"Hey, new guy!" One of Barry's co-workers called, "We're heading out for drinks. Wanna join us?"
"Oh, uh, no. No, I'm alright," Barry said, looking up from the history book he was reading.
Being the newest forensic scientist and having this be his first day, Barry wasn't given anything to work on, instead, another scientist was assigned to show him the ropes. Barry wasn't an egotistical person, but he knew that he'd run circles around the other scientists even without his powers, so not getting any cases to work on was frustrating. The lights in the office went dark, and Barry turned on his desk light to continue reading. Barry was fascinated by Remnant. Dust, Grimm, Faunus, and Huntsmen, everything was straight out of a fairy tale. While Barry was more of a sci-fi man, he'd take what he could get.
Hours later, Barry looked at his watch. It was 8:15, he was meant to meet Haven's headmaster at 7:00.
"New world, same old me," Barry groaned before he raced off, changing into his red t-shirt and golden and red pads on the fly.
In less than ten seconds Barry arrived in the Headmaster's office at Haven academy. Viewing the world through a single instant, Barry looked around the half-circle room. It was a mess, to say the least. There were boxes, papers, and books that were strewn everywhere. Above his head was a loft which was equally messy, turning around, Barry found bookcases adorning each wall beside the door he just came in. Finally was the man sitting behind a desk. He was middle-aged with gray hair and wearing a mantle over a coat, which was over a brown vest and white dress shirt with a necktie Barry remembered seeing in old cowboy movies.
Barry let time resume and the wind in his wake picked up loose papers and flung them about. The man sitting in a chair behind the desk screamed and leaned back too far in his chair, falling to the ground.
"Professor Lionheart?" Barry asked tentatively, looking at the name plaque on his desk, then to the man lying on the ground.
"Who are you?" Professor Lionheart asked, scrambling away from Barry.
"Barry Allen," Barry said matter of factly, extending his hand.
"And why are you here, Barry Allen?" Lionheart asked, one foot moving back, his upper body contorting into a combat stance.
"Ozpin sent me," Barry said, putting his hands up, trying to defuse the man.
"Ozpin…? Yes, yes, right. Ozpin told me he'd be sending his newest operative. You're late," Lionheart said, leaving the combat stance and becoming more relaxed.
"Sorry about that," Barry said sheepishly, "It's kinda my thing. Barry Allen, chronically late."
"So why are you here, Mr. Allen?" Lionheart asked.
"I moved into the area and Ozpin wanted me to introduce myself," Barry said, rubbing his neck before he perked up, "By the way, I heard that these schools have forges."
"Yes, they do. Do you have a weapon that needs tuning up?" Lionheart asked looking over Barry for signs of a weapon.
"Not exactly," Barry said, taking a crumpled piece of paper out of his pocket and showing it to Lionheart.
"I think we can manage that. The forge is this way," Lionheart said, motioning to follow him.
Lionheart stood up from behind his desk and walked around the side, eyes flicking up and down Barry as he passed. They paused for a moment on the lightning bolt sloppily emblazoned across his chest with paint, a slight frown betraying his confusion. As he passed, Lionheart motioned with his hand for Barry to follow, holding the door open as he did so that the younger man could pass him by into the dimly lit hall, "If you don't mind me asking... what does the lightning bolt represent?"
"It's how I got my powers," Barry said.
"Powers? Do you mean Semblance?" Lionheart asked.
"No, a Semblance requires Aura, I don't have Aura. They're superpowers," Barry affirmed, information from one of the many books about Remnant and its people he'd read coming to the front of his mind.
"So that's how you just appeared in my office," Lionheart realized before he reprocessed what Barry said and asked," You got super speed from a lightning strike?"
"The lightning was an essential part of it, but not everything. The lightning struck me along with a few dozen chemicals that fell on top of me. I was in a coma for four months and when I woke up, I discovered I had super speed," Barry said, reliving the experience in vivid detail. The bolt of lightning throwing him back like a leaf in a hurricane, the burning chemicals splattering over his skin, slipping in and out of consciousness and the flashes of his childhood. His mother telling him to never lose hope and his father confessing to a crime he didn't commit in the hopes Barry would feel some closure.
"Amazing," Lionheart said after a brief silence before stopping in front of a steel door, "Well, here we are."
Lionheart pushed the doors open. It was a wide, cold room, many furnaces littered throughout and workbenches pushed against the walls. Barry flicked on a light and Lionheart walked over to a workbench and pulled out a drawer with weapon components scattered inside. Bary walked over and pulled a piece out, examined it, and put it back, doing the same to multiple pieces before he found one to his liking. Barry took a base piece and started building on it, other parts clicking into place as he went. In less than thirty seconds, Barry had his earpieces.
"Incredible," Lionheart breathed.
Seeing that his earpieces ranged in color from magenta to turquoise, Barry asked, "You have any paint?"
"Right over here," Lionheart said, walking over to grab a can when Barry zipped past him and found a can, cracking it open, and covering his earpieces in the paint.
"Now I need some glass," Barry said, setting his now golden earpieces down to dry.
"Being one of the foremost Huntsman academies on Remnant, we have access to the thinnest and strongest glass on Remnant," Lionheart said proudly before adding, "I trust you know how to do this? Because I certainly don't."
"Yup, glassmaking is just chemistry, I know everything about that," Barry assured him.
"Well, I'll leave you to it then," Lionheart said, leaving the forge and closing the door behind him.
Ten hours later, Barry held the completed red glass in his hands and fastened the earpieces on the ends. Barry put the newly completed goggles over his face and everything was tinted red. Barry then fastened the earpieces until they were comfortable and the curve for his nose fit comfortably over it. Barry looked at his watch. It was 6:30. Barry raced back to the apartment that General Ironwood was paying for and set the alarm clock on the 'scroll' also paid for by General Ironwood, for 8:30 and fell into bed.
ANOTOITE, VACUO, 1 MONTH EARLIER
A calm fountain of crystal blue water was disrupted when a gloved hand shot out and grasped the edge of the fountain. Leonard pulled himself up and out of the fountain's reflection and immediately started sweating, in no small part thanks to the heavy snow clothes he wore. The townspeople who were in sight stopped and stared in awe at the man that just pulled his entire body out of a six-inch fountain.
"What're you all lookin' at?" Leonard shouted waving them away, "Get lost!"
The townspeople scurried back to their normal business as the other Rogues climbed out of the fountain. Sam began fanning his face with his hand and asked Marco, "Hey, turn down the thermostat, will ya?"
"No, don't," Mick said.
"Why…? Oh. Right," Sam said, rolling his eyes.
"No, Sam's right. Marco, turn down the heat," Leonard ordered.
Marco waved his wand while Mick whined and the Rogues found relief from the blistering heat.
The townspeople stopped their activities and wondered what made the temperature drop so dramatically, some shivered, their clothing inadequate for the new weather, others turned to the strangely dressed men who had just climbed out of a foot deep fountain.
"I'm not gonna be able to keep this up forever, Len," Marco said.
"So I'd bet money that this is Vacuo, right?" Mick asked.
"There are a few other deserts on Remnant so we can't be certain, but it very well may be," Marco said.
"So what do we do now?" Sam asked.
"Ask around. Find the nearest place that isn't a dump. We'll meet back there in twenty," Leonard ordered, pointing at a saloon.
Looking around, Leonard found that the town they were currently in reminded him of a town from a western movie, like The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, or Tombstone.
Leonard approached the nearest local and asked, "Where are we?"
"You're one of the guys who crawled out of the fountain," the local replied, eyeing Leonard warily.
"Yes, I am. Can you tell me where we are?"
"How'd you do that?" the local asked, ignoring Leonard's question.
"Semblance. Can you tell me where we are?" Leonard asked, beginning to lose patience.
"Did you make it cold too?" the local asked, once again ignoring Leonard.
"Another Semblance. Can you tell me where I am?" Leonard said through grit teeth.
"You're in Anotoite, Vacuo, my friend," the local finally answered.
"Alright," Leonard said walking away, making his way down the street and into the saloon, ordering a drink, and waiting for the others. Fifteen minutes later, Sam sat down next to him.
"Any luck?" they asked at the same time.
A silence endured between them before Sam motioned for Leonard to speak first.
"We're in Anotiote, Vacuo," Leonard told Sam.
"Uh-huh," Sam said before telling Leonard, "The nearest city is Coquina, about twenty-five miles north-east."
As Sam finished his exposition, Mick sat down next to them, his gloves torn at the knuckles and bleeding.
"Mick?" Leonard asked.
Mick grunted.
"What the hell happened?"
"Some punk tried to jump me," Mick said, massaging his knuckles.
"And did you kill this punk?" Leonard asked.
"Nah. He's probably got a concussion now though," Mick said.
"Good," Leonard said.
"I also found some property for sale," Mick mentioned.
"Why the hell would we want property in this dump?" Sam asked.
"We're wanted by Atlas, Vale is gone, and Flash would never think to come here, so he's either hanging out in Mistral or Atlas," Mick reasoned.
"Okay, but why wouldn't we buy property in the capital?" Sam asked.
"We gotta lie low for a bit, the capital's too tempting," Leonard said.
Suddenly, thunder roared.
"Hey, guys?" Sam asked tentatively, "Where's Marco?"
As Sam uttered his name, rain began to pour, the wind picked up, and lightning cracked open the sky. Suddenly it became sunny and hot, then cold and snowy, the cycle continued for a good few minutes before it came to a head. The wind roared in the saloon patron's ears, the windows rattled and the doors flew open, scattering patrons and their drinks.
"What the hell is he doing?!" Leonard shouted, but Mick and Sam couldn't hear him. He couldn't hear himself.
Outside was black as night so the Rogues couldn't see what was happening but they assumed the town was being obliterated. Suddenly, it all stopped. The clouds parted and the sun came out.
As the disoriented patrons of the saloon got their bearings, Leonard rushed outside, pistol drawn, Sam and Mick doing the same, expecting Marco to strike them down.
What they didn't expect was for the town to be none the worse for wear, and the once dusty and sandy street to be lush and covered in plant life. As far as Leonard could see in either direction was a miracle. The once lifeless and barren wastes of Vacuo went green in minutes. The people of Anotoite oohed and ahhed at the wonder of nature and wondered what had caused this.
"What do you think?" Marco asked.
Leonard, Sam, and Mick all jumped out of their skin.
VALE, 2 WEEKS LATER
Roman and Neo trudged through the ruins of Vale. There were very few Grimm left but the cleanup would take years. Whenever a Grimm was found, it didn't stay alive for long. As Roman and Neo were finished off another group of Grimm they ran across and Atlas patrol.
The two groups stared at each other momentarily before the commanding officer tried to train his gun on Roman but was blown away by a shot from Melodic Cudgel. The other soldiers opened fire but Roman and Neo were on the move before the CO hit the ground.
Bullets pinged at Roman's heels and off of his exoskeleton as he dashed towards cover. Jumping and rolling behind and overturned car, Roman flipped the switch that raised the sight on Melodic Cudgel and leaned out of cover and taking a shot at a soldier.
While Roman was engaged in a firefight, Neo danced around the soldiers, slashing at unarmored legs, stabbing midsections, and throwing them off balance by grabbing their limbs with the hook of Hush.
Once Roman and Neo made sure the soldiers would not be getting back up, they continued along their way.
Upon arrival at the Industrial District, Roman started counting warehouses.
"Fifty-four, Fifty-five, fifty-six. Here we are!"
Roman pulled open one of the doors and inside was the airship he used to get away on the night he first met Red. The night things started going wrong. It was scratched and dented from the damage it sustained from the Huntress that saved Red's sorry butt, but far from inoperable.
Roman reached into his jacket and pulled a remote. Pointing it towards the airship and clicking it, the bay doors slid open and a ramp was lowered and Roman climbed inside, Neo hot on his heels.
Taking residence in the pilot's seat, which was rather uncomfortable thanks to his exoskeleton, Roman flipped a few switches to activate the necessary systems before activating the engine.
Roman carefully piloted the airship out of the warehouse before taking to the sky. Neo sat down next to him and pulled up a map of Remnant on her scroll before waving it in front of Roman's face.
"We're on our way to Vacuo. Vale is gone, and we're wanted by Atlas. It's best to lie low for a while and no place is better than Vacuo," Roman explained.
Neo shrugged, leaned back in the chair, and closed her eyes.
MISTRAL, PRESENT DAY
Barry woke to the sound of his scroll's alarm and swung his hand down on top of it. The alarm ceased and Barry stood up and did his morning routine in fifteen seconds. Barry stuffed his gear into a backpack and started walking towards the MPD.
Barry hated walking. All his life he'd been late to everything, but now that he had powers, he couldn't use them casually in order to preserve his cover. In twenty minutes, Barry finally arrived at the MPD and walked up to the lab. An hour passed before the lab started getting filled. "Why isn't anything getting done?" Barry asked one of his co-workers, who was reading on their scroll.
"I dunno, we haven't been getting work in almost a month," Barry's co-worker responded, not looking up from their scroll.
"A month?!" Barry screeched, "Do you know how many crimes have occurred in a month?!"
"No. Do you?"
"Too many, that's for sure!" Barry huffed, before stomping over to the Crime Lab Director's office.
Barry angrily rapped on the door but there was no answer. Barry tried two more times before he was told to come in.
Barry opened the door and stepped in before closing it behind himself.
Director Duke Silver sat behind his desk, playing some kind of game on his computer, "Can I help you?" he asked lazily, not looking up from his game.
"Sir, I can't help but wonder why the Crime Lab hasn't been getting any cases for the past month," Barry asked.
Duke didn't answer for a few moments, too engrossed in his game. It was as if the entire world didn't exist to him. Only the game. Barry cleared his throat and Duke looked up, before saying, "Oh, you're still here."
"Yes. Why hasn't Forensics been getting cases for the past month?" Barry asked, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets.
"Detectives have been busy with more important things."
"More important things?" Barry asked angrily, "What could be more important? Even if the detectives aren't available, why hasn't Forensics been collecting evidence?"
Duke didn't respond.
"Hello? Remnant to Duke?"
"Have a good day, Mr. Allen," Duke said dismissively.
Barry huffed and stomped over to his desk, grabbed the bag with his Flash gear before storming out of the building and onto the street. Barry was fuming. How could Forensics go a month without a case? Any evidence that could have been collected would be long gone. Dozens of crimes would go unsolved and the people and families would never get closure.
As Barry walked past a café, a familiar group caught his eye. Stopping and looking, Barry was surprised to see JNPR, Ruby, and another girl with white hair. Stopping, Barry pondered the idea before acting on it. Walking into the café, Barry ordered a drink before he took it outside and taking a deep breath, Barry approached the group of six. One foot in front of the next. Barry was nervous but he forged on, eventually reaching the group.
"Excuse me?"
Ruby jumped and turned around, "Yeah?"
"Uh, I hate to bother you but all the other tables are full and this seat is free… so can I sit here?" Barry asked.
Ruby looked to her group of friends who shrugged, clearly giving her the choice.
"Sure," Ruby said.
Barry sat down with his drink in hand and introductions went around. A few minutes of conversation passed and Barry was beginning to like the kids.
"So are you guys Huntsmen-in-Training?" Barry asked.
"Yeah, how'd you know?" Ruby asked.
"The armor," Barry said, pointing to Jaune and Pyrrha, before asking, "Don't Huntsmen-in-Training work in teams of four?"
"Yeah, but my sister got hurt real bad at Beacon so she's recovering back home with her partner," Ruby explained.
"You were at Beacon?" Barry asked, feigning surprise.
"Yes," Pyrrha said sadly, looking down, "We're here to investigate the Fall, the woman on the broadcast said she was from Mistral, so when I was sent home for treatment, Ruby and Weiss volunteered to come with me and my team to investigate."
"Investigate, huh? I know a thing or two about that. I'm a forensic scientist," Barry said.
"Really?" Weiss asked.
"For all the good it's doing. Forensics hasn't had a case in a month!" Barry ranted, "The director of the crime lab says there are more important things for detectives to be doing!"
"Maybe it has something to do with Huntsmen going missi-" Jaune said, Pyrrha covering his mouth before he could finish.
There were a few moments of silence, Jaune's eyes moving back and forth as Pyrrha's hand was over his mouth.
"Huntsmen are going missing?" Barry asked.
"We have to go," Ruby said before the group stood up and gathered their things.
"Wait!" Barry pleaded.
"Yeah?" Ruby asked.
"Can I… can I have your scroll numbers?" Barry asked, "I... I don't have any friends and you guys are pretty nice."
The group looked at each other before discussing it. Hushed whispers emanating from the huddle. A few moments later, they broke apart and Ruby said, "We'd be happy to be your friends, Barry."
A smile was plastered on Barry's face the entire time they exchanged contact information. After the group departed, Barry threw his drink away and headed back to the police department where he waited until everyone left.
Turning on his desk light, Barry pulled up missing person reports, and muttered, "Let's get to work."
Thanks to Awesomejelo, Sybaen, and DeltaFell for looking over this chapter. If you're wondering who Leonard, Mick, Sam, and Marco are, you should read my previous story, Rogues in Remnant.
