Chapter 10
"I am so, so sorry!" Pyrrha apologized, for the seventeenth time in ten minutes.
Around her, Harry, Thomas, and Murphy lay against the cargo containers, recuperating from their wounds. The moment Pyrrha had come to, she had swiftly and calmly brought the three together and ensured their injuries weren't life-threatening. To her relief, no one seemed to be suffering from anything worse than a few bruises, though Harry insisted that they make a proper visit to Butters when they got the chance.
During all of this confusion though, Pyrrha had apologized profusely to them all. Murphy and Harry were slightly amused by it, but Thomas was growing grumpier with each one. This was understandable, given his more painful injuries. His voice had yet to return to its original pitch, even if the pain had faded.
"If she apologizes one more time," he squeaked.
"Thomas," Harry warned. If Pyrrha felt that apologizing would help at all, Harry was content to let her. The girl had suffered enough, and didn't need to be reprimanded for trying to fix what had been done.
Thomas huffed and looked away. Pyrrha hung her head and said, once more, "I'm sorry."
With a grunt, Murphy pushed herself to her feet and clapped Pyrrha on the shoulder, "Your fine kid. Not your fault, this magical BS always catches people like you and me off guard. Really, we should have checked Torchwick for magical items too."
She sent Harry a pointed look, and he sighed, "Yeah, I messed up bad there. I'm used to most crooks being pretty dumb about magic. I should've realized Torchwick knew more than usual once he recognized Mab's name."
"We lost him either way, no point in pointing fingers at anyone," Murphy said. This time the look was at Thomas, who was still pouting.
Murphy rolled her eyes and helped Harry up. Pyrrha stood off to the side, fidgeting in place, but she didn't move from her spot. After everything that kept happening, she was almost afraid to move at all. Every action she was taking seemed to end in gunfire or pain for these people. Standing in place seemed to be the only safe option for any of them.
It was a silly rationalization of course, and part of Pyrrha knew that. But she wasn't feeling particularly rational, she hadn't felt that way all day. She felt frayed and on edge, rightfully so of course, but the consequences of that were clearly showing themselves. If she had been smart, if she'd been at her best, Torchwick never would've thrown that enchantment in her face and they wouldn't have lost their only lead. Now, because of her, they had no way of knowing where Torchwick was getting his supply of Dust from, and they didn't have time to scour the warehouse. The fact that no one had investigated the commotion yet was a miracle, but they were pushing their luck standing around.
As if he read her mind, once he was on his feet, Harry said, "We need to get moving. Someone could come in and check on us at any moment. We'll have to come back another time and see what we find."
"Assuming the police don't tear it up when they show up," Thomas said bitterly.
"Yeah, assuming that," Harry agreed, and helped Thomas up.
Pyrrha though, frowned, "I'm…sorry. But why not try and work with the police, they must have resources and manpower we don't have. It's not uncommon to see back home, especially if Grimm are involved."
Harry let out a bark of laughter, "Yeah, not likely here. The parts of the CPD that don't think I'm a whack-job think I'm a charlatan."
Pyrrha cocked her head to the side, "But… you said you were a Private Investigator."
"I am," Harry said. "At least, that's my official occupation. I haven't had an actual case from the CPD in years."
"Especially not since they fired me," Murphy grumbled.
"Yeah, especially then," Harry agreed.
He saw Pyrrha's confused expression and sighed, "Look, long story short Pyrrha, the mortal world and the supernatural world don't mix. People just… can't wrap their mind around the idea."
Pyrrha frowned, "That's… silly. Wouldn't there be plenty of evidence to the contrary?"
"Supernatural doesn't like getting involved with the public," Thomas explained, finally standing up, "They keep to themselves. Calling in the humans is the equivalent of a nuclear bomb in the Supernatural world."
"I assume that's bad." Pyrrha said.
There was a brief exchange of glances, before Harry said, "Well… yeah, it's bad. Come on, I'll explain more in the car."
Pyrrha followed the others to the exit, mulling over what she'd been told. The idea of hiding things like magic, vampires, and other supernatural monsters from the world sounded ludicrous. People had a right to know about things like that, so they could react more with more than just fear and confusion. While the governments of Remnant all had their secret, things like the Grimm and the power of Aura were common knowledge to anyone that wanted to know more about them. No one would hide something as dangerous and powerful as magic from the public, it would have too many ways it could go wrong. At least, that was what Pyrrha thought.
They managed to find the exit after retracing their steps, passing through the destruction their fight had wrought. The cargo containers were still misshapen and strewn about. One had burst open on landing and spilled its contents everywhere. Pyrrha paid it no mind, more focused on how she'd managed to accomplish such a feat.
In the heat of the moment, she had power to lift several thousand pounds if she needed to. But those crates had to be closer to fifty or sixty thousand pounds' worth of material, way beyond what she could hope to lift. Which begged the question of where she had gotten the power to do so, and why she didn't feel tired from doing it.
Using too much of her Aura would put Pyrrha down for hours if she wasn't careful. It was different than if it was 'shattered' from too much abuse. The difference was as simple as comparing boxing to weight lifting, but with deadlier results. It still didn't answer why Pyrrha was tired, but truthfully, she had no idea why and felt she would never get a true answer on the subject. It had been that kind of day.
The universe did not play to Pyrrha's expectations though, as it so rarely did. As their group finally found the exit, a wave of fatigue washed over Pyrrha. Exhaustion filled her limbs with lead, and she felt her hands go numb with familiar exhaustion.
"Oh there it is," she breathed, and collapsed against the nearest container.
"Pyrrha?" Murphy was back at her side deceptively quick. Pyrrha briefly noticed that she had collapsed against the floor, before the exhaustion returned.
Murphy put the back of her hand against the girl's forehead, "No fever, she must just be tired from…everything."
"Right, she's the tired one," Thomas grumbled.
Harry sent his brother a look, "Not helping."
"Pyrrha, can you hear me?" Murphy asked.
Her voice was a little muffled, but Pyrrha could hear her. She nodded, and felt her eyes grow heavy. Everything was so heavy. Murphy said something again, but she really couldn't make it out. Maybe she'd find out after her nap…
A pulse of frigid shook her very core, and Pyrrha jerked awake, "What!?"
Quickly looking around, she saw that her position hadn't changed. She was still sitting against the crate and the others were gathered around her, save Thomas. Murphy's hand was pulled back in obvious preparation for a slap, but when Pyrrha woke up, the hand dropped and Murphy looked relieved.
"Oh thank God, you're okay."
Pyrrha clenched her hand over her chest and grimaced, "I wouldn't say that…"
Another pulse wracked her body, that same icy chill. Pain flowed from her center, returning life and feeling to her limbs. The numbness in her fingers was beginning to fade, and she felt, if not energized, alert.
"Come on, help her up," Murphy ordered Harry. Together, the two helped Pyrrha to her feet, where another pulse made her yelp.
Her chest felt like someone was stabbing it with frozen steel. Every pulse sent the rivers of ice flowing through her veins, and her fingers curled tightly around Harry's wrist until it creaked.
He grunted and gently pried her free, "Pyrrha, what's wrong?"
Another pulse, and Pyrrha let out a strangled gasp, "Don't know…something in my chest. Very cold…"
She didn't pay attention to what Harry or Murphy said. The pain had her attention, and she focused on it. It didn't take long for her to discover two things. One, that the pain was centered around her heart, and two, that it was not so much a pulse as it was a tug. Something was grabbing at her.
"H-Harry," Pyrrha stammered, "I need you and Murphy t-to let me go for one moment…Please."
The wizard and the former cop looked at each other and then at Pyrrha. The girl was pale faced, wide eyed, and looked exhausted. Given how she had been firmly kicking their asses minutes ago, it was a stark contrast. But, she was never one to try something without a reason, they had learned.
So, Harry sighed and said, "Sure. Thomas, can you get the Hummer ready? We'll be out in a few minutes."
The vampire sighed and began to walk off, "Yeah, I'm on it. Just try not to get arrested again Harry."
"No promises!" he called after Thomas.
Murphy and Harry released Pyrrha once Thomas was gone. She swayed back and forth, slowly orienting herself in the direction of the pull. Gradually, Pyrrha turned around until she was facing the very container she had been using as a wall a moment ago. The pull remained the same, but instead of pulling her back, it strained against her chest, beckoning her forward.
Without a word, Pyrrha pulled Miló from her back and slashed a diagonal gash along the containers edge in a shower of sparks and shrieking steel. Harry and Murphy jumped back in surprise.
"Pyrrha, what-"
Using her Semblance, Pyrrha peeled the container open and exposed its insides. The moment she did, the pulling in her chest stopped. Pyrrha let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding as the pain finally started to fade from the ends of her arms and legs. It took some concentration to keep herself from crumpling in relief on the spot.
Her relief did not last long, as what was calling to her was revealed.
Inside the container, was a small circle of fresh chalk. It surrounded a perfectly square stone, its surfaces a glossy black etched with dozens of scarlet runes. The runes pulsed in steady rhythm to an unknown beat that only Pyrrha could feel. But strangest of all, was what was above the stone.
At first glance, it would appear to be nothing, an absolute absence of color, texture, light, or substance, simply nothing. Staring at it made Pyrrha's eyes hurt, so she looked at its edges instead. The edge of the object suggested it was a circle or sphere of some kind. They had substance, but it was impossible to guess what it was. Sometimes it was merely waves of heat, sometimes things that looked up were suddenly down, left was right, inside was outside, and sometimes it appeared as nothing but a faint light. All within a handful of seconds, so fast that Pyrrha couldn't keep focused on it.
"What is that?" Murphy winced, "It hurts just to look at it."
Harry was covering his eyes with one hand, taking no chances with this thing, "It looked like a portal to the Nevernever mixed with Mordite… I don't know what it is honestly, but it can't be good."
Pyrrha agreed, and yet she still felt drawn to it. The pull in her chest was an ache, a longing, so familiar. It was a longing for home, for friends, for what she had left behind. Which was absolutely ridiculous of course, but her curiosity was strong. The pull in her chest tugged in rhythm with the pulsing runes, so there was a relation. Maybe if she got closer…
Murphy was the first to look away from the sphere and see Pyrrha move forward. She reacted appropriately.
"Pyrrha, wait!"
Too little too late.
She only had to take a few steps forward, and the sphere reacted to her presence. Its form shivered and writhed, a predator unfurling itself to devour unwary prey. Edges split, light spilled from within its nothingness, and like a flower, it blossomed before their very eyes. Seven strips of nothingness, surrounding a source that was both dark and light, night and day.
Pyrrha's third step brought about the final change. The light within swirled in a flurry of colors, taking shape into something new, something unexpected. A crystal clear image of a lake on the cusp of sunset.
Tall evergreens lined its picturesque waters, and faint cirrus clouds lined the sky like brush strokes. At the center of this image, was a camp site. The beginning of a fireplace had been formed, and tents were neatly pitched and…
Tears welled up in Pyrrha's eyes, and the ache in her chest exploded into a longing need. Within the picture the circle showed them all, was a lakeside camp built by her friends and teammates, and she could see them setting up for the night.
Pyrrha stopped moving forward, and merely watched, clasping her hands together and letting the tears flow down her face. Harry and Murphy stepped up beside her, staring at the image in wonder.
"What… are we looking at?"
Pyrrha sniffled, "A…lake. Looks like t-the geography of Vale, if I had to guess…"
Murphy looked at the young woman, and asked in a careful tone, "And the people in the camp?"
"F-friends…" Pyrrha whispered.
She said it and knew it was true, even if her friends had changed since she last remembered them. Collecting firewood on the perimeter of the camp was a tall young man and shorter young woman.
The young man had long black hair with a strip of magenta that matched his eyes. His hair was longer than Pyrrha remembered, coming down to his shoulder blades, but barring that, Lie Ren had barely changed at all since she last saw him. Still slim, still lean, and with the same ageless features. He was dressed in a simpler green tailcoat with golden trimming, pink cuffs, and a black collar, He wore white slacks, as usual. He moved with a calmness about him, every movement careful and precise, no energy wasted on unnecessary movement.
His companion on the other hand, flitted from every piece of wood with an unnatural speed and boundless energy. Nora Valkyrie had grown her hair out a little longer, and added battle armor to her usual attire. A simple steel breastplate covered her chest and she'd added full metal gauntlets and boots to her ensemble. She looked slightly taller, but was practically the same otherwise.
While they gathered firewood, someone else was unpacking tents, the last person Pyrrha had expected to see with her teammates.
Ruby Rose, leader of team RWBY, was finishing the last of the tents, and wore a small smile on her face. She was the youngest student at Beacon Academy, and the intervening time had affected her more than the others. She had gained an inch or two in height, and let her dark red hair grow down to the back of her neck.
Her outfit had changed as well, replacing the all black gown she'd once worn with a white blouse, and black corset skirt combo. She wore tights that had seen wear and tear, and new black boots. But she still wore her iconic red cloak, that hadn't changed, even if its edges were frayed and damaged.
"Huh," Harry said, looking over the assembled teenagers, "They're…quite the colorful bunch, aren't they?"
Pyrrha swallowed and said, "I… don't understand why they're here instead of at the academy… or why Ruby is with them." She didn't mention the absence of her last teammate. Her eyes desperately scanned the scene for him, but saw nothing.
"Ruby the red head?" Murphy asked.
Pyrrha nodded, "Yes. She… she leads her own team. I don't know why she'd be with my teammates, not without her own team."
"Different camp maybe," Harry suggested.
That could be, and Pyrrha was about to say so, when the last member of her team entered the clearing from outside the camera's view. A tall young man with shaggy blonde hair and bright blue eyes, he wore jeans and a long sleeved black shirt that he must've traded in his hoody for. Over it, he wore plates of white armor on his arms and chest, and a new set on his legs. Most surprisingly though, was the faint stubble around his chin and jaw, that gave him a…roguish charm. Pyrrha wasn't sure how she felt about that. Yes, her priorities were certainly in order, why would you ask that?
The young man carried several large bags of what had to be supplies, and set them down with a visible relief. Then he headed to the fire pit and got to work.
"Um, we're kind of lost here," Harry said.
Pyrrha blinked and realized that both he and Murphy were still there. She blushed and said, "I'm sorry, it's just… so good to see them again."
She listed her friends in the order she saw them, "Lie Ren, Nora Valkyrie, Ruby Rose, and… Jaune Arc."
"Huh, so that's Jaune," Murphy murmured, "He's kinda cute, I can see the attraction."
Pyrrha's face burned and she stuttered uselessly. Harry ignored the comment and strode forward. He held out his left hand in front of him, and whistled softly.
"I've got to say, there's a lot of magic in this thing. If it works like a Nevernever portal, then it needs all of it to keep it constantly maintained."
Pyrrha blinked, "Wait, portal? Do you think I could…?"
Harry saw where she was going with that, and shook his head, "I wouldn't risk it Pyrrha. We don't know enough about this thing. For all we know, it could vaporize you if you tried to pass through it."
He tapped the ground near the circle, "Besides, break the summoning circle, and you could release all the mojo trapped there. Then you'd really have a problem on your hands."
Pyrrha ground her teeth and said, in a very tight tone, "Then what do you plan on doing?"
Harry held his staff in both hands, and said in complete deadpan, "Imma smash it with my staff and see what happens."
Murphy and Pyrrha stared at him. Harry grinned in response.
"…You…can't be serious." Pyrrha said.
Murphy pinched her nose, "Don't say that, he takes it as a personal challenge."
"She's not wrong," Harry agreed, and turned back to the rock.
Before he could go caveman on it, Pyrrha walked up next to him and gently grabbed his shoulder. He looked back at her, and her puffy red eyes, and braced himself for what she was about to say next.
"Just a few minutes. Please?"
Harry sighed and lowered his staff, "Damn it, fine. Five minutes, then we need to go." He couldn't help it, if a girl gave him the puppy dog eyes, he was putty in their hands.
Pyrrha smiled. "Thank you."
Harry just grunted and stepped back. Pyrrha looked back at the portal, watching her friends. It was odd, as far as she remembered, she had just seen them less than a day or two ago. Yet she felt like she hadn't seen or heard from them in months, which would be ridiculous.
Unless what Torchwick had said was true, that it had been months since the Vytal festival. What had Pyrrha done in the intervening time since then, what memories were blocked away in her mind by Black Magic? And if her friends were out of the Academy, what had happened to the others from the school, to their friends and their family?
Pyrrha felt a pang of guilt when she thought about family. In all the chaos and confusion, she'd barely thought at all about the family she'd left behind. If four months really was how long she was gone, how had her mother faired, and did she even know that Pyrrha was gone? She didn't live in Vale, and if something had happened to the Cross Continental Transmit System, (Or CCTS for short) then she would have no idea anything had even happened to Pyrrha.
'Oh, Mom, I hope you're okay.' Pyrrha silently prayed.
The portal puled again, and the petals began to wriggle and morph, rotating clockwise until the next petal had assumed the position of its predecessor. The image before her changed in time with the rotation. The serene lake and her friends vanished from sight, quickly replaced with a small village of stone houses and cobblestone paths. An ancient swamp surrounded it from all sides, and even though no sound passed through the portal, Pyrrha could hear the chorus of frogs and crickets that would serenade her to sleep every night.
The view had changed from Vale to Mistral, her home kingdom, the land of swamps. Pyrrha knew the streets of her hometown well, for after several years of moving from city to city, she and her mother had returned there instead. The view shifted with Pyrrha's reminiscing, following the cobblestone path through the village, passing taverns, shops, and farmers markets, pass them all. It followed a winding path to a grassy plateau where a small stone manor stood.
A steel gate surrounded most of the plateau, put there by Pyrrha herself years ago. The manor was two stories high, with many windows and a very humble design. It resembled more of a farmers house, than a manor, which was fitting. Surrounding it on all sides were rows of ploughed fields where dozens of plants grew together, despite such impracticality.
Beside her, Pyrrha hear Harry say, "So, pictures moving. What are we looking at?"
"My home." Pyrrha explained.
"You're a farmer?"
"No, the garden is my mothers. She grows and sells food to the village. Her Semblance lets her influence the growth of plants. No matter the season or weather, she can make any plant grow. We've been the main food supply of the village since I was fifteen."
The view changed again, falling behind the manor and passing over a field of olive trees where it centered on a familiar figure.
She was tall and wiry, wearing sun-bleached overalls and a faded green shirt. She wore a straw hat and her long red hair fell to the back of her calves. Unlike Pyrrha, her hair was streaked in various shades of red from time spent in the sun, and her olive skin had begun to wrinkle. But she still moved from each plant with an almost childlike energy, and the most prominent wrinkles were the laugh lines on her face. Just like Pyrrha, her eyes were a startling green, albeit, faded with age.
From tree to tree she moved, trimming branches, checking irrigation, and softly singing to each one. Pyrrha could not hear what she said, but knew that her mother always sung when using her Semblance. A habit she had picked up when Pyrrha was much, much younger.
"And that's her?" Murphy asked.
Pyrrha smiled and nodded, "Yes, Viridia Nikos. I wish…"
In all honesty, Pyrrha didn't know what to say. Her mother was still alive and well, her garden was intact. Did she know then, that Pyrrha was missing? Had anyone bothered to tell her at all? Or was she focused on her garden to ignore the pain, fear she must be feeling? Pyrrha didn't know, but damn it, she wanted to!
She felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Harry, and he said, "I swear on my power Pyrrha that I will find a way for you to get home."
Feeling tears well up in her eyes, Pyrrha forced herself from crushing Harry in a hug there and then. She had enough emotional breakdowns for one day, she did not need to add to them. So instead, she smiled as she watched her mother work.
"Thank you, Mister Dresden. You're a good man."
"Well, he is definitely a man," Murphy agreed, practically appearing out of nowhere next to him, wearing a big grin.
Harry rolled his eyes and looked at Pyrrha, "You see all you need to kid?"
Pyrrha nodded, "Yes, I just wish I could communicate with them somehow."
The moment the words left her lips, the portal screamed and writhed in response. Each individual petal twisted and writhed. The image vanished from view, and the crate began to vibrate. The three wisely stepped back, watching the portal with surprise and more than a hint of worry.
Once, twice, three times the portal pulsed and hissed, and then…
Spat something at Pyrrha's face.
Then its petals wrapped around the portal once more, returning it to an unsettling nothingness. The warehouse felt eerily silent.
"…Well that was a thing." Harry finally said.
"Wonder what that was all about?" Murphy wondered.
"Um…" Pyrrha replied.
They both looked at her, and what she held in her hands. What the portal had spat at her, was a small white object that fit into the palm of her hand. There was a golden diamond in the center of it and a seam split along the middle.
Murphy frowned, "Pyrrha, do you know what that is?"
The red head nodded, and grabbed either end of the device. Slowly, she pulled either end apart, to reveal a translucent screen between both ends. She pressed her thumb against the golden button at the bottom, and the translucent screen lit up with a blue background. Text flashed across the screen.
User Recognized: Hello, Pyrrha Nikos
"It's my Scroll," Pyrrha explained.
"That like an iPhone?" Murphy asked.
Pyrrha blinked, "A what?"
"Communication device, lets you access the internet, that kinda stuff." Murphy explained.
"Well, that would be accurate, I suppose. Though they access the CCTS instead, I don't know what this 'internet' is."
Harry promptly took two steps away from Pyrrha, "Either way, sounds hi-techy. You should probably keep that thing away from me, unless you want it to explode in your hands."
Pyrrha raised a brow at Harry, and pointed her Scroll at him. He raised his hands defensively, "Hey, whoa, what did I just say?!"
"Seems to be running fine to me," Pyrrha said, stepping forward until her Scroll was tapping Harry's chest.
"Wait, really?" The tone of surprise in Harry's voice was comical.
Pyrrha smiled and began flipping through the Scrolls list of contacts, "Yep. Maybe it's because it runs on Dust instead? Your magic is very similar to a person's Aura, it seems. Maybe that's why."
A thoughtful expression formed on Harry's face, "Huh, how about that…"
Before he could descend into thought on those implications though, Murphy interrupted him, "Very cool, but we should get moving now. We've wasted enough time."
Harry nodded, "Right, all wizards and minors should evacuate the premises. We'll discuss this later."
He marched over to the portal where the Blackstone rested, and crouched next to it. He kept his left hand extended as he did, and casually smacked the stone with the end of his staff. There was a brief scream from the portal, and then it vanished. The Blackstone toppled out of the circle, and its ruins faded into its smooth surface.
"Huh, that was surprisingly easy." Harry said. He grabbed the stone with a cloth from his duster, and slipped it into one of his pockets.
"Welp, let's go."
Pyrrha finished flipping through her scroll, and pressed the center button before shutting it again. She wasn't sure if a message could ever get out, but there had been a signal, and if it wasn't from Harry's world, then maybe it was passing through the portal. Unlikely, but Pyrrha certainly hoped her message made it.
The three of them finally left the Warehouse together, sneaking their way back to where Pyrrha had pealed open the fence, only to find Thomas standing there, and a hole in the sidewalk. And no Hummer in sight.
Harry tapped his staff against the ground, "Um, Thomas? Where's the car?"
Thomas kicked the ground, hard.
"That son of a bitch stole it!"
A/N: So this chapter went through a dozen different variations before I decided to cut some of the scenes, hence why it's being posted today instead of Tuesday. Next chapter will be fairly exposition heavy, and shorter than usual, so I should be able to post it tomorrow, I hope.
Anyway, lotta things happened here, obviously. Some bigger than others, some we won't touch on until as late as the second volume. Either way, you all now know that yes, I am using the new designs from volume 4. As we don't know much about the rest of Team RNGR's new designs yet, save for Ruby, I've taken liberties with them. If you think I should change what I've come up with, lemme know in the review with suggested ideas. After all, that portal was pretty shifty, not everything we saw might have been true...
Moving onto questions, as we actually have a few this time I think:
Well okay, only one, from Velzon who asks: Any other characters from RWBY going to show up, besides Pyrrha and Torchwick?
I do believe you have the answer to your question my friend.
And to all those who guessed correctly on which show I was referencing last chapter, you get a digital cookie.
That's all for now though my friends, I will see you all tomorrow, hopefully, and barring that, this Saturday. Remember to leave questions with your reviews, they help motivate and inspire!
Ta-ta for now!