Chapter 36: As Time Flies By
Depression, anger, hatred, those were all the things that lead up to the Fall of Beacon. That was when everything happened. Of course rumors began to spread as people began to question their Authorities and slowly brought them down, giving the Grimm a perfect opportunity to wipe Humanity off the face of existence, plunging the world into darkness. But from within that darkness came a small spark of light; that soon began to light the flames of hope and gave the people a reason to stand together and push back the Darkness. Anton and Ruby have done everything in their power to bring the people together and when the fight had seemed to be done and said everyone went their separate ways. Three years have past since that time and with no sign of The Darkness, or any word of Salem, things began to settle down or at least so they thought. Anton has yet again gone missing for reasons unknown, meanwhile Ruby struggles to find and get her team back together. Jarvis and Qrow have taken over in the search for Ozpin with the help of Forest, Samuel, and Silvaki. Cinder and her band of misfits have gone into hiding but have been useful were they can. As for Jaune and what remained of his team they stayed with Ruby to help her as much as possible. Which brings us to our current setting.
BANG!
"Hurry he's getting away!" Ruby ordered as she jumped onto a rooftop chasing a man in a White Fang suit.
"On it!" Jaune called out as he jumped up and tackled him to the roof and a loud thud could be heard as they both made contact.
"Good now let's take him back for questioning." Ruby ordered as Ren and Nora helped Jaune carry the man in question.
Jaune knocked the guy out before going anywhere else, and when he woke up he was found in a dark room with one light, a table, and one chair. He looked across the room to find his mask on the table and series of other items like pictures, and sitting across from him was the young girl who chased him down, staring at him like he was mouse in a trap and she was the cat.
"What do you want little red?" The Dog Faunus asked.
"Answers." She said as she pulled two of the photos in front of him, one was of a girl who ran away a long time ago, and the other was a boy who disappeared for reasons unknown. "Where are they?!" she demanded with such ferocity. The Dog Faunus sighed as he shook his head.
"Look little red I'm sorry but I don't know who they are let alone where they are." He pleaded as he tried to stand but was zapped as Ruby pinned him to the wall.
"Bull, Anton Sonreef and Blake Belledonna, both of which used to be members of your organization and are now M I fudging A so unless you have a death wish, you'd tell me where they are." Ruby demanded once again as she held Crescent Rose to his face in gun mode. The Dog Faunus smiled before he spat to his right.
"You couldn't even if you wanted to." He tested.
"It would hardly be the first time." She responded without breaking eye contact.
"That's enough!" both of them turned to see Adam Taurus standing next to Jaune Arc as they entered the room.
"Sparky leave us, you're excused for the day." Adam ordered before the Dog Faunus nodded and left. Ruby tried to sneak away but was stopped when a red katana stabbed the ground in front of her.
"Miss Rose, front and center please." Adam ordered, she gulped heavily before she complied and stood before them.
"Miss Rose do you know why we are having these training sessions?" Adam asked as he paced to the left and right a bit.
"To improve my interrogation skills and leadership skills?" She guess, cause Adam to stop and give her a quick glare.
"Precisely, and why do we need to do that?" Adam asked.
"Because I asked for your help." Ruby sassed back at Adam, who in turn have her a thoughtful look.
"Though that is not a lie, it is not the answer I'm looking for." Adam stated.
"Ruby threatening to kill the person is never the way to go at from right off the bat." Jaune explained as he stood there with his arms crossed. Ruby just glared at both of them.
"Well what else was I supposed to do, let him trick me into thinking that he was helping me?" Rudy questioned. The two men just shook their heads.
"No but by opening with a threat like that put you in a situation that could have led to that." Jaune mentioned.
"And to top that off, not only would you have been tricked, but possibly killed." Adam explained. Ruby now paced in frustration.
"You're letting your anger get the best of you, and that will affect your ability to lead and it can cloud your judgment. Trust me I know." Adam mentioned.
That's when Ruby slammed her hands on the table and the room went quiet. Moments later Adam motioned for Jaune to follow him out of the room. Ruby just stood there as she looked at the pictures of her friends, three years and no sign of them whatsoever. Yang stayed at home to help Tai as much as she could while Weiss has taken over as Vice owner of the Shnee Dust Company next to her father. Jaune and Adam just left as she sat there and started to cry over the fact that they left and there was no sign of them anywhere.
"Why are you helping us?" Jaune asked as Adam closed the door behind them.
"You have your reason to look for those two and I have mine." Adam said as they started walking down the halls.
"Care to elaborate?" Jaune asked as two members of The White Fang passed them.
"With Cinder as our double agent to Salem, the reconstruction of Vale is under way but it has been slow, and The White Fang now broken in two our resources are spread thin. With Anton on our side we can do more, quicker and efficiently." Adam said.
"I thought Ironwood and Glynda were doing a fine job of reconstructing Vale, You seem to be doing a great job on The White Fang, and Cinder isn't suspected by Salem at all, who by the way has yet to make a move and appearance." Jaune explained as they turned the corner.
"Even with that in mind, people still are having a hard time trusting Atlas from when Vale fell, Cinder hasn't shown up in a while, and those loyal to me in The White Fang are few which is why we need his help, now more than ever." Adam mentioned as he opened the doors to the Deserts of Vaccuo.
"So how does Blake fit in your plan to help the world?" Jaune asked as they walked towards a fountain that was clearly big enough for people to call a local pool. The fountain had none scorpion statues, eight around the round base and one in the middle that shot water out of its stinger.
"She doesn't." Adam said as he reach into the water.
"Then why do you need to find her?" Jaune asked, taking a seat on the scorpion statue next to him.
"I need to apologize to her, and Anton, personally." Adam said before he shook the water off of his hand and walked away. Jaune noticed his demeanor as he walked away from the fountain, it was sorely depressed and full of regret but something else was there hidden under all that, like he knew something everyone else didn't.
"Jaune, everything alright?" Ren asked as he popped his head out of the water.
"No, Ruby's an emotional mess and Adam is being mysterious." Jaune explained as he cupped his hand and rested his chin on them.
"When is Adam not mysterious?" Nora asked as she splashed herself onto Ren, getting Jaune wet in the process.
"Good point but why is Ruby an emotional mess, have you talked to her yet?" Ren asked as he climbed out of the water with Nora on him.
"No Adam was too busy giving her a lecture and didn't give me a chance to comfort her." Jaune said as Ren and Nora dried themselves off before they grabbed their new clothes.
"So why aren't you now?" Ren asked as he put sun screen on Nora.
"Because he doesn't want to impose." Nora stated as she splashed the water with her feet. Just then a flash of red sped past them and kept moving into the desert.
"Let me guess that was her?" Jaune asked as he pulled out his Scroll.
"Yup." Ren said.
Jaune opened his Scroll to a message from Ruby.
Major Grimm attack in small town outside of Mistrial two alphas spotted one Ape, the other Nevermore, going to investigate.
Ruby's speed as increased to say the least, her average speed was now that the match of the world's fastest thing alive… … … oh wait that was her now. In a matter of minutes she was out of the desert and into a savannah region, she was in a forest seconds later. She stopped once she saw villagers running in the opposite direction of her.
"Sir what's going on?" she asked as a male dressed in casual clothes stopped in front of her.
"Some kind of attack, two Alphas are fighting in our village making more Grimm come from everywhere." He said after he caught his breath. Ruby looked ahead to see the village in fire as a giant Grimm Primate jumped into the air.
"Get everyone to safety, I'll deal with the Grimm." Ruby ordered as she started walking towards the village on fire.
"What is a little girl like you going to do?" the man asked.
Ruby didn't answer she just walked forward and put her hood on. She kept walking through the forest until she stood on a rock at the edge away from the village. She watched the Grimm terrorize the streets as the Ape and Nevermore battled on. She squinted at the Nevermore to get a better look. Apart from having more bones and being bigger than an average Nevermore the only difference this one had was the green glowing eyes. She cupped her mouth and nearly cried when she saw those eyes, finally for the first time in three years there was her first clue of where he was. As younger Nevermores flew over her she jumped and latched onto one with her Crescent Rose and she flew into the Village. As soon as she was over the town she pulled the trigger using the force from the gun shot to slice the Nevermore in half. She concentrated as he fell from the sky, carefully planning where she would be landing. She look for anything soft at first but saw no such thing, so instead she readied her feet and concentrated her Aura in the palm of her feet as she crushed a statue into dust. She looked to her right, then to her left when she didn't see anything. She saw one Grimm, a Beowolf, run past her at a speed that would rival a Wyvern. With no Grimm destroying the city and only two Alphas fighting each other Ruby could only assume one thing. If there was anything she learned from Anton or Dr. Oobleck it's that not all Grimm are still mindless. Those that are mindless look up to a leader, an Alpha, for protection. While those that have intelligence claim a territory for those following it. This Territory was already claimed and there are two Alphas fighting in it. She concluded that either Anton is on the move and needs something here, or this was a fight for land and the loser wouldn't walk away skate free. Quickly she ran in the opposite direction of the Beowolf in a frantic search for the Alphas. Looking left and right as she ran through the whole village finding nothing. She stopped where she was in the middle of a courtyard surrounded by buildings and a square fountain to listen for anything. Then she heard the Ape roar not to far from her. Not wasting another second she rushed over to where she heard the roar and found The Nevermore Alpha scream to the heavens claiming its victory. All that Ruby could do was watch as smaller flocks of ravens and crows flew away in fear of the giant beast. She just stood there not showing any sign of fear or doubt as the Nevermore looked down at her. It reached its head closer to Ruby and sniffed her like a curious dog and blew on her through its nostrils like a strong wing against a planted tree. The Nevermore simply turned and began to walk away, this wasn't the Nevermore she was looking for. She turned to walk away herself but stopped when a familiar katana dropped in front of her. She looked up to see The Nevermore's head directly above her, it looked at her with curiosity before it turned away again and flew into the air. Ruby smiled as she watched the Nevermore fly away. She picked up the katana before her Scroll went off. She answered the call and opened her Scroll to Jaune, Ren, and Nora calling.
"Ruby is everything alright we got your text?" She heard Jaune asked before Ren cut in.
"How bad is the Grimm concentration?" Ren asked. Ruby just rolled her eyes.
"Don't worry guys the Grimm have been taken care of, there's a Green Alpha in control. But you'd better get here quick, I may have found something." Ruby said as she looked at the katana.
"Like what, OH, is it food related?" Nora asked.
"No, I may have found a clue as to Anton's whereabouts." Ruby stated as she concentrated at the note tied to the handle. There was some small silence for a moment as she could here Jaune talking to someone, maybe Adam.
"Okay, hold tight we'll be there soon, we are currently in pursuit, be ready for pick up." Jaune said before the call was ended.
As Ruby waited for pickup she untied the note and opened it.
Page 59 Death turns to stone, which crumbles … … …
The rest of the note was torn and it didn't make any sense. Ruby was confused, what did it mean by death turning to stone and crumbling? Crumbling into what?
"Confusing, is it now?" An elder voice asked behind Ruby. She turned to see a small cloaked figure standing there.
"Come, show you the truth, I will." It sounded like an old man as it turned away and walked slowly.
The now confused more than ever Ruby got up and followed him through the damaged part of the village as she sheathed the katana to her back. They walked through the damaged streets and stopped at what looked like the most damaged part of the village, was a bunch of rubble covering a building. The figure sighed as he held out a white gloved hand to the damage.
"Do, this will not. Fix it, I can." The figure said as he waved his hand to the side. At first nothing happened but a moment later all the damaged rubble began to fly to the right of them, clearing the building's door for them.
"How did you do that?" Ruby shockingly asked as the figure opened the door for them.
"Learn many things you can, when you focus." He said as they walked into what seemed to be a library with random objects and trinkets.
Ruby looked around the grand library at the two floors of bookshelves, but it wasn't until she looked up at the roof when the lights turned on to show seven different colored clouds, varying of Cyan, Purple, Blue, Yellow, White, Red, and Green all surrounding an enormous Sun. The clouds and sun were painted high above an ocean which had a reef painted at the bottom filled with beautiful fish varying from all species. That was when she recognized this place.
"Hold on I've been here before, this is where Anton got that story book, ah what was it?" Ruby asked herself as the figure walked beside her down the aisles of books.
"There and Back, a fairy tale from a long time ago." The figure stated as he turned to the right.
"Oh yeah, wait what was your name again, I never quite got it?" Ruby as she followed him through the Non-Fiction aisle.
"Long forgotten, my name was. Dolackbar, some now call me." Dolackbar mentioned. (Duel*oc*bar)
"Oh." Ruby said as she looked at the books she passed by. She saw books like The Man with Two Souls, The Knight of The Wind, The Maiden's Seasons and other various titles that seemed out of place.
"Um, excuse me Mr. Dolackbar, why are there fairy tales in the Non-Fiction section?" Ruby asked as they moved farther into the Non-Fiction aisle.
"Hard to believe, the truth can be at times." Dolackbar said as he stopped and ran his finger across the books.
"What are we looking for exactly?" Ruby asked as he pulled out two books and handed them to Ruby.
"One, you need now. Useful, the other will be, later." Dolackbar said before he turned around and walked away. "Enjoy, I hope you will." And with a turn of the corner he was gone.
Ruby looked down at the books she now held in her hands. They were both rather old and dusty. She blew on them then whipped her sleeve across to take off as much dust as possible. She looked closer at them as she could now read the titles. The first one read Through the Silver Eye's but the second one was blank still. She moved the first book behind the blank book and opened it to the first page and read, Private, read at own accord, you have been warned. Disregarding the clear warning label Ruby read on and turned to the second page.
Day 1,
It's been about a week since I left, I don't even know why I didn't say goodbye to them anymore. I miss them, I'm sure they miss me too but I can't turn back now, not when I'm so close. I uh should probably explain in case someone else is reading this, either without my consent or because I'm long dead or some other reason that I can't think of. Anyway, my name is Anton Sonreef, and this is my journal. I am currently on my way to Haven with a friend of mine who convinced me to leave behind my friends in order to discover a secret that was even kept from Professor Ozpin, for better or for worse I'm about to find out. Wrekts and I have been looking for what he believes is called 'The Alaber Stone' apparently it's much like my 'Eagle Stone' only a different color, and what that is, is basically a small round gem that contains a power yet to be fully tapped. If we can find it we're hoping to do more research, see just how powerful they are and if there is more. The current date is 5/22/2141, Wrekts hopes to have more research done on these gems by next year, so it might be a while before anyone sees me again. Wrekts insisted that we keep this secret and when I asked him why all he said was how world changing this might be.
Ruby skimmed the pages to see just how much was in this journal.
"2141, that was three years ago, just what all has he been doing since then?" Ruby asked herself aloud as she skimmed the pages.
"A lot apparently, don't you know it's impolite to read someone else's journal?" Jaune asked appearing out of what seemed to be nowhere. It seemed his sudden appearance scared the poor girl and caused her to drop the books.
"Gah, Jaune what, a little warning next time, gosh we're in a library for Dust sake." Ruby exclaimed as she knelt down to pick up the books.
"Um Ruby, how can you tell this is a library, it's totally demolished." Jaune stated as he point all around him.
"What do you mean this place is in perfect…" She stopped herself as she looked around her once again.
Jaune was right, the place was a wasteland, like nothing remained at all. It was all wither ash or charcoal at this point. But how, she swore it was all in one piece not too long ago. How did this happen?
"Anyways Adam has a ship ready for us, we're all going to New Vale first thing in the morning." Jaune said as he turned to walk away but stopped to wait for her.
"Why New Vale, what's going on?" Ruby asked as she walked up to him.
"Sun called, he says he might have a lead on Blake, if we're quick we should be there by eleven in the morning." Jaune said as they started to leave the demolished building.
"Where did you find those books anyway, your lucky you even found them in perfect condition?" Jaune asked. Ruby just sighed as she stuffed them into a small bag on her back. That was when Jaune noticed the katana. "Is that what I think it is?" Jaune questioned as they walked through the demolished streets.
"Yup, it was his and so was the journal I was reading." Ruby said, ignoring his first question.
"So that means we have a potential lead on both of them, great today isn't looking so Grimm after all." Jaune said earning a punch to the shoulder from the little red. "Hey what?" he questioned.
"There's only one person allowed to make the puns and that is my sister." Ruby reminded him as they entered the center of the town.
"Right… … … hey um Ruby?" Jaune asked as he stopped.
"Hmm? What's up?" Ruby asked back as she stopped in front of him. He sighed as he straightened his back.
"About earlier today, you didn't actually mean those threats you made to that Faunus, did you?" Jaune asked shocking the poor girl.
She hadn't really thought about it till now. Did she mean by what she said to Sparky? She didn't know, she had been so consumed with the fact that most of the people in her life, the people she cared about had continued to just up and leave at the most unexpected moment. She was afraid and tired by this, she didn't want to lose anyone else. She promised herself to do her best and to hold those close to her as dearly as possible. But she never once thought about what would happen if she let herself be consumed by the rage for those who left. She tried to think of an answer but she just couldn't find one.
"I don't know." She said as she dropped her head in front of her in regret. Then she was met with the most unexpected gesture, a hug from her best friend.
"It's okay, I get it, when I lost Pyrrha I swore to myself that I wouldn't ever let anyone else die for me or for any other reason. I was so consumed by my anger that I neglected our mission at times. I even let Anton slip under my finger when we got to Mistrial, now he's gone who knows where, and it's my fault." Jaune said as he held Ruby close in his arms. She just frowned as she dug her head into his chest.
"Don't say that, it wasn't your fault he left us and it wasn't your fault for Pyrrha's death either. I couldn't get to either of them in time." Ruby said alas she slowly started to cry.
"You may not have been able to get to them in time, but it was me who failed to stop them from doing what they did … tell you what care to share the blame?" Jaune asked as he wiped her tears away. She cried as she nodded to say yes in his chest just as the airship came landing in to pick them up.
The time has flown since that day and there's only more to come. But someday their days will end, and who shall take the fall before the rise? It's hard to say just yet, with the team scattered and trust so hard to find these days. The innocence of a child gone and a rogue shows his true colors. The end will come, the end will come, wouldn't you agree Ozpin?
"No, I cannot say that I do, the child's innocence may be gone and the rogue is missing but their light will still shine!" Ozpin said as he lay on the floor like a broken beaten animal.
"Oh but Ozpin look around, you're in my world and soon so will yours." A lady dressed in black with skin as white as snow, and eyes black as night with nothing but the red pupils of death as her hair was pinned in a spider like shape. She turned to the man in need as she pointed out the Hell that was around her.
"My world will never be yours, Salem, my Guardian will make sure of it." Ozpin stated as Salem knelt down to him.
"Oh Ozpin, so full of hope, so full of light, a light that is diminishing. Your guardian is dead, you killed her yourself, and The Choice is still yet to be made by the Son of the Reef. The very boy who is wavering between The Light and The Darkness, oh it's so delicious to watch him every day contemplating, debating, fighting to decide what he should choose. Just watch Ozpin, when he collects the seventh and final gem of power he will disappoint you in the most dastardly of ways, and I'll be there to watch every moment of it." Salem whispered in his ear before she faced him and gave him the most seductive look a man could never imagine before she stabbed him in the chest and all that was left was the groans of a man in pain as she continued to play with her toy in ways that would make a grown man terrified.