Chapter 10

Faded Embers

(A/N: Thank you everyone for the support and encouragement. You guys are fantastic. I can't believe so many of you have stuck with me so far. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. God bless)

If it hadn't been for Blake's cat-like reflexes, her unconscious partner and best friend would've fallen face first onto the pavement. But due to Yang's limp body and and her own exhaustion, Blake could do little more than let ease the blonde's descent.

"Yang!?" Blake cried, already checking her breathing and heartbeat. "Yang, wake up!"

"It's okay, her aura hit zero that's all," Ruby said gently. "She'll be sore and have a nasty migraine when she wakes up, but sleep is the best thing for her right now. Plus, I don't think you would wake her even if you tried. Now help me prop her against this broken pillar." The three half-carried, half-dragged the larger girl several feet so she could sleep sitting up.

Once Ruby was satisfied that her sister was comfortable, she turned around to see unease on her teammates' faces.

"What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" Weiss echoed back in exasperation, with Blake nodding in agreement already. "Your sister just destroyed a Paladin after shrugging off the worst beating I've ever seen. An explanation would suffice."

"What do you mean? You both know Yang's semblance lets her absorb the damage her aura takes and dish it right back. Why are you two acting so surprised?"

"Because, Ruby," Blake said kindly and as patiently as she could, "Weiss and I have only seen glimpses of her power in practice or when she's in a bad mood. We've never seen her do anything close to what she just did, much less lose control and-."

"-she didn't lose control," she interrupted sharply. "Yang doesn't lose control."

"Right…" drawled the heiress, remembering the time she sent a student to the infirmary for putting gum in her hair. Yang snorted in her sleep.

"Why don't we talk over there." Ruby pointed to the clearing. "Yang needs rest, and we'll be able to see the police coming." They nodded and left the blonde to sleep peacefully.

"I'm surprised they're not here already," Blake said, searching the skies for bullheads. "Especially with all the extra troops Atlas sent."

"I know, and I'm worried. Should we call them ourselves? Or at least contact Beacon?"

"No." Weiss shook her head. "A Paladin doesn't just go unnoticed and neither does a bullhead. Someone is on their way, count on it. But what I would like to know is how Torchwick got his hands on a prototype Paladin, but a Paladin nonetheless. They aren't fully developed yet, and you can't just buy them on store shelves."

"Maybe he stole them?" Ruby suggested. "He is a thief."

Weiss bit her lip in frustration. "You don't just steal a Paladin, and even if he had, I would have heard about it..."

'I am the heiress to the most powerful company on Remnant. Of course I would know about something this serious. Wouldn't I?'

"I don't want to think about Torchwick or the White Fang right now," Blake said, unable her eyes off her partner. "Ruby, tell us more about Yang's semblance. I've never seen anything like it."

Weiss eagerly nodded, causing Ruby to sigh and glance at her unconscious big sis. There were tears in her eyes, but she quickly blinked them out of existence.

"Think of Yang's semblance as a fire. The angrier she gets the more the flame rages. The more punishment her aura takes the hotter the flame. Her emotions spark and fuel the flame early on, but she has to take damage to feed the fire. What you two saw was Yang's fire being overfed."

Blake and Weiss nodded as they already knew the basics to Yang's incredible power, but that was a far cry from seeing and feeling it in person.

"So Torchwick added so much fuel to the fire that when Yang dropped her semblance and aura, it left her exhausted and she passed out?" Weiss asked, making sure she understood correctly.

"I never realized her semblance was that powerful," Blake marveled. "Is it dangerous for her?"

Ruby undid her wrist scroll and handed it over for them to see. "This keeps track of all our aura levels and our vitals, including our heart rates. Mine beats the fastest, but during the fight Yang's was even outpacing mine. I don't like her putting that much stress on her body," her voice shook. "Fires aren't meant to burn forever..."

"But it's okay!" Ruby said quickly, holding up her hands seeing their horrified expressions. "Yang's fine, and I'm just being careful. She just needs a power nap after using that much aura. Her body and aura are built to handle her semblance just like ours are. If my heart was like yours, it would have popped the first time I went super speed."

Blake and Weiss stared at the little scroll they each had a hand on. Their leader was right, her heartbeat was much faster than theirs even while just standing there. They were both a little surprised to see the caped-girl's aura levels so low however, and for the first time, they noticed how Ruby leaned against Crescent Rose for support and was visibly shaking, a tell-tale sign of aura exhaustion.

"Ruby, are you alright?" Blake asked concerned.

"I'm fine." She waved off, her chest heaving. "Just tired."

"Do you want to sit down?" Weiss was struck by guilt for not having noticed the way her partner was obviously struggling. Although the heiress kept her wrist scroll in her dust pouch, she rarely wore it as it clashed with her combat skirt. Her teammates also rarely wore them, but that was because Yang's gauntlets were in the way and Blake couldn't replicate the holographic device with her semblance.

"Guys, I'm fine, seriously."

Weiss didn't want to leave her partner's low aura a mystery, and so bit her tongue studying her appearance. When Ruby found her before the battle, she was a mess. She smelt like garbage, held her right shoulder as if in pain, walked with a slight limp, and had needed her to create a haste glyph to catch up with the team, something Weiss had never dreamed she'd ever need. When Weiss asked her what happened, Ruby merely said she'd talk about it later, and from the expression on the caped-girl's face, it was clear that later was still to come.

'Does this have something to do with Penny?'

Weiss saw a spike on the wrist scroll, and thought how strange it was to be watching her own heartbeat. There was a slight delay, but she could almost feel and see them matching.

"Well Ruby." She smirked, handing it back to her partner. "If you ever wanted proof that the Ice Queen has a heart, here it is."

The pair took a look at it.

"Must be a glitch," Blake deadpanned.

They all smiled and began laughing. Perhaps it was the adrenaline wearing off, or perhaps it was just the moment of levity that made them laugh so hard. Whatever the case, they soon had tears in their eyes and were holding their sides in pain. Ruby fell to the ground unable to keep herself upright, which just made the situation even funnier.

When their fit ended, the girls had a new appreciation for each other and while Weiss helped her partner back to her feet, the faunus watched with a few extra tears hitting her cheek.

"What's wrong, Blake?" asked the heiress.

"It's nothing," she said embarrassed, wiping the tears away. "I'm just happy everyone's alright. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Me neither!" Ruby cried, launching herself at her teammates for a bear hug that would have made an Ursa proud. "Why does Yang always have to miss the gushy moments!?"

"Please stop Ruby," Blake pleaded.

"You're hurting us," Weiss choked.

The trio collapsed and Ruby beamed. Today, her team had defeated a Paladin, sent the most wanted man in Vale running, and she and her teammates were closer than ever. Nothing would spoil this moment for her. Not even half a dozen bullheads landing around them.

The team felt the downdraft before they heard the engines. They had been so preoccupied with Ruby's Ursa-like hug that they hadn't noticed the fleet flying overhead.

When the bullheads landed, Weiss and Blake stood up while Ruby needed a hand. A paramedics led by an elderly woman ran forward asking if their leader if they were injured, and Ruby was so startled by their sudden appearance that all she could do was stammer. Weiss however stepped forward and took control of the situation for her.

"We're fine, ma'am. Just some scrapes and bruises, but other than that we'll be fine."

"What about your friend? Is she-"

"Oh, Yang's fine!" Ruby nearly shouted as she came to her senses. "She's just taking a power nap after using all her aura that's all. She'll be fine."

Her optimism didn't seem to relieve the woman who turned to an assistant. "Check her breathing and make sure she doesn't have any internal injuries. Without aura her body can't repair itself. We'll take the team back to the school and do our scans there. No point in doing it here in the cold."

"Yes, ma'am." The workers split up, half of them taking their packs to Yang while the others began checking on Ruby and Blake. The caped-girl sat down on a piece of rubble feeling dizzy all of a sudden. She glanced at her wrist scroll and saw her aura had dipped since they began talking.

"Let's take a look at your burn, miss Schnee," said the elderly doctor.

"My what?" Weiss looked down at her chest, and for the first time noticed the burn and scorched clothing where the Paladin had shot her. The doctor helped remove the jacket so as to inspect the bright red, bubbly skin.

"How didn't I notice this before?" Weiss asked herself. "I haven't felt any pain."

"That's not unusual," the woman said. "It can take awhile to feel the full effects of a dust cannon. They numb your skin and you don't even realize you've been shot. But trust me, the pain will come. This should help when it does though." She rubbed some kind of ointment into the skin which made Weiss grit her teeth, as if the cold touch of the cream seemed to pull the pain out from hiding.

"It'll take a couple of days until your aura is back to normal so apply this every six hours. Burns take awhile to heal even with aura, so expect it to a couple of week."

"Oh no!" Weiss shouted.

"What's wrong?" she asked worriedly, still keeping her calm demeanor.

"This was my favorite jacket and now it's ruined."

The doctor smiled despite her patient's dramatics. "Just be thankful the hole wasn't through your chest. If your aura was like mine or a normal human's, you'd have been dead before you hit the ground." She finished her evaluation of Weiss from her scroll before turning her attention to Ruby and Blake who were being looked at by other paramedics.

"And how is miss Rose doing?"

"Miss Rose's aura is below ten percent, ma'am, and has an injured her shoulder but we don't know the extent of it. Also, her aura is continuing to drop due to the strain she's put on her muscles."

"I wouldn't expect any less from Taiyang's daughter." The elderly woman sighed, shaking her head. "For the next few days, miss Rose, I would suggest against running at mach three. Every time you activate your speed semblance, you're literally pulling your body apart which your aura has to compensate for, and with it being so low you're feeling the full force of your speed on every bone, muscle, and organ. You're lucky you haven't ripped the muscles clean off your bones yet, young lady. When we get back to the school, you are to be confined to your bed until your aura is at least back up to twenty-five percent. Is that understood?" Ruby nodded but it was clear she didn't like the elderly woman's prescription.

The doctor turned to Weiss. "Make sure she stays inactive until she's rested. tie her, chain her, freeze her to the bed if you have to." Ruby pulled her hood up while the heiress smiled brightly at her.

"And you, miss Belladonna, I am already seeing the signs of a concussion." She turned to her assistant. "Am I correct?"

"No, ma'am. A haste glyph went awry and it's still affecting her."

"Hmm, that'll do it. Very good, go back to the bullhead and get the equipment set up. We'll take off soon." They nodded and carried out her orders.

"Now that they're out of the way, miss Belladonna, you'll be able to sleep off most of the effects of the glyph, but your faunus and human senses will be unbalanced for the next couple days."

"How did you-?" Blake's hand subconsciously drifted towards her bow.

"I'm the head physician of Beacon Academy. It's my job to know such things, but not necessarily theirs." She gestured toward her medical team. "Patient confidentiality and all that. Now if you'll excuse me, I must see how miss Xiao Long's nap is going." She walked away and had a small chat with her assistant, and after a moment she doubled over laughing as she came back to the teens.

"Taiyang's eldest daughter will be just fine. She punched my assistant in the chest for putting an IV in her arm."

Blake and Ruby beamed while Weiss looked horrified.

"I am so sorry," she said. "I will have Yang personally write him a letter apologizing."

"Don't worry about it. He probably deserves it. Anyhow, we're prepping miss Xiao Long for the flight back. She and miss Rose will spend the night in the medical bay so we can keep an eye on them, but you two are free to go back to your rooms. However, we do have some free beds if you'd like to stay with your partners." They both nodded. "Good. Now if you'll excuse me, I see Professor Ozpin would like a word.

The trio turned around and saw their headmaster limping out of another bullhead. He had a scowl on his face but it seemed to soften when he saw the girls. The doctor spoke with him for a short while before he nodded and turned his attention to the team. As he walked, Blake noticed the grip on his cane made his knuckles white.

"It seems you four have had an eventful evening," Ozpin said casually. "Dr. Heilen tells me miss Xiao Long will be just fine and you three only have minor injuries, but tell me, how are you holding up?"

The girls didn't know what to say. They hadn't expected to see the headmaster here, but weren't entirely surprised by his appearance. Ozpin always seemed one step ahead, but they didn't really know how to respond. How are we doing? They thought simultaneously. They had nearly seen each other die, and could see the price of their victory with Yang being moved on a stretcher and Ruby not much better.

"We're exhausted," Blake said truthfully.

"I can see that," he chuckled, retrieving a scroll from his coat pocket. "It would seem your unsavory Paladin put up quite the impressive fight, but was nothing you couldn't handle." Images flashed on the screen and Ruby could clearly be heard shouting 'Ladybug' in the distance.

"How did you-?"

"A well positioned traffic camera, miss Rose. It would seem you all handled yourselves like true huntresses tonight."

"But we let his escape," Blake cried, clenching her fists.

"No, you four did your duties as huntresses protecting the city. Tonight, you saw what your training is preparing you for, and you have the scars to prove it. By no means was Torchwick's escape your fault." There was something strange about his voice, and Blake's bow perked up.

"Is something the matter, Professor?"

He took a deep breath and sighed. "You'll be hearing about it on the news anyway so there's no point hiding it. There was a security breach in the southeast perimeter of Vale." The color in their faces drained.

"What?!" Weiss cried.

"Grimm got through the gates but no one was seriously injured, and the perimeter was reestablished quickly. Not a single Grimm got into the city luckily, or past the other defenses. The Atlesian military move in quickly and will place extra guards on the border. We believe someone may have sabotaged the security fences."

All three girls were speechless. If Ruby hadn't already been sitting she would have fallen like her sister. If the perimeter fences ever fell or if Grimm were ever let into the city, it would only be a matter of time until it fell.

Ozpin sensed their fear and cleared his voice. "But you four were here defending the city while we were not. You behaved admirably and you have my thanks. Now, go be with miss Xiao Long on the airship. We will discuss this at a later date. I'm afraid I will be needing more coffee. This is going to be a long night." He said something under his breath that even Blake was barely able to make out. Queen has pawns...

The began helping Ruby to her feet but Ozpin interrupted them.

"Could I see you for a moment, miss Belladonna?" Blake nodded, and mouthed to her teammates that it was alright, and so Weiss took Ruby over the shoulder and helped her to the bullhead.

"What is it, Professor?"

"You and I had an agreement, Blake." He didn't sound angry, simply disappointed. "If you discovered any news about the White Fang or Torchwick, you were to share it with me."

"I-I'm sorry, sir, but I honestly didn't even know the White Fang were going to be there tonight. I was just following a rumor and a hunch."

Ozpin studied her blank face for a moment then sighed. "I guess it can't be helped then. There was nothing we could have done anyway. Most of our forces had been moved to the border. Even if we hadn't been busy, it could have turned into a war zone. You did the right thing Blake, just inform me next time."

"Thank you, sir. It won't happen again."

"You and your team did good work tonight. Go and get some rest." He turned and walked back to his airship, and Blake caught up with her teammates, helping Ruby into the bullhead.

It wasn't until they were nearly home that the caped-girl noticed two people missing.

"What?!" Weiss shouted.

"I said," Ruby screamed back. "What do you think happened to Sun and Neptune."

Blake and Weiss shrugged their shoulders. They had completely forgotten about them.

"Let's just enjoy the peace and quiet," Weiss laughed

"What?!" Ruby shouted unable to hear.

"She said-"

"Oh forget it!"

(A/N: I wanted to spend a chapter explaining Yang's semblance while also having an Ozpin scene. I also liked the idea of Cinder testing out Vale's perimeter fences and security. Seems like something she would do and it makes sense as it draws eyes off of the White Fang if they get spotted and Torchwick can move about more freely. Plus I needed Ozpin to show up late to the party. I also threw in that Blake/Ozpin scene because it would make sense that he's a little upset that she went off on her own again, but he relents when there wasn't much he could have done anyway. Also quick note I will be going back to previous chapters to fix spelling, punctuation, structure, and other awkwardness. No plot elements will be changed but if there are any I will make a note of it. Once again thank you for reading you guys are amazing. All credit goes to my Lord and Savior who has made this possible. God bless)