void around him into that movie night.

Beside him sat Zeke, beer in hand and his face illuminated by the TV. A buzzing of Cole's phone interrupted them, Cole ignored it and declined the call. Just like before, Zeke nodded and returned to the movie, only for his own phone to go off. With a grin, Cole shook his head at Zeke, leaning back into the couch to continue watching. Calm washed over Cole, making him feel almost at home. Briefly his thoughts drifted to the others, no doubt waiting for him to return.

'Eh, they can wait a little longer.' Thought Cole as both men laughed at a certain scene in the movie.


Cole's Mind – Empire City:

Cole strode along a pier in Empire City, his companions in tow as he bridged the gap between the time displayed and what they last saw.

"During the time between Kessler's death and what you see now, I was hounded by Moya and a test subject of Kessler's called David. Won't give you all the details but he thought I was Kessler and damn nearly killed me. And you've seen what I can walk away from."

"Jeez. How'd you survive?" Yang asked.

"Moya needed me alive, buried David alive in a sewer and captured me not long after using Sasha's mind control tar in gas form." Cole answered, continuing towards the end of the pier, where a large ship waited. "Funnily enough, Sasha's sick obsession meant she helped me escape. Alden had been captured too… he wasn't so lucky."

"So you escaped and stopped Moya?" Amber asked plainly.

"Nah, never that simple. In my escape I ran into David, the guy pulverised me until Moya's military Conduits stepped in. Gave me time to recover and eventually kill David, the poor guy deserved better, but he was a dead man no matter what happened."

"All fun and games with you isn't it." Quipped Yang sarcastically, causing Cole to smirk.

"Yeah… Moya got what she deserved though, ended up drowning in her own research ship as it sank. Which leads to now." Cole waved his hand at the scene before them. Past Cole was leaning on the railing of the ship at the end of the pier, Zeke approaching the railing.

"Man I tell you Cole, that Agent Kuo? She doesn't mess around, huh. First boat outta town? Chick's got some connections."

"Agent Kuo?" Glynda asked.

"Lucy Kuo, government agent who had a contact who worked on the Ray Sphere. Offered to help power me up to fight the Beast." Answered Cole plainly, returning to the memory.

"This is gonna be a short term visit, man. We're just gonna get in. I'm gonna get some new powers, and then we're gonna come right back." Explained the Past Cole plainly.

"Come on, man! You deserve to relax! We're going to New Marais!" Complained Zeke to Cole.

"Hey, I need to be back here and ready when it shows up, Zeke." The argument made the students uncomfortable. Obviously there had still been tension between the two.

"He was right you know. You do seem kinda… tense." Jaune stated, receiving no acknowledgment from the Real Cole.

"Trust me, Cole, you will be ready when you're done working with Doctor Wolfe." The new female voice was calm, professional, matching the smartly dressed walking up to the two men.

"Kuo." Introduced the Real Cole before anyone could ask.

"Work? Ha! Easy, Kuo. When we get there, we're gonna be about the 'Three Bs.'" The Real Cole grinned widely as he recited Zeke's priorities.

"That's beer… boobs… and mechanical bulls." None of the girls were impressed, Weiss, Glynda and Amber scowling at both Zeke and the Real Cole. Port laughed heartily until the glares were turned on him, the pompous man turning instantly silent produced a few chuckles and giggles.

"Mm hmm. Gentleman. I don't think that you understand the scope of what is going on here." Before Kuo could lecture the two men further, a strange roar sounded from the heart of Empire City, followed by explosions.

"What is going on?" Asked Amber as Kuo asked the Past Cole the same question. Screams could be heard as people fled for the pier, the sky turning red. Everyone was in a panic at the sudden commotion.

"No! No. No…" The Past Cole leapt from the boat to the pier, running off to the city. Another boat sank as flaming debris punctured it.

"OK! What is going on?!" Amber asked again, Cole pointing to a towering man of lava and rock in the city centre.

"The Beast." Everyone bolted down the pier to watch the ensuing fight, arriving as the Beast ripped part of the pier away

"You said we were only hallway through your past, and you're fighting it now?" Pyrrha noted with shock as the Past Cole sudden rose into the air like there was no gravity. Bolts of electricity impacted like missiles, hitting the Beast hard but seemingly making no dent in the monster. The Beast launched fire and tried to suck Cole into its grasp as the Electric Conduit barraged it with continuous bolts. None of the comments anyone made could be heard over the deafening battle before them, culminating in Cole calling down lightning. Said lightning obliterated half the face of the Beast, it sinking into the water is supposed defeat.

"YEAH!" Cheered the students as the Beast sank. The Real Cole floated everyone onto the boat as his past self dashed hectically for the boat.

"To answer Pyrrha's point earlier, I didn't win." Cole pointed as the Beast rose from the water, dragging the Past Cole into its grasp.

"What?!" This lava guy just got struck by lightning, lost half his face, and was submerged in water, and is still going?!" Nora screamed with a mix of surprise and awe. Nora's protests went unanswered as Past Cole struck the Beast with more lightning, but something was amiss. As the Beast had its head blown off by the lightning, Past Cole struggled in agony in its grip, falling into the water once the Beast let go. He floated unconscious in the water as both Zeke and Kuo carefully retrieved him from the water. Scenes faded in and out showing Cole's recovery as the Real Cole explained his situation with a hint of anger at himself.

"The Beast was capable of amplifying and draining powers of Conduits, and he pretty much emptied me. I was strong, I was ready. I had fought it with everything I had! It wasn't enough. The cost, my powers, and the destruction of Empire City." A TV screen displayed the Beast in its full form, just before it wiped Empire City from existence.

Amber consoled Cole. "No-one can blame you because no-one else could've been capable of fighting that thing."

"I know I was." Cole muttered in agreement. "And that was why I changed then and there. To beat the Beast I needed to be stronger, and I wanted nothing to delay me or get in my way." Cole's journey down the coast of the US to New Marais flickered in front of the group's eyes. Most prominent of the images was the development of a familiar metallic device. Ultimately, time resumed to normal as the small boat Kuo had requisitioned stopped in the swamp before New Marais.

"Why'd you stop in the swamp?" Ruby asked.

"New Marais was now run by a militia. A militia that had an artillery blockade stopping ships coming in." Cole explained, pointing out mortar positions amongst the fog.

"What? Why?" Asked the red-cloaked girl.

"Militia had complete control of New Marais, with the rise of Conduits, law was harsh and they didn't want the government coming in." Cole stood at the edge of the boat as his past self got ready to introduce himself to the militia.

"Wait up, man!" Called out Zeke, running out with the Amp in his hands. "Here she is."

Past Cole chuckled as he stepped up to Zeke. "And you sure it's ready?"

"Uh… I hope so. Give her a try." The Amp worked perfectly, Past Cole giving it a few heavy two-handed swings.

"Not bad for a couple of college dropouts, wouldn't you say?" The Real Cole boasted with pride for Zeke's accomplishment.

"Pfft. It's nothing compared to Magnhild!" Retorted Nora with her bubbly personality.

"Oh yeah? I'd like to see you make your hammer out of scrap in a few days." Looking at Zeke and his crowning technical achievement, the Real Cole smiled sadly at his oldest friend. "Zeke may have been a fat, perverted college dropout. But I'll never have a friend… no, a brother as brilliant as him." The mood dropped as Cole's expression turned sombre.

Ozpin tapped his cane on the deck of the boat. "Perhaps it is best we move on."

Cole nodded. "Sure. But beyond this point I change, and none of you are gonna like it."

Beyond a drawbridge was a large motor linked to a village. Cole's only way across was to lower the bridge by charging the motor. But as the Past Cole charged the motor, he kept going overloading the motor and causing massive explosions throughout the makeshift village. Everyone bar Cole looked on in horror as the village burned, militia and civilians alike dying in the process. Then in an elongated strike of thunder and lightning, Past Cole began to change. Skin paled and clothes darkened, the Amp rusting. Without even batting an eye, he continued on, marching through his fiery handiwork.

Cole could feel the glares and looks of disgust directed at him. "You want my reasoning? Watch." Time skipped to Kuo and confronting Cole about the massacre.

"You know what, Cole, you have so much power. Next time, use it wisely, and do me a favour, don't forget what it's like to be human." The Past Cole snapped at Kuo's last comment, striding so he spoke face to face with the government agent.

"But I'm not… human… am I? Not anymore." Sneering at Kuo, Cole continued before stepping past her into New Marais. "Hoh, you don't understand what it's like, but you're right: I do have powers, and I'll use them."

"How could you be so heartless? Claiming you were no longer human to justify your actions." Blake verbally attacked the Real Cole, provoking him into making a terrible choice of response.

"Don't criticise my choice to separate myself from what I am, when you hide from what you are." Blake flinched in shock, unable to utter coherent words as everyone except Ozpin stared at her in confusion. Seeing the panicked expression on Blake's face, Cole made to defuse the situation. "Sorry… I just… at the time I lost almost everything. How do you walk away from that without changing?"

Ozpin stepped in before any further comments were made. "Mr MacGrath, though I see your point, we are here to discuss your past, not the students'. Please… continue."


Now stood atop a roof. Past Cole was helping up a greying man, who quickly commented on Cole's likeness to Kessler. After a brief introduction, the man, Dr. Sebastian Wolfe, handed Cole a spherical device with two handles. What everyone noticed instantly was its similarity to the Ray Sphere. Ruby had stepped close to inspect the device alongside Dr. Oobleck, both extremely fascinated by it.

Instead of letting Dr. Wolfe explain, the Real Cole did. "The Ray Field Inhibitor, or RFI. In simple terms, the anti-Ray Sphere. The plan was to use this to drain and kill the Beast. But first I needed to absorb some Blast Cores." Cole indicated to the glowing chunk of earth his past counterpart presented to the doctor.

"Never simple." Deadpanned Ren.

"Never simple." Repeated Cole. "Might want to step back a sec, got a little light show coming up." Past Cole passed a current through the Blast Core, causing it to violently shatter and rise Cole up into the air. Electricity sparked from all four appendages before Cole collapsed unconscious on the ground, smoking.

"What the hell did you do?" Amber asked harshly as everything faded black.

"Made a big mistake to regain one of my powers. I got stronger but… the Militia got Wolfe." Next everyone stood amongst a crowd cheering supporters, praising an old man who brandished a decorative sword. "Joseph Bertrand, leader of the Militia. This is the guy you saw, Weiss."

"My friends, tonight we face the gravest threat this fair city has ever seen. The devil walks among us…" Amongst the crowd stood Zeke, half-heartedly cheering along to fit in. "Cole MacGrath, the Electric Man, is here in New Marais."

"Guess you're famous." Commented Ruby.

"Heh, more like infamous." Replied the Real Cole, then his expression went sour. "But seriously, Bertrand was a pain and a threat. A charismatic leader, but a hypocritical one."

"You cannot doubt he is a great public speaker." Glynda noted with her attention almost entirely on the speech.

"And as God is my witness, we shall hunt them down, and destroy them all!" Cheers turned to screams as a horrific humanoid creature roared from the scaffolding above the stage. Its body was pale, but its arms and bladed legs were black like Sasha's tar. Additionally, its mouth had mandibles, making it a monstrous site.

"My word, what is that? Equally fascinating and disturbing in my opinion." Doctor Oobleck moved so fast no-one noticed how he got beside the monster.

"The Corrupted, the 'freaks' alongside Conduits." Cole explained. "But the focus isn't them right now, it's Bertrand." Reality cut to Cole atop Bertrand's limo, threatening the Militia leader. Everyone was floating at a similar speed to the limo. Bertrand simply laughed at Cole's threats.

"Oh ho… wait, wait… if I were you. I'd be more worried about my head." All eyes turned round to the strange repeating chopping noise, which was quickly accompanied by the thud of metal connecting to Past Cole's skull. A collections of ouches and jeez echoed from the students as Past Cole sailed through the air onto the concrete. Hovering low in the air above him was a helicopter, armed with Gatling guns and missiles.

"Bertrand clotheslined you with an airship?" Yang asked pointlessly. "Low blow, man."

Cole shrugged like it was nothing, watching his past self run down the street with missiles raining behind him. "Would've taken any normal man's head clean off. Luckily being a Conduit makes me as tough as any Aura user."

"But you feel the full force of an attack, unlike Aura which dampens the damage." Amber's inner teacher spoke out, lecturing the difference. This peaked every student's interest.

"So what would happen if your Aura was unlocked?" Ren asked.

"Don't know, don't want to know." Replied Cole briefly with a dismissive tone.

"What?! Why?! You could be indestructible!" Yang complained.

"I've already had someone use Aura to try and heal my wounds. The effects were… conflicting." Eyebrows rose, while Amber opened and closed a fist uncomfortably.

"Conflicting?" Pyrrha asked with concern.

"Aura and the Conduit powers are similar in principle. Manifestations of one's inner being, soul or genetic coding. What do you think would happen if the two inhabited one host?" Amber again became the lecturer, explaining where Cole could not. All the while, Past Cole was still battling the helicopter.

"They'd reject each other, and fight over the host, which could…" Blake began, a similar situation from a book she read.

"Kill the host." Cole finished, watching the helicopter exploded in a large ball of fire. "We're getting off track here, this next bit is important." Reality shifted to a random road in New Marais, a pickup truck speeding to escape its pursuers. Inside drove Kuo, Dr. Wolfe visibly worse off than first seen. Riding in the back was Past Cole, electrocuting Militia and destroying their vehicles. Cole's defence of the truck impressed those watching, but his choice to kill all approaching Militia did not. No-one was prepared for the massive truck that collided with Cole's, launching the Conduit off the back and into the ground with a sickening crunch.

"We'd found Wolfe, but Bertrand wasn't going to let us go easy." Cole narrated as the Militia arrived and hauled and unconscious Kuo away. "Wolfe died on impact, I felt like I had too." Past Cole dragged himself into the nearby storm drain, fading in unconsciousness through pain. The vision matched Cole's state, vanishing into nothing. Not one comment was made, everyone bowing their heads for Wolfe.


"Cheer up man. Things have been a crap ton worse for us than this. We always get by." Zeke and Cole stood atop a high building, the former holding a pair of binoculars. Behind them watched the Beacon group, still a little shaken by the sudden shift in Past Cole's momentum. Cole's appearance had worsened too, his shirt now red, black and tattered. Additionally his complexion had gotten paler, with more unnerving tattoos on his arms. Soon the man would

"Come on, we still got the RFI." Zeke kept up his optimism even when Cole shut down his points.

"Imagine how many Grimm you'd be attracting with that negativity." Quipped Yang, trying to lighten the mood. The Blonde Brawler only got three punches to her arms in reply.

"That things a paperweight without Blast Cores. How are we going to find them?" Past Cole asked with a defeated attitude.

"Well, I don't know, yet, but I'm…" Zeke looked through his binoculars once more. "… I'm working on it." Both Coles snorted and smirked with amusement, making the exact same quip.

"What's with the binoculars, Zeke? Spying on some chick in the shower?" Glares were wielded at the Real Cole, making him grin some more as Zeke proved himself.

"Not this time. I think I found Kuo." Those who weren't glaring smiled with approval, Ruby beaming at Zeke.

"Mr Dunbar really pulled himself together since Empire City." Ozpin noted with approval, making Cole smiled widely.

"Yeah, wouldn't have made it this far without him."

"Heard some gal escaped the lynch mob, took off through the swamp." Zeke explained to the Past Cole, indirectly allowing the real one to move time ahead just a few minutes. The newest memory was eerie carnage. Bodies of Militia littered the swamp, fog limiting the vision of everyone inside. Past Cole walked through on edge, seeing a figure kneeling over a dead Militia soldier. Instantly the figure vanished in a puff of smoke, repeating the action around Cole to confuse him.

"Another Conduit?" Oobleck said, half stating and half asking.

The Real Cole nodded, "Yup, but not Kuo." Immediately the teleporting girl launched from her smoke, tackling the Past Cole down and aiming to finish him with a fiery fist. As soon as both Conduits swung at each other, the now revealed dark skinned woman backed off with her hands outstretched in slight apology. In one she held a Blast Core. Her clothing was incredibly revealing, an open, brown leather, crop cut jacket with a neck cover. Torn brown leggings covered down to her black and red shin-high boots. To top off her look, black and red dreadlocks and silver metal claws the fingers of one hand. The Real Cole introduced her. "Meet Nix."

"She gives off an uncomfortable vibe." Ruby shared her opinion. "Not creepy like Sasha but… strange."

"Second that, Rubes." Agreed Yang.

"She was an outcast, a troublemaker. Not a bad person at heart just… wanted to be noticed… be important." A few people felt like that description would come into play later. Nix then teleported in a puff of smoke again, running off to cause mayhem with the Past Cole in tow. This time they weren't followed, Cole cutting to a large plantation, the front door caved in and burning, a tram wrecked and smouldering in the door. "Zeke joined the Militia to spy for us, didn't trust him at first but it paid off."

"How so?" Port asked.

"He found Kuo for us." Cole answered, striding to the garage door at the side of the plantation. "Turns out she was locked up with the real bad 'deviants' of New Marais, but the truth was worse." Waiting for his past self to break the lock on the garage door, Cole turned to his companions. "This isn't a pretty sight, you can wait here if you want… and I won't be long." Cole's gaze was focused on the students, mostly Ruby who shifted uncomfortably before deciding to wait. Jaune and Yang waited as well, for differing reasons. Everyone else stepped onto the elevator as it began to descend, entering the cold dark below.


It is said that time flies when you are having fun, but none of those left up top were having fun. All the death, terror and inhumanity weighed heavily on the three students. Yang had noticed Ruby's withdrawing personality, attempting to lighten the mood throughout the mental journey. Ruby's exposure had not affected her because of her age, but her view of the world and the people who inhabited it. The little reaper knew the world possessed bad people, Roman Torchwick being her prime example, but no books or stories could've prepared her for the horror of Cole's reality. Kessler, Sasha, Alden were bad enough to begin with, but the Beast and Bertrand just soured her mood further. Instinct forced Yang to speak up, Jaune sat aside waiting patiently in thought.

"Rubes? How are you coping with all this?" Yang and Blake together were queens of pointless questions, but at least it broke the ice.

"It's unfair. Why does someone have to go through all this?" Of course, Ruby's thoughts were for the wellbeing of others, not herself. It is a quality that brought out pride in Ruby's family, and Yang couldn't help but smile.

"The world isn't exactly sunshine and rainbows, but we deal with what we get. I guess Cole just drew the shortest straw out of all of us."

"Yang's right." Chipped in Jaune from afar. "The world is harsh, but that is why we decided to become Huntsmen, right? To give people shelter from harm and live fulfilling lives. You also remember what John told you, right?"

"Damn straight, Vomit Boy." Yang agreed with a wide grin. Jaune didn't bother to complain, smiling back at the sisters. "So whadda ya say Rubes? You gonna cheer up and smile for us, or do I have to bribe you?"

Ruby smirked. "What are you offering, dear sister?"

"A box of cookies, maybe two~."

Ruby laughed, her youthful energy returned. "You've always been a bad influence. If you'd offered anything else I would've just said there was no need. But now…" Ruby smiled innocently with childish evil hidden behind it, raising her first two fingers on a hand. "… I'll hold you to it. Two boxes."

Yang huffed, defeated by her little sister, but still happy. "I guess that's how the cookie crumbles." Joint groans came from Jaune and Ruby, making Yang laugh. Soon the three were all laughing, forgetting easily where they were. Then the garage door groaned open.


Freezing air was common in winter for the inhabitants of Remnant. Most could shrug off the sharp sensation with varying levels of clothing. But the air down below the garage could not be ignored. Teeth chattered and arms were rubbed as the elevator descend into a strange, blue lit facility. Naturally Cole ignored the effects of the cold just like he had the first time he found Kuo. In order to distract the students and faculty from the bitter air, Cole began to narrate the scene before them.

"As you can tell, the air was cold, getting colder the deeper I went. Kuo wasn't hard to spot, just… hard to look at." Gasps of horror were accompanied by hands covering mouths, everyone's eyes trained on a single figure suspended in the air above everything. Lucy Kuo was pale, weak-looking. Bertrand had hooked her up to a weird machine that fed into the icy containers layering the massive facility. On her head sat a strange helmet, but her hands drew the most attention, glowing with pulsing blue veins.

"I-I don't want to look… but I can't turn away." Pyrrha spoke from behind her hand. "What did Bertrand do to her?"

"Bled her dry, then pumped her up again. All to create an army." Cole opened his arms dramatically into the air, gesturing to the thousands of frozen pods. "What better way to make people see the threat of Conduits, than to make an army for the highest bidder."

"An army of artificial Conduits?" Ren deduced.

"Yep. Didn't really work out once I sent twenty thousand volts through the system to free Kuo." As the Real Cole spoke, the Past Cole freed Kuo with bolts of electricity, catching the weak woman as she fell.

"How is this even working? Ms Kuo is normal, right?" Glynda asked with slight suspicion of the truth.

"Wrong. Both Kuo and her NSA contact in Empire City were latent Conduits." Cole corrected.

"NSA contact in Empire City? You mean John White." Ozpin elaborated for the others.

"Yeah. Allowed them to infiltrate the First Sons, you know how things played out from there." Cole's expression was blank, almost bored as he briefly explained the pasts of the two NSA agents, but more was hidden underneath that face. Pacing to the elevator with Kuo, the Past Cole rose to the surface while the pods around the facility hissed open. The men that stepped out gave those present chills in more ways than one. Covered from head to toe in flexible armour and breathing apparatus, the army of artificial Conduits climbed to the surface with unknown motives.

The garage door rattled open, revealing a slightly haunted group of students and staff, following the Past Cole, who helped Kuo walk with one of her arms over his shoulder. The trio left behind were shocked at Kuo's tortured appearance. Doubling the shock was the sudden appearance of multiple Ice Conduits, all launching themselves away from the plantation using pillars of ice.

"What the hell happened down there?" Yang asked, the plantation area becoming a battlefield once more.

"Ask your friends, we need to move on, I can feel myself losing power now." Cole replied quickly, waving time to skip to a massive fort, bodies of Militia and another force littering the courtyards and walls. While the battle raged, Blake gave a brief but detailed description of what was below the plantation

"Things just escalated real quick! Like how quick Ren makes pancakes!" Commented Nora, of course flipping a grisly situation on its head.

"New Marais had another faction, the Rebels. Men and women fighting against Bertrand." Cole was narrating as Past Cole hopped onto a strange device containing a Blast Core. "Nix and I tricked them into storming Fort Phillipe, to recover the Transfer Device Bertrand used to give the Ice Soldiers: Vermaak 88, Kuo's powers." Kuo and Nix began arguing between each other over the device, Past Cole deciding to use it with Nix, giving her a slap on the ass. This made Kuo distraught, the ex-government agent storming off.

"I have the strongest feeling you are about to do something stupid, Mr MacGrath." Scolded Glynda, Cole just smirked.

"Already did. Nix and I decided to swap powers. Of course, never simple." The Transfer Device kicked into life, seemingly tearing the very life from Nix into Cole, but neither were truly injured. Cringes and averted gazes were shared as Pale Cole rolled off the device, smoking but also sparking.

"Somebody shoot that chopper, it's coming for Bertrand! Bastard was hiding out in the south wing!" LaRoche, Leader of the Rebels ordered, with Past Cole complying with an accurate grenade. On impact the helicopter was on fire, quickly flying off across the city and crashing. Past Cole, upon throwing the grenade, had collapsed into a smoking heap, unconscious.

"A fine shot Mr MacGrath! Impressive marksmanship given your condition." Port praised with his eccentric tone.

"How come we've never seen you use Nix's powers?" Pyrrha asked with increasing suspicion.

Cole ignored her grinning evilly as he remembered what came next. A brief cut in time brought the group to the smoking wreckage of Bertrand's helicopter, Past Cole hounding the Militia leader.

"Hey, old man, you breathing in here?" The Past Cole taunted as he looked around the downed helicopter.

"No-one could survive a crash like that without Aura or…" Amber trailed off as she realised the truth. One by one the truth clicked in everyone's brains, leaving eyes of hatred and shock.

"You get it now? The so-called human purist, Bertrand, was a Conduit. Used another Ray Sphere, which also made Nix powerful."

"So what could Bertrand do?"

"Become that." Cole pointed to a gigantic monster, which Ren and Nora recognised instantly from the early vision. It stood at about fifty feet tall, walking on four legs but possessing two more bladed arms next to its foldable chest. On its back was the black carapace that all Corrupted had, covering all the way to its mandible mouth. Rampaging down the street, the monster Bertrand spewed foul smelling gas and devoured people with tendrils spewing from its chest.

"Eugh that is… that is vile." Weiss commented while pinching her nose. Past Cole sprang into action, blasting at the exposed, glowing joints of Bertrand's monstrous form. Nora saw this and giggled.

"It's like a video game boss fight! Shoot the weak points!" Ren facepalmed as Nora stood dramatically atop a car, pointing at the giant monster. Everyone laughed in some manner, Glynda stifling a giggle, and Ozpin smiling broadly.

"I'm assuming you won." Ren said through his hand.

Cole nodded. "Yeah, but Bertrand got away. So I still had four problems to deal with."

"Four? The Beast, Bertrand and the Conduits we know. Which leaves…" Oobleck listed.

"One I haven't mentioned: The Plague." Cole finished.

"The Plague? Since when was there a plague?" Ruby asked, completely lost.

Cole explained the plague as his past self approached a large truck driven by Zeke. "Turns out using the Ray Sphere created a plague which began to spread rapidly. Active Conduits were immune and there was no cure."

"Meaning that humanity on your world was dying, and Conduits were the evolutionary successors." Ozpin deduced.

"Yeah, though the RFI potentially could've cured the plague but… we'll get to that later." Cole's guilty demeanour did not go unnoticed, but went entirely ignored as Zeke leaned out of the truck he was driving. "Most pressing at the time was the fact that the Beast was almost at New Marais." In the distance, explosions littered the sky around the towering form of the Beast. Zeke then spoke up.

"Hey, pretty boy! Feel like going for a joyride? Sharing in the benefits of me spying on the Militia?" Eyebrows rose at why Zeke was so flippant, given the presence of the Beast.

Past Cole wasn't amused. "Come on, man. The Beast is almost here, we don't have time for this."

"Oh ho, that's where you're wrong, my friend! I have found us a sure fire way to take down the Beast. Make yourself useful, take off those panels back there. You'll see." Eyebrows rose higher. How could a normal man like Zeke, find a way to kill the Beast when Cole couldn't? Past Cole stripped off the panels with a blast of electricity, revealing a huge rocket beneath.

"Jesus, Zeke, is that a nuke?" Ruby gawked at the rocket, but no-one else saw how such a medium sized missile could take down the Beast.

"Please explain how that…" Weiss asked, unimpressed. "… Is going to kill the Beast."

"Nukes, or nuclear bombs were humanity's deadliest creations in my world. I mean, when one of the guys who made the first few saw its test he thought: 'I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.'" Cole was completely serious, which brought chills down everyone's spines. "Could wipe Vale off the face of Remnant in an instant."

"O-ok, I-I believe you now." Weiss stammered in complete terror. Ruby heard the details but ignored it, knowing her world had no such weapons. Atop a large crane at a dock, everyone watched the missile impact with the Beast, creating a blinding flash of fiery light. As sights were restored, all that remained was a singular, haunting mushroom cloud on the horizon. New Marais was coated in a dust storm from the shockwave of the explosion, Past Cole leaping from high off the crane to free Zeke from being trapped under debris. Cole aided Zeke towards his truck lifting a large light out of the way. Then the cranes began to cave in on a fiery portal forming.

"Zeke was wrong anyway. The Beast just reformed." No-one could tear away from the portal as is grew larger and larger, more brilliant every second. Past Cole and Zeke fled, only to crash as the Beast emerged. But with Cole's unconscious state came darkness, and a new memory.


Metal bars surrounded the group, Past Cole being shut in every way he turned.

"Mr MacGrath! How do you like my new security system?" The group turned angrily to the speaker, Bertrand. Striding in with two Militia guards on his flank, he continued. "There's no way out. It's nothing special, but it'll stop your lightning."

"How the hell do flimsy metal bars stop you?" Yang asked with anger and disappointment.

"I'm not as physically strong as you Yang, so tearing my way out was a no go. As for my lightning, the metal would just conduct the electricity." Yang stepped back scratching her head, sheepish for not realising how simple but effective the trap was. Not that anyone could blame her, Yang could punch through concrete if mad enough.

Past Cole moved to the bars of his cage, gripping them tightly as he gave an ultimatum to Bertrand. "Listen to me, Bertrand. You want me to save your city? You want me to kill the Beast? Get me out of here, and stay the hell out of my way!"

"I wish I had the same faith in your abilities, but…" Bertrand leaned in closer, with a hateful stare. "… If you're not with me… well, you're against me." Stepping back, the Militia's leader gave the order to open fire, bullets flying into the cage. Past Cole ducked for cover, as did the students. Seeing the bullets whiz through the adults with no damage, the students stood up sheepishly, gaining only an amused smirk from the Real Cole. Gunfire continued for minutes, Past Cole rolling and ducking with only his Polarity Wall as a shield. Then came Zeke to the rescue, raising a few cheers from the students as Past Cole was freed from the cage.

"You okay?" Asked a concerned Zeke, Past Cole sitting on a crate breathing heavily.

Recovering slowly, Past Cole apologised. "Hey, uh, Zeke… I've been treating you like shit. I'm… I'm sorry, man."

"That was a loooong time coming." Remarked Ruby with a smile.

Zeke dismissed the apology. "Screwed you over pretty hard back in Empire. Forget it, man."

Glynda smiled slightly at Zeke's attitude. "I have to admit, Mr Dunbar really has proved himself, despite my earlier… reservations about him."

"No, you've always got my back. Thank you." Past Cole stepped up to look at Zeke, a genuine grateful look on his face.

"Look, I don't call you 'brother' because I like the way it sounds." Zeke admitted, then running off to avoid being spotted by the Militia.

"Despite all you've done, he still treated you as a man, a brother." Amber noted, watching for the Real Cole's reaction. He only smiled as he watched his friend jog away. Then the scene faded, flickering past another Blast Core being found. Zeke and Cole also flashed past on a couch, relaxing, watching a movies with beers to drink. The Real Cole grinned widely as the memory briefly flickered into reality, a few of his companions seeing the warmth in his normally blank, grey eyes.

"One more Blast Core needed." Drawled Cole, watching as he fought Forced Conduits on an industrial ship. "Then came the real kicker." Time slowed to normal pace, Past Cole disabling the boat, cutting off Bertrand's way of selling Conduits. As the boat tilted, a fiery burst temporarily made everyone shield their eyes. Before them had appeared John White, red eyes and red suit. The only person surprised at his appearance was Past Cole.

"What the hell?" Past Cole exclaimed in disbelief.

"It's good to see you, MacGrath." Greeted John.

"John, you're dead." Past Cole stated strongly.

"You're right, I was. For a while. I can still feel it… the Ray Sphere exploding, tearing me apart atom by atom." John explained, Past Cole walking round him to figure out what John was. "Yet somehow, part of me lingered on. I had to pull myself back together. Do you have any idea how hard that is?"

"My word. He claims to have regenerated from nothing! That's… that's astonishing!" Oobleck was copying Past Cole, studying the new form of John White closely.

"It sounds tricky. You're not a ghost. You must be some sort of Conduit. Why are you here?"

"You told me that John was a Conduit on your level." Ozpin directed at the Real Cole. "Is he who I believe him to be?"

"Nothing gets past you does it, Oz?" Everyone else looked on confused at the two men confused, only Amber having any idea of what they were referring to.

"I want to show you something." John touched two fingers to Past Cole's forehead, allowing him to see the plague. Time cut to a large medical tent, Past Cole stood above a girl.

"The plague was spreading badly, and the only ones immune from it were Conduits." The Real Cole explained.

"Heal her… if you can." John spoke to Cole in an echoing mental voice.

"John, you know why I don't use that ability anymore." Past Cole snapped at John, the fiery Conduit appearing next to him.

"Then let me show you. I have the power to save her. To activate all our kind, but not without cost." John stepped forward, fiery energy swirling around him and flowing from his crimson eyes.

Blake realised what John was saying. "He's become like a Ray Sphere!" She shouted.

The Real Cole nodded then looked to John. "More than that."

"The Beast!" Shouted Past Cole as everything went black in a large explosion.

In the void, very few could believe what had just happened. John White, the Beast, had just killed every person in that tent, to save one Conduit.

"Things got complicated from here. John had a plan that would guarantee the survival of some of humanity. The catch, those who weren't Conduits would die, and I'm talking billions of people." Cole explained neutrally.

"That's genocide!" Screamed Pyrrha.

"Bertrand was doing the opposite!" Cole snapped back. "He was creating armies of Conduits to scare people, to kickstart a genocide to wipe out my kind. All because of his religious devotion and his belief that we were monsters. And I almost proved him right." No-one had an answer, allowing Cole to fade reality to himself and Zeke before a dock, Forced Conduits patrolling it. One held a Blast Core. Before anyone could comment, Zeke started coughing loudly.

"Jesus, why didn't you tell me, Zeke?" PastCole asked with major concern for his friend.

"Does he have it?" Jaune asked, referring to the plague. The Real Cole nodded. Everyone's moods dropped at the revelation that Zeke had little time left. Rather than stare at his best friend, the Real Cole stared upwards at the worsening weather.

"Looks like it's gonna be a hell of a storm." Zeke said as he noticed the thunder clouds drifting over New Marais. Following Zeke's comment, everyone else looked up.

"Don't tell me you can…" Amber started as Cole's past self strode right into the middle of the Forced Conduits, ignoring every bullet that hit him. Once in the centre, he drained electricity directly from the storm.

"Poor bastards never stood a chance." The Real Cole said as a massacre erupted. Conduits were downed left and right as the Prime Conduit devastated them with unlimited electricity. Some of the heavier Conduits raised their ice pillars, firing beams of ice at the Past Cole. Cole shrugged them off, draining constantly from the clouds above. Then the pillars were shattered by rockets, burying their Conduits underneath. Lighter armoured Ice Soldiers darted in close aiming for a point blank shotgun round at Past Cole. Then the students witnessed something horrifying: Past Cole leaned back, draining the life from every man around him in seconds, leaving empty corpses.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM?!" Screamed a few of the group, the Real Cole looking guiltily at the ground.

"Ionic Drain." He mumbled. "I drained them of the neuro-electric energy in their bodies, killing them instantly."

"And you can just do that at will!" Shouted a horrified Ruby. Cole shook his head.

"Costs me an Ionic Charge, and I have none right now and will never get anymore. I can only get them from people who carry residual Ray Field energy." A few of the group breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Cole could not perform such cruelty again. Without everyone glaring at him, Cole exhaled loudly, the next memories weighing heavily on him. "Only two more left."

Atop Zeke's rooftop abode at night, Cole had merged with his past self, sitting down next to Zeke. He needed to live his final times with Zeke. He had to accept it and move on. It didn't take long for the others to notice the merging, a feeling of dread filling them. Cole sat down with a loud sigh.

"You think I'm ready for this?" Asked the grizzled Conduit.

"The way I see it, there's basically two types of people. Most of them are guys like me. Guys that sit on the couch: we might not like the shit that happens to us, but we deal with it." A few of the Remnant group nodded.

"It certainly fits him." Port noted.

"Then there are guys like you." Zeke patted Cole on the back reassuringly. Reaching behind himself, Cole brought out the last Blast Core. Staring at it deeply before tilting it towards Zeke.

"End of the road." Said Cole. Zeke snorted in agreement, reaching for a beer.

"Cheers, brother. Half as long-" Zeke said raising his drink to the Blast Core.

"-Twice as bright." Finished Cole, clinking the Core against the bottle.

Cole divided into his two selves as the past one went to activate the Blast Core. Immediately his expression was sad. "There was one last kick to the balls for me too." Time passed to day, with all three Conduits lying on the ground in pain, the RFI sparking. "The RFI was designed not just to kill the Beast, but all Conduits."

"What?!" Shouted a few of the group.

"I was scared, unsure of what to do. So I sided with John and Kuo. It cost me my best friend." Cole merged once more, watching as Kuo chased after Nix, who had stolen the RFI. Behind the sunglasses Zeke glared, everyone could feel the hate and betrayal leaking off of him. The ultimatum was heart-wrenching for both the ones watching, and Cole.

"You ever see me again, shoot first." Cole bowed his head as time skipped, his body moving on its own, to a stance that was burned into his mind. Again he gripped the Amp, and sent a shock through it. Below him lay Nix, dead. Beside him the others watched, tears flowing down a few of their faces. But then the gates opened as Ozpin turned and saw who was next.

"I am truly sorry, Mr MacGrath." One by one people turned to Ozpin, then looked beyond him. There stood Zeke, revolver in hand, RFI in the other. Amber sobbed as she realised what was going to happen, Cole stepping forward with only misery in his grey eyes. Both Coles spoke, but the tone was different.

"Half as long-" Began Cole, watching Zeke raise his revolver to him once more.

"-Twice as bright." Finished Zeke, levelling his revolver. "I gotta try."

"I know." Said Cole, but the bullet never hit him. Zeke stood frozen before everyone. Cole was just as confused as anyone else, splitting from his past self.

"I think everyone has seen enough, MacGrath." Echoed a voice throughout the red sky. Cole's eyes widened, a face of both recognition and confusion.

"No. I watched you die, John." Cole spoke out to the sky.

"You've watched me die three times already, Cole. I-"

"How can you be so goddamn calm?!" Screamed Cole, electricity beginning to crackle off of his body. "Watching you 'die' meant I almost killed Ruby!"

"And I regret what I did but… I did not realise I could not die, as long as you hold a part of my power. Simply put, as long as you are the Beast, Cole, I will not fade from existence."

Cole stepped back, unsure of what to do. He could feel everyone's eyes on him, but couldn't react. As his mind went blank, so did the reality, the void returning. Angry didn't even come close to how Cole began to feel. John had kept quiet all this time, leaving Cole to drink and cause more harm and pain than he'd ever wanted. With his entire mind focused on John, Cole neglected the fact that he was sparking electricity violently.

"COLE!" Shouted Amber.

"MacGrath!" Echoed John, slowly forming into his human shape.

Snapping out of the angry daze, Cole turned on John, viciously berating him. "Once I've let everyone go from here, you and I are gonna have a chat. You've caused enough problems for me as things are!" Before John could speak, everything shattered, the mental link being severed.


This chapter really drained my energy, so halfway through I thought up an idea. Have two ongoing series to alternate and keep my enthusiasm up.

I'm going to set up a poll for the genres, e.g. TV, Anime, Game

I hope you enjoyed this long chapter, and don't forget to review!

Wardtortle, out!