Just to let you all know I have a work event in June (a multiple day show where we exhibit with a stand) that I'll need to take a week off from writing for. It's a 3-day show, and I need to go before to set-up and then the day after to pull everything down, and I'll be staying at a hotel and going out with clients after. They always drink like mad during exhibitions and I can't afford (literally, for business reasons) to not go out with them. Have another September, too, but that's my big speech one I chair to several thousand people I have to do every year. Anyway, the June one is 14-16th June, so I'll need to plan a week off. It'll probably be no updates 13-19th, resuming on 20th. I just want to let you all know in advance as usual.


Cover Art: Curbizzle

Chapter 27


"There's been no sign of Cinder's forces or their iterations." Ozpin told the respective teams. "After sustaining losses, it looks like they've gone to ground."

"Wasn't anyone caught?" Blake asked.

"Unfortunately, Knight left no prisoners among the defeated. Of the White Fang who attacked and were attacked by him, all died. Gruesomely." There was a short, awkward pause as everyone looked at the man wearing a too-small school uniform, who didn't look uncomfortable at all under the attention. "The body of whom we believe to be Mercury Black was cut in two. It would have been helpful if we had someone alive to question."

"I tried to withhold my strength." Knight said. "Your enemies here are… fragile."

That was what was terrifying – he'd tried. Poor Ruby looked absolutely lost now, facing this new – or perhaps not new, but unseen – side of the person she'd been alternating between hero worship and crushing on. As far as Yang was concerned, it always existed. You probably didn't become King of Vale without cracking a few eggs, and Ruby always seemed to forget that those crazy fantasy stories and RPGs she liked involved a whole lot of war, death and misery, usually used for character development. Knight may not have liked his life being likened to a game, but it made things easier. To him, their world probably felt just as bizarre.

"It is what it is." Magnis interrupted with a carefree shrug. "We can feel bad for it later but if the world is in the balance then people should expect to die. That's the reality of it."

"I am not criticising." Ozpin said calmly. "I'm only requesting he try and take a prisoner next time so we can track the other iterations down to their lair."

Knight grunted. "I'll keep that in mind."

"What about Headmaster and Xiong?" Jaune asked. "They were good for information before."

He'd been a lot more open and involved of late, Yang thought. Confident enough to speak up and stick his nose in where it wasn't asked. Good on him. The rest of his team weren't the same, even though their two iterations were still alive. Pyrrha had given up on Fate, and that annoyed Yang more than she cared to admit, while Hunter… well, no one knew where he was. The Emerald Forest still? She wondered if he was still watching and waiting or if he'd just picked a direction and kept walking.

"Headmaster didn't show to the fight." Knight said.

"Xiong is missing." Ironwood growled.

"Missing!?" Weiss squawked. No wonder. It was the first they'd heard of this. "Is he dead?"

"We doubt it. The moment your battle was over, we attempted to contact him through the channels you agreed on before to see if he had anything on Cinder. Nothing. There was no answer, and when I sent Winter to the nightclub you found him at to speak to him in person, he wasn't there. What's more, they're claiming there never was a man of his name and description."

Yang snorted. "They're lying. Obviously."

"Obviously." Ozpin agreed. "But what are we to do? Attack them? The club is owned and run by a man named Hei. He has returned – and Xiong is nowhere to be seen. We could send you to shake them down and find out the truth, but that could be a trap. Furthermore, it won't help us locate Xiong if he has fled. The man will have covered his tracks."

"He's betrayed us, then." Blake said.

"He'd have had to be loyal to us to do that." Yang pointed out. "He always said he was independent."

"It's my belief that he is working with Headmaster." Ozpin said. "That would explain nicely where he got his information on Cinder from. Furthermore, we know Headmaster was working with her but did not join the fight last night. I expect that just as Xiong has turned on us, Headmaster has turned on them."

"A third party." Ren mused. "But Jinn did not offer a third outcome."

"Indeed she did not. It's hard to know their full motives, but they may be trying to place themselves as the last survivors, willing to sell their services to either side. It's true that only Salem may win or us, but either side still needs an iteration to claim victory. If they're the last left, we'll have no choice but to give them whatever they want. As will Salem."

"They can't beat Knight." Ruby finally spoke quietly.

"I do believe you're correct, Miss Rose, but then they do not have to defeat him, do they? Our enemies need only corner and kill you and he shall disappear." Ruby whined unhappily and even Yang had a suspicion as to what would come next. "As such, we think it's best Team RWBY be limited to Beacon until such a time as the war is concluded. Knight, of course, is free to roam as he wishes."

Called it. Yang sighed, but not too unhappily. The loss of freedom sucked but if visiting Vale was a one-way ticket to being ambushed and forced to fight for their lives then she didn't want to go out there anyway. It wasn't like Beacon was small or lacking in amenities. Yang nodded along with her team, who grudgingly accepted the decision. Revolutionary didn't seem eager to go out there and face Adam again either.

It wasn't long before they were dismissed, sent off to waste their time while Ozpin, Ironwood, Warchief, Magnis and Nicholas talked like adults. Knight stayed, refusing to be sent away and making his position clear, and the teachers no longer had the courage to forbid him. Honestly, there were times when she felt she should do the same, but the truth was she wasn't the kind of person who was any good at planning and strategy. Dad called her lazy for not trying, but Uncle Qrow always said there was nothing wrong in understanding and playing to your strengths. Forcing people into things they weren't ready for just caused them to chafe and in some cases up and leave.

The cafeteria was out, so they gathered in RWBY's dorm instead. More floorspace than JNPR's thanks to the bunkbeds, even if Revolutionary's sleeping roll was curled up in the corner. Yang had offered to sleep with Ruby and let him have a bed, but he'd only laughed and said he was used to sleeping in much worse conditions.

"Well, the `surplus to requirements` group meets again." Weiss complained once they were all seated. "I'm beginning to wonder what our purpose is supposed to be if they're all having meetings without us."

"To be fair," Ren said, "The Gods decided this as a battle royale of versions of Jaune, not of us."

"They had to know we'd get involved."

"Would they?"

"They're Gods, Ren."

"Gods who, according to Ozpin, failed to predict their mistakes leading to this mess in the first place. If these Gods could be tricked by Salem when she was a grieving human, I dare say they could make the same mistakes here."

"Didn't they summon a dead Jaune as well?" Nora reminded them. "That's pretty dumb."

"The balancing of the factions is all out of focus as well." Blake said. "Jinn mentioned the sides would be roughly equal, but Knight single-handedly tore them all to pieces. If Leviathan hadn't died to a sniper, he could have likely done the same in his monstrous form. Ashari may be skilled, and Null's Semblance may be powerful, but neither could stand up to them if they went all-out."

"Then there's Magnis, an actual huntsman, Warchief, a military commander and Fate-"

"A lazy bum?" Pyrrha quipped.

"Leave off." Yang cut in with a scowl. "He didn't ask to be called here to die for us, and it's his choice if he wants to fight." Pyrrha looked shocked to be chastised so. Yang pushed on before it could get awkward. "But yeah, I agree, the sides don't seem even at all. Either the Gods want us to win, or they think we need all this somehow. Because of Salem?"

"Maybe." Weiss ran with it. "It could be that given Salem, Cinder and all her powerful followers we know of thanks to the iterations, that the Gods thought we needed more firepower. Our iterations are stronger, but our anchors are much more vulnerable. It's honestly a surprise we haven't been targeted more than we have."

That still wasn't a fair balance. Beacon was built like a fortress and protected by Ironwood, Ozpin and the other teachers, not to mention the Atlesian military hanging around and all the students who would get involved. They probably would have come after them if it wasn't so difficult to get in and at them. No matter which way she looked at it, the Gods had gotten the balance all kinds of wrong.

Unless they knew Headmaster and Xiong would betray both sides…

Were they the big threat? Had the Gods planned for a third faction to keep things interesting, or maybe even in order? What if they had different instructions to everyone else? Maybe they had a third way of winning the war, independent of Salem and Ozpin both. In the end it was all so much guesswork and nothing more.

"The Gods couldn't have predicted how people would act, surly." Blake said. "If Adam hadn't been so stupid, Revolutionary would be on their side right now."

"Might," the Jaune in question said. "Might be."

"Then, what, you think the Gods planned a fair and balanced war, but Ozpin broke it?"

"More that we've been exploiting it better." Blake said. "Ozpin was quick to bring General Ironwood and the army in, and then keep us in Beacon, and all of a sudden it doesn't seem so fair anymore because Knight can sally out whenever he wants, do hideous damage and then retreat back here where Salem's people can't reach him. I wonder if the Gods thought we'd just all meet in an empty field, duke it out and decide it in one go."

"That's dumb."

"By a human's standard. What if it's normal for divine beings?"

"I wasn't religious before and hearing how dense they are isn't making me any more so." Weiss said with a heavy sigh. "I get that an alien intellect will appear… well… alien, but you'd think the beings that apparently made us would understand how we work a little better."

"Did your parents instantly understand you?"

Yang laughed. "Dad never threatened to abandon us for getting something wrong, left for twenty years and then came back to tell me I had to take part in a death battle for his affection. I'll go out on a limb and say no one else's was that bad either."

"Either way, this war is in the bag with Knight-"

The room was suddenly cast into shadow, the light streaming through the window swallowed whole. Wingbeats, the sound of which were deafening, echoed wildly outside, along with panicked cries, screams and gunfire. Teams RWBY and JNPR were on their feet immediately, though it was Ruby who made it to the window first and threw it open.

Black wings, feathers and bodies covered the sky. Birds. Thousands of them. Tens or hundreds of thousands. The black birds flapped wildly overhead like a solid tidal wave of feathers blocking out the sun above Beacon. Students who were armed had already begun firing upwards, while the turrets of Atlas ships opened up with loud thundercracks. Explosions burst among the mass, showering feathers and dust down on the academy. One of the birds was blown down by the concussive force of one such and slammed into the wall next to their window, where it died and slid down.

"Nevermore!" Weiss gasped. "But so many!? There must be thousands of them!"

"A million." Ren whispered. "At least. This isn't natural. No swarm could ever grow this large without being detected. It would have taken years for enough Grimm to congregate to form a flock like this, and we'd have had weeks warning in advance."

"Grimm." Blake whispered.

"Obviously but-"

"No." Yang said. "She means this is Grimm Jaune's work. The reason they're all here in these numbers and how they got past detection. Grimm is summoning them!"

/-/

Grimm panted from atop the largest Nevermore as it flapped its wings to stay in the air. Gunfire rained down from above from the Atlesian battleships, intercepted and caught by smaller Nevermore that loyally threw their bodies in the way to absorb hits meant for him. They exploded into feathers; more took their places. Hundreds of thousands of them swarming in great masses to clog the weapons and explode inside, causing the dust shells to detonate inside the weaponry and render it useless.

With these numbers, he could have reaped a devastating tally on Beacon.

Cinder would like that.

"Open a path," he said instead. Remy reacted immediately, causing a hole to open in the swarm of Nevermore, effectively turning them into a cyclone centred on Beacon. He could see the students below staring up in panic and confusion. They had no idea of this war. They were victims.

Not his, though. Never his.

"KNIGHT!" he roared.

His voice carried, echoing down the tunnel of Nevermore. It helped that the cannons from above had finally gone silent, and that Remy ordered the Nevermore to make no noise. It was an eery, unnatural silence. He wished he sounded more confident, louder, but his breath was coming out in short gasps, and he felt weak and sick. His arms were criss-crossed with freshly healed scars, evidence of the ridiculous amount of bloodletting required to summon his army. It was difficult to stay upright on his Nevermore, let alone raise his voice. He did his best anyway.

"SHOW YOURSELF, KNIGHT!"

The Nevermore veered suddenly. Both his and the smaller ones. The smaller threw themselves into the path of a fist-sized stone. They exploded. They burst harder than Grimm struck by detonating shells, and the stone continued through, punching up through the air past Grimm's face at the speed of a bullet. He traced its trajectory down to see Knight on the ground, flanked by Ironwood and Ozpin. The other champion's arm was forward, having thrown the rock at such speeds.

"You really are a monster." Grimm whispered. "Just like me." He cleared his throat and shouted again. "KNIGHT. YOU AND I SHALL END THIS. OUTSIDE THE CITY. ONE HOUR. IF YOU ARE NOT THERE…" He gritted his teeth together. "IF YOU ARE NOT THERE, I WILL UNLEASH MY HORDE UPON THE CITY AND ITS OCCUPANTS."

He would not.

Could not.

But neither could Knight ignore that threat. "I'll be there," he said, and his voice carried easily. "Make your peace, Grimm. I shall send you back to whence you came."

"I bet you will." Grimm hissed. "Away," he told the Nevermore. It swerved and drew him outward, the swarm following, coiling around him like a horde of bees on a hive.

"You need rest." Remy said. "You're going to pass out with how much blood you've lost."

"Soon, Remy. Soon."

/-/

"I've found them."

General Ironwood leaned over a monitor and cursed.

"How bas is it?" Ozpin asked.

"Judging by the signatures alone, not to mention the mass, we're looking at an invasion of Grimm the likes of which brought down Mountain Glenn." He slammed a fist down on the table, shaking both it and the two teams that had been summoned to Ozpin's office. "How did he manage to get away with this right under our noses? We should have detected this!"

"How far away are they?" Glynda asked.

"They're in the Emerald Forest, but the far reaches of it." Warchief said. "As far away from Beacon as you can humanly manage while still being within range of Vale. The city probably should have noticed all this, though."

"Did someone mess up?" Nora asked.

"No, Miss Valkyrie, the city takes its defence very seriously. Atlas also has its ships patrolling the city's surroundings." Ozpin steepled his fingers before his face. "If anything, this implies Grimm was able to summon them quickly. I'd say he was working all night under the cover of darkness, and likely into today as well. There is simply no way this many Grimm could have remained hidden for longer. A patrol path would have encountered them otherwise."

"We're not giving Knight up, right?" Ruby asked.

The silence was deafening.

"I'll go." Knight answered. "He's challenged me honourably. I'll answer."

"This isn't about honour-" Ironwood began.

"You're right. It's not." Knight interrupted. "This is a war, and it is about murdering one another. Grimm could have attacked Beacon with the element of surprising, swarming the academy while seeking Ruby out and killing her. He did not. Similarly, he could have ordered this army to attack Vale knowing we would have to respond and then enter Beacon to kill as many anchors as possible. He has not. He has offered us a way to avoid such senseless casualties by responding to his challenge." He paused. "It's a degree of honour I wouldn't have expected from one of Salem's brood. We can't truly squander it."

"What if it's a distraction to draw you out so Cinder can attack Beacon?" Blake asked.

"That's entirely possible, which is why you should all stay here."

"WHAT!?" Ruby yelled.

Yang closed her eyes, sighing.

"This is a challenge for me to face him, Ruby. Blake is right that Cinder would – and should – take the chance to attack Beacon while I'm busy. They might even expect us to respond full force and leave Beacon exposed. That's why you should all stay. Between yourselves, Magnis, Fate, Warchief and Revolutionary, you should have little difficulty fending them off if they do try anything."

"Agreed." Ironwood said. "But I want to provide airship support regardless. The ships won't be able to fire on friendly targets like Beacon. They might as well be useful thinning the odds in your favour."

Knight inclined his head. "Very well. Are they operable, though?"

"Whatever damage the Nevermore caused is being repaired as we speak. If nothing else, my men can drop shells out the hangars and launch Bullheads. Sending one man, no matter how powerful, against an army of Grimm is not something I will accept."

"Then I will gladly accept your aid against the Grimm – so long as you leave me to face him alone."

"More of your honour?"

"It's not about honour." Knight said. "It's about respect."

"For him?"

"For the fact he could have made this worse but did not. If we punish our enemies for showing any shred of mercy or kindness, we only teach them not to." It sounded like he was reciting that from someone else. "I'd much rather encourage my kind to fight one on one, away from civilians, than to engage in all-out war in the streets of Vale."

"That might ne noble by the both of you, but this is far beyond what can be concealed!" Glynda said. "We were able to blame the docks on Grimm, but an invasion like this is impossible to hide. To say nothing of the fact Grimm called you out above Beacon with hundreds of witnesses."

"With all due respect, ma'am, that's not my problem."

Miss Goodwitch looked stunned. The teams, too.

It was Weiss who said, "How can you say something so insulting without sounding insulting?"

"Because it's a reasonable comment." Knight said with a tiny smile. "My immediate job is to prevent this invasion washing over your city. What comes after will come after, but I can't let it distract me now. One problem at a time."

"Quite." Glynda recovered and agreed. "And you're right. You focus on the fight and leave the rest to Ozpin, James and me. I'm sure we can argue Knight is a name or nickname for a huntsman. As for who this is? A Semblance of illusions?"

"The Council will never accept that." Ozpin said, "But knight is right to say thinking of excuses can come after we're sure this is dealt with. Team RWBY, JNPR, I know this is a tall ask but we are going to need you to stay in Beacon. I fully expect an attack on the school while Knight is occupied."

"Yeah." Yang nodded for her team. "That sounds about right. Ruby?"

"I… I…" Ruby looked to Knight. "You'll be okay, right?"

"A battle such as this is nothing I haven't seen before."

"You'll come back safe?"

Knight hesitated only a second. "I will try my hardest."

Yang noticed he didn't promise to come back. She wished he would have, even if they'd have all known it was a lie. Nothing wrong with a little white lie here and there, especially for Ruby's sake. Yang placed a hand on her sister's shoulder and spared a meaningful look for Weiss and Blake, silently asking them to help watch Ruby. If she tried to chase after Knight… No. They wouldn't let that happen.

"I don't understand." Jaune whispered to himself. "Why would he do this?"

/-/

Cinder visibly trembled with excitement, watching as the news broadcasts finally noticed the army of Grimm outside their walls. To call their reaction panicked would be an understatement. Vale was rapidly descending into chaos. Demands were being made of the council and Vale's leaders, and no one had any answers. The only thing they could assure was that huntsmen and huntresses would be sent to combat the threat, along with Atlas' army.

"This is it." Null said. "Our best chance. Assuming Grimm can pull through."

"Even if he can't, all you need do is kill Ruby Rose."

Null hummed, eyeing Cinder out the corner of one eye. "Ashari might have something to say about my trying that."

"Leave him to me. Can you do it? Kill the girl?"

Null's eyes flashed a bright gold. "If I must."

/-/

"Chaotic."

"Necessary chaos, my friend."

"Even so," Xiong said. "I don't like it." The suited man took out a hip flask, unscrewed the top and poured out a long trail of amber liquid.

"That's wasteful."

"Have a little respect for one who goes to die for his beliefs." Xiong let the last of the amaretto pour out before draining the dregs in one gulp and sealing it. He dabbed his chin and set the flask back inside his suit jacket. "Tis a tragedy in the making."

"We all go back to our worlds when we die."

"And yet the pain he does and will feel is very real. We don't belong here."

"We don't." Headmaster agreed. "And yet here we are, forced to make the best of it. Getting cold feet?"

"Hmph. I wouldn't have agreed to your plan if there was any doubt in my mind."

"True." Headmaster smirked and leaned on his – Ozpin's – cane. The motion was a mix between Ozpin and Roman in mannerism, a fact Xiong did not miss. "We do what we must. No. That's a poor excuse. We don't have to do anything. It would have been all too easy to side with Ozpin and close this war quickly. We could have avoided a lot of bloodshed."

"Would they have learned anything?"

"Of course not. And I am a teacher." He stabbed his cane down, causing it to bounce on the rooftop and then jump up so he could catch it again. "Well. Class is in session. I hope your newly forged empire is ready, Xiong."

"They await my signal."

"Then, if you will…"

Xiong sighed and took a scroll from his pocket. Rather than speak into it, he clicked on the screen, sending out a message. It was a moment after the beep of a sent message, then a few moments more, before lights began to blink off across the city. Streetlights, windows, billboards, traffic lights and more, winking out one by one until the city was plunged into the dark ages.

Televisions winked off, taking with them the news of the Grimm, and any semblance of security in a suddenly all-too-worrisome world. Where they were held, in important locations like hospitals, prisons and emergency services, backup generators sprang to life in order to keep the vulnerable secure, but the rest of the city was cast into darkness. Which was precisely why the sky looked so pretty when the Atlesian battleships hovered above, their blinking lights some of the only visible in the city.

"You have a strange look on your face."

"Ah. I'm just remembering an old strategy of mine. You could call it my special move."

"I don't want to know." Xiong pressed another button on his scroll, this time connecting to a all. "Miltia. Melanie. We need transport to the Emerald Forest. Hold your position – and you remember what I told you. Hei should be able to run everything in my absence. Thank you. Goodbye."

"Planning for after your demise?"

"It's easier to focus on the task at hand if there isn't any lingering business. Hei will keep things from getting too chaotic. Someone ought to think of what happens after the war."

"You think I'm not?"

"Your plan is a little too far ahead for my liking. The Xiong Clan is my responsibility."

"And Beacon is mine," Headmaster said. "Which is why this pains me a little."

It was Xiong's turn to throw the words in his face. "Getting cold feet?"

"Heh. A little."

/-/

In the hospital bed, Fate looked up as the lights blinked out suddenly. There was an audible but distant ka-chunk as the school's systems switched over to a backup system, then a plinking noise as the tubes flickered back on, albeit dimmer. A puff of cigarette smoke poured out his lips as he let out a long sigh.

"Another world; same shit. This old song and dance never changes, does it?"


What the hell was today? Yikes. I started writing 8am as usual, got a call 9am that I need to go into the office on a Saturday as the electrician cannot get inside as someone locked doors they should not have. I drive in and open them. Then get a call from my mother that her friend's mare is struggling to give birth as the foal's legs are bent back inside the body and they need me. I drive there for a gruelling session of stick your hands up a horse's privates. Then I have to go back to work because the electrician cut of all power, and when he reconnected it, he set off the building's alarm and it's going off and no one can stop it.

Then I get to go home and start writing. At, like, three in the afternoon. To hell with cooking tonight. I'm getting takeout.


Next Chapter: 28th May

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