Disclaimer: RWBY is owned by Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth Productions while Macross is owned by Shoji Kawamori and Studio Satelight.
Protoculture.
A highly advanced alien race that became the first spacefaring civilization in the Milky Way 500,000 years ago.
By manipulating the genes of primitive indigenous life forms, they sowed the seeds that would eventually bloom into the various humanoid cultures of the galaxy.
Vestiges of their power can still be found throughout the Milky Way.
"We've got new orders from Lady M. We need to investigate the planets occupied by Windermere and find out what they're doing there. Our mission is to infiltrate the occupied planet of Voldor. The infiltration teams will be comprised of ten people, while the rest defends the Aether in planetary orbit."
"The teams will be the entirety of Walkure and five pilots of the Delta Platoon. To that end, the escorting members of the sound unit will be left to First Lt. Messer, Second Lt. Mirage, and Sgt. Hayate."
That was what Ruby remembered back on Ragna when everyone was briefed on the situation by Ernest and Arad, gazing upon the blue and green planet in her VF-31 Siegfried. She left the decision of who will be accompanying the other three Delta pilots, only for Yang and Weiss to choose the option to stay in orbit. While she understood Weiss' claim to gain more experience in outer space, the way Yang told hers made her believe that she was hiding something from her.
Sighing, she looked over to the side to see the shuttle Walkure will be entering the planet in, wondering what they have in mind to get to the surface. Glancing over the Windermere/Var N.U.N.S. garrison fleet, she believed that it would involve some form of cyber warfare, a battlefield Reina was specialized on. Glancing back, she wondered how exactly Reina will get the team there, hoping to get an easy result.
She then wondered about how the White Rose was doing, thinking about when she disappeared days after the Ionedeth Var incident. She was grateful to the mysterious pilot for saving her when she was distracted, but when she went to give her gratitude, the pilot was gone, along with the VF-25 Messiah. She knows that she'll see the machine again, waiting for a chance to say her thanks to the White Rose.
Keeping her gaze at the combined fleets occupying the planet in front of her, Ruby reached down beside her, feeling the cold metal of Crescent Rose in the other seat of her Valkyrie. She smiled over the thought of shocking the Windermereans again when she fights them outside of the fighters since she got her weapon back after Project 'RED's' completion. She already thanked Makina for giving it back to her a day after the operation as she patted the compact weapon.
While Ruby was getting familiar with Crescent Rose again, the girls of Walkure looked over the visual hologram of Voldor, gathering around a sitting Reina as the green haired girl mentally prepared herself for her cyber tactics. Freyja stood in awe as she was about to experience the hacker work her magic, keeping her eyes on the projection. She then saw Reina crack her fingers in anticipation as Kaname walked up to them.
"The enemy has deployed an entire fleet and multiple surveillance satellites," the leader informed them, pointing out the Windermerean/Var N.U.N.S fleet, pointing at the mentioned platforms around them.
"Let's own their defense network so we can get through," Makina added in with a smile.
"This is going to be a fun ride," Reina commented, smirking at the challenge presented to her while remembering Remnant's security network, scoffing at how easy it was to hack into that.
"Every door…"
"Is meant to be…" she then high fived her pink haired companion before glancing at the hologram. "Opened!"
Everything around her changed into the familiar sight of cyberspace as her outfit changed into her show uniform, giving her the sight of the endless sea of data. Right in front of her, the defense network of the Windermerean/Var N.U.N.S. garrison fleet took on the form of a large connected barrier, the one thing she expected the most. Smirking, she began her work as she pressed on the digital keys, surrounding herself in the flow of her own work.
Millions of numbers were presented to her as she typed in the prompts, detailing the many individual networks of the ships until she saw the one in charge of the garrison. Smiling, she kept typing in the keys to figure out what it belonged to, classifying it as one of the main Windermerean warships in front of the joint fleet. Getting access, she saw the familiar stream of data coursing around her, moving her eyes as if she was targeting missiles as a Valkyrie pilot.
Getting what she wanted, Reina then flicked her fingers forward, launching a series of viruses towards the defence network. She saw that as her work coursed through the data stream, she can't help but notice the many data mines detonating, depicting themselves as red data spheres. She could only smirk as her virus fluently dodged the placed mines, only to be shocked as the cyberspace turned red, followed by a stream of lasers that destroyed the virus.
Her shock then turned into fear as the cyber defence program opened fire on her, closing her eyes and waiting for the hit to come to her. It never came as Makina dropped in at the right time, deploying a shield that protected herself and the hacker. Looking at each other, they both nodded as formed a W with their fingers, blocking another shot from the Windermerean defence grid.
By a stroke of luck, right after they blocked the cyber-attack, another stream of Reina's virus appeared in front of them, making their way through the lasers in the hopes of opening a gateway for Walkure and the five pilots escorting them. One by one, her programs effectively avoided the shots fired from the defence network, and as they reached for the end, a firewall appeared in front of them, denying access.
Reina, already anticipating a move like that, had already adorned herself with both a cyber helmet and a pair of claws before reaching out, grabbing the firewall by the edge before tearing it down, seeing it disperse into pixels. Freyja was surprised to see how well she managed to break through the defence network, watching her give a thumb down while smiling. She then watched as the virus entered the cyber tunnel once guarded by the firewall, giving them all clearance to fly into Voldor as the defence network collapsed.
"Checkmate," Reina muttered in satisfaction as Kaname got on the comms.
"Reina got us through," She told her pilot escorts, who immediately coated their Valkyries in a jet back coating before launching off the Aether with the shuttle, flying passed the Windermerean/Var N.U.N.S. fleet without being detected. The Siegfrieds lead the shuttle through the planetary orbit, going into re-entry mode as the machines fought against the atmospheric pressure. Once they broke through it, they were now in Voldorian airspace, flying towards a clearing capable of hiding their machines.
Once they all landed on the ground, each of the pilots immediately got out of their VF-31 fighters, grabbing their belongings before meeting up for the next plan. Ruby was the last one to get out, grabbing her weapon as she strapped it on her back. Getting her feet on the ground, she walked over the group around her, nodding at Blake as Walkure came with a bag of disguises. She only tilted her head as Kaname grabbed the chosen clothing, passing them over to everyone present.
When everyone changed into their respective disguises, the young girl couldn't help but notice the fake cat ears on everyone, along with the face paint. Looking at Blake, she was surprised to see her not wearing a pair, smirking as she was an actual cat faunas in hiding. She waited for the chance to show the others as Makina began briefing everyone.
"Alright," the mechanic started. "62% of Voldor's landmass is covered in marshes. A blue and green planet. Its principle exports are lumber, fruits and spring water."
"In other words, zero strategic value," Reina added in.
"We're going to split up into two groups," Kaname joined in. "Makina, Reina, First Lt. Messer, Specialist Blake and I will infiltrate the capital from the south. Mikumo and Freyja will enter from the north with Second Lt. Mirage, Third Lt. Ruby ad Sgt. Hayate."
"Mew got it," Freyja spoke up, acting like a catgirl.
"No cat puns allowed," Mirage scolded her, followed by Blake.
"Yeah, we don't need another Yang for this operation."
"Apawlogies," the young Windermerean said, annoying the cat faunas.
"Now you're just doing that to drive me up the wall—"
"OH. MY. GOD," she heard Makina shout out in joy, going wide eyed. "ReiRei, you're the cutest kitty ever." She then heard her partner hiss at her, nervously laughing at the exchange. "Please don't scratch me."
"Ugh," Hayate muttered as he held up part of his disguise. "I'm allergic to cats, you know."
"Well, Voldorians were originally modified felines," the tactical sound unit leader told him
"Get out if you're just going to complain," Messer spoke up, making them look at the disguised man, cat ears and make up.
While everyone talked about Hayate's allergy announcement, Ruby looked over to Blake to hear her opinion, seeing her putting on the makeup while discarding the cat ear accessory. She mentally giggled over the thought of Blake wearing the ears over where her bow is, aggravating the real pair of cat ears hidden from sight. When she saw the others getting ready to move out, she coughed out to get their attention.
"Wait just a minute," she spoke up, getting some looks from Messer and Hayate. "There's something wrong with this picture."
"What are you talking about, Ruby," Hayate asked her, seeing her smirk.
"Aside from everyone, who isn't wearing their 'full disguise' right now?"
"Well…" Makina walked up to Blake, examining her. "The only one that isn't wearing all of it would be BlaBla… but why?"
"I have only one thing to say about that." She then glanced over at Blake, smirking evilly as the raven haired woman caught on what she meant.
"Ruby, don't you dare. Don't you dare—AHH," was all Blake could let out before the young girl tackled her down to the ground, fighting with her to get the bow off. The group around them stood in wonder as to what Ruby was trying to do, seeing as she is trying to reach the bow that resided on her head. They kept their gazes on the two girls until eventually, Ruby emerged the victor with the untied bow in hand, revealing a pair of cat ears on Blake's head.
Everyone was shocked to learn that Blake herself had natural cat ears on her, making the girl in question look away in fear. She didn't anticipate Makina to kneel down to her level and reach over to her head. She was afraid that she would do something harmful to them, only to feel the mechanic calmly petting the ears. She let out one tiny mew before covering her mouth, hearing her teammate and the pink haired girl giggle before looking at Messer, who calmly looked away.
"Wait a minute…" she started, looking at the group. "You're not mad at me?"
"Why would we be," Kaname calmly told her. "You're still our friend, despite having a pair of cat ears."
"But… I hid them away from you all."
"Yang already told us why," she assured the faunas, smiling. "Besides, with those, you would easily pass as a Voldorian. Not even the Windermereans would think of you as a human while we're here."
"But because of your ears," Makina started up, pouting beside Reina. "You gave ReiRei competition for cutest kitty."
"So please." The red haired singer walked up to her, grasping her hand. "Don't hide who you are."
She thought about what Kaname had said to her, looking at the bow in Ruby's hand in order to make a decision. On the one hand, if she returned to Remnant, she would have to wear it again as discrimination was still high. On the other hand, her friends and family would be beside her at all times, encouraging her. She even included the members of Chaos as part of her family, from the mechanics, Walkure and the Delta Platoon. Making a decision, she walked over to the young reaper, grabbing her bow before putting it away, seeing everyone smile at her choice.
"It was bound to happen, sooner or later," she told herself as she joined up with her infiltration group as they all separated, entering their sides of the main Voldorian city. She faintly heard Hayate complain about how he wasn't reacting to her despite the allergies, making her wonder if she was more human than she thought. She only shook her head as they reached the entranceway of the city, looking at the towering SV-262 Drakens standing guard in Battroid mode.
Entering the city with her team, she was actually surprised to see the main majority of the populace had an extra appendage in the form of cat ears, a tail or both. Some of the architecture of the buildings somewhat resembled the Voldorian nature, whereas the towers and larger structures clearly mimicked human design. She would have loved to come to this planet if it weren't for the Var Syndrome and the Aerial Knights of Windermere taking control of the N.U.N.S. forces here.
She kept her eyes out as she watched the native inhabitants continue their own daily lives, despite being under Windermere's watchful eye. Feeling her ear twitch slightly, she passed a glance over to Kaname, who only turned her head away as a faint blush was visible on her face. She then felt a stare coming from behind her, glancing over to Messer who had his eyes on her ears the whole time. She then blushed herself as she kept her eyes forward, shaking her head and focusing on the job at hand.
"Awww," she heard Makina fawn out over the people. "So many kinds of cat ears. This is the best."
"No signs of any disturbances," Reina commented as they kept walking until Makina spotted something, making the team look over to see two N.U.N.S. guards standing in attention. Thanks to her glasses, the pink haired girl observed the two soldiers far away from them, keeping her eyes narrowed on them. The readings came to her immediately as she zoomed in on them, discovering the high numbers in her lenses.
"Their bio-fold waves are off the charts," she warned them, confirming that the soldiers are now Var as she raised her glasses.
"Kaname, Blake," Messer whispered to them, with them already knowing the plan.
"On it," the sound unit leader spoke out as Blake nodded, extending her nails to resemble claws as the raven haired girl moved into position with Messer. The red head of the group then made her way over towards the Var guards, placing her hands behind her back until she got close to strike. She glanced over to see the two locking their arms, giving the local populace the image of them being a couple. She felt another small pain in her heart over it before shaking her head, smiling as she walked over to the guard, giving him her best smile.
"Um, excuse me," she started, getting his attention as the others began walking towards her. "Can you help tell me where the river bus boards—"
Messer took the time to bump into her as she stumbled on the guard, scratching his hand as the disguised man looked back and lashed out. "Hey, watch where you're going."
"Excuse me," she angrily asked him, knowing its part of the plan. "Your big ass ran into mine."
"What did you say," Blake joined in, glaring at Kaname. "What exactly do you mean about that?"
"I meant his ass pushed me harshly into the guard. What else should I say?"
"Maybe you should apologize to him right now."
"Me? Apologize? I was that one that was pushed. He should be the one to apologize to me."
The guard paid little to no attention to the drama the two girls were going over as he looked over to his hand. Gazing at his back hand, he saw three deep scratches on him, with each letting a small trail of blood. Blake and Messer quickly left as Kaname looked back, shocked over what she had done. She made her apologies over towards the man, but mentally, she was smirking away as she left the two Var controlled guards to meet with her group.
Catching up to the group in an alleyway, she walked over to a waiting Reina, tapping her finger onto the glass scanner the hacker had in her hands. Letting the blood from the guard drip out of the nail on to the scanner, she raised her hand as she grabbed a nearby rag, wiping her hands in it as the hacker did her work. When the results came in, readings popped up in front of the girls and Messer as Reina spoke up.
"Analysis complete."
"As we thought," Kaname started, looking over the readings. "It's detecting Seidznole."
"That's what's causing the Var," the Grim Reaper pilot confirmed, shocking Blake as Kaname looked up to see a Windermerean airship flying overhead.
"We can assume both the army and the police are under mind control."
"Meaning," Blake started up, looking out to the open. "We'll be in for a fight if we're caught."
While most of the team had it easy, Ruby had found out that Hayate had the worst of it in terms of luck. When they had entered their side of the city, she could only wince out as the young man continued to sneeze out of control due to allergies. While she could understand the reason in terms of the mercat back on Ragna, the fact that he's reacting to the Voldorians near them made her feel sorry for him. Though, she began to think about how he wasn't reacting to Blake, despite her being a cat faunas.
Groaning for the last time, she looked over to her left and saw him sneeze out loud one more time, and before she could speak up, the commotion began to attract the unwanted attention of the local Voldor natives. He began to panic as the people got close to his personal space, each offering remedies for a sickness that he doesn't have at all. Looking over to see Mirage and Freyja busy with observations, she took it upon herself and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his left arm and smiling at the people.
"I'm so sorry about my friend here," she told them, a small vein popping on her forehead. "He just needs some food to calm down."
"Oh, is he hungry," One of the Voldorians asked her, getting closer to them. "If that's the case, then how about he can—"
"No, that won't be necessary." She then nervously laughed, squeezing his arm with enough force. "We better get going. Can't keep you all away from your lives."
"Well, if you're sure," the other native spoke up before adopting a smile. "Be sure to watch over your boyfriend, OK?"
Ruby and Hayate then deadpanned as they looked at them impassively, with the young reaper speaking up. "No, we're not in a relationship. We're just friends."
Before they could say anything else, Ruby took the opportunity to drag Hayate away from the populace, bringing him over to a nearby alleyway. Seeing the two run off towards it, both Mirage and Freyja couldn't help but wonder what was going on. Nodding to each other, they both made their way over to the alleys, seeing the two pilots sitting down on the ground, out of breath.
"Do I need to know what happened here," the Human/Zentradi pilot asked them. "Or do I have to guess?"
"Hayate's allergies," the young reaper told her, pointing at the young man in question.
"My goodness." She then glared at Hayate. "Can't you even hold back a single sneeze?"
"Easier said than done," he replied back, scratching his nose before leaning straight. "Why are we even doing this infiltration crap? We're pilots, for crying out loud."
"My thoughts exactly. However…" she took a deep breath and quoted Arad. "Experiences help build up the character, don't you think? The deeper a jellyfish has swum, the more delicious it is."
"I just like how he always references jellyfish, even during briefings," Ruby piped up. "Then again, he always has those crispy jellyfish snacks with him."
"Well I, for one, am not a jellyfish," Hayate told them, earning both a glare and a shout from Mirage.
"NEITHER AM I!"
"It's okay," Freyja spoke up between the two pilots, standing up. "Just leave it to me. I've been trained on how to operate behind enemy lines between dance classes."
"Unless you're Blake, I don't know what your definition of stealth is," Ruby told her before seeing her rune pop out of her hair, making the Windermerean singer look around and sniffing the air. "Uh… Freyja?"
"What's wrong," Hayate followed up, only to be ignored as she sniffed around.
"That scent," she finally spoke before smiling, running off to the source. "Rune-Rune, YIPPEE!"
"Hey, wait a minute," Ruby called out, only to be ignored as well. "Jeez, what's gotten into her?"
"I guess you could say, she's the stealthiest of all operations," Hayate smirked as he spoke, hearing Mirage mutter underneath her breath."
"Why does everybody have to be like this?"
The three pilots then decided to follow the disguised Windermerean out of the alleyway, shocking the people as they ran passed them. Despite running, Ruby decided not to use her semblance as it would draw Windermere's forces to them. Seeing the young Freyja, they stopped behind her as she held an apple in her hands, smiling in glee.
"Ahh, this brings back mewmories," she said in bliss as she spun around, looking at the salesman. "Are these Windermerean exdel apples?"
"Oh, you have quite the nose, young lady," the man told her, surprised that she knows the produce.
"Are you telling me that…" Ruby started up, shocking Freyja as Mirage finished for her.
"They're from Windermere?"
"Yeah," he answered her. "Domestic purroduce got restricted, though these aren't so bad. Right miss—"
Everyone then adopted a face of shock as the young girl started to drool out of her mouth, making Mirage go and pay the man for the apple in her hands as well as a few others. All four of them then waved the man goodbye as they left the stall, content with moving on with their assignment. Both Hayate and Ruby could already tell that their senior wasn't too happy with the result of Freyja's antics.
"She really ought to be a bit more careful," she told the two younger pilots, sighing heavily.
"Don't forget, she is younger than us, Mirage," Ruby reminded her, looking over the apple in her hand. "I wish that they had strawberries, though."
"At least we got some Intel," Hayate added in, tossing his apple in the air before catching it and repeating. "That these apples are from Windermere."
"Why would they restrict Voldor's produce, and allow their fruits to be sold instead?"
"And more importantly, how is that useful Intel," Mirage said, unamused about the whole thing before stopping, seeing Freyja standing still.
"Freyja," the young reaper called out.
"I can hear it," was what they heard as Freyja's eyes widened. "This color…"
She then ran off in a hurry once again, leaving the pilots no time to take a break as they chased her once more. They all think that Freyja might go towards another stall to stock up on more Windermerean produce, but those thoughts were dashed as she out of the shopping district. As they got closer to her, they can all hear the sound of a young girl singing far away, making them believe that something had happened to catch the young Windermerean's attention. It was when they stopped beside her that they saw the commotion.
In the trees away from the infiltration team were two Voldorian children, one boy and a girl, standing far from a guarding VF-171 Nightmare. The girl, sounding out of breath, was singing Walkure's GIRAFFE BLUESat the machine, breaking the girls' hearts as it looked like the machine ignored the sound. Despite all of it, they all continued to watch as the girl continued to sing to the Battroid.
"Such a sad color," Freyja said in sorrow.
"What are they doing," Hayate asked as Ruby made her thoughts.
"That insignia," Mirage commented as she observed the Valkyrie, grabbing her datapad and looking it up. "I knew it. That machine belongs to Captain Alberto Larrazabal, an ace pilot of the N.U.N.S.'s Voldor fleet."
"DAD," they all stopped to hear the boy shout out to the machine. "ANSWER US, DAD!"
"Dad," Hayate muttered in shock, realizing that the kids in the tree were Alberto's son and daughter.
"Oh no…" Ruby whispered, covering her mouth. "They're trying to reach out to him."
"DAD," the boy continued shouting at the Nightmare. "THIS IS THE WALKURE SONG THAT MAKES PEOPLE FEEL BETTER, RIGHT? ANSWER US, DAD!"
"Anyone could be infected." The young reaper then thought about what would happen if her father turned into a Var Infected, before glancing over to see a truck pull over beside the VF-171's leg.
"I-865," the driver contacted the Var pilot. "The wind is changing. You're shift is over."
The Infected Alberto acknowledged the words that came from the truck driver, turning his Valkyrie away from the children before walking out of few. The children were shocked that the song didn't reach out to the ace pilot, and so they called out to him as he left to follow the Windermerean orders. Just from watching the events made Ruby unconsciously tighten her hand into a fist, drawing blood from her nails as her anger towards Windermere's control escalated.
"How could they," she muttered out, shaking. "How could they do this to those children?"
"They have their best pilots doing grunt work," Mirage solemnly said to her. "But to think… those children could never see their father again unless we do something."
"This is so wrong," Hayate added in, feeling sorry for the kids.
"We'll get them back for this." The young reaper looked over and gazed at her two fellow pilots. "We'll stop Windermere from shattering more families."
"It's a lie," they turned to see the girl speaking out. "I knew some stupid song wouldn't heal him."
"But it's not…" Freyja whispered, shocked to hear the girl say that. "Walkure's songs can."
She then ran off once more to prove her point to the kids, running down the wooden stairs as the pilots looked in shock. Before she could even register, she felt her body struggle as a hand covered her mouth, preventing her from screaming out to the pilots. She was then pulled away over to the base of a nearby tree before being pushed onto the trunk, seeing the perpetrator place an arm by her face. It didn't take long to hear the sounds of guns getting ready, seeing Mirage aiming her pistol while Ruby had her Crescent Rose in hand.
"Freyja, are you alright," Ruby called out to her, eyeing the culprit through her scope.
"Let go of her," Mirage ordered the person, who could only sigh in annoyance.
"You are so useless," she said to Freyja, catching her with a familiar voice to the Windermerean as the young girl looked in shock before taking off her hood, revealing herself to be Mikumo as she looked at the pilots. "Do you have time to spare?"
"Mikumo," the three pilots spoke out in shock, with Mirage closing the distance between her and the mysterious venus. "Where have you been all this time—"
She stopped in front of the woman as the lead singer showed the group something out of an ordinary: a small cicada bug. As they observed it, the young Ruby could clearly point out that it was no ordinary insect, but a man-made micro-drone capable of transmitting video footage to the group. Her observations were correct when Mikumo explained it to the other pilots, showing a live feed from the drone in her hand as the screen displayed Hayate.
She then told them that already, more cicada-shaped micro-drones have already been installed at a suspected Voldorian government building, letting them know that a meeting between Voldor and Windermere representatives would occur. Ushering them to sit beside her, they all gathered together as the displayed multiple screens, with one of them in the meeting hall. It was in that one where they caught the glimpse of a Voldorian Elder and the Windermere chancellor, Lloyd Brehm himself, shocking Freyja as she watches the meeting go on.
"Integration into the N.U.G. wasn't all that bad either," they listened to the elder speak to the Windermerean. "Their bases gave us jobs and technology."
"Buying locals like that is how they do things, elder," Lloyd objected, showing his distaste for the New United Government.
"Still, aren't your demands a bit too much? Even to declare war, no less…"
"I'm aware, but we don't have much time."
The Elder then raised an eyebrow to the statement before continuing. "If I recall correctly, the average life span of Windermereans is about thirty years. Am I correct on the matter?"
The Windermerean lowered his head as the light reflected off his glasses, covering his eyes. "Yes."
"Very well," The elder conceded, standing up and making his way over to the overview. "We'll behave. Windermereans like to blow up friends and foes indiscriminately… using dimensional weapons."
"Dimensional weapons," Freyja asked as the elder glanced at Lloyd.
"I can only hope you haven't brought one of those here."
"Oh please," The Windermerean dismissed, keeping an eye on the old Voldorian as he continued to question.
"Then what exactly are you doing at the ruins?"
"Just academic research."
"Ahh." The Elder then turned around to face him completely. "I forgot you were a scientist as well. I have read your papers on the Protoculture. 'The last humanoid races the dying Protoculture gave birth to were the ones here in the Brisingr Cluster. Therefore we are, by all means, the rightful heirs of the Protoculture.' Or so I recall. Do you really believe those words?"
Lloyd could only stand up and bow to the elder as his escort, a red haired woman wearing sunglasses and adorning the Aerial Knight uniform approached him. "The key to that answer may lie in those very ruins."
"Ruins," both Mirage and Ruby asked at the same time as the meeting ended, letting Mikumo bring up another display of both Kaname and Blake.
"I found it," the singer spoke up first, looking over at the side as a display of odd looking buildings came up. "The Paraganal ruins. It seems to have once belonged to the Protoculture. The Voldorians consider it a holy place, but the Windermereans locked it down and built some kind of facility there."
"Do you think that Windermere has a Dimensional weapon there," Ruby asked the sound unit's leader.
"We can't dismiss the possibility."
"Another thing came to mind," Blake spoke up to the group. "When I heard the word 'Protoculture,' I began to remember some of the White Fang speak about ancient murals back home on Remnant, underneath the surface of Menagerie. They sent a research group back when they did protests, and they discovered something that depicted an ancient race creating humanoids on the planet. When I saw it, I knew it referred to the faunas, and that the ancient race was in fact the Protoculture."
"Why bring that up, Blake," Mirage asked her, more curious than ever.
"I think that Remnant was intended to be connected to the rest of the cluster, but for some reason, we lacked the means to."
"The Grimm made sure of that," Ruby added in. "But we can worry about that later. Right now, we have a more pressing matter to talk over."
"Roger," Mikumo agreed with the young reaper, closing her eyes as she smiled. "Let's meet up."
Walking out of the government building where the meeting was held with his security guard, the Windermerean chancellor made out the three figures by the car to be Keith and the twins Theo and Xiao. Lloyd knows that with the White Knight near his vehicle, he was going to hear about a form of breach left behind in orbit. Nodding to his escort, he made his way over to the blonde pilot, waiting to hear what he had to say.
"Intruders," the pilot spoke up in a calm manner. "It seems our air defense lines have been hacked."
"I see," the chancellor replied back, sensing the woman tense slightly and making him look at her. "Gale, be a dear and stay by my side. Keith and the Aerial Knights will handle it themselves." He received a nod from her as he looked back at the White Knight. "No doubt they'll go towards the ruins. Have the forces ready."
"If I may." Keith then glared at the woman before gazing at Lloyd. "Why must you bring the girl with us, if she's connected to the Earthlings? She could turn on us at any moment—"
"There is no need to worry. I have made absolutely sure to take measures to prevent that from happening." He then adjusted his glasses. "As of right now, the only memory she has was that she was murdered in cold blood as an Earthling, showing her the cold truth. All other memories have been suppressed. All you need to know is that she's putting her loyalty towards Windermere's cause."
He then looked up in the sky to spot a small cicada beetle fly off in the sky, already knowing that it was a micro-drone going back to its owners. With a flick of his fingers, both Lloyd and Gale got inside the vehicle as the twins closed the doors behind them. The vehicle then drove off away from the Aerial Knights, with Keith giving off one last glare at the retreating car.
"Despite you being born as one of us," he spoke to himself, mentally speaking to Gale. "I will never accept you as a Windermerean."
When everyone got back together near the base of the Paraganal ruins, Blake wasted no time in wiping off the make-up that considered her a native Voldorian. Glancing over to seeing Makina congratulating Mikumo, her ears twitched to the sound of footprints, making her look over towards the young Ruby. She gave her a slight glare over what she did, but mentally thanked her for helping her realize that she no longer needed the bow.
Glancing back at Kaname, she can already tell that even through the act she played back with the Var infected guard, there was some venom in her voice that felt unwelcome to her. Thinking back, she believed that it all started from when she first started to interact with the Grim Reaper pilot. Going further down, she began to understand her own feelings towards the Delta 02 pilot, and how Kaname has been acting lately. She realized that she also has feelings for the man, making her look down briefly before shaking her head, focusing on the objectives.
"So Blake," she turned to face Ruby, listening to the young girl. "I guess your side had it easy, huh?"
"What do you mean, Ruby," she asked the young girl, seeing her pointing at Hayate with her thumb. "Oh no, was he annoying you with snide comments again?"
"First off, don't be like Yang." She received a small glare from the little reaper. "Second of all, I was asking because I had to deal with Mr. 'Oh-I-Can't-Control-My-Allergies.' He kept sneezing when we had entered the city."
"Some things just can't be controlled, that easily." She then looked over to Kaname. "I, however, have been doing some thinking."
"Like?"
The raven-haired girl just sighed before continuing. "In terms of how I feel. And before you say anything, I am aware of how much time I have been spending with Messer." She let out another sigh. "To be honest, I think I sorta… fell for him. His dedication to this job has been rubbing off on me."
"I can see that." Ruby crossed her arms as she leaned down on the tree as Blake kept talking.
"However, I think that's starting to throw a wedge between me and Kaname. She's worked with him longer than I have, with her being a singer in Walkure, as well as a senior officer in her way. Then here I am, spending more time with the Grim Reaper than she is."
"What about Yang?"
"I…" she then looked down. "I don't know. Despite being on good terms… I still felt like I failed her."
"We talked about this, Blake." Ruby then got off the tree. "It's all in the past. Now let's focus on the present. Windermere ain't going to beat itself."
Her teammate could only laugh as the reaper began to walk over towards the Makina/Reina combo, allowing her to gather her thoughts a bit more. Her thoughts as of now, while focusing on the mission, couldn't help but wonder towards both her partner Yang and the First Lt. Messer. While she had known the former a lot longer, being her partner from their days at Beacon, she still felt like it was her fault over what happened with the blonde's arm. As for the latter, while she hasn't known him for long, she felt as if she could trust him with her life. Her only concern is the possibility of him turning Var, resulting in him turning against the Delta Platoon. She shook her head, knowing that she'll deal with it later.
As the group made their way over to the site of the ruins, the girls were greeted with the sight of an electric fence surrounding the facility. For the team of Makina and Reina, their minds began to mentally play ジリチックBEGINNER as a swarm of surveillance drones float over the obstacle. Acting quickly, the duo began to scan each of the drones, followed by Reina's hacking the controls and Makina motioning them away from the fence, granting them access to it.
The R and B of RWBY, along with Hayate and Freyja, watched in awe as the two singers made their way over to the fence before following them in the compound, entering through a bunny shaped hole in the fence. Getting further to them, they saw the two girls working on a way to bypass the security entrance of the facility, eyeing them as their gadgets scanned the lock. When it finished, it transferred data over to the device in Makina's hand, seeing it open to form a key. With it, she unlocked the entranceway of the complex, using those skills to go through any more doors in the way.
"Holy moly," Freyja commented as another passage was opened to them.
"They're in perfect sync," Hayate added in.
"Tell me about it," Ruby whispered as she got up with Blake.
"It took them a while to get there," Kaname told them as she began to move forward, with Messer following behind. "They didn't used to get along. They'd start fighting the moment they saw each other." She kept going as she saw said two girls setting up a charge on the wall. "Honestly, because of them, we had to cancel a few shows. Water and oil. Mixing, not recommended."
"So basically, the same thing as Ruby and Weiss," Blake told her, seeing the young girl stare at her in shock. "When those two met, Ruby literally left a crater on the school courtyard thanks to Weiss shaking a bottle of Dust."
"Blake, you meanie," was all that Ruby muttered until she looked at the duo, smiling as they made a W out of their hands as the C4 they planted exploded. When the smoke cleared, the wall that held the explosive collapsed onto the ground in a bunny head shape, giving the group time to enter what appeared to be an underground cavern. Upon closer inspecting, they have noticed a manmade pillar surrounded by a large body of water. It took minutes for them to take in the marvel of the underground caverns as they took their places.
"Who knew there'd be such a huge cave under the ruins," Kaname spoke in awe as she stood still.
"Reina and Makina are taking care of the security programs," Ruby told her, grabbing Crescent Rose and shifting it into a sniper rifle. "That will give us some time to examine the place. And Blake…" She tosses her familiar weapon, Gambol Shroud, to her. "I figured you would need this on the mission."
"Ruby, I—" She spoke out until the young reaper cut her off.
"Don't worry about it. Project 'Black' is currently undergoing simulations back home. Now get ready."
"What exactly is this place," Hayate asked as he walked passed the cat faunas, hearing her weapon change into a pistol as he observed the surroundings. "It's filled with silos." He then walked over to a nearby faucet, turning the knob slightly to watch its contents. "And it's filled with… water?"
"Maybe it's used for cooling the dimensional weapon," Mirage guessed out loud.
"That is, if they did bring one," Ruby added her piece, walking passed her.
"That's not the case," they heard Messer call out, turning to catch a pair of bottles in their hands as the Grim Reaper approached them. "I found them in a container over there. Seems to be just plain drinking water. I've seen it in army facilities before."
"What a letdown," Makina commented, leaning back. "We came all the way here for water."
"Don't you think it's a bit too much," Blake asked her, only for Reina to answer.
"It's water used by the military." She then suddenly had an idea, running over to grab a water bottle before inserting a micro scanner into it, shaking it to get results. "61.4% of Var cases so far have been in the military."
Hayate, after hearing her after taking a sip out of the water, became shocked as he spat it out, looking at it before speaking. "Wait a moment."
"Windermere is using the water from here," Mirage asked, equally shocked over the revelation.
"We can't be too sure yet, Second Lt.," Ruby called out, looking over to the singers as they huddled together to see the results.
"Here's the results," Reina shouted out to the group. "Sodium: 1.1%, Potassium: 0.17%, Voldor bicarbonate: 0.03%. It's just regular water."
"Look at what I found," they all turned around as they heard Freyja, seeing the young Windermerean carrying a supply box full of apples "It looks yummy."
"Galactic apples," Messer commented on them, staring at the fruit. "They must also be for the military. They're cheap, but high on nutrients. Highly convenient."
"Galactic apples… Officially known as Windermere apples," Reina stated out. "It's a little known fact."
"Oh…" Freyja then smiled as she looked at her favorite food, holding an apple in her hand. "So everyone was unknowingly eating Windermerean apples? They're really tasty—" She then saw Makina stick a needle in the apple, getting data out of it while scaring the girl. "What are you doing, Makina?"
"Just a little taste testing," the girl in question answered her before looking over the results. "Polyphenols and vitamin C. It's just an apple."
"Something doesn't make any sense," Blake spoke up. "Over each of our confrontations with the Var, with Ruby's experience in Mistral, the Zentradi back on Al Shahal, and the N.U.N.S. at Randor and Ionedeth, the infected were skilled warriors and military personnel. Looking over the rations, I am seeing nothing but apples and water, things that the military here on Voldor eats. If what Messer said about the Seidznole chemical being the Var catalyst in the military is true, then what could be the very cause?"
Her answer never came to her as alarms began to cry out all over the base, shocking the singers and the pilots and leaving Messer, Blake and Ruby priming their weapons. All over the compound, hordes of Var controlled guards began to rush over to the point of disturbance, armed with their rifles loaded with live ammunition. The group all gathered around, waiting for the Var to arrive, when a familiar voice to Freyja called out.
"The wind has been disrupted," Bogue's voice echoed around the base. "I repeat, the wind has been disrupted. Find the intruders and capture them." They then heard a malicious chuckle as he let out one more comment. "Filthy Earthlings."
"We have no choice," Kaname called out to everyone. "Makina, Reina, secure out escape route. Everyone else, gather as many samples as you can." She then turned her back as Mirage acknowledged the order, gazing at Messer. "Watch our backs, Messer."
"Roger."
As the alarms continued to roar out, the group began to place both the Voldorian water bottles and Windermerean apples in their respective bags as Makina and Reina worked on a way out. Hayate didn't like the idea of leaving with the idea of taking only food and water, but something began to nag in his mind about why the military only had the two sources of nutrients. He then asked Mirage about the choice, only to be told to hurry. Looking at the water and the apple, an idea began to come into his mind.
"Galactic apples… Windermerean apples," he started out, looking at both Makina and Reina as they worked before remembering Kaname's words. "Impossible combination… dangerous to mix."
"Hayate, what are you thinking," Ruby asked him as he looked over the water and apple in his hands. "Something bothering you?"
"Calling it a hunch, Rubes," He simply told her, looking at Reina again. "Hey Rei, You mind prepping one of those scanners again?"
She simply nodded as he began to open up the water bottle, placing it down briefly before gazing at the Windermerean fruit. Grabbing his knife, he carefully cut out a small piece of apple, grabbing the piece and placing it in the water. He then handed the bottle over to Reina with the cap beside him, seeing her place a scanner into the mixture before closing it and shaking the contents. When the results came in, her face adopted a look of shock as Makina read them out.
"The polyphenols bounded to the Voldorian bicarbonate… wait, I'm detecting a high concentration of Seidznole."
"Way to go, Hayate," Ruby congratulated the young man before looking at Blake. "Guess you have your answers."
"So," Kaname started, thinking out the logical explanation. "If you mix the water from here with Windermerean apples, it creates Seidznole in the body that triggers the Var." She then thought further. "It may be possible for other planets' ruins to have water with similar composition. Windermere artificially spreads the Var using the water and apples, then controls the victims with the Song of the Wind."
"Makes sense if the N.U.N.S. heard the song." The young girl then heard the sound of footprints getting closer, motioning the group to high tail out of the facility. Running ahead of the group, she found a perfect spot to hide briefly before taking her weapon out. Replacing the Dust rounds with stun rounds, she primed her sniper rifle before setting it down; keeping her sight on the halls as Var controlled guards appeared and aimed at each other. She then smirked as she fired the stun rounds on the soldiers, shocking them as they all fell to the bullet's effects before she ran to catch up with the group.
Hallway after hallway, with Messer in front of the group while Ruby handled the backside, Makina continued to lead the group down the escape route that she and Reina made out. So far, they have yet to encounter any more Var N.U.N.S. infantry on their way out, but it still kept the pilots on edge. It was when they reached the halfway point when Freyja stopped, hearing Mikumo singing GIRAFFE BLUES farther in the complex.
"Mikumo," the girl questioned out as she stood, causing Mirage, Hayate and Ruby to stop alongside her.
"What are you doing," the young man asked her.
"We have to hurry," Mirage followed up, only to see their way out suddenly close on them, separating them from the others.
"Ruby," Blake called out to the group, running up to the new barrier. "Are you OK?"
"FreFre," Makina called out as well.
"Don't worry about us," they heard the young reaper on the other side. "We'll find another way out."
"Go on ahead," Mirage shouted out after her. "We'll catch up."
"I'm leaving those three in your hands," Messer shouted to the Second Lt. before looking at his group. "Let's move."
With the two groups separated again and moving on their own, the group Messer lead continued their movements on the path Makina made out for an escape while Mirage's group stayed behind. However, they were not alone as both Ruby and Hayate spotted three shadows approaching them, with their appearances belonging to the Aerial Knights. The young man then looked over to the side and found an opening, moving towards the vents on the ground and opening it while the Second and Third Lieutenants aimed their weapons towards the way back.
"Girls," he called out to them, pointing towards his exit. "This way. Hurry."
Nodding to one another, the girls ran over towards the exit and entered it, with Mirage in front, followed by Freyja and Ruby with Hayate behind as he closed it before sliding down. The ducts led them towards another cavern, devoid of any Windermerean or Var N.U.N.S. forces, but Mirage looked over the area with rifle in hand, searching for any threats. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, she gave the all clear to the others, running out into the clearing with Ruby beside her.
It didn't last long for them as searchlights suddenly lit up, coating the three pilots and the Walkure singer into the light. Looking around, they saw that they have fallen into the Aerial Knight's bait. They saw the five Windermereans, members of Keith's elite forces, standing on the catwalks with Theo and Xiao by the entranceway, Bogue walking out of the lit doorway. He then snarled as he saw the group they had captured.
"Look at what we have found," he started, glaring at the infiltration team. "Three N.U.G. dogs… and one Windermerean Traitor."
The girls' expressions were filled with hatred as Herman appeared behind Bogue, causing Mirage to speak out. "The Aerial Knights."
"The enemy," Hayate whispered out.
"Damn," Ruby cursed out, gripping Crescent Rose in her hands. "We fell for it."
A/N: I have finally finished it, after a little over a month to work on the chapter.
So Ruby has now seen the faces of Windermere's main forces under Keith's command, but not the White Knight of Darwent himself. How will she handle the Aerial Knights without the aid of her VF-31 Siegfried?
So I have added in more mysteries linked to Remnant's history now, and all will be dealt with later on. But now the girls figured out one of the main causes of the Var Syndrome. Looking over it, not only is there the triangle between Ruby, Weiss and Makina, but there is the one between Yang, Blake and Messer, as well as Kaname's growing jealousy towards Blake as well. Do I feel kinda responsible? Yeah, seeing as I'm typing the story, so go ahead and throw bricks at me. But I wanted to see how that jealousy will play out.
Review Replies:
ElentiyaViStaadfeldt: Yay! First comment for Chappie 10!
Wow, I just realized that Theo and Xiao are kinda whore-y.
Even though P***** has only 4-ish paragraphs of appearance in this fic, I can already see her and Gramia as best friends who are kinda in love, but not in love. Do you get what I mean? Also wow Yang found out. Can't wait for the next chappie.
Nice one with the first comment. The reason why you are the first reviewer for chapter 10 is because I see that guest reviews take up to two days for me to see them, whereas people with accounts are posted in a few minutes. I find that kinda weird. You may need to elaborate a bit on how Theo and Xiao are 'whore-y' since I don't understand, but you may be right about P***** and Gramia being like that. In the past before now, I can see them in a relationship. And yeah, Yang would be the first to find out. I hope you would enjoy this chapter.
Yuiharime: I think you're right. There is no stopping fate once Messer bites the dust. Blake would be devastated but hopefully Yang would be there for her.
Once he's gone, I hope Sun comes around for her, volume 4's 3rd chapter got me shipping Blake & Sun again.
And also love the love triangle of Mirage, Hayate and Freyja.
Yeah, Sun does care about her. However, that is not meant to be. Like I said, things are going to be dark for the RWBY side as well. What will happen, I cannot tell as to avoid future spoilers.
Tendaysromeo: S-S-S-SHOGUN KAYO! Ehem...sorry about that just can't help it.
The chapter was a lot more action pack and I like that the fight isn't just fixated in Ruby's POV but to everyone as well.
Love the slight reveal in the end.
Thank you. I believe that the 'S-S-S-SHOGUN KAYO!' is going to be a regular occurrence. I'm glad that you like the action in the chapter. And while Ruby is my favorite character, I do try to type out the battle in everybody else's point of view. And I had to add in the reveal for Yang at the end, leading to her decision to be in orbit at Voldor. She believes that if she was on the ground with Ruby, she might accidentally slip up and tell her.
Marcus the Kane: Nice chapter! I wish the last part where White Rose reveal should have come later but it's still good.
Love the part where Makina & Yang hugging Ruby in her sleep while Weiss looks at them blushing, that cute and hilarious.
The White Rose will officially reveal herself to the group at a later time. It's just that Yang happened to see her without the hood over her head and the glasses off her face. And Yang didn't actually hug Ruby in her sleep. It's just Makina reminded Ruby of the blonde doing the same thing when they were younger. At least, that's what I think in my head.
Wee-0wee-0: Man, the revelation was a tease! But at least one person knows who she is.
Great chapter and damn I totally hate the Windermereans(except Freyja of course) I wish their leader kicks the bucket already.
Uh, which one? Lloyd, the Windermerean that has planned out everything, or Gramia, the King of Windermere? It will happen eventually. Just, not now. And I know, I like to tease. Blame my mother for that trait.
XY Kid: Love the new chapter, the action was terrific, the interactions are good and part where the White Rose revealing who she is splendid.
You really done good even without an editor you manage to write a good story.
Why thank you very much. I do try my best when it came to doing the editing myself and trying to get chapters done right away. But with life, video games like Forza and Dead Rising 4 and work, it's kinda hard. But reviews like yours keep me going.
Guest: You don't think that Windermereans has conquered Planets Mira, Tuchanka, Commonwealth and Aiur as well, do they?
*deadpans* Aside from Aiur, I have absolutely no idea where those Planets belong to in terms of series, but to answer your question, No. Reason being is that I am focusing on the Macross universe, and those planets aren't a part of it. Gomen'nasai (ごめんなさい)
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. What do you think? Leave a Favorite, Follow and/or Review.
With that out of the way, I'm BlazefireDrago, signing out.
P.S. Have a Merry Christmas, Joyous Kwanzaa, and a Happy Hannukah. Simply, Happy Holidays everyone.