I would like this opportunity to address one my reviews for the last chapter. He commented on the fact I had Qrow flip his shit over the staff of creation and its current predicament.

The fact that the staff isn't in a vault isn't the issue. The fact that it goes against their plans isn't the issue. It's the callous way using it to lift Atlas protect it- a factor he's certain Ozpin took into account, even if we never cover if he had or not. It's essentially weighing the lives of all of Atlas and Mantle as being less important than protecting the staff, because taking it would be a death sentence to everyone there besides Salem herself.

It's a reinforcement of the many, many doubts Qrow canonically has had since the reveal of his past and the various lies Ozpin told even him- his, supposedly, most trusted and close ally. This being despite the fact that Ozpin canonically told Ironwood more than Qrow regarding the current situation, seeing as Qrow doesn't know where any of the relics actually are.

So yes, without context, it might seem an extreme reaction, but it's based on a number of real problems the show decided to just forget about from last season.

He also mentioned the fact that Qrow and Raven (mostly Raven) angst over turning into birds, despite that being an objectively useful and positive ability. That is a great point if I had ever once suggested otherwise. That's RT's problem, not mine.

However, someone else did raise a great point, in that I am working rather quickly. Rushing the volume had been RT's most obvious mistake, and it would certainly appear I am on track to repeat that. So, instead, I took a whole day to plan out the details of each of the various characters and plot threads and created a more thorough timeline of events.

I'm not sure if that's enough, but- unlike them- I can actually go back and make additions to the story after release. Hopefully, with your suggestions and my own plan, this can work out.

Fifthly, I must apologize for the delay. I intended to get this out on the 28th, but I've had a lot on my plate since the 20th. There was my brother's wedding, four people moving (myself included, but that's not until the 10th), a reunion with my biological father- the whole shebang. I'm publishing this huge chapter mere days after moving to Tennessee.

Lastly, someone brought up a list of likely maiden candidates. The main point of contention is that I want them to be on Ironwood's side, and since Penny notably isn't, that only really leaves Winter or a member of the Ace Ops. I did end up making a decision, and it is regrettably not one of those people, but I figure this will be more interesting in the long run regardless. For obvious reasons, I will not be spoiling who it is, so please stick around to find out.


Qrow glanced up as someone took the stool next to his own. Even from the corner of his eye, he recognized him instantly- it was one of the operatives he'd passed back at the academy. He'd been followed? An odd choice, given the fearsome scowl he still wore. Am I losing my edge?

Another shot of Stygian Salt drowned out any such questions but gave his new 'companion' the chance to chat him up.

"I'm Clover, a member of the Ace Ops. I take it you're Qrow?"

Qrow gave him a flat stare; it didn't work. Definitely losing my edge.

Clover chuckled to himself, raising a hand to call the bartender. When he came over, Clover pointed to the eight shots already arrayed before him. "I'll have what he ordered."

"You're gonna regret that choice," Qrow mumbled, downing another. He'd long ago grown used to the burn, but 160 proof was nothing to sneer at.

"That sounds like a challenge," he returned, smirking. "Care to make a bet on it?"

Qrow turned to the specialist properly, giving him a quick onceover. He was about the same build- presumably the same weight. Given he worked directly under Ironwood, he couldn't be an alcoholic. "How much you got on ya?"

His smirk grew, five 100's smacking onto the table a moment later. "More than you, I'm sure."

"Right..." He never carried that much cash on him- couldn't afford to, with his semblance- but he carried an ATM card around with him. Qrow felt around his jacket pockets, but came up empty. Had he dropped his wallet somewhere?

Clover answered for him, tossing the leather pouch his way. "It slipped out when that truck hit you. You've got some rotten luck."

Scoffing, Qrow dropped it back into his coat. "You don't know the half of it."

"I think I might. It's your semblance, right?"

Qrow's eyes snapped to him, and the surprise must have shown because he started laughing his ass off.

"Oh man, that's rich!" Clover smacked the table a few times, mirth overflowing. "How'd you figure it out? A piano fall on you as a kid or something!?"

"Ha, ha, ha," Qrow deadpanned. "And no, it fell on someone else."

That shut him up if nothing else. It also gave the bartender time to finally get his drinks ready- a dozen shots of Stygian Salt.

Clover looked at the arrangement nervously. "Are they supposed to be... Steaming?"

Yes, he thought but didn't say. It was decorative- like the flames or foam other drinks were served with. The drink was warm, just not enough to evaporate. "Giving up already?" Qrow taunted, downing another of his own. The image was immediately ruined as he choked on it- hacking up what went into his lungs.

"No, no, I can do this," he said, more to psych himself up than in answer. "I've taken down Goliath's before; this is nothing."

Qrow could only laugh as Clover spat it out- just missing the bartender. "I am so winning that bet."


"However, in order to raise the new CCT Tower, we will need dust- lots of it." Ironwood raised his hand to call for silence, just before Weiss made to interrupt. "Yes, the SDC could easily provide the amount. However, such a large shipment would be obvious to any of Salem's spies. As such, we will be getting it from its source- an abandoned mine out in the tundra."

Clicking a button on his remote, the image of Amity changed to that of a Gheist. It was out of date- years out of date- but Gheists don't grow stronger like other Grimm since their bodies are made of the surrounding material. "The mine was mostly drained by the time this Gheist took up shop, so the SDC didn't bother attempting to reclaim it. Their last report indicates that it has all the Dust we need to get Amity up and running, though we would need more to maintain it."

"And that's where we come in!" Yang shouted, palming her fist. "You're sending us to clear the mine!"

"Wrong on all accounts," Ironwood said with a chuckle. "You won't be going anywhere. Penny will be dispatching the Gheist and securing the area."

"Wh-but..." Yang sputtered, and she wasn't alone in her confusion. The rest of their group seemed at least a little off-put by the answer.

"It's not a slight against you, or a lack of trust. She's simply the best one for the job." Penny saluted at that, to which Ironwood nodded. "Penny can see in complete darkness, fly, cut her way through the walls, and- no offense- is probably the strongest individual in this room. I'd hazard that, given a few more years, she could best a Maiden by herself."

That last comment got a reaction. It wasn't a joke, either. Even before the Vytal Festival, Penny's sheer power was enough to even best him. It was with that assurance that she was sent out...

An image of the girl, split into pieces, flashed through his mind. It faded just as quickly- just one of many unfortunate memories he'd have until his end.

"Okay... What will we be doing, then?"

Ironwood didn't answer right away, instead gazing out the window to Atlas. He couldn't see Mantle from here, but the height of the academy let him see the distant snowy hell beyond their walls. The Grimm would be too small to see from here, but he could imagine them racing to their deaths against the walls of Mantle.

"You will be taking over her job- protecting Mantle. I don't have an image on hand for this one, though I'm sure you'll be seeing it in a moment. The... Vytal Festival had some consequences here, with Grimm tearing several holes in the outer wall of Mantle. Penny has been handling any Grimm that make their way into the city." He turned back around, gauging their reaction. It wasn't great, but then this was bad news. "I imagine that between all of you it will be far easier."

The Mistralian- Ren, Ironwood recalled- raised his hand. "What kinds of Grimm should we expect?"

"Mostly Sabers. The flying Grimm are taken down from Atlas and the Goliaths only attack when negativity spikes. Atlas has far less variety, since the cold can and does kill most of the generic Grimm."

Ren nodded, glancing down at his weapons; bladed pistols, by the looks of it.

A quick scan of the group revealed more than a little damage. Burns, cuts, damaged or depleted weapons. Argus had not been kind to them.

"You'll all be offered the full accommodation of an Atlesian Huntsman. That includes ammunition and the opportunity to upgrade your equipment. I'll even pay for it- within reason." Ironwood found himself smirking at the way Ruby's sudden excitement deflated on hearing that. "Try to keep your reliance on Dust to a minimum. Jacques has been... Making life difficult for us."

"He's refusing to sell to you?" Weiss asked, bewildered. "That doesn't sound like him..."

"He is," Ironwood conceded. "However, in protest to the embargo, he's been charging quite a lot extra for us. I don't imagine he would be too thrilled to find you among our number, either." He gave her a pointed look. "I am not going to judge your choices, but do try not to anger him further. He's already breathing down my neck and I really don't need to give him a good reason to work against me."

Weiss nodded, which seemed to be the best he'd be getting.

"I should also warn you, Yang, that the events of your fight in the festival are still in the memory of most of Atlas. You will be recognized." She frowned, turning away from him. "Given what happened soon after, I believe your story. The rest of the city won't, however."

When nobody made to break the silence, Ironwood pressed another button to lower the table. He took its place, clasping his hands behind his back and bowing his head.

"I want to thank you all for coming here. It's... Been a trying time, and I appreciate all the help I can get." He looked up, gesturing towards the door. "The Ace Ops should be waiting outside- they'll get you situated for the night. Rest up- the mission is in only two days."

The group acknowledged that in various ways- with Ren going so far as to salute him on his way out the door. Winter and Penny followed after, both having responsibilities for the day. One of Beacon group didn't leave, however, on account of him grabbing their shoulder.


"Hm?"

Oscar turned, instantly noting the relieved smile on the General's face.

"Ozpin... It's good to see you."

Before he could say anything, James pulled him into a fierce hug. Somehow, it was worse than Nora's, with his Aura just barely stopping his spine from shattering.

"I-Ironwood... Air..." he managed, which was enough to get him released.

"Hah, my apologies. It's just..." He shook his head, dropping to one knee to be level with him. "I thought you'd take longer, old friend."

Oscar didn't have a quick answer to that, and his silence led to Ironwood frowning.

"Ozpin?"

"He's-" Oscar sighed, breaking eye contact. "After we questioned Jinn, he left. I can still feel him in my head, but he hasn't spoken to me since."

"Oh..."

Ironwood let him go completely, turning away to hide his expression. His posture grew rigid- a military stance Oscar recognized thanks to Winter, as she'd been standing like that for minutes now. He kept moving, returning to his desk and slowly lowering himself down into the seat.

The way his locked hands tightly gripped one another betrayed the forced calm on his face.

"What did Jinn tell you?"

Oscar took a few steps forward, placing one hand on the Relic of Knowledge. "She didn't tell us much at all... Jinn showed us." Since he was holding it, the relic responded to its name, summoning the spirit within while Oscar continued. "We learned about the Gods, Ozpin, the relics... And the origin of Salem."

Ironwood didn't answer him, but then Oscar had been pretty shocked to see Jinn for the first time too. Though, from the way his averted his eyes, perhaps embarrassment played a part too. He could relate.

"The tin man- what a welcome surprise. Another chance to meet someone new. This is certainly an interesting era."

"Jinn," Oscar greeted, gaining her attention. "You know what I'm thinking."

She grinned, leaning forward to cup his cheeks. Unfortunately- or fortunately, depending on your perspective- that also left him staring directly at her chest. "I do- and no, I won't be doing that."

Oscar flushed, closing his eyes long enough for her to move away.

"I know all things past and present, so I do know what you intended me to hear. And yes, I can answer questions regarding my nature freely. After all, I can tell you my name or the number of remaining questions." She winked at the latter, the motion unseen by the general behind him. Fortunate, given Ruby's previous lie. He'd have to ask about that later...

Taking a breath, Oscar readied himself for the inevitable. "Can you repeat an answer without cost?"

Jinn smirked.

"Allow me to show you my answer."


Ironwood stumbled back a step, finally finding himself back in his office. The constantly shifting environment had not been... Comfortable, to say the least.

A quick scan of the room found nothing out of place- a blessing he was thankful for as he collapsed back into his chair. He hadn't known the time when the tale had started, which was a shame... Whether they were pulled from reality or time was stopped, both would have been great military uses.

"General?"

Guess I can't just avoid the problem for a minute... Taking a breath to compose himself, Ironwood sat up. Jinn and Oscar were both still here, looking at him expectantly. Yet, how am I supposed to respond to... to THAT?

He knew a lot of it already- in a very loose sense- but he'd been missing the context. The gods were assholes, Salem was Ozpin's spurned ex-wife, the maidens were their reincarnating love children- and Oum, the whole Remnant and Semblance naming motif? It was literally an edict from the gods, proclaiming their broken status.

Even with all of that, he still had so many questions. How did Salem control and manipulate the Grimm? What physical and neurological changes did she undergo in the pools? What if Ozpin and Salem were the only people left, and Ozpin died?

Where the hell did humans come back from!?

And they're still staring at me... Though, by now, Jinn had begun to smirk at him. Right... She could hear his thoughts, since they were technically 'knowledge'.

"Oscar... Thank you, for bringing this to my attention. I will be... Revisiting this soon. In the meantime, I need to think." Ironwood stood up, gesturing to the door. "Go get some rest for your mission tomorrow. You'll need it."

The boy watched him for a moment- perhaps judging his expression- before finally nodding and turning to leave. It was only once the door had closed behind him that Ironwood allowed himself to relax again.

She was still here, but that mattered little. Since she couldn't answer any questions, she couldn't act as an information leak.

Jinn coughed.

Ironwood glanced up, meeting her gaze. Was she hinting at something?

Wait... She can't answer new questions, but she can answer the olds ones again. The questions Ozpin asked before...

"You didn't express the answers to his other questions before, but you can still tell me." Ironwood took a breath, readying himself for whatever may happen. "What powers do the relics possess?"


"Wake up!"

Regrettably, and with infinite suffering and labor, Yang found her eyes opening to reveal a clock proclaiming the time to be a brisk 6:00 in the morning.

Her glare quickly refocused from the innocent machine to a soon to be dead Specialist standing at the end of her bed. She recognized him- vaguely. A canine faunus of some kind with dark skin and hair. He was not only awake but already in uniform, which only served to piss her off more.

"I just went two days without sleep, and you woke me up after seven hours." The words- or her harsh tone, it was hard to tell- made him flinch. "You have ten seconds to explain why you woke me up before I put you to sleep."

"Winter Schnee requested your presence..." he returned, smile somewhat strained. "Team RWBY, specifically."

Yang groaned, wiping the crud from her eyes as she sat up. "I thought our mission wasn't until tomorrow?"

He nodded. "It's not, but she intended to help get your gear fixed and run you through a few drills. While I don't know the full plan myself, she even reserved one of the flux arenas on the second floor."

Her eyebrows drew down, remembering what Weiss described as 'Winter's Training Regime' back in Beacon. And that last bit... "When you say 'flux arena'-?

"Oh, my apologies. A flux arena is what we call the variable battleground system. Amity is the most notable, and I'm sure you remember what that was like."

"I see..." Wait, the way he said that- "You remember me from the Vytal Festival?"

"Of course- I doubt there's a person in Atlas that wasn't watching. You were a semifinalist."

Hm. Since he wasn't bringing up her disqualification, he probably knew from Ironwood what had happened. "How many people would you say know the truth of what happened?"

"I don't-" the faunus frowned, breaking eye contact. "Almost nobody. We have no proof of Emerald's Semblance, so we'd only lose face if we tried to publicize your innocence. Just... On this mission, try and keep your temper in check. Even against the Grimm, it would contribute to your reputation."

Except my Semblance is tied to that... Her dad's description of it was rather apt- it was a temper tantrum- but an inarguably effective one. Staying calm would leave her without her best weapon...

Wait.

"We were promised repairs and ammunition- where would I go for that?"

He blinked at the sudden change of topic but recovered quickly. "The armory is down the hall and to the left- if you need anything custom made, or upgrades to your equipment, we have a number of engineers on staff. The directory should be just past the door- can't miss it."

"Thanks..." Yang blanked on the name, and rather than ask she moved towards the door. She was still in uniform- having crashed the moment she got into the room last night. It was only when she was halfway through the door that she paused, a blur of introductions flickering through her head. "Marrow?"

"Hm?"

"Nothing," she returned, closing the door behind her. The halls were unmarked, but 'down the hall and to the left' was easy enough. "Nothing at all..."

Yang turned, only to jump in place as she met golden eyes.

"Hi...?" Blake waved non-committally, clearly having caught the of that conversation. "You, uh... Want to talk about it?"

With a sigh, Yang scanned the hallways for anyone else. Besides a pair of cameras monitoring from either end, they were alone.

That wasn't alone enough, though... Not with Marrow just inside their door. Was there anywhere more secluded they could talk? Back in Beacon, there were a number of abandoned classrooms, but neither of them knew where they were here- if there were any to begin with. Classes were in session, after all.

"We'll talk later," she said instead, continuing towards the armory. "We've got quite a few things to discuss..."

She didn't miss the way Blake flinched at that, or the subtle blush that formed as she passed by.


Ruby, as it turned out, was a madwoman. Weiss had known that for a while, but it has always been a kind of cute eccentricity. Now, with the offer of unlimited modification to Cresent Rose, all free of charge, she had gone overboard.

Her unbridled passion was not limited to her own weapon, either. That was the problem.

If her partner wanted to lug around a two-ton variable impact, grenade launcher, shotgun, poleaxe, sniper-scythe, then that was her prerogative. How she'd maintain it once they left Atlas was utterly beyond her, but she wasn't about to stop her.

Her patience stopped when she suggested reorganizing the firing mechanism of Nora's hammer, allowing it to fire all of them at once in a glorious multicolored explosion. They were supposed to be heroes and nuking the battlefield was antithetical to their mission.

Might as well drop an Astra or Brahamastra at that rate.

"Ruby, Ruby," she repeated since she'd missed the first call. "We don't have a lot of time before the mission- any upgrades you want need to be fast and easy to design and build." It wouldn't stop most of her ideas, but they weren't all without merit.

She was personally invested in the sheathe Ruby had come up with for Myrtenaster. By adding an extra chamber to the revolving chamber and a Dust Fusion device to the sheathe, she'd be able to draft combinations on the fly. This would also allow her to make grenades from the powdered form- which was the most plentiful, particularly among the White Fang bases they would have a chance to raid along their journey.

"Don't worry, Weiss," Ruby replied, still pouring over the database of existing Atlesian weapons. "I'll get upgrades for the whole team before the day is out!"

Weiss rolled her eyes. If Ruby wanted to put the effort in, who was she to stop her? "Just run each of them by the user first."

Drawing out her scroll, Weiss passed over a few pointless notifications. Spam mail, a Beacon Newsletter that really should have stopped coming... Ooh, a snowstorm was going to arrive in a week? What a surprise.

It was when she reached her private messages that anything of note arrived. She'd expected the message from her father, once again asking as to her activities. The message from Whitley, on the other hand?

Sister,

I know you're in Atlas. I don't know what you've been up to, and I don't care. Since you've left, Father has grown restless and angry. You and your sister have seemingly betrayed him three times now.

There will be a dinner in four days. I have spoken with him, and while he's still furious with you, he will accept you back if you come back then.

For my sake, as much as your own, I hope to see you there.

Attached was an image file of the invitation, though the name on the card- 'Beatrice Avalone'- was rather blatantly not her own.

Mulling over that detail was a welcome distraction from the fact she'd already broken one of Ironwood's few orders. How her presence had reached them, she had no idea, but they clearly knew she was here and wanted to confront her.

"Weiss?" She glanced up, already prepared with some excuse for what she was looking at, only to find the girl distracted with something else entirely. "That's Yang's arm, isn't it?"

The color was off, but the arm was unmistakably the same. The computer allowed a full 3D examination of each blueprint, and many had internal views off to the side. This was no exception, explaining the internal mechanisms for movement, firing, reloading, and control in excruciating detail. As educated as she was, Weiss could only grasp the basics of the complex machine before her.

A signature on each page of the blueprint drew her eye- and Ruby's. Dr. P. Poledina.

Penny?

"Penny?" Ruby agreed, sifting through the file for a full name. None was forthcoming.

It made some level of sense that a sentient machine would excel at designing them, but that timeline just didn't fit. Penny had died at Amity, and while a few months had passed before Yang's arm came, that included shipping all the way from Atlas to Patch without an active CCT in Vale.

Thankfully, the one in Atlas was still up and running, and a little prompting was all it took for Ruby to call the android.

"Hello, friends!" they were greeted after a whopping zero rings. "I'm afraid I'm busy at the moment, so I might be a little distracted!"

Ruby took over from there, explaining what they'd found. There was a pause when she finished- so brief Weiss nearly missed it. "Did you design the prosthetic arm for my sister?"

"I did not," Penny answered. A few Grimm roared through the scroll before they were torn to shreds. They couldn't see the violence on their screen, but the sound of bone plating shattering was hard to miss. "You're looking for my Father, Pietro. If you give me a second, I can locate him."

Her Father? "That's fi-"

"Thank you for your patience. He's currently outside his shop in Mantle." Another Grimm roared to its death. "I'll forward its address to you."

Before she'd even finished speaking, the message sent off a ping from Ruby's scroll.

"Is there anyth-"

Both of them jumped at the sudden ending, panic mounting. It didn't last long, as another message from Penny came through.

I am surprisingly popular today. Your call was interrupted by another, this time from Ironwood.

I hope we can continue our conversation another time, friends.

Penny

"Figures," Weiss sighed, letting the tension seep away. "She's got a mission coming up in a day too. You think he'll call us next?"

"Maybe." After a moment, her focus returned to the blueprint in front of them. "We can thank Pietro later. Since Yang's arm is already here, upgrading it would be the easiest."

Weiss nodded, sparing a glance to her own weapon. Each of the individual parts would have been in the database, but was Atlas tracking the blueprints to their weapons themselves? She wasn't really concerned about the military knowing them- it was just as important as the Semblance database- but these computers were accessible to any student or staff member. Was it even limited to the academy? Doubtful.

Making a mental note to ask Winter later, Weiss sat down to join in Ruby's madness.

Someone had to do it.


Jaune wasn't surprised to find the door to their shared dorm locked when he came back. His scroll not opening it, on the other hand? That was a surprise.

From the muted sounds his ears caught a moment later, however, he found himself thankful it did. Interrupting their alone time? That was a great way to get a beating, loosely disguised as an impromptu training session.

What else did he do, though? His weapons didn't need maintenance- and Ruby had already volunteered to design any upgrades for him; thank Oum, since he had no idea what he was doing there.

Actual training? Not a bad plan, but he was already fairly fit. He needed practice, which wasn't something you could get on your own.

It would help if I knew any of the students from Atlas. He could vaguely recall Penny from the fair at Vytal, and he'd seen Atlesian teams fights, but he'd never been matched against one. Come to think of it, all of his opponents had been from Mistral or Vale.

His hand naturally fell to the hilt of Crocea Mors, but the blade didn't hold answers this time. The bronze coating, however, did remind him of the training video Pyrrha had left behind.

Loathe as he was to admit it, he'd learned all he could from the video. He could recall her words, and the actions involved, with perfect clarity.

But she was hardly the only one to make those. If memory served, even Port had made a few before joining Beacon. Then again, that came with the absolute mountain of salt all of Ports stories deserved.

Their group had been given a barebones tour yesterday- their chaperone mostly just naming facilities as they walked around- but he still remembered the location of the training halls. Not from the tour- Brothers, no- but from seeing the interior of one through an open door.

With only a single wrong turn along the way, he found himself before that same wide gateway. It was closed this time but simply opened as he pressed inside.

It was occupied.

Of course it's occupied, idiot. It's still school hours.

Although, that was better, wasn't it? If he could find someone new to spar against for an hour or two, that would be worth hundreds of videos of practice.

The eight occupants of the room didn't seem to notice him, and -lacking any of their names- Jaune looked to the Aura board.

[89%] Flynt

[65%] Neon

[44%] Kobalt

[52%] Ivori

[98%] Donny

[71%] Octanis

[12%] Nua

[42%] Schwarz

The handy pictures by their names let him find Nua, sitting atop one of the artificial walls, calmly watching the rest of them duke it out. His faunus nature was unmistakable- and, of course, it was yet another feline faunus with ears. Those seemed to be rather common...

The most striking part of his appearance was his color scheme. Unlike the rest of his team, who had a single color, Nua was split between orange and black. As in, his hair was split down the center, with his outfit following suit.

He had a sword by his side- a simple cutlass, at a guess- and no other visible weapon.

Pushing Aura through his legs, Jaune launched himself up just high enough to grab the lip of the wall. A simple pull-up later and he was crouched beside the startled faunus.

"Hey, my name's Jaune," he offered with a hand. Nua took it, shaking loosely as he looked him over. Is he wondering if he's seen me before? "I'm a new transfer," he answered before he would ask. "Just looking for someone to spar against."

Nua's blue and green eyes narrowed and he flicked one hand towards the scoreboard. It wasn't hard to guess what he meant.

"Sorry- I meant in a general sense. I knew you were out." Seemed the rules of engagement were the same here as in Beacon, with those under 15% taken out. It was a good safety net, he thought, even if Aura size varied a lot. His was a great example- 15% of his could be some unlucky soul's entire Aura.

Nua's gaze turned back to the fight, and- lacking anything else to do- Jaune followed him.

The fight was anything but simple. Donny- another faunus, though with a bushy fox tail- was launching water around the battlefield. It only ever hit Kobalt, who seemed rather slow, but he was strong enough to break out of the ice it formed into.

Schwarz was throwing some kind of white fire around the battlefield, which wasn't being extinguished by Donny's water- somehow. He was also apparently a melee fighter, coating himself in the flames and using a set of claws to engage in CQC.

Neon was the easiest to follow, despite her speed, as she was simply batting people around with a nunchuck. Vaguely, Jaune felt like he'd seen her before.

Ivori and Flynt were running around in the background, using ranged attacks to drain Schwarz of his Aura. It was working, as he was losing at least a percent each second that passed.

And then there was Octanis... He had no idea what she was doing, really. It had to be a semblance, since she was pulling any number of different weapons out of nowhere, draining them of ammo, and then grabbing a new one. The empties simply vanished as she tossed them aside.

It was a mess, to say the least.

That's not to say he couldn't see the result of the fight before it happened. As Schwarz was finally taken out- the strange man taking Kobalt with him- team DONS was left without a frontline. Neon's harassment forced Octanis and Donny away from the edge, where they came under fire from above.

As cool as Octanis' weapons were, and the near-perfect defense Donny put up with his water- they couldn't last against three mobile fighters.

WINNER! Team FNKI!

Nua huffed, pouting at the result. Jaune spared him a pat on his back before he kicked off the wall, landing amongst the other combatants with a simple safety roll.

It was only after he rolled into their midst that Jaune thought about it.

Diving directly into a group of huntsman who just got out of a fight- all without introducing himself- probably wasn't the best plan.

"Hi," he managed to choke through the water he'd been encased in. Though, calling it water seemed a bit of a misnomer. It had the consistency of drying concrete. Though, he supposed, that was better than being hit by the four guns currently pointed at his head. Donny realized his mistake quickly enough- the water pulling away and somehow leaving him completely dry.

"Sorry, man," Donny said, using his tail as an extra arm to drag Jaune to his feet. "We get enough surprises from Nua teleporting in on us- he likes to keep us on our toes."

Jaune glanced back towards the faunus, who waved back with a smirk.

Guess I deserved that. Still, they were clearly still up for a fight. Donny, in particular, had surrendered with a whopping 92% of his Aura left. He'd barely been hit the entire fight, and he could see why- the water he manipulated acted as offense and defense, one that worked against even sound.

"I'm Jaune, of team-"

"Juniper, right?" Octanis interrupted, leaning on another of her guns as if it was a walking stick. "We were watching the tournament. Would have won it, too, if someone hadn't been hospitalized." From the way she glared up over his shoulder, it wasn't hard to guess who she was referring to. "Congrats on making semifinals, if nothing else."

That was one way to put it; though, Jaune doubted killing Penny counted as a victory. Yang was disqualified just for, supposedly, breaking someone's leg.

"I'd rather avoid the subject," he said honestly. His palm naturally sought the hilt of Crocea Mors for comfort, and he was thankful they didn't flinch at the incidental gesture. "I've got a mission tomorrow, so I'm here looking for a sparring partner."

At the words, Neon's eyes lit up with glee. That was the only warning he received before she shot across the distance, bowling him over with an extended arm.

"Come on, pretty boy! I'll play with you." As she spoke, she skated circles around him, casually flipping between going forwards and backward. Jaune watched it from his back for a moment, calmly waiting until...

Crocea Mors- still in its sheathe- whipped out to the side at ankle height. Neon was unprepared for it, tripping over the edge, but that was hardly the end of it.

In a move ripped straight from some dance videos he'd seen, Neon flipped onto her hands and whipped her legs around in a circle. Spreading them in an inhuman split, she made contact with the ground and span up to her feet.

All of that in the second it took Jaune to get to his feet normally.

Damn... And not just because it scuppered his plans. The sheer flexibility on display had him blushing stupidly.

A moment later, a nunchuck to the face wiped it off.

Cursing himself for his lack of attention, Jaune expanded his shield- sword still in its sheathe. With that between him and Neon, he was able to reach for his scroll and set the Aura alarm for 15%.

It wouldn't hook up to the big screen, but that was more than fine with him.

Neon waited for him to fully draw his sword before resuming the fight- not that it helped him. She flew by as a blur, hacking at his ankles, and was already sweeping past him against before he could turn.

Jaune ignored the sting and instead focused on the battlefield. The arena was set up like the interior of an empty building, roof not included. Four rooms, that he could see, and an abundance of walls.

He threw his back against a wall, tracking Neon as he sidled towards the corner.

It was a simple strategy, and that's how he knew it was good. Neon didn't seem to have a ranged weapon- which was fine, he didn't either- but a corner would limit her approach significantly. Even before he'd been trained, he could block when he knew where the attack was coming from.

Neon wasn't stupid either, and she simply watched him from a distance.

"That's not how you win," Flynt shouted from the sidelines. "If she were a criminal, she'd have escaped already."

Dammit, he was right. Grimm would attack him on sight, but even they wouldn't seek him out specifically. Huntsmen were called that for a reason... They hunted things. They weren't called defenders or guardians, because defending the walls wasn't enough.

Jaune closed his eyes, picturing the roof of Beacon from so long ago.

When they opened again, he was already moving. Aura pulsed through his legs, enhancing his stride. He was still slow compared to the likes of Neon and Ruby, but it was enough to close the distance in four steps.

He threw a wide diagonal swing, forcing her to duck to the left. She did, and he pressed forward, bashing his shield towards her face.

She braced both hands against his shield, letting the momentum throw her backward.

Smirking, Jaune planted his feet and spun. By straightening his arm, the straps on his shield came loose, letting it sail after her.

Neon's nunchuck lashed out, knocking it away. It still fulfilled its purpose, however, leaving her distracted just long enough to crash into the back wall.

Twenty feet in two seconds. For most, an insurmountable distance, and there was certainly no way he could cover that in time.

Thankfully, he didn't have to.

Crocea Mors shot out, snagging one of his shields latches. A simple gesture later, and it was thrown again- this time towards her legs. Neon had time to react, of course, but that gave him time to close in as well.

With her back to a wall and skates on her feet, there was only one way to go.

Neon lept over the shield, turning forward. Her legs braced against the wall like springs, intent clear.

They met in the middle. Neon, diving forward at high speed, and Jaune, sword tearing a silver arc through the very same air.

"Shit!" Jaune shouted, flipping over himself sideways. He hadn't even seen what had hit him- but, then again, he couldn't see the ground he was rolling across either. Mercifully, his impromptu gymnastics course was brought to an end when he met the actual wall of the arena, slumping against it a moment later.

It took a moment for his senses to reboot, at which point he was staring into the multicolored eyes of Nua. Or, he should say, the multicolored glare of Nua.

"Nua! That was uncalled for!" Donny, and his two identical twin brothers, came to his rescue, pulling his teammate back. "Yes, he screwed up, but that's no reason to hit him that hard." Nua resisted just long enough to make it clear he could before walking away.

The words took a moment to filter- just as long as it took for his vision to correct itself, as it happens.

"I screwed up!?" Jaune demanded indignantly. "I was winning!"

Donny briefly glanced behind him- to Neon- before turning to him fully. "Oh no- your plan was great," he was quick to say. "But what was with that last strike, man? It looks like you were preparing to kill an Ursa or something."

Huh?

"I... I've always attacked like that..." And yeah, it had literally been the same maneuver as when he killed that Ursa way back at Forever Fall. It clearly worked, so that wasn't the problem.

"You should temper your strikes more, man." Donny scratched at the back of his neck, as though what he was saying was uncomfortable. "For... A lot of reasons, actually."

Jaune just stared at him, unable to comprehend what he meant. Why would you train to attack weaker than you could? Grimm had thick bone plating which made weaker strikes all but useless on the larger beasts. Even his strongest attacks would barely scratch an elder Deathstalker.

"Aura isn't perfect; it can only block so much damage at once," he said in answer to his unspoken question. "The lower the Aura, the worse that is... While it's hard to guess, Neon doesn't have the strongest at the best of times..."

Jaune blinked.

Jaune blinked again.

Then, in a stunning display of his wit, he blinked again.

"I could have killed her...?" he finally asked.

Donny blinked back before realization hit. "No! No, at least, it would be very unlikely. Injure, on the other hand?" He shrugged. "Sparring is about training technique, and you don't need to use extreme force for that."

Oh... That was substantially better than he thought.

It hadn't really come up in Beacon... He'd been so slow, so unpracticed, that he'd only ever landed a powerful hit on Cardin- someone who had both a large Aura and full plate armor. However, come to think of it, even Yang's most devastating punches usually only took out 3-4% of his Aura.

Oh Brothers, Nora! She was at least twice as strong as he was now and wielded a colossal warhammer. How had he not noticed that before!?

Probably because everyone was trained for that before Beacon... He had no frame of reference- nothing to compare their attacks against. They'd always seemed so strong a domineering because of his lack of training, but...

"I'm sorry," he suddenly said, having realized he'd been silent for half a minute. "I wasn't thinking about that."

Donny gave him a small smile and a nod before jogging back to his team. That gave him a moment alone with his thoughts.

Ironwood's mission briefing had a list of expected Grimm for the area... All of them were relatively unarmored, implying the 'Ursa killing' level of strength would be enough if he just landed the attack. He'd already proved his planning ability and skill... Did he even need extra training for this?

No. The answer was obvious, and yet it still brought him a sense of relief.

With a smile, he stood up, looking forward to their first mission.


PING!

Ren glanced down towards his scroll- strapped to his wrist, for convenience- and read the message from Ironwood. He got the gist from the subject line alone but read through it all anyway.

Penny has successfully killed the target and is en route back to Mantle as we speak. ETA six minutes. Once she's back, you will have the option to leave your post.

Mission accomplished.

So, that was their first official mission.

How thoroughly underwhelming.

Split between a banker's dozen people- Clover and Qrow hadn't come back, for whatever reason, so they only had eleven- it was pathetically easy. Across four hours, they'd only encountered a total of 34 Grimm; 29 Sabyrs, 2 Gryphons, 2 Giant Nevermore, and a single Goliath. The latter hadn't even attacked the city- Nora had seen it from the walls and decided to have a little fun.

No wonder Penny could manage the entire city by herself. Unless there was some sudden spike of negativity, Jaune might have been able to do it himself.

Hm... Ren raised Stormflower before him. Using Jaune as the defacto weakest member wasn't quite true anymore... Ren hadn't been there to witness his fights himself, but one of the Ace Ops, Harriet, recorded the clip of Jaune bisecting a Gryphon.

Jaune was physically stronger than Ren- and that wasn't an issue since he was a more technical fighter- but he was being held back by these weapons... They couldn't keep up, even with something as brutally simple as Nora's hammer. Perhaps if he had access to dust rounds, but with the worldwide shortage caused by the White Fang and Roman's theivery, that seemed wasteful.

No... He needed something new. Something he didn't design when he was ten.

Ren's gaze naturally tracked up to Atlas, the city in the sky. The military would have something.

Was it worth bothering Ironwood over?

Can't hurt.


"Why didn't Ironwood question what Ozpin was hiding from them?"

That question annoyed me a little bit because it presumed he wouldn't across a conversation that hadn't even ended yet- or the future ones. My answer is that Ironwood isn't an idiot- he noticed the cane Oscar was holding and correctly presumed it was Ozpin. Why he needed Ruby to point that out in the canon annoys me almost as much as the review, and given the fact she was hiding stuff from him, it makes no sense for her to explain that and yet hide why he's gone.

I really need to stop letting these get to me.

And yes, I did change it so Jinn can repeat answers to questions. This will be plot-relevant later, though here it mostly stands to inform Ironwood and keep the 'immortality' secret things from being a problem. It was a stupid thing to hide in the first place, since it doesn't mean undefeatable, just unkillable, and a general could understand that.

I considered rewriting the fable itself since I have my problems, but everything I could come up with sounded equally stupid. The big problem I kept running into is that Salem must be aware and human enough to reconnect with Ozpin, since that's where the maidens come from and it's the only way she'd find out about the relics, but that occurs after the dip in the pools of destruction- the only easy way to make her genocide seem reasonable.

While I doubt I'll have the chance to implement it, I was wondering if any of you had any ideas for how to keep the main ideas of the fable intact while improving it.