Justin/Achilles' POV
Well… That was certainly… interesting. Judging from that and what he said to me, I can assume he may be from Earth like me. Especially from that line he said. What was it again?
I know what you are. Followed by First time?
What did he mean by that? Does he somehow know about me?
I stared into the eyes of the wolf haired man with a gaze of confusion. He feels familiar but at the same time… Nevermind. I should probably stand up.
I dusted my boxers off and looked into the wolf haired strangers eyes "So… If you don't mind me asking. Who are you and how did you get here?"
"Don't know, don't care." The wolf-haired stranger shrugged. "One moment I was in Mistral, the next I'm here at Beacon, miraculously before it fell. And here you are standing in my role on team RWBY. Probably due to your semblance or something that has to do something with brainwashing-."
I cut him off and yelled "Listen here buddy, I don't have a semblance! And even if I had something as perverted as that, wouldn't I have used it on you by now don't you think?" I crossed my arms at him.
He stared at his partner incredulously.
His partner spoke up.
"Why are you gey?"
"W-what?!" I screamed. Okay he's definitely from earth. "I'm NOT GAY!"
"You. Are. Ghey." He jabbed a finger with each word.
"Why are you so ghey?" The wolf haired man added.
After a brief moment of silence between the both of us with the only sound being my fiance being conflicted on whether or not to laugh or seethe, I let out a sigh of annoyance.
"At any rate, thank you but I should probably put some clothes on now. I get the feeling someone is distracted." I turned my head back towards the Ice Queen who looked away as soon as I made eye contact.
The man chuckled darkly as I turned my attention back to him. I then told my team "You can put your weapons down. I doubt he'll attack. Rose and I will meet you back in our dorm. I gotta ask our friend here a few questions."
"That doesn't sound like a wise idea." Blake said in protest.
"Besides you saw what he's capable of." Weiss butted in.
"Guys, he would have killed us all by now if he wanted to harm us. For now I'll meet you back at our dorm." I told them.
Ruby tapped Blake and Weiss' shoulders "Achilles had never led us astray before. Lets trust him a little." Soon, after careful consideration, they left.
I took a long drawn out sigh.
After that I asked "So then. Let's discuss what is going on here. You could start by your name."
"Looks like your brainwashing worked on all…" His eyes narrowed and flicked to the side. "Except one."
I turned around to notice Jocelyn was still pointing her crossbow at the man behind me.
"This one looks…" His partner raised a brow. "Unfammilar."
I dropped my head "Honey, you don't need to point that at him anymore. He's not a threat."
She didn't listen to me. "He choked you, slammed you to the ground and nearly took you from me."
"I'm sure you did the same and I'm not hearing him bitch about it."
She then glared at ther curly haired man "And there's his loud-mouth sidekick who doesn't know when to shut the fuck up."
Ho boy. This again. "Darlin' it's fine. This is how shonen anime guys start friendships anyway. It's a trope as old as anime itself."
"And this is one of the many reasons why I don't like anime." She retorted.
I sighed "Just put down Rose Thorn and let him explain himself." I told her as I pushed her weapon down to her side.
She begrudgingly agreed. "Fine. But if you do anything else-."
"My partner could've went for your head at any time you two decide to bicker but he didn't." He pointed at the curly haired man who, somewhere along the line, unsheathed his weapon. "Let that sink in."
"I think he gets the picture." I interrupted.
I then turned back to him "So, let's discuss what happened while we go back to the dorm Joce and I occupied while I go and get some decent clothes on."
? POV
"I saw the light on the night that I passed by her window..."
The curly haired man rolled his eyes.
"I saw the flickering shadows of looove on her blind"
He stared at what looked like the vague silhouette of a body that was getting prepared to get changed for the night, before another, bigger figure joined her.
The features, while blurred, were somewhat noticeable on top of her head, and it was no mistake that the two were a cat faunus and a monkey faunus respectively in what was supposed to be, one of the empty dorm rooms.
Slowly, the shadows melded together in a passionate embrace.
Shaking his head, the thin man tightened his gauntlets around his arms.
"Sheeee waaaaas my woman." The wolf haired man sang on the window sill, looking at it with one foot up to his chest.
The shadows were no longer visible as they decided to take it to bed.
Or the floor.
"As she deceived me I watched and went out of my mind." He grasped his chest overdramatically.
"Quit it."
"Just having a little fun." He tossed a wilted rose out of the window as his feet dangled carefreely across the edge. One false move, and he'll dive into impending death.
"She may be Blake. But she's not your Blake."
"You don't think I know that?" He scoffed. "Still stings to see it though."
"Look on the bright side." His partner grabbed his shoulders. "Your initial plan actually worked here."
"Weird how this world runs in parallels, don't you think?" Dark orbs roved over the room adjacent to theirs, where the light had just flickered on. "It's almost as if he knew my plan would work, and mimicked it down to the T."
"On the bright side we won't have to filter in too much knowledge."
"True." Dark eyes narrowed upon what looked to be a silky dress sliding off of a graceful figure's skin.
Said figure had fine curves.
"Think he would mind if we help him cheat a little?"
"No…" Curly hair got tousled back as he slid on his knuckle dusters. "Not at all."
Cinder's POV
There was a knock on her door, causing her to scramble for a towel in her current state of undress.
"You may enter." she said, before quickly getting rid of the glass blade she unwittingly summoned in the process.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then, the knob slowly turned, and she expected Mercury and Emerald to better have good news for disturbing her leisure time.
... It was neither.
"Cinder Fall." Dark eyes observed her with curiosity.
She knew she was beautiful.
She knew she had the looks and the body to attract anybody she would have wanted, and the charisma to boot.
But the way he was looking at her told her he wasn't here to satisfy his libido.
Not that she'll indulge.
Though he does have a hardened look of a warrior that's been through the Grimmlands and back, which she found alluring.
Who… is he?
He was observing her like Merlot was looking at his test subjects.
"And to who… " Her eyes narrowed. "May I owe this pleasure?"
He observed the room reserved for neighbouring students who were competing in the Vytal Tournament and settled on the couch which was placed a good distance from the foot of her bed, crossing one leg over the other.
"Nice place."
"It is… spacious." Where were Emerald and Mercury when you need them? "Though a little temporary. Can I help you with something? You seem to be a little… lost."
"You really do look like her y'know." He continued, seemingly ignoring her. "Long dark hair, amber eyes, and a figure. Pretty sure people would have mistaken you two for twins had she not been a faunus."
"State your business here." Cinder snapped.
"The way I see it there's two ways this is going to go down."
Oh?
"Either you leave this school safe and sound with half the Maiden's powers, or you die tonight."
A blade made entirely out of dark glass formed in her hand as one eye lit with a yellow flame.
"I'm assuming you are one of Ozpin's pawns." She squared her legs. "An ally of Qrow's? Did he manage to get a glimpse of Amber's other assailants?"
Impossible.
She had been so careful not to be spotted.
"Not really one of Ozpin's," He waved off lazily. "But you are one of Salem's."
She didn't deny it.
He hadn't moved an inch, even when she could end his blasted life right then and there.
"So, there are your options." He linked his arms behind the back of his neck and stared at the ceiling. "This isn't a threat." He specified. "It's simply the truth. Whether you choose to accept it or not, is none of my business."
Who… was this man?
Even Qrow Branwen wasn't this cocky.
"And the option where you die by my blade?"
"There is no option C for you, you narcissistic, power hungry hag." He rolled his eyes, even as she increased the temperature in the room. "I'm waiting."
Cinder lunged with a cackle.
What was one more body?
They could just hide it.
By the time Ironwood or any of Ozpin's pawns find out, they'd be long gone.
Her blade stopped inches away from his eye.
"Shame."
What's… happening?!
He shot up and walked circles around her, humming the entire way.
"She stooood… " He smirked. "There laughing."
My body… it won't…. Move!
"Hello there." Something spoke up from within the corner. "My apologies, but I cannot let you harm him like you did before."
Be...fore?!
I never even met him in my entire life!
Wait…
WHO. ARE YOU?!
"It hurts me to do this, believe me." The voice resonated within her head. "But it will hurt you so much more."
"I felt the knife in my hand, and she laughed no more." The visible man in front of her brandished his blade as her vision stirred, and an image flickered to a vision of a woman.
ROSE QUARTZ?!
She was behind all this?!
"Cinder? Everything okay in there?"
Emerald…
Open the door… now!
"Soooo… before," He aimed his blade on two fingers, as if he was playing billiard. "They come to break down the door…" It slowly inched towards her face. "Forgive me o'l Cinder I just couldn't take anymore."
ROSE QUARTZ!
I swear once I'm free of these bounds I'm going to flay the skin from your bones and break every single one of those bones in your body!
It's all your fau-!
Wait a minute…
CUNNING BITC-!
It was too late.
His blade dove into her eye, earning a grotesque squelch.
It was rammed further in and soon… she was no more.
Justin/Achilles' POV
"Uhh… Justin?"
"Yes darlin'?" I turned around as I fumbled to put my clothes on.
"What… did you think they did?"
She was floating three feet away from the floor.
My eyes widened.
A yellow flame surrounded one eye as her palms lit ablaze.
I mumbled under my breath "Son of a bitch, they actually did it."
Jocelyn gave a look of confusion at me as I stroked my beard "What do you mean by that? What did they do?"
I thought back to our conversation from earlier.
Flashback
Right after I got my black wife-beater and sweatpants on, we started discussing on what led us up to this point.
"So… You are Louis then. Like, the one from a fanfiction I read before coming here." I recapped.
"Great." He pinched his nose ridge. "We're in the world of a man who reads our life from fanfictions."
I just raised my brow.
"We're a plot stuck within a plot." He groaned. "Plotception, but we're the main characters." His palm hit his face. "Now I know what my team felt like that night."
"Ok… Which begs the question. Why was your first response to seeing me to choke-slam me like you were the Dozer from Payday 2?" I asked.
One shoulder rose and fell as he answered "I had no way of knowing what actually happened. Would have saved a lot of trouble if you had come clean earlier."
"You were choking him." Jocelyn deadpanned with her arms crossed. Looks like she got a robe on after what happened with the beast.
"And you are flashing everyone." His curly haired partner pointed out. "Can you please put on proper clothes?"
"Because you can't control yourself down there?" Louis asked.
"Because her fiance is right here in front of us," Evans, as I came to knew him, pointed out. "And I doubt he appreciates us catching even an accidental glimpse at what you look like under your clothes."
"Then don't stare."
"Hard to when you're doing the complete opposite." He pointed out.
"I'm not about to leave my fiance alone in the hands of two titans capable of taking out small armies of Grimm."
I held out my hand to her with a gesture that told her 'I'll handle this'. "Also what did you mean by 'I know what you are'?" I then asked.
He looked to his friend Evans who gave him a shrug. Louis then turned back to me. "I thought that was obvious. You have something within that you refuse to let out."
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Jocelyn giving me that look. The type where she's mentally asking me 'Should we answer that?'
I gave her a quick nod and answered "Yeah. Anger issues mostly. But I've managed to keep it under control until recently."
"So… like the hulk but bad." Evans assumed.
"Sort of… it's a bit complicated to explain."
"It's you." Louis explained. "It's part of you, and thus, tied to your Aura." He waved his hand idly in the air. "So I just got rid of it."
"Wait, you got rid of my Aura?"
I didn't feel any different.
Louis brandished his jagged greatsword in the form of Requiem. "Need proof?"
"No, no!" I quickly waved my hands. "I'm good!"
Joce crossed her arms. "You got rid of it for now at least. Until it decides to try to take control again. But anyway…"
I then pulled my scroll out to group text Aaron and Keoth (key-OTH) to let them know what is happening. "So if you two are here, what about the rest of your entourage? If I remember correctly there's 6 of you."
Louis and Evans seemed to have a silent conversation before returning their attention onto me.
"Honestly we don't know." Louis started.
"We did just get here." Evans added.
"One moment it was sleepy time and the next, poof, back to square one in the Emerald Forest." The wolf haired man scanned the area around him. "Deja Vu. Still trying to convince myself this is a dream." He squinted his eyes. "Or a nightmare."
I couldn't help but pace the room. For one thing, I did mimic his initial plan here. If I'll be honest, I haven't put too much thought into what to do before the VYTAL festival. I did just get back from a very long and very repetitive mission.
"So… Judging from the fact they seem to refer to you two by different names, I assume you haven't told them?" Louis asked.
I glanced back at him and shook my head "For you, your friend who's constantly high as a kite dropped the nuke of where you actually are from. For me, it's not that simple. I can't exactly find a way to work in: Hey guys, by the way, I'm actually an alien from a different world! Surprise!" I explained with gestures of over exaggeration.
Louis did not seem amused.
Neither did his partner.
I threw my hands up in frustration "Alright, judge me and my decisions. But I have my reasons." I then continued to pace the room.
"Such as watching sci-fi movies?" Louis asked.
"That is one of the reasons, yes. The other is the fact they'll probably not take it too well. I'm afraid of what they'll do with the information." I explained.
Louis tilted his head to the side "Didn't you just explain that you read my life in my universe or something?"
I nodded. "Yeah, however that's in YOUR universe. So I have no idea how they'll react at the moment-."
I took a moment to gather my thoughts back. I touched my finger tips to my forehead trying to think.
"Look, there's a vacant room down the hall to the left. You two can share that for the night until I figure out what to do tomorrow."
Louis seemed to understand. He gave me a quick nod as he and his friend Evans left the room.
Before Louis got out the door, He turned to me with a question "One last thing, Your plan for Cinder?"
I gave him a shrug "I don't have one. As it stands, my friend Aaron and I agree that we can't kill her on our own."
I swear I saw a smirk form across his face "Alright. Good night, and don't keep everyone awake with the constant banging on the wall." His eyes darted to Joc. "You're a lucky man."
"I can control myself, thank you very much!"
"Besides, he prefers the couch!"
…
God damnit Joce...
Not. Helping.
Shift
"My Queen!" Arthur yelled.
A hand was held out.
Arthur Watts skidded to a halt, completely out of breath, before finding any semblance of calm in his panicked state.
Finally, he decided to kneel.
Here he was, directly in front of her.
Only now did his brain tell him this might not be the best idea to bring it up.
Still, he had to.
"C-cinder. She-"
"Died."
Arthur fell silent.
"Ready the Grimm. We head for Beacon at dawn."
Omake
"Well, what should we do?" Joc asked.
We were currently behind crushed walls of a forsaken castle, hiding from what could've been, the deadliest woman in all of Remnant.
"I don't know." Louis said as he gripped the Relic of Destruction till his knuckles ran white.
Even until now we still don't know what it does.
"We tried everything." I added, harshly panting from the sheer amount of attacks I've had to execute before hiding from deadly homing laser beams.
Seriously, who thought fighting her head on was a good idea?!
Right… Ozpin.
"Where are you little ones…" She seemed to hover idly, traversing the distance with little to no effort. "Come out come out wherever you are…"
Ruby and Yang were knocked out cold, and both Weiss and Blake suffered a fatal bruise.
We were down to our last leg, especially with Aaron and Keoth having some of their bones fractured.
"La puta madre." Jocelyn mumbled under her breath.
"Wait." Evans drew his voice down to a whisper as Salem's looming shadow drew in closer and closer. "Your girlfriend is hispanic?"
We didn't have much time to live.
Why the hell is that the question he's asking right now?!
"Yes she's hispanic!" I barely managed to restrain myself from shouting in his face. "Glad to know you care about her ethnicity before we're blown to bits!"
"Hmm…" He rubbed his chin. "This might just work…"
Later…
"Hey! Ghost lady!"
A spectrum of light shot out of her fingertips, but was deflected by the Relic Of Destruction somehow.
A miracle, considering that same beam of light was what caused the castle to be in its current state of disrepair.
"Finally chose to disclose yourself." She mocked and glided across the air. "A wise choice."
He smirked as he kicked the Relic of Destruction away.
It spun, twisted and whistled in the air and sailed past….
Behind her.
"Yeah but are you wiser?"
"Wha-!"
Rose held the Relic of Destruction in her hand as it glowed with dark, radiant light.
Just as she held it above her head and brought it down with the rage of a thousand suns, she stumbled forward as she suddenly lost balance, but managed to catch herself on her hands before propping herself back up.
When she stared at the Relic of Destruction again, it was nothing more than…
A single flip flop.
Salem threw her head back laughing.
"I always knew the God of Light had a sense of humor, but even this is too much! A sole sandal?! This is what I'm supposed to worry about?! Ahahahaha!"
I shot a worried look at Louis, who just shrugged just as confusedly in return.
"It's supposed to morph into the very thing that strikes fear out of memory, and this is what you get?!" She cackled, doubling over and hacking. "What a disgrace!"
Out of frustration, Joc tossed it with a cry of anger.
We've lost.
Ozpin never explained how the Relic Of Destruction worked before he passed out, and now… he'll never get the chance to.
For mockery and one last laugh, Salem swayed to the side, dodging it.
"Did... " Louis gaped. "Did you just avoid that?"
"So I did." She yawned. "So what?"
Evans smirked.
"Why… " Salem's cackle died down and her eyes narrowed. "Are you smirking boy?"
"Oh nothing."
She was knocked on her ass from behind.
"What in the Brother God's name?!" Her body was next to go, having a gaping hole in the shape of…
Flip flops.
"No!" She cried. "Impossible!"
"One does not simply, dodge, The Legendary Chancla."
"What?!" Salem barely caught her breath.
"It never misses." Evans grinned.
It seemed to disappear beyond their vision and shot further beyond the horizon line, taking another rotation around Remnant, before landing one square in Salem's face, cutting her off from chanting an ancient curse, taking it out with the strength of a speeding meteorite, before revolving around once more.
"It's picking up momentum into an endless loop around Remnant." Joc broke down on her knees. "You knew this would happen."
"No," Evans shrugged as Salem cried in agony over and over again, for everytime she would regenerate, the homing chancla would just destroy said place with twice the force. "I was betting on her dodging it for it to happen."
"Huh." Louis observed the particles of dark dust that rose up to the air. "So everytime a bit of her regenerates it'll endlessly get destroyed with speeds that overtakes her regeneration factor."
"Neat." I and he said in sync as the last of particles disintegrated.
Reviewer Session:
Queen Bee: Indeed. It's a multiverse. There might be cameo appearances by my friend moongooseman's stories and characters as well. I'll have to see.