Beginning of the End
"When you guys get to Atlas, you can stay at my house. I'll put the location in your scrolls and verify them to unlock the door," Jace said and put the coordinates in, then added their scrolls to the list of authorized devices. He gave a small grin, "I know you've been there, but this is just in case you get lost if the snow is bad."
Team RNJR put their scrolls up and nodded to him. "Thanks Jace. We'll take care of it while we're there." Ruby said to him.
Jace smiled and shrugged. "Don't mention it. You can use the workshop if you need to. I don't have a lot to use though."
"It's alright. Be careful with the Lance." Jaune said.
"We will. Stay safe guys," Jace replied and team RNJR turned to leave, "Oh, hey Ren."
"Yes, Jace?" Ren answered and they turned back to him.
"If you want to meditate anywhere, or if any of you want a quiet place to be for a while, follow the path behind the house."
"I will consider it. Thank you." Ren nodded to him.
"If you make it in time, can you go there and set this on Genesis' headstone on November twenty-ninth?" Jace asked and handed Ren a small piece of metal, "It's my birthday present to him."
Ren took it and looked at it. It was red in color and in the shape of a skull and a sword. "Is this his emblem?"
Jace nodded in confirmation, and Ren nodded again. "You have my word."
"Thanks Ren. See you guys later, and dress warm." Jace said and Jaune, Nora, and Ren boarded the ship.
Ruby walked forward and wrapped Blake in a tight hug. "Be safe, Blakey."
"I will. I promise," Blake said and pressed her cheek against Ruby's head. "And I'll keep this one."
"I'll make sure of it." Yang said with a smile.
They separated after a few moments and Ruby went to join the others.
"I'll see you in Vale sis!" Yang called to Ruby with a wave.
"See ya then!" She called back and waved at everyone, "Love you, Blakey!"
"I love you too!" Blake called back with a wide smile.
"It's good that the Grimm activity died down some now that people are calming down. Now people are getting ships out more and doing things." Jace said to the small group.
"The councils are still wary of everything, but they've publicly said that there will be no war." Erron said as they walked to the next ship.
"What're you gonna do about Emerald?" Yang asked the Ranger.
Erron sighed, the sound muffled by his ever-present rebreather. "I don't know. She's been cooperative with us ever since she came to us. We can't just let her go free though."
"I think she caused the most pain to you two," Blake directed at Jace and Yang, "What would you want?"
"Well, I want her to pay some way or another." Yang said and crossed her arms with a frown.
"What about you Jace?" Erron asked him.
"I… I don't know. I mean, I want her to pay too. But after what she said to me, I just don't know how. She said the only reason she joined Cinder in the first place was to survive, to finally get off the streets from being homeless. Maybe you can put her to work doing something?" Jace suggested.
"So after everything she caused, you wanna give her a job?" Yang asked in disbelief and looked at him.
"What good would shoving her in prison or just executing her do?" Jace asked and looked back at her, "It won't turn back time and Gods I know it can't bring dad or Gen back. Have her go out and kill Grimm, have someone watch her to make sure she wouldn't try anything. Send her on different missions and have her help out the kingdoms after what she helped with causing. That's how she should pay. I don't think she has to die or rot in jail."
"I just don't like it. I can't trust her." Yang said and they started walking again.
"I know it's hard to and I don't really trust her either. We were cut from the same cloth I guess… Homeless and trying to survive… I just want to hope she's telling the truth.
They arrived at the ship departing for Vale, taking much needed supplies to the survivor's enclave at the docks. Things like food, water, tools, medical and building supplies. Qrow was already onboard most likely talking with the captain.
"Well guys, I hope you can stop the White Fang there. Good luck and stay safe." Jace said before they stepped into the ship.
"Good luck with the Crimson Lance too, Jace. And thanks for helpin' me out." Yang said and the two disappeared onto the ship.
Jace and Erron walked back through the docks and then went toward SSSN's hangout.
"Even after everything that Emerald has caused for you, you want to help her like that?" Erron asked inquisitively as they walked on the sidewalk.
"It's more for the kingdoms than for her. But after what she told me about her life, I do want to help her," Jace answered and sighed, "She was worse off than me, she said she was homeless her whole life, and I was homeless for a year until dad found me when I was eight. Neither of us know our birth parents' names. Like I said, cut from the same cloth. I think she deserves a chance."
"And it's a great chance you're giving her. That's more than what most people would give."
"Yeah, I guess you're right."
"Emerald Sustrai. For now, you will be placed in a cell until Cinder Fall is dealt with." Erron said as he stood in front of the seated girl in the warehouse.
"Okay." She answered quietly.
"After things are taken care of, you will be released under the watch of the Rangers. You will help sweep through Vale to clear everything up, and you will be sent out to hunt Grimm and the remaining White Fang in the city. Do you understand?"
"Yes."
"Good," Erron said and turned to team JKDW, "Auron, Jace, we'll get her taken care of and we'll meet up at the house with the other Rangers, then we'll prepare." He led Emerald out of the building and took her to where Rangers held their prisoners, separate from the police.
"Everyone ready to go?" Jace asked his team. They nodded and prepared to leave before Jace turned to Sun, "Thanks for the help, Sun." He said to the Faunus.
"Hey, I try. Stay safe, man."
"You too. See you guys later." Jace said in farewell to them all and they left.
They arrived to Auron's truck and Jace and Alyss hopped in back and sat up against the back of the cab as Jace put Legacy to his right side. "So, how do you feel about what they're giving Emerald?" Alyss asked as she took his left hand to hold.
Jace sighed and leaned his head against the cab. "I'm the one that suggested it in the first place. It would do more for the kingdoms than just executing her or putting her in prison."
"If she really does regret everything, she'll have no problems with doing it then." Alyss replied and rubbed the top of his hand with her thumb.
"I'm so glad to be able to feel with my hand again." He said happily.
The truck started up and Auron drove it down the street away from the warehouse. Jace took a glance at his prosthetic and sighed again. "I wonder what Genesis would've done."
"If he's anything like you've said, he'd give her a chance too."
Jace gave a small smile and leaned in closer to Alyss. "Yeah, you're right. You still burning up?" He asked her.
"Do you really have to ask?" She said and wiped sweat from her forehead.
Jace smiled and started to focus the ice dust in him. He radiated it outward with his aura and kissed Alyss on the cheek.
"Are you making it colder?" She asked.
"I'm trying to help with the heat. Is it working?"
She felt her temperature cooling off and she moved to give him a peck on the lips. "It really is. Thanks." She leaned closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder.
"I'm glad. Thanks again for keeping me calm since we met." Jace said and leaned his head against hers.
"You don't have to thank me." Alyss replied and sighed happily, taking comfort in the boy that she had grown so close to.
She smiled as she thought to herself. "Yeah… I know he's definitely the one…"
"Sorry for what I said about Jeff an' Pyrrha." Preacher said to Auron as they sat on the porch with Jace after they got back from the city.
"You're fuckin' bull-headed at times, y'know?" Auron said, "It comes with old age."
"I know that…" Preacher sighed.
"Look… we both got pissed an' we both crossed a line… I shouldn't have said anything about Charity…"
"No… you shouldn't have. An' I know I shouldn't have brought Smoke an' Pyrrha into it… The Fang caused me so much damn pain… I can't trust any of 'em, former members or not. I still don't see how you trust Blake."
"She saved my life." Jace said.
"She helped with defendin' Beacon too. She was one of Pyrrha's friends." Auron added.
Preacher shook his head. "I doubt I'll be able to trust her myself, but if you an' Kat do, I'll keep my old mouth shut."
"I forgive ya," Auron said to him, "So they actually didn't take the Paladin scraps an' the Spider Tank?" He asked to change the subject.
"Nope. The police chief said that he's about done dealin' with this shit so they just took up all the bodies an' survivors. Didn't even ask any questions this time." Preacher replied and worked on disassembling one of the rifles that were scattered on the ground.
"So we oughtta be able to sell this stuff sometime? Maybe Savage Arms would give a good price for all the weapons an' the tank." Auron thought out loud and grinned.
"Maybe you can make the money back for spending it to help me." Jace said with a grin.
"It'll be more than enough," Auron said and turned back to Preacher, "Alright, I ain't told you yet, but that girl Emerald told us that Hawk was back at that old base."
"That son of a Grimm is there!? What are we waitin' for then!?" Preacher said angrily.
"We're waiting for the Rangers to get here. Emowyn, Erron, Jax, April and Lyra." Raine answered when she stepped out of the house.
"So it'll be five Rangers an' four kids goin' against Hawk? That'll be a fight." The old man remarked and sighed.
"We'll take him down, Preacher." Raine assured him.
"No doubt in my mind that you can. I just wish I could fight with ya."
"I'm keepin' this." Preacher said as he grabbed a higher caliber bolt-action rifle than his own.
"I don't care, we got more than enough to take now." Auron said and grabbed a few more weapons to throw in the back of his truck.
"What am I doing with this?" Jace asked as he arrived with one of the legs of a Spider Tank over his shoulders.
"Throw it in a pile, just focus on weapons for now." Auron answered and went to pick up more.
Jace shrugged and tossed it back over to the destroyed tank. He started gathering up rifles and shotguns as well.
"Preacher, quit ogling the damn rifle an' put it in the front of the truck." Auron said to the old man, who slung the rifle over his back instead.
"Don't tell me what to do." He said and went to find more weapons.
Auron shook his head amusedly and felt his scroll buzz.
"Hey Raine, what is it?" He answered the call.
"They're here. Come say hi."
"Alright, were on our way." They ended the call and Auron put the few weapons in the back of the truck.
"Alright you two, let's go. The Rangers are here." He said to the others, and they dropped only a few rifles in the back.
"Good, now I can take a break." Preacher said and quickly hopped in the truck.
"You weren't kidding. He's cranky." Jace remarked with a grin.
"Yeah, now let's get goin'." Auron said and they went back toward the house.
It took them less than three minutes to arrive back at the house. They stopped the truck in front and got out, then they entered walked through the front door into the lining room.
"Hey Preacher, you doing well?" April asked the retired Ranger with a smile.
April and Lyra Dawn were tweny-five year old, identical twins. They had wavy hair that was a bright shade of purple, with light violet eyes to match. April was six feet tall while Lyra was five feet and seven inches. April wore a loose blue vest and a pair of gray cargo pants under her cloak. Lyra didn't have her cloak on for the moment. She wore a more casual combat outfit with an unbuttoned long-sleeve shirt over a green crop top, and she wore a pair of dark green pants. Both of them used special, self-loading crossbows with a drum of bolts on the bottom.
"As good as I can be with this metal leg. It's been a while since I seen you three. What've ya been up too?" Preacher asked them, returning the smile.
"We got done with a search and destroy mission not too long ago. Nest of Wretches off the north coast of the kingdom." Lyra answered.
"It was a nice little cove, too," April added, "It would make for a nice little relaxation area."
"What about you, big guy?" Preacher directed the question at the taller Ranger.
"I cleared a nest of those spider-like Grimm last month near a small village. I have to say, seeing an explosion close up a cave is quite the sight." Jax replied.
"Those are Arachs, right?" Alex asked. He had stayed at the house to both talk with Jace more and to help out if he was needed.
Jax nodded in confirmation. "Nasty creatures. Do whatever it takes to never let them bite you. Their venom works fast."
Jax Creed was one of the largest Rangers out there, standing at six feet and seven inches in height. He was a thirty year old monkey Faunus with a long brown tail that he kept wrapped around his waist. He had long, light brown hair that reached the middle of his back held back in a ponytail and had a thick beard with braids going down from either end of his mustache. He had a scar going horizontally across his leaf-green eyes, the old wound left his right eye blinded. A bandanna was wrapped around his head in a way that it was under his hair and covered his blind eye. Instead of any ranged weapon, he used two twin scimitars that he could attach at the hilt and they would expand, giving him use of a double sided glaive.
"You know Rangers are supposed to be quiet, right?" Preacher asked with a grin.
"Says the old man that snores the loudest out of anyone." Auron remarked, drawing a laugh from the five Rangers.
"Aw shut up, Auron." Preacher said and sat on a couch.
"Jax, April, Lyra. These two are Jace Reznor and Alyss Wystar. You already know Auron from what Emowyn and Erron said." Raine introduced them all.
"I'm sure you don't want us bringing up your past, so it is good to meet you Jace." Jax said and shook Jace's hand.
"Honestly, I'd be okay with it if you did. I've had a lot of time to think about it all." Jace replied.
"Well it sounds like you've got a good head on your shoulders then," April said with a smile, "It's good you're not an asshole about Faunus."
"April, don't swear in this house please." They heard Kathy say from the kitchen door.
"Sorry ma'am." She replied to her.
"Just call me Kathy." The mother replied and disappeared back to the kitchen.
"Well, I'd be hating myself if I had a problem with Faunus," Jace said and smiled at his girlfriend, "I also wouldn't be dating Alyss."
"You two are dating? That's so sweet." Lyra said and smiled.
Alyss smiled as well. "It was the best decision I've made when I told him I loved him," She turned and regarded her cloaked teammate with a grin, "Although I had some help."
"An' I was busy cookin' some food while they did it." Auron said.
"Are we gonna plan for goin' after Hawk?" Preacher asked and rolled his eyes at Alyss and Jace.
"Right, let's get started." Emowyn said and they all went to sit on the porch.
"Okay, so maybe we should discuss the best uses for our semblances," April suggested.
"Mine let's me blast out my aura in very small bursts, like bullets or blunt force. So I have both long range and close quarters covered."
"Would you care to show us?" Alyss asked.
April nodded. "Sure. Is there anything around here that I could use as a target?" She asked Preacher and Auron.
The two shared a grin and Preacher stood from his seat. "Gimme a sec." He said and rushed from the porch.
"What's he planning?" Lyra asked Auron.
"He's gettin' a piece o' trash that we needed to get rid of." The young gunslinger answered.
"I know what you mean," Jace said with a small grin, "Good fucking riddance."
"And what is it he's getting?" Emowyn asked.
"Kain's mask," Auron said, "I brought it back so I could show Preach. For 'im to know he was dead an' rottin'."
Preacher arrived after a few more moments and dropped the near-broken mask on the table. April took it and smiled. "Alright. Don't blink." She said and tossed the mask high into the air. She pointed her open palm at it and took aim. She sent her aura through her arm and blasted out a small, orange projectile of aura. It struck the mask and it shattered into a multitude of small pieces, falling around on the porch and the yard.
"I ain't cleanin' that up." Preacher said.
"Along with that, I can send it out like a pulse and knock things away from me," April continued, "Who's next?"
Jax looked up in the air and took a deep breath. He exhaled and thick smoke billowed out from his mouth into the air. He looked back down and there were still small trails of smoke coming from his nose. "That's mine. I can make large smokescreens to blind them. That's why I lack a ranged weapon. I'm able to go in, cause a smokescreen, and attack through the smoke."
Lyra grinned and activated hers, and an exact copy of herself appeared from her, standing up and nodding to them. "I can make one clone that can fight with me. Uses what I have but doesn't last too terribly long."
"And I can talk and understand orders from anyone else." The clone said.
"I can't tell you how much she confused mom and dad with that." April shook her head and smiled.
"Also gives my boyfriends a whole lot more fun." Lyra sniggered.
"Lyra!" April admonished and her sister laughed.
"What about you three?" Jax asked Alex, Jace, and Alyss before the two sisters could go further into bickering.
"Mine's like Jace's," Alex said and activated it, growing slightly larger as a light-blue aura came from his eyes. "Makes me move a bit faster too."
"Huh, we have about the same semblance?" Jace asked, "You learn something new every day."
"Mine let's me heal almost any injury," Alyss started to explain, "I'm still working on getting better with it. I healed our friend's forearm and hand after she lost them, but it put me to sleep for a month." She finished and they tilted their heads.
"You can heal lost limbs? Why haven't you healed Jace's arm?" Lyra asked, "If you don't mind me asking." She quickly added.
"I would ask how you know that," Jace started and grinned, "But you're Rangers."
Alyss tilted her head at Jace. "Why haven't you asked me to try?"
Jace looked at his prosthetic and back to the others. "I just think it's something that I need to face and remember. It shows that I've fought and made it through that hell. It's a reminder of what I fight for."
"That's an interesting way to look at it." April remarked.
"And what's your semblance, exactly?" Lyra asked him.
Jace stood up and took a deep breath, then activated it. He saw their eyes go wide at seeing his body grow and the wings sprout from him. He deactivated it and sat back down as the feathers fluttered around and dissipated. "I've been practicing with it, and I think I'm getting the hang of it. Still makes me tired when I use it too much though."
"So your semblance makes you grow wings too? I've never heard of any like that." Jax said and leaned back in his chair.
"It didn't always used to grow wings. I guess my semblance just evolved." Jace replied.
"I just had a thought…" Alex said and grabbed one of the feathers before it evaporated, "Do you think my semblance would do the same thing and give me wings?"
"I really wouldn't know," Jace answered, "If it does, then I'll know for sure if mine just evolved and it wasn't part of the experiments."
"It is certainly possible since you both have a shared semblance like the Schnees." Jax remarked.
"I guess I'll go ahead an' say I got two of 'em, even if I don't know how to use one," Auron said and saw the confused expressions of the three Rangers, "I figured out that I got my dad's semblance along with mine now. So if I figure out exactly how, I can disappear into smoke an' come back behind somethin'. Then there's my metal."
"Alright, so we got Auron with his dust-metal an'… his smoke, Raine with her eyes, Jace with his power an' wings, Alex with his power, Alyss with her healin'," Preacher looked through the four students, then to the five Rangers, "An' we got Jax with his smokescreens, Lyra with her clone, April with her aura blasts, Erron with his highlights, an' Emowyn with her shadow. I think you got a good chance of walkin' outta there with Hawk's head."
"One thing I'm worried about is that poison, though." Auron said and felt himself shiver.
"Poison? What poison?" Alex asked.
"It's a bad one. It'll cause you to slowly get paralyzed from the feet up," Auron explained lowly, "There ain't no cure."
"We'd need to keep him from hitting us." Jace said and bit his lip in thought.
"Maybe if we could freeze him, we can deal with him like an Armaddon." Raine suggested.
"That could work, but we'd need to keep him distracted." Emowyn said.
"That would be good for my clone." Lyra crossed her arms and looked to the air.
"My dust-metal walls could do it too, but it'd take a lot outta me." Auron looked down and put his head in his hands.
"I think we'll have a while to think on it. We need to train to keep ready and Auron needs to practice with his semblances." Jace said and rolled his neck a bit.
"Let's just take a break for now." Erron suggested and everyone nodded in agreement.
The five, and former, Rangers went back into the house while team JKDW and Alex sat on the porch. It's true that they had to keep their training up while they prepared to find Hawk, but how could they train against a poison?
"Hey Alyss, if the worst thing happened and someone got poisoned, do you think your semblance would cure it?" Jace asked her with a shred of worry in his voice.
Alyss thought about the scary possibility. "I would have to try really hard and keep at it. I wouldn't know if it would even cure things like that. I just hope I won't have to." She answered and her ears pressed against her head at the thought of any of her friends being poisoned and she couldn't help. The thought absolutely terrified her.
"Oh Gods… what if someone gets poisoned and I can't heal it…? If they die, It would be my fault because I wouldn't be good enough. What if Jace…" Her eyes started to water at the horrifying thoughts flashing in her head, "No… Please no… I-I want him to be my-"
"Alyss, are you alright?" Jace asked and laid his hand on her shoulder.
She snapped out of her thoughts and wiped at her eyes. "I'm just… really worried." She said quietly.
Jace leaned over and hugged her. "Hey, don't worry. If I can help it, no one's gonna get poisoned. It'll be alright." He assured her in a soft voice.
She hugged him back and she buried her face into his shoulder. Jace rubbed her back softly and whispered in a such a low voice that only Alyss could hear.
"I won't let anything happen to any of us. I won't let anything happen to you."
After a few more moments, Alyss finally pulled away. "Thanks for that, Jace." She said and smiled.
Jace nodded and smiled back. Then he frowned as he looked to his brother. "Alex, I don't think you need to go with us on this. I… I don't really want you to."
"Why not." Alex asked and his brow furrowed.
"Because if something bad happens and you get poisoned, I'm not gonna be able to forgive myself. I just met you not that long ago and found out you're my brother. My last bit of family. I don't wanna lose that," Jace sighed and looked down, "It's not even your fight."
Alex sighed. "I'm gonna stop you there. You're the only family I have, so how do you think it makes me feel that you're going head-first into a fight against some bastard that uses poison? It is my fight because you're my brother. It's my fight because I'm not letting my family go into a fight that he might not come out of. I don't even have to fight Hawk or whatever the fuck his name is, I'd only be dealing with their grunts. It's both our fight for different reasons."
Jace sighed and let out a laugh. "This must be how Gen felt with worrying about me… Alright, you can go."
"Alright. So, when are we gonna train?"
"Jace, I don't mean to sound rude, but this is extremely heavy." Alyss said as she held Legacy in front of her.
"It's an Artillery Claymore, it's supposed to be heavy." Jace responded and spun Soul Leaf around in his hand while it was in its glaive form.
"You made that up, first of all. And second, this is supposed to be the first of its kind, right?" She put her aura to her arms and held the sword a bit easier.
"And I made it to be heavy because I really hate Armaddons." Jace replied and grinned.
"Good point, I guess. I guess we could start now, couldn't we?" She asked and looked over to the others.
"I don't see how this is gonna work." Auron said as he held Raine's sword in his large hand.
"Same here." Raine agreed and hefted Last Call in both her hands.
"The point is to make it work," Jace explained and held Soul Leaf ready, "You never know when we might be forced to use each others' weapons."
"Yeah, I get that, but I just don't see it workin'." Auron replied.
"Soooo, do I get to sit out with this?" Alex asked and twirled the hilt of Celosia in his hand.
"For now," Jace answered and looked back to his team, "Are you ready?" He asked everyone.
"Yeah." They each said.
"Go!"
The first time team JKDW sparred using each others' weapons was complete disaster. Their attacks toward each other were sloppy, leaving many openings for a counterattack that wouldn't come due to the unease at using a completely unfamiliar weapon.
Auron, being used to the long reach of Last Call, came up short with his strikes as he used Raine's sword. Raine unconsciously switched to trying to use Auron's sword with one hand, making the blade fall to the ground from the weight. Jace had tried to grip Soul Leaf like a claymore on more than one occasion, sending the shaft of the weapon into the others rather than the blade. And Alyss could hardly get Legacy up to connect with any attack, the blade was always deflected or was just sent into the ground.
"Well that was hilarious to watch." Alex said with a wide grin.
"Oh shut up," Jace said to him, then he looked around at everyone else, "We can work on this some other time. I still think it's a good idea though. Let's just focus on our own weapons for now." He suggested and everyone quickly agreed.
"We'd need months to train like that." Raine said as she handed Last Call back to Auron.
"Maybe someday, Jace." Alyss said with a grin as she gave him Legacy.
"Yeah, someday." He agreed and handed over her weapon.
XxXxX
AN: Now we know Emerald's fate and we met three new side characters. April, Lyra, and Jax. And now Ladybug is separated again, because Blake has her demon to take care of, and Ruby is getting the band back together.
Looks like Jace and Alex have a family semblance too. Possibly complete with wings.
The next chapter will be another fight, so get ready for that. See you then, and have a nice day!
