Epilogue: "Judgment Day"
In the forest, moments before the bell tolled for Ruby, Cinder and Pyrrha were clashing against Rain as the rain fell upon them, the clouds getting closer and closer towards them. As the water dropped upon the grass and trees, it also made steam come from Pyrrha and Cinder's swords and the former's shield as the opponent's on both sides became tired with how long they carried the battle up till now. As Rain gazed upon the Fall Maidens, however, she became interested in their capabilities, seeing as they lasted this long.
"Hmm. I'm almost impressed. Most of my prey would've been dead by now. But, I think I've stalled long enough."
As they heard this, Pyrrha grew worried as to what it meant.
"What do you mean?"
"I told one of you before: your Argent friend wouldn't have a chance in Hell. I was merely keeping you busy long enough for it to come true."
As Cinder realized what they've been doing this whole time, she began to tense her Grimm hand in anger as she growled before summoning a fire ball from her human hand at her, only for Rain to vanish in swift speed as she laughed in echoes. While this happened, Cinder growled before she set out to find Rain, only for Pyrrha to stop her.
"Forget about her. We need to go find Ruby. That's the best way to help her."
Cinder didn't quite like their position, but they didn't have much choice. And so, Cinder nodded reluctantly before they headed deeper in the forest and came out quickly on the other side. Unfortunately, they were too late. For they've arrived just in time to see Ruby seemingly fall off the waterfall to her death as they saw her fade in the mist. Seeing this, Pyrrha greatly became distressed as she covered her mouth before she began to shed tears.
"No...! Ruby...!"
As horrified as Cinder was, however, she felt something was off. Even at a fall from this height, there should be a splash, yet there weren't any. Yet, only she could notice as half of her body is attuned to a Grimmlike composure.
"Wait. She didn't fall in. There's no splash."
"What? How do you know?"
"My Grimm Side has an acute sense of hearing. We have to find her and fast."
"But where can we even begin to look?"
"Obviously, at the bottom of the waterfall. Now, let's go."
With that, Cinder and Pyrrha took a path that led to the bottom of the waterfall, catching the attention of Raven as she noticed them before she turned to Kazan who boastfully pointed his sword at them in triumph.
"You have my permission to cower..."
Raven only flared her red eyes before she spoke back.
"We will never give in to you."
Leaving her words hanging in the air, Raven opened a red portal with her sword before the group all made a break for it, making Kazan glare at it before he prepared to cut it down to size, only for Crimson to fire his talons at it, hitting his arm before it could swing, making him exclaim as they embed themselves in his arm before he used the sword's power to destroy the infection as the group all made it into the portal before it closed as Kazan growled before he sighed, knowing full well their resistance would amount to nothing in the future as he chuckled.
"So be it, then. You've made your choice, and I've made mine..."
In the afterlife, Ruby was on her back unconscious as she began to hear her mother's voice.
"Ruby. Ruby, wake up."
"M-Mom?"
As she opened her eyes, Ruby found a white cloak floating in the wind over a cliff at sunset before she pulled her hood down and looked to her daughter with a sad smile.
"Hello, Ruby. I'm glad to see you again."
Upon seeing her, Ruby's eyes began to tear up before she ran over to her and hugged her as she sobbed while she spake.
"Oh, Mom! I'm so sorry...!"
As Ruby continued her sobs, Summer only placed her hands on her back as she spoke up.
"Ruby, listen to me. You have nothing to be sorry for."
"I thought I could do it. I really did, but then Kazan showed up, separated us all, and he—"
Before she could finish, Ruby gasped upon realizing what just happened.
"Oh, no... did I die?"
As if to answer, Coleum's voice spoke out from behind her as he walked towards her while she squeaked upon hearing his voice.
"No, Ruby. You haven't. But your life is now hanging by a thin thread."
"It... it is?"
"Kazan has dealt a critical blow to you, but your aura is trying to heal your body, thanks to Salem and your friend."
Knowing of only one person that could heal their aura, Ruby knew the answer.
"Jaune."
"That's right. If you wish to defeat Kazan, you must abandon your mother."
As Ruby heard this, she became confused as she spoke.
"What do you mean?"
"As I said, you're hanging by a thin thread. You must either choose to remain on Remnant and fight Kazan, or stay here and be with your Mother."
Given the ultimatum, Ruby was torn. She doesn't want Kazan to destroy Remnant or its people, but at the same time, she doesn't want to be spend one more moment without her mother as she looked at Coleum, remembering how vain her effort was to bring peace to it in the first place as memories of Penny's "death" appeared as well as countless people being grimmified, Crimson hurting Pyrrha with his talons, and worst of all, the atrocities Ruby did to Yang at Kuroyuri as her tears overflowed out of her eyes. As she sobbed, Ruby ran to her mother and spoke her fears to her.
"Mom... I can't go back without you. It's not fair... I can't handle any of this on my own... I can't. Not without you."
Not willing to see her daughter saddened by these burdens, Summer placed her hands on her cheeks and moved it up to speak to her face.
"You have to. You're stronger than you give yourself credit for, Ruby. Your friends know it. Your enemies know it. Even Salem knows it. And right now, they're trying so hard not to let you down."
"Why would they when I'm the one who let them down?"
Not willing to stand seeing her for one moment more, Summer began to act serious as she looked at her with her own tears.
"You haven't, Ruby. Not yet. Don't you dare let their efforts to bring you back be in vain. Not even for my sake. Okay?"
As Ruby and Summer looked at each other, the former could tell she was getting sad seeing her sad like this. Like one of those "if you cry, I cry" situations. But this has a deeper meaning. Summer wanted so badly for her to be strong, but if she can't do that, what would be the point for her to even try for her daughter? Ruby understood this well, and she didn't want her mother giving up any more than she wanted her to give up. And as moved as she was to go back to her friends, Ruby would miss her, yet she insisted she moved on. And with that, Ruby turned to Coleum before she spoke.
"Coleum... I'm going back. They need me there for them. I can't let them down. I have to be there for them."
"Very well. And what of your mother?"
"Well, I'll always need her with me. But as long as she's happy, I'll be fine."
"Very well. So be it."
With that, a bright light overcame Ruby and Summer as the former turned to her and smiled.
At the faraway distance of Argus, a thunderstorm was growing close as the Leviathan strolled towards it, greatly concerning the people there as countless Manticores surrounded it before it roared as the Beowulves, some now coated in fire, ice, and even earth, walked towards the people that lived there, including Saphron, Terra, Zwei, and Adrian as the child cuddled near the former of the parents. While this occurred on Argus, Kazan made a public announcement to them as he spake while Adam, Lavender, Kali, Ghira, and Sienna looked on far away with the Menagerie Resistance and the White Fang together as they widened their eyes in surprise while Cordoven and Barak got out of he cockpit of the Paladin as he growled.
"Hello, people of Argus! Do forgive me for interrupting your mundane routine. But I must tell you, this day of freedom shall be your last. Call it 'divine retribution'. False kings and fraudulent kingdoms are fated to perish by my hand. Your Judgment Day has come at last! Resist if you desire, but know that your fight against fate is a foolish and futile one. That will be all. And please, have a nice day."
As lightning struck behind Kazan, Rain, Canis, and their Leviathan, Karse opened his eyes and gasped as lightning struck at Haven as well. As his cane clattered to the ground, Karse became very mortified as he'd received a vision as to what is occurring at Argus before Lionheart, Shiro, Mount, and Heather went to him and the professor of the group took notice of his condition before he spoke to his students.
"Shiro, Heather, help him up! Quickly!"
"Right."
"Got it."
As Shiro and Heather went to him and held him up by his arms, Mount saw the look on his face and became worried.
"What happened?"
"My friends... I've had a vision... We must head to Atlas, quickly!"
Meanwhile, at a cave, Ruby began to stir awake as she moaned before fluttering her eyes open slowly to see Blake, Weiss, and Yang in their most Grimmlike appearances as they spoke to her.
"Ruby!"
"Thank goodness you're alright!"
"You feeling okay, sis?"
"Huh? Guys? W-What happened to—?"
Suddenly, before Ruby could finish, Weiss leaned in front of Ruby and hugged her tightly, surprising her as they held it for a moment before Weiss ceased it, leaving Ruby blushing as she spoke with hurt in her voice.
"Do you have any idea what we would've done if you didn't make it? Do you?"
As an answer, Ruby hugged her back before she spoke up with a smile.
"I'd rather not think about that, Weiss."
As Ruby and Weiss smiled, Logan was left in a stunned shock as his mouth hung open before Maurice spoke up.
"Ahem! To answer your question, Ruby, your friends have been turned into Grimmites themselves. But it was all to stand against Team BLCK. They, and Kazan's faction, were behind the sabotage of our plan. And don't worry. The metamorphosis is reversible."
"And how do you know?"
To answer Ruby's question, Jaune spoke up as he stood by Salem, Cinder, Raider, and Pyrrha.
"Remember back at Haven when Pyrrha mutated? I was able to fix that because... well, I'm not sure you'd like this, but... I'm related to Salem."
Hearing this, as expected, the whole group became shocked.
"What?!"
"I know, I know. I didn't like the idea, either, but Salem's trying as hard as she can for Ruby now. Just like the rest of us."
As Salem smiled at him, Weiss became hopeful about their situation.
"So, does that mean you'll be able to change us back, too?"
"Well, yes..."
As Blake, Weiss, and Yang gasped in anticipation, Jaune brought their hopes down again as he spoke.
"But Selene told me not to."
Hearing their groans, Ruby became confused as she looked to her.
"But why not? They don't want to stay like that forever."
"It won't be forever. Just until those Grimm hordes are under control."
As the group looked at her in confusion, Weiss spoke up as she walked to her.
"But, we didn't need to be Grimmites to take them out before. Why is now so different?"
Maurice answered her as he walked around them.
"Don't you see? Selene is showing us something that we were all blind to see. With the power of the Relic of Creation, the Grimm under their command will be stronger than any you've managed to defeat. And while you still have a chance to defeat them when you're human, it is very slim to pull off a coordinated attack without any recoil. And this time, to overpower these variants, you must use your Grimmite powers, not be rid of them. At least not until the rogue Grimm are disposed of."
"Really?"
"Yes, Ruby. But that's hardly the point. They need to protect the people while you deal with Kazan. With his Grimm occupied, you will have to confront him yourself, as the prophecy stated. You, and your mother."
Hearing about this prophecy, Ruby became very confused how it mentioned her and her mother in the same prophecy as she spoke to him.
"Both of us? But... my mom's in the afterlife now. She's gone for good."
"And yet, she came back from it before. Who's to say she won't come back this time?"
As Maurice chuckled to himself about it, Ruby grew a bit happy about how certain and level-headed he is about it before remembering what she said about her mother herself, that she would always need her. If that is the case, then Ruby knew she'd see her again soon. And so, this came as a great relief to her as she spoke up.
"It's nice to hear, I guess."
Given the goal Ruby has been chosen to fulfill by means of prophecy, Yang could tell it was a big responsibility, bigger than her calling as leader as she walked up to her.
"So... what's the plan?"
As an answer, Ruby looked to the Leviathan that marched towards Argus before seeing countless Atlesian airships flying around it, trying to shoot it down in vain before noticing the Malevolent on the water with the airship by the cave as she tensed her hands before she spoke.
"We're going to end this, once and for all."
Meanwhile, the Leviathan growled at its prey before it went underwater with Rain, who was standing beside him, using the Staff of Creation to summon a barrier around them to breathe as the soldiers spoke up.
"All units be advised, Leviathan-class Grimm has submerged but is still on approach. Preparing hard light shields, over!"
"We're getting slammed by hostiles out here! Where is Barak?!"
As if to answer, Barak slammed his fist on the worn down Paladin before he shouted to the sky.
"I hope you're happy, Huntsmen! This is all because of you!"
As Cordoven watched Barak blame the people who were simply left with no choice but to attack, especially with their own enemies, she had come to have had enough of his rambling as it left Argus vulnerable in the first place, not them.
"Was it, Councilman? Or was that your fault for caring more about bringing down those children than looking after the people?!"
Hearing Cordoven retort in such a way, and to her superior no less, Barak became wrought with anger.
"How dare you—?"
"Because we swore an oath to protect the people of Argus, and what you've just done made that all the more impossible!"
As Barak growled at her, he suddenly heard Watts' voice speaking to him as he, Hazel, Tyrian, and Roman walked over to him.
"Well, I can't say the Lady in the Shoe is wrong about that."
Seeing Arthur of all people disagreeing with him, Barak became very furious.
"Et tu, Watts?"
Before Barak could exact his wrath, Cordoven spoke again.
"If you truly care about the people, then you must let it go!"
Given such an ultimatum, Barak looked at her with a growl before looking at the Leviathan headed towards the defenseless people of Argus with a worried look on his face as he sighed.
"Alright. What do we do?"
Before anyone could answer, the Leviathan emerged from the water with Kazan, Rain, and Canis on top of it before the pilot spoke again.
"Argus Base, this is Manta 3-4. Leviathan has hit the shallows and resurfaced. We need those shields up now, over!"
In that moment, two shields came up from below the water and barred the way as it stopped from feeling the pressure of it as it groaned, making Kazan raise his eyebrows before one of the pilots in the air spoke up.
"Target stopped, engaging, over!"
As they fired at the Leviathan, the bullets only hit the shield before Canis turned to him.
"Sir, what about the shields?"
"Nothing stands in my way. Fire!"
In response to his command, the Leviathan fired a flamethrower from its mouth at the shields, thwarted in destroying it as it blocked the firepower before it went for the generator instead and destroyed it before it roared as Kazan chuckled to himself in triumph before Jaune saw it for himself as he, Pyrrha, Ruby, Blake, Weiss, Yang, and Salem witnessed it from above with Nora, Ren, Selene, Maurice, Qrow, Raven, Taiyang, Logan, Ryker, Maria, Tukson, and CMNE in the Atlesian airship which flew alongside the Malevolent before Ruby and Jaune spoke up.
"No..."
"It tore straight through."
At that moment, the Air Force began to speak up in disbelief of their events as it spoke up in the Atlesian airship.
"All squadrons, fall back to evacuation procedures. Disengage Kazan! I repeat, disengage, over!"
Ruby didn't feel it wise as she spoke up while running over to the controls as Raven tried to stop her, only for Qrow to take her hand and shake his head at her as Ruby went on.
"No, wait! We can stop it!"
In response to this, the air control commander became suspicious.
"Who is this?! Identify yourself!"
"I'm a Huntress. My team and I are heading to the Leviathan and can weaken it for you to attack."
This made Ryker confused as he spoke up.
"We can? How?"
"That's easy. I can. If what Maurice said about the prophecy is true, I have to do this."
Maria, given the circumstances of the attack, felt it unwise.
"Ruby, when I said 'trial by fire'—"
"I did it at Mistral and at the farm. We just need to separate Kazan and his men from the Leviathan before then, so that it can't counter my silver eyes."
As Ruby said that, Weiss felt more concerned for Ruby as ever.
"You really think you can do it now?"
"I don't have a choice. But I can't use them just yet, not until we find a way to keep it from hurting you. Plus, Uncle Crimson's still down there. Who's to say it won't hurt him too?"
Fortunately, Selene had an idea as she held four colored orbs in her hands before she spoke up to Ruby.
"I think I can generate a shield that'll block out the silver light. If it works, you can use that on Kazan and his Leviathan without any risk. All we have to do then is meet at the ground."
At that moment, Maria gave them the downside as he spoke.
"I suppose I have to be the bad guy and say it. That's only if air control would agree to help us. And after what we did, it's a long shot."
At that moment, the air control spoke up, making a change of plans and proving Maria's point.
"Manta 5-1, your ship is currently flagged as hostile. You will receive no support, over."
This made Ruby a bit vexed as she sighed.
"Fine. Then I'll do it alone if I have to."
However, Barak's voice spoke differently.
"You won't have to, Huntress."
"Huh?! Barak?"
As Ruby became surprised at this, Barak spoke onwards to the air control.
"Air control, you will correct Manta 5-1's hostility placement and grant them the support they need this instant. That's an order."
"Uh, yes, sir! Over!"
As the order was made, Ruby became very confused as to his change in character before she spoke.
"Why are you doing this for us? I thought you hated Huntsmen."
"I did. But what I can't stand the least is being the one who let these people down. I swore an oath to protect the people, and I intend to live up to that."
Not entirely believing the story, Maria spoke up to him.
"And why should we believe you? What made you change your mind?"
"You can thank Cordoven for that."
"Wait. Cordo changed your mind? Well, that settles it. I'm finally going crazy."
As a response to Maria's response, Cordoven herself spoke up through the radio.
"You may wish you were, Calavera, but this is reality."
At that moment, a Mistral airship came by them with Tyrian, Arthur, Hazel, Barak, Roman, and Cordoven flying inside it as Maria scoffed while Ruby smiled.
"Showoff."
Seeing how the others were willing to help, Ruby looked out from the ship to see the Leviathan in front of her as she glared at it before turning to the others as she spoke.
"Guys, I'm gonna try to do this. Maria, you can hit the Leviathan while it's stopped at the next barrier while Ren masks the negativity. Barak, see what you guys can do about the rest of the Grimm."
As Ruby said this, Barak nodded while sighing before he spoke.
"Never thought I'd take orders from a Huntress, but it it keeps the people safe, fine by me."
Just then, Ryker spoke up about a certain person that he didn't want to see get hurt.
"What about Skye?"
"She, Crimson, and the rest of SIBR are ground control in Argus. You guys just focus on the Grimm in the air until the rest of the airships get here, okay?"
Presented with such a perilous situation, it gave more cause for Ryker to argue and attempted to do so.
"But what about you? What can you possibly do against that?!"
Ruby only gave him a determined smile as her right hand held onto the Relic of Knowledge.
"I'll be fine, Ryker. I've got a plan."
As he looked at it, Ryker remembered its power and felt the Relic was part of her plan as he smiled.
"Oh, right! The Relic of Knowledge! But, if you already know how to defeat it, then, why would you need it?"
"There's only one question left out of this. If it comes down to it, I have to make it count."
With that, Ruby got herself ready to jump before she looked back to Raven and spoke to her.
"And... Raven?"
"Y-Yes, Ruby?"
"I don't hate you for what happened to my mom. Not anymore. And... in case I don't make it back this time... I want you to know that I forgive you."
Hearing Ruby say those words to her, Raven became struck with grief as he began to see Summer in her place as she smiled at her before tears streamed down her face and she acted on the instinct to hug her before she sobbed lightly on her as she spoke.
"Don't die on us again, okay? Summer's death already tore us apart... we can't lose the one person that brought us back together... not after all of this."
"I'll do what I can to keep that promise."
With that, Raven sniffled as she wiped her tears before Yang held her fist out to Ruby before she engaged in a fist bump as the latter spoke.
"See you guys on the other side."
With that, Ruby looked at the creature below her as she then looked at the Malevolent before looking to Salem.
"Salem, can you help me out?"
"Yes."
With that, Salem walked over to the Malevolent before it leaned its head closer to her as she pegged it while she spoke softly to it.
"Please... keep Ruby safe."
Taking her command in compliance, the Malevolent purred as it lowered its head enough for Ruby to step onto it. As she did, Ruby looked back to the others and spoke to Selene.
"Selene, when I give the word, I need you and Salem to shield this airship with your magic to block out the light. I don't know if I'm gonna hear the end of it from Weiss if I burn her by accident."
As Weiss became worried at this for a moment, she couldn't help but smile at it, admitting it was a bit funny before Selene nodded.
"Of course. Be careful, though, Ruby."
"Don't worry. I will."
With that, Ruby put her focus back on the Leviathan as she put her hand on her ear and spoke to Skye.
"Skye, you guys ready to do this?"
"All ready and waiting for you, Ruby. Just say the word, and we'll clean up for you."
"Good."
Having ensured Skye's team had gotten ready, Ruby looked at the creature she stood on, gently placed her hand on it, and spoke to the Malevolent.
"Take me to Kazan. Please."
Heeding her voice, the Malevolent flew towards the Leviathan and stood up on the water in front of the Leviathan, confusing the pilots as one of them spoke up.
"Argus Base, this is Manta 3-4. A Malevolent-class Grimm is blocking the way. And... a Huntress is on top of that thing!"
As Kazan recognized Ruby's glare, he began to snarl as he walked closer to the edge and spoke to himself.
"How many times do I have to kill the same stinking Argent?"
In spite of the overpowering presence of Grimm near Ruby, she continued to glare daggers at him, Rain, and Canis as she spoke out to him.
"Kazan! A Huntress stands between you and your destiny! You won't hurt any more innocent people! Never again!"
As angry as it made Kazan, he still remembered that the Argent in white was not to be seen as she'd faded away, as told by Canis. And so, he began to smile at her as he spoke to her next.
"And what about your mother, Argent? She paid her due in death. And the prophecy that spoke of my defeat called for both of you. Yet, you're the only one standing in my way. If you couldn't defeat me back then, what makes you think this time would be any different?"
"My mom can come back on her own time. And when she does, you'll regret everything you've done to these people."
Hearing of this, Kazan's smile turned into a grimace as he spoke.
"Is that what you believe? Well, in that case, I'll save her the trouble of making the trip. Take aim!"
As expected, Kazan pointed the Leviathan at Ruby as it opened its mouth and began to generate fire in its mouth before Ruby glared at him as Kazan spoke to it.
"Ready?"
As the fire charged in its mouth, Ruby shouted to the airship as she looked up to it.
"Now!"
Play RWBY Music: "Divide"
At that moment, Selene and Salem coated the ship in a dark purple aura before it began to shoot dark purple missiles at the Leviathan, making it burn as a purple aura began to disintegrate Rain's shield as it shattered like glass before Kazan began to panic.
"What?! No!"
In his moment of fear, Ruby used her semblance to her to him and knocked him out of the creature as Rain and Canis stumbled for a moment before Cinder and Pyrrha used their powers next to create a barrier of ice where Ruby and Kazan landed on the ocean near the Leviathan as Rain noticed Cinder and Pyrrha in the airship and got her claws out as she growled before using her own semblance to speed at them in midair before the Fall Maidens countered her with their weapons and pushed her out of the airship's ethereal shield along with themselves before Pyrrha fired an ice blast at the ocean, creating another battlefield of ice where Cinder and Pyrrha engaged Rain while the Malevolent engaged in close combat with the Leviathan as it scratched its claws at its snout, making Canis struggle to hold onto it as he clutched his claws on it while the Leviathan moved its head from the recoil.
"Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!"
"Does it feel good knowing you've tried, knowing that all that remains
Is a slow, cold, cruel death of the fools that will all die in vain?"
As soon as the Leviathan fixed its about towards the Malevolent, Canis saw an opportunity and acted on it as he spoke to it.
"Fire!"
As the Leviathan fired a blast at the Malevolent, it countered the near point-blank blast with its own and made the the titans stagger back from the attack. While this battle occurred, SIBR and Crimson acted on Ruby's previous signal as they engaged the Grimm on the street level by the shore as Skye touched one Grimm with her hand, converting it to white and blue before it began to attack the other Grimm.
"How does it feel, knowing your efforts will fail?
All that you've built will be torn down, the hope of your people assailed"
However, it didn't last long as one of the new Grimm successfully disposed of the converted Grimm as it set it ablaze before its essence flowed into her while Skye winced before Ilia used her whip to electrocute them as she wrapped some of them around tight and shocked them before Bella got out her rapier and stabbed one of them repeatedly in a swift pace before it suddenly fell back with countless holes in its rocky chest and dissipated into a black mist before Raider got his Armageddon out and sliced them before summoning a portal to enter and then reappeared above them before he performed an overhead slash at another Grimm before noticing Ilia's situation as she and Bella were surrounded by more Grimm.
"Send your guardians they will fail
Legends and heroes will crumble and fall, you will not prevail
When allied together, a threat they display
Divide them with doubt, it will all wash away"
"Ilia! Bella!"
As the Grimm neared them, Skye saw her danger as well before she summoned a bow and arrow and shot them at the Grimm as she spoke up to Ilia just as Crimson saw them and ran to them whilst shooting his black talons at them before he appeared in the circle and slashed at the Grimm that weren't converted.
"I'll make a path for you to get through. Get ready."
"Alone? That's crazy! I'll help."
Given the situation at hand, Bella and Crimson didn't feel it wise.
"Two is no better, Ilia."
"She's right. Splitting up's a bad idea."
"Then what can we do?"
"One Spark can incite their hope and ignite the hearts of their weary souls
I will extinguish that flame"
Pause RWBY Music: "Divide"
As the group tried to figure it out, Ruby and Kazan were battling atop a platform of ice made by Cinder and Pyrrha as she barely blocked Kazan's Sword of Destruction, sending her backward as she helped before she panted while Kazan smiled at how he's ahead of her in the conflict as he took notice of the Atlesian and Mistral airships targeted the Manticores in the air before he spoke to her.
"It makes no difference how many Grimm your team destroys, Argent. We'll create one after another if need be. But, with your skills, it seems a waste to kill you. Surrender yourself as my slave, and I'll let you live."
Ruby only glared back at him as she planted the bottom of her Crescent Rose in the glacier before lightning struck in the sky just as she responded to his question fiercely.
"No! Whether you like it or not, we're going to Atlas, and we're going to stop you and Nigreos!"
Having been told this, Kazan snarled at her as he held his sword out in front of her.
"In spite of the prophecy's words, you continue to fight alone... you must revel in futility."
"It's more than that, Kazan. And you're wrong. I'm not alone. I never was."
As Ruby spoke onward, Saphron, Terra, Zwei, and Adrian came under attack by a Grimm as the dog barked at them, only for Ghira to attack the Beowulves as he slashed at them with his claws while Sienna used her chain to wrap its claws up before jumping behind it and pulling on the chains to break its arms apart as they came off before Kali arrived with a trident in hand as she impaled a Grimm with it before looking to Saphron, Terra, Zwei, and Adrian, the child of the group smiling as he cooed at her.
"I've had friends that helped me get to where I am today. And I did the same for them. We helped each other. And that's something you'll never understand even if you tried."
"And what, pray tell, does that mean?"
"Bigger people than you have tried to stop us and failed, but we're supposed to be on the same side. We're supposed to use our power to protect people, but Nigreos just uses his to look down on everyone."
"Hah! Like you fancy yourself any better, considering the stunt you've attempted to pull on Barak's guards!"
"We didn't want to steal from them. We did it because we had no other choice."
"Is that why you stand against me? Because you have no other choice?! My parents had theirs when they banished me from Argus! From my home! EVERYONE HAD THEIR CHOICE!"
"By that logic, you had yours, too! But it's not too late to choose to end this."
"Oh, I will end it alright... with your life!"
Resume RWBY Music: "Divide"
With that, Kazan lunged at Ruby as he yelled out while Cinder and Pyrrha were clashing against Rain as their foe used her semblance to zip on the field of ice from one place to another quickly before she lunged at Cinder and barely scratched her in the Grimm arm, peeling off a bandage wrapped around it as Pyrrha helped her up.
"Are you okay, Cinder?"
"Just try and catch me! No one can at the speed I'm going!"
Finding themselves surrounded, Pyrrha and Cinder looked to each other before they put their right hands together and slammed it into the ice, causing it to crack before a chunk of it just popped up in front of her, making her gasp as the ice made it difficult to stop before she hit herself against it, making her dark blue aura flicker as she growled before proceeding to engage them with her claws only for them to block the claws with their swords before Pyrrha bumped her away with her shield as Rain was left open. And the force of it was so powerful that it shattered her aura as she was knocked all the way to the ocean where she clung onto the leg of the Leviathan to climb back up in spite of the aura being broken as Cinder and Pyrrha looked on.
"It was you who ended their lives, made them to dig their own graves
With your dark, sick, cruel design, convinced them their world could be saved"
As this occurred, Raven and Qrow were slashing at the Manticores while they rode on the very top of the airship before they changed into their avian forms before flapping their wings towards the bigger Manticore and then changed back to normal before the both of them cleaved it in half and looked to each other with a smile as they held their weapons ready.
"You ready, brother?"
"Anytime, sister."
"Have you no shame, signing them up for your war?
Train them to fight what they can't beat, your sins are what they'll pay for"
Meanwhile, at the ground, SIBR and Crimson were having difficulty fighting back against the Grimm as one of them aimed for Ilia, only to be blasted by one of the Atlesian soldiers who Summer and Qrow found in the sewers before as they managed to fire at the Grimm while giving the team enough time to react as they attacked the Grimm near them before one of them spoke to the group, confusing Ilia.
"Vengeance is served."
"What? What are you doing here?"
"Your friend here is very persuasive."
As if on cue, Adam jumped in the air before getting out his sword to slice at the Grimm's icy skin, severing it like glass before using his sword to block another Grimm's relentless attack, making it glow bright as Adam then used it to cut through several more Grimm with a slash, turning them into black mists before Ilia spoke to him.
"Adam? How did you—?"
"We'll talk about it later, Ilia. Where's Blake?"
"She's at the airship with the others. They're trying to bring down the Leviathan."
"Sacrifice them for your needs
Slaughter is coming, the end drawing near, you'll regret your deeds
Legends and fairytales scattered in time
Maidens and kingdoms wrapped up in a lie
It's children you mislead, you'll watch them all bleed, Strength will not bring victory"
As Ilia pointed to it, Blake turned her arms into whips before using them to cling on the Leviathan and swung herself around it's about to close it before Yang leaped up from it and smashed her Grimm fist on its face, making it back up as Canis staggered from the force of it before snarling at the two as Yang landed on top of the Malevolent while Blake found herself hanging off of the snout while the mouth of the Leviathan itself was clamped shut with an orange glow showing on its white face, making Kazan furious as he blocked Ruby's scythe before he spoke callously to her.
"If you're the Argent you claim to be, then why hold back your power?"
"I won't need it to defeat you."
"Try me."
With that Kazan pushed Ruby aside with his foot on her chest, making her double back before he shouted to Canis.
"Why aren't we firing?!"
"The Belladonna lady's clamped its mouth shut. It's overheating!"
"Divide them, tear them apart, sever their trust, it will strangle their hearts
Inside them, plant seeds of doubt, hope will be smothered, they'll turn on each other"
In an attempt to resolve this, Kazan got out his Sword of Destruction before he slashed an orange aura at the whips that shut the Leviathan's mouth, burning it as Blake shrieked before she fell, making Yang and Adam worried as they shouted.
"Blake!"
"No!"
Acting on instinct, Raider got out his Armageddon before he opened a portal and went inside before reappearing just in front of her as he dove before catching Blake and creating another portal to go through as Cinder and Pyrrha had one last idea to fix it as they looked to each other with the former speaking up.
"You thinking what I'm thinking?"
"I hope so."
As they held their hands out to the ocean, Kazan shouted to the Leviathan while Ruby grew worried that Raider wouldn't be able to have enough time to get to Yang.
"No, no, no, no!"
"FIRE!"
Immediately, the Leviathan opened its mouth and prepared to fire a blast at the Malevolent, only for a large pillar of stone to shield Yang and the Malevolent from its fire blast, making Canis confused.
"Hatred will sprout suspicion and doubt
Friendships deny while allegiances die
The taste will be sweet when you get when you've earned
And I watch you burn"
End RWBY Music: "Divide"
"Huh? What the...?"
In that instant, Yang took advantage of it as she lunged at the pillar and punched through it with her Grimm arm before using the momentum to prepare another swing at Canis as she shouted.
"This is for Ruby!"
And with that, she landed a hard punch at him, knocking him straight off of the Leviathan as he howled before splashing in the ocean with the climbing Rain sighing just as the Leviathan began to charge up a blast again as Yang jumped from the Leviathan to an icy battlefield where Ruby and Kazan were. As she landed, it fired a blast that was blocked by the laser wall and the Malevolent, only for it to trail to a shield generator before it destroyed it, turning the Malevolent to black dust as it screeched in defeat while leaving Argus open to the Leviathan as a blast tore through near it and tore through the top of a building as the people ran in a panic while Kazan chuckled to himself, seeing his victory near before Ruby helped Yang up and looked to Kazan with a glare before she whispered to Yang.
"Go find the others and get back in the shield. I'm going to use my eyes."
"What? But what if Kazan—?"
"Let me worry about that, okay? I'll be fine. Just get Pyrrha and Cinder somewhere away from here."
As Ruby gave her a determined look, Yang realized she could not be argued with as she used that same look on the Atlesian soldiers that left not too long ago before she sighed.
"Okay. Just be careful."
As Ruby nodded to her, Yang used her newfound agility to leap from one icy field to another before scooping Pyrrha and Cinder and leaping back to Argus Square as Kazan smiled at this.
"That was the stupidest thing you could've done, Rose. Soon, you'll have no weapon, no eyes, no family, and no friends..."
As Ruby began to think of a comeback, she read into an inadvertent meaning of it and began to have questions about Kazan as she suddenly said her name, not wanting to waste any time trying to stall.
"Jinn!"
As her voice echoed, the lightning bolts that lit up the stormy sky froze up to be seen in the air with the raindrops frozen up in the air just as Jinn appeared before her as Ruby spoke to her.
"Jinn... I have a question for you."
"You wish to know why Kazan would go through all this trouble to kill you."
Knowing she'd figured it out, Ruby nodded to her before Jinn complied with her question.
"Very well."
With that, a blue mist surrounded Ruby as she saw the city of Argus being made with the people in it celebrating with a man in silver hair and a woman with raven hair wearing blue and white robes greeting the people as Jinn narrated.
"Long ago, back when Argus was just created, there lived two rulers who oversaw it. They brought greatness, peace, and prosperity to the kingdom, for they have been granted the support they needed from Atlas."
Then, the blue mist swirled to show a man with red eyes and raven hair looking at the texts about the Grimmites and the old history before it as he became deeply fascinated in it enough to go in the woods and came across one of the Grimm before it lunged at him, making him nervous and backed away before it stopped in its tracks and sniffed him before it bowed to him, making him all the more surprised, but none more so than his parents who watched in horror at this revelation as another blue mist covered the scene before Ruby now saw Kazan fueling the Beowulves with dust, having one of them coated in fire while another provided an icy shell with the third one having rocky features.
"But their son, Lord Kazan, sought a bigger place to rule than Argus and found the texts that pertain to the history of the Grimmites. What's more, he found out that he and his family were descended from them, but Kazan grew interested in something else. The very creatures they feared can also become their weapons of war."
As the Beowulves went through Ruby, they faded into blue mists that took the form of the parents and an elderly woman in the palace before before it showed two people, one in a red cape, and another in a white one before the young Kazan smashed his fist against the door and the blue mist swirled around Ruby again as Jinn spoke onwards.
"Troubled by his behavior, his parents consulted a soothsayer. She foretold that if Kazan continued his wicked path, he would soon be defeated by two Argents of red and white. Desperate to avoid it, Kazan set out to change his fate. But what he did next only sealed it."
Soon, the blue mist turned into a fire that covered a village where Ruby noticed a young baby in a white robe with red hair as she cried before Ruby could guess who she was.
"Is that... Mom?"
At that moment, she saw Kazan glaring at her with his men before he spoke.
"Get them all!"
With that, the soldiers went after the baby, only for a man with red-violet hair to block them with a large sword before he swung it at some of them, cutting his eye before he slashed through another's chest and kicked him back as Kazan glared at him while the father spoke to the mother who had raven hair as he looked at her and the young boy by her side.
"Take our children and run away! Go!"
With that, the mother went with the baby into the woods before the blue mist swirled again to show the mother placing her on a bed in a cottage as she cooed while Crimson became concerned as the mother spoke to them with tears in her eyes.
"Mom, what are you doing?"
"I'm sorry. I wish I could be with you, but... I have to keep you safe. I'm sorry."
With that, the mother went out of the cottage, leaving the baby alone in it, making it cry as she got out her sickles and called out to the soldiers.
"Mom! NO!"
"Over here! Come and get me!"
As she ran, the soldiers went after her as the baby cried as Crimson called for her in vain while Kazan followed behind them before the blue mist swirled to show what happened afterwards as Ruby became disheartened about what had occurred.
"My Mom said he was familiar... she never knew why... but she knew, somehow, how I felt. Because it happened to her before. And Uncle Crimson... did he remember any of this?"
In that moment, the scene changed to show Kazan emerging through the doors with a proud look only to see his parents' shocked faces before it then changed to show Kazan outside the palace at Argus arguing before Kazan stormed off in a huff as his parents held their heads down as Jinn spoke.
"After the genocide of the Argents, he returned to his parents full of pride, but in their faces, he saw only pure terror. Consequentially, he was banished from Argus forever. But Kazan swore revenge. That one day, he would return, and all of Remnant would bow at his feet."
With that, the blue swirls changed to show Kazan attacking Team CFVY (Caffeine) at Shade Academy, leaving them bruised and battered as he walked away with the Sword of Destruction before it showed him assaulting Atlas Academy's top personnel as he absconded with the Relic of Knowledge next before meeting with Salem at his throne about the Relic of Knowledge before the blue swirls then changed to the currently frozen present time.
"And he made good on his word, for in his family's texts, he found evidence of the four relics of the gods and sought after them to achieve his sinister goal to secure Argus and Remnant as its Master, leading to the present where you face him even now."
As Ruby had heard the whole story of Kazan now, she remembered how it felt to hurt so badly from the past and how it affected her. No, how she let it affect her. With the story told, Ruby looked to Jinn as she spoke.
"So... I guess you'll be going now."
"Mmm... not yet."
"Huh? But I thought—"
"Technically, you didn't ask your question. Just be warned: I will not give you this chance again."
Seeing how kind Jinn is towards her, Ruby smiled at her and spoke up.
"Thanks, Jinn."
With that, Ruby smiled as Jinn disappeared before she turned to Kazan as time slowly began to resume and she spoke to him.
"Kazan. I know how much the past can hurt. I was like that once; it didn't work out for me. And you know what? I'd rather die before I act that way ever again."
"As you wish."
With that, Kazan spoke up to the Leviathan to catch its attention.
"Let's finish this."
As the Leviathan heard his voice, it turned to Kazan, making Rain a bit shaken by its movement as she finally managed to get to the top of the beast which pointed its snout at Ruby, who glared at it before she looked to Kazan who smiled devilishly at her before she closed her eyes, focusing on the precious memories of life she had experienced, ranging from seeing Yang and Uncle Taiyang next to a wagon, the team being surprised to see Zwei out of a box, a food fight at Beacon Academy, the team eating together at the Vytal Festival, Ruby meeting Penny, and so forth. While Ruby tried to focus on this, Rain took notice of two ships flying around them as Nora shouted to her with Raider and Crimson inside the silver-light-shielded airship along with Blake and the others.
"Eyes on us, ugly!"
With that, Nora, Ren, Pyrrha, Cinder, Mercury, Emerald, Crimson, and Qrow began firing at the Leviathan in their own methods, infuriating Rain as she growled before casting a black ice dagger at them and missing as Blake spoke to the others.
"Is it working?"
Maria knew the answer all too well from Rain's shrill, angry shriek.
"Unfortunately, yes. Hang on!"
As Maria steered around the Leviathan, Rain continued in vain to shoot them down with black ice daggers as she was also blindsided by Cordoven's turrets and Roman's flare gun, the owner of which who is speaking to them.
"You need to consider your odds more, She-Beast!"
With the Leviathan distracted, Ruby continued to focus on the creature as Kazan grew flustered, knowing full well she must be up to something.
Play RWBY Music: "Indomitable"
"What are you waiting for, Argent?!"
Ruby only ignored his voice as she allowed the mental images of life to flow through her as she saw herself with her team on their first day at Beacon before seeing a memory of Weiss smiling at her with a cup of hot cocoa, Blake cheering on for her team, Yang placing her hand on her arm after their training regiment at Patch, her team sitting out on a building after clearing out the Grimm in Beacon Academy prior to the Vytal Festival, Jaune offering Pyrrha a dance, Team JNPR being combat ready at the festival, Ruby hugging Qrow by his arm with her feet dangling, her talking with Oscar in the woods, her talking with Maria and Raider at the backyard, Ruby speaking with Penny about their stakeout, and Summer in her arms with Qrow, Raven, and Taiyang watching before Kazan got tired of waiting and drew his Sword of Destruction out to decapitate her and attempted to do so before she spoke to herself with a determined look in her face.
"Mom. Help me out."
At that moment, the background faded to black she felt a hand touching her by the shoulder as white and red petals fluttered in the air around them before she spoke to her.
"Ruby. Your story goes beyond mine. But I'm glad to be a part of it."
With that, Ruby smiled at the comfort this sentence gave her as she and her mother opened her eyes, ultimately letting loose a blinding, powerful, silver light that knocked Kazan towards Argus Square so forcefully that he landed heavily on its ground while Rain was cast aside to the ocean from the same force that drove Kazan to the city as it enveloped the entire area, including Argus itself as the light of mother and daughter turned the Grimm to dust before it dissipated with the crowd cheering, as well as the soldiers before Maria sighed.
"Phew!"
As the light faded, Ruby could still feel her mother's hand before she looked at her and gasped.
"There's a light that shines, and its power is mine
Though my body's weak and breakable, the spirit is indomitable"
"Mom? Are you really...?"
As an answer, she nodded as she replied.
"Coleum said that as long as you needed me, I'll always be with you."
Happy to have Summer back again, Ruby began to shed tears as she hugged her before her mother did the same.
End RWBY Music: "Indomitable"
Far away, they heard Kazan's coughing at the Square before they looked in that direction before Summer spoke.
"So... ready to fulfill the prophecy?"
"Yeah."
As Ruby and Summer traveled in a petal of white and red roses, Kazan became flabbergasted to see a complete lack of Grimm as he drew short, exaggerated breaths, which got even worse upon seeing Summer beside Ruby as he spoke.
"How did you...? How did you do it?"
Ruby, considering Kazan's role, felt the answer should be obvious.
"Uh, you know. The silver eyes? The reason you killed our people in the first place? Did you hit your head, maybe?"
"Not that. How did you find peace? I took away your ancestors. Everything! I-I scarred you for life..."
As Kazan said this, Ruby only smiled at him before she walked up to him.
"Wouldn't be the first time. I actually got a lot of them since Beacon fell. But the worst scar I ever had... was when I heard how my mom was killed. By her best friend. Since then, I wanted to make Raven pay for what she did, and I did that, but... after that, I didn't feel any better. I felt even worse."
"So what?"
"Because I meant what I said about knowing how much the past can hurt. I let that ache hurt me, mold me into a killer. I would never want that to happen to another soul."
"And how do you intend... to save those souls from that fate?"
"By passing on what I've learned. Scars don't have any real power. Only the ones you give them."
"I don't care what scars do."
"Maybe you should. I know it's not easy to let go of the past, how much it hurts to even think of it, but it just doesn't matter. The only thing that does... is what you choose to be now."
As Kazan heard his, he began to feel as though his words touched his cold heart before he spoke with a gasp.
"You're right. Then, I choose... THIS!"
In an instant, Kazan lunged at Ruby with his dagger, only for her to use one of her mother's sickles to knock it away into the ocean before Summer got her remaining one out, mother and daughter both swiftly impaling him through his chest and back in synchronization, further stupefying him as he choked out his word of surprise.
"H-How...?"
As Ruby and Summer took the sickles out of his body, the former surprised by a sudden change in weaponry as she was, Kazan's knees slumped to the ground before he looked at them with a cough and spoke.
"N-Now what? Do you intend... to speak ill of me? To deface my history? To banish me, just as my parents did?"
Having seen his history through Jinn, Ruby only sighed at him before she hugged him in comfort.
"This time... you can rest in peace. Close your eyes, sleep, and be angry no more."
As Ruby said this, Kazan couldn't help but feel the sensation to be reminiscent as he spoke softly with tears escaping his eyes.
"Your touch... it feels just like how my mother used to hug me..."
With that, Kazan slowly ceased his breath before Ruby slowly laid him down and sighed, sad with the fate that befell on him. With that, Ruby turned to Summer as the latter spoke to her.
"Well, we did it. We fulfilled the prophecy."
"Yep. But what did it matter in the end?"
As Ruby dwelt on it, she couldn't help but feel it off that she somehow knew about it before she spoke to her mother.
"Wait. How did you know about—?"
"Coleum told me about it in the afterlife when I came back the second time around. And... there's more to my being here."
As Ruby heard this, she began to realize what it might be.
"Oh. Do you... have a time limit?"
"No, Ruby. It's different."
"Huh? Different how?"
"Like he told me, I'd always be with you whenever you need me. And in this case, it'd be more sudden than you'd think. And since your eyes brought me back the first time at Patch... only you can see me."
Hearing Summer's reply, Ruby became somewhat relieved for the answer.
"Oh. That makes more sense, actually."
As Summer smiled at Ruby for that answer, she knelt down to her, hugged her, and spoke up again.
"You see, Ruby? You'll never lose me. You'll always see me by your side whenever you need me."
"I'm glad that's true, Mom."
As Ruby returned the hug, the airship shielded with a purple aura landed to the sea along with the Mistral airship before both parties of the ship got out with Oscar running over to her, not noticing Summer in front of them as she told her daughter, and quickly hugging her as he spoke.
"Ruby! I'm so glad you're okay."
With that, Ruby began to hug Oscar back, relieved that she was able to keep her promise to stay alive. Although it was mainly to Raven, it still felt nice to keep it for the sake of her friends.
"Me, too."
Although, there were a few concerns with Ruby using her silver eyes. And they had to be addressed as Maria spoke up.
"Ahem! I don't mean to interrupt, but we need to get the relics that Kazan and his posse took, too. Unless we want them to end up in even worse hands. Speaking of, what did happen to him?"
As an answer, Ruby pointed to his corpse as she replied.
"He's finally resting in peace. Like he should've been."
Seeing his dead, still body, Maria couldn't help but tremble at it before she scoffed at it.
"Hmph. I'm just sorry I didn't kill him myself."
Maurice, angry as he was with Kazan, felt another issue was at hand.
"Right. And now that the Grimm are well taken care of here, we need to address a certain metamorphosis fix."
Blake felt as though it were obvious as she spoke up.
"You mean we'll finally get back to normal?"
"Yes. And we'll need to do this before we get to Atlas."
With that, Weiss, Blake, and Yang became relieved as they spoke.
"Finally."
"What a relief."
"Eh, whatever."
"And, Salem. That will go for you, too."
As she heard this, Salem became surprised as she looked to Maurice.
"W-What? After all I've done to you... why would you even consider it?"
To answer her question, Ruby spoke up as she walked over to her.
"Ever since we heard your story... helping you was all we ever wanted to do. Right, guys?"
With that, the parties that were told of Salem's story piped up in agreement before she exhibited a look of surprise as she smiled before she spoke.
"Thank you so much."
With that in mind, Pyrrha turned to Cinder as she spoke.
"Cinder, you can join in, too. You won't have to be part Grimm anymore."
As she considered it carefully, she looked to Raider, who'd somehow managed to overcome his own curse on their journey before she smiled at him and spoke.
"You know? Maybe I will."
Having given her answer, the three Grimmified Huntresses, Cinder, and Salem lined up and held their hands before Jaune formed a circle with their hands connecting. At that moment, however, Crimson piped up as he walked to Salem and placed his hand on hers.
"Wait. I realize that considering what I've done to all of you myself, you guys don't owe me a thing. But I have to ask... can you change me back, too?"
As the group became surprised that her ask this, Ruby (and the invisible Summer) widened their eyes out of surprise as the group became perplexed before Maurice spoke up.
"Er, forgive the hesitation, but we're wondering why you'd want that, seeing as you've made peace with the beast within? Perhaps you might even be the better for it."
"To tell you the truth, I want to be remembered as a Huntsman my sister always wanted me to be, not for the monster I made myself into."
As Summer heard this, she couldn't help but have tears flowing through her eyes as she spoke before Maurice.
"Crimson..."
"And so it shall be."
With that, Jaune used his aura to coat Blake, Weiss, Yang, Crimson, Salem, and Cinder in a yellow light before that same light overcame the area.
Later on, Teams RWBY, CMNE, SIBR, STRQ, Logan, Maurice, Salem, Ryker, Selene, and Tukson were flying in two different airships, one from Argus and the other from Mistral as Maria spoke to Cordoven through a communicator in the pilot seat.
"The Atlas military can handle the stragglers."
"And you're sure you won't just tell your superiors off?"
"No. I don't think anyone would notice if one more ship went missing in my... lengthy report."
"Wow. You do have a heart after all."
"Don't push it, Calavera. But nonetheless, I pray that you get to Argus safely, for Remnant's sake."
As the communications ended, Ruby spoke up to her.
"So, how are we looking?"
"In spite of the... additional passengers, we should have just enough fuel to make it."
"Thanks, Miss Calavera."
As she began to walk away, Qrow spoke up to her.
"Hey, Ruby?"
"Yeah, Dad?"
"You did great out there today, kid. Just don't go giving me heart attacks like that again."
Hearing this, Ruby immediately hugged him and spoke.
"I love you, too, Dad."
As Ruby walked away again, Maria spoke up to Qrow, who had a look of small regret.
"You weren't half bad yourself today, Qrow."
"Yeah, well... I feel like they did all the heavy lifting."
"But you were there to help when they asked for it. And you were there to catch them when they fell. Literally, if I recall."
"Thanks. You know, it was pretty incredible getting to see the Grimm Reaper in action."
"Huh, you should have seen me when I was your age!"
As Qrow and Maria looked to the clouds for a hopeful outlook, Ilia looked out the window to see the Mistral airship holding CMNE, Watts, Tukson, Roman, Hazel, Tyrian, Ghira, Kali, Adam, Lavender, Sienna, and a rabbit Faunus with brown hair and a red shirt who waved to her, making Ilia blush before Blake noticed and smiled at her.
"Is that her, Ilia?"
"Huh? Oh! Yeah. But, the thing is, she was at the Battle for Haven, and I didn't get her name."
Seeing her for herself as well, Skye smiled as she spoke up.
"Hm. You're right. She does look cute. Maybe you should think about talking to her."
Immediately, Ilia turned green with blue hair as she spoke.
"What?! Are you crazy, Skye?! I can't just walk over and start talking to her!"
"Well, why not?"
"It's just... we'll talk about this later, okay?"
"Alright. But when we get to Atlas, we're having that discussion."
As she knew Skye couldn't be turned away from conversation so easily, Ilia sighed in defeat before she spoke.
"Alright."
As most of the group were asleep with Zwei lying on the newly restored Crimson's lap, his hair being raven-colored with hazel eyes, like his late father's, exhausted with the work they put into the day so far, Salem looked to Oscar before she spoke to him.
"So... you're the boy with two souls."
"Yeah. What's up?"
"Well... I've done... wrong things to him, as you all know. So, I'm wondering if you can change souls so that I can speak with him."
"That might be the problem, Salem. Truth is, I was a boy with two souls."
As Oscar said this, Salem caught onto that and became worried as she spoke.
"Was? What do you mean? What's happened?"
Pretty soon, it got Ruby, Yang, Blake, Weiss, Maurice, Selene, and Crimson interested as they all looked to him before he replied to them, feeling the pressure on him.
"Okay... well, while we were being split up, one of the members of Team BLCK was trying to find out where the Relic of Choice was. When he found out, Ozma tried to stop him and told me to put it on. When I did, I got my life back, but... I lost him in the process."
As Oscar said this, he could see the worry on everyone's faces as Salem spoke up.
"So... What are you saying? Is he—?"
"Gone. Yeah. At least from my head."
As she heard this, Salem began to be heartbroken all over again as she began to sob before he hugged her along with Selene as Blake spoke up to the now more determined Ruby.
"What do we do now?"
"We keep going. Oz tried so hard to keep Remnant safe. We're not going to let his efforts be in vain now."
At that moment, Qrow spoke up to the group.
"Hey. If you've never seen Atlas in person before, you don't wanna miss this."
With that, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Oscar, Ilia, Skye, Salem, Selene, and the others went to the front of the airship as the young leader spoke to her Sister, then Weiss to her.
"Is it weird that I'm sorta nervous?"
"No. I'll believe we've made it to Atlas when I see it."
"Well, believe it."
As they got closer, they noticed a city on the ground as well as a gigantic fortress hovering in the air as SIBR and JNPR leaned at the windows to look at it while the group in the Mistral airship became very amazed with the exception of Adam who simply glared at the view as Maria spoke up.
"You know, you make the trip up to Atlas over and over, but you never get used to that view."
And this happened to be more than true as her robotic eyes began to go crazy again before she reprimanded them.
"Oh, come on!"
However, it wasn't quite time to celebrate as they noticed a whole fleet above with Logan piping up.
"Uh, guys? Is it just me, or are we not gonna get the welcome wagon?"
As the group looked up at the number of ships there, they began to feel worried before Weiss and Ryker spoke up.
"It's the Atlas air fleet. I knew all of our ships are valued back, but..."
"They must know about the Relics' powers now. They have to be getting ready for war. And I think we all know with who."
At that moment, a voice of the Air Controller spoke up to the ship.
"Manta 5-1, welcome home."
Meanwhile, at Evernight Castle, Nigreos was standing at the Pool of Annihilation, giving a newly emerged Beringel the addition of wings on its back before it flew to join the rest of its brethren as Lachesis walked towards him.
"My father... I have joyous news to give."
"And what is that, my son?"
"My mission has proven successful. I now know the location of the Relic of Choice. Even better, Ozma is no more."
As Nigreos heard this, he bore a devilish smile as he spoke.
"Good... and the other Relics?"
"Regrettably, they were snatched by the Huntsmen. But there's no need for concern. We already know where they will be."
"Then the appointed day of fate draws near."
At that moment, Nigreos took a dark crystal from his pocket before chucking it into the Pool of Annihilation, but not before splitting it into four pieces, thus creating four humanlike Grimm as their pale hands reached out of the pool before he saw their human forms similar to that of Blake, Weiss, and Yang's momentary Grimm counterparts, with the exception of Ruby's being pale skinned with two horns on her head only one was shorter than the other before he spoke as Nigreos spoke.
"So, It has begun, my brothers... but soon, it will also... end..."
As Nigreos said his last word, the Beringels began to fly rapidly, filling the crimson sky with dread as The Dark Overlord smiled and chuckled darkly.