A/N: Italics=Thoughts
Yang, once again, followed her mother through the swirling mass of black and red energy. She was happy that she was going back to train. Her mother had told her that it would be best to rest for a couple of days so as to recuperate her energy. Truth be told, Yang had thought that she wouldn't need those days for rest since she felt so good. However, the next day after she came back from Mt. Gulg, she was absolutely exhausted. Not sore or in any kind of pain. Just very tired. Needless to say, after that, Yang understood why her mother had told her to take a few days off. The blonde really needed them.
After coming out into the clearing, Raven looked over at her daughter. She gave the blonde a once over. With a raised eyebrow she asked "Where is your weapon?"
Yang smirked at the tribe leader. "I don't need one. And no. I'm not saying that because I think I'm suddenly better than you or anything like that." The half-faunus chuckled as she gazed upon her mother's confused face. "Oh, you'll see what I'm talking about soon. Let's just say I've learned a few new tricks."
"Really now?" Raven said as she walked past Yang. Once the ravenette took he place across from her daughter, she turned to lock eyes with her. "I hope you're not actually overestimating your abilities Yang. Otherwise, this will be a rather short session."
Yang's only response was to smirk. The blonde moved into her stance as did her mother. She opened her right hand and concentrated. Soon enough, a small ball of golden fire formed. Then suddenly, it shot forth from her hand and formed a sword similar in shape and length to her mother's. Yang looked up to see her mother's shocked expression. She grinned. It was oddly satisfying to see that look on the older woman. However, Yang knew she shouldn't dally around. This was a rare opportunity. So, she charged at her mother. Taking advantage of her lowered guard.
Raven regained her senses at the last moment and raised her crimson weapon. Hissing sounds came from her daughter's fire weapon as it made contact with her sword. She could feel waves of heat assaulting her face. Red eyes went wide as she felt herself being pushed back. Raven adjusted her sword at a slight angle. Once she regained control, she threw Yang away from her. The Bandit Queen knew that her daughter had grown stronger, but she had not anticipated that she would have gained this level of strength.
Once Yang landed, she slashed at the ground. She then stomped on the area she slashed at and a large chunk of earth flew up. Yang then delivered a powerful spin kick to the piece of ground she had forced up. It flew through the air at amazing speeds, but Raven smirked. In one, lightning fast, fluid motion, Raven sheathed her sword and swiped it across the air.
A small portal opened up and swallowed the speeding piece of debris. Yang's eyes widened. Behind her, a small portal had opened up. The blonde had barely anytime to move out of the way as the piece of ground she had sent at her mother came speeding out of the portal at her. The blonde tsked. She should have realized that her mother would be capable of doing that.
"Pay attention!" Raven yelled
Yang brought her sword up to block her mother's attack. The blonde felt her back hit something, but she was too preoccupied with holding her mother's weapon away from her neck.
The tribe leader moved her face closer to Yang's. "This might be a new trick, but it doesn't exactly help you much. I wonder if you have anything else?"
Yang growled at her mother's taunting. The half breed reeled back her left arm. Gilded flames surrounded her entire arm and she threw out a punch.
Raven slid her sword across Yang's. She wasn't surprised when her weapon merely deflected the arm. The avian faunus would not have done this under normal circumstances. Since, under normal circumstances, this would have lopped off her daughter's arm.
Yang twisted her body to move away from the older woman. She brought her fiery sword behind her to block her mother's attack and jumped away. Clenching her left hand into a fist, the yellow fire that was around her arm traveled down into her hand. She then threw a fireball at her mother.
Raven was shocked to see a ball of fire hurling towards her. She didn't need to be a super genius to figure out that those fireballs were explosive. So, the tribe leader jumped back. When the fireball hit the ground it exploded. Debris was shot everywhere and a large plume of smoke settled in front of her. However, just as her feet touched the ground, she watched as her daughter came shooting out of the smoke. Raven frowned as she pulled her sword up to block Yang's incoming attack. Her eyes widened as her arms were thrown to her right. Leaving her completely open and vulnerable. Yang then curled up her left hand into a fist and stepped into a punch. Her fist hitting the center of her mother's abdomen.
The older woman clenched her teeth in pain as she felt her daughter's fist crash into her. She was hit with such force that she started to skid backwards. The ravenette dug her feet into the ground. The further back she went, the more of her legs sank into the ground. She lifted her sword and jammed it into the ground. Soon enough she came to a stop. Raven looked down to the area where she was struck. Then she brought her gaze up to her daughter. Raven grinned. She felt nothing, but overwhelming amounts of pride. Throwing the fireball to force her to jump, but never actually having the intention of hitting her. It was merely to get her off kilter and to use the black smoke to obscure her vision. Her daughter had used the fact that she could not set her feet to block the attack and forced her arms away and took the opening that she had just made.
Yes. Raven was very proud of Yang. She actually started to laugh. "Ha...Hahaha...Hahahahahaha!" After a few moments of laughter, she calmed down. She locked eyes with the blonde. "Well, it's about time you actually landed a hit. No one has been able to make me feel pain like that for years. You should feel proud."
Yang smiled at her mother. "Nah. I'm not proud about that."
Raven raised a brow. "Oh. Why is that?"
The blonde chuckled. "Because, you and I both know that were no where near using you full power. I'm only gonna be proud when I actually slug you one when I'm fighting you at your best."
Smirking, Raven pulled herself up to her full height. She stepped out of the ground and held out her sword again in her signature combat stance. "If that's the case then you still have yet a ways to go before I start fighting at full power."
"Oh, I'm sure, but I know I'm getting there. So you better watch out!"
"Ladies and Gentlemen." Said a loud speaker. "I regret to inform that we will have to take a detour. The port we are scheduled to dock at is experiencing a nasty typhoon. So it will take an extra couple of days to get to get to Mistral. We are sorry for this delay, but as you know, we can't control the weather." The click of the speaker going dead echoed.
Blake sighed. "Just great. Here I am trying to go an important mission and I'm being held up because Mother Nature decides to throw her hissy fit." She leaned on the side of the boat with her head in her arms. "What rotten luck." She grumbled.
"Maybe it's because your like a black cat!" Said a happy, cheery voice.
Blake's right cat ear flicked right. She frowned and looked up to see Sun smiling down at her. "What exactly does that mean Sun?"
"C'mon! You've never heard about how black cats are a sign of bad luck?"
The feline fanus groaned. "Of course I know that, but what exactly does that have to do with anything?"
Sun chuckled. "Well, because you have black hair and ears like a black cat!"
Blake just sat there and stared at the monkey faunus. She honestly couldn't believe this. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she gave an exasperated sigh. "Really Sun? Really? That joke was just bad. Like, really bad. Like Yang level of bad."
The blond-haired boy beamed at his companion. "Yeah, but at least you're not thinking about that stupid storm. Besides, look what I found." He then brought out a fish burger. "Look! They have Salmon Burgers!"
Blake's eyes went wide. The delicious smell of the salmon entered her nostrils. A small bit of drool started to slide down her chin.
Sun laughed. He then offered the Salmon Burger to his feline friend. "Here. You can have it."
Blake shook her head. She then settled her amber eyes on her friend. "Really? Are you sure? Because if you're hungry then you can eat it."
Sun shook his head. "Nah. It's okay Blake. There's a whole bunch of them right back there" He said as he pointed his thumb behind him. He closed his eyes and smiled at his companion as he put his right hand on his hip. "So don't you worry about ol' Sun here. There's plenty of it to go around!" Sun found it odd that Blake didn't answer him back. So when he opened his eyes, he noticed that she was gone. He began to frantically look around for her. He shivered as images of her father castrating him appeared in his mind. The blond boy promised that he would look after her.
After a few moments of searching, he heard soft sounds of purring behind him. The monkey faunus then turned around to see Blake happily munching down on the Salmon Burgers. He wiped his forehead as he sighed. "Please don't give me heart attacks like that. I really like being alive." Ghira's threat came back to his mind. He gulped. "And I like having my balls exactly where they are." He said to himself.
"Wait? You actually still have pictures?" Asked Weiss.
"Oh yes! Of course I do. After all, they were so cute! Here! Let me show them!" Taiyang excitedly exclaimed.
He reached back to his back pocket to pull out his wallet. He then opened it up and pulled out two pictures. Taiyang flipped over the pictures for Weiss to see. "As you can see here, these are my photos of my precious Ruby-roo and Yangy-moo."
The white-haired girl snickered. "Ruby-roo and Yangy-moo?"
The blond man nodded his head furiously. "Yes. See, the reason it's Ruby-roo is because look at the cute kangaroo footed pajamas she's in. Isn't she just adorable!" Taiyang gushed.
Weiss took the picture of the child Ruby. She couldn't believe how cute she was. The former heiress instantly fell in love with the her loop sided smile. She briefly wondered what their children would look like if they decided to have any in the future. Weiss started feel a faint blush. "Getting a little ahead of yourself aren't you Weiss?"
"Here is the one with Yang. I called her Yangy-moo because she had cow footed pajamas. Here's a fun little fact. The reason why I got Yang that was because she got jealous that Ruby got something cute and she wanted to be cute with her."
Weiss took the photo. She saw a small girl with pig tails and a few missing teeth grinning at the camera with Ruby hugging her from the side. The pale-skinned girl grinned like a madwoman. She was very much so planning to use this against Yang when she saw her again.. Oh how she couldn't wait to get sweet, sweet revenge for that shower prank the blonde pulled. Ruby would also pay for her involvement in that prank as well. She looked up at the smiling man in front of her. "These are rather cute. I never knew they were into cutesy stuff like this."
"Hahahahaha. Oh they were. Even though Yang preferred to have action figures and toy soldiers as opposed to dolls and stuff. Ruby however, had a whole doll and cute stuffed animal collection. She was also absolutely in love with those giant doll houses. While Yang wanted giant airship toys."
"Really? I would have thought Yang would have been the one who was into dolls since she was so adamant about her hair and what not, with Ruby liking action figures since she is so into weapons."
"Yeah. Most would think that. Those girls made a lot of people really confused." He laughed.
Weiss handed the photos back to Taiyang. After he put his wallet away, they continued on their way to Haven.
Weiss groaned as she remembered how long they have to go to get to their destination. "I really wish we had SOME faster means of travel."
Taiyang laughed. "C'mon Weiss. Ain't nothing wrong with great outdoors. Just take it all in. All of nature's splendor!"
"I would much rather be taking a nice, hot, relaxing bath right now. I'm starting to feel filthy."
The veteran huntsmen pouted. "Hmph. I suppose you kids just don't know how to appreciate nature and her beauty."
Weiss rolled her eyes at the overly dramatic man. "I'm too busy admiring a different kind of beauty." She looked up at the sky and stared at the clouds for a few moments. For a split second, she could see Ruby's smiling face in the clouds. Weiss smiled and continued walking. "I can't wait to see you again Ruby. You might be a dolt, but you're my dolt."
Willow had just began to start her day of monotony. Grabbing several bottles of wine and sit about in the gardens. It wasn't like there was anything else she could do. She had no say in anything that happened in the manor. However, that didn't mean she didn't know the on goings within the manor. Willow had heard of Weiss' altercation with her brother. She knew it would happen eventually. Once of course Whitley decided to show himself for what he truly is. The white-haired woman was also aware that Weiss had eloped. And truthfully, she was grateful that her daughter had decided to follow in her older sibling's footsteps in some way. It might not seem like it, but Willow did care for her daughter's. Whitley, however, she had no love for. She knew all to well that his heart was black as coal. Just like his father. The boy was nice and sweet on the outside, but on the inside, he was just as much of a monster as his father.
Willow heard an unfamiliar voice coming from her husband's office. Typically, she would never think anything of it. She would have just dismissed this as Jacques just meeting with new business associates. However, something inside her bid her to listen. Call it intuition or instinct. Whatever it was, she felt that this was very important.
"So Mr. Schnee, what do I have the pleasure of meeting with you today?" Willow heard a suave, serpentine like voice slither out from the other side of the door she had her ear pressed against.
"Yes, well, I have a matter of grave importance that I wish to be resolved. So, I am in need of a man of...a certain kind of set of skills." Jacques said.
"Ah. Well, if it's someone you need to have disappear, then you came to the right man Mr. Schnee. I assure you, I am the best at what I do."
"Yes. Your reputation proceeds you Gavrilo Princip. They say you are the world's greatest assassin. Looking into your credentials, I must say that I agree from what the grapevine has told me," The owner of the SDC said as he leaned back into his seat.
Gavrilo smirked. "I dare say, you flatter me a great deal Mr. Schnee. However, I'm certain you did not call me here to stroke my ego."
"Indeed. I need you to kill a girl named Weiss. Here is a picture of her." He produced a picture of the former heiress and handed it to Gavrilo's waiting hand.
Willow's eyes widened. "I knew her leaving had upset him a great deal, but I did not think he would hire someone to kill our daughter!" With a sense of urgency, she took out her scroll and pressed record.
The assassin hummed. He stroked he clean shaved face. "Well now. I must say. I have gone on a lot missions, but I have never had a mission where a father wanted me to eliminate his own daughter." He said playfully.
Jacques grunted. "That girl is no daughter of mine. No. Weiss is nothing, but an embarrassment. She continues to soil the Schnee name even to this day. To put it plainly, I want you to kill her and make certain that no one will find her body."
"Ah! Well, I can do this. Would be easy to off some pretty little girl."
"Careful Gavrilo. She is no ordinary girl. The whoreson was a student at Beacon. She uses a Multi Action Dust Rapier. She is also proficient in the use of raw dust and uses glyphs." Jacques warned.
"Oh! Really then? She might prove to be wonderful prey. Would hate for her to be boring quarry after hearing all of that." The assassin put the picture down. He smiled at the man across from him and laced his hands together. "Now there is only the matter of my pay. Also, is there anyway you wish for me to kill her?"
Jacques chuckled darkly. "Do not worry about money. You will find that I have no problems with lien. As for the manner of which she is to be disposed. I don't really care. So long as no one can trace it back to me, then you are free to choose whatever method you please."
Gavrilo clapped his hands with excitement. "Excellent! Then we are agreed. Do not worry. No one will know. I'll make sure of it."
Willow quickly cut off the recording. Once she saved it, she put her scroll back in her pocket and began to walk towards the entrance of the manor. After turning into several corridors, she came upon Klien.
"Ah, Mr. Sieben. Could I ask a favor of you?"
The butler bowed respectfully. "Why of course Madam Schnee. What is it that you need of me?"
"Could you please drive me to James Ironwood? I have something of grave importance to speak with him about."
Klien blinked several times at the Lady of the manor. He fixed a determined frown. "Of course Madam Schnee. It will be as you have asked. I will prepare the car immediately."
She watched as the stout butler walked away. She could see why Weiss had taken to Klein. Willow began to walk in the direction of the entrance. The white-haired woman was both parts happy and very worried. She was worried for the well being of her daughter. However, this was also her chance to rid herself of that horrid man. Willow never wanted to marry Jacques at all. Unfortunately, she didn't have choice in the matter. Being from a very wealthy and politically powerful family, she was put in an arranged marriage. This was done so her family, the Schnees, would gain even more profit and power. Ever since she was forced into this marriage, Willow was miserable. So, she took to drinking wine to make herself numb to her sorrow. The woman had wanted to marry her school crush. James Ironwood. However, it was ripped away from her. Her family didn't care about what her heart wanted and neither did her so called 'husband'.
As she walked out of the front of the manor, Klein pulled up in front of her. He got out and opened the door for her. Once she was in, Klein took to the driver's seat and began to drive toward James' office. Willow looked out of the window. She narrowed her eyes as she looked back at her family's manor. "You have taken everything from me. My home. My family name. The company that should have been for me had my father not been the male chauvinistic pig that he was. You stole my life, but you will not take Weiss. Now, Jacques, it's time that I take everything from you and reclaim my life!"
James Ironwood was sitting at his desk signing off on orders to be passed down to his soldiers and a few budget orders. As he was about to finish his work, he heard his desk phone give a soft ring. He picked up the phone and answered. "Yes?"
"Sir. There is a Willow Schnee here to see you. She insists that it's urgent."
James was actually surprised. He never thought Willow would ever come to see him. Whenever he visited the manor, he made it a point to check on her and make sure she was okay.
"Sir?"
The General shook his head. The sound of his receptionist's voice broke him from his thoughts. He pressed the phone against his ear once more. "Ah, yes. Send her in please." Once he hung up, he suddenly became a bit self conscious of his appearance. He straightened out his coat and his tie. He also ran his gloved hand through his graying hair to put everything back into place. Once he was certain that he was presentable, he sat straight up and laced his fingers together and rested his hands on his desk.
Willow smiled when she gazed upon the general. As she walked over to his desk, she watched James stand up from his seat and move to meet her. "Good afternoon James." The white-haired woman greeted.
The tall man smiled warmly at the woman in front of him. "Good afternoon Willow." He greeted back. James walked to grab a chair and pulled it out for Willow. "Please, have a seat. I understand that you have some sort of emergency."
She smiled at her Academy crush. She accepted his offer and gently sat herself down. Once he made his way to his seat she pulled out her scroll and laid it on his desk. "Jacques has gone too far. I don't know if you have been kept abreast of the situation back at the manor, but Weiss has eloped. My daughter vanished some days ago. It's obvious why she ran, but Jacques just...well, this recording should tell you everything you need to know."
His frown deepened with each passing second as he listened. Once the recording ended, he closed his eyes and sat back in his chair. James let out a groan as he rubbed his eyes. The General knew Jacques could be a jackass, but he never thought that he would actually put a hit out on his daughter.
"So, James. My only question is, where do we go from here?"
James sighed. He leaned forward on his desk with his hands folded together. "I'm not going to sugar coat it Willow. This won't be enough to arrest Jacques. The man will just claim that the recording was fabricated and that you are trying to incriminate him so you can gain all of his assets. And unfortunately, the courts are liable to believe that since it's not unheard of with wealthy families who have arranged marriages. There is also the fact your husband is both extremely wealthy and politically powerful. There is also the case that he can buy out just about any judge here in Atlas."
Willow frowned. She didn't like what James told her, but she knew he was right. "So what can we do then? Please don't tell me nothing can be done." Worry evident in her voice.
"No. I can conduct my own private investigation. I don't even have to tell him about it. This is very serious. I have enough here to at least go on the grounds of probable cause. However, this investigation may take some time. I will need to search everything thoroughly. All of his bank records, transactions, and where he has been. Even all of his calls to find out with whom he has been talking to and where." James' heart began to sink as he watched the hope from Willow's face began to slowly drain. He knew this wasn't what she wanted to hear. "Willow, I understand you are not happy about this, but It's all I can do in the matter pertaining to Jacques. It's just the way our system is set up. If it were up to me, I would throw that man in prison right away."
Willow sighed as she looked down at her lap. "I know James. It's just that...that I wish to be rid of him now before he does anymore damage."
James reached out and gently took Willow's hand into his own. The white-haired woman looked up at him. It seemed that she was about to cry at any moment. "Listen to me Willow. I swear, by my honor as both General and Headmaster, that I will see to it that Jacques is put behind bars. I may not be able to deal with him right away, but what I can do is contact Winter and have her look for Weiss and keep her safe."
"But isn't Winter in Mistral? And how? I thought the CCT was down." Willow asked with some confusion.
He smiled. "Well, it's obvious that she would be traveling to Haven. I have reports that her team has made it there. So it makes sense she would try to reconnect with them. So Winter should be able to find her relatively quickly. As for communications, I had long since thought about the possibilities of the CCT being knocked out. With this in mind, I had Atlas' finest in R&D to make small devices capable of long distance communication in the event that the CCT should go down. This was to ensure that the military could continue to perform operations overseas."
Willow chuckled into her hand. "You have always been one to look far into the future of things. Nice to see that hasn't changed with you." She looked down at her right hand. It was still being held by James. The matriarch of the Schnee family smiled at the General. "James. You can let go now." She said playfully.
James looked down to see that he was still holding her hand. His eyes widened. He gently pulled away and coughed into his hand. "Ah! My apologies Willow" He said with a small blush spreading across his nose.
Willow giggled. She was happy that there was still something of the boy she had meet in school. "It's okay James. However, what should I do while this whole investigation is going on?"
"You should return back to the manor and just act how you would normally act. We can't let Jacques know or have any inkling of what we're doing." Truth be told, he loathed the idea of sending Willow back, but it was the only way. He would rather her be somewhere far away from that man. However, he knew that would just arouse suspicion.
"Well, that doesn't sound too bad. We rarely interact with each other anyway." Willow stood up and began to saunter towards the entrance of the office. She made sure to put a little bit of an extra sway in her hips. Once she opened the door, she looked at the General. "Thank you for your time James. Have a wonderful day." Willow held a grin as she walked out. The woman knew exactly what she was doing to the poor man.
James sat at his desk with a deep blush. He couldn't help, but have his eyes linger on Willow's rear. He might be a person of honor and integrity, but at the end of the day, he was still just a man. After regaining his composure, James opened a drawer and reached into it to pull out a small, rectangular device. After pressing a few buttons, he held the device to his ear. After a few moments of ringing, he heard the click of the line being picked up.
"Specialist Schnee. I have a matter of large importance to discuss with you."
"Yes sir. What is it sir?" Winter responded dutifully.
"To put it bluntly, your sister is in grave danger. I want you to suspend your investigation and look for her immediately. You won't have much time."
"Danger? What has happened sir? Where is she?"
James knew that typically, Winter was known for staying cool, unless Qrow was involved. However, he could hear a small amount of panic in her voice. It was understandable. "Winter. Just calm down. For now, Weiss is unharmed. Your sister ran away from home. By this time she is probably already in Mistral. You need to hurry and find her. Your father has hired an assassin to kill her and has most definitely removed her from the Schnee name. The assassin is none other than Gavrilo Princip. Please exercise extreme caution. Once you have found her, take her to Haven immediately. Do you understand your orders?"
There was no sound of her acknowledgment. The General knew this was a lot to take in for her and thus waited patiently for her response.
"Yes sir. I will being my search for my sister immediately."
Yang had just gotten back from her training. She took to walking around the tribe to just deflate and relax a bit. The blonde heard some form of frustrated grunting behind her. Her curiosity got the better of her and she went to see what was going on. Once she went around the backside of a tent, Yang saw the girl known as Robin. Yang knew her to be the Spring Maiden.
Yang moved up to get a better look at Robin was messing around with. She saw the inside of gauntlet. There seemed to be a blade tucked away in there as well. It was then that Yang realized that she and Robin never actually properly meet. With a smile on her face she moved a bit closer to the frustrated girl. "You need help with that?" she asked in a jaunty tone.
Robin yelped in surprise. She frowned as she turned around to see her leader's daughter smiling at her. "No. Go away." The girl went right back to work on her weapon.
"Really? Because it looks like you're struggling. I'm pretty damn good with machinery and engineering."
Robin growled under her breath. "I am not struggling. I know exactly what I'm doing. I don't need your help!"
Yang watched as the younger girl began to continue to fiddle with her weapon. "Hey don't put much torque into that. It's gonna bre-" The sound of metal snapping as one of the gears flew out. "-ak." Yang blinked several times as she watched Robin fume at her own mistake. "You need help."
Robin threw Yang a nasty glare. "It's your fault it happened. I had everything under control and then you showed up. I don't need you help!" She said indignantly. Yang actually started to laugh. Robin's cheeks burned red with embarrassment. She felt a bit humiliated. "What is with that boisterous laughing!?"
The blonde wiped a tear away from her eye as she started to calm down. "Oh, nothing really. You just remind me of a certain Ice Queen I know. That's all."
Robin crossed her arms. "Hmph! Well, if you're so damn good then why don't you fix it?" The shorter girl all but threw her weapon at Yang.
The blonde easily caught weapon that was thrown at her. She gave Robin a large grin. "Sure. I don't mind. You might even be able to learn something if you pay attention."
After about fifteen minutes of tinkering with the device, Yang was finished with her repairs. She turned towards Robin and smiled. "You're problem is that you're too rough with this stuff. You gotta be gentler and be more patient. Otherwise, you're gonna break it like you did a little while ago. Also, I would recommend cleaning this more often. It was absolutely filthy in there!" The blonde handed Robin her weapon back.
Robin just felt more embarrassed. This was yet another time that she had been humbled by her leader's daughter. By this outsider. "Alright fine! You fixed it. Now leave me alone."
The half-breed threw her right arm over the shorter girl's shoulders. She grinned down at her. "Awwwww. C'mon. Don't be like that Robin. Let's be friends!" Yang yelled excitedly. Pumping her left fist in the air.
"Ack! No! I don't want to be friends with you. Now, let me go and go away already."
Yang gave a hearty laugh. "Okay. Okay. Okay. Fine. I'll stop bugging you, but that doesn't mean I'm giving up on being friends." Before she walked past the tent, the blonde turned her head to look over her shoulder at Robin. "Also, you're kinda adorable when you're pouting." Yang started to laugh wildly when she heard the younger girl began to sputter incoherently.
Robin's face was flushed red. She was glad when the blonde disappeared into the camp. "I-I have never been so thoroughly embarrassed in my entire fucking life." Robin was not happy about any of this. She thought this girl was getting to much praise. "Hmph. Just because she did that mountain challenge doesn't mean she's one of us." Robin said petulantly. She looked over at the direction of Mt. Gulg and narrowed her eyes. "If she can do it, then I can to! Just watch, I'll prove she doesn't belong and I'll do that mountain even faster!"
"Ha! Bloody hell. Look at that! She took that apart fast. Thanks little bird!"
"Haha! No problem Seagull." Yang wiped her forehead. Her face, hands, and arms covered in grease and oil. She had just got done dismantling an engine that was recovered from one the raids on the White Fang. The blonde was actually happy to do it too. She had only worked with an Atlas made engine three times in her life. They were beautiful things to her. Hell, she had installed one in Bumblebee! Well, a homemade one.
"Excuse me!" The group had turned their heads to see Dove running towards them. Once she came upon them, she stopped and looked at Yang and the others. Dove might be trying to hide it, but there was a small glimmer of panic in her eyes.
Yang frowned and stepped forward. "What's wrong Dove? What's got ya so worried?"
Dove gazed upon Yang. "Have you seen Robin? Have any of you seen Robin? I can't find her anywhere!"
Yang and the rest of the group shared confused looks. The blonde was the first to break the silence. "I saw her about four hours ago. She was havin a hard time with her weapon maintenance."
"Sorry Dove, but we ain't seen her either."
"Damn! Where could that girl have gone!? By dust! What if she was taken somehow?" Dove exclaimed.
"I know where she has gone." said an old, worn out voice.
Everyone snapped their heads to see Owl holding onto his cane. He shuffled over to Dove and looked up into her cobalt eyes. "The fool child has gone to the mountain."
Dove's eyes widened in fear. "What!? Why would she even try to attempt such a thing!? That girl isn't ready for such an undertaking. Not too mention she hasn't even told anybody that she left!"
Yang was shocked to see the good doctor acting like this. Dove was always calm, cool, and collected. To see her so panicked was a good indication of how serious this was.
Owl began stroke his long beard. His face becoming even more wrinkly as he frowned. "Jealousy is a powerful thing."
The blonde had decided to step in this time. "What do you mean Owl? Jealous of what?"
"You young one." He said as he pointed his cane at the half-faunus. "She sees all of that which you are accomplishing and it makes her feel insignificant. Robin feels that you are trying to replace her and she wishes to prove her strength. To show that she has purpose in this tribe."
"But I'm not trying to take anyone's place. She's the Spring Maiden. She has plenty purpose!"
"Of course you're not. You aren't that kind of person. But she feels differently Yang."
Dove ran her hand through her hair. She began to pace about frantically. "Stupid girl! She would put Raven's in plan and our people in jeopardy over some ill conceived sense of jealousy and inferiority complex?"
Yang looked down at her feet. She knew it wasn't her fault, but she couldn't help feeling guilty about this. The blonde understood how Robin felt. She could relate to the feeling of inferiority to someone else. With a determined look, Yang began walking past Dove and Owl.
Dove watched as Yang moved past her. She reached out to the blonde. "What are you doing Yang?"
"Look, we have no way of contacting my mother and telling her what has happened. If we wait until she comes back, it could already be too late and Salem could have already captured her. It's also not a good idea to have the whole tribe go out to look for her either. It would only attract attention. So, I'll go look for her alone. I'm also pretty sure that I'm the fastest flier here." She paused as she turned around and gave the group a look that reminded them of Raven when she was issuing orders. "You should have someone go to my mother and tell her what's going on while I'm looking for Robin. She will definitely take to finding me. Knowing her, she'll find me fast."
Owl hummed as he stroked his long beard. "A bold, if not somewhat risky plan. However, it is the best one we've got."
"What!? What if she gets captured as well? Then Salem has both the Spring Maiden AND Yang." Dove argued.
"Like I said. It's risky, but it's what we have. Besides, I'm fairly certain that our leader's daughter is strong enough to at least stall long enough for Raven to make it her. She is also the fastest when it comes to flying and time is of the essence." Owl looked over to Eagle. "You. Go to Raven immediately. Inform her of what has happened. GO! NOW!"
"Yes sir elder!" Eagle ran off and transformed into his bird form as he jumped in the air.
Owl nodded and then looked to Yang. "Young one. Be careful. Salem's minions are powerful. They are also seasoned warriors. Do not underestimate them if you happen to run into one of them. And if you cannot beat them, then stall for time."
Yang nodded. She transformed and then took to the air. Soon enough, she was but a small dot to both Dove and Owl.
"Are you sure of this Owl? There is a lot that can go wrong here." Dove said worriedly.
"Dear doctor. A lot of things can go wrong at any time. The young bird's plan is solid. Though I would be remiss to say I am not at least a little bit worried."
Robin had stopped at a spring. She was on her knees bringing up water to her lips in cupped hands. She was about halfway to Mt. Gulg. The Spring Maiden had the utmost confidence in her abilities. She truly believed that she could defeat the mountain. "I'll show her. I'll prove that I can do anything she can. I'm not going to be replaced."
"Well, well, well. Look at what I found here" Said a crazed voice.
Robin quickly did a one eighty. A straight edge blade shot forth from her gauntlet. Before her was a man a single braided ponytail with the tip of it resembling the stinger of a scorpion's tail. A tail with a black mechanical prosthetic at the tip of it was also wagging around. He had his arms crossed as he was leaning on a tree. His creepy smile sent shivers down her spine, but she put on a brave face. "Who the hell are you? The fuck do you want?"
The scorpion man chuckled darkly. He stepped away from the tree he was leaning on. "My name is Tyrian Callows." He answered while performing a mock bow. He raised up his head slightly to peer into the girl's eyes. "As for what I want...Let's just say that I'm looking for a girl with blonde hair. Maybe you know her. Her name is Yang Xiao Long. Now, while it's true that my mission is to find her, my original mission was to find the Spring Maiden. In other words, I was going to be sent to find you little birdie. Now, I honestly don't see any reason to not bring you and that pretty blonde to her." He clapped and jumped excitedly."Oh, yes! She is sure to reward me greatly for this."
"There is no fucking way in hell I'm going anywhere with you; you fucking creepy asshole." Robin growled as she brought up bladed gauntlet. An outline of green energy encased her body.
Tyrian pouted. "Oh, why can't you kids make this even remotely easy. Seriously, I'm not even going to get a fun fight!"
She snarled at the man. Robin jumped at him. Her hurt pride wouldn't allow this man to leave here alive. She brought up her weapon and slashed down. Unfortunately, Tyrian easily avoided her attack. She went in for another attack. Only for her opponent to bat the blade of her gauntlet away with his wrist blades. Robin cartwheeled away as his tail lazily swiped at her.
Once she landed, she was forced to jump behind a tree as Tyrian fired his weapons at her. The bark from the tree began to splinter and break as bullets tore into the trunk. Once it stopped, Robin' eyes widened as she ducked to avoid the blade of the scorpion faunus' weapon tearing through the tree. His attack split the tree in half.
Robin rolled forward and jumped away from her opponent. She turned to meet Tyrian's gaze. Her eyes began to glow green. Water and wind began to gather around her. Streams of water and wind flew out to Tyrian. He didn't have enough time to dodge so he brought up his arms and crossed them. The attack hit him hard. A moment later, he flew into the spring. Where he disappeared underneath the surface of the water.
Robin floated to center of the spring. Her glowing green eyes looking down with contempt at the surface of the water. She held out her hand to start to influence the water, but before she could, her eyes bulged as she felt something sharp pierce into her. Robin looked down to see the mechanical stinger embedded into her side. The Spring Maiden quickly floated away. Then, all of a sudden, she felt dizzy. Her vision began to swim and grow hazy. She dropped out of the air and landed on all fours. Robin looked down to see a purple substance dripping from her wound. Breathing was starting to become laborious. She felt like all of the contents in her stomach was about to come up. A wet boot came into her vision. She looked up to see Tyrian grinning down at her.
"See. What did I tell you? You wouldn't even give me a fun fight. Now then, how's about you take a nice nap. Hmm?" He said as he raised his boot over her head. However, before he could bring his foot down. He felt a hot, solid object smash into the side of his face. His body went flying off to the right. Tyrian smashed through four trees before crashing into the ground. Several other trees fell right on top of him when he came to a complete stop.
Robin was shocked to see Yang standing there with an outstretched arm. She was surrounded by dozens of beautiful golden feathers floating down. She watched as crimson eyes gazed down at her.
Yang walked over to the wounded Robin. She made sure to keep her eyes where Tyrian crashed into. The blonde knelt down. "You don't look too good. What happened?"
"He-he put some kind of venom in me." She coughed. Purple blood came from her mouth and splattered on the ground. "His tail. Don't let his tail nick you or anything. He's a scorpion faunus."
Yang frowned as she heard Robin's strained voice. It was clear that she was struggling to even speak. "Alright. Noted. Just don't talk anymore. Conserve your strength." Yang stood up and moved some feet away from the younger girl. They both knew he wasn't even close to being dead.
Trees and dirt shot out. Tyrian jumped out form the mound of debris he was buried under. He landed on a branch not too far away from Yang and Robin. The scorpion faunus looked down at Yang with an ear splitting grin. "Hohohoho! That actually really hurt! Ha! Now you might give me some entertainment. However, I do feel rather fortuitous. Not only do I have the Spring Maiden here, but you have also saved me the trouble of finding you blondie."
Yang gritted her teeth. She let loose a low snarl. "So, you're the one that bitch Salem sent to find me." She spat.
Tyrian narrowed his eyes at the insult to his goddess. "You should watch your tongue girly. Such disrespect to my Goddess isn't something she will tolerate." A moment later, he smiled at her. "Though I'm surprised that you knew I was coming and that you know about her. Well, I guess it doesn't really matter. You two are coming with me whether you want to or not!" As soon as the last word fell from his mouth, he crouched down and jumped at the blonde girl.
Yang deftly dodged the crazed man's attack by leaning over to the right. She saw him grin down at her. He moved the tip of his tail towards Yang and he trusted it. However, he fell for the blonde's trap. She quickly reached out and grabbed the base of the stinger with both of her hands. Not giving him anytime to respond, Yang jumped up in the air and swung her opponent several times over her head and then slammed him onto the ground with great force. It created a small crater that was the shape of person. The half-faunus felt great pleasure when she saw her enemy's mouth wide open. Silently screaming in pain.
Yang quickly disengaged as she felt his tail twisting and turning in her grip. Eventually, Tyrian jumped out of the person shaped hole he was put into. He attacked with a combination of kicks and swipes from his wrist blades. But Yang was blocking, parrying, and dodging all of his attacks. Once she spotted an opening in his attack, she pressed it. The blonde started her counter with a quick uppercut. His head lulled, but she continue to press her advantage. Yang then let loose a series of jabs to further disorientate him. Then she sent him reeling backwards with a well place flying knee. After she landed, she pulled her right hand back and jumped back in the air. Yang drilled her fist into his face with an impressive looking superman punch.
The attack made Tryian cry out in pain as he was sent sliding into the ground. A mound of dirt was building up behind him as continued move across the ground. Once he stopped, the scorpion faunus groaned. He put his hand up to his face and began to rub it. Soon, he stood up and glared at Yang. He felt something trickling down his mouth. Tyrian wiped it. He brought up his hand to see that his blood was smeared on it. "Ha. Haha. Hahaha. HAHAHAHAHA!"
Yang watched as her enemy laughed and cackled. To her, he looked absolutely insane. She went back into her stance when he stopped and looked at her.
"It seems that I have seriously underestimated you. You are sooooooooo much better than that girl with silver eyes I once hunted."
Yang's scarlet eyes glowed. She felt her anger boiling in her stomach. "The hell are you talking about? What the fuck did you do to my sister!?" She screamed.
Tyrian's grin only grew wider. "Oh? So she's your sister? Well, I didn't do anything. Qrow Branwen intervened before I could take her." He then let out a small growl as he stomped his foot on the ground. Like a child throwing a temper tantrum. "And that BITCH, you call a sister took the tip of my tail. I'll make her pay one day." He grinned once again. "Maybe I can start getting my revenge by taking you."
"Fat chance of that happening asshole. I think you'll find that will be harder to do than you think."
"Oh really? Well, let's see how true that is when I actually start going all out!" He crouched down in his stance.
Yang smirked. She would be lying if she said that she wasn't enjoying this. However, she kept her head in the game. She knew that letting her excitement get the better of her could lead to her getting careless. "Well, good. Because I haven't been trying either. Hopefully you won't die in in a matter of seconds. I would be disappointed if you did after all of that boasting."
Bodies of various White Fang members were strewn about. Some having been completely dismembered. Others simply laying in pools of their own blood. There was was also the smoking, broken remains of a stolen Atlesian Paladin-290. Several tents were on fire with a few trees collapsed on them.
Raven watched as her brothers and sisters take apart the large battle mech. While a few others were carrying large crates and boxes. Her red eyes fell upon the mangled corpse at her feet. She gave snort of disgust as she saw the mask. It was honestly an affront to the tribe's culture. These people only wore these masks to hide their identities and as just some sort of uniform. Maybe even to try to look intimidating. However, to her and her people, these masks were more than just things to hide faces behind. They were a mark of status and strength. The various masks told of each tribesman and tribeswoman skills and experiences. Each one telling their story. To earn a mask was considered an honor and they were proud of this. But the White Fang took their culture and bastardized it. This of course didn't sit well with the tribe.
The tribe's leader started to walk to her people to supervise and better organize them. However, before she could reach them. A bright flash of white light washed out her vision. It was happening. Her visions were coming to her again.
Once the white disappeared, Raven could see her daughter slumped over what seemed to be an injured Robin. What terrified her the most was that she could see Tyrian Callow's form looming over the two teens. The last thing the ravenette saw was the grin on the scorpion faunus' lips. Then, all of a sudden, she was brought back to the present.
Raven felt a wave of panic run through her. She jerked her head back towards the direction of the camp. She closed her eyes and focused on finding Yang's and Robin's aura. Her eyes flew open. "There! Both of them are away from the camp." However, she also felt Tyrian's dark aura. Raven growled as her crimson eyes glowed dangerously. The Bandit Queen looked up to see Eagle flying towards her.
Once he got close to the ground, he transformed back into a person. He ran up to his leader. "Raven! We have a problem!"
Raven's hands clenched into fists. "So, my vision is true." The black-haired woman turned back to her people. "I want all of you to quickly finish and leave for the camp. Do not stop for anyone." She turned back to Eagle. "Eagle, help them finish and return to camp with them. I shall return back to the tribe soon."
"Yes ma'am!" He ran to his fellow tribe members.
Raven turned into her raven form and immediately took to the air. If she knew what the area where Yang and Robin were at looked like, then she would have opened a portal. She did not dwell on this any longer. Instead, Raven opted to put all of her focus and energy into flying faster. "Just hold on Yang. I'll be there soon."
Robin watched on as the two fighters were nothing, but blurs. Only becoming completely visible for brief periods of time as they engaged each other before disengaging and becoming blurs once more. Seeing these two fight, she was made painfully aware of how weak she really was. The Spring Maiden cursed herself for her own stupidity. The girl was coming to realize that Yang was most definitely the superior warrior between the two of them. It was only now that she was realizing the truth behind Raven's words when she told her about the vasts amounts of hidden potential and power inside the blonde girl. What she couldn't understand was why this girl was fighting so hard for her. Especially after how poorly she had treated her. Maybe if she lives through this she could ask her.
Tyrian landed on a branch in crouched position. In the past minute or so since he had been fighting his target, he learned a very important thing. When it came to a contest of physical strength, he was woefully inferior to his opponent. Several times he almost had both of his arms ripped off by the girl's monstrous strength. It didn't help that she had no problem keeping up with his speed. So if he couldn't use superior mobility or win by brute force, then he figured that he would try ranged combat since he noticed that she didn't have any weapons. He grinned as he brought up his wrist blades and started firing them.
Yang started weave and dodge her way around the bullets. She jumped over a large rock and slid down it. The blonde looked up at the top of the rock. Opening the palm of her hand, a golden ball of fire formed. She grinned devilishly. "He thinks keeping me at distance is going to help him? Well, let's see what he thinks of this." Yang jumped over the rock she was hiding behind and hurled it at her enemy.
Tyrian's eyes went wide as he saw a ball of fire speeding toward him. Gritting his teeth, he jumped off of the tree. Once he landed, he heard a loud boom behind him. The scorpion man watched as most of the tree was destroyed from the explosion. What little of it was left was on fire. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He turned around only to have Yang's fist catch the side of his face and send him flying.
Yang yelped as she felt something wrap around her ankle and throw her to the rock she jumped out from. The throw caused the blonde to crash through the rock, breaking it apart. As she landed at the base of it, piles of rocks that was broken form the larger one settled on top of her. Burying her beneath them. At the same time, Tyrian smashed through multiple trees. The wood from them broke off into dozens of splinters. The trunks landed on top of him when he came to stop.
Both fighters blew off the debris on top of them and jumped out. They both landed in front of each other. Smirking at one another. Yellow sparks of ethereal energy flashed around Yang's body. The same happened to Tyrian except they were a purple color. Both of them were clearly enjoying their fight.
Tyrian however, was left with a bit of quandary. His target was not an easy opponent. She also didn't show any signs of fatigue. As much as he would love to indulge himself further in this fight, he knew he was on a mission and that Salem was not one who liked waiting longer than necessary to have what she wanted. So, he was going to have to find a way to finish this fight quickly. He heard a cough. Suddenly, an idea came to him. "I forgot about the little Maiden. Yes. She will prove to be useful."
Yang raised a single eyebrow as her opponent flashed a smile at her. Then, in an instant, he darted to his right. The blonde's eyes widened as she realized what his going after. Yang moved as fast as she could to Robin. Just as soon as he let loose his attack, the half-breed blocked it. She then gave Tyrian a high kick, only for him to back flip out of the way. Yang went in pursuit of him, only to halt her advance and jump back toward Robin as he fired his weapons as he was flipping through the air.
Yang grabbed the wounded girl and leaped away. Bullets pelting the area she was just at. Once she landed, Yang had to bring up her right arm to block a kick. Because she couldn't set her feet correctly in time, the attack forced her back. The blonde retaliated by throwing out a kick of her own. Tyrian moved out of the way. He came up to Yang's face and began to throw a flurry of punches and kicks at her and Robin's still form on her shoulder. A bead of sweat trailed down her face. She was having a difficult time trying to defend herself and the girl she holding at the same time.
Yang grit her teeth as her back slammed against the trunk of a tree. She narrowly dodged the wrist blade. The sharp, curved blades dug into the bark. The blonde ducked and managed to leap away from her opponent. When she landed, she fixed a scowl at Tyrian. "Argh!" She screamed in pain. Her body felt weak all of a sudden. Yang looked down at the origin of her pain. What she saw confused her greatly. It was a mechanical stinger. "H-how?" She looked to her opponent to see that most of his tail was buried underneath the ground. "Fuck! Smart bastard forced me to multitask so that I wouldn't notice his damn tail." She dropped Robin on the ground. Her arm no longer able to support the girl's weight. Her vision grew hazy and everything began to spin.
Just as soon as Robin managed to sit up, she watched Yang collapsed to her knees and fall on her right shoulder. Her cobalt eyes went wide with fright. Terror beginning to grip her heart. "H-hey. C'mon. Get up. You gotta fight this guy." She said weakly. It hurt to talk. Her throat felt like it was on fire. She looked up when she saw a shadow fall upon her. Tyrian was grinning like a madman down at them.
"Holy shit! I gotta admit blondie! That was one hell of a fun fight. Hell, I'd say that you might be better than Qrow Branwen himself! Certainly better than that girl. She couldn't even give me the slightest bit of a challenge. Neither could her friends. But in the end, I came out on top!" He boasted.
Robin was starting feel uncomfortably hot. She didn't know if this was the venom or Yang causing this.
"At any event, It's time for you lovely ladies to have meeting with destiny! Salem will be most pleased with me!" Tyrian gave a psychotic grin. He then threw his head back to laugh wildly. "Hahahahahahaha!"
He stopped laughing when he felt something press against his bare stomach. He looked down to see his target resting her right hand on his abdomen. "W-what?" He blurted.
Yang then gathered her fire and pushed it to the palm of her right hand. Golden fire quickly flowing down her arm and formed a fireball. Pushing her arm back a little bit as the gilded ball of fire took he hands place at his stomach. "Eat shit." Yang then willed her fireball to move. She watched as Tyrian screamed as he flew through the air. After he traveled about ten feet, the ball of fire exploded.
Yang stood up. She was VERY thankful for these powers. However, this was no time to celebrate just yet. She could still feel the scorpion man's aura. He was still very alive. After the smoke and dust settled, the blonde saw the shaking form of her enemy. He might have survived her attack, but he did not do so unscathed. There was a giant red circle splotched across his torso. She figured that he focused all of his aura to the front to protect himself from the brunt of her attack. Yang smirked. "Oh, he looks real pissed."
Tyrian smashed his tail on the ground. He shot Yang an angry glare. "YOU FUCKING CUNT!" He yelled. "How the fuck are you up? Why is my venom not working as it should!"
"Because fuck you, that's why!" She shot back tauntingly. Almost petulantly.
With his right eye twitching with rage, he swung his arms back and went into his stance. "Oh, girly. I'm gonna make you fucking suffer for what you did. You hear me? I'm going to make you PAY!" He seethed.
Yang held out her right hand. A golden, fiery nodachi shot forth and floated for a moment before Yang closed her hand around the handle. She then covered her left arm with her fire and went into her stance. "What's wrong? Is the poor little baby scorpion angry? Ha! I told you. This wasn't going to be easy for you. It's not my fault you let your guard down. Never assume you have achieved victory until your opponent is good and dead!"
Before both fighter's could resume their battle, a large wave of red energy snaked in between them. Yang was forced to raise her arm to her eyes to prevent the debris from hitting her them. When she lowered it, she saw her mother standing in between her and Tyrian.
Tyrian opened his eyes to see Raven standing before him. He opened his mouth in wide O shape and then grinned. "I thought I'd never see the day where the infamous Raven Branwen would be standing in front of me. I feel so honored." He gave faux-bow.
"Yang. When I'm finished with him, I expect a full explanation." Raven said without taking her eyes off of the scorpion faunus. Her voice held measured irritation.
"Sure. No problem."
The ravenette took off her horrific mask. She then clipped it to her belt. Raven locked her glowing red eyes with Tyrian's purple eyes.
He was actually taken aback with the woman's face. Her and the blonde girl looked very similar to each other. He then grinned. "This is not what I was expecting. That girl is a spitting image of you! She must be your daughter! Come to say goodbye to her like a good mommy should?" Tyrian mocked.
Ignoring his jab at her, Raven kept her stoic look as she clicked a button. The cylinder full of dust rotated a few times. Once it stopped, she began to pull out her signature red sword. Once it was out, she activated the telescopic function of her weapon to double the length of her blade. Raven pointed it at her opponent. "How unfortunate for you to have meet me Tyrian." Her voice completely devoid tone or emotion.
He raised an eyebrow. "Oh! Why's that?"
"Because you have no hope of defeating me." She paused for a few moments. The tribe leader let out her aura. Waves of red and black energy shooting from her body. "I will ensure that this forest will be your grave scorpion man."
A/N: First of all. I meant to have this chapter come out a lot sooner. However, writing this one was particularly challenging. I had to scrap this chapter like 7 times before I finally had something I liked. Well, it's out now and I'm happy that it is. Sheesh.
Anyway, on to other things! I finally introduced Willow! Truth be told, I think Willow is actually a very sad person. The family portrait seems to portray that. Seriously, she just looks miserable. It take it because she was forced to marry Jacques. Wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if that's the reason why she always frequents the gardens while drinking wine. Just gets herself drunk so she doesn't have to feel sad. I think this has a good chance of being canon in the actual show too. However, the whole with her and James is just a fun little thing I made up. Just thought it would be funny to see him get flustered. Who knows. Maybe that could be a thing in RWBY as well.
Also, the reason why Tyrian knows what the Spring Maiden looks like is because Salem told him. After all, his original mission was going to be to find her and I doubt Salem would send him out if she didn't know what she looked like. The search would take Tyrian too long to do without a description of his target. As for the assassin. I'm sure anyone who happens to know a little bit about world history knows exactly who Gavrilo Princip is.
Also, if you guys didn't know, I made Mother's Day fanfic. It features Rosebird and has child Yang and child Ruby. So if you want to check that out, give it a go. However, that story also made me conflicted. At first I was all for doing an Au of this where instead Yang is raised by Raven and the tribe, but now I kinda want to do the concept from my Mother's Day fanfic. I'm stuck. I don't know which one I want more!
YNI1: Friend, your guess is as good as mine on how Tyrian got there so fast. Like seriously, that is the question I was asking for so long in the show. How the hell did he get to team RNJR so damn fast? Shit. How the hell did Dr. Watts get to Haven before the gang and how did Hazel to where was so quickly? My guess is that Salem has some sort of portal/gate thing outside her lair somewhere that can teleport them to the different countries or continents they need to be in. I hope they explain in that in the new volume.
Also, the reason why Weiss got there as quickly as she did was because she flew there. Taiyang got there about the same time she did because he left earlier than Weiss. It Tai about the better part of a week to get to Anima via boat and about an extra day to meet with Weiss since he was already so close. For Weiss, it only took about a day or less because traveling by is fast.
There is still a part of Yang that is still resentful and bitter, but the list of things has been shortened she feels that way towards has been shortened. Could definitely see Salem trying something like that. However, Yang would never join her. She knows Salem killed Summer. So this would only piss her off.
dudebladeX: Don't worry. Dark Phoenix is coming back. It just won't control Yang, but you will see it come back in some way.
sinnerlust: Exactly my thoughts. Why the hell would Raven take Ruby instead of Yang? Or even Jaune for that fact!
Well, it feels good to have this damn thing finally out and not in writer limbo. At any event, I will see you guys next time. BYE!