They had done it. Team RWBY and their allies had managed to incapacitate Cordovin's mech, the Colossus, with a well-timed burst of Dust in its arm cannon. But now they had another problem to deal with. It was bigger than the Colossus. Louder. And it had infinitesimally more teeth. A gigantic Leviathan rose from the depths, its skin as black as tar and studded with white bony armor.

Its arrival soured the taste of hope that came with Blake and Yang's safe return from their fated and admittedly anticlimactic face-off with Adam Taurus. Cordovin's screaming and ranting did little to improve the mood, especially since her broken battlesuit was the only thing that could stare down the Grimm kaiju and potentially win.

Maria's idea was the pragmatic one, to retreat in order to get the Relic of Knowledge to Atlas, but Team RWBY wouldn't have it. They knew they were likely passing up the perfect chance to carry out their mission, but the people of Argus were still in danger and they had to protect them.

Needless to say, Maria went with Team RWBY's idea.

"We need to head straight for the Leviathan," Ruby said. "Jaune, can you and Ren get ready to mask the ship?"

Ren answered in the affirmative, but Jaune was still unsure what his best friend was planning. His question came quickly.

"Got any ideas?"

Ruby's eyes glistened with resolve as she knew how she could neutralize the monster.

"I've got one. And you're looking at her."

Then, Qrow gave the news that the creature returned. It made short work of the city's defenses, tearing through its barriers and pelting the fleet with its breath attacks. It got to the point that air control ordered the squadrons to abandon their assault entirely in the wake of such a formidable opponent. Now was the time for the group to act.

"Wait!" Ruby yelled into the comms.

"Who is this?" the voice on the other end questioned. "Identity yourself!"

"I'm a Huntress! My team and I can weaken the Leviathan and leave it open for you to finish off!"

Maria was skeptical.

"Ruby, when I said 'trial by fire'-"

"I did it before, so I can do it again. Besides, it's all we have left."

Unfortunately, the military didn't offer their support since they marked the group as hostile given their desperate theft of the Manta ship they boarded, but Ruby insisted that she and the others would engage in their plan anyway. After all, she froze the Wyvern that attacked Beacon into a stone statue. She helped slay the dreaded Nuckalavee. She could beat this, too.

Their next course of action was simple: Maria and the others on the ship would divert the Leviathan's attention while Weiss would get Ruby close enough to hit the beast with a full-force blast of light. However, it was a gamble. If she couldn't manifest her powers, then the Leviathan would kill them all.

"Okay, you can do this…" Ruby told herself. "You have to do this! Come on… think life-filled thoughts…"

As Ruby cycled through her memories, she thought of her friends, her family, everyone she would give anything to protect. But with her happy memories came her share of tragedies. The loss of Yang's arm, the murders of Penny and Pyrrha, and more made her falter.

She found herself staring into the monster's gaping, hungry jaws.

"What?" Ruby's confusion set in, followed by the realization that the creature was drawn to the lamp on her person. "Oh, no… Not now!"

As the Leviathan tried to swallow her whole just as that one Griffon devoured her oldest foe, Ruby screamed the name she learned from Oscar, acting on pure instinct.

"JINN!"

The world itself stopped moving as the time ground to a halt, just as she'd hoped. The rattling of metal chains assured her that the entity heard her prayers.

"Hello again," Jinn greeted her summoner. "Did you have another question for me?"

An idea formed in Ruby's mind. She only needed the Relic to give her more time, but maybe, if she played her cards right, she could allow herself and her team to finally get one step ahead.

"I'm sorry, I didn't," she admitted. "I just needed a little more time, but… I do now."

"You clever girl… I knew I liked you. Please take your time and choose wisely, for I cannot and will not provide any further knowledge for this century."

After thinking back to the first question Jinn was asked, "How do I destroy Salem", Ruby realized the flaws in Ozma's query. Even if there was a way to kill the unkillable, his words didn't give Jinn much room for interpretation. Hence, he couldn't kill her, and seeing as she bathed in liquid death and only came out horribly mutated, it seemed doubtful that anyone could. But even if she can't be killed…

"How can Salem be defeated?"

Amused, Jinn took the time to giggle to herself.

"As you know, Salem is immortal and completely impossible to kill. However, she has one glaring weakness: despite her powerful magic, she is heavily reliant on her ability to manipulate and seduce others into willing or unknowing pawns, ultimately dependent upon her tactics of sowing chaos in order to enact her plans. Turn Salem's tactics against her and you can bait her into a position of emotional vulnerability, one where she would have little chance of escape."

"That… I don't know if I'll be able to do that… I'm not Ozpin, let alone Salem. That means I'd have to hurt and lie to my friends just like they did, doesn't it?"

"I'm sorry to be blunt, but the only way to truly defeat Salem is to become her. The fate of Remnant lies in your hands. I'm simply giving you what knowledge you seek, what knowledge is certain. However that knowledge is applied is for you to decide, Ruby. Good luck. And between us, this feud has gotten quite tiresome over the last few hundred years."

As the Relic's power over time started to wane, Ruby kept thinking about the life she was destined to defend, further bolstered by her new knowledge of how she could save the world from the Gods' mistakes and the war between Salem and Ozma. It scared her a bit, thinking about how she'd have to be like the mistress of the Grimm herself, but her discovery gave her a sense of hope that she and her friends could win the day.

Screw the Gods, she thought. Screw Ozma and Salem. Screw their endless battle for taking so many innocent lives. Her last thought was of one of those lives: her mother in her prime, with a proud smile on her face. That was all Ruby needed to know she was doing the right thing.

"Screw you," she whispered to the Leviathan as her eyes flared with light, immobilizing it in a stone-like prison.

While the Grimm wasn't completely destroyed by Ruby's attack, it opened up an opportunity for Cordovin to regain her composure and use the Colossus to drill into its petrified hide, killing it as the people cheered for their heroes. The mech approached the young warrior.

"Thank you," Ruby gave her gratitude to the pilot. "I'm sorry for how… extreme our actions were…"

"The Atlas military can handle any stragglers," Cordovin replied. "I doubt anyone would notice if just one thing were to deviate from the usual report. Now go before I change my mind about letting you off so easily."

Ruby boarded the airship and rejoined the others. With enough fuel to last a full trip to Atlas, the praise from Maria and her beloved Uncle Qrow made everything worth it. Even as everyone awed in response to her feats and the floating city drew ever nearer, she remained sure of herself and reflected back to Jinn's words. They made her feel powerful in a way her Semblance or silver eyes never could. Her confidence hadn't gone unnoticed by her traveling party.

"Hey, Ruby," Qrow got her attention. "Aren't you at least a little nervous?"

"Nope!" she immediately responded.

"I mean, it's Atlas we're talking about. Even if Cordovin kept her mouth shut, they're probably still on edge from everything that's happened since…"

"It's okay, Uncle Qrow. Everything's gonna be okay."

Weiss gave her team leader a quizzical look.

"And what makes you so sure, Ruby?" she asked.

"Faith, Ice Queen!"

"Hey!"

"Faith that we can keep fighting… and someday win."

Upon their arrival, the group was met with their first welcoming committee: an entire squadron of Atlas ships that would undoubtedly notice their stolen vessel. To be safe, they landed in Mantle, which was impoverished and decrepit despite the high military presence.

They avoided drawing too much attention as they met with Maria's acquaintance Pietro, but they couldn't ignore the call to action as a pride of Sabyrs attacked, and although they had backup in the form of a rebuilt Penny, the group was soon brought in by the Ace-Ops for questioning.

They had, after all, broken the law on multiple counts despite their heroism.

With their weapons and the lamp confiscated, the friends had little else to do but talk to another prisoner, who they discovered was arrested for violent protest against General Ironwood's supposed tyranny. Having met the general firsthand, Ruby didn't believe the prisoner's words, although she figured that something was wrong when she thought back to his more draconian security measures.

She and the others were brought before Ironwood just after his meeting with the Atlas council, with Penny and Winter at his doorstep. Seeing him so full of stress and with an unkempt, scraggly beard on his face seemed to alarm her a little more, as she always knew him to be quite calm and clean-shaven. How badly had a lifetime of fighting Ozpin's battles affected him?

"What happened to you?" Ruby pondered under her breath.

As Penny greeted the guests and the guards undid their restraints on Winter's orders, Ironwood allowed the group to enter upon becoming aware of their presence.

"It is so good to see all of you," he said.

"Our reception didn't really convey that," Yang complained."

"I sincerely regret how my team treated you. When a rogue airship entered our airspace, it raised more than a few red flags. We assumed the ship was stolen."

"Stolen?" Ruby feigned ignorance, awkwardly trying to laugh it off before giving up. "Okay, yeah, we stole it."

Ironwood let out an amused chuckle, but Winter wasn't as impressed by her audacity.

"You stole an Atlas airship?!" she scolded the group.

"Your people in Argus didn't exactly give us much of a choice. We'd have done anything else if they'd let us."

"I cannot believe that you of all people allowed this to happen, Qrow."

"Hey, you try stopping these kids when they get this stubborn," he excused himself. "Speaking of stubborn, Jimmy, we have important information for you that's… confidential."

He was quickly proven wrong when Ironwood revealed that he told Penny, Winter, and the Ace-Ops all about the Relics, the Maidens, and Salem. With that came the reassuring news that both the Relic of Creation and the Winter Maiden were in good hands. However, Yang and the others, minus Oscar, remained suspicious.

"I know how all this looks," Ironwood admitted. "Recalling the military and the embargo were unscrupulous of me, and I doubt I seem trustworthy to you."

"Then why continue it if it's hurting the people of Mantle?" Blake asked.

"I understand your concern, but protecting Atlas is my top priority."

"But no one will want to be protected if you make them hate you," Yang pointed out.

"My reputation is a small price to pay for security."

Ironwood went on to explain his new plan: reestablish connections with the rest of the world using a new CCT tower launched into the upper atmosphere using the Amity Colosseum. Then he would reveal Salem's existence to the world once the tower was in position, to which Weiss protested that everyone would be in danger from the Grimm in spite of Ironwood's proposal to have Atlas provide support following its ascension into a superpower.

"Trying to hide the truth from the world will eventually kill us all," he argued. "I know Oz spent his whole life keeping this secret, but things changed when he fell with Beacon. Without him for guidance, the best I can do is trust my instincts."

"Actually," Oscar said, "Oz isn't completely gone."

"Uh, Oscar here is Ozpin's next life," Qrow explained.

Ironwood's relief was quashed by Oscar's next revelation.

"Oz isn't quite here now. He's kind of, um, gone at the moment."

"That's not normal," the general noted, aghast. "How did he-"

"It's all our fault," Ruby confessed with a twinge of regret.

The farm boy, the general, and her uncle all looked at her with shock.

"There was a train crash, and we had a… a disagreement with Oz when we learned his secret. We said things we shouldn't have, we hurt Oscar, and ever since… Oz wasn't there anymore. It hurts just thinking about it."

"That's the worst news yet. Did you learn anything from him about the Relics before he…?"

"He told us the lamp can answer three questions. But one was used up when we got it and we used the other two on our way to Atlas."

Believing their leader was lying, Blake and Yang gave each other confused looks, but said nothing since they trusted her judgment more than Ironwood's.

"Once upon a time, Ozpin told us the Relic was completely used up, too. But at least we have you, Oscar. You and your friends are safe in Atlas. Maybe together we can figure out a way to bring Oz back."

As Oscar flusteredly accepted the general's kindness, Ironwood scooped up the lamp and returned it to Ruby as a show of good faith. He knew fighting Salem needed a team effort to work.

"Tell us how we can help," Ruby offered.

"You can help keep the peace while we get the Amity Tower ready to launch," he replied. "But first, I think we need to get those weapons of yours up to our standards."

"But what about you?"

"I don't understand what you mean."

"I know we're all hurting from what happened at Beacon, but with all due respect, sir, you've really let yourself go. I think you might need a therapist."

Everyone was incredulous, especially Ironwood.

"What?"

"You're in charge of the biggest military on Remnant and you've spent who knows how long fighting Ozpin's endless war, and I think all that trauma might cloud your judgment."

"Are you saying I'm not fit to protect my kingdom?"

"No, of course not! I guess… since you're making sure our weapons are at their best, I just think you should be at your best, too."

"That's preposterous!" Yang shouted. "A therapist can't defeat Salem, let alone help us stand a chance!"

"You spent two months trapped in your bed after you lost your arm, Yang! Even the best Huntsmen need help after what they go through every day. If they let their demons get in the way, who's going to save the world when it needs them?"

"A very valid point, Ms. Rose," Winter conceded, "but the Atlas council has invested very little in psychotherapy, assuming the general needs it at all. I'm certain his Semblance will ensure he is in top mental form."

"A Semblance can only do so much since it's no substitute for a healthy mind. Besides, wouldn't professional help make people panic less?"

Ruby's logic was alien to everyone else in the room, but it made so much sense that the others fell into silent shock. Why hadn't anyone thought to prioritize something meant to deal with negative thoughts when it was a commonly-known fact that the Grimm could sense negative thoughts? So many casualties from Grimm attacks could have been avoided.

"I'll… look into that," Ironwood said, unusually nervous. "But there isn't anyone qualified for such a task in Atlas…"

"Then I guess you'd be stuck with me."

The proposition was mind-boggling. Sure, Ruby managed to hypnotize all of her team while they were asleep that one time at Beacon, but that didn't mean she knew anything about treating mental illness or trauma.

The group was divided by their opinions on Ruby's idea. The rest of her team and Qrow, pessimistic to the notion, subtly expressed their concerns that Ironwood wouldn't cooperate and worried over the notion that she was overstepping her limitations, respectively. On the other hand, Jaune's group and Oscar made the counterpoint that they wouldn't have gone this far without Ruby to help them through their darkest moments, and she would provide some much-needed morale if nothing else. Penny and Winter each had their own opinions, but opted to stay out of the argument out of respect for Ironwood.

"I'll think it over," Ironwood declared. "I'll notify you when I make my final decision."

After clearing the air with the remorseful Ace-Ops, who were barred from the meeting to avoid any risk of bad blood, followed by a tour across the academy courtesy of Penny, Ruby and the others started their first missions alongside the professionals, and they were on their way to becoming licensed Huntsmen and Huntresses.

With their new rank came new looks. Ruby in particular chose a getup with a bit more brightness than anyone expected, with white gloves under her black fingerless ones to protect her hands from the cold. Her combat skirt and the edges of her cape were given accents of the same color, much like her mother's cloak.

On the day the new recruits to Atlas became official, Qrow found his niece sitting alone, with an introspective and somewhat melancholic look on her face.

"Big day for you, huh, kiddo?" he asked.

"It's… definitely a lot to take in," Ruby told her uncle.

"Which part? The finally getting to Atlas part, the getting your license part, or the not quite disclosing everything to Ironwood part?"

"What are you talking about, Uncle Qrow?"

"You said the lamp didn't have any questions when we got here. We just have one left. Isn't that not quite disclosing everything?"

She gave him a silent glance and raised her eyebrow.

"You actually used up the last question?"

"I did what I thought was best. I had to use the lamp so I could give myself some more time to do my eye… thing and stop the Leviathan. Then I thought about doing anything I could to stop drawing out this twisted little game between Salem and Oz, and…"

"Game? Ruby, what're you getting at?"

"It's all a game to them! Salem, Oz, even the Gods! I'm just… I'm just tired of sitting by and letting them drag everyone we care about into their war! And for what?! Pyrrha getting an arrow in her chest?! Yang losing her arm to the White Fang?! Mom vanishing without a trace all those years ago?! People like them are being killed or maimed every day because of this fairytale gone deadly wrong! All while the ones who made the mistakes that led to all of this are too invested in the competition or too busy munching popcorn from who knows where to care! Don't you want all this to end, Uncle Qrow?!"

The rant caused Qrow to falter, utterly speechless. His poor luck made him used to his share of tragedy, but to hear his bubbly and optimistic young niece sound so broken and done with it all was terrifying. She believed more than anything that there was good in everyone she came across barring Cinder Fall, and here she was dismissing the man who kept Remnant standing time and time again despite his duplicity, and even worse the brothers who created it, as nothing more than callous and uncaring children. She was so angry… even ashamed that these legendary figures had failed them.

"So… I asked the lamp how Salem could be defeated."

"You… What? She can't be defeated. Oz said it himself, Ruby."

"He only said she couldn't be killed. Not that she couldn't be defeated. I asked the lamp, and it told me the only answer it knew."

"And what did it say?"

"It said, 'the only way to truly defeat Salem is to become her'. To show her how it feels to be the one toyed with for a change and deny her anyone to turn into her pawns, namely anyone distressed or unstable like-"

He knew right away who she was talking about.

"Ironwood… Oh, no…"

"It's why I brought up the idea of therapy. Without it, he's a ticking time bomb who could blow up in our faces if we're not careful."

"But that doesn't change the fact that you're talking about manipulating and lying to your own team, does it, kid? Do you really want to be like Salem? Like Oz?"

"Believe me, Uncle Qrow, the thought is really hard to stomach, but we're running out of options. If there was any other way, if I didn't have to get my hands dirty to clean up the mess, I'd take it in a heartbeat. But if I don't start taking the offensive, then things will just get worse."

"Taking the offensive? If it is a game, and that's a big 'if', are you saying you want in?"

"No…"

She gave a cocky, self-assured grin before elaborating on her next move.

"I'm gonna smash the board."

Later in the evening, Ironwood sat in his office alone following another disastrous conference with the Council. His emotional state seemed to be continuing to worsen with each passing hour of their criticisms, each moment they questioned if the course he was leading them on was leading them to despotism. Even worse, several known opponents to Ironwood's methods were being mysteriously killed, leading many to speculate that he was enacting a purge to ensure he had his way.

Then he heard a gentle knock on the door, leading him to activate the speaker to identify his visitor.

"Hello, General," the voice respectfully greeted him. "If now's a good time, I'd like to talk to you."

He acquiesced and allowed his guest to enter, knowing it must have been important if he had company this late.

It was Ruby, holding a clipboard in one hand and a box in the other, with a pencil nestled comfortably in her left ear.

"I'm glad you put some thought into this decision. I know it must've been hard for you considering how out-of-the-blue my request was."

"You don't need to feel guilty," Ironwood assured her. "Even though I seriously doubt how qualified you are as a therapist, I understand your concerns for my health."

"I'm a little unsure about how I can help, but I'll do the best I can. Let's start with how you're feeling. So… uh, how are you feeling?"

"…Are we really doing this?"

"Just answer the question."

The general sighed in mild frustration before he relented.

"I'm… not in a very good place right now. Ever since Beacon, I've had to take every measure I could to make sure a similar incident doesn't occur, but… the Council would have my head if they felt I went too far."

"I figured."

Ruby jotted down notes as she talked, both to try and identify the root of her patient's issues and to appear more professional than she really was. Mostly, she did it so she wouldn't forget during the next session.

"This might be a stupid thing to ask, but is that why you don't shave anymore?"

"It'd only be a waste of the time I spend protecting this kingdom from Salem and her forces. And why would I go to the effort if it means looking in the mirror… and finding the man who failed to save Beacon staring back?"

She wrote down "shows signs of post-traumatic stress disorder", thinking back to when Yang couldn't find it in her to even get out of bed because of her own scars from the aftermath of Beacon.

"Thank you for trusting me with this. I can assure you that you're not a failure, James. Can I call you James?"

"Only whenever we're meeting like… this. I still hold greater authority than you."

"Of course. Doctor-patient confidentiality and all that…"

Then Ruby opened the box on her person to reveal a chessboard and thirty-two pieces, half white and black. She took out the white queen piece.

"Since we've still got a little more time left, shall we play?"

After an affirming nod from Ironwood, she set up the game, taking the light side while he settled for the dark side. However, she noticed him tense up at the sight of the black queen.

"Is everything okay?" she asked. "If something's bothering you, we can end it here."

"It's nothing," Ironwood brushed aside her concerns. "I was just… lost in thought. Nothing to worry about."

"If you say so…"

Now that the game was on, Ruby opened by moving the pawn in front of her king by two squares, her opponent countering by mirroring her tactic and blocking the pawn.

"You know, Oz was really good at chess," Ironwood reminisced to fill the silence. "I can't remember a single game he hasn't won against me."

"That must've been frustrating," Ruby assumed. "I would've brought Remnant: The Game since it's a little easier to get used to, but the only set we had got lost in… well, you know what, and this was the only thing I could find. I still don't understand the appeal, James."

Ruby moved her bishop by three squares while Ironwood moved another pawn one square away from his queen.

"Chess might not be as exciting or flashy as other games, but it does wonders for your memory and creativity. And most importantly, it helps nurture skills necessary for any leader: the ability to strategize and solve complex problems. Whether you win or lose, you grow as a planner and as a leader, Ruby."

"I never thought of it like that. I'll keep that in mind."

She readied her leftmost knight for action, placing it one square away from her pawn while the general moved his own bishop towards it in response.

"Your team doesn't seem too keen on trusting me for now, and I apologize if it's causing any animosity between you and them."

Ruby moved her other knight behind her bishop. Ironwood's third pawn was deployed into the first square in front of it.

"No, it's my fault, James. I didn't tell them about the last question on the lamp yet, and they're a bit confused, but they'll come around. I know it."

Ruby's knight captured the black pawn while Ironwood's bishop took her queen.

"I'd advise you to keep your team in the loop if we're going to defeat Salem. And what did you ask the Relic?"

Ruby's own bishop captured another pawn while her opponent could only move his king forward.

"You see, there's the thing… I asked it how she could be defeated."

Ironwood was in complete and utter astonishment. He thought back to when Ozpin first told him about the Relics, the Maidens, and most significantly, his millennia-long war with Salem. To think that the foremost expert on the enemy they faced could have asked the Relic of Knowledge for the means to beat her all those years ago, yet never thought to do so, was flabbergasting. How much agony, death, and destruction could Oz have averted if not for his investment in this arduous and tiresome game?

As her opponent started to panic from both the sudden revelation and the realization that there was nothing he could do to stop her from beating him, Ruby flashed a wicked, victorious grin, moving her first knight to trap Ironwood's helpless king.

"And that's checkmate. Well, I think we should call it a night, James. I'm looking forward to arranging our next session!"

After a satisfied Ruby left the office, her client's dread turned into fervent hope, and a smile slowly crept onto his bearded face as he recognized that now that Ruby knew how to defeat Salem for good, no more unnecessary suffering would have to come about from the battle of pride that claimed so many. That, compounded with his awe at his impromptu therapist's surprising talent at chess, caused him to laugh uproariously for what seemed like the first time in years.