In the period that followed the gang's introduction and summary alliance with Ironwood, one would be slightly surprised to hear that Opal hadn't seen more than a few more blocks of either the city she'd taken temporary residence in nor the racism-riddled area below. Instead, she'd spent a little over a week working tirelessly in Pietro's laboratory to speed up the process of making upgrades to everyone's gear by leaps and bounds.

Pietro's workspace up in Atlas made his clinic look like a broom closet by comparison. The room itself took up almost as much floor space as a medium-sized house, not including the comprehensive testing range encased in a hard-light barrier to keep the rest of the lab safe from any potential misfires. Scattered around the work area laid an assortment of half-finished projects; new armors, polymers, robots, prototype weapons meant for use by both Atlesian Paladins and Knights – the list went on. Some of the most comprehensive tools on the planet, much of which Opal had only ever heard of in rumors as being utilized by Atlesian personnel in the production of their Huntsmen and Huntresses' weaponry, also dotted the many tables and workbenches of the room. All of it combined alongside a clean and sleek white and blue color scheme made it clear that Pietro's workspace was one designed to keep Atlas on the bleeding edge of technological advancement.

All of it also gave Opal the impression that her old forge back home would seem downright quaint if placed side-by-side with Pietro's lab. Mistral was known for some of its Huntsman-grade weaponry being some of the best on the market, but production was as laborious as it was slow, given the more traditional processes craftsmen in the kingdom tended to utilize to assure the quality of the weapons they created. Being one of many bright craftsmen clans in the kingdom, the Malachite Clan was no different.

Which meant that Opal's presence in a place that would've been able to create her katana-bow in mere weeks due to its myriad of advanced tools instead of the few months it took her to craft it by hand was quite a lot to take in. Thankfully, Pietro's somewhat senile nature took a back seat long enough for him to give her a crash-course on how to make the most of everything in his lab, and the pair set to work on their prepared list of assigned upgrades at record speed.

Eight days, several cat naps, and a few cups of tea later, and they were almost at the finish line.

She sheathed her weapon again and rested her head on the hilt of it when she placed the end of its scabbard upright on the ground. Tension dissolved from her shoulders as she realized that with the completion of Emerald's overhaul and some added maintenance, she'd finally be able to breathe freely again without the necessity that more painstakingly delicate weaponry-related work needed to be done. Not for the foreseeable future, anyway.

"Deep breaths, Opal. Deep breaths," she murmured aloud.

Somewhere to her left, she heard Pietro chuckle. "I see you're relieved that we're almost done. I'll admit, as much as I love working on upgrades and improvements to high-tech weaponry it'll be quite the relief when we're finished."

Opal lifted her head from the hilt and sat up straight. "You can say that again. There's a reason I made a point of things to have a bunch of one-on-one interviews with everyone before we even got started. I've always found that it's easier to work through a major load of upgrades when you have a proper list of things you know you'll have to get done."

"No arguments there." Pietro keyed his chair to take him toward the testing range. "So, I see you're done with your weapon's maintenance. Care to test out your upgrade first? Now that all the fine details have been sorted out, all that's left to do is quality assurance."

She stood and started toward him. "Sounds like a plan to me."

"Glad to hear it." Pietro's chair stopped next to a control panel near the testing range. The entire 'wall' behind the panel was made of hard-light, with only a door-shaped gap inside it that would seal shut at the push of a button. "Might I assume that we'll bring in each of your friends to test out their upgrades as well before we return their weapons to them? Or do you have other plans?"

Opal stopped near the gap, her attention fixed on her weapon as she affixed it to her belt and adjusted the strap of her quiver. "I think that we should probably let them field-test their gear, honestly. Better opportunity for improvement and wastes less time on our end. Besides, I don't think we'd be able to convince any of them to come anyway. Not today."

Pietro's brow perked up. "Oh?"

"Yeah. Everyone's preoccupied," Opal explained. "I don't know if the general's told you, but while I've been here with you, the rest of Iridescence has spent every day being briefed about all the details we'll need to know as Ironwood's field operatives. RWBY and JNPR have the least going on since they can't train without their weapons, but between figuring out their new wardrobes and hairstyles… I don't know if I'd be able to drag any of them here if I tried."

"Well, at least they're keeping themselves entertained," Pietro noted. "I know how some Huntsmen can tend to get a bit antsy staying if they stay in one place for too long."

Opal let a breath punch out from her nostrils. "Oh, you have no idea…"

Without further ado, she refocused herself on the task at hand. One of her hands secured the sheath of her weapon firmly at her side while the other lightly rested atop the hilt. She sauntered into the testing range with a purposeful sway of her hip to make sure that the weight and balance of her weapon hadn't changed since she last wore it. The hard-light barrier behind her sealed shut, and she smiled to herself in the temporary isolation Pietro had provided. She was satisfied to recognize that her weapon felt the same as before, but she couldn't help but feel a little excited at the chance to finally test if her upgraded katana would be as effective as she hoped.

The testing range itself remained utterly empty for a moment. Then, as Pietro presumably made the most of his familiarity with the room's systems with a few clever button-presses, the range came to life. A small portion of the floor in front of Opal opened up to reveal a steel cube that would've reached up to her thigh if she stood next to it. The cube continued to rise thanks to the assistance of a hard-light encased pillar beneath it, and it only stopped when the steel cube had been raised high enough into the air that its center was almost level with Opal's chest.

"Alright Opal, are you ready?" Pietro asked through the intercom.

She sank into a combat-ready stance. She decided she'd engage her inanimate foe with every ounce of strength her body, mind, and spirit combined could muster. With her semblance and Emerald at her disposal, she was confident that she could overcome any obstacle that the testing range could put on display.

"I am," she finally answered. "Have you read up on my semblance, at all?"

"I'm afraid I haven't."

"Well, let me give you the brief. Amplify lets me augment my strength, speed, or any of my other combat stats by a large amount at the cost of continuous Aura usage over time." Her smirk grew wider, the grip on the hilt of her katana tighter. "But after months of training followed by the battle at Beacon… I've awakened by semblance. I can enter an ascended state where I gain access to a few more tricks my semblance wouldn't let me pull otherwise, but the normal amplification of my abilities reaches new heights on top of that. I even managed to reduce the amount of Aura my ascended state needs to work by a ton while we were back in Mistral."

Pietro's impressment was audible. "That sounds like quite the semblance you have, there. No doubt it's helped you a lot on your way to Atlas."

"It has." Opal unsheathed her katana slightly, ready to strike, and spiritual flames born of the consumption of her Aura flared to life upon her shoulders, upper back, and her eyes. "Now let me show you what my semblance and an upgraded weapon can accomplish."

Augmented by the might of adrenaline, several years of training, and her semblance's ascended state combined, she darted forward like a bullet. Faster than any untrained eye could see, Opal approached the block of solid Atlesian steel and whipped out her katana exactly as her iaijutsu lessons back home had taught her.

She stopped a few feet past her metallic target. Her katana raised proudly in the air at the success of a completed strike, the world fell silent around her. It was then that she slowly moved to return her weapon to its sheath. At the same instant a sharp click let Opal know it locked back into place, she took the life of her spiritual flames away with the deactivation of her semblance.

A loud, metallic thud marked a triangular half of the steel block hitting the floor.

Opal turned around, grinning. "How's that for a demonstration?"

"That was…" Pietro keyed for the gap back into the lab proper to open, and Opal started to meander back toward him. "Amazing! Incredible! I have never seen someone cleave through a solid block of Atlesian steel before! Of course, that steel block had several impurities that prevent it from being used in weaponry or armor, which is why it found its way to the testing range, but to cut clean through it is still an impressive feat!"

Opal walked by Pietro to lean up against a near-empty table near where they were working. "And that's exactly why my upgrade only needed to be so simple compared to everyone else's."

Pietro approached and pointed at her weapon. "The integration of Aura-conductive material into the blade without compromising its original metallic composition isn't what I'd call simple."

She shrugged. "Fair enough, but you get the point. All I needed to take my weapon's level of effectiveness to the same level Amplify is now, on account of its evolution, was to make sure that I can pool my Aura, my soul around my blade."

"And now your strength in battle will reflect that newfound connection," Pietro observed.

"Exactly." Opal pulled her sheathed weapon from her belt and held it reverently between both of her hands. "Back in Mistral, it's often said that a fighter who feels a spiritual connection to their weapon will almost always triumph over those who see their weapons as merely a mundane extension of their body. I've always been a believer of that idea."

"Well, Opal, I'd like to applaud you for having such respect for your weapon," Pietro kindly praised. "Too many Huntsmen and Huntresses these days don't have even half as much love for their weapons as you obviously have for yours. It's a shame."

Opal set her katana behind her. "Agreed. On the bright side, JNPR, RWBY, and Iridescence all appreciate their weapons a ton. You have no ideahow much time it took me to convince Ruby to let the two of us work on her weapon by ourselves."

Pietro smiled warmly. "That's good news indeed. Oh, but if we aren't bringing in your friends to test out their weapons beforehand, should we go down the list of everyone's requested upgrades one more time to make sure we haven't missed anything?"

She handed him a digital tablet. "It couldn't hurt."

"Alright, then let's begin with Team RWBY," Pietro noted. He tapped on the screen and quickly scrolled down the list of names and assorted technical information until he found the weapon profile he was looking for. "One Ruby Rose requested the addition of a rotating feature to her sniper-scythe's blade. Can't say I saw much utility for that kind of upgrade, but I can assure you that I managed to integrate it without compromising the structural integrity of her weapon."

Opal reached behind her to grab another tablet similar to his and swiftly caught up to the profile that Pietro had arrived at. "Well, I'm sure she'll be glad to hear that. Back when we were in Vale, she sometimes treated Crescent Rose like a little sister."

"A quirk of her personality, I assume?" Pietro amusedly questioned.

"One that she thankfully grew out of, too," Opal confirmed with a smirk. "Next on the list was none other than RWBY's best brawler and the person who's had the historically biggest temper out of all of us… Yang. She couldn't think of anything she wanted to add to Ember Cecilia."

"Which is why we came up with an upgrade on her behalf. I believe that you took on that particular project, did you not?"

With minimal effort, Opal sat atop the table. "I did. Remote mines that she can plant on objects or opponents. They'll only be triggered either if she wants them to detonate or has set them on a timer before their being planted."

"If her performance while in Amity Colosseum is any indicator, I'd like to think that we made the right choice with that one. Suits her style," Pietro noted. "Next would be Weiss Schnee. She was rather specific with the instructions she provided, so a simple upgrade to the dust storage system in her rapier was all that I needed to provide."

Opal swiped away from the rest of RWBY's weapon profiles as she confirmed that all of them had been marked as complete. "That means that they're all done and over with, then. The only thing Blake wanted out of this whole thing were repairs made to the blade of Gambol Shroud. I got that sorted out the first day I was confident with the tools you have here."

"Then we can move on along to JNPR. The improvement of Nora Valkyrie and Jaune Arc's weapons and armor fell to me, and while theirs weren't the most entertaining out of the whole bunch to work on, they weren't much trouble to get done either," Pietro admitted with an absentminded shrug. "Magnhild was retrofitted with a built-in liquid electric dust discharge system to make sure she can make the most of her semblance."

"Did you make sure you also added the feature where she could ride it through the air like a magic broomstick?" Opal asked, holding back a giggle.

Pietro let out an exaggerated sigh. "Yes, I did. Again, not sure whether such a feature will come in handy, but you never know. Oh, and I almost forgot! Crocea Mors – I integrated a hard-light and gravity dust kite shield expansion capability into its shield form. His armor was overhauled aesthetically, but as requested, I didn't alter its metallic composition as to avoid ruining its white and gold coloration."

"Yep, that sounds like something Jaune would request alright," Opal mentioned with a wistful shake of her head. "So that leaves Pyrrha and Ren's upgrades, which I did on account of their weapons' origins in Mistral. StormFlower's bayonets will now let Ren grapple around if he needs to, but Miló remains mostly the same. All Pyrrha wanted out of this whole thing was the addition of a retractable bladed discus onto her shield, some cloth armor to help protect her from the cold when her Aura isn't up, and a little more reinforcement to her armored boots to make sure her heels aren't vulnerable."

"You say that as though armor overhauls are simple," Pietro said.

Opal raised a brow. "Compared to your last two projects that took up more than half of the time you've spent here, they were simple. Now, since we've got to my team and we've already seen that Emerald is better than ever, we can cap off my list of contributions."

The elderly scientist tapped a folder and tilted his head at the updated schematic that appeared before him. "Rather delicate work."

"And I have delicate hands," Opal mentioned. "Which is one of many reasons that Lux made sure I was the one that threw an air compression chamber into Wiz. In the same way I wanted to make sure my weapon made the most of my semblance, Lux did too. That's why he wanted that compression chamber in there – so that he can funnel a whirlwind into the device and make the most of that power later."

Pietro stroked his chin. "So what you're saying is that this device will essentially allow him to speed up a small number of his shots to augment their speed and striking power."

"Or provide one shot with so much kinetic force that whoever gets hit by it will feel like they got hit by a railgun and not a bolt-action musket."

He nodded, impressed. "Smart."

Opal responded with a dismissive wave. "I can't take all the credit. Lux created Wiz, Boomstick, and Tenebris' armor mostly by himself with the intention that they'd be upgraded later on. He laid down most of the groundwork for me when it came to the addition of that compression unit."

"Then I'd like you to extend my thanks to your friend, as well," Pietro said. He closed the folders and shut down the screen before his chair whirred to life as it carried him toward the far side of the room. "If his brother's rocket launcher and armor weren't as cleanly designed as they were, I daresay that we'd be here another three days working on those upgrades alone."

Sliding down from the table, Opal shut down her tablet entirely before she swiftly set out to catch up with him. "As much as I hate to say it, you're probably right. If I'm honest, it's a miracle that we managed to work through as many pieces of weapons and armor in the time that we did."

Pietro stopped in front of two armor stands. Jaune and Pyrrha's sets of gear had already been stowed away in lockers elsewhere in the room, but before him stood the empty shells of metal that were Aurora and Tenebris' combat-wear. As Opal arrived next to the elderly scientist, she once again noted that aside from some new lights spruced throughout the pieces of Tenebris' armor and the glow of dust in the new cable-storage apparatus on the back of Aurora's, neither set looked all that different from when it had been first brought in. No one would know the amount of work that Pietro put into both of their kits at a glance, which only meant that their various new features would be that much more useful when they were unleashed in the field.

"True as that might be, I don't want you to feel the need to shower me with any unnecessary praise," Pietro reassured. "With all that's going on in the world, it's the least I can do to play my part. It just so happens that 'my part' is making sure that you and your friends have some of the best tech in the world at your disposal."

Crossing her arms, Opal let out a soft sigh. "Yet another good point, but since I saw how much more complex their weapon and armor schematics got over the past few days, do you want to tell me what exactly you incorporated into their gear?"

"After we went over nearly everyone else so far, I wouldn't have it any other way. Let's start with Aurora." Pietro adjusted himself to sit a little taller in his quadrupedal seat, his hands placed peacefully on either armrest. "One of her most emphasized requests was to see if we could improve upon the strength of her weapons and armor without compromising the unique metallic makeup that enables her to utilize her semblance in the first place. Due to the nature of her request, integrating stronger alloys into her armor without altering the molecular structure of her armor was somewhat difficult, but Atlesian metallurgy was able to get the job done."

"The updated schematic noted that the weight wasn't drastically changed either," Opal mentioned. "I'm guessing you were careful about that too so that her mobile fighting style wouldn't be impaired at all."

Pietro smiled. "Exactly! While I can't say her armor is quite on the same level as Tenebris' set, its durability should be enough to sufficiently protect her from the claws, fangs, and horns of most low-level Grimm. Oh, and just to be clear – this durability extends to her weapon and cables, as well, which is all the better considering the upgrades I came up with for that apparatus of hers." His chair carried him sideways so that he could gesture to the newly overhauled gadget in question. "I took extra care as to not completely redesign the device's aesthetic, but I did install a dust storage system within the cable housing. With only slight use of her semblance, she can decide to coat her cables in any kind of dust she's stored up to give her offense a little more unpredictability and power to it."

Opal couldn't help but whistle softly. "It always cost her a lot of Aura to make her cables carry with them some real force in a fight. She'll appreciate that, for sure."

"And I appreciate her thanks in turn," Pietro responded genuinely as his apparatus carried him toward the other armor stand. "Now, the only person whose set of upgrades we have to cover is Tenebris. But before I begin – do you have any idea how those two boys wrangled together enough Atlesian Paladin-grade metal to make such a set of armor in the first place?"

"If I gave you a reminder that Vacuo is a kingdom full of thieves and brigands that's only held together by the power of duct tape and an absurd culture where strength is almost everything, would that be enough of a hint?" Opal asked. "It was a heist on their end. The material belonged to someone else named Jupiter before them, though."

Pietro's mouth opened as if he had something to say, but he closed it shortly thereafter to let a look of utter confusion cross his face. He shook his head. "Opal, remind me to be extra cautious if I ever consider going to their old stomping grounds, alright?"

She returned a casual two-fingered salute. "Will do."

"Now that we have that out of the way…" Pietro pushed up his glasses. "I'll try to be brief. His weapon was only given an upgraded dust storage system similar to Myrtenaster to enable a more liberal usage of its dust rocket-launching and thruster mode capabilities, while his armor was given a somewhat more… involved revision. If you'll indulge me…?"

"I've got nowhere to be," Opal said.

"Much appreciated, though I'll still divide my summary of his upgrades into three sections to save some time," Pietro assured. "The top layer of his armor used to be composed of the aforementioned Atlesian Paladin-grade steel, but I've since integrated a new polymer into the blend as to amplify its durability a few times over. The middle layer is an entirely new addition that takes the form of several dozen interconnected kinetic amplifiers that'll act to enhance his already immense physical strength, for a time. Last but not least will be the bodysuit he wore to separate his body from his armor plating. Compared to everything else, replacing the original with a new thermal gel bodysuit that'll nullify brute-force attacks better than some kinds of metal armor can was almost trivial."

Opal suppressed a disbelieving chuckle. "You know, Pietro… I think there's a reason that you're the person that this whole kingdom hails as the smartest military scientist on Remnant."

"Well, give yourself a little more experience and plenty of practice, and I'm sure you could've gotten done what I did in half the time!" Pietro encouraged. "Don't undersell yourself, Opal, you did fantastic! Even some of the scientists a few floors beneath our feet would struggle to keep up with the amount of work you got done! And at such a young age, too! If you keep at it, I'm sure that between your experience here and your mastery of Malachite methods of weapon creation, you'll even surpass me one day."

Opal blinked, slightly taken aback. "Really?"

"Of course! Your parents taught you well, and the fact that you were able to keep up with me at all is something you should be proud of," Pietro pointed out. "I've had decades of experience working with these tools constantly, but you've probably only had a handful of weeks' worth of time to hone your craftsmanship these past few years because of your Huntress training. Yet you were able to almost match my pace. Do you see my point?"

"I… I guess so," Opal said, still in slight disbelief.

"Well, I'm glad," Pietro said peacefully, only for his eyes to widen as he looked past her toward the digital clock at the exit. "Oh, well would you look at that! It's almost sunset. Good thing we finished things up today, then – we'll be able to hand out everyone's new gear first thing in the morning after Ironwood gives us the go-ahead."

"Which means that our first mission won't be too far behind, and everyone will be able to test them there," Opal noted, finally returning to her normal, thoughtful self. "I know we've been stuck in here for over a week, but it still feels like everything's moving so fast."

Pietro keyed his chair to lazily wander toward the door. "Well, that's Atlas for you. One minute a corporation can rise with a monopoly on one of the many necessities of modern life, and the next it's been crushed by its competition. For better or worse, things move quickly when your whole city is in the sky. Even I have trouble keeping up with it sometimes."

"But at least I have my friends to help keep me sane…" Opal mentioned fondly. "Even though they often do so by being insane on my behalf."

"That's the spirit." Pietro praised. His chair stopped as it turned out the door. "Oh, and while I won't remind you to stow away your weapon until its well and truly released tomorrow, be sure to distribute those scrolls to your friends for me! Newest model – takes up the least space and energy for the most processing power and accurate Aura measurement system on the market!"

"I'll be sure to do that!" Opal called out as he disappeared down the hall.

In short order, she promptly placed her katana in its assigned storage locker, retrieved the large number of collapsed scrolls Pietro had requested she distribute to everyone, and shut off the lab's lights as she finally left the room behind. Her pace carried with it the same swift and near-silent nature to it that her friends had come to expect from each of her steps, but no matter how hard she tried to keep her mind on the task at hand, she couldn't help but feel her mind wander to thoughts of the future. Namely, the imminent future in which RWBY, JNPR, and Iridescence would be deployed to make the first steps necessary to decide the future of Remnant.

She'd always known that the fight she and her friends had become wrapped up in was one of worldwide importance. The battles she'd fought down in Vale, at Beacon, at Haven Academy and everywhere in between over the past few months made that clear to her every time they occurred, but looking back, none of those battles made her feel important. Personally, it had always felt as though she was an individual who was only involved in this was by sheer chance, and that the actions she'd take were always decided upon by the players with the most power and influence in the conflict – Ozpin, Qrow, Lionheart, Salem, the list went on.

Now, though, that paradigm had changed. Now she was the leader of the team that would soon be announced to the entirety of Atlas to be the right-hand of General Ironwood himself. The cream of the crop. The elite among elites. The bar would be set higher than ever, but should Team Iridescence prove themselves to the people in the twin cities of Atlas, Opal's words and actions would carry with them more weight than ever possessed before.

No longer would she simply be the leader of yet another team of fighters.

No longer would she simply be the leader of the Malachite Clan.

Given enough time, she'd be one of the major players on the world stage with a significant say in the same conflict that already took so much away from her in the past. She'd lost an eye, her parents, and at one point her self-worth to Ozma and Salem's seemingly eternal conflict, but no longer would she remain a bystander. Even if she had to start small, she'd make sure that she made a difference – for the world and the faunus.

And that was a promise.

As per Pietro's summary of the decent clip by which things in Atlas ran along, not even twelve hours after Opal left the lab and everyone's equipment behind did she find herself back in the master scientist's workplace. Given that she gave JNPR, RWBY, and her teammates their new-and-improved scrolls the previous evening as they all found their way back to the dorms, all it took for Ironwood to coordinate their assembly was a simple alert that woke them all up bright and early in the morning. No matter how much deep sleepers such as Weiss, Ruby, or Nora may have protested the disruption to their sleep cycles, not a single soul dared deny the summons of the most powerful man in Atlas. Opal knew exactly why they were all told to meet Pietro in his lab, but wisely, she kept her mouth shut to avoid spoiling the surprise when everyone was reunited with their gear.

Their reactions were everything she hoped they would be. Ruby exploded with more than enough excited energy to make up for Weiss and Blake's more subdued reactions, while Yang only made her satisfaction clear through a toothy grin sent Opal's way. Pyrrha practically tripped over her own words as she thanked Opal for what she described as 'the absolute marvel' that were her upgrades, while Ren retained his sanity and spoke for both himself and the rest of JNPR in his calm conveyance of thanks.

Meanwhile, her teammates responded to the sight of their upgraded equipment in a variety of different ways. Tenebris' silence contrasted against the almost awe-inspired grin on his face made his appreciation of Pietro's work clearer than any words he would've been able to call upon as he set his sights on his armor. Aurora shared in his silence for a time, her mouth agape as she seemed almost hesitant to dare and speak her thanks to Pietro for the newfound potential for powerful attacks he managed to pack into her cable apparatus. Lux used his faunus trait to the best of his ability to discern how solidly the new feature of his bolt-action musket had been included into his weapon with an almost inscrutable look on his face. Opal was almost concerned if she'd done something wrong up until the moment he dashed over and nearly drowned her in an endless tide of affectionate compliments and an eager hug when he saw the upgrade's integration surpassed all his expectations.

None of her adopted family's reactions were unexpected, but she'd have to call herself a liar if she dared deny the joy she felt upon witnessing how happy everyone became at the sight of her and Pietro's completed projects.

She and Pietro then spent the next few hours of the early morning making sure everyone understood the upgrades their weapons were given and how they should try and maintain them from here on out. Following that lengthy process, though, it didn't take long for everyone to agree that the best place they could try out their new and improved equipment would be out in the field. With that in mind, everyone filled out the sparse paperwork required to make sure the retrieval of their weapons was noted in Atlas' military database, the reunion reached its conclusion, and everyone left the lab with their weapons in tow. Opal almost found herself in the mood to assume that maybe they'd be given the rest of the day to recuperate after a little over a week of constant busywork.

Then her new scroll buzzed in her pocket to let her know she'd received a message. Ironwood wanted to see the leaders of all the teams that had pledged their support to him, plus Qrow, in his personal briefing room as soon as possible. At that moment, Opal knew that one thing was for certain – she could say goodbye to dreams of freedom for the evening.

And that was how she found herself in Ironwood's dimly lit briefing room only half an hour after she left Pietro's lab. Four small, curved projectors threw interactive images of information related to the task Ironwood called them in to talk about and formed a circle in the otherwise conspicuously empty room.

Ironwood entered the room at the exact time he specified all leaders involved should meet him there. "All of you are already here. Good, we have a lot of ground to cover and just as much to do if we want to get the Amity Tower project done in a timely manner."

"I see you haven't lost your charm when it comes to military meetings, James," Qrow passively quipped. "Good to see some things never change."

"I aim to please," Ironwood returned, and the press of a button on his scroll brought additional mission into view. "Nevertheless, if any of you are worried that I'm sending you all out on this mission tonight, don't be – your first official deployment in the kingdom will be tomorrow. On that note… the mission itself will be to secure the launch site for the Amity Communications Tower. The designated area is an abandoned dust mine."

As the image of the frozen industrial site grew larger on each of the screens in the room, Opal narrowed her eyes to take in the site. There were as many dust mines in the world as there were failed attempts at the creation of new kingdoms across the centuries, but Opal's heart warned her to remain ready for anything when she found there.

"Since its closure, the Grimm have infested the location and made use of the uninhabited area as a shelter from the cold." Ironwood continued. "The good news is that all the dust that went unharvested before the mine's closure is still down there, too. Our top scientists have assured me that they'll need every crystal they can get their hands on from this location in the first phase of their launch."

Jaune's hand stroked his chin. "And by sending us there to clear out all the Grimm, you're also taking care of a potential threat to the kingdom. The Grimm there could get dangerous if you left them alone for too long."

Ironwood nodded. "Exactly. Atlas military Huntsmen have already been put to work clearing out the tundra around the mine but haven't been authorized to go any closer. Recon has identified a powerful Geist that that's managed to evade destruction and take several lives. After we sent in additional reinforcements to the military Huntsmen on-site, the Geist was smart enough to retreat into the mine itself."

"Which means that it's survived long enough to learn some strategy," Opal noted. "That probably makes it the biggest threat there, then."

"That's why its elimination has been made one of your top priorities for this mission to be called a success." Ironwood pressed on his scroll again, and the image flickered to show the ghastly image of the Geist and its armored 'body' itself. "Take a good, long look everyone. If for any reason you're unable to take care of the Geist before it can reach the loose matter necessary to make its armor, this is what you'll be dealing with. Several tons of ice, stone, and some very volatile raw dust crystals. I don't think I need to remind you all to stay on your toes."

Ruby hissed an inhale through her teeth. "You know, when we were on our way to Mistral, some of us worked together to take down a Petra Gigas. This Geist is… well, it looks a lot bigger than that one did."

"No arguments there," Opal agreed.

"Ditto," Jaune said.

"James, we've been in Atlas for a week and you're already throwing us right into one hell of a party," Qrow sarcastically mentioned. "You shouldn't have. Really."

"Very funny, Qrow," Ironwood said with a slight roll of his eyes. "I wouldn't be sending you and yours on this mission if I weren't confident in your combat abilities. If that defense all of you mustered together to protect Haven Academy can count as proof of your skill, I'm sure that one particularly old Grimm won't be too much of an issue."

Qrow shrugged. "You're not wrong. Iridescence ran into a Greater Cerberus on their first big mission out into the field."

The general sighed, and the screens shifted to show a vast map of the collection of tunnels and large chambers that comprised the underground portion of the mine. "I'll be sure to ask about that particular story later, but for now – back to the briefing. As you can see, the mine was a labyrinth back in the day. Between all of the tunnels and chambers the Geist can move between, pinning it down from only one angle of approach would be almost impossible. That's why you'll all be split into separate teams to corner it."

"If we ignore how old that Geist is, this mission sounds like just any other search-and-destroy task a team of Huntsmen would take on," Qrow thought aloud. "Is there anything else we should know before we start preparing for tomorrow?"

Ironwood shut down the projectors. "Nothing at all. Aside from a friendly reminder that you should try your best not to hit an activated dust crystal while you're there, of course."

"I can't help but feel like that's a not-so-subtle jab aimed at me, James," Qrow deadpanned.

"Maybe." He took a step back. "Jokes aside, though, I do hope that the upgrades Pietro and Opal here have worked so hard to complete will help make sure you all emerge unscathed. While I am trusting you all to see this mission done, I'd still like to avoid seeing any of you endure any unnecessary harm so soon after your arrival."

"We'll get it done, sir," Opal nodded.

Ironwood nodded. "I appreciate the sentiment. Now, if that'll be all, I'll be on my way. Expect to see me again soon after you're done with the mission."

And with only another glance sent each of his allies' ways, the general turned on his heel and left at the same dutiful pace he possessed when he entered the room in the first place. For a brief time, without Ironwood's presence, the room's original feeling of emptiness and lack of energy prevailed as everyone left took advantage of his absence to simply process the mission they had just been assigned to. Opal wasn't worried in the slightest, though – she didn't fight so hard to survive against the likes of Lionheart and Cinder at Haven just to fall prey to fear now.

Qrow broke the silence first. "I see the gears turning in your guys' heads, so if any of you have some concerns, I think now would be a good time to voice them."

"Oh! I was only thinking about how this mission might go down," Jaune said. "Once we're down on the ground, even with all the information Ironwood gave us, it's not like it'd be the first time some crazy new Grimm showed up to catch us off-guard."

"Which is why we'll be headed out in teams," Qrow reminded. "Safety in numbers."

"And team combination attacks!" Ruby exclaimed.

He gave her an amused look. "You really still think about that kind of stuff all the time, huh?"

"It helped RWBY deal with Torchwick and our first fight in the tournament during the Vytal Festival, so…" Ruby scratched the back of her head and feigned a smile until it came crashing down in a rare moment of self-awareness. "Okay, yeah, maybe I spend too much time thinking about team attack names."

Jaune patted her on the shoulder as he started out of the room. "At least you're aware that it's a little obsession you have. Just thinking about attack names doesn't do much harm though – you could have worse hobbies."

"Oh, thanks," Qrow drawled.

Ruby smiled slightly. "Well, you did get too drunk to help us out a lot of the time on our way to Argus, so…"

"Point taken."

Qrow and Ruby then turned to follow Jaune out of the room. The door had barely opened when Opal's eyes widened in realization. There was still something of tremendous importance that none of them ever discussed since their original encounter with Ironwood.

"Wait a second," she said.

The three stopped.

"Opal?" Ruby asked. "What is it?"

"I figured that while we were here…" Opal paused, and the look she extended toward the team leader of RWBY hardened slightly. "We should probably talk about what we've told Ironwood – or rather, haven't told him."

"You mean about Salem," Jaune observed.

Qrow nodded. "Or Ozpin."

"I wanted to talk about both of those things, actually," Opal confirmed with a glance spared toward the two men. "But for starters… while I won't go out of my way to say that what you did when we talked to Ironwood before was wrong, Ruby, I want to make sure you know that we'll have to come clean eventually. We can't expect to take advantage of his trust and get away with it without any consequences if he finds out we've been hiding something from him."

Ruby's lip pursed, and her fingers flexed in the air as she searched for words. "I know that. I do, but… when we were all together talking to him back there, I was worried. He already seems stressed about everything that's going on with Salem and the world, so I just thought that telling him right then and there that we don't know if Salem can be beat wouldn't really be a good idea."

"And how Ozpin kept all that secret from all of us for as long as we've fought for him," Qrow added. "I'm of a mind with you, Ruby. None of you kids know how much Ironwood respected and still respects Oz and what he supposedly stands for. He trusts him with his life, even if he never really put a lot of stock into the strategies he made to keep Salem at bay."

Opal sighed softly. "I'm not arguing that we should have told him then – I agree that you made the right call by taking the lead back there – but we need to be prepared to break the news to him when the time comes."

"I get the feeling you've been thinking about this for a while," Jaune mentioned.

"Whenever I've had a spare moment, yeah, I have been." She glanced down at the floor for a moment, then back to the other leaders in the room. "Say that Salem doesn't send anything other than a constant stream of lesser Grimm here to try and stop us, and Amity Tower goes up into the atmosphere without a hitch – what happens then?"

"Ironwood tells the kingdom about Salem," Ruby said.

"And his military plus us fight back the Grimm that'll swarm the city when he does," Jaune added.

"Then, for better or worse, James tells the rest of the world, and we do the same thing everywhere else for as long as it takes for the panic to die down," Qrow finished.

Opal raised a finger. "That's the plan. Even if we assume Salem won't interfere in that entire plan – which, let's face it, is bound to happen if she's as smart as we all know she is – we haven't thought about what happens after all that is over."

Qrow's shoulders dropped. "I don't like where this is going…"

"Neither do I," Opal sighed. "But it's pretty clear to me that Ironwood's endgame is to use the unity he wants to bring the rest of the world to unite it under a single banner. Even if it's only temporary, he's going to have the entire world mobilized to strike at a common enemy. Salem."

"And every fighter on the planet would be wiped out since we don't know if there's any way to put a stop to her," Qrow pinched the bridge of his nose. "I knew you were observant, Opal, but I didn't realize you could think so far ahead."

"Between the attack that took my eye and the loss of my parents, I've spent a long, long time dwelling in the past." She averted the licensed Huntsman's gaze. "After we arrived in Mistral and I became leader of my clan, though, I had to start looking toward the future. If we follow orders forever and never fill Ironwood in on what we're really up against, we're just about handing the world to Salem on a silver platter. Even if we wiped out the Grimm as fast as they could spawn, Salem would keep coming back until every last one of us was gone. We can't keep Ironwood in the dark forever."

Ruby's voice came out small. "Then when should we tell him everything? After this mission? The one after that? When Amity Tower's finally launched?"

"I don't know," Opal solemnly admitted. She looked up. "But I do know that even though you didn't mean to get us into this position, you'll be able to get us out of it when you think the time is right. You're a good leader, Ruby, it's just that we need to keep track of where we're headed at all times if we want to win this war."

Qrow rested his hand on his niece's shoulder. "All of us do, kiddo."

"Thanks, Uncle Qrow." Ruby took a moment to regain her composure. "So… thanks for still having faith in me, Opal. Is there anything else you wanted to talk about before we…?"

"Try to leave again?" Jaune guessed.

"Yeah, that."

Opal's breath punched from her nose. "Kind of. I know we just went over how we aren't going to tell Ironwood everything until the time is right, but when you made up that excuse for Oscar about why we can't talk to Ozpin anymore – how'd he feel about that? Did you talk to him about it, at all?"

At that, some nervous energy faded from Ruby's face. "Oh! Yeah, that was pretty much the first thing I did after we all found our dorms. Oscar told me that he wasn't too worried about how I handled things back there. He's basically on the same page as we are now about the whole situation with Ironwood."

"Good," Opal said. "As long as he doesn't feel like he's been thrown under the bus. The poor guy has enough weight on his shoulders being the next host for Ozpin without us making him feel like he isn't still one of our friends."

"Oh, definitely," Jaune agreed. The door hissed open again as he turned and started down the empty hall. "No arguments there, but I think that I'll probably go and find my team now. Maybe grab some food while I'm at it, too."

Ruby quickly scurried after him. "Food sounds amazing right now – we didn't even have lunch because we were in the lab so long! Oh! Jaune!Do you think they have cookies? I hear that…"

The door sealed itself shut again on its built-in timer as the historically socially awkward team leaders of RWBY and JNPR made their way to parts unknown. Qrow simply stared at the old steel of the door with an unreadable air about his eyes, which Opal soon chose to interpret as a sign that she should leave him well enough alone, for now. With that observation in mind, her hand wrapping around the sheath of her weapon gave her soul some comfort, and she began her silent walk out of the room.

"Opal."

She stopped short. "Yeah?"

"I know you and I haven't had any heart-to-heart talks in the time we've spent together, but…" Qrow's lips twisted at an odd angle as if to convey his discomfort. "After how you just went out of your way to make sure we were still thinking beyond the mission right in front of us, I thought that maybe I should fix that."

Opal turned to face him. "Qrow, you don't have to do that for me. I'm just doing my part."

He shook his head. "No, you've done that. You've always done your part no matter how dangerous it's been for you. You fought for your life against Arach Nid with your team when the rest of us were busy with Tyrian. You gave us a place to stay in Mistral even though we both know that your parents aren't around anymore, at least in part, because of Oz and Salem's fight, and gave your people a reason to look forward to tomorrow. You fought to defend Raven against Cinder – who already stabbed you back at Beacon – and tried your best to warn her to be careful before she got herself killed anyway. You held off Adam Taurus and gave Blake the time she needed to give the rest of us the opening we needed to get out of Argus."

"Everyone else has gone through a lot, too, though," Opal said.

Qrow placed a hand on her shoulder. "Yeah, but not all of them have lost as much as you have either. I'm not Oz, but still… sorry. For everything you've had to go through and push on to watch our backs anyway."

She lifted her hand to land on his. "Thanks, Qrow. That means a lot."

His hand slid down to join his other within his pockets, and he smirked. "Keep up the good work you've been doing lately, and you can expect more of this kind of thanks in the future. I wouldn't get too used to it, though. Can't have you kids thinking I'm getting too soft."

"After you flew in to save Ruby on our way to Mistral, it's way too late for that." Opal strode alongside him as they exited the briefing room together.

Qrow pointed at her. "Touché. You win this one, kid."

"So where are we headed next?"

He shrugged. "I'd say a bar, but you're not old enough to drink and I've quit since we managed to get out of Argus, so… let's say the cafeteria. I'm sure those twin brothers on your team will probably be there, too."

"With their appetites?" Opal scoffed. "I'd be surprised if they didn't eat Atlas Academy out house and home before the year is out. I almost feel bad that I had to leave Aurora to keep them from going nuts without me around."

"Almost?" Qrow questioned amusedly.

Opal smiled. "I love Lux with all my heart, but sometimes it can be nice to have a little time away from him now and again. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, and all that."

"Not sure if you'll be able to convince Aurora to see things the same way, Opal."

"Well, if the twins were really rowdy, I'm sure she'll forgive me…"

Qrow grinned. "Finish that sentence."

"Fine. I'm sure she'll forgive me… eventually."

"Ha! Since we're headed to the same place, good luck with that one. You'll need it."

It was at that moment that Opal genuinely wondered if the universe had it out for her.

Authors Note: And thus, we have another chapter of this fic that seeks to slightly improve upon the train wreck that is RWBY canon that's finally come to an end. To start this (potentially) lengthy author's note off, I would like to point out that I've realized that ToTI, in general, might not have chapters that'll ever be the same average length as WFAF does. Why? I have a sneaking suspicion that a part of it has to do with how ill-defined and badly characterized the cast of the canon show are as people, but also that the story itself is somewhat problematic to a little thing called logic, and that the episodes themselves are often far shorter than the likes of a typical anime such as My Hero Academia. If I were cleverer, I'd put a cheeky comment about the difference in quality between the two anime here, as well.

In terms of this chapter's goings-on themselves… was it a good idea to include an entire scene of techno-geek talk? Nope. Did I do it so that I could add some flavor and much-needed worldbuilding to this necrotic mass of tissue and half-baked ideas that is the show called RWBY? Yep. At least next chapter Opal gets to interact a little bit more with her teammates, and the pseudo-as-canon show can continue in a manner you can probably expect. For now.