A/N: Diana Mirai, Hathor Isatari, and Twila Azure belong to my friend, decode9. Aiden Keegan and Silver Starbright belong to my friend, Persona1.
Lily and Ruby followed Little through the woods of the strange world they had fallen into, unsure what they would find. Lily told Ruby everything she had seen in the portal before falling.
"Sounds pretty bad," Ruby said to Lily after the explanation was over. "Well, it was brave of Colby to go to your rescue like that, and noble for him to give up his chance at revenge against Cinder to save his friend."
"And very much like him," Lily replied. "He acts all tough, but he's really just a big softie." He cares about his friends more than anything else. He may be a dum dum, but he's my dum dum."
Ruby giggled a bit. "That's so cute, Lily."
"I just hope he made it to Vacuo alive. I can confirm that he killed Ares Vesa. The ram's body washed up on the beach with his skull split wide open. The wound looks like it was caused by one of Colby's tomahawks."
"Wow. The Gray Lightning doesn't mess around, does he?"
"No, he sure doesn't. To be honest, he kinda scares me sometimes. He's a big softy most of the time, however much he may tell you otherwise. But gods help you if you piss him off."
Little had no idea what the two girls were talking about. "I wish I could join this conversation," they said, "but all this stuff is way over my head."
Lily giggled. "Mine too, Little. This world…uhhh…universe…. has just been getting crazier and crazier ever since Beacon fell. Ruby and I are trying our best to save it, but the odds are stacked heavily against us. Seriously, my semblance tells me that our overall chance of victory in this war against Salem is now well below one percent."
"Argh, you're hurting my head!" Little whined. "I don't know what a Beacon or a semblance is! You two come from a really weird world, you know that?"
"I think we should talk about something else, Lily." Ruby suggested.
"Agreed," Lily told her. "I have a joke for you."
"Really? What's that?"
"Why do seagulls fly over the sea?" the fox faunus asked.
"I don't know, why?"
"Because if they flew over the bay, they would be called bagels!" Lily burst out laughing.
"That was so bad!" Ruby said, laughing because of how bad the joke was.
"Haha, seagulls, bagels, I get it!" Little laughed. "Alright, we should be coming up on my village anytime now. I think I should probably go on ahead and tell them you're here so they don't freak out at the sight of two giant…things. Especially one with fox ears!"
Meanwhile, in the deserts of Vacuo…
The group tasked with finding Oren Halstein marched through the heat of the desert toward the outskirts of town, where Theodore said Oren had been last. The heat was unbearable, and they all hoped they wouldn't have to be out there for long.
"Oh gods, it's so hooooootttttt!" Autumn whined as she kept walking. "I'm gonna die out here!"
"Oh really?" Coco asked. "Aren't you one of the Beacon students who saved Vacuo before CFVY even showed up here? You have to be more resilient than that to accomplish so much!"
"That doesn't make it any less hot!" Autumn replied in a slightly frustrated voice.
"We came here from the freezing cold of Atlas," Ouranos told Coco. "It's a huge change in a short amount of time."
"Fair enough," Velvet said. "But we can't let the heat stop us from our mission. We need to find Oren Halstein so he can brief us on the current situation."
"Right," Naseem replied. "How much farther, Ray?"
"Not much. Just another mile or two." They kept walking, with Team CFVY explaining the events of the past few months in greater detail and Autumn and Ouranos, having already told of everything that had happened in Atlas, went on to describe their adventure in Mistral that immediately preceded their trip to Atlas. They also told them that the traitors behind the Fall of Beacon were none other than the members of Haven Academy's Team CMSN (pronounced "crimson). The members of Team CFVY remembered them well.
"So those guys who beat us in the doubles round of the tournament were traitors?!" Coco asked angrily. "Had I known that, I would have made sure neither of them left the arena alive. I don't care what the authorities would have done to me, I would have just been glad that the traitors were gone!"
"Just remember that Emerald is on our side now," Ouranos reminded her.
"We're just going to let her get away with her crimes? How do we know we can trust her?"
"She helped us trick Ironwood into sparing Mantle. Without her, no one would have survived the Fall of Atlas."
"Fair point, but keep a close eye on her."
"The guys back at Shade will," Autumn assured Coco. "And you might also be happy to know that another one of CMSN's members, Neopolitan, is dead. She tried to attack us in the portal to Vacuo and fell into the void. But their leader, Cinder Fall, will be coming to Shade to take Penny and Tsukiko's Maiden powers soon, and she will very likely bring an army of Grimm with her. We don't know where Mercury is either, and he'll probably come too. We need to be ready for whatever Salem sends our way."
"Well, that's exactly why we're looking for Oren, isn't it?" Velvet asked.
"Indeed it is. Come on, he can't be far. Let's keep going."
After another mile or two, the group came across what appeared to be a cabin in the middle of the desert. There was a tree next to it, and the property also had a small pond nearby.
"This must be the place," said Yatsuhashi.
They all approached the door. Yatsuhashi went first, and when he reached the door, he knocked on it. The door immediately opened to reveal a dark-skinned man wearing glasses and a tan desert outfit that included a hat. He also had what appeared to be a cybernetic arm. But he was pointing a sniper rifle at Yatsuhashi, clearly suspicious of his visitors.
"Who are you?!" He asked in Remnant's equivalent of a British accent. "What do you want?"
"Professor Halstein," Ray greeted him. "Theodore sent us here with these other students. He said you knew what Salem was up to in this kingdom, or at least had an idea.
"How do I know I can trust them, Mr. Reed?" Oren asked. "I've never seen them at Shade before. They may well be more spies."
"I'm Yatsuhashi Daichi," Yatsuhashi explained. "A member of Team CFVY. Originally from Beacon, but my teammates and I came here after the Fall."
"Yatshuhashi Daichi?" Oren asked as he lowered his rifle. "Oh, yes! Team CFVY! Professor Theodore told me a lot about your exploits here in Vacuo!"
"And I'm Autumn Ashford of Team COAL," Autumn told him. "Ring any bells?"
"Oh, how could it not ring any? Professor Theodore told me all about your team. That you destroyed the Wormwood Cannon and stopped the White Fang from blowing up Vacuo!"
"Yes, that's right!" Ouranos told him. "You don't need to fear us."
"Right, right. I'm sorry for being so hostile. It's just that the Enemy has all sorts of spies here in this kingdom waiting to cause havoc."
"That's why Theodore sent us," said Naseem. "He said you had discovered their plot, or at least part of it?"
"That I have. Come on in, and I'll tell you all about it." He stepped aside to allow everyone into his cabin, which was small but provided adequate space for his bed, stove, table, and other important equipment. On his table, several notes appeared to be scattered.
"Pardon the mess," Oren told them. "I'm Shade Academy's Grimm Studies professor. I originally came out here on sabbatical to study the Grimm species that live out in this desert."
"What do you know about Salem's plan?" Autumn asked as they all sat down at the table."
"Salem has sent two of her best assassins, Mercury Black and Tyrian Callows, to cause mayhem in Vacuo. More specifically, I think they're here to assassinate important members of the Vacuoan huntsman community, leaving us with several broken links on our chain of command. They've already broken a dangerous prisoner out of Vacuo's prison. An old colleague of mine who went rogue. Did Professor Theodore tell you the tragic tale of Team ORCA? About how we were betrayed by one of our own?"
"No," Coco replied. "But that sounds terrible. What happened, and why did Mercury and Tyrian break this rogue huntsman out of jail?"
"That's a long and complicated story. I'll try to make it as quick as I can…"
Meanwhile, at Shade Academy…
Penny followed Tsukiko to the Sand Pit Arena while the others were out preparing defenses to repel the coming invasion. When the two Maidens arrived in the arena, they were greeted by a woman who appeared to be a professor at Shade Academy.
"Professor Starbright," Tsukiko greeted the professor. "This is Penny Polendina, the Winter Maiden. We're here to train her with her Maiden powers. Mind if we use the arena?"
Professor Starbright smiled. "Of course you can. Mind If I supervise? Maybe give you some constructive criticism?"
"I don't mind at all, ma'am," Penny replied.
"Good," the professor said. "Hey, I don't think I've properly introduced myself. I'm Silver Starbright, a combat professor here at Shade Academy. I think I can give you some valuable feedback during your training."
"Thanks," Penny said. "Alright, are you all ready?" Tsukiko nodded.
"Alright, let's go!" Penny entered the arena, and the others followed her. A screen came to life displaying the combatants' aura levels, and the fighters all drew their weapons and assumed their combat stances.
"As per traditional dueling rules, any combatant whose aura drops below 15% is eliminated," Starbright explained. "Alright, the match will begin on the count of three." Penny looked at the others with a fierce determination, ready to fight and eager to win.
"Three…two…one…begin!"
Tsukiko opened the fight with a huge blast of lightning, which Penny deflected with her swords before charging at the Summer Maiden. Tsukiko blocked the attack with her staff before retaliating by swinging the staff at the Winter Maiden. Penny couldn't react in time and took the hit, then activated her Maiden powers and took off. Then, she started throwing fireballs at Tsukiko.
The Summer Maiden saw the fireballs coming and jumped out of the way before activating her own powers and taking to the air. The two Maidens flew at each other, then swung at each other with their weapons. They clashed for a while in midair, and those on the ground looked on in awe. After clashing for a while, Penny blew Tsukiko back with a gust of wind. Seeing an opportunity, Penny followed this attack with an icicle. The Summer Maiden fell to the ground, and Penny landed and prepared to attack up close again. But by the time Penny landed, Tsukiko was back on her feet and ready to fight again. She launched a giant flaming rock at the Winter Maiden, who jumped over to the left to avoid it and ran up to strike at Tsukiko up close once again.
Meanwhile, in the other world…
Kent travelled through the forest, looking out for Yang or anything that might lead him to her. He hoped more than anything else that she was still alive. But this new world was a strange place. While he was travelling, a dodo bird came out of the bushes and started laughing at him, apparently amused at his misfortune. As annoying as this was, Kent knew that he had to keep moving. He looked toward the giant tree in the center of the island. "Is that the mythical Yggdrasil?" He thought to himself in wonder. "If that really is the legendary world tree, then we may be able to escape this place. But I'm not leaving without Yang." He kept walking down the path he was on, which seemed to go on for a long time. Eventually, he felt like giving up. The forest seemed to go on forever, and he wasn't sure if he would ever find Yang. He wasn't sure if she was even alive.
But just as he was about to give up, he saw what looked like a smiling face up in one of the trees. A huge ear-to-ear grin. Kent was initially frightened at this sight, but quickly realized that he would need to take his chances and find out if this face was friendly. If it was, then whoever it belonged to would be able to help him find Yang and get out of this place. He walked toward the tree, but was disappointed to find that the smile belonged not to a human or a faunus, but a cat.
"Oh…" He said out loud. "You're just a cat. Well, I'll be moving on now…" But then, the cat did something that Kent would never have expected.
"Just a cat?" The cat asked. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Kent was startled and jumped up. "What the?! Did you just…?"
"Are you surprised?"
"Well, you see, where I come from, cats don't talk…but if you can talk, then maybe you can help me figure out where to go from here."
"Well, that depends quite a lot on where you want to go."
"I'm looking for a blonde human girl. One with long, blonde hair and purple eyes."
"Well, now that you mention it, I may have seen someone like that around here not too long ago. I saw her walking near a stream, that way." It gestured toward a path that branched off from the trail toward Kent's left. "But if she's in this world, she's already mad."
"Well, I already feel like I'm going mad…"
"Of course you do! Everyone is mad here! You're mad, I'm mad, we're all mad!"
"Well, I won't let that stop me!" Kent said defiantly as he headed down the left path. He kept travelling for quite a while, keeping an eye out for Yang, until at last he spotted a head of long, beautiful golden hair. He knew who he'd found.
"YANG!" He called out to her. "Is that really you?"
"KENT?!" Yang cried out. "I can't believe you're here!" They rushed toward each other and wrapped their arms around each other in a tight embrace.
"I thought you were dead…" Kent told the blonde girl. "I thought that crazy ice cream girl had killed you, and I lost my cool. But now, we're both here."
"Well, I'm glad you're safe…but do you know what happened to Ruby?"
"I fell in almost immediately after you did. I don't know where she is. But she's a tough girl. I'm sure she made it to Vacuo."
"I hope you're right. But how will we get out of here…?"
"I saw a massive tree when I came here. I think it might be the mythical Yggdrasil, the world tree. If it is, then we may be able to use it to get back to Remnant."
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's head over there!"
The two moved away from the stream and headed toward the place that they thought was the center of the island where the tree was. But as they moved in that direction, they started to have a strange feeling that they were being watched.
"Yang?" Kent asked. "We might not be alone out here."
"W-what do you mean?" Yang asked nervously. The two heard a rustling of leaves in a nearby bush, and when they looked over, a familiar girl with pink and brown hair and two eyes of the same color jumped out. She was wearing a bowler hat, and she had an angry expression on her face.
"Neo!" Yang called out. "So you found your way here too, did you?"
The girl said nothing, instead only drawing the sword out of her umbrella and assuming her combat stance.
Kent drew his katana. "You're going to regret messing with us, Neo. I'll make you pay for stranding us here and nearly killing us."
"Enough talk!" Yang told him. "It's payback time!" Kent and Yang charged into battle against Neo, hoping to kill the ice cream girl and avenge their defeat in Atlas.
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Vacuo…
"I am going to tell you the sad story of Team ORCA," Oren began after everyone sat down. They all sat there quietly and listened. "We attended Shade Academy together years ago. There was me, Ringo, Chloe, and Arnold. But we were more than just your typical huntsman academy team. We were the best. Or at least the headmaster thought we were the best. He trusted us with the knowledge of Salem and the Relics. Each academy had such a team. Beacon had one called STRQ, for example." He pronounced the acronym as "stark."
"Sounds like you were pretty great huntsmen," Autumn said.
"Yes, we were. Or three of us were. But one fateful day, we were betrayed by one of our own. Chloe discovered a plot by Salem's agents in this kingdom. Salem's agents were going to assassinate several prominent huntsmen and huntresses in this kingdom, including headmaster Theodore, but Chloe discovered their plan and allowed us to apprehend the conspirators. Seeing that she couldn't beat Team ORCA, Salem chose to bribe one of us into betraying the team and the kingdom. That someone was Arnold. Salem offered to pay him quite a bit of lien to kill Chloe for her and then carry out the other murders himself."
"That's horrible…" Velvet said in shock.
"Yes, it was…" Oren replied somberly. "After he killed Chloe, Ringo and I tracked him down and arrested him before he could kill any of his other targets. But Ringo was so disgusted by the whole affair that he quit his job as a huntsman. With one member of Team ORCA dead, one in prison, at least until now, and one retired, I am the last active member of the team."
"And Salem had Tyrian and Mercury free Arnold so that he could assist them in their mission?" Ouranos asked.
"Exactly," Oren replied. "And now they're going to kill our high-ranking huntsmen and cripple our chain of command unless we stop them."
"And how will we do that?" Asked Coco.
"Simple. We hunt the assassins down and kill them first. It's the only way to stop them for good. We can't risk them ever getting out of prison again."
"If that's what it takes…" Naseem replied, "then so be it. Where are they?"
"I don't know. Which is why we need to find them quickly. Vacuo has a huge criminal underworld, and I'm sure Salem has allies there. We will learn the location of the assassins, hunt them down, and kill them before they can hurt anyone. And we should also go after Ringo and bring him back into the fight. He will make a valuable ally."
"Alright," said Velvet. "I'll go after him."
"I'll go with her," Coco added.
"Sounds like a plan," said Oren. "The rest of us will look for leads on the locations of our three assassins, then split up and hunt them down. You two can join us after you've talked to Ringo. Remember, all three assassins must die."
"Understood, sir," Yatsuhashi told him.
"Good luck!" Velvet told her teammate.
"You too," Yatsuhashi replied.
"I'll send you Ringo's address on my scroll," Oren told the two girls who volunteered to meet him. "The rest of you will come with me."
"Alright," said Autumn. "Let's go."
Meanwhile, in Mistral…
Pyrrha's group rode the airship across the western ocean and toward southeastern Mistral.
"Summer's hideout is very well-hidden," Pyrrha told everyone. "And she's very suspicious of outsiders. Rightfully so, as my experiences in Beacon and Atlas have taught me."
"You can say that again," Colby said angrily. "I should have known Team CMSN were traitors!" He pronounced the acronym as "crimson." They always gave off a creepy vibe, especially Cinder."
"I know…" Pyrrha reflected. "She is pure evil. And very powerful. She nearly killed me back at Beacon. She's the Fall Maiden, you know."
"I can't believe the Maidens are real…" Diana mused.
"It was a shock to me too," said Aiden. "Tsukiko used her powers in front of me and my teammates, you know. We all would have died during the Fall if she hadn't. I'm glad Theodore trusted us with the truth and didn't try to make us…'disappear' after the Fall."
"That's not something Theodore would do!" Sayuri told him. "Theodore's a kind and benevolent leader."
"But he needs to keep the Maidens a secret," said Allin. "If the world learned about the Maidens, then the Maidens would have targets on their back everywhere they went. I'm just glad he decided to trust us."
"Be glad you chose to go to Shade instead of Atlas," Colby told him. "If it were Ironwood, you would be dead for sure. The guy was loco."
"I guess Salem finally pushed him to his breaking point," Irving said sadly. "The guy had his own robots turn on him during the Fall."
"And Cinder somehow managed to sneak a chess piece into his office," Colby added. "He told me and my teammates that right before he tried to kill us and Diana."
"Damn, that Cinder sure is sneaky!" Sun shouted in frustration. "And she killed Blake! I'm going to make her regret ever being born!"
"Welcome to the 'loved ones of Cinder's victims' club," Colby told him sadly. "Lily's dead too. Kicked into an abyss by Ares Vesa, the leader of the Red Fang. I killed him, but Cinder is still out there and just as responsible as he was."
"I hope my mother is okay…" Diana added to the conversation fearfully.
"She's fine," Irving reassured her. "I saw her come into Vacuo through the gates."
"Good," Diana said in relief. "Although now, she's in danger from Cinder and the other bad guys. We have to stop them."
"Summer will help," Pyrrha assured her. "We'll be landing soon. I'll introduce you to her and explain the situation."
The airship approached the southeastern coast of Anima as well as the islands around it. Pyrrha pointed toward one of the islands that were just off the coast.
"Take us down there," she said. The pilot did so, and soon the airship landed on the beach. Everyone got out. "Follow me!" Pyrrha told everyone. She led them into the forest. They all followed her, hoping that Summer Rose was indeed alive and that she would be able to help them in their quest to defeat Salem. Eventually, they reached what appeared to be the ruins of a massive stone temple in the center of the island. As they approached it, they heard a voice.
"Hey!" Shouted a female voice. "Who's out there?"
"It's just me, Twila!" Pyrrha replied. "I've brought some guests here to see Summer."
"Twila?!" Colby thought to himself. Looking ahead, he saw a familiar arctic fox faunus girl. She was not Lily, as he could tell by the fact that she had more than two animal traits, fox ears and a fox tail, while Lily only had fox ears. Her eyes widened when she saw Colby.
"COLBY!" She shouted in joy as she ran up to him. She wrapped her arms around him in a huge hug. He hugged her back.
"Good to see you again, Twila!" he told her.
"I'm so glad you're safe, Colby…"
"Do you two know each other?" Sayuri asked.
"We went to combat school together," Twila explained. "And we were classmates at Beacon. We haven't seen each other since the Fall of Beacon, though. I thought he was dead!"
"I thought you were dead too, Twila. But what are you doing out here in Anima?"
"I came out here to investigate into who caused the Fall," Twila told him. "That woman who gave the speech after Pyrrha destroyed Penny said she was from Mistral, so I came here. But apparently, I came too close to finding the truth because a crazy scorpion faunus attacked me after I'd investigated long enough."
"How did you survive?" Colby asked.
"The lady who runs this temple saved me. She was wearing a mask, so the faunus didn't know who she was. She took me back here and explained everything. She told me about the Gods and the Relics and Salem and silver eyes. She also told me that the scorpion faunus who attacked me was Tyrian Callows, and that the woman behind the Fall of Beacon was none other than the leader of Team CMSN, Cinder Fall."
"Oh, I know." Colby growled. "She attacked us when we escaped Atlas. "And Lily…" He paused, and his expression changed to one of sorrow.
"No…" Twila groaned in horror when she realized what had happened.
"Yes," Colby told her sadly. "She killed Lily, Twila. And she killed Jaune Arc and all of Team RWBY."
"Oh Gods…"
"It was awful," Diana added. "They all fell into a void outside our world because of her."
"I…I don't know what to say. They were my friends."
"I know this is a lot to take in," Irving told her. "But we need to stay on task. Can you take us to Summer?"
"Absolutely. I'm sure she'll be able to help. But she'll be heartbroken about her daughters."
"She deserves to know the truth," Colby said. "Telling lies and keeping secrets is what caused the mess in Atlas."
"Okay, follow me." Twila told them as she led them into the temple. The rest followed her.
Meanwhile, at Shade Academy…
Penny and Tsukiko were still locked in fierce combat. They attacked each other with their weapons as well as various elemental powers: fire, ice, lightning, rocks, wind, and many others. Penny charged at Tsukiko once again with her swords drawn, and Tsukiko stood firm and blocked her attack. She kicked Penny back and launched fire at her from the tip of her staff, which amplified her powers.
Penny countered the attack with a blast of ice magic, and the two blasts of magic collided in midair. Penny focused all her concentration on her ice magic, hoping to blast through and take Tsukiko down, but Tsukiko proved to be stronger. The magical blast hit Penny and knocked her back, dropping her aura below 15%.
"I knew it…" Penny said sadly as she got up. "I can't beat you. I'm not fit to be a Maiden. If only the powers had gone to Winter, like they were supposed to. Then maybe my friends would be alive and Atlas wouldn't have been destroyed…" Her eyes started to tear up.
"Don't talk like that, Penny!" Tsukiko said to her. "Atlas was going to fall no matter what. If it weren't for you opening the Vault, no one would have survived. Thousands of people owe you their lives, Penny."
"I…I guess you're right…"
"Of course she's right!" Professor Starbright added. "Penny, you have the makings of a great huntress and a very powerful Maiden. Just keep training with Tsukiko and your other friends. I know that with your help, we'll be able to hold off the invasion and show that world that despite everything, Salem can be defeated!"
"Thank you, Professor," Penny replied. "I'll…I'll do my best."
"That's all you can give," Tsukiko replied. "I don't know about you, but this fighting is getting me hungry. How about we go get some lunch, Penny?"
"Sounds good," Penny said. "As a robot, I only ever ate for enjoyment. My father built my body with taste receptors, but I could keep going as long as my battery was sufficiently charged. But now, I really need food to survive. I still haven't gotten used to the feeling of hunger."
Tsukiko smiled. "It doesn't get any more pleasant, Penny. Now, let's go." The two girls left the arena and headed toward the cafeteria.
"Enjoy your lunch, girls!" Starbright called to them as the girls left. "Penny lacks experience and is weaker in her human form," Starbright thought to herself, "but she has a lot of potential. And with Tsukiko to train and protect her, my job is going to get a lot harder…"
Meanwhile, in the other world…
Kent and Yang charged into combat against Neo, who rolled out of the way and then struck at Yang, who deflected the ice cream girl's attacks with her gauntlets and punched back. They kept at this for a while, until Yang fired a shot out of one of her gauntlets and pushed Neo back several feet. She flew backwards and into a tree. Kent rushed in to follow up on Yang's attack, but Neo stood back up and kicked him in the chest. He was stunned, and then Neo struck him in the chest and knocked him to the ground. His aura absorbed the impact, but he was vulnerable to more attacks.
"Kent!" Yang shouted as she ran in and attacked the ice cream girl with a renewed fury. They struck at each other for a while, and then they locked blades. What happened next would shock Yang.
"Where is Ruby?!" Neo asked angrily in Remnant's equivalent of a British accent.
Yang's eyes widened in shock. "Did you…did you just…?"
"WHERE IS RUBY?!" Neo repeated.
"Somewhere you can't reach her!" Kent replied as he stood back up. "This ends here and now, ice cream girl!" The samurai once again entered the fray, and the sounds of their weapons clanging together echoed throughout the surrounding area.
A short distance away, a cat faunus's ears perked up. "What is that noise?" She asked. "Is someone fighting?"
"Some of the others must have fallen as well!" Weiss said in response. "I remember Neo fell shortly before Ruby did. Maybe she found one of our friends!"
"Well, we need to go help them!" Hathor added. "Neo's a deadly opponent. We can't let her claim any more victims!" She drew her axe. "Let's show her what happens when you mess with our friends!" The others drew their weapons, and all three headed toward the source of the noise.
Meanwhile, Kent and Yang were still fighting Neo. They fought hard, but after a while, Neo gained the upper hand. After striking Kent one too many times, his aura was depleted. Neo raised her sword to finish him off.
"Kent!" Yang shouted as she ran over to help him, but Neo was prepared and kicked her down to the ground. Neo raised her sword to kill Kent once again.
But before she could do the deed, she heard a female voice cry out. "Yang! Kent!" It shouted. The two hunters recognized this voice. Neo turned away from Kent and prepared to deal with the new threat.
"Blake?!" Yang shouted. "You're here too?!"
"Yes!" The cat faunus replied as she came upon them. "And so are Weiss and Hathor!" The other two were close behind her. Knowing that she couldn't win a five-to-one fight, Neo ran away. She disappeared into the forest.
"Hey, get back here!" Hathor shouted at Neo. But it was too late. She had already lost sight of the ice cream girl.
Yang looked down at Kent. "Are you okay, Kent?"
"Yes," he replied as he stood up. "But I can't believe we let Neo get away from us like this." He turned toward the other three girls. "So, you all fell in too?"
"Yes," said Blake. "And so did Ruby. We need to find her before Neo does!"
"Gods damn it," Kent said. "Ruby's here too? Vacuo needs her..."
"Vacuo needs all of us," Hathor told him. "Now come on, we need to find Ruby!"
"Right behind ya!" Kent said as he followed her into the forest. The others went with them, determined to find Ruby and escape the strange world that they had fallen into.
Meanwhile, outside Little's village…
Ruby and Lily waited outside Little's village, hoping that the mouse would be able to convince everyone to let them in. After waiting for what felt like a long time, Little returned to them.
"Good news!" The mouse told them. "They say you can come in. If you want to figure out how to get back to your world, you should talk to our leader. He knows more about this sort of thing than I do."
"That's great, Little!" Ruby told them happily. "Alright. Lily, let's go talk to this leader of theirs." She headed toward the village.
"Okay. I hope their leader can tell us more about how we can get out of here." Lily followed her into the village. Upon arriving, they discovered that the village was full of mice like Little who had built tiny houses for themselves. The mice looked at the two newcomers with suspicion, especially Lily with her fox ears. The two girls quickly realized that they would need to be on their best behavior and not do anything to alienate these mice. Otherwise, they might never find their way back to their own world.
Eventually, Little led them to the leader of the mice, a mouse who was slightly bigger than the others. It looked up at the two girls.
"Welcome to our village, strangers." The leader said. "Your friend here told me you were looking for a way back to your own world."
"That is true," Lily replied. "Do you know how?"
"You must climb the giant tree in the center of this island," the leader explained.
"We tried walking toward that tree," Ruby told the leader. "But whenever we tried, we would end up right back where we started."
"Yes, the tree does that. But there is a person on this island who can tell you how to get close to the tree. She is another human like you. Her name is Alyx."
"Alyx, the girl who fell through the world?" Lily asked. "She's real? At this point, I'm not even surprised anymore. It seems that just about every fairy tale I've heard in Remnant is real."
"Yes, she is very much real. You will need to find her."
"Where is she?" Ruby asked.
"She doesn't come to this village often. She seems to dwell on the west side of the island near the cliffs," he told them.
"Then that's where we'll go," Lily said. "Thanks for telling us."
"Can I go with them?" Little asked.
"Hmm…" The leader pondered this for a few seconds, then gave his answer. "Well, you seem capable of handling yourself out there despite your young age. Alright, you may go with them."
"Thanks!" Little said happily. "Alright, let's go to the western cliffs," he said to the girls.
"Great," said Ruby. "And have you seen any other humans here? One with long, blonde hair, and another with…dark hair?" She wouldn't mention Blake's cat ears after how Little reacted to her mentioning them.
"No, I'm sorry."
"I understand." But then, she remembered one more thing. "Could we bring a few of these with us?" She held one of the strange potato-cheese plant things that she had helped Little pull out of the ground before Lily found her and Little.
"Well, you did help take those out of the ground. It's only fair that you be allowed to take them with you."
Lily looked at them with a strange look. "What are those things?"
"No idea," Ruby replied. "Looks like some kind of cheese that grows in the ground. This is a strange world we've fallen into."
"Indeed," said Lily. "Alright, let's go."
"Good luck," the leader told them.
"Thanks," Ruby replied. "Alright, everyone. Let's get going." With that, the three of them headed toward the western cliffs hoping to find Alyx and figure out how to get back to their own world. "If we don't get back there soon," Ruby thought to herself, "there won't be a Remnant to go back to…"
A/N: I appreciate everyone's patience with the amount of time it took for this chapter to come out. I'm pretty much making up this plot as I go along, incorporating some popular fan theories such as the one that Alyx the girl who fell through the world would appear in some capacity. Sorry Jaune and Anne didn't appear in this chapter. Including them would have made it too long. They will appear again in chapter 3, and Summer will appear for the first time in the same chapter.
