I know, I know. I should be releasing a chapter of "A False Rose", or at least the recently renamed "A Capricious Menagerie" but... I've been immersing myself in Half-Life lore and I just had to do something.
I've seen other folks do the same kind of stories every now and then, so here it is: A series of oft-non-related one-shots for me to... Discharge my creativity.
All ideas are up for adoption.
Summer Rose, a trusted Employee
In the beginning: A Tentative Employment Offer
"Cleverly done you silver-eyed pest. But you're not supposed to be here, and now you will pay the price for your intromission"
That was the last thing she heard before her battle against the Queen of the Grimm began. As a matter of fact, there were no more words exchanged, at least from her end. She was pretty sure the witch gloated all the way until the end, but she tuned her out.
At the end, a suicidal use of a grenade and her silver eyes had put the matter to rest anyway. And she was now endlessly floating among the shooting stars in whatever this afterlife had turned out to be. Well, it could be worse – it might as well be actual hell – but she still would've liked something more... Entertaining, she'd guess?
"Well" A voice spoke before taking a deep inhale "Summer Rose, a – pleasure to meet you at last"
Suddenly, a man in a blue suit carrying a briefcase stepped out of the shadows. Sporting a widow's peak haircut of black hair, green eyes, and easily towering over her lithe five feet two frame, he was looking at her with a slight smirk, and his gait seemed... Off, for some reason.
Having nothing better to do, she responded to the weird man. "I-uh... Hello there? Pleasure to meet you too?"
"Again, the – pleasure – is all mine" He started to pace around the empty space they were on. "Now, I am sure you have many questions, therefore, allow me to – debrief you – in your current situation"
All of a sudden, the landscape changed into the Land of Darkness Salem called home. All torched up with multiple bodies strewn all over it, some from her side, others Salem's lackeys. They were floating above it all, taking in the situation from the air.
"Thanks to your actions today, the Queen of The Grimm – Salem, has been significantly weakened for the foreseeable future. All thanks to you" He leaned forward, and it seemed like he was right in front of her despite being so far. "I quite admire your work ethic, Miss Rose – I am impressed..."
She had to butt in, she didn't weaken Salem right? She killed her, she must have!
"Hold on, weakened? I used my silver eyes and a grenade on her. Don't tell me she somehow survived that!"
He had a solemn look on his face as he approached her again.
"I am sorry, Miss Rose. But your ambitious gambit did not pay off in the way you expected it to. After all, the Queen of the Grimm is..." He took a deep breath. "... Immortal"
Well, that's one hell of a disappointment. "So... I died for nothing?"
"I would not say that, after all... What you've done has delayed her boldest plan to date"
"Delayed, but for how long?"
"For about thirteen years"
"Crapbaskets. Yang will be going to Beacon by then"
"Also your youngest, Miss Rose"
She did a double take. "What?"
"According to the timeline your actions have set, Little Ruby will be fast tracked two years and will attend Beacon at age fifteen..." He started to pace about, and the landscape once again changed into something she'd never thought she'd see in her life.
Beacon would be destroyed, overrun by Grimm. And both of her daughters would be fighting a losing battle from start to finish. With her oldest losing a limb in the process, and her youngest witnessing the death of one of her friends.
"... With their first year coinciding with the beginning of Salem's plans"
The landscape changed heavily several times, following the adventures of her daughters, their team, and their sister team, finding out the truth of the whole situation, and then fighting tooth and nail in order to exact revenge and protect the world from the menace Salem represented.
Much like she once did with her own team, and that pushed them to their limits, and then the eventual disbanding.
The landscape changes ended with her daughters' team falling into a black abyss created by the Relic of Creation to save them from a falling Atlas, before rolling back into the black void with shooting stars.
The shock was massive, she couldn't believe it. All that Ozpin was hiding, how her daughters took the burden upon themselves to save the world, even when it seemed that at that point in time, the war had gone to hell.
"Good Oum... Isn't any way to stop this?"
"Unfortunately, Miss Rose. This is the best case scenario..."
"Good grief"
"Unless..."
"Unless what?!"
He faced her with a pronounced smirk.
"Unless you were to take matters into your own hands, hm?"
"How?! I'm dead!"
"Do you really think this is the afterlife, Miss Rose?"
That realization hit her like a ton of bricks. "... I'm not?"
"Perhaps, you were at some point, but not now. For I took the liberty of reversing the damages to your body to the point before your incursion into the Land of Darkness. It wouldn't do to speak to a – pile – of dismembered and charred limbs on the floor"
"Wait, if you can do all of this, who are you? An envoy of the Brother Gods?"
"Miss Rose, what I am is not as important as compared to the reason I am here - after all"
The background they were standing on once again changed, this time to an alien-looking building, while a man with brown hair, a goatee, and glasses in a suit of orange armor battled his way through a corridor.
"Many believe that the fate of our worlds – cannot be changed. My employers" His 'S' dragging on. "Dis-agree. And so, they have sent me to offer employment to – valuable – individuals who prove to be of limitless, potential. By being the right man at the – wrong place, or time"
He was intruding in her personal space now, the image of the Alien building gone, and he was leaning forward again.
"That's why I'm here, Miss Rose. I recommended you for continued observation in the past, and now my employers are impressed with your skills and, resolve. Now, they have authorized me to offer you an employment opportunity which – should you accept – will allow you to return to Remnant, and nudge – its fate into a more, reasonable. Conclusion..."
Her daughters, all grown up, suddenly appeared among the nothingness, shrouded by shadows. Yang was cocking a pair of shotgun gauntlets while Ruby mechashifted a rifle into a scythe.
"Including, a better and less grim – future, for your daughters"
All of a sudden, Ozpin's office materialized from thin air, the strange man sitting in Ozpin's chair. However, the background beyond the window was the nothingness with shooting stars they were standing on before.
"Now Miss Rose, you've proven to be a decisive woman so I wouldn't expect you'd have any problems deciding what to do. If you'd wish to accept my offer, just step into the elevator, press the ground floor button, and I will take that – as a yes..."
As if on cue, the elevator arrived in the office with a ding, being oh-so tempting to her.
"Should you refuse, well... I could return you to the battle you had no chance of winning, hm? Truly a waste of time considering what we've just gone over"
"So, Miss Rose, what it will be?"
She started mulling over the possibilities.
She could very much take the bait and work for this man, save Beacon, her daughters, and live happily ever after.
Again, this man seemed awfully suspicious with his seemingly great power, with motives unclear, and the terms of her 'employment' were unclear too. So she wouldn't know until she got to 'work'.
With a sigh, she resigned herself to her fate, and made her way to the elevator. Seeing her daughters again was worth it after all.
"Look Mister. I don't know what this will mean to me in the long run, but..." She pressed the ground floor button. "Let's work together, I guess"
As the door closed, his voice started booming through the speakers.
"Wisely chosen, Miss Rose. I will see you when the time, comes" He sounded excited despite the deadpan tone. "However, I must add that my, employers want me to take precautions to avoid unwanted – disclosures. I hope you won't ever need to find out what will happen, but I thought it would be... Appropriate to inform you beforehand"
A ghostly apparition of the man appeared right in front of her.
"Until... We meet – again" He said as his eyes shone with otherworldly power.
And that was the last she saw.
SUBJECT: ROSE, SUMMER.
AGE: 27
SPECIES: REMNANT HUMAN, FEMALE.
STATUS: HIRED, AWAITING ASSIGNMENT.
"It's time, Miss Rose. The time has come"
"I HAVE A LIVE ONE! IT'S UNDER THE RUBBLE! AURA UNLOCKED, MAY BE A HUNTER! FEND THE GRIMM OFF WHILE WE RESCUE THEM!"
So, a Half-Life/RWBY crossover involving Summer Rose being inserted into the story post Fall of Beacon. This is my proposal to the community. Hoping someone takes notice of this.