Chapter 4

Stella raised an eyebrow slightly, confused by the question, "I'm sorry, but I can't say I understand the question..."

He shook his head, "Please, remove the hood, this is a school after all. We already their stories, but almost nothing of yours. What I want to know is: Why do you fight for this Guardian group?"

Now it was Stella's turn to consider her answer. Reluctantly, she lowered the hood, ignoring the gasp of surprise from Glynda, "Well, I don't... I help them out, but I can never consider myself part of the Vanguard. Partially because I'm an Awoken, and staying among the primarily human Vanguard makes me uncomfortable, and partly because I never started out as a Guardian... Most newly created Guardians are either picked up by a more experienced Guardian, or somehow manage to make it to the Last City. I ended up being taken to The Awoken Queen after I had a run in with the House of Wolves, a Fallen house allowed to the Awoken."

The headmaster rubbed his face, wishing he had brought some tea with him, "When you say, newly created, what exactly does that entail?"

She sighed, "Well... Try to bear with with me... A Guardian doesn't choose to be one. Before the Traveler was severely damaged by the Hive, it managed to give one last technological gift to the dying human race, Ghosts. It was their job to seek out those who could become Guardians... And bring them back from the dead. I had been dead for over two and a half thousand years before Little Light found me."

Ozpin refrained from outright accusing Stella of lying, "So, you're saying that your floating friend here, resurrected you? Does this happen often?"

"Err... Which part? The Ghosts bringing long dead bodies back to life, or Little Light resurrecting me?"

The headmaster worked his jaw, rendered speechless by what Stella was hinting at, You... Dead... How? Are you seriously expecting me to believe that you have been brought back from the dead multiple times?!"

She nodded slowly, "Well... Yes. I would demonstrate it here, but we are much too far away from the Traveler, and there's not enough Light to feel comfortable with attempting it. You'll just have to take my word for it."

Professor Ozpin shook his head, "If you say so, Miss. Black... Now, you were referring to not being a part of this Vanguard. Would you care to elaborate?"

She nodded, "When I was resurrected, it was in an area of Earth claimed by the House of Wolves. I managed to find a weapon to defend myself, but instead of killing the first Fallen I fired upon, the weak gun only managed to give the Dreg a mild concussion. So, against my Ghost's wishes, I decided to take a closer look at what I was supposed to be killing...

"The bullet actually dented the Dreg's helmet, and the alien could barely stand up. At first, it only growled at me in the Fallen language, but then it switched to English and actually told me to kill it."

Light quipped, "To which I wholeheartedly agreed..."

Stella rolled her eyes and continued, "Well, I wasn't about to kill someone when I had no clue what the hell was going on, so I decided to help it. Thus began the strangest arguement ever... While we were debating whether I was supposed to kill him, I have honestly never heard someone argue for killing themselves... Anyway, while that was going on, we missed the fact that every Fallen patrol within a ten kilometre radius had converged on our location and were watching us, including the Dreg's father, a Fallen Captain. Surprised by my lack of hostility, he began questioning me.

Light had explained a bit about what the Guardians did, and I didn't feel right with just going in and wiping out anything that moved and wasn't human, Awoken, or EXO. After all, that's what the Darkness did. Again, the Captain was confused, but since I spared his son, he decided to not kill me. Instead, he took me to the Awoken Queen, who decided that I would serve under her instead of the Vanguard."

Ozpin remained silent for a moment, trying to process the massive amount of information being sent his way, "What happened next?"

"The Fallen trained me, the Queen taught me diplomacy, and I learned how to conduct military and diplomatic operations on Venus, Earth, Mars, and the Moon. Eventually, I became an honorary member of the House of Wolves, and a Captain. It was around that time that the Vanguard began hearing rumors of a Guardian who fought alongside Fallen and parleyed with the Cabal. I had been living with the Fallen for about four and a half years by then, and considered them and the Queen as family. Even her brother was warming up to me, and that prat must be the biggest prick in history...

"I think it was after a particularly violent mission against the Vex on Venus that the Vanguard came knocking on the proverbial door. We had received word that the Vanguard Generals were coming to the Reef and they wanted me to return as soon as possible. I left Tony, the Captain's son I had spared, Tono is the Fallen word for Son, so I just decided to call him Tony... I left him in charge of the clean up, and rushed back to the Reef."

Glynda raised an eyebrow, "Let me guess, this group of generals weren't too pleased by your actions?"

She nodded,"Not particularly, especially Zavala and Cayde-6, the Titan and Hunter Generals. Ikora Rey however, seemed more curious than anything. Anyways, they managed to make me go with them to the Guardian's Tower in the Last City. There, they tried to convince me that what I had done was wrong. The Fallen were just a bunch of bloodthirsty bandits and the Cabal were complete monsters. I tried to tell them that I was actually a part of the House of Wolves, and that we were allied to the Queen..." Her eyes attained a livid green glow as she continued. "Then they told me that my Queen couldn't be trusted. That she was almost considered an enemy to the Vanguard."

Ozpin frowned, "I am going to assume that you didn't take that very well?"

Stella shook her head,"They had to pry Cayde from the side of the tower, and Zavala ended up with a boot planted where the sun doesn't shine. The only reason I didn't do something similar to Ikora, is because she actually listened to me. Ironically, she's the only human. Zavala is an Awoken, and Cayde is an EXO, an extremely advanced Android."

Ozpin glanced at Glynda, who shook her head, "You attacked the people who were supposed to be your leaders because they insulted this Awoken Queen?"

"No. I attacked them because they're just a bunch of narrow minded hypocrites who need some sense knocked into them. Them insulting the woman I considered a very close friend, even a sister, just added to their pain."

Ozpin couldn't help but smile. It seemed that the girl was an idealist, who would defend those she cared for with every breath she had. He just had to make sure... "What about these other three races, the Vex, Hive, and Taken? Why didn't you try to make peace with them?"

Stella shrugged, "There are some things you just can't reason with. Corrupted souls, Magic zombies, and homicidal robots are just three of them."

Ozpin laughed, "Well said, Guardian. Now, I have a little proposition to make for the four you. As you know, each of you are looking for a safe haven, however I cannot just let you stay here. Atlas would be at my neck if I was found harboring three criminals and an illegal alien. However, if you were to become students here, I could pass you off as foreign exchange students who arrived late in the year."

Emerald and Mercury looked at each other, silently debating what they should do. Mercury gave up after only a few seconds, and his partner nodded, "We'll do it. Just as long as you can keep us out of prison."

Neo seemed to be of the same mind, nodding her assent, albeit much more hesitantly.

Ozpin smiled at them before turning to Stella, "Miss Black? I need an answer..."

Stella frowned, considering her options. Ozpin was right. She was an illegal alien stranded on an unknown planet... This human was offering her asylum, and she knew this was her best option. There was just one thing... "I need to make a few conditions."

"Of course. Just say what you need, and I will see what can be done."

She cleared her throat, "First, the Arcadia. It needs to be repaired. I don't know what materials you have on this rock, but I bet I can at least get the main engines and communications system going again. Second, the Dust material on this planet, I would like to study it in depth. Third..." The Guardian paused, searching for that magical third item. Her eyes landed on Neopolitan, who was struggling to stay awake now, and an idea popped into her head. "This concerns Roman Torchwick. I would like to have a team from this Academy bring him here. I doubt that he is still in the same location now, but when he resurfaces, I would rather not have the regular law enforcement deal with him."

Ozpin nodded, "I believe we can easily satisfy the first two conditions, and I will do my best to assist with the third one. However, there is a small requirement, one that you would have needed anyway. Here at Beacon, all students must go through a rigorous initiation. Just a formality, I assure you, but it can be a bit dangerous."

Stella deadpanned, "Sir, you're telling that to a girl who regularly fights sentient beings hell bent on tearing me apart. I will consent to your initiation. Thank you for doing this, Mr. Ozpin."

The headmaster stood and nodded, "A little word of advice, seeing as you will be a student here. You will address the adults in charge as Professor, or Doctor in Oobleck's case. I will have some sleeping bags sent up here for tonight. Try to get some sleep you four. I expect to see you at Initiates Drop at eight o'clock sharp. Guardian, I suggest that you figure out a way to hide your alien technology. You have my permission to access the library archives for help... Good night..."