The setting sun shone above Cloud, painting the lush grass around him with a pale golden color. A warm breeze flowed through his body, warming up his body. But despite the warm atmosphere, the only thing that Cloud felt deep inside of him was emptiness.
After a few minutes of walking, Cloud finally reached his destination. The small and unassuming gravestone was nearly covered by the tall grass, but to him, it was the only thing that stood out to him.
Summer Rose.
Thus Kindly I Scatter.
"Hey Summer…" Cloud awkwardly greeted. The piece of stone on the ground didn't answer his greeting. "Been a while, huh? I've been busy for the last couple months. Being a teacher at Beacon kinda eats away at your free time. And it's kinda hard sneaking around without getting caught by Tai."
The blond crouched down in front of the grave and took out a flower from his pocket. It was a white rose taken from the garden he tended. He carefully placed it on top of the stone and took a step back.
"I met Ruby and Yang. Those two really haven't changed ever since they were babies. Yang's still a hot head, and Ruby's still talking about heroes n'shit. It's kinda scary how similar the two of you look. I almost called her 'Summer' a few times. They're still green, but you would be proud of them. They're strong, unlike me. And they have good friends to keep them on track. There's nothing to worry about."
Cloud's hand reached into his pocket and pulled out the aging photograph that he always kept with him. He smiled dryly at the image before promptly killing it.
"I don't know how much longer I can continue fighting. Every day, every fight feels like I'm moving closer to the edge. The more I fight, the more my past memories begin to fade away. It's only a matter of time before I become a mindless machine, fighting to save this world until the end of time without pause. I can barely remember what my life was like before I became this guardian. And the thought of someday forgetting your name and face…"
He didn't finish his sentence, shaking his head as if to somehow forcibly remove those thoughts from his mind. He pocketed the photo and turned away from the grave.
"The Vytal Festival is tomorrow. Thought you'd like to know. They're asking me to comment on the fights, and I declined. I don't need anymore unnecessary work. I still remember the time you dragged me out to the Vytal Festival that one time."
The small slab of stone didn't respond to any of Cloud's words. The only thing that greeted him was the sound of the trees swaying by the wind followed by the occasional cry of a raven.
"And we're back with the four-on-four rounds!" Port's voice thundered. "We have seen many heated battles during the last four hours, but none have been quite as spectacular as this one! Wouldn't you agree, Professor Oobleck?"
"Doctor," Oobleck corrected as he adjusted his glasses. "And yes, this may be one of the closest battles we have seen yet! Neither Team RWBY or Team ABRN have given in an inch to one another!"
Cloud continued to stare at the tiny screen in his office. The small tv in his office didn't provide the best audio and visual quality, but it was enough to show Cloud what he wanted to see.
So far, it looked like both teams were evenly matched. Each member from both teams were squaring off individually. Ruby was constantly rushing around with her semblance and whacking Bolin Hori with Crescent Rose. Yang was exchanging super-powered punches with Arslan Altan, Blake was shooting at Reese Chloris as she rode around on her floating skateboard, and Weiss was trying to slow down Nadir Shiko by launching different dust-imbued shots at him.
From the outside, it looked like a heart-pumping, adrenaline-inducing match between two different warrior factions. But Cloud didn't see that. He could see several missed moves and attacks from RWBY. Their team leader had even forgotten to watch her back and it was thanks to Weiss interfering that she wasn't knocked out entirely. It was clear to him that they were fighting to have fun and show off. The Vytal Festival provided Huntsmen and Huntresses in training to show off their skills and represent their respective academies.
In other words, students competed to earn bragging rights, and Cloud hated it.
The Festival was broadcasted to everyone in Remnant. This ease of access meant that nefarious villains or criminal organizations would be able to see what potential warriors could do and how to prepare against them. There was a reason why crime continued to increase all over the world despite the high number of Huntsmen and Huntresses currently employed. These students' lives were going to be in danger just by participating.
After several minutes, it seemed like RWBY was finally beginning to come together as a team and work together to finish off ABRN. Ruby and Blake began to pressure the enemy team with bullets, causing them to scramble away and separate themselves. Three members of ABRN ended up in one spot, and a mountain of ice erupted under their feet courtesy of Weiss. They were trapped and encased in a ball of ice and were left helpless as they rolled along.
The camera then shifted to the leader of ABRN, Arslan. She visibly rolled her eyes at the ridiculous situation her teammates found themselves in. The ball of ice then began to roll towards her, and she took a deep breath. One foot stomped back while the other held firm. She reeled her arms back and launched her two fists at the boulder, instantly shattering it and freeing her team. It was an impressive display, especially considering that she used her bare hands to break the ice instead of using any sort of weapon.
Unfortunately, this was about to be their undoing. A wall of ice suddenly grew out near Weiss. She looked over to Yang and nodded to her.
"Yang! Now!" Weiss yelled.
The blond brawler grinned and ran to the ice formation, shooting Ember Celica behind her to proper her forward. She slid on the ice wall and Gambol Shroud was tossed to her. Yang grabbed the ribbon and Blake yanked on it as hard as she could to propel her even further.
As soon as Yang was airborne, Blake jumped on top of Crescent Rose and the tiny reaper swung the gargantuan scythe as she fired a round. The camera strained to track the black and yellow blurs, but Cloud could see what the two girls were doing. Blake pulled forward one last time, and Yang charged ahead as she let go of Gambol.
The brawler's yells echoed as she flew towards ARBN and slammed into them, Her hair lit up like a fire for a brief second as she pushed forward and punched all four members into a makeshift volcano. A pillar of fire erupted into the air, and an alarm rang out.
"And that is the match! Team RWBY emerges victorious!" Port announced.
Port announcing the results of the game were followed by loud cheering from the crowd, no doubt satisfied and energized by the close match. The fact that the girls won despite being only first-years made them only cheer harder.
Cloud grabbed the remote and shut the tv off, killing the sound of the crowd cheering. He got up from his seat and stretched his body before grabbing the Fusion Sword off of the wall. The broadsword attached itself onto his back and he walked out of his office. It was time for him to check the perimeter of the fair grounds.
After a rather nauseating ride on an airship down to Vale, Cloud began his rounds by walking around the grounds for anything out of place or suspicious. So far, aside from a few hecklers at certain food stands, there wasn't much to report on. Everything looked normal.
The air of excitement, the smell of food, and students enjoying their time off. Everything was just as he remembered. And instead of bringing his spirits up, he felt his heart grow heavy.
Eventually, he ended up where a majority of the food stands were located. Students from academies all over the world ran along the grass to catch up to their friends or get to a food stand before the line got too long. He was just finishing up his report on his scroll before a gasp from someone caught his attention.
"Look! Isn't that Professor Strife?"
"Yeah, it is!"
"I heard that he took down a major operation planned by the White Fang all by himself!"
"Hey! Can I have your autograph?"
"Ah!" Cloud suddenly found himself surrounded by kids wearing a variety of uniforms, the majority of which were female. Many began to inch in closer to get a better look at him while others were eagerly holding out stuff for him to sign. The amount of attention he was receiving made his head spin, and he quickly jumped over the clump of kids and made a run for it.
"Wait!" Many students cried out, but it was too late. The blond professor was already long gone.
"Damn...this is starting to get annoying." Cloud grumbled as he caught his breath near a noodle stand. It was one thing for the students to idolize him in Beacon. He hated the extra attention there, but he put aside his gripes in hopes that what he was doing would inspire his students to work and train harder. But the fact that nearly everyone in the world knew about him meant that he essentially became a minor celebrity.
"I didn't become a huntsman for fame, goddammit!" Cloud yelled in frustration. He slammed a fist down onto the counter, accidentally startling the stall owner. He hastily apologized and was about to slip the owner some money as compensation when the familiar sight of a red hood followed by rose petals sapped all the energy he had out of his body.
"Oh, Professor!" Ruby cheerfully called out.
Cloud's head slowly turned to see the energized Team RWBY heading towards them. They looked more excited than usual, probably thanks to their recent victory over ABRN. Ruby skipped over to him and gave him a bright smile. It kind of reminded him of an excited puppy, waiting for its head to be petted.
"Congrats on the win," Cloud muttered as he absent-mindedly patted Ruby's head. "You kids hungry?"
"Hm, now that you mention it, I am feeling a bit famished." Weiss said.
"I may have worked up an appetite." Blake noted. As soon as she spoke, a loud growling noise echoed amongst the fighters present. It definitely wasn't a Grimm, so that left everyone staring at the faunus, whose face glowed red and her eyes looked away in embarrassment.
The four girls all took their seats at the food stall and glanced at the menu.
"I'll have a bowl of the 'usual', please." Yang asked.
A bowl of noodles bigger than Cloud's head was immediately placed in front of Yang. Ruby seemed at awe at the size of the bowl.
"Ooooh! I'll take the same." Ruby said. The same bowl was swiftly pushed towards her.
"Do you have anything with low salt?" Weiss asked. Her demands were met as a bowl immediately slid to her. Both the heiress and Cloud looked amazed at how the elderly stall owner had managed to whip up something so specific in less than a second.
As for Blake, she only nodded towards the owner. He nodded back and ran to his kitchen. All they could hear was a series of metallic bangs and what sounded like a power drill whirring before the old man flew out of the kitchen and placed a bowl of noodles with entire fish heads in the noodles as toppings. Blake stared hungrily at the bowl and drool seeped out of her open mouth.
"Here. I'll pay for it." Cloud said. He took his wallet out and handed the owner a stack of lien. He happily took the cash and handed Cloud a long receipt. He stared at it before crumpling it up and tossing it into a nearby trash can.
"You sure you don't wanna eat?" Yang asked. " I kinda feel bad having you pay for our food."
"You kids won your match. Treat yourselves once in a while." Cloud replied with a wave of his hand.
"Aw yeah! Nice Strife strikes again!" Ruby hummed as she devoured her food.
"Don't ever call me that again."
He walked away from the noodle stand and gave one last wave to the girls before completely exiting the small park and walking out into downtown Vale. He navigated his way through the busy streets and walked down several blocks until he finally reached his destination.
"The Crow Bar...this is the place." Cloud mumbled to himself. He walked through the front entrance and made his way to the front counter, where a man with a mustache was cleaning shot glasses with a towel.
"Welcome! What'll it be, sir?" the man politely asked.
Cloud sat down on a stool and glanced at the myriad of bottles on the shelf in front of him. "...Something hard and bitter. I'll leave the choice up to you."
"Sure thing!"
The bartender reached underneath and took out a bottle filled with yellow liquid. He then placed a shot glass in front of Cloud and poured the liquid.
"Here ya go."
Cloud took the glass and drank its contents in one swift motion. It tasted bitter, yet it made him nostalgic for some reason. Why did such a simple shot of alcohol make him feel so sad and lonely? It felt like it was trying to fill in a hole he had somewhere in his heart.
"Heh. You look like you just went through a bad break-up, sulking like that and drinking."
"I don't want to hear that from you, Qrow." Cloud growled.
The huntsman only chuckled as he sat down next to Cloud. He leaned onto the counter and nodded towards the bartender.
"Get me a shot of that whiskey on the right, and mix it with the vodka next to it." Qrow requested.
The bartender gave Qrow a worrying look. "You sure about that? It's only the middle of the day, and-"
A stack of lien was placed onto the counter. "Trust me. I can handle my stuff."
The lien was quickly pocketed and Qrow's drink was made. He drank the brown liquid in one swig and laughed out.
"Aaaaah! That's the good stuff!" Qrow cheered.
"Cut the crap. Why did you call me here?" Cloud asked. "We thought you were compromised after all communications with you ceased months ago."
"Autumn's attackers. They're here."
Qrow's sudden reveal caused Cloud to drop his glass, but he managed to catch it before it could fall onto the floor. He turned to face Qrow to see that he was being completely serious.
"How do you know?" Cloud questioned.
"At this point, it's a gut feeling," Qrow began as he downed another shot. "But once you piece the puzzle together, it all begins to make sense. The sporadic White Fang attacks. The person that infiltrated the CCT. And, there was that plot you stopped in the Southeast."
"Fine. Like you said, there's just too many coincidences," Cloud admitted. "But we don't have any concrete proof."
"One of the attackers I saw used fire from her hands. Sound familiar?"
Cloud inwardly gasped as he recounted the mysterious female assailant during the time when the CCT was breached. He saw her hands become covered in flames and she formed a bow out of thin air.
"Shit." Cloud cursed.
"Yup. But at this point, all we can do is wait. If we act without any hard proof, then it'll force us to take a step back and give our enemies the advantage." Qrow admitted.
"The last thing we need is panic to spread to everyone and draw more Grimm to us," Cloud sighed. "Our best bet is to wait for them to make a move."
"By the way, how's the teaching gig going?" Qrow asked.
Cloud blinked in surprise. "Why're you asking me that?"
Qrow gave Cloud a sly grin and pulled out his scroll. On it were several articles detailing the White Fang plot that he and RWBY stopped.
"You've got quite the following." Qrow snickered.
Cloud blushed and turned away from Qrow. "I never took this job for fame."
"And look at that. That blond kid looks awful like you." Qrow commented.
"Huh?"
Cloud looked to see what Qrow was staring at, and he saw Team JNPR on the screen fighting against Team BRNZ. Jaune was squaring off against one opponent who wielded two golden buzzsaws. He quickly blocked the first thrown disk with his shield before rolling away from the second. He attempted to capitalize on an opening by stabbing forward with Crocea Mors, but the student easily kicked Jaune's arm aside and jumped back.
The sound of a rifle discharging echoed through the arena. A startled Jaune jumped back when a bullet struck the ground a mere inches away from his foot. He looked up and saw the brief glare of a sniper scope.
"Retreat!" Jaune ordered. Both him and Pyrrha used their shields to cover Ren and Nora before running after them. They took cover behind a giant rock as bullets continued to chip away at their cover.
"Heh. Looks like this is game over for them." Qrow laughed as he watched the match unfold. While JNPR were hiding behind the rock, BRNZ continued to slowly advance on them.
"If those kids can't even pass this small obstacle, then they have no hope of graduating." Cloud mouthed.
The program couldn't pick up what JNPR was discussing behind the rock, but what was clear was that their enemies were slowly advancing on them.
"Spread out and keep moving!" Jaune ordered.
JNPR sprung out from their cover and engaged BRNZ. Jaune ran ahead and blocked what looked like a cattle prod wielded by one student. He pivoted on his foot and attempted to trip his opponent, but Jaune's attack was avoided and the baton crackled with electricity.
"Nora! You're up!" Jaune called out.
"Aw yeah! Bring it on!" Nora roared. Jaune jumped back and swung her hammer at the student. He ducked under the first swing and jabbed the electrified baton into Nora's stomach.
Instead of recoiling back, Nora's body held firm against the electricity. In fact, her smile grew wider as she towered over the shocked student.
"Huh. She doesn't seem hurt or even flinch." Qrow noted as he watched Nora's body continuously absorb the electricity.
"Of course. Nora's semblance lets her absorb and control electricity." Cloud answered. He wasn't even looking at the match at this point, finding the alcohol in his shot glass much more entertaining.
A loud boom echoed through the bar as Nora swung her hammer at the poor kid, nailing him in the stomach and sending him crashing through a large boulder. Amazingly, his aura didn't break, though he appeared to be a bit dazed.
"Ren! Try to distract the Sniper away from Nora!" Jaune ordered.
A round zipped past Ren's head as his shoulders sagged forward.
"Easier said than done." Ren groaned, but he still flipped back to avoid more bullets from the sniper.
A pair of golden buzzsaws flew towards Jaune, and he knocked aside one saw while letting the second slide past his shield. Then, he did something unthinkable: he sheathed his sword and ran towards his assailant.
"That dumbass. What's he doing?" Cloud groaned.
The sheath's sides suddenly expanded outwards, increasing the weapon's overall length and width. Cloud's eyes slightly widened as the Arc's weapon. He didn't know Jaune had his weapon modified by having two separate pieces combine into one. Jaune took a balanced stance with both hands on the hilt and charged forward. He slammed the sword onto the ground and pushed his opponent back.
Jaune's display caused the crowd to go wild, and even the bartender couldn't help but cheer a bit too.
"Would you look at that. Guess he didn't just take your fighting style from you." Qrow chuckled, drinking another shot.
Cloud's head slammed onto the counter. He remembered telling Jaune to find his own way of fighting, but his words seemed to have fallen on deaf ears. And not only did Jaune copy his stance, but he borrowed his own weapon's main function!
He then heard thunder rumbling from the tv. Nora was standing on top of a mountain in the arena and held her arm out as lightning flashed around her.
"Pyrrha! Up!" Jaune exclaimed.
Pyrrha seemed to understand what Jaune was talking about. Jaune jumped away from his opponent and crouched down, turning his weapon back into its original form. He held his shield above him, making him look like some kind of turtle.
Pyrrha ran forward and jumped over two members of Team BRNZ and onto Jaune's shield. The blond swordsman pushed himself up, tossing Pyrrha up into the air. Her body was suddenly thrown back as her shield blocked the bullet meant for Nora.
Meanwhile, Nora's hammer changed into a grenade launcher and launched several grenades into the air, briefly forming a heart shape. Thanks to Ren continuously drawing the sniper's fire, she was able to see where the bullets were coming from. A large portion of the forest area was annihilated by the explosives, forcing the sniper to jump down to the ground to avoid getting hit.
Now, all four members of Team BRNZ were gathered in one spot. Jaune noticed this and raised his sword up in triumph.
"Okay, this is it for team attacks! Ren, Nora! Flower Power!" Jaune ordered.
"Uh, what?" Ren asked.
The flow of battle was completely ruined. Qrow continued to laugh while Cloud's head repeatedly slammed itself onto the bar counter.
"Hahahaha! You sure taught them well, Cloud!" Qrow bellowed. "Look at that blond kid! He looks so confused and out of place!"
Nothing came out of the blond professor's mouth. He couldn't bear to watch what was unfolding, but he could hear JNPR arguing amongst themselves over what their team attacks were supposed to be. It took BRNZ yelling at them and the crowd jeering for Jaune to tell Nora to simply hit them with the hammer. Nora screamed, and a loud bang rang out followed by a buzzer, signaling the match's end.
"Hey, at least they won." Qrow offered helpfully.
"Yeah! Those kids were really something!" the bartender chimed in.
"That was a shit show." Cloud growled, downing another shot.
The next match wasn't much better either. It was Team SSSN and Team NDGO. Cloud found the match more akin to a third-rate comedy if anything. Neptune was afraid of the water which Cloud found painfully ironic, and SSSN managed to squeeze out a victory by shocking NDGO with a well placed electric shock in water.
"Phew! Now that was a match!" the bartender said.
"That was a mess." Qrow said, and Cloud nodded in agreement.
"C'mon! Both of you guys didn't like them or any of the previous matches!" the man complained. "Which fight are you guys here for then?"
Cloud turned around in time to see a slick white airship fly past them. It looked different from any other airship thanks to the ribbons coming out of its fins. Cloud audibly groaned when he recognized the ship as one only used by Atlas Special Operatives.
"...That one." Qrow answered as he took one last sip of his drink. He tossed some more lien onto the counter and hobbled onto his feet. "Happy Vytal Festival."
Thankfully, Cloud didn't have to drag Qrow down the street and into Beacon. They took an airship back to the school and walked down the courtyard, moving past the students and making sure to avoid the Atlesian Knights. So far, they were successful in avoiding any kind of unnecessary attention.
That is, until the tip of Cloud's broadsword accidentally knocked over a Knight as they made their way through. Cloud glared at Qrow, who only gave a sheepish shrug.
"Warning. Only properly licensed Huntsman are allowed to carry weapons within school grounds," the robot warned. "Please show proper authentication."
"Go to hell." Cloud spat. It was one thing to see Atlesian troops occupy Vale. But it was an entirely different thing seeing these mindless robots parade around as if they owned the place.
"Warning. Failure to comply will-"
Cloud drew the Fusion Sword and chopped the robot in half. The thing fell apart into a million different pieces. "I don't comply with your commander."
"Ahaha! Now you've done it!" Qrow laughed. He grabbed another nearby Knight and ripped its head off with ease, tossing it around his hands. "Ol' Jimmy really has a stick up his ass to still have you on his personal shit list."
"You're too drunk." Cloud said as he walked away from the broken Knights. But Qrow instead decided to do something that nearly caused him to kick the veteran huntsman all the way back to the airship.
"Hey Ice Queen!" Qrow taunted. He threw the robot's head, sending it rolling right up to the Specialist's feet. Winter turned around and glared at Qrow. The robots around her aimed their guns at Qrow and Cloud.
"Halt!" Winter ordered. The remaining Knights around her lowered their rifles.
"Excuse me!" an irritated voice cried out. Weiss stomped over to Qrow and gave him a stern glare. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to!?"
Her face then flushed when she saw Cloud standing next to Qrow. "P-Professor Strife! What're you doing here?"
"Uh…" Cloud looked to the side awkwardly to act like he didn't know the drunk man next to him. "Reconnaissance."
"On the school grounds?" Weiss asked confusedly.
"Weiss. Get back here." Winter ordered from behind. The heiress flinched and slowly walked back to her elder sister. Winter walked towards the two Huntsmen and looked at them as if she was looking at walking piles of trash.
"You two do realize that you destroyed Atlas military property, right?"
"Then should I care?" Cloud asked rhetorically.
"I mistook that for some kind of sentient garbage." Qrow snickered.
"I don't have time for your immature games, Qrow," Winter said. She then looked at a rather bored looking Cloud. "And you. To think that you became a Huntsman after skulking around like a rat all those years ago, Strife."
"Wait, you know them?" Weiss asked Winter. She knew from her early memories that Winter had met Cloud at some point. But she didn't recognize the dazed-looking man with black hair and red eyes standing next to Cloud.
"Oh come on. You Atlas Specialists think you're so special, don't you?" Qrow mocked.
"It's in the title." Winter said.
"More like an attack dog." Cloud mumbled under his breath.
The air seemed to turn chilly as Winter directed all of her killing intent towards the blond. Many of the students who had gathered to see what the fuss was all about had now mostly run away in fear. But the blond professor didn't seem fazed at all. He simply levied a bored gaze at the elder Schnee.
"I don't know what you think you're saying, but I've heard enough." Winter threatened.
"Really now?" Cloud snarked. "So you're just gonna roll over and show ol' James your stomach like the good little dog you are?"
Weiss jumped back in surprise when Winter drew her rapier and aimed its tip at Cloud.
"Winter!?" Weiss gasped in horror.
"If you won't hold your tongue, then I'll gladly remove it for you!" Winter angrily declared.
All Cloud did was shrug his shoulders. "I've seen icier looks."
His head ducked to the side to avoid Winter's sword. She jabbed several times at Cloud's head, but he avoided each strike. He threw his head back as Winter pivoted on her heel and slashed forward, forcing him to throw a leg out and kick Winter away from him. She managed to block his boot with her weapon, but found herself pushed back several feet.
"You gotta be faster than that." Cloud softly chastised.
"Draw your weapon and face me, coward!" Winter yelled. But no matter how many times she tried to strike Cloud, he avoided every strike like it was child's play. He didn't seem fazed at all, and the fact that his weapon wasn't even drawn infuriated her even more. She did not become a Special Operative to be toyed by some nobody!
Several white glyphs formed around Cloud. Winter couldn't help but smirk when she saw Cloud's eyes widen slightly as small Nevermores made of ice flew out of the glyphs and soared towards him. This forced Cloud to finally draw the Fusion Sword and sweep aside the Nevermores in one giant swing.
The blond professor jumped over to Winter and swung the Fusion Sword at her, but she jumped away before it could do any sort of damage. The broadsword cratered the ground and Cloud ran after her.
Winter saw Cloud jumping towards her and crossed her sword across her body to block the incoming broadsword. The ground underneath her heels shattered and she felt a violent shock travel up her arms and down her body. The amount of strength behind just one of Cloud's swings was nearly enough to send her flying back even if she braced her body as much as possible. It was even possible that his strength rivalled or even exceeded Elm's. And to make matters worse, the blond swordsman was using such a weapon meant for crushing as if it was as light as a feather. She thought that her swords would provide an advantage in terms of agility, but Cloud met each one of her blows with precision and skill.
"Hyah!" Winter pressed a hidden switch in her weapon's hilt and a second, shorter blade dropped out. Cloud's eyes widened as he jumped back to avoid the second blade from skewering his head.
"A combining weapon." Cloud muttered as he blocked and parried Winter's blades.
Blue energy slowly surrounded Cloud's body as he swung his blade. With each strike blocked, the blue flames seemed to grow stronger and stronger. They didn't emit any sort of heat, but Winter felt a sinking feeling the more she fought the blond swordsman.
"So that's your Semblance!" Winter growled. She jumped away in time before a massive whirlwind surrounded Cloud's body as he spun his body around. The mighty winds whipped through her body and nearly caused her to lose her balance, but she stabbed the ground to anchor herself. If the man before her was about to go full out fighting her, then she had to do the same.
"Shit. No getting out of this." Cloud took his traditional battle stance and his blue aura roared to life. A massive Glyph formed behind Winter as it prepared to propel her. "Let's get this over with!"
"Haaaaaa!" Winter's glyph shot her forward at speeds that nearly threw Cloud off. He readied the Fusion Sword, ready to intercept her attack. It took less than a second for Winter to close the distance between herself and her foe. Steel cut through the air as both combatants sought to land the finishing blow to end the duel.
"Schnee!"
James' loud, commanding voice caused both fighters to stop dead in their tracks, their weapons mere inches away from each others' throats. Winter's body went rigid as she turned around to face the general.
"General Ironwood, sir!" Winter greeted with a proper salute.
Ironwood slowly walked towards her with a disapproving glare, studying the now wrecked courtyard and her weapons. "What do you think you are doing?"
"He started the altercation, sir!" Winter said, immediately pinning the blame on Cloud.
Cloud found it a bit childish and immature that Winter blamed him like a younger sibling pointing the finger so that they could get away with anything.
"Nope. You drew your weapon first," Cloud corrected. "I even have witnesses."
"Yup! Ice Queen got all mad and started the fight!" Qrow said as he walked out of the crowd. Ironwood's scowl deepened when he saw Qrow.
"...Is that right?" Ironwood asked.
Winter flinched and looked to the side in shame. Qrow tried to fistbump Cloud, who pushed the drunk man away in annoyance.
"And you," Ironwood stomped over to Qrow who pointed to himself in confusion. "What are you doing here?"
"I could be asking you the same thing." Qrow replied with a smirk.
"I-"
"Now now," a familiar voice said within the crowd. The students moved back to create room for Ozpin and Glynda to walk through. "There is a sanctioned fight happening in the stadium that I assure has better seats. And popcorn!"
"Break it up, everyone. We will take care of this mess." Glynda ordered, promptly causing every onlooker to disperse so that they didn't incur her wrath.
"A word, Qrow? Cloud?" Ozpin requested as he walked down the courtyard towards Beacon.
As Glynda began to use her Semblance to put the wrecked courtyard together, Ruby and Weiss popped out from within the crowd. The red reaper quickly waved to Cloud before quite literally jumping onto Qrow's arm.
"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby squealed as she nuzzled up against him. "It's so good to see you! Didja miss me? Didja miss me!?"
Qrow stared at Ruby before smirking at her. "Nope!"
He ruffled Ruby's head for a bit before she eventually slid off his arm and landed on the ground.
While uncle and niece were busy catching up, Weiss had moved over to Cloud to give her leader some time alone.
"I-I'm so sorry about Winter…" Weiss mumbled. "I never imagined that she would lash out like that."
"Can't say that I'm all that surprised. All Atlas special forces are like that," Cloud said before spitting onto the ground. The sound of Ozpin clearing his throat caused Cloud to groan slightly. "Anyways, looks like Oz needs me for a bit. Catch you kids later."
Cloud could only imagine what Ozpin would have in store for him. He trudged towards the academy and got on the elevator leading to Ozpin's office with Qrow. The smell of alcohol filled the small space and Cloud early wanted to throw Qrow down the elevator shaft just to get rid of the smell.
A chime rang out, and the elevator doors opened. Ozpin was already sitting behind his desk while Glynda and Ironwood flanked his sides. Winter was there for some reason too, looking as angry as usual.
"What were you thinking!?" Winter demanded towards the two Huntsmen.
"Hey, you drew your weapon first." Cloud refuted.
"If you two were one of my men, I would have you two shot!" Ironwood angrily exclaimed.
"If I was one of your men, I'd shoot myself." Qrow snickered as he took out his canteen.
"While I don't condone either of their actions, lashing out the way you did doesn't help either." Glynda reprimanded, glaring at Winter.
"They destroyed Atlas military property!" Winter argued.
"Hey, they constantly target me because Tin Can over there still hasn't wiped me from his personal shit list!" Cloud countered. "Seriously, I'm an official Huntsman now! And why the hell is Winter even here!?"
Ironwood let out a long sigh before turning to the elder Schnee. "Winter and I will discuss this matter back aboard my ship."
Winter's eyes widened in surprise. "But sir!"
"Winter." Ironwood firmly ordered. This forced Winter to salute him before calmly walking out of Ozpin's office while glaring at Cloud and Qrow.
"Qrow, why are you here?" Ozpin asked as he slumped back in his chair.
"You've been out of contact for weeks! We thought you were compromised! You can't just go dark on the field like that!" Ironwood demanded.
"I'm not one of you secret operatives, Jimmy. Ya see this?" Qrow took his scroll out of his pocket and pointed to the yellow button on the bottom of the device. "This is the 'send' button! Communication's a two-way street, pal! I'm here to tell you guys that your little infiltrator is the one responsible for Autumn's condition!"
The room went cold and silent upon Qrow's revelation. Glynda, Ironwood, and Ozpin all looked at one another with unease.
"What?" Glynda gasped.
"Despite what the world thinks, we're not just teachers, generals, or headmasters. The people in this room, the leaders of the other two academies, we're the ones keeping the world safe from the evils no one else knows," Qrow marched up to Ironwood to drive his point across. "It's why we meet behind closed doors and work in the shadows. So tell me, James. When you brought your army here, did you think you were being discreet? Or did you not give a damn!?"
The two stared at each other, neither willing to back down until Ironwood finally gave up. He closed his eyes and placed his scroll onto Ozpon's table. A large holographic image showing the floating stadium surrounded by Atlas airships shone in the room.
"Discreet wasn't working. I'm here because this is what was necessary." Ironwood said as he stared at the hologram.
"Necessary for what?" Cloud asked. "It looks like you're occupying Vale if anything. What the hell are you thinking, bringing armed soldiers and drones to freely roam around a school!?"
"When our enemies see my fleet in the sky they will cower and feel the might of our strength!" Ironwood argued.
"'Our'?" Cloud questioned. "If you seriously think that a couple of ships with guns is gonna scare Salem away, then you're more delusional than I thought. Salem doesn't care how many guns or men you stockpile up. She'll keep on coming until your will to fight is completely gone! She's fear incarnate!"
"And fear will bring the Grimm," Ozpin added. "A guardian is a symbol of comfort and security. But an army is a symbol of conflict. If this is the size of our defense, then what are we expecting to fight?"
"Then what do you suppose we do?" Ironwood asked, taking his scroll off of Ozpin's desk.
"I suggest we find our guardian." Ozpin answered.
"How? Autumn's condition hasn't improved, and we haven't found her attacker yet." Cloud pointed out.
Ozpin took out his own scroll and placed it onto his desk. An image of a student's profile flashed in front of everyone.
"...No. We can't." Cloud mouthed.
"I agree with you, but desperate times call for desperate measures." Glynda admitted half-heartedly.
"But she's just a kid!" Cloud yelled. "She hasn't even gone through her first year as a student, and you want to place the burden of a Maiden on her so soon!?"
Ozpin grimaced and leaned forward. "Cloud, please. You must understand-"
"No, you understand!" Cloud cut in. "At least let her graduate! How many more kids are you going to sacrifice before you can finally sleep at night? Before you stop being scared!?"
"I-"
Cloud didn't wait to hear Ozpin's answer. He turned away from the headmaster and stormed towards the elevator. He angrily pressed on the 'down' button and the doors opened.
"Where are you going?" Glynda asked in a concerned voice.
"...You wanna use children to fight your wars? Have it your way!" Cloud shouted. The elevator doors slammed shut behind him and he was brought down to the ground floor.
"...If that's the case, then I'm going to end this war by myself."