PIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!...Oh, sorry. Habit. March 14. 3/14. Europeans won't get this.

Anyway, I haven't read the Inheritance Cycle cover to cover since before starting this project, so I picked Eragon up this past week...and proceeded to forget it in my dorm room over Spring Break...But upon rereading it, I realized I need to change the hatching scenes. They were too clean, none of that egg goop anywhere on Cerise or Halcyon. There's probably a lot more I need to change, and I'm sure I'll get to that later on.

Ruby took a sip from her canteen as she looked at the drawn diagrams for Crescent Rose Mk II, or whatever she was going to call it. For the most part, she would be the same as her old weapon. Most of the time, the color of the weapon would be only difference people would be able to see. However, she designed another mode for her weapon that would allow her to fight better in tight spaces without using her fists.

Most of the design was on her Scroll and eye. There was only so much that could be shown on paper. Also, the paper might not survive the trip back to Remnant for one reason or another. Various diagrams filled the right side of her vision on how things would be built and fit together. A good chunk of the parts would have to come from a CNC machine, unless she found out how to forge all the tiny parts by hand.

Something had nagged at the back of Ruby's head since she started these designs the night before. That hunk of metal…something beneath the Menoa tree. If it was a weapon, it had to be ancient. Old weapons could be just as cool as the newest toys Atlas has access to. If it was a metal deposit, or better yet, a meteorite filled with brightsteel, Ruby could forge her new weapon here with Rhunön's help.

Ruby shook her head. It was probably just an ancient weapon that an elf dropped…but what if it wasn't? Her mind flashed between the two options the whole time she worked on the blueprints. She wasn't going to get any rest until she found out for sure. Then again, if it was tangled up in the tree's roots, it wouldn't matter what it is because trying to get it out would be suicide. On the other hand, most people would say fighting Grimm is suicide.

"Cerise," Ruby leaned back in her desk chair, "I need a ride."

I don't think that's the best idea, Cerise rumbled.

"Look, we both know this isn't going to leave my head until I find out one way or another."

Then ask around. See if there's anything in local legends. Find some way to find out instead of making that tree mad.

"Have you met me? Going up to random strangers isn't something I just do."

Cerise growled and curled her claws, splintering centuries old wood. Ruby, you're obsessed! You aren't thinking straight. I have a hard time believing a tree can kill a dragon, but I also have a hard time believing that a tree can grow that large. It's dangerous, and I won't have you endangering your life over a piece of metal that you might not even use.

Ruby took her eyes off her dragon. "I'll be careful."

What if you make it mad? I won't be able to protect you from it, or the elves. They might even come after me.

"I thought you'd be on board with this. Why aren't you."

Because its impulsive, not thought out, stupid, and… the scales around Cerise' eyes and lips twitched and the color of her emotions flipped on their heads. I almost lost you yesterday to that spirit. I don't want to risk losing you so soon, especially for something that could be for a broken sword that you can't use anyway.

Ruby straightened and looked into her dragon's eyes. Those red orbs were pleading, no, begging Ruby not to go out there. "Selfish reasons?"

Cerise snorted. Of course.

The Rider stood up from her chair and walked to stand beside Cerise' head. She gently stroked behind her dragon's ears. "I wouldn't even mention this if I didn't have it worked out. That search and rescue spell can be modified in so many ways, you know that. I can find where all the roots are and avoid them. Dragging it out is the hard part. Pulling all that dirt could disturb the tree and cause a few cave ins. Still, I don't think I'd be able to get it out without your help.

"Not getting the weapon could be just as bad. Crescent Rose is just a rifle now. She can't hit anything herself anymore. This sword could easily snap facing the Forsworn." Ruby tapped the hilt by her waist. "If it is brightsteel, Rhunön could guide me through how to make the new weapon indestructible."

Ruby repositioned to look Cerise in the eye. "That being said, I will not go through with this if I believe it poses a threat to either of us. If you don't like the situation, we leave, and I will leave that metal there and not think about it again. Deal?"

Cerise pupil contracted and dilated rapidly. Fine, but be ready to fly back here. You can get back to trying to figure out your book.

"Fine with me." Ruby gave Cerise one more scratch behind the ear before jumping up onto Cerise' saddle. She leaned forward toward Cerise' ears. "Cerise, I never wanted to hurt or scare you. It's why I'm glued to your side before and after any battles. And, well, after what happened to us, you're my safety blanket. I can't feel like I'm in trouble when I'm under your wings."

Gem. Cerise hummed and flicked her tongue out to Ruby's cheek. You're my safety blanket too.

Ruby gently pushed Cerise' head away. "Let's not get mushy. Let's fly." Cerise nodded and jumped out their second story window. They soared over the wooden city and angled for the pine tree the size of a mountain. From high in the air, Ruby saw Halcyon lying next to a building with his head stuck through a door. It was kind of a funny sight from the air, but what was going on down there was anything but. Hopefully Yang would be walking around without her exoskeleton by the end of the day.

Why do you think Oromis wants to only see Aaron, Yang, and Halcyon the next few days? Cerise asked.

"I don't know." Ruby shrugged. "Maybe it has something to do with Halcyon's heart condition. It could be Yang's rehab too."

But why would Aaron be there for either of those?

"Velvet's helping with Yang's back. Maybe Aaron's helping with either of those since Oromis can't do much." Ruby paused. "It could also be special training for Yang that they know about that she doesn't. That tends to happen a lot."

Cerise hummed her agreement. After several minutes of flying over the green ocean, Cerise dipped down toward the clearing around the Menoa tree. She lightly growled, but a whimper made it in there as well. I don't like this.

"I'm still on your back, Cerise." Ruby rubbed her dragon's neck. "You can still take me away."

Cerise turned her head back, her visible pupil slightly larger than a slit. Find out what's around that metal, then we'll talk.

"Got it." Ruby dismounted her dragon and walked to the spot she remembered detecting that hunk of metal. She placed her natural palm on the root beneath her feet and cast the modified search and rescue spell again. The metal was exactly in the same spot as she remembered.

Ruby modified the spell again to search for the roots. She expected an extensive system, but not quite that extensive. The roots went everywhere underground, not just on the surface. Most of it was near the trunk of the tree, and they tapered off when they neared the edge of the clearing where Ruby and the metal were. Still, there was too much wood nearby to quickly extract the metal.

But there could still be a way. Ruby used yet another variation of the spell to find a safe route out of the root system. In her head, she saw a path draw itself through the roots. It rose, fell, twisted, and otherwise spazed the first twenty or so feet. After that, it was nearly a straight shot right to Cerise.

Finding the route was easy. Following it wasn't. Whenever Ruby had to dig someone out of rubble before, she just pulled it off the top of them and kept the walls from closing in. Never before did she drag someone with magic through this amount of dirt. She knew how to do it, but executing it wouldn't be easy.

Ruby looked over to where Cerise sat, the dragon's legs ready to pounce. "You know what I know," Ruby called. "Do we do this?"

Cerise stared at the ground, the corners of her lips framing her teeth. At the first sign of trouble, I'm grabbing you.

"I'd expect nothing less." Ruby stood at her full height and pointed her left palm toward the metal. She started chanting in the Ancient Language, and the hunk moved. Ruby pulled the metal at slower than a snail's pace. She couldn't tell if the tunnel she was making was collapsing behind the metal or not. Even if it did, the dirt being pushed in front of the metal would be the filler…if that's how it worked.

As time drew on, Ruby had to rely more on more on Cerise for strength. As expected, pulling the hunk up took less energy than pushing it down. Pulling it sideways was just as exhausting, but it was making progress. Ruby tried to stay on top of it as it moved. She almost tripped once over the surface roots, but regained her balance quickly.

After a while, Ruby stopped and checked the route just ahead of the metal. Somehow she missed a root before. She'd have to reroute somehow. As she moved the metal past the unexpected root, another one moved to block the metal's path.

Ruby froze. Roots just don't move.

She looked toward the trunk of the tree. It didn't look any different, or feel any different, but it was waking up. "Cerise…"

Cerise stood at her full height and flared her wings. Get over here, now! She snarled and whipped her tail from side to side.

Ruby ran across the roots to her dragon. She didn't know how the tree attacked, and didn't want to stick around to find out. As she neared Cerise, she heard wood snapping and cracking behind her. Cerise snarled and raised her neck. Ruby jumped from the ground to the saddle and waited for her dragon to take off.

However, Cerise stayed planted on the ground. "Cerise, we need to go!"

Gem, look. Surprise filled her mental voice.

Ruby followed her dragon's gaze to where she was standing only moments before. She blinked and straightened where she sat. A lump of raw metal and stone rested on top of the roots. "Wait, wha-"

I know not why you drag this through my roots, an unfamiliar voice boomed in Ruby's head, but I do thank you for taking care to not disturb me.

Ruby looked up to the tree, for it was undoubtedly the one speaking. I am sorry to interrupt your rest.

I had not known why my roots were denied growing. Now, I am free to do so.

I am glad to help.

Now take it, and leave me in peace. The tree pulled out of Ruby's mind, taking a huge weight off it.

Ruby stayed rooted on Cerise' saddle and stared at the heap of raw metal. Her dragon gently lifted her shoulders. Ruby. Take it, and let's leave.

"Be ready to grab me if something goes wrong." Ruby dismounted and slowly approached the ore. Nothing else in the clearing moved, and the tree stayed silent. She wrapped her arms underneath the ore and lifted it off the wooden stand. The roots retreated into the ground, causing Ruby to jump back.

Seeing and feeling no other movement, Ruby ran back to Cerise' side. Both retreated farther into the forest and didn't stop until they couldn't see the clearing the tree stood. Ruby finally took the time to look at the rock in her arms. Her bionic eye started analyzing the thing on a molecular level. While it was doing that, Cerise sniffed at it. Could this be it?

"I don't know. I've never seen a meteorite before." Ruby paused and looked at the object in her arms. If this was what she thought it was, she was holding something from space, quite possibly from a different galaxy from her own, or universe. "So cool…"

Her eye finished its scan. Various words and the chemical composition appeared in the right side of her vision. There were only a few that mattered: DESIGNATION: METEORIC IRON/BRIGHTSTEEL.

The edges of Ruby's lips threatened to break off her face. "Cerise, we're going to Rhunön's forge."

Cerise' own excitement boiled off her. All aboard. Please check any excess baggage. She grabbed the meteorite in her claws, allowing Ruby to use both hands to climb onto her dragon's back. Cerise jumped into the air and flew straight toward Rhunön's house.

The plans for her new weapon flashed by in Ruby's right eye. It would be hard, and take a long time, but she could do it. Rhunön somehow had tools that were futuristic compared to the rest of Alagaësia. She could figure out how to make screws and all that without a factory, if she hadn't already.

"Cerise, this is the best day since coming to Alagaësia!" Ruby bounced in the saddle.

Really? Last night wasn't good enough for you.

"It was, but the morning and afternoon could definitely be better."

Cerise snorted. And you haven't even started work yet.

"So it can only get better from here!" Ruby looked past her dragon's head and saw what she thought was Rhunön's house in the distance. Cerise angled down toward it, confirming her suspicions. The dragon landed on three legs and Ruby slid off her back. Ruby ran in front of her dragon and took the meteorite from Cerise.

She then entered the house and found the elf smith in her forge. Rhunön looked up from whatever she was working on. "You're back. I thought I told you…" Her eyes widened and glowed as she saw the hunk of raw metal in Ruby's arms. "Where did you find that?"

"Beneath the Menoa tree believe it or not." Ruby dropped the meteorite to the floor. "Don't ask how knew it was there. It's a long story."

Some of the light left Rhunön's eyes. "This is the metal I need, but I still cannot forge a weapon."

"Then teach me how to create a Rider's weapon," Ruby insisted. Rhunön looked at the Rider with doubt in her eyes. "You never checked my sword last night. Consider this my resume." Ruby unhooked her sword from her belt and handed it over.

Rhunön took the blade this time and removed it from its sheath. She looked over the sword like Ruby would do when checking any of her weapons for scratches and other deformations. "This…" Rhunön breathed, "this reminds me of my early work. How long did you spend on this?"

"Four days, off and on. Similar tools, but I have to say most were slightly more advanced than they are here." Ruby felt something build up in her chest. My slap job sword reminds her of her? Oh, man…

Don't let it go to your head, Cerise chuckled.

"Four…" Rhunön locked eyes with Ruby. "What kind of sword are you looking for?"

"It's not exactly a sword." Ruby fished her Scroll out of a pocket and brought up the designs of her new weapon. She handed it over. "It's a variation of Crescent Rose, my weapon Durza damaged. It fixes some of the problems I had before and made a new mode."

Rhunön took the Scroll and looked at the designs. "This…" The corners of her lips edged upward. "This is a weapon worthy of a Rider."

"If you help me forge this weapon, I'll explain how I made these." Ruby raised her right arm.

Rhunön nodded. "Let's get started."

"Are you sure this will work?" Blake asked Brom as she stared down at the Bullhead in the ditch. "I can still see it."

"You and I are the only ones who are able to," Brom assured. "No passersby will know if its existence."

"If you say so." Blake lifted her black hood over her ears. She had flown her Bullhead ahead of where the caravan should have been that day. They needed to find out exactly what happened to Weiss before she disappeared. If she was captured, well, there was no real point in keeping the Bullheads a secret.

Brom led Blake to the main road and they turned north. They saw a few travelers along the way. Blake ignored the stares from the men on horseback. She and Brom had to stick out like a sore thumb. They weren't anywhere near a city, and didn't have any bags. Then there was the fact of Gambol Shroud on Blake's back. Women weren't supposed to carry weapons here.

After several minutes of walking, the caravan came into sight. Two horses surrounded a wagon carrying eight people. Of course, Weiss wasn't with them. From afar, it looked like her second in command was. Hopefully the man who last saw Weiss was as well.

Blake stood in the center of the road, blocking the caravan's path. Brom stood slightly behind her. The lead horseman stopped, bringing the caravan to a halt. He shouted something at the rest of the men, then slowly approached the pair with a hand on his sword. As he got close, his hand left his sword and sped up his horse. He stopped right in front of the two on foot. "Lady Blake, Brom, how did you get here?"

"That's not important, Mich," Blake said. "Do you have the man who you claim killed Sarah?"

Mich nodded. "He is in the chains we cut off the slaves. I assume you are here to take him?"

"We are here to know what he knows, then take appropriate action. Some of the things you told me already don't add up."

"As you wish." Mich turned his horse around and walked back to the convoy, Blake and Brom right behind him. Blake didn't get a good look at the people in the wagon before. Now she could see a man and a woman around Dr. Oobleck's age, and a couple of kids who looked scared out of their minds. There wasn't any resemblance between the kids and the adults. Two more people were around Ruby's and Aaron's age. The seventh man in the carriage was the driver.

That left the man whose arms and legs were chained together. His face was bloodied and bruised and had a hefty cut on his right cheek. Something told Blake it wasn't from those who attacked Weiss. But that's how things were done here; guilty until proven innocent. "Get down here," Blake ordered the man.

He slowly rose to his feet and shuffled to the edge of the wagon. He looked off the edge and jumped off. When he hit the ground, he nearly fell over. Blake kept him from doing so. "Why are you here?" he asked.

"To find out what happened from the source. Brom is here to make sure you don't lie to me." Blake pulled the man away from the rest of the caravan. She made him kneel on the ground. "Now from the beginning. What happened leading up to Sarah's disappearance?"

The man looked between Blake and Brom. "She took me to spy on the procession from Dras-Leona like you ordered. We waited near the base of the mountain nearby until they were all out of sight. We freed the two young men in the wagon. That's when those dragons showed themselves."

Blake turned to Brom for confirmation. The former Rider just nodded. "So Sarah fought the Forsworn?"

"And killed one of them." The man shook his head. "I did not know she was a spellcaster."

"She isn't," Brom said. "She is something else entirely."

"Then how do you explain the beasts she conjured? Four massive birds, a scorpion, and a soldier, all of them white as the clouds. I don't know how, but she killed one of the dragons. I do not think she killed its Rider. Two of them were on the ground."

"What dragons were there?" Blake asked.

"A cyan one still lives, but Sarah killed the orange, but you will not find a body. It…Sarah stabbed its eye and it…disappeared." The man shook his head. "What is she that she can do that?"

Brom cast a glance at Blake as well. He didn't know all the parts of Weiss's Semblance. He didn't need to know at the moment. "All I can say is that she's a Huntress," Blake said.

The man scoffed. "That was the last thing she said to me."

"You said two Riders were on the ground," Brom started. "Who were they, what they were they doing there?"

"Two elves, that's all I know about who they are." That caught Blake's attention. If she remembered right, the Rider of the orange dragon was human. Why would there be two elves? "They did something to Sarah. She froze in place and the scorpion she conjured disappeared. Sarah fell to the ground; I do not know if she's dead. They took her and her weapon."

Blake's heart plummeted once again. "Do you know which direction they flew?"

"East." The man pointed in that direction. "Urû'baen."

There it was. If he was right, Weiss was in the enemy's hands, and there was nothing the Varden could do about it until they took Urû'baen. Blake looked to Brom for the final confirmation. Again, Brom nodded. "He has not lied this entire time."

Blake sighed. "Is there anything else that you feel we should know?"

The man shifted where he sat. "I could have sworn one of them looked right at me."

Those words made Blake turn into a statue. "What?" she bit out.

"One of them looked right at me, then turned away. I don't think she actually spotted me."

"Or she planned on following you." Blake turned to the sky. For the most part it was clear. Just a few birds, and not a cloud in a sky. No threats directly above them. Blake looked north and saw a single bird flying in their direction. She squinted at it, trying to pick out a better outline or color. It was too far away for her even her enhanced eyesight to pick out the details, but she could see that its wings moved too slowly for even the biggest birds. Her Scroll beeped and vibrated in her pocket, confirming her suspicions.

Blake drew Gambol Shroud and swung it above her head. The man on the ground covered his head with his hands. Instead of killing him, Blake cut the chains binding his limbs. "We need to move. Now."

Brom drew his own sword as he stared at the incoming dragon. "Do you know who it is?"

"Not until it gets closer." Blake ran back to the rest of the caravan. "Break time's over. A dragon is approaching from the north. We need to move."

Everyone else in the caravan looked north. "So Ralph is a traitor," Mich growled.

"He's not. Just unlucky. Now mount up, and follow me." Blake ran back in the direction she came from. She pulled out her Scroll and looked at her Bullhead's radar. A single bogey was flying at them at a leisurely speed, but that would change as soon as whoever it was figured out what Blake was doing.

Blake didn't stop running. She wasn't as fast as a horse or Ruby, but she still managed to set a good pace for the caravan. When she reached the spot where she and Brom originally met the road, she ran off. The caravan was slow to follow, but they did.

She reached the edge of the ditch the Bullhead rested in and looked north again. The dragon looked like it increased its speed. A quick look at her scroll confirmed it. The caravan finally caught up to Blake, and the warriors dismounted their horses. They drew their weapons and looked north as well. Mich looked to Blake. "Why are we stopping?"

"This is where we'll make our stand." Blake looked to Brom. "Keep them distracted." She hopped down into the ditch and entered her Bullhead. She powered up everything but the engines. Various lights flashed and the radar screen burst to life. Blake took control of the turret and pointed it in the direction of the dragon. It was still a mile out of range, but it closed quickly.

Seconds before Blake would pull the trigger, someone launched an assault against her mind. She froze in place as she tried to fight back. Surprisingly, it wasn't as intense as she thought it would be. Velvet could attack better than that. Still, it took all of Blake's concentration to keep the targeting reticule on the target.

The crosshairs flashed green and Blake pulled the trigger. The walls of the Bullhead shook as it launched dozens of Dust rounds toward the target. The dragon tried to dodge, but its half a second response time wasn't enough. Countless rounds tore into the dragon's belly and wings. Blake eased off the trigger, and the gun on the roof fell silent.

The now dead dragon nosedived out of the sky and hit the ground, making a small dust cloud. Despite this, the attack on her mind continued. She heard footsteps on the metal floor behind her. She faced it…and saw Mich holding a hunting knife aimed right toward her.

Mich lunged, but Blake activated her Semblance and her shadow clone took the hit. She used the natural propulsion from her Semblance to move behind the traitor and pin him to the command console. That finally ended the mental assault. "You? Why?"

"The Empire pays better." He managed to push Blake off and grab his knife. "I was already going to be rewarded handsomely for getting them Sarah. I might be able to buy my way to the top of Dras-Leona and end slavery that way." Mich lunged again, but Blake caught it on Gambol Shroud, despite the tight space of the Bullhead.

"You didn't think this through, did you?" Blake asked condescendingly. "Taking me on is idiotic enough, but with Brom nearby? Not to mention that they would still kill you."

Mich grimaced. "Yasdal was supposed to kill Brom." He pulled back and swiped one more time.

"I was talking about the other men outside." This time Blake caught the traitor's hand. "How did you do it? How did you let them know where to find us?"

"There's more than one spellcaster in this crew." Mich tried to pull his arm away, but Blake's grip held firm.

"I'm sure Brom will have more questions for you. Until then…" Blake sucker punched Mich in the jaw. He fell to the ground, unconscious. "I've fought Creeps who put up a better fight than you." She turned to leave the Bullhead.

As Blake stepped out onto open ground, she realized the implications. Mich was Weiss' second in command. He most likely knew most of the inner workings of their operations in Dras-Leona, Belatona, and Feinster…The whole Underground Highway could be compromised.

Blake ran to where the dragon fell. The other warriors from the caravan formed a line some distance away from the navy-blue corpse. Clashing metal could be heard on the other side. Blake burst through the line and saw Brom fighting with another human. His opponent's sword was the same color as the dragon's scales.

From what she could tell, Brom had the upper hand. He landed several strikes, but they all glanced off the Forsworn's wards. But his sword was just a regular footman's. If Crescent Rose couldn't take prolonged punishment here, how could a normal sword? Brom was in trouble if this fight didn't end quickly.

Blake switched Gambol Shroud to access its pistol. She aimed it at the fallen Rider. "Brom! Down!" Brom immediately complied and Blake fired a single shot into the Forsworn's head. His head snapped back with a new hole just between the eyes. He fell backward, never to rise again.

Unlike most of the rest of her team, Blake had come to terms with the fact that she'd have to take lives, especially on this mission. She didn't like it, or want to do it, but she wouldn't beat herself up over it. That being said, she knew the others' perspectives. She wouldn't put them down because of that.

Brom pushed himself off the ground and looked at the body of the now dead Forsworn. "I will never understand how your weapons are able to do this."

"I'm sure Ruby will gladly fill you in when this is all over." Blake approached the downed man with her pistol still pointed at him. Upon seeing the bullet hole up close, Blake returned Gambol Shroud to her back. No amount of magic or technology could heal that. "We have a traitor among us. He's out cold in the Bullhead right now."

Brom's eyes narrowed at Blake. "What?"

"Mich. I don't know how he hid the fact that he can use magic, but he did." Blake paused. "Wait. He said Yasdal was supposed to kill you. How would he know you were coming?"

Brom grimaced. "He wouldn't. It would appear there's another traitor in Farthen Dûr." He looked right at Blake. "Who knew?"

"Just Jaune, Pyrrha, and Ren, and you know them."

"Or do I?" Brom looked back at the caravan. "I suggested these men to you. How could I not see this?"

Blake looked back at the caravan. She couldn't tell when interviewing Mich the first time that he was a turncoat. JNPR wouldn't sell them out for all the Lien on Remnant. It was possible that someone saw the Bullhead fly out of Farthen Dûr, and that was most likely the case.

She faced northeast to where the other members of her team flew. Hopefully the Riders would get her message before it was too late.

Weiss lay yet another stack of papers in the 'done' tray on her desk. After all this time, she expected the paperwork to be worse. Then again, she'd been president of the SDC for three years. She was an absolute wreck her first few months. Now, she could go days without getting frustrated at all.

She picked up the next stack and started reading through it. Just General Ironwood asking for more Paladins and how he planned on paying for them. At least he wasn't asking for a new battleship again. Those things were a such drain on SDC resources. Maybe Ruby could figure out how to streamline the process, if she ever got out of her own weapons manufacturing.

After reading and signing the order, Weiss picked up a stack of damage reports. Her good mood fell off the cliff when she saw two words: White Fang. Didn't Blake have them under control? Reading through, she saw that Adam Taurus led an attack on a mine in Mistral. That explained it. He attacked, then vanished for months at a time. Maybe if the prison near Vale didn't lose him two years ago, he wouldn't be a problem. He'd still be behind bars.

Weiss shook her head and moved to the next stack. Before she could read a word, the intercom buzzed. "Miss Schnee, Miss Rose is here to see you."

"Thank you, Klein. Send her in." Weiss set the current stack down and left her desk. Typical Ruby. She never called ahead unless it was an emergency. Somehow she could hide Cerise from any radar or other detection around SDC headquarters…Weiss needed to catch them someday, if just for bragging rights.

The door to her office opened and Ruby stepped through. Her hair draped down past her shoulders, but the tips of her ears still poked out. Somehow she could make her trademark hood formal wear. A red dress covered the rest of her, most likely from Coco. "Thank you for seeing me, Miss Schnee," Ruby said in the most business-like tone she could manage.

"I will always make time for my team leader," Weiss returned in an equally business like tone. The door closed behind Ruby and both women giggled like school girls. "It's good to see you, Ruby."

"Right back at ya, Weiss." The two approached and hugged each other. "The turbulence was actually pretty bad coming in here."

"Really?" Weiss pulled away. "I hadn't heard that in the weather reports."

"Cerise said it just started up." Ruby sat down on one of the couches in the room. "You know how unpredictable the weather is up here."

"You have a point." Weiss sat down across from Ruby. "So what brings you here today?"

"Can't I just come up here to say hi?"

"You can, but your smile and blush says otherwise."

Ruby's cheeks grew even redder. "Stupid biology." She took her left hand off her right and held the latter up. A silver ring with a beautiful emerald was wrapped around Ruby's ring finger. Her smile threatened to pop off her face. "Yeah. This happened."

Weiss' eyes widened and her lip muscles hurt from the force of her smile. "Oh my gosh! Ruby, congratulations!" She stood up and walked over to Ruby's couch. Her leader stood up and they hugged again. "Aaron finally stopped messing around?"

"He's Alagaësian. He had to do it properly. Plus, he's scared of my dad."

"Aaron's scared of something? So he is human." The two teammates separated again and sat down on the same catch. "You have a day yet?"

Ruby shook her head. "Not yet, but since I'm terrible at planning, I figured I should start getting things set early."

Weiss blinked. "If you're asking what I think you are, I'm not a wedding planner. I can refer you to several here in Atlas that have worked for some celebrities."

"I've already asked Coco for that." Ruby waved Weiss off. "She said she'll do it, and for a fraction of the cost of any of the people here. No, I came to ask you about…" she rubbed the back of her neck, "…would you be my Maid of Honor?"

Weiss gasped and covered her mouth with a hand. "Really?"

"Yeah. Cerise and I wouldn't fly all the way to Atlas for a joke."

"What about Yang? Won't she be mad."

"She already knows I'm going to ask you." Ruby sighed. "I had to choose between three sisters, and you know I don't like picking favorites…I threw you all in a random number generator."

Weiss blinked. "You what? That's no way to choose that."

"What am I supposed to do? I couldn't choose between the three of you. This way no one gets as upset." Ruby sank into the couch.

"Ruby, how can you be so childish after all we've been through? I'd be more upset if you'd rather have Blake or Yang right next to you and you're stuck with me." Weiss rested a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Look, you've probably got a few months to figure this out. Take your time. Really figure out who you want to be your Maid of Honor. I will not be upset if it's not me…as long as I'm still a bridesmaid."

"Don't worry, you'll still be up there." Ruby gave Weiss a sideways smile.

"That's all I ask."

"So," Ruby looked to Weiss' desk, "whatcha working on?"

"The usual. Classified documents mixed in with mining reports that everyone can see." Weiss stood up and picked the top few stacks off her to do pile. "Let's see, building reinforcement, new mine locations, classified, Fort…"

Weiss blinked and skimmed through the document again. This couldn't be right. How did something involving Fort Castle end up on her desk? That's Vale's territory. Vale rarely asked for anything from the SDC for military bases, if ever. She looked at who sent the document. Weiss froze when she saw the name.

"Weiss something wrong?" Ruby asked.

"Is this some sort of prank?" Weiss said to herself more than Ruby. "This…this shouldn't be here."

"Weiss?"

"Look at this!" Weiss shoved the paper into Ruby's face. "For one, why is Vale asking for help rearming Fort Castle. Two, why is this signed by Morzan?"

Ruby's shoulders slumped. "Oh, it's happening again."

"What's happening?" Weiss demanded.

Ruby put her hands on both of Weiss' shoulders. "Weiss. We were wrong. Galbatorix was the best thing that could have happened to Alagaësia."

"What?" Weiss ripped Ruby's hands off her shoulders. "What are you talking about?"

"The old Riders and Kingdom were corrupt. He cleared all that."

"I…" Weiss turned around and crossed her arms. "I can't believe what I'm hearing."

"We've had this conversation before, Weiss. Something Brom did to you that I can't undo."

Weiss turned to glare at Ruby. Her gaze landed on her friend's ring. "Why is that on your right hand?"

"I…uh…"

Weiss clamped her hands on the sides of her head. "What was I doing yesterday?" She thought about her time in Atlas. She was just thinking she'd been there three years. Why couldn't she remember any of that. The last thing she remembered…that elf at the base of the black mountain…The sound of that sword…

"This isn't real." Weiss took her heads off her head. "This can't be real."

"You finally figured it out," a familiar voice said behind her. Weiss faced it and immediately a hand slammed into her throat. She was lifted off the ground and slammed against the concrete wall of her 'office.' The offending hand belonged to the elf that attacked her at the base of the mountain. "I expected you to find out earlier."

Weiss glared at her attacker and tried to summon the Grimm armor behind the elf. It rose out of the ground and raised its sword to attack the elf. Before it could attack, a red scythe cut through its center. Ruby stood with Crescent Rose pointed at Weiss' head. "Your orders, Formora?" Ruby said as if she was asking if Formora wanted her to kill a Beowolf.

"You're not as strong as you think," Weiss choked out. "If you were, your dragon might-"

Formora drew her sword and stabbed Weiss in the stomach in one fluid motion. Weiss' eyes bulged, but she couldn't scream. "The King wants you to give up your information willingly, and has tasked me with encouraging you to do so." Somehow shadows crossed her face without moving her head. "Do me a favor, resist."

"Go to hell." Weiss tried to follow the elf's movement, but couldn't track the blade before it plunged into her right shoulder. Again, her throat couldn't push a scream past the elf's hand.

"I suppose I should order you to tell me your secrets," Formora drawled.

"Weiss Schnee, team RWBAY, six-seven-three-seven-eight."

Formora once again moved her sword, this time to Weiss' spine, but she didn't remove it first. The elf let Weiss drop to the floor. "We both know this isn't real, but I can do whatever I want to in here. I wish I could do the same where you are being held, but I must settle for more mundane methods." She turned around and looked to Ruby. "Wake her up."

'Ruby' bowed. "Of course, milady." She folded up 'Crescent Rose' and transformed her left arm to its gun mode. She smirked down at Weiss. "I never liked you anyway."

"That's because you're not Ruby." Weiss coughed, globs of blood coming out of her mouth.

'Ruby' smirked evilly and there was murder in her eyes. She no longer bore any resemblance to the young Huntress. "Let's see if you still believe that when we're done with you, bitch." She aimed her gun arm at Weiss' head and fired.

Weiss jolted awake, or she would have if she could move her head, or any of her limbs. She struggled against her bonds, but she couldn't move an inch. All she could see were black tiles with red, gold, and blue lines running through them in random directions.

"Good, you're awake," Formora said somewhere to Weiss' left. "Know this, no lies will be told in this room. I'd swear it, but you don't understand the language. It would mean less than your pitiful life."

"You know they'll come for me." Weiss continued to fight against the straps.

"We're counting on it. We simply want to be ready when they do." Something metal clanked against other metal, and fire popped. For the first time, Weiss smelt smoke. Formora walked into Weiss' line of sight, holding a red-hot iron. "The pain will stop either when you give up your allies, or swear allegiance to the King. Please, for my sake, don't." She stabbed the iron into Weiss' side.

This time, nothing held back her scream.

I've Yang-proofed my bunker, so hopefully now I'll be safe...Hopefully.