Dear Mom and Dad
If your reading this then first off it means that the mailing system is either still good (or really crap if your receiving this super late), but secondly it means I'm doing this to you again…
I'm disappearing again.
But this time I'm telling you why.
It's not you, me and Tanith recently found something out and… we're going to help out… it involves my teammates and I owe it to them to investigate and honour them. I don't know when I will return and given the nature of what we're doing I don't even know if I will return.
Attached to this letter was a package containing all of my jewellery, as both a promise to try and return no matter what and also because I can't wear it in Atlas. Attached is an address as well as contact information for Tanith's parents, you can try and get in touch with them. Me and Tanith left them with all our stuff for what we thought was going to be a short and quick job but has turned much much bigger then we could've realised.
I imagine Sehko, Kolf and Nyoka have already told you all about meeting me in Haven academy and what I did there, what me and Tanith are involved in now is linked to that and very important.
Words cannot express the deep regret I have for doing this to you again and I hope this letter may help myself as much as you.
You may also note how vague I am about what me and Tanith are doing, and that's because I don't know if… someone else might be reading this. Tell Bundi I'm on a secret mission. When I get back I'll happily tell you all about it in person.
I love you and wish to see you again soon and will fight to the bitter end to make sure I can.
Your daughter, Elster
PS. I've set it up with my bank so that you'll begin to receive money from my bank account, I know what you'd likely say if you could say it to me but please. Accept it, if not for yourselves then at least keep it for Bundi.
~§~
Elster stared at the letter strapped to the small cardboard box, feeling guilt and regret as she reluctantly slid it into the mail box. It was like the final baby step over the invisible line, no going back. Unless she burned the mail box. A small smile spread across her lips as she imagined the suggestion in Tanith's voice before she sighed through her nose and turned, only to jump as Qrow stood there.
"You done? Got an important letter to send right here" he said, waving the letter in one hand.
Elster stood aside and Qrow stepped forward, looking at the letter before posting it in.
"Who's it for?" Asked Elster curiously, unable to help herself.
"Ole Jimmy Ironwood himself" said Qrow "telling him to expect us"
"Well maybe it will be easy to get to Atlas" Said Elster hopefully.
Qrow smiled, but there was no happiness behind his expression "knowing my luck"
At that point they were both knocked by Ruby running by them.
"Hey! What's with all the running?" Asked Qrow as Elster looked over at Ruby.
"What's with all the standing?" Shot back Ruby walking backwards "come on! It's almost time"
Elster chuckled and watched Ruby zoom off as she walked away, toward one of the small café's set up to go find her girlfriend. She saw Tanith sitting at a café table, sipping coffee and going through her scroll, a sombre look on her face.
Elster could guess what it was.
~§~
Tanith sat nervously in the Mistral CCTS building, the screen in front of her taking a longer time to buffer then she'd ever experienced with using the CCTS. With each revolution the knot in her stomach tightened.
Elster grabbed her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. She shot her a smile that immediately left her face as she looked back at the screen. This was the final call in a long series informing friends that they were going to be unavailable for a while, this would be that hardest one though.
Then suddenly the screen lit up again to show her Dad's office, her parents sat there with happy if concerned looks on their faces.
"Hey honey, hi Elster, how are you guys?"
"We're fine" she said as she "we're…" she trailed off, not sure how to start explain the situation as her parents expressions fell.
"We completed the job we rushed off to" Tanith finally said before running a hand through her hair "but… somethings come up"
"What is it?" Asked her father, something in his voice telling Tanith this was going to be just as bad as she imagined.
"We can't… we can't say" Tanith finally said "its…"
"Come home" said her mother suddenly.
Tanith blinked before shaking her head "mom-"
"No Tanith, we can't keep doing this!" she said, her voice both stern and desperate "you can't keep doing this to us"
Tanith shook her head again "Mom please, you need to understand-"
"How can we understand?" Asked her father desperately "how can we understand what's going on in that head of yours when you won't tell us anything!"
"It's nothing to do with my head!" Said Tanith before faltering "okay, it's a little to do with my head but I can't tell you, I'm sorry but I just can't" said Tanith, her voice cracking.
"Why not!"
"Because it's not safe!" Snapped Tanith.
There was silence from a moment, her parents looking shocked and Elster looking concerned, her eyes flicking between Tanith and her parents.
"Not safe?" Questioned her father.
"I didn't mean it like tha-"
"Tanith what's going on, please tell us" begged her mother.
"I'm sorry, I can't-"
"This has something to do with Haven doesn't it?" Said her father before growling "you weren't just there coincidentally at all"
"Dad-"
"It's your fault"
Tanith stared in shock as her father accused Elster next to her.
Elster blinked before sighing "I'll admit that this entire thing was my fault-"
"No it wasn't!" snapped Tanith with a scowl, looking between her father and Elster "we both made a decision, it's no ones fault"
"Tanith, you said you're in danger" said her mother "just come home, leave all that behind"
"No mom, I can't, I made a choice. We made a choice. We need to do this"
Her mother looked at Elster with a scowl "I trusted you to keep her safe and you've dragged her into something? You betrayed my trust"
Elster looked down at the words "I didn't know what has happened would happen, but I still intend on keeping that promise"
"Look how well you've kept it so far"
Elster flinched but didn't put up any resistance, that made Tanith scowl deeper "we both have our reasons for doing this, personal reasons"
"And you're not going to tell us are you?" Questioned her father before scoffing "nothing new there"
Tanith slammed her hands on the desk and leaned forward "maybe look back at how you've reacted to me telling you stuff in the past and think why I keep stuff from you"
"Have you been keeping other stuff from us?" Asked her mother, hurt in her voice.
Tanith sighed and sat back "we can discuss all that some other time, maybe when you stop treating me like some delicate flower" she crossed her arms "we are going, we do not know how long we will be gone for"
She took a deep breath as her parents both launched into protests and pleads "and it hurts how you won't support me, even if I understand why" She closed her eyes as she stopped the call, a tear leaking from her eye as her parents voices were cut off "but after all of that… I love you"
Elster looked at her as more tears began to fall "you don't have to come with m-"
"Don't you dare" muttered Tanith, not looking at her as she shook her head "please Elster, just… don't"
~§~
She walked over and sat across from her, Tanith glancing up and smiling at her, trying to seem happier then Elster knew she was.
"Hey, you post your letter?"
Elster played along for the moment "yeah, it was hard but it helped me a little bit"
Tanith's smile widened "I'm glad"
Elster stared at her for a moment before reaching across and taking her hand "are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine as can b-"
"Tanith" said Elster gently, squeezing her hand with pleading eyes "we said we wouldn't lie to each other"
Tanith looked at her before down at her hand, she sucked on her lips and slowly shook her head as a tear rolled down her cheek "I'm a terrible person" she said, her voice cracking slightly.
"Hey hey hey" cooed Elster, moving her chair so she could sit next to her "come on, no your not"
"Yes I am" argued Tanith, silent tears streaming down her face as she tugged at her hair "I-I lie and snap at my p-parents, I make them worried s-sick about me. I lie to you when I said I wouldn't, I-I don't want to do that to them, I d-don't wanna do that to you"
"It's okay"
"No it's not" protested Tanith as more tears fell.
"Yes it is"
"No"
Elster sighed and then pulled Tanith against her "yes it is. You have been through so much recently, so much stress and fear and situations your not used to being in. But I'm here. I'll always be here so you don't have to face it alone" as she talked Tanith had buried her head into her jacket and had begun to cry.
Elster just gently stroked her hair, letting her de-stress and not caring for the people staring as she whispered sweet nothings for Tanith and Tanith alone. She looked up as she saw the familiar blond head of hair, Yang looking at them in concern. She tilted her head curiously and Yang tapped her wrist, Elster nodding before going back to Tanith.
"Our train's about to leave, let's make sure we're on it huh?" She asked and Tanith nodded, finally pulling away and wiping her eyes.
"I'm sorry, I-"
"The only thing you should apologize for" Said Elster as she stood and offered her hand to Tanith "is for apologizing" she smiled as Tanith rolled her eyes and accepted her hand, Elster pulling her to her feet before using her thumb to wipe away some tears Tanith missed then cupping her face "This is a shitty situation for everyone, no one is more at fault here okay?"
Tanith nodded and Elster smiled, leaning forward and kissing her gently before pulling away as a train whistle blew "believe that's us"
Tanith's eyes widened "run for it?"
"Read my mind"
~§~
They had managed to get a cheap single compartment ticket (Tanith saying it was okay as the trip would only take a few hours), only a few compartments down from RWBY with JNR with Oscar bunking and Qrow having his own cheap small compartment. They had loaded bags and the train had set off (they had made it in a reasonable time it turned out).
They were in the recreation carriage, tables set out and various forms of entertainment strewn about. RWBY were playing Remnant: The game. JNR along with Oscar were watching while Qrow was off doing… something.
Elster and Tanith were watching the game from a distance, Tanith chuckling as Ruby cheered at a victory.
"How come you don't have a Remnant: The game board set?" She asked Elster.
"Slightly too complicated, and it requires four players"
"No it doesn't, you can play with just two"
"Can you?"
"Yeah just combine two of the nations sets and cards and you basically just emulate the Great War"
"Huh"
"At least, that's what me and Lucia used to do" shrugged Tanith, her gaze going to the window beside them and the (currently still) green countryside outside.
Elster looked at Tanith beside her and after a moment gently asked "are you okay now?"
Tanith grimaced "still feel like a piece of shit" she held a hand up as she saw in the reflection of the window Elster's arms coming up to circle round her "and as much as I like the idea of you hugging me, I just… want some space"
Elster nodded and lowered her arms "do you want me to go or…?"
Tanith grunted and then her arm snaked up and she grabbed Elster's hand "I want some space but I want you in that space"
Elster snorted but gave her hand a squeeze "alrighty then"
"Oh, I got a text from Tyler. Basically just thanking us a whole bunch for delivering the stuff and getting them a few more gigs with the Schnee's, their money was paid and their ship's fixed, tried offering us the money but…" she smiled "we don't exactly need it, not that I said, that would be a dick thing to do. I just declined, also apologized and declined a restaurant meet up"
"Hey, we get this done, then we take them to a restaurant yeah?" Said Elster and Tanith grunted a laugh.
"Sounds like a plan"
Elster looked back to the group and noted how the players had switched around, and that Yang was heading towards them. Tanith smiled in greeting, her eyes flicking over to Blake who's eyes were lingering on where Yang was going.
"Hey Yang"
"Don't you two wanna join in on the fun?" Asked Yang as she slipped into a seat across from them.
"I dunno how to play"
Tanith smiled "it's more entertaining watching you kids play more then anything"
"I'm nineteen"
"And I'm twenty five, you're a child to me"
"It's only six years"
Tanith smirked "it's eleven for Elster"
"Thank you for the ever increasing reminders that I'm thirty" Elster dryly muttered.
Yang looked amused as Tanith tilted her head "so, this your first trip to Argus?"
"Yeah, is it much different from Mistral?"
"Eh, cause of the military base all the Atlas and Mistral culture has sort of blended together" she meshed her hands together "it's a decent city actually, despite the Atlas presence"
Yang nodded before her expression changed to one of uncertainty, clearly wanting to say something but unsure how to say it. "I… Uh" Yang rubbed the back of her head "I saw you crying earlier"
"You did?" Asked Tanith, a slight blush as she glanced at Elster who nodded in confirmation.
"Yeah, I just wanted to make sure everything's okay?"
Tanith sighed "I appreciate it Yang… but not everything is okay, family y'know?"
"Yeah" said Yang quietly, Tanith feeling a stinging pain of sorrow within her.
"It all just… got to me, I'm fine now. Embarrassing really, I blame this" she tapped her scars "I never cried this easily before I got them"
"You didn't?" Asked Elster, a teasing tone to her voice and Tanith grunted with a smirk, elbowing her.
"No, I was a tough bitch" Tanith looked at Yang and then gently asked "how was your mom?"
Yang looked down "she's…" the girl trailed off "something"
"Does it perhaps involve one of the previous sentences statements?" Asked Tanith.
Yang tilted her head from side to side before sighing and running a hand through her hair "I don't know, I don't really want to think about it"
Tanith nodded sympathetically, out of the corner of her eye seeing Blake again turn her head to glance at Yang before looking away again. Elster obviously noticed too as she sat forward "so how's it feel to have the team back together?"
"It's… it feels weird but… in a nice way" she finally said.
"I get that" nodded Elster "me and the boys always had to spend a month or so just getting back into the swing of being a team again" she rolled her eyes "didn't help that Brian messed up call outs, Lelouch was a cocky bastard, Ulrich sometimes accidentally attacked his teammates and I was flawless, a perfection they struggled to live up to" she stuck her nose in the air playfully, making Yang chuckle and Tanith giggle.
"Yeah?" Tanith replied playfully.
"Uh huh. Totally didn't have an issue of separating myself from my team with my attacks. No sir" she glanced at Tanith, a smile growing on her face at the sight of Tanith's amused grin before turning back to Yang "you're back together and you'll feel like nothing's changed, but you've all grown as people over a short period of time, there's an adjustment period"
"Alright Ozpin" Yang teased.
Elster snorted and sat back "what can I say, you get employed in the same building as him and he rubs off on you"
"Sure, nothing to do with you being so old that your beginning to spout ancient wisdoms" Elster playfully elbowed her and Tanith smirked as she asked "please tell me your Dad was aware of you leaving before you left"
"Yes, he saw me off, even gave me the money for the tickets to get to Mistral" Said Yang in an exasperated tone.
"Good"
~§~
They'd arrive at Argus within the next two hours, Tanith and Elster had decided to head back to their cabin. Tanith had placed her bag on the floor and was looking through it while Elster was resentfully staring at the view outside.
She sighed "why is it that whenever I don't have my camera the perfect shots come along?"
"Irony" said Tanith chuckling as she shuffled through her bag and then brought out a bottle of vodka, swirling the meagre contents left "gonna have to buy a refill"
Elster stared between the bottle and Tanith, whose eyes were filled with longing and craving, her movements stilling as she stared at the clear liquid.
"Tanith" she said softly and Tanith looked up at her "if we're doing this, if your certain you want to do this… no more drinking" she said, crouching down next to her girlfriend and grabbing the neck of the bottle "you need to stay sharp, you need to be ready for anything"
Tanith snorted "you sound like my old drill instructor" she muttered even as her grip on the bottle loosened.
Elster wrapped her hand into Tanith's hair, getting it tangled in the purple locks as she leaned forward and pulled Tanith toward her, kissing the side of her head "you've got to be strong, just like back in the military" Elster murmured into her ear.
Tanith sighed and finally her grip left the bottle, Elster pulling it away and placing it on the desk, her hand going back to Tanith's empty one as she kissed Tanith's hair again "I'm proud of you, okay?"
Tanith nodded dully "I can do this"
"You can" agreed Elster before standing and grabbing the bottle "I'm going to dispose of this"
"Okay"
Tanith watched as Elster left the compartment and sighed, walking over and letting her head rest on the cold glass, watching the forest go by.
"When did my life get so complicated?" She mumbled to no one in particular. She didn't receive an answer. The forest passed, the snow fell, life was still just as complicated as before.
She thought back to when she'd been at Beacon, her biggest worries were Grimm and cheering Elster up to try and keep her out of her depression. Now her biggest worries were still Grimm, but Elster seemed to be the one making sure she herself didn't breakdown or fall into bad habits.
It was nice to have someone who cared.
Tanith jumped as Elster suddenly pressed into her back, trapping her between the window and her body and if she was being honest she really didn't mind. She felt Elster rest her chin on her head.
"I gotcha" whispered Elster "non-consensual cuddles"
"Who said I don't consent?"
She felt Elster chuckle "ho ho ho, you like being pressed against the window?"
Even if the way Elster huskily whispered that into her ear made her shiver Tanith couldn't help but squirm with a blush on her face "you made it weird! I'm here for cuddles not exhibitionism!"
Elster laughed again as she pulled away, freeing Tanith who turned to watch as Elster collapsed onto the bed, a victorious smirk on her face. Tanith rolled her eyes and lifted her bag onto the desk, beginning to route through it "'think I'll just read a book or-"
Suddenly Elster tugged on the back of her shirt and she yelped as she collapsed backwards, only for Elster to catch her in her arms and laugh.
"You bitch" grunted Tanith.
"Give me a second" said Elster as she propped a pillow on the wall next to her, before Tanith could question it she was lifted until she was curled in Elster's lap, her back resting against the pillow and her head resting on Elster's shoulder "better?"
Tanith looked up at her, then after a pause leaned forward and kissed her, Elster humming and happily kissing back. Tanith eventually pulled away and flopped her head back onto Elster's shoulder as Elster turned back to her scroll.
"Yeah" said Tanith quietly.
"You can still read if you want, or sleep, I just wanna hold you" Said Elster.
Tanith smirked "someone's feeling selfish"
"I have a right to be selfish about my things" replied Elster with a smile before turning her head and kissing Tanith's forehead "plus I want to hold you"
"I think you just want to hold me"
"Maybe, I'll never tell"
Tanith smiled as she looked up at Elster's face, lit up by Elster's scroll as she went through Squawker. The CCTS connection in the train was a bit iffy and Elster was only able to look at what had recently been posted in the Mistral CCTS connection, not that there was a lot.
She wanted to stay like this forever, bundled up in Elster's arms, listening to her heart beat steadily, listening to her breath. Maybe a bit creepy, but she was in love so fuck it, she didn't really care. Not like anyone else knew her thoughts. She looked at Elster and imagined her older, maybe with greying hair and wrinkles, but in the same position.
She found it still hard to believe sometimes, that the woman right here, holding her right now loved her. She thought back to when they had first met face to face, Elster had been so very pale, her hair much more of a mess, her expression somehow still having a sadness to it even when she laughed. When side by side Tanith couldn't picture Elster doing what she was doing now, just lounging about and relaxing, the Elster she had known once just worked and occasionally took a photograph.
Yet, even then she had been attracted to her, in a way she'd never really felt with anyone else before. Her last relationship (that had not been a one night stand or regular hookups) had been with Jared and she'd never pictured herself in a situation like this with him, for the most part she'd just slowly realised what a piece of shit he was.
It had been the subtle things over time that culminated. The comments, about her clothes, her friends, her food choices. The mean comments that he took for jokes but actually cut Tanith deep, the roughness he possessed in bed, the non-consensual slapping and choking. He didn't talk afterwards, he didn't like touching or kissing her afterwards either leaving her to have to clean herself while he just stayed in bed and fell asleep like an asshole. He would degrade her in front of friends, make mean jokes with friends while she was there.
Elster was so unlike that. She always asked, even when she took Tanith by surprise with something. She was always gentle unless asked, she never made comments about her choices unless they were negatively affecting someone (mostly herself). They joked with each other, things that didn't cut deep, light jabs they could laugh off. Elster didn't care that she had put on a bit of weight since leaving the military and Beacon, Elster didn't care that sometimes Tanith had a dark sense of humour. Elster was always considerate of her, never degraded or made fun of her (in a way that hurt her feelings, harmless jokes were okay).
Elster just loved her for her and that filled her chest with that warm feeling.
That wasn't to say Elster was perfect (no one was) but it helped that Elster was good at identifying when she'd done wrong or made a mistake. An example was how she would sometimes ignore problems out of stubbornness and not wanting to fail, only confronting it when someone else confronted her about the issue.
Her touchy-ness could sometimes get a bit too much for Tanith, if Tanith was in a bad mood she was prone to snapping at Elster when she tried. To be fair however Tanith had to admit that when she was in a bad mood Elster touching her was a fifty fifty on whether she wanted it or not and she wasn't good at communicating if she did want it or not. Elster was good at holding herself back when Tanith wanted space.
Elster had even admitted to her that she'd been even more touch starved at the beginning of their relationship and had almost wanted to just hold Tanith and never stop, but she held herself back from a worry that being too touchy would drive Tanith away.
Elster would play off injuries, ignore slights against her by others, in general she came across as very apathetic to the world. It was weird for Tanith to think but it was the most accurate description. Elster didn't seem to much care about trying to correct someone until they said something about Tanith, then her protective and fierceness came out. Tanith pondered if the apathetic-ness had always been part of Elster, or was something that had come after her teammates demise.
Elster was also amazing at blaming herself, it was astounding some of the things she would take the blame for. She woke Tanith up due to a nightmare? She felt guilty for the next few days. She accidentally hurt Tanith during her nightmare thrashings or by other accidental means? She blamed herself for the injury. Tanith accidentally burned/cut herself while helping her prepare food? She should've done that task instead and as such it was her fault. Sometimes she wasn't even involved in the equation
But everyone had flaws, Tanith knew it was rich of herself to think of some of Elster's flaws when she was fucking riddled with them. She was aware that Elster's influence in her life had been great for herself. Sure, there were rough times and disagreements. But the good things about Elster well outweighed the bad by a massive margin.
She let out a long breath and rubbed her head into Elster's jacket, liking how it smelled of her so much. She let her eyes trail round the room and realised how perfect the moment was, the regular rattle of the train sounding around them. The warmth accompanied by the heavy snow outside that blanketed the countryside.
She could honestly fall asleep here quite happily. That thought took her back to the nightmare she'd had, waking up to her hands in Elster's throat. She hated sleeping apart from Elster, she missed Elster. But every time she felt ready, that night slammed into the forefront of her brain and she would stop herself. Even after their date night she'd still slinked away to the second bed. Elster had tried to hide the disappointment, but it was a moot point when Tanith could literally feel her disappointment.
So as much as she'd happily fall asleep, she couldn't allow herself to.
"It really is beautiful outside" she murmured.
"Like I said, perfect opportunities"
"Y'know, for all your love of photography I could never see you going to a pretentious art school"
"Cause my family were struggling to get by even when I was young?"
"No, your just too… too… you I guess, I just can't picture it"
"I didn't fall in love with you for your word play it seems"
Tanith lightly swatted her jacket and Elster chuckled "you're a massive bitch"
"Mm, that makes you a tiny one"
"Oh my god, I'm going to strangle you" Tanith then grimaced at her word choice and looked down, not looking at Elster and fiddling with her jacket.
"Hey, c'mon now, I know what you meant you can relax"
Tanith took a deep breath but nodded "you'd know I'd never do that to you, right?"
"Considering there no evidence to suggest any strangulation attempts-"
"-But-"
"-except eye witness accounts, no solid evidence however. So until any evidence turns up, I'm just going to have to comfort you and tell you how much I love you which" Elster let out a teasing withering sigh "you know I loathe doing"
"Bastard" murmured Tanith even as she pulled herself closer to Elster, not that she could really get any physically closer.
"True"
Tanith rolled her eyes but a smile tugged her lips, another silence descended upon them as the world outside passed by.
"I'm glad that I get to share this moment with you" Tanith finally admitted, glancing up.
She saw Elster's lips curl up, her eyes gleaming with something warm and happy.
"No one else I'd rather have"
The words warmed Tanith's chest.
"Pass me my book"
Elster hummed in acknowledgement and leaned over, easily reaching the bag in the small table and looking through it for only a moment before pulling out a book, examining the cover as she passed it to Tanith "new one?"
"Mm, another sci fi about a space ship crew and a cosmic truth, they need to deliver a ghost to this star system protected by ancient robots"
"Uh huh, sounds intriguing"
Tanith shrugged "it's okay"
A comfortable silence filled the compartment, occasionally interrupted by the familiar rattle of the train as it travelled over train tracks and the occasional person walking by. It was a blissful moment of peace.
The train car shook suddenly and they were thrown from the bed and to the floor in a heap, Elster holding her tight for a moment as an explosion sounded and Tanith closed her eyes tight. When she opened them she saw that Elster was on top of her, protecting her from any potential danger.
The carriage rocked a second time and people ran past yelling, Elster pulling herself up and then helping Tanith up before walking to the window.
"What is it?" Asked Tanith as she followed and joined her.
"Nothing good" muttered Elster as she scanned the outside. Then a black something swooped passed the window "Grimm by the looks of it"
"What a shock" Said Tanith dryly as she dug through her bag and brought out her assault rifle, clicking off the safety and slinging the strap over her shoulder "I'll make sure civvies are safe"
"You are a civilian" pointed out Elster as they walked toward the corridor.
"Actually I have a key difference" she cocked the gun "I have a gun, I'm a combatant"
Elster shook her head with a smile and grabbed Tanith's hand, stopping them before they entered the corridor where people ran for safety "stay safe" she whispered before leaning in, the pair of them kissing for a brief moment before separating far too soon for either's liking.
"You too" whispered back Tanith.
Elster ran out unit the corridor and called out "get everyone to the front of the train!"
Tanith nodded and then began shouting and gesturing with the rifle "Okay people! Get to the front! Huntsman orders! Come on!"
~§~
Elster climbed onto the train roof, blinking as her hair whipped into her face for a moment before she swiped it away and looked around. Manticores were swarming through the air and at the head a Sphinx was glaring down at them maliciously.
She saw Dudley far along the train reaching a hand out to a diving Manticore calling "Dee!". She scowled as she readied her axes, someone was already dead. Elster looked around and spotted team RWBY and Qrow in a group a train car down, Ruby said something that was lost in the wind and then they moved forward.
Elster joined their sprint forward and nudged Yang "what's the plan?"
Yang looked at her before shrugging "don't let anyone else die apparently"
Elster nodded "worked with worse"
Then she raised her left axe and fired at a Manticore in the sky, the shot landing in an explosion of fire as the Manticore smashed into the cliff face and dissolved. Elster then had to dodge a fireball only to have the breath knocked from her as a skull plate smashed into her chest and knocked her back.
She corrected herself and ran forward, the Manticore firing another fireball that she jumped over, landed on the Manticore's head and delivering several quick rapid slashes to the top of the Grimm's head. It gave a final roar and then collapsed and dissolved, another Manticore had landed and she got ready to charge it when suddenly it was blasted in the back.
They both turned their heads to see a turret which had emerged from the train car roof. The Grimm growled and took back to the sky, Elster then diving as a different Manticore dived and blasted the turret with a fireball.
Elster heard Qrow shouting at someone, heard passengers screaming but ignored them looked around before quickly jogging to the side.
Oscar yelped as she grabbed his hand and yanked him up, then he straightened "can I do anything?"
"Get that idiot to shut the turrets off, they're bringing the Grimm towards the passengers and attracting more Grimm"
Oscar nodded and ran off and Elster saw a pink explosion, Nora and the rest of her team joining the fray. Elster looked around and sprinted forward, watching as a Manticore swooped down with a glow in its mouth. The Huntress then jumped onto the turret and from there jumped up, the fireball sailing beneath her and missing the turret but still sending a shockwave that provided an extra boost.
She smacked into the Manticore and clawed as black fur and skin, getting a grip on its back on a jutting spine. She let go with one of her hands and grabbed her axe hanging from her wrist, then she swung it down into the fur. Black goo spurted from the wound and the Manticore bucked and twisted, Elster hanging on for dear life before then realising she was being an idiot as she looked to her right.
She swung her arm up again and brought it down, slicing clean through the wing joint right next to her. The Manticore screeched as it fell towards the ground and Elster had to let go, falling through the air before firing her axes regularly (Thanking Ruby in her head for the six shot capability) to adjust herself before landing on the trains roof. She turned to see the Grimm's dissolving crumpled body tumbling down the cliff face.
There was a thump further down and she turned to see a Manticore challenging her, fangs and stinger bared as it eyed her. She swung her axes and, in a smooth movement, snapped the ends together, the axe handles extending to make a double headed axe staff. She thought back to the tips she'd managed to bum off Khara and the training she'd been doing through the previous week. She spun it smoothly around her, her confidence growing as she and the Manticore slowly approached each other. The Manticore broke first, snarling and pouncing. She kept the momentum in the staff going and swung it up, being rewarded with a whimper and black blood dissolving in the air before it hit the train.
The Manticore landed and faced her again, growling with one paw clutched to a seeping gash in its chest. She smirked. That infuriated the Grimm as it suddenly slashed with its stinging tale. Elster jumped over the tail, swinging with her staff and the tail being sliced off and dissolving as it bounced off the side of the train. The manticore screeched in pain and backed away, eyeing her warily as it dripped black blood.
Elster stepped forward, still spinning Blue's Revenge in dangerous arcs. Then her hand slipped and both Huntress and Grimm watched as the weapon sailed several feet away, one end imbedding in the roof of the train. Elster turned to look back at the Grimm and cracked an awkward smile "Time out?"
The Manticore charged, a new confidence as a yellow glow built in its throat. Elster responded by putting her natural agility to use, beginning to back flip away from the danger. The Grimm fired and she found herself thrown into the air. She adjusted herself, seeing how close she was to Blue's Revenge as she landed and cartwheeled, the Grimm charging past her. When they both came to a stop Elster was within reach of Blue's Revenge and the Manticore was already charging her again.
She lunged, snatching Blue's Revenge from the roof and then blindly swung. Turning her head after the weapon to see the Grimm sail over her in two separate pieces before dissolving. She breathed a sigh of relief and separated the axes again back to hand held form before looking at how her friends were managing.
Then she realised they were going to a tunnel just as Oscar let out a shrill cry.
She looked around herself and dived into the gap between carriages, catching her breath as she began making her way to the front. As soon as she entered the train however passengers began assaulting her with questions and confusion.
"Are the Grimm gone?"
"Is it over?"
"Where are the other hunters?"
"Are we going to make it?"
"Listen!" she called and the passengers all went quiet, every eye on her as she looked at them "We are currently passing through a tunnel giving us a moment to regroup and strategize, the Grimm are likely still following us HOWEVER!" Elster called as people began to panic "I need you to not panic, any negative emotions are going to lure more in, now if you'll excuse me, I need to meet with my teammates. We'll get you through this"
Elster made her way through the carriage, reassuring people as she passed before then entering the joined carriage to see Qrow holding Dudley up against the wall.
"Look, if you bozos had been doing your job instead of shaking down passengers, maybe we wouldn't be in this-" Qrow was cut off by Ruby coming forward and pulling him off.
"Please, just shut off the turrets"
"Trust us, we know what we're doing" said Jaune, going forward and activating his semblance to heal Dudley's arm. Dudley flinched and looked between them before shaking his head.
"Fine"
"What Jackass" Everyone turned to see Tanith entering from the passenger compartment, gun in and hand and a scowl on her face "turned the damn turrets on?"
"Its okay, they're going off now" said Elster, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Good, so now what? 'cause the Grimm are following us through the tunnel" Tanith supplied
It was Nora surprisingly who suddenly perked up "Ren, could you use your Semblance to mask everyone on this train? With the guns off and emotions hidden, they might lose track of us!"
"Hm, I never attempted to affect this many people"
"Well" Ruby said "you've never had Jaune's help before"
"He could amplify your Aura!" supplied Weiss
Qrow nodded approvingly "Yeah, that's an alright plan"
Nora put her hand on Ren's shoulder and sent him a comforting smile "Don't look so worried, Ren. You can totally do this!"
Then the moment was ruined as Ozpin stepped in "I'm afraid there's one complication... The Grimm are also attracted to this" he gestured at the shrunken relic of knowledge.
Dudley peeked over Jaunes shoulder "What's that?"
Qrow stepped between them, blocking Dudley's view "None of your business. Oz, are you serious?
"Yeah dude, what the fuck" Tanith frowned.
"Why wouldn't you tell us that?!" Asked Yang angrily.
Ruby cut in before the situation could get worse "It doesn't matter right now"
Yang very clearly disagreed but crossed her arms, a frown etched onto her face.
"Every second we're on board this train, we're putting everyone else in danger" She looked to JNR and Tanith "Get the passengers to the front cars, you'll still mask the emotions and kill the turrets... we just can't come with you. If we cut the back cars with us and the Relic on them, we can deal with the Grimm. You just make sure the rest of the train makes it safely to Argus"
Jaune finished healing Dudley's arm and walked over to them, concern etched on his face "Only if you'll promise you'll meet us there"
Ruby nodded with a smile "Promise"
"I can separate the train cars" volunteered Tanith before looking at Elster "if you give me one of your fire dust cartridges"
"Always a price" grumbled Elster sarcastically even as she handed one over.
"See you in Argus" murmured Tanith, using Elster's hand to pull her close and then down. Exchanging a quick peck before separating. Elster ran off with RWBY, Qrow and Oscar while Tanith gestured to JNR "c'mon guys"
~§~
Five minutes later and Tanith watched the final passenger pass to the agreed front carriages of the train.
She looked over to JNR "You keep passengers happy and do your bit, I'll go look for any stragglers and such, give a call when I'm done"
"But surely it would be better if one of us went with you or we all did. It would be quicker" Said Jaune.
"Yeah, but any passenger that's making negative emotions down there is literally chump change to the absolute tidal wave I'm feeling over here" Tanith said as she walked backwards "be back very soon"
She then turned and began jogging through the carriages, hearing the fighting outside and occasionally hearing a screech or a roar. The train cars shook regularly with the sound of scraping claws and thumps.
Tanith then paused as she felt it. The strong sense of fear and confusion coming from a compartment. It was the last one on the end before the storage car which there was no way to get into without going outside. She entered and quickly spotted the little girl curled under one of the beds, crying and clutching something in her arms tightly.
Tanith jogged up and crouched down "Hey hey hey, c'mere" She held out a hand.
The girl jumped and turned to look at her before sniffing "I don't know where my mum is" whimpered the girl, clutching her teddy bear.
"It's okay, let me get you to safety and we'll find your mum" Assured Tanith, doing her best 'I'm an adult and I 100% know what I'm doing' impression.
The girl swallowed but then took the hand. Crawling out from under the bed Tanith pulled her to the door "Okay, so we're going to do a bit of a sprint of the train okay? Whatever you do, don't look outside. Got it?"
The girl nodded and Tanith gave her an encouraging smile before they entered the corridor and began running. The girl kept up surprisingly well, though Tanith felt her fear spike and heard her gasp or whimper with every shake of the train car or bump of the roof.
Several minutes and train cars later and Tanith sighed in relief at the sight of the other passengers in the next carriage over and dragged the girl along, her gun still in her hand for precaution. They made it to the connector and Tanith prepared to cross with the girl when suddenly she felt something, something above and diving, diving directly at them.
She suddenly yanked the girl up before chucking her through the air and into the civilian carriage, then realising there wasn't enough time threw herself backwards as a Manticore slammed down onto the space between the carriages, growling as it turned toward the one with screaming civilians.
Tanith growled and aimed her rifle, firing off several shots. A couple landed in the Grimm's fur and some bounced off its bone armour, it turned its eyes upon her and growled.
"You" someone growled in a low deep voice.
Tanith didn't bother to contemplate it as she scrambled back with her legs and fired her rifle until the clip emptied, the Manticore forcing its way into the carriage and pawing at her. She squeaked as her back hit something solid and she looked up to see it was the bar of the refreshment cabin.
She hopped over it as the manticore slammed its paw and claws down where she and been, destroying the floor to show the tracks beneath as Tanith ran through the bar and kicked the locked door to the kitchen open, diving in and slamming the door again.
She pressed her back to it, closing her eyes and gritting her teeth as it rattled. Then the rattling stopped, she cracked an eye open, she turned only to yelp and dive to the floor as a fireball melted the glass porthole and shot over her head, setting fire to the wall on the very end of the carriage.
She looked up, only to freeze as she saw the red fire dust bottle next to her, presumably used for the oven. She stared at it as another fireball shot overhead when an idea formed in her head.
"TANITH YOU NEED TO SEPARATE THAT RAIL CARRIAGE!" Cried Ruby through her scroll as Tanith reloaded.
"I'M FUCKING WORKING ON IT!" She yelled back before grabbing the bottle, ducking under another fireball and- after a deep breath- ran up to the metal door, kicking it open.
The Grimm seemed actually surprised at this action as it didn't immediately kill her, Tanith now seeing it was fully crammed into the rail car. Tanith gave a cry and chucked the red barrel, in her minds eye it flew forward and landed perfectly in the Manticores mouth.
In reality however she wasn't a huntress, it flew a few meters and rolled along the floor, gently bumping into one of the Manticores feet. It seemed to know what it was though as it recoiled away, not fast enough however as Tanith raised her pistol and fired off a shot.
The shot pinged off the bottle and she growled before repeatedly firing at the bottle, the Manticore seeing the bottle as no immediate threat, opening its mouth and a red glow building as the fireball grew in its mouth-
Suddenly the bottle exploded, the whole train shaking as the Manticore was incinerated and Tanith was thrown back and collided with the wall. She couldn't see as the trained car full of civilians began to pull away, revealing the hole that had blown the train carriage in half as the RWBYQOE side slowly began to lose speed as the Grimm continued their assault, Ruby's plan working as Ren dampened the entire trains emotions.
"Tanith!" Called Elster from her scroll a few inches away "Tanith! Tanith please come in!"
Elster's voice continued to shout from Tanith's dropped scroll, but Tanith wasn't able to respond as she faded into unconsciousness.
~§~
Elster watched the explosion with wide eyes. She hadn't given Tanith that much fire dust.
Before she could again shout into her scroll however there was a screech behind her and she turned to watch Ruby and Qrow finish the Sphinx off. It seemed in its dying breath however it was intent on taking them all out with it as a single large fireball launched into the sky before then destroying the rail just ahead.
Elster didn't get a chance to brace as a black glyph appeared underneath her and she found herself perfectly stable as the train careened off the cliff. At some point however she was thrown from the roof, the black glyph disappearing and sending her head first into the snow. When she finally dug herself out covered in snow she looked around to see debris and luggage strewn everywhere, trees surrounding them and the cliff face behind them.
"Is everyone okay?" Qrow called
Weiss groaned from somewhere "I'm fine"
Blake groaned "Yeah"
Elster began to look around in panic, realising that she didn't know Tanith's status.
Then an unfamiliar aged voice called out "Still alive!"
Everyone looked around in confusion, trying to find the voices origin.
"Well that was exciting!" Called the aged voice again and they turned to see an old woman walking out of the carriage, dragging another person behind her that Elster recognised immediately "and did somebody forget this?"
"Tanith!" Cried Elster as she ran over, crouching down as the woman dropped the leg she had been dragging.
"She's alive, took on a Manticore and killed it, also caused that explosion in the process" explained the woman.
"Oh, why didn't she ask for help?" Mumbled Elster quietly to herself.
Yang grunted behind her and Elster glanced over to see she was pulling her bike from the snow "Great! This is just great! We're stranded, we lost a third of our party, one of them is unconscious and auraless, and we've gained a defenceless old lady!"
With one final tug, Yang managed to pull her bike from the snow, but then fell over to the ground, with her motorcycle following its owners example as ended up partially covered in snow.
The old woman's eye goggles squinted "My name is Maria Calavera, and I am not defenceless! I'm just a little hard of hearing. And blind without my eyes, that are in desperate need of repair" she tapped her goggles with opened up wide before then narrowing again with a spark "Okay, I'm starting to see your point"
Elster shook her head and went back to checking Tanith, idly listening to the conversation in the background as she checked Tanith for injuries.
Qrow grunted "Yang, knock it off, will ya? If we lose our cool now, we'll just be inviting even more Grimm"
"Does that even matter?" Blake questioned their voices getting quieter while Elster saw Maria still standing and watching the apparent argument through narrowed goggles "Apparently, we've been attracting Grimm ever since we left Haven"
"Oh, and how could I forget about that? What happened to "no more lies and half truths"?" demanded Yang
"Yeah" agreed Oscar "I think it's time we got an explanation..."
Tanith's eye lids fluttered and she groaned, blinking rapidly "ugggggggh my head… usually feels like this after I've drank a fuck ton"
"Tanith!" Elster exclaimed happily "how are you feeling"
"Like I was in a Bullhead crash"
"It was a train this time"
"Oh" Tanith was silent for a moment before grinning "almost completed the bucket list, boats here I come"
"You'd have to get over your fear of the sea first"
"Fuck you"
Elster continued to smile as she took the woman's hand "does anything feel broken or badly bruised?"
"My back aches"
"That's because you slammed into a wall when you set off that explosion" said Maria helpfully.
"Right… who're you?"
"My name is Maria Calavera!"
"Right… why did you say it like that"
"Don't be rude Tanith, Maria saved your ass"
Tanith grinned "I think I might have a concussion as well… but thanks I guess"
"Your welcome, even if it was a very irresponsible thing to do"
Ozpin's voice suddenly cried "DO YOU THINK HE WAS THE FIRST?"
The trio halted their conversation and turned to look at the on going confrontation taking place
"That he didn't say those exact same words to me? I'm sorry, but you have to understand that my behaviours are backed by experience. I'm not saying that I have reason to think you will betray me. I'm saying that I have reasons for the things that I do, the secrets I keep, the reason I..." he suddenly froze, patting his belt before asking "Where's the Relic?"
"Right here" said Ruby coming forward "It got scattered in the crash"
"Please, hand it over"
Ruby hesitated "So all those times you talked about having faith in humanity, that was just for everyone else?"
Ozpin sighed "That's not what I meant to suggest. Miss Rose, the Relic is a powerful item and I simply feel as though it is my burden to bear"
Ruby frowned, a though seemingly coming to her as she said "But, you said it couldn't do anything right now"
Blake scowled "Why does it matter who carries it?"
Ozpin started to reach his hand out "I need you to listen to me-"
Then he froze, a conflicted look crossing his face.
Qrow tilted his head "Oz?"
Oscar's voice suddenly spoke "Hurry... he's... trying to stop you!"
"Stop her from what?" questioned Yang.
"He's afraid... you'll find out what he's... hiding!"
Oscar suddenly collapsed, Yang, Weiss and Blake glaring at the boy with intense looks while Ruby held the Relic of Knowledge defensively.
"Her name is Jinn. Say her name to summon her"
"Her name?" said Ruby questioningly.
Elster looked around as the weather suddenly began to pick up. Then Ruby spoke a single word.
"Jinn?"
In that moment it felt as if time itself stopped, the snow froze in mid-air, the wind disappeared and total silence replaced the background noises to recreate a wonderous still from a photograph.
"What?" said Qrow, voicing what everyone was thinking.
The relic then left Ruby's hand and floated up into the air, blue spoke billowing out and before their very eyes a massive floating blue woman appeared. Elster flicked her eyes over to see that Tanith was staring with a open mouth, her eyes going over the beings… feminine features which sent a small pang of jealousy through her, not that she even realised as she looked back to the blue being.
She stretched "Wonderful" she spoke in the voice of someone mid way through stretching limbs that had not seen use in a long time before she looked down at them "Tell me, what knowledge do you seek?"
"Elster?" Tanith whispered quietly, her whispering not so quiet due to the absolute silence around them "Elster… is there actually a giant blue naked woman floating in the air?"
"Yes, Tanith" Elster finally said slowly "there is a… giant… naked… blue… woman?... floating in the air"
