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-CHAPTER START-

Realm R38Y

Inside Raven's tent, she and the girls gathered around a small table.

"So," Yang said, "what's the 'truth'?"

"The truth" Raven replied "is that 'truth' is hard to come by. A story of victory for one person is a story of defeat for someone else. By now, your uncle has surely told Ruby and her friends plenty of stories."

"Well, he's never given me a reason to doubt him before."

"That doesn't mean those reasons don't exist. You know, you and your teammates might as well be the poster children for the Hunter Academies. Your motives vary, but you all enrolled to try and make the world a better place. It's adorable."

"It's what Hunters do."

"Not all of them. Some people are just in it for the money and the fame, but there's even more who are just looking to grow stronger. Your Uncle Qrow and I didn't attend Beacon to become Hunters; we did it to learn how to kill Hunters."

Yang and Weiss gasped, exchanging a shocked look.

"Daddy and Uncle Qrow left that part out, hm?" Raven remarked. "Aside from the Grimm, Hunters were the only ones capable of ruining our raids and hunting us down. Our tribe needed a counterforce. And Qrow & I were the perfect age." She stood. "The entrance exams were child's play compared to what we'd already been through. We were good. So good, that we caught the attention of Beacon's very own Headmaster, Professor Ozpin. Even after we were put on a team, I could tell he was keeping his eye on us. Back then, I thought it was because he knew, but it was Team STRQ as a whole he was interested in."

"What do you mean by that?" Yang asked.

"Constant attention, extra training missions, turning a blind eye whenever we happened to break the rules and get into more trouble than we should've… Sound familiar?"

Yang & Weiss shared another glance. "What's your point?" Yang asked.

"How much do you know about Professor Ozpin? About his past?"

"He was… a prodigy" Weiss answered. "One of the youngest headmasters to be appointed to a school."

"Because that's how he planned it. Because the man you know is Ozpin designed those schools and has followers inside every Academy on Remnant that are loyal to him and no-one else."

"That doesn't make any sense!" Yang snapped. "How could he have…? No. Why would someone even do that?"

"Because old man Oz has a great and terrible secret. One that could spread fear across the world. One that he eventually entrusted to our team, and once I knew, there was no going back. I needed to know more, but with every new discovery I made, the more horrifying the world became."

"…He told you all about Salem" Weiss realized. "And when you realized just what you were up against, you eventually got too scared and ran for it."

Raven growled. "You two were apparently brought into the know with a whole army of super-powered individuals and advanced logistics at your backs. We weren't so lucky. All we knew was that Ozpin and Salem had been engaged in an endless shadow war, a war that could never be truly won – because Salem is hundreds of years old, if not thousands, is a powerful and deadly mage, can command the Grimm, has multiple powerful humans & Faunus working for her, and has such a potent regenerative factor that she can shrug off being stabbed through the heart, set on fire, or even being torn in half!"

She sighed, fingers on her temples. "Part of my Semblance lets me sense whenever someone I'm 'bonded' to is in mortal peril. Qrow had a close call in the big final clash against the Ainsworth Patriarch, so I got curious when I sensed just how far away he was and popped through to check. As a result, I saw just what some of the DDF's big-shots are capable of – that little white-haired girl, shrouded in silver light and awesome power… I also caught a few snippets of the clashes against those 'Seekers'. With what some of the DDF's more powerful mages and Aura-users are capable of, maybe they can do the impossible and bring Salem down. But maybe that can't. And if Salem's got two more allies, equal to her in power and with their own powerful underlings and dark creatures, the odds are again tilted against us. It looks like victory may still be impossible. And it's definitely impossible if you stick to Oz's plans; the old man can't grasp how futile his efforts are, even after so many lifetimes…"

"So many lifetimes?" Weiss asked.

Raven nodded. "Professor Ozpin is just the latest of his incarnations. Hundreds or thousands of years ago, the Brother Gods – who, yes, were real – cursed him for failing to defeat Salem. Whenever Oz dies, his spirit is reincarnated in the body of a like-minded individual somewhere on Remnant. Eventually, the new vessel's soul is merged with and subsumed by Oz's, though memories transfer over. To his credit, Oz isn't exactly keen on consuming the soul of whatever poor bastard he gets stuck in, but he doesn't have any choice or control over the process. He's been trying to beat Salem all this time, over countless 'vessels'… and he's always failed. And if you follow him, you'll fail too.

"Girls… For your own safety, do not get involved."

"…We already are" Weiss replied. "Even before we knew about Salem, we were already dragged in. Ruby has some kind of mystical anti-Grimm power in her eyes, which makes her a priority target for Salem. And our other teammate, Blake Belladonna, used to be in the White Fang until she got sick of their extremism and left. Unfortunately, her old 'partner' was Adam Taurus, and he's so incensed that she left him that he's dead-set on 'punishing' her by killing everyone she cares about. The Grimm were helping him & his people during the Fall of Beacon, which means he's already got connections to Salem. Connections he'll probably end up using to track us down and kill us in order to hurt Blake."

Raven sighed, face in her hands; Summer's daughter had inherited her Silver Eyes, and that bloodthirsty psychopath Taurus was working with Salem to go after Yang in a revenge-by-proxy against her teammate… "…You could stay here; make a fresh start. Adam Taurus is good, but he's not on my level; if he shows his face here, coming for either of you, I'll take his head. You don't have to follow Oz."

"…You're right on that last bit" Yang replied. "Ozpin seems to be the deepest involved in this whole mess, know the most about Salem and fighting her, but if he turns out to not be the best choice in the long run, I can ask some other DDF big-names to lead the charge, like Tsunade or Master Yen-Sid. …But I won't abandon my little sister. Ever. So I ask, again, that you send us to her."

Raven let out a long, frustrated sigh. "You've made your choice… But if you're so hell-bent on sticking with Ruby, I hope you're ready to convince her not to take everything her Uncle and Oz tell you girls at face value. And if that fails, drag her out of that mess by the ear if you have to. And watch out if Ozpin offers you a 'gift'."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Weiss asked. "It's not… something inappropriate, is it?"

"What? No, that's not what I meant. Oz is a stubborn old fool, but he's not a creep. What I mean is…"

Then, before the duo's eyes, she transformed into a bird – a raven. Flying around the tent a few times, she then shifted back to human form in front of the stunned, jaw-dropped girls.

"He 'convinced' me and Qrow to accept his 'offer' of magical power – the power to turn into our namesake birds so we could spy on Salem's people and on the Maidens. Forcing this curse on us…"

"Forcing?" Weiss asked, eyebrow quirked. "Or was it a genuine offer that you chose to accept, only to later lose faith in the fight against Salem and flee?"

"…"

"Right. Yang, let's go."

-Break-

Qrow sighed as he sank into the outdoor patio chair, despondent. Every single Mistrali Hunter he'd looked for turned out to be either dead or MIA (meaning they were dead and nobody'd found their bodies). "This isn't right. I get one or two of them, but… all of them?"

Suddenly, he heard a familiar sound behind him, a portal being torn into existence.

"Raven?"

Spinning around, he heard the sound of a motorcycle's engine, and…

"…Oh"

-Break-

In the house, the kids were getting dinner ready; Ruby, Terra, and Ren were cooking, Jaune and Pyrrha were setting the table,Nora and Pirika were cutting the veggies (with Nora occasionally eating carrot slices).

"Alright," Ren said, "the first batch is just about done."

"Awesome!" Ruby cheered. "Now we just need Qrow and we'll be all set."

"Do you really think he's gonna bring that many people?" Nora asked through a mouthful of carrot. "This is a lot of food."

"Uh, I don't know, but it sounds like we could use all the help we can get."

"I'm back!" Qrow called from the door.

"Be right there!" Ruby replied.

Terra looked at Ruby's food. "You're gonna overcook that."

"No I'm not!"

"Hey, uh, Ruby?" Qrow called again.

"I'm coming!" She groaned as smoke began to rise from her pan. "Fine, you take over."

Grabbing the tea tray, she headed into the living room. "Okay, so, we didn't know how many people are coming, so we just cooked all of it-"

Looking up, she saw her teammates, and dropped the tea tray (with Pyrrha reflexively catching it with her Semblance).

"Sorry we took so long" Yang said with a small smile – the first genuine smile she'd had in weeks. She then staggered as Ruby tackle-hugged her, holding her smaller sister close; with one arm, without even looking, she also reached for Weiss and pulled her into the hug.

-Break-

After a little time catching up and telling each other about what they'd been up to – from the battle against the Elder Nuckelavee, to how Weiss was part of a TSAB-led operation against a Lancer Grimm swarm that saw her killing the enormous Lancer Queen – the whole gang gathered in the living room to discuss more serious mattes. This included Ozpin and Qrow filling in whatever Raven hadn't, including the details about the Maidens and the Relics.

"So, Yang said, "now we know what Salem's after: the Relics. …I wish I woulda known my mom had the Spring Maiden before I had her send us here."

"Um," Weiss spoke up, "can we talk about the fact that Ozpin, or whatever the reincarnating soul's name is, gave her and Qrow the ability to transform into birds?"

"Wait, what?" Jaune asked.

Ozpin nodded. "Like the Maidens, I possess magical power. Using this power, I was able to turn the Branwen twins into 'animagi', enabling them to assume corvid form at will. Granting them this power was no trivial task, and I can assure you it was not done frivolously. I required assistance in gathering information on Salem's plans, as well as searching for Maidens when their hosts became unclear."

"Okay, so," Ruby asked, "have you done this with others? Like General Ironwood? Or Professor Goodwitch?"

"As helpful as that might be, unfortunately, it is not that simple. My power is finite, and if I'm being honest, dwindling. The amount that I gifted to Qrow and Raven was, all things considered, rather miniscule. You see, centuries ago, I sacrificed a great deal of magic to four young women, who I hoped would use my gift for good. They were the first Maidens."

"We both chose to accept Oz's gift" Qrow said. "It was only later that my sister chickened out and ran away from the fight."

"She seemed pretty convinced that Salem was 'nigh-unstoppable'" Weiss said. "She told us that Salem has a potent regeneration factor; according to Raven, even being stabbed through the heart or torn in half won't kill her."

Several of the young heroes looked worried at that. "I wonder just how far it can go" Jaune mused. "I mean, the DDF's Evangeline McDowell can regenerate from even a single, partially-intact cell, and so could that Cell guy the Z-Fighters dealt with years ago. If Salem's regeneration is that potent, dealing with her will be… really hard."

"But not impossible" Terra replied. "There are weapons and powers that can destroy someone that thoroughly."

"For now," Ren said, "we should focus on the next battle instead of one much farther ahead – keep training for what's probably coming here."

Just then, the television came to life, bearing the symbol of an emergency DDF-enabled CCT global broadcast. The gang were surprised to see not a DDF official or a Kingdom leader, but Sienna Khan, High Leader of the White Fang.

"You're live, Sienna."

"Faunus of the world, please hear me…"

They all watched and listened as the broadcast played on, the transmission cutting off once Sienna was done speaking.

"Great…" Qrow groaned. "Adam Taurus has joined Team Salem."

"Hopefully," Ozpin said, "Sienna's speech will result in a sizable drop in Taurus' followers; perhaps only the true zealots and those utterly consumed by hatred will stay with him…"

Then, Ruby's Omnitool chimed with a private message relayed to her:

"R:

Be there soon.

-B"

She showed it to the others, and Weiss smiled. "The gang's gonna be back together. Though, it means Ozpin and Qrow are going to have to explain everything again…"

Qrow sighed.

-Break-

That evening, as the sun was about halfway below the horizon, a UT47 Kodiak flew in from the south, following R-W-Y's signals and setting down in the backyard. The side door slid open, and Blake hopped out with her luggage in hand.

"Thanks, Bray!" she called back into the cockpit.

"No problem, kiddo!" the Batarian waved back.

The dropship sealed back up as Blake and her Purrloin stepped away, lifting off and heading back south. Blake turned to her teammates and the others.

"So, what'd I miss?" she asked.

-Break-

Later

Branwen Camp

Shay D. Mann and two other bandits were guarding the camp's main entrance, chatting. Suddenly, a voice called out from the forest.

"Hey ugly!"

The trio, startled, looked out as two figures emerged from the treeline.

"Is Raven Branwen home?" Emerald asked, while Mercury stuck an arms-folded 'bad boy' pose next to her.

Shay sighed. "Y'know, I've had a real bad week. So, I think I'm gonna take it out on you-"

Then, three more figures emerged from the forest.

"It doesn't look like he wants to cooperate, Boss" Mercury said with a grin.

Cinder chuckled. "Then let's make him."

Mercury grinned, punching his fist. "I was hoping you'd say that. Quickstrike, care to join me?"

The Predacon chuckled. "You know it, pardner…"

-Break-

Sitting alone in her tent, sharpening her blade, Raven looked up as Vernal barged in.

"Raven, we have a problem" the young woman reported. "Salem's found us."

Raven's eyes widened. "Salem… okay."

"A group of her followers are waiting to speak with you."

"Right…" she stood. "We planned for this. Bring me my helmet."

Outside the tent, the villain quintet stood waiting, surrounded by wary bandits. Raven stepped out, mask on.

"I don't recall inviting so many guests into our home" she berated her guards. "Either I'm losing my memory, or you've all lost your spines!"

"Don't be too upset with them, Raven" Cinder replied. "Your men simply recognized the power of a Maiden when they see it." Her organic right eye and scar-surrounded synthetic left eye both glowed with spectral fire. "Which is why we'd like to have a word with you."

"…Leave us" Raven ordered her people. "Pack your things, then break down camp. We're moving."

"Little late to run and hide" Watts said. "You've been on Lady Salem's list for some time, so you must understand that we cannot allow you to slip away."

"I know all about your master and her two new partners, but I don't believe we've met, Mr. Moustache."

"Hmph." Arthur stroked his 'stache. "Your intelligence is a wee bit out of date. We have another new ally."

Quickstike chuckled. "Ol' Maleficent sprung my boss outta the hoosegow, an' then she used her magic to bring me an' three of my old buddies back from the dead so we c'n fight for 'im again!"

"Technically," Cinder said, "the Cybertronians' souls are a bit more… material than what most organics have. Maleficent didn't so much resurrect them as reach back in time, pluck their 'Sparks' from the moments before they would have been extinguished, brought them forward to the present day and put them in new, empty bodies. Sadly, the biggest and strongest of them couldn't be brought forward without triggering a temporal paradox, so we only got four…"

Raven tried to show a calm façade, helped by her mask; Salem and the other two sorceresses had another ally, one the Dimensional Defense Force didn't even know about yet…

"This belligerent ball of Southern violence is Quickstrike," Cinder introduced, "I am Cinder Fall, and this is my associate Arthur Watts, and my disciples Emerald & Mercury."

"Two children you've tricked into following you," Raven surmised, "a disgraced Atlesian scientist, and a Fall Maiden with a surname so appropriate, she probably picked it herself. Something tells me you've got more than a slight case of egomania, is that about right?"

Watts cleared his throat. "Technically, I was also a doctor, but I must say, the rest was spot-on."

"Aren't you perceptive…" Cinder remarked dryly.

"It's what's kept me alive" Raven replied.

"I'm afraid the only reason you're still alive is because you have something our Masters want. Of course, if I'm wrong…" She conjured a small flame.

"…Vernal!" Raven called into the tent, and the young woman in question stepped out and stood beside her.

"So, this is the long-lost Spring Maiden…" Cinder said. "Prove it."

Raven nodded to Vernal, who closed her eyes and held her hands out. The wind began to pick up, and the sky overhead turned grey as clouds covered the blue. Leaves blew in the strengthening wind, and thunder crackled. Cinder smirked at the confirming display. Vernal then relaxed, the wind and clouds settling down.

"Vernal has done well under my guidance" Raven said. "I'd take that into consideration before trying anything, if I were you."

"Raven…" Cinder replied. "I won't underestimate you, so please don't insult my intelligence. There is a chance, however slim, that you and your Maiden could escape today, but if you know our master as well as you claim to, then you know you could never truly escape her. But we come bearing an olive branch."

Watts stepped forward. "The Maidens are merely a means to an end. Salem's true desires are the Relics locked inside the Hunter Academies. Come with us. Allow Vernal here to unlock the Relic of Knowledge, and all previous acts of defiance against Salem will be forgiven. It's the best deal either of you are going to get."

"You talk as if walking straight into Haven will be easy" Raven said, suspicious.

"That's because it will be" Cinder replied. "Headmaster Lionheart is loyal to Salem. And now, all we need is the key to the vault. …You're not the only one to turn their back on Oz, Raven."

Raven gripped her sword's hilt. "I'm not helping Salem, and I'm not helping Oz! I don't want a part in any of this!"

"That ship sailed when you chose to harbor a Maiden. But if you come with us to Haven, we'll leave you, your tribe, and your little secret to live out the rest of your lives squabbling in the wilderness. We just… need… the Relic."

"I need time to think this over."

"You don't have time" Watts replied. "In two days, Haven Academy will be destroyed by the White Fang. You're going to choose now."

"…Backed me into a corner, huh?"

"So," Cinder said, "are you with us, or against us?"

Raven was quiet for a moment, doing her best to string together a plan. "…Agreements like this are built on trust. And forgive me for saying, but I don't trust a single one of you. You're going to need to give me more."

"You are in a poor position to negotiate" Watts said.

"I want my brother dead."

That unexpected declaration left the villain quintet momentarily stunned.

"Qrow?" Cinder asked.

"That's right. He knows I have Spring. And if I help you get your Relic, he's going to become a problem. I have enough problems to deal with. Qrow doesn't trust me, but he does trust Ozpin's other lieutenants. If Leo really is loyal to you, then you can order him to invite Qrow into an ambush. He arrives at Haven, we take him down, you get your Relic, and we all leave happy."

Cinder smirked. "Now this is a proposition I can get behind."

"Alright ladies," Watts stepped in, "let's pause for a moment. We have one objective: retrieving the Relic of Knowledge. Now, Qrow Branwen may be on our list of individuals we would very much like dead, but he's not going to go down without a fight, and he's not going to fight quietly. Our advantage here is just as you said – we walk straight into Haven, no resistance, no-one the wiser. A battle with your brother throws all that out the window."

"He's good," Raven replied, "but not that good. All of us against him? It'll be over in a heartbeat."

"But it's not just him" Emerald said. "He has the students with him. He has Ruby!"

"He certainly does…" Cinder replied.

"If we leave that school a bloody mess," Watts said, "we will draw the attention of the authorities! The Kingdom will be on high alert, and the White Fang's attack will be ruined!"

"Then we wait. We wait until the full moon. Leo invites Qrow and his little fighters to Haven the same night Hazel and Adam arrive with the White Fang. As soon as the battle is won, the White Fang demolishes Haven, and any evidence we may have left behind is lost along with the school."

"Then, Salem leaves my people alone" Raven added. "For good."

"You have yourself a deal."

Cinder held out a hand to shake Raven's, but Watts grabbed her wrist.

"Wait" the slender man said. "Don't think I don't see what you're after. If this falls to pieces over your grudge with a child, I will not be taking the blame."

"Then what are you worried about?" she flared her Maiden powers, singeing his hand. "Fly back home and tinker with your machines. And tell Salem she'll get what she wants… and more."

-Break-

At the house, Weiss knelt down in front of her Eevee.

"Last chance. Are you sure about this?" she asked.

The little Eevee nodded, a determined look on her face. As everyone watched, the little cat-fox-mon placed her paw on the Ice Stone on the ground in front of her. Her body became a mass of light that grew and shifted, the surrounding air becoming chillier as flurries of spectral snow flickered. Soon, the light faded, and the newly-evolved Glaceon smiled up at her Trainer.

"Not much time left" Ruby said. "You two will have to work fast to get a handle on her new abilities. Think you can do it?"

Weiss smirked. "A Schnee never backs down from a challenge, and that includes an adopted Schnee like my little partner here."

Glaceon yipped in agreement.

-Break-

Raven sat on her bed, head in her hands. Then, she heard someone enter.

"Yes, Vernal?" she asked without looking up.

"I followed them as you asked" the young woman reported.

"Did they spot you?"

She scoffed. "Of course not. They have a ship two klicks west of here; looks like they're stating there for the night."

"Thank you, Vernal. Anything else?'

"Do you… actually believe they'll let us go once they have the Relic?"

"Of course not. They'll never leave us alone. Once our purpose has come and gone, we'll be discarded. Salem only uses people until they are no longer useful. If we want to have any chance of defending ourselves against her, then we need this Relic. If Qrow and those kids want to follow Ozpin, then let them. When the chaos reaches its peak, we'll grab the Relic and make our escape."

"And the fact that your daughter will be a part of all that?"

"…She's made her choice. This path won't be easy for us, either, but we must do what's right for the tribe."

"I know. I'll do whatever it takes."

"Good."

-Break-

Qrow and Ozpin-in-Oscar's-body sat together, discussing.

"Things aren't looking good, Oz."

"Ever the optimist…" Oz took a sip of tea. "While I would not say our current predicament is… ideal, I think we can both agree that the situation could be much worse. Humanity is a resilient force."

"Oz, pro Hunters like that don't just bite it all at once. Salem's powerful. It seems like her reach is growing by the day. What does that say about humanity?"

"That there are indeed a misguided few who have filled their hearts with malice. It doesn't take a great number of people to cause harm, but I still believe there are far more people in this world willing to prevent it."

Suddenly, Qrow's scroll began vibrating. He took it out, saw that it was from Lionheart, and answered the call.

"Yeah? …Okay… Yeah, we'll be there."

"Who was that?" Ruby asked as she walked in.

Qrow sighed. "It was Leo – says he had a breakthrough with the council. Thinks he might be able to get together a small raiding party for the bandits. He wants us to meet up at the school tomorrow night to walk us through it."

Ruby gasped and grinned. "Really?! That's great! I'll round up the others!"

As Ruby ran out, Oz pondered. "That sounds drastically different from your original conversation, does it not?"

"It does" Qrow replied.

"Interesting…"

"Things aren't looking good, Oz."

"I know…"

-Break-

In Lionheart's office, the traitor Headmaster stared at the 'CALL ENDED' holoscreen in front of him. Raven stood nearby.

"I still have questions for you" she said.

"You're not alone in that."

"You know, I never expected you would be the one to have the guts to betray Oz. Which makes me wonder, what does she have on you?"

"I'm helping her for the same reason you are: I'm afraid. We… We can't stop her… No-one can…"

"That's why I tried to leave when I did. I'm not afraid, I'm smart."

"You can call it whatever you want; it doesn't really matter. We're here… helping her." He buried his face in his hands. "I've crossed a line… I've done things Ozpin will never forgive, and he shouldn't! I don't know where I go from here."

"Man up! You did what you had to do to survive; there is no shame in that."

Leonardo didn't buy it for a second. "Who are you trying to convince?"

Raven said nothing, leaving the room as she left Leonardo alone with his guilt.

-CHAPTER END-

Next Time: The Battle of Haven