Back again with a slightly late upload, sorry guys. Hope you all still enjoy it though, as exposition based as it is.


Second Song

Chapter 13

A talk with the Witch


Wolfram

"That's Ozpin? The old Headmaster of Beacon Academy?" I wondered aloud. It was nothing sort of surreal: someone who by all means was the most powerful man alive was literally chained up in what looked like a metallic coffin with a glass pane, a needle in his arm keeping him sedated. Barely. It was the same type of sedative used on horses, yet he was subtly shifting and moving, his face twitching into brief expressions of what looked like anger. "Yeah. All of us had suspected something after Riot was born," Professor Arc sighed, idly rubbing his beard, "The change in attitude, his aggression towards Grimm, heightening Search and Destroy missions against them. Hell, the only reason why he's focusing on the Chaos Insurgency now is because of Blake's recent run-in with Hayden and is cyber-Grimm experiment."

"I was able to take it out without too big of an issue though," Terra pointed out, a small grin of pride on her face.

"Maybe so, but consider the idea of fighting two more. Now imagine a veritable army of different Grimm with vast, cybernetic enhancements. Heck, the one you fought from what Sun told me still managed to whack you around for a good portion of your fight." The idea made the blood drain from my face. A single B-Class Grimm with enhancements were able to hold their own with the top Hunters of our era. If they managed to get their hands on an A-Class, or Gods help us an S-Class… "I mean… that's a pretty good point," Terra sighed, disappointed at the reality of the situation.

"Still, I never thought that of everything that could've happened, Ozpin himself is back," Professor Yang growled, "The bastard already lied to us about Salem and hid the truth about her from his closest friends. But something doesn't sit right with me…" We all looked to Riot, who was just standing in front of the coffin, silently crying with a hand on the glass. "Why does he want Riot dead so badly? I know that his Semblance is pretty violent, but otherwise…" She sighed and ran her hand through her hair, looking at Riot sadly. "Damn. This kid can't catch a break."

"We'll talk to him," Asuka said strongly, glancing at me. I smiled and nodded, putting a hand on her shoulder in confirmation. "We will certainly be an emotional pillar for him to lean on. I swear it as his Team leader and his friend." Professor Yang smiled softly and pat me on the head. I bit amusing considering that I was a fair bit taller than her. "As a Professor and as his Aunt… thank you. My sis' should be here within the next week or so to try and take control of this mess. I'll let you guys go and give you some time to rest up, considering that there aren't any classes for today."

"Yeah, anything happens and we'll be sure to update you all," Professor Arc said with his usual thumbs up. Terra gently tapped Riot on the shoulder, getting his attention. He wiped his eyes, staring at the twitching body of his possessed father before walking away with his head down. Our walk back to the dorm was silent, but somewhat pleasant in a way. It was astounding to see the destruction caused by Riot's battle. Lecture-Room 2 had been ripped apart with two holes in their walls. The lunch-hall had all of the seats destroyed, wood and splintered metal thrown around everywhere (though the kitchen and food had remained untouched, surprisingly). The front-courtyard of the Academy had suffered the worst of the damage. Oscar's statue reduced to rubble, stone tiles that made up the walkway turned to dust, several trees that framed the sides were uprooted, and most obviously, right where the original statue depicting one of the first Hunters once stood was now just a giant crater of destruction, almost a meter deep and fifty feet wide. The students that we did run into had quite the variety of reactions. Some were absolutely terrified, turning around and almost sprinting away. Some of them were in awe, openly staring at Riot. It wasn't necessarily hard to believe that, considering the entire population of Beacon saw and felt the fight between him and the Headmaster. Among that awe were also hard stares, a look of challenge and excitement in the eyes of some. If our fight with the Extinction-Dragon had some still doubting Riot's raw power, this his clash with Ozpin erased that doubt entirely, regardless of whether he was being held back or not.

Regardless, Riot wasn't in any emotional shape to receive attention like this. Ever since yesterday, he had been lost in thought time and time again, and I wasn't able to get a read of him at all. When we reached our room, he just walked over to his bed and plopped himself down on it, his forearm on his head. "… Riot?" Asuka asked tentatively, sitting right next to him.

"I'm not alright," He answered, his outright honesty surprising me. "I just found out that my dad isn't really my dad and his body's been hijacked by some asshole with some serious issues." We all felt the air ripple as his rage seemed to ooze from his body before he calmed down. "…but… I'm not all that bad either." Tears welled in his eyes, but his emotion were confused and mixed. Sadness, frustration, anger… joy, pride, hope. "For a second, I saw him you know? My actual father. He's trapped in there because of Ozpin, but…" His fist clenched, and a small grin came to him. "…he said he was proud. I'll prove him right, beat Ozpin, and bring him back." We were silent for a moment before Asuka broke out into a wide grin. "Aiming pretty high there Riot. I could tell that Ozpin was being held back a lot, but you think that you can still beat him?" He nodded, his expression pensive for a moment. He was lost in thought again, debating on whether to tell us something.

"You know that you can open up to us," I prompted softly, leaning on the bedframe. His eyes darted around nervously before he let out a shaky breath. "…what I'm about to tell you guys does not leave this room. I…" A look of surprise suddenly graced his features. The next part threw me off entirely. "…wait, you can do that?" He wasn't talking to any of us. "Oh… oh okay, wow, that actually works out pretty well."

"…R-Riot, who are you talking to?" Asuka asked, a bit freaked out.

"Oh, just give me a sec," He replied casually as he sat up and closed his eyes. Immediately, black smog began to rise from his entire body, pooling around his feet and slowly drifting to the centre of the room. Asuka promptly freaked out, shrieking and leaping to the nearest wall. Both Terra and I were on guard, auras at the ready in case Riot wasn't able to control what we thought was his Semblance. It wasn't his Semblance. The smog began to take shape, turning into something… humanoid. As the seconds passed in silence, more and more details began to form, the figure turning distinctly feminine, skin and flowing hair a deathly pale pallor, yet with surprisingly human eyes, irises a clear crystal blue.

"This is… a strange feeling," She chuckled, moving her limbs slowly. She turned to us, a soft smile on her face as she gave a light bow. "A pleasure to finally meet you all." She raised a brow suddenly and turned around. "Riot, you can open your eyes now, I can maintain this form by myself."

"O-oh, sorry," He said sheepishly, grinning a bit and turning to us. "Guys, the rage-mode thing where my aura goes all black and stuff? Yeah, that's not my semblance. I'd like you all to meet Salem." We were silent for the next few seconds. My mind was racing at the implications, how Oscar…, no, how Ozpin constantly acted like Riot was a threat. The mass execution of Grimm and anything Grimm related. It's because technically, Riot was a threat. This wasn't some cheap trick or illusion: this was the very same woman that sought to destroy the very foundations of our world before we were born and came very damn close. Yet that's the thing.

Riot was no more a threat than any of us in this room. All of us had enough power to bring down buildings and raze small towns if we so chose. Yet here Riot was, carrying around what appeared to be the same kind of malevolent power that once belonged to her, but instead of going drunk on it, he sought to take up the path of a Hunter. Not to mention, from all the pictures and descriptions of Salem from mother, something was distinctly different with the way she carried herself and the aura she gave of. Being around her felt… peaceful. "… huh, she's pretty hot," Terra said out of nowhere. Asuka was the first to burst into laughter, all traces of fear pretty much gone as we all slowly descended into humour. Even Salem herself chuckled, amused and entirely relaxed at the situation.

"Of all the things that I have been called, hot is certainly a new one," She said, "But thank you, daughter of Belladonna. Your mother's ability to manipulate shadow was a fascinating one that caused me quite the trouble."

"Damn… so you really fought our parents," Asuka wondered, walking up to her and eyeing her up. "It's weird though, for all the talk of you being the world's greatest evil and stuff, I'm not getting any kind of bad vibe from you. Don't think you're hiding anything either, so…"

"I have no intention of hiding anything from you," She said honestly, "Such a foolish tactic was in part why Ozpin had failed to defeat me time and time again. As such I, or rather this vestige of mine, will tell you everything that I know. I am the last remaining piece of Salem, gifted to help the continuation of Remnant's survival."

"Okay… so why are you in Riot?" I asked.

"When your parents managed to defeat me, I had originally gifted the last of my raw strength to Ruby Rose. It did not manifest within her, most likely due to the strength of her Silver Eyes, but when Riot was conceived, it took him as the new host. Just because you are born with it though does not mean that your body is used to it yet," She pointed out to Riot, "Your training had barely taken you to the starting-line in terms of handling it. Now, you will have to strengthen your body to better adapt and handle my power, and the negative effects."

"Woah, hold on, effects? As in plural? What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Asuka started, her tone a little angry.

"You've already seen how it affects his physical state. His body could very well tear itself apart trying to utilize even one-tenth of it as he is now. Not to mention, it is more than just raw power. It is the very last remnant of my soul and the experiences that has come with it: that includes the raw negativity that I was bathed in. Yesterday, he nearly went insane with fury. Imagine what would happen if he had decided to be entirely taken over? Even I cannot foresee the consequences." The thought made us all shudder, especially Riot himself. Though, he looked a bit confused and angry at something.

"Salem," He said, "I get that my dad or Ozpin or whatever not telling me… but if my mom knew, why didn't she let me know? Why didn't she just… tell the truth?" Salem sighed, drifting over to him and lightly patting his head. "Do not judge your mother harshly for her inaction. While I don't see the value in keeping secrets from one close to you, I ultimately understand. What she did was out of love and worry for you and your future. Love is a powerful tool that can be both good and bad in its applications, and I should know. Imagine it like this: your mother tells you that you have the power of, and not to swell my own head, the greatest evil this world has seen. How would you, someone who wants to be a Hunter, react to something like this?" He was silent for a moment before he sighed and nodded, begrudgingly understanding the situation. Something was nagging at the front of my mind.

"Salem," I said after a moment, "…I'm sorry to say, but I still do not fully trust you." She smiled, surprisingly cheeky.

"I'm surprised that you trust me at all," She chuckled, "But please, state your mind."

"Why did you pass your… vestige… to Ruby Rose in the first place?"

"I…" Her image suddenly flickered and wavered like static on a television, both her face and Riot's scrunching up in pain, their hands going to their respective heads as they both groaned in pain. "I… passed myself on… because…!" She tried to get out, her smoking form collapsing as Riot clutched his head, a drop of blood running from his nostril. Terra cried out in shock and both her and Asuka went to check on him. "Damn it all!" She shouted, her form sharply coming back into focus and all traces of pain vanishing from Riot, the poor guy left breathing shallowly as he recovered. "…What the hell was that?" He asked after a moment before he trailed off. She looked furious, her clenched fists trembling as black veins seemed to pop on her forehead. She breathed in deeply a handful of times, managing to calm down. "… I apologize. I did not think that they would intentionally find a way to curse me from telling you of their existence, and in turn harm the bearer of my vestige."

"They?" I probed. She opened her mouth before another short wave of pain hit both of them. "Okay, think it would be safe to say that she can't talk about it," Terra said with a bit of worry in her voice, soothing Riot with her aura. I felt a ball of guilt form in my stomach: my lack of trust had just further injured my teammate. "I…!"

"Save it boy, you could not have known," Salem sighed. "I… wished to warn you of a… potentially world-destroying threat. The fact that I cannot tell of what they are only proves to me that they still remain out there, waiting. However… I believe that you all cannot be stopped from learning about it from others. Hopefully, you will not have to worry about them anytime soon, and I believe that you four have the potential to overcome the looming threat with a united Remnant behind you."

"… so we just have to get strong enough and be ready for whatever comes?" Riot asked after a moment.

"That's a very simplified way to put it, but… yes." Riot, all better now, sat up and grinned.

"We're hunters. It's our job to be ready for whatever comes," He said, almost vibrating with excitement. Salem's eyebrows raised up, surprised at his enthusiasm before looking to the rest of us. Asuka was grinning widely, cracking her knuckles. Terra was lazily confident in her own right. I admittedly was looking forward to this: a chance to grow stronger, prove ourselves and surpass the legacy of our parents? The prospect was daunting, but undoubtedly something that I, and for that matter we, had already been looking to achieve. "Hmph. Your unity and eagerness is impressive," Salem congratulated before she turned stern, "Yet you all have a very long way to go before reach the required strength. Stay focused, learn whatever you can, and continue to push yourself. On the other hand though…" The silence was deafening as tensions rose before a sheepish look suddenly wormed itself onto her face. "… I am not well acquainted with the world. Would you all mind if you caught me up to speed? I'm not quite used to knowing so little about this world."

"The world's greatest villain is asking us for a story?" Asuka asked, unable to hide her laughter. The irony behind the situation was certainly amusing: all four of us sat around and told stories and events of what happened after her defeat at the hands of our parents while she in turn sat elegantly next to Riot. We told her of the reformation of the Hunter Academies, the arrival of new and powerful creatures of myth that could rival the Grimm. The radical Confederate clashes within the heart of Vacuo over the topics of freedom and slavery over Faunus. The appearance of new and powerful magic artefacts that were nothing short of priceless for their untold properties. And of course, the rise of the Chaos insurgency, who sought total global anarchy with whatever means necessary, from Relics, human experiments, armies, weapons, spies, and most recently their attempt to enhance the Grimm. That got a rise out of Salem. "Those fools are able to tamper with Grimm? I must say, technology has much improved, but the idiocy and arrogance of man has grown tenfold in my absence."

"I'm not really sure how far Hayden's got with Cyber-Grimm," Terra added, "The Demons from what I know are normally war stronger and faster than the one I took care of, not to mention way bigger. Maybe the experiments weaken them in the process?"

"Most likely," I concluded, "But Grimm in general always evolve and grow stronger. Who knows how far they can get with enough time to adapt to their implants? Besides, you said that this one was able to use actual combat-techniques while constantly improving in the middle of a fight. No other Grimm as far as I know are capable of that."

"Hmm… a challenge for another time then," Salem agreed. "By the way, who is the leader of this Chaos Insurgency?"

"Nobody knows what he really looks like or what his real name is," Asuka spoke up, her tone a bit lower and slightly shaken, "Only that he's destroyed every trace of his past, and that he's completely unbeatable with his Stand-Type Semblance. The name he goes by is Diavolo."

"You've encountered him before," Salem stated more than asked.

"Y-yeah… he almost killed me a few months back before I came to Beacon." She unbuttoned the bottom of her dress-shirt to reveal the six-inch long jagged scar that ran right above her bellybutton, cutting diagonally through her (frankly amazing) abdominals. "Sly bastard got the jump on me by changing his appearance and nearly gutted me like a pig. His fucking ability is broken as all hell too."

"You got to see his Ability!? Holy shit Asuka, why didn't you tell me! I've been looking through all the footage I could find of him being forced into fights, and I could never figure it out," Riot said excitedly, "I'm betting it's some kind of advanced teleportation with how he seems he just appear and disappear while also rearranging everyone's positions-"

"He can fucking skip time." That made my eyebrows shoot up. Time manipulation itself was a rare enough power, though it was powerful in its own right. My mother's glyphs had the ability to speed up her own time or slow down an opponent, and an old legend of the past told stories of a psychopathic tyrant who could even stop time itself. Skipping time though… the thought of how that worked entirely confused me. For Asuka to have faced such a thing head on and survive was astonishing. "Worst thing is, I'm pretty sure that isn't the only Ability that he has too. He didn't just skip time, when I was fighting him of grandma's dreadnought, the hangar that I was in changed. I mean physically turned into another room entirely. Everything turned red, there were giant marble pillars and a fucking throne at the middle of it all."

"An Evolution to his ability then," Salem concluded, "It's not unheard of, and there are several different ways of achieving it. But for it to leap to the point to creating a Reality Marble…"

"A what?" I asked.

"Reality Marble. It's generally a term for imposing your soul onto the world in order to physically change it into a reflection of who you are. It can be done through the use of magic and aura from what I know, but for him to improve his Semblance to such a point, then drastic measures must have been taken."

"That's…" I paused and looked at my own hands. 'Change the world… a reflection of your soul…?' Salem herself stared at me, a look on intense interest and curiosity in her eyes before she seemed to dismiss the idea. "Well, I say he will be a good challenge for you to grow in due time."

"…Wait, so you're basically telling use to fight the whole Chaos Insurgency and Diavolo?" Riot asked, "That's… a pretty steep order."

"In due time boy," She sighed, lightly whacking him on the back of his head (to no effect, considering she was made of smoke). "Going against them now will certainly be of no help, but they will certainly be the first major challenge that you will face."

"Eh, we'll be ready for it no sweat," Terra said, her arms behind her head as she casually rested on Riot's lap, tapping his chest with her knuckles. "Especially now that we've got this powered-up bad-boy and Salem here to help us get stronger." While her confidence was certainly charming, Riot himself was practically catatonic, his face beet red as Terra got comfortable, shifting her head on his thigh. Salem looked on with a raised eyebrow and a cheeky grin, just as amused as the rest of us. "Either way, rest for the time being. Afterwards, you had best start to push your limits to their utmost and beyond. I…" She yawned, something that I didn't think was possible, "Require some rest. It's been a pleasure meeting you all, and I will certainly be visiting you at a later date."

"Thanks Salem," Riot said before his face morphed into confusion. "God that sounds so weird to say out loud." She laughed and pat his head one more time, a soft and weirdly motherly look on her face. "I appreciate the gratitude. Take care of this fool, Belladonna."

"Already on it," She chuckled back as Salem dissolved back into smoke, seeping back into Riot's aura. We were silent for the next couple of seconds, the reality of the situation sinking in on us. "We really just had a conversation with Salem, didn't we?" Asuka sighed, flopping onto her bed. "This is… goddamnit, I don't even know what to think."

"I mean, she was pretty cool about the entire thing, and you said that neither of you could pick up on any lies," Terra pointed out, "Plus, I get the vibe that she really wants to help all of us, especially Riot."

"I suppose you're correct," I agreed, though the sheer absurdity of the situation wasn't lost upon me. "She'll be a valuable source of information to help us grow. It feels strange, but we may have much to learn from her."

"Still… we can't let this get out, no matter what," Riot said seriously. You guys might be okay with it because of me, but imagine if the other students found out?" Indeed, the idea was enough to send a shiver running down my spine. They may have had mixed feelings about him now, but to learn that he had the Queen of Grimm inside of him… they'd try to kill him on the spot. "Maybe so," I said, looking to him, "But you'll have to master using her power without losing control. The more adept you are at it, the less people can equate you to fighting like a Grimm." He smiled a bit at that, the confidence that rarely showed itself shining through now.

"I already told you, I need to get stronger. If that means learning how to master this power first, then I'll put my everything into it."

"Now that's the confidence I like to see," Terra said with a grin, poking his cheek while still resting on his lap. The reminder was more than enough to turn him back into the beet-red stuttering mess, while Asuka and I chuckled. With all the pieces in place and a goal in mind, it felt like we were headed for a bright future. That's what I hoped, at least.

Oscar

The entire thing felt very real: the pain coursing through my body, the metallic floor under me, the blood running down my face, and the clockwork gears floating around in the sky. But despite it all, I knew I couldn't give in; I refused to give in. No matter how many limbs I lost in this place, no matter how many times I was killed here, regardless of the chains wrapped around me, I'd keep fighting for control. "I don't understand… why do you not listen to logic and reason!?" It still didn't change the fact that everything felt so real here, and more pain boiled within me as the chains pierced my skin, writhing into my flesh and wrapping around my very bones. They tightened and my bones snapped like twigs. I screamed in pain, rage, utter defiance. The chains dissolved, my bones instantly reforming and my wounds disappearing. "You've already been through the Second Great War! You've seen the death and destruction caused by her own hands!" I breathed in and out, replenishing my stamina in the blink of an eye. "So why!? How do you not see that your-!?"

"Ozpin, please shut up," I sighed, standing tall and cracking my neck. "I've been hearing the same thing from you for decades now. 'Your son is a threat!' and 'He shouldn't be allowed to live!' Gods, you sound almost like Ironwood did." My thought gave form to my empty hand, now holding a familiar cane that hummed with power. "You know, every time I hear you say that…" I glared right at his image floating in the sky, his body wreathed in power. "It makes me hate you more and more." I stepped over one of my countless corpses, my body now brimming with power as I gained just an inch more control over this landscape. "How dare you?" I shot forward, my body twisting like a drill as I closed the distance in an instant. I slammed my cane into his temple, his skull fracturing like an egg. "You took my life away!" He healed instantly, and his hand tore through my chest like wet paper, blood streaming out of my back into the sky. "You broke my wife's heart!" I clenched my fist and rammed it through his stomach with the same ease, more blood drenching our corpses below. In the past twenty-four hours, over the millions of my own bodies, I had managed to trump over him twice. I didn't think that was possible. "But hear this: you may control the majority of my body. You may be able to call forth immense power, and you may hold my consciousness back..." Ignoring my pierced lungs, I drew closer and bared my teeth.

"I will never let you kill my son!"

To be continued...


Aaand exposition is exposition. I tried to make this as interesting as possible with character interactions, but I still kinda suck at groups talking together (and just interactions in general), so for anyone who feels like this chapter is like a piece of homework, than I deeply apologize. Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed this as we get back into the swing of things next time!