My first life was a bloody and treacherous one, for I was a villainess. Cold, manipulative, and bloodthirsty are the traits that best described me. To be quite frank, my life was never one of happiness, and from a young age, I bore witness to the cruelty and madness man is capable of. Of course, I know better than to use my origins as a excuse for all of the heinous acts I'd committed. Poverty, hunger, and betrayal was not a problem exclusive to me, and you did not see millions of others tread the same path as mine. To be fair... none of them were taken in by an immortal witch that sings sweet words of honey that corrupts your core, but that is besides the point. In the end, I grew to be quite powerful in my own right, but alas, I still died a pathetic death fitting for a dog. My end was not brought about by a bout of strength or skill, but was the result of karma nurtured by my fatal flaws. My overambition, arrogance, impatience, and a slew of other characteristics made me blind to my weaknesses. There is a saying that even a blind tiger can be slayed by a mere child.

Then came my second life on a planet called Earth. Unlike the world of my first life, Grimm, Dust, and magic do not exist on Earth. For the most part, it is a peaceful planet harboring abundant resources and technology. Of course, there was the occasional war and struggle erupting between nations, but what else can you expect? Humans and conflict go hand in hand, and the tendency for waging war is in our nature. But despite that, Earth is, overall, a prosperous world. I was fortunate enough to be born into a loving family. My mother and father were an inseparable couple, and they both worked very hard to raise their children in a responsible manner. My younger siblings, despite being quite annoying at times, were always there as emotional support if life ever became tough. It was a good family that I'd do nothing to change. During this life, I had zero memories of my first, thus not having to bear its burdens. However, looking back, it seems that some things never change, as I held a strong interest in fighting and martial arts. I'm not one to toot my own horn, but I was pretty talented at both handling weaponry or hand to hand combat. At first, my parents were against it, wanting me to pursue more... normal avenues, but one they saw how serious I was about it, they quickly changed their minds and supported me. Heck, I once beat up some house thieves who had the gal to break into my siblings' room when my parents were out on a trip. My charisma must have carried over as well from my first life, since I was pretty popular amongst both male and females. Eventually, I met my husband, raised a family of my own, then passed away peacefully at the ripe old age of 85 while surrounded by my many loved ones. It was a good, fulfilling life with no lingering regrets.

Now, by this point, you are likely wondering why I am bothering to monologue about all of this. The truth is, instead of standing before the pearly gates of the afterlife, I am stuck in my third life, and this time, I can remember my previous lives. Apparently, I hit my head during a training session and am physically laying down unconscious. Mentally, I am forced to digest all of these foreign, yet greatly familiar memories streaming into my head. Seriously, is this some kind of cruel cosmic joke? Can this even be counted as my third life? I'll have to tread carefully moving forward, for I have little desire to meet a tragic end.

I slowly squint my eyes open and glance sideways, finding Emerald looking down at me with a worried expression. I blink several times to adjust to the light and quickly take in my surroundings. A cabin.

"Cinder, are you alright?"

'... I was hoping that this was all but a dream.'

That's right. I have returned as Cinder Fall, but armed with the memories of my first and second lives. If you think that this is a tad bit confusing, why don't you trying putting yourself in my shoes? It's taking nearly all of my currently existing willpower not to scream into the sky.

"How long have I been unconscious? In fact, that is today's date?"

"It's been close to 5 hours since you hit your head," Emerald replies.

"And the date?" I calmly remind her. "My mind is feeling rather cloudy at the moment. I strongly suspect that I am suffering from the effects of a minor concussion."

With concern etching her face, Emerald replies once more.

"It's the half moon of the 13th month."

"Half moon of the 13th..." I mutter. "This next question will sound strange, but how old am I?"

"Are... you sure you're alright, Cinder?"

I lightly smile at her, wondering to myself why I treated her so terribly in my first life. Of course, that is a rhetorical question. In many ways, Emerald reminds me of my younger sister back on Earth.

"That is why I am asking. I must ensure that I am in the right state of mind," I patiently reply. "It is not unheard of for one to become delirious after hitting their head. Would it not be rather unfortunate if we did not address a potential problem before it festers?"

"Um... I guess that makes sense?" Emerald admits after giving it some thought. "Well, to answer your question, you're 18."

'18 on the half moon of the 13th month... It is as I suspected. So that event is going to happen very soon. How troublesome.'

"I see," I nod. "And where is Mercury?"

Emerald lightly scowls.

"He's scouting out our target. Can you believe that he showed little to no concern for your wellbeing earlier?"

"Hmm. From his perspective, it is understandable. We are in a contractual relationship, and by no means is he obligated to treat you or me as anything but."

"... But I don't think of you like that," Emerald quietly whispers to herself.

I tilt my head at that. How both adorable and tragic. Emerald is mainly attached to me because she has no one else that validates her existence. What do they call this back on Earth? I believe it's called dependent personality disorder? My previous self took full advantage of this weakness, and Emerald obediently followed like a dog, no matter how dismissive or cruel I was to her. In the end, she died as nothing but a tool that has outlived her usefulness. Thankfully, her mental state is not so extreme yet, but it will still take some time for her to break out of this mold.

"I know you don't," I sigh, eliciting a surprised look from Emerald. "Perhaps Mercury's opinion of us will change over time, but it will ultimately be up to him."

Emerald stares at me with a mixture of utter confusion and uncertainty.

"You... seem a little different than usual," she comments, then quickly corrects herself. "U-Uh, I mean- I didn't mean that in a bad way-"

"It's fine," I lightly chuckle while shaking my head. "Mmm... Perhaps you're right that I am indeed a little different. Is it a bad change?"

"No!" Emerald instantly replies. "I-I think that it's a good thing. N-Not that you were bad before!"

The corner of my mouth lifts up in amusement. Sensing someone approaching us, I glance towards the cabin entrance and sit up on the bed.

Emerald looks back at the door as it swings open and Mercury strolls inside.

"Oh. So you're finally awake," he casually comments before sitting down. "Who would have thought that you of all people would be knocked out like that?"

"She could have been seriously hurt," Emerald glares.

"You're kidding, right?" He scoffs. "It's weird that she lost consciousness in the first place. It's not like she was out of Aura or something."

While what Mercury is stating is true, that only applies under more normal circumstances. The incident during training occurred because of a sudden influx of memories, overloading my mind and shutting down the body. Imagine a sledgehammer slamming repeatedly against the inside of your skull. Not a pleasant experience, and anyone would be incapacitated by that.

"Stranger things have happened," I calmly respond. "Aura is not a fully understood topic, so who can definitively say what is can or can not do?"

"Yeah, whatever," Mercury shrugs. "Anyways... you want the report now or later?"

"The Fall Maiden. Go ahead and give us the information you've gathered. We can not afford any more delays," I instruct.

'This is a pivotal moment. Depending on how this turns out, it will greatly affect future events.'

"Alright, so the Fall Maiden was last seen in-"

*** Later that night ***

A pair of bright amber eyes stares down impassively at a white glove folded neatly within a small container.

'This was the first major mistake in my first life. I gave little to no thought to the long term repercussions in using this, as I'd only seen the promise of greater power granted by the magic of the Fall Maiden. If at all possible, I'd very much like to avoid confronting Amber, but doing so will result in my death by Salem's hands. Right now, I do not have any ways of defending myself against her. Perhaps I could feign my death, but that is highly unlikely to succeed. Salem is no fool, and she is undoubtedly keeping a very close eye on this operation. Seek refuge with Ozpin? An unsavory choice, for both he and Salem are more similar than either would like to admit. The main difference is that he is not as murderous as that witch, though one would also easily argue that his personality is far more rotten. Honestly, I'd rather not deal with him, but if push comes to shove...'

Cinder closes the box with a light smirk on her face.

'This damn bug. Let's see you try imprisoning me within Salem's grasp this time. Tomorrow should be quite... interesting.'