A/N: Hathor Isatari, Diana Mirai, and Alice Rosetta-Tesla Mirai all belong to my friend decode9.
Emerald and Neo took the unconscious Cinder to the Grimm whale, Monstra, and laid her down so that she could rest and recover from her fight with Penny and Anne. While she recovered, she remembered her past. She thought of what had started her down the dark path she was on, and how she ended up meeting Salem. She had been born into slavery in Mistral, and then sold to a woman in Atlas who ran a hotel there. This woman had treated her like a slave, forcing her to do all the manual labor, feeding her the bare minimum she needed to survive, and torturing her with a shock collar whenever she stepped out of line. But one fateful day, she caught the attention of a huntsman.
Flashback…
A ten-year-old Cinder Fall was scrubbing a carpet on a second-floor walkway overlooking the hotel's lobby when she happened to see a huntsman showing off his sword down there. Just then, her stepsisters came in wearing muddy shoes.
"You missed a spot!" One of the girls told her mockingly as she ground her shoe into the carpet. They both laughed at Cinder, who became so angry that her semblance was activated and heated up the brush, causing steam to appear. She threw the brush down on the carpet, creating a huge cloud of steam that drew the attention of everyone in the lobby, including the huntsman and Cinder's stepmother, the latter of whom was angered. She took Cinder with her into a storeroom and shocked her with the collar.
"Now that wasn't very ladylike, was it?" The stepmother asked. "I suggest you remember your place." Cinder fell to her knees, panting.
"Say it!" The stepmother insisted, shocking Cinder again. Cinder screamed in pain and then hung her head.
"Without you, I am nothing," Cinder replied.
Cinder left the storeroom, desperate to get out of her horrible situation. She remembered the sword that the huntsman was holding. With it, she could kill her abusers and gain her freedom. She knew what must be done. She snuck into the huntsman's room, stole the sword, wrapped it up in some cloth, and retreated back into a vent.
"Hey, what gives?" She heard the huntsman say a few minutes later. "Someone took my damn sword!"
"I apologize for the inconvenience," one of Cinder's stepsisters answered. "We'll help you look for it." Cinder, meanwhile, stepped out of a vent and unwrapped the sword, looking on it happily. With it, she would fight her way to freedom.
"Now that's not yours, is it?" Said a voice behind Cinder. She turned around and threw the sword at the huntsman, who deflected it with his two maces.
"I'm not here to hurt you," he told Cinder calmly. "I've seen you around, and I think it's safe to say that you're not getting the most fair treatment. Yeah? I can't really blame you for what you're thinking. However, hurting them isn't the solution. You'll be running for the rest of your life if you do that."
Cinder started crying. "You're probably right, but what else can I do?"
"Nothing. I'll take care of this situation. I'll get you out of here, I promise." He reached out to hug her.
"Thank you so much, Mister…"
"Rhodes," he replied with a smile.
"You'll need this," she said as she gave him the collar. "It's a shock collar. The owner's been torturing me with it."
"Thanks," he said as he took it. "I'll be back."
Cinder got back to work and kept doing her usual tasks for the rest of the day. The next day, Cinder was working in the lobby when Rhodes returned to the hotel flanked by a couple of Atlesian soldiers. They all approached the hotel owner.
"You're under arrest for child abuse, the use of forced labor, and the violation of several child labor laws," he told her as the soldiers put a pair of handcuffs on her wrists.
"What the?!" She asked in shock. "Unhand me at once! You have no proof that I've done any such thing!"
"I have all the proof I need right here." He pulled out the shock collar. The stepmother's eyes widened in shock when she saw it.
"What the? How did you?"
"She gave it to me," he said as he pointed to Cinder, who walked up.
"I knew you'd come back!" She hugged Rhodes as tight as she could.
"You little bitch!" The stepmother shouted in fury. "I'll get you for this!"
"That'll be hard to do when you're serving ten to twenty years in prison," Rhodes told her smugly before turning to the soldiers. "Take her away!" With that, the soldiers took the stepmother out of the hotel.
"You…you saved me…" Cinder said to Rhodes, happy tears welling up in her eyes.
"It's what huntsmen do," Rhodes told her. "If you'd like, I could train you as a huntress. You'll get to be part of something bigger than yourself, and it'll be a lot harder for anyone to hurt you because you'll learn how to fight."
"That sounds perfect," Cinder told him, hugging him. "Thank you so much. You've given me a chance at a good life."
Over the next several years, Rhodes taught Cinder how to fight. He taught her how to use the sword and the bow, and grew proud as her skills improved. Cinder grew to see Rhodes as not only a mentor, but as the father she never had. But when she was 16 years old, a year away from attending a huntsman academy, disaster would strike. Rhodes and Cinder were visiting a friend of Rhodes' at his home in Vale. The meeting had gone well for the most part, until the man pulled a sword on Rhodes.
"Lloyd, what's the meaning of this?" Rhodes asked. "I thought we were friends!"
"We were friends," the man replied. "You're right about that. But you've pissed off a lot of people in this kingdom. People who would pay quite a bit to see you die."
"You would sell out your friend for money?"
"Yes. Now die, please!" He swung his sword at Rhodes, who quickly pulled out his maces and blocked the incoming attack. Cinder joined in, swinging her swords at the traitorous huntsman. Lloyd was doing quite well despite being outnumbered two to one. After holding off the two hunters' attacks for long enough, he kicked Rhodes to the ground and raised his sword to kill his former friend.
"NO!" Cinder cried out as she used her semblance to create a burning glass sword and launch it at the traitor. He took the hit, screamed, and fell to the floor.
"You flaming idiot!" He shouted angrily. "Take THIS!" He pulled out a pistol and shot her several times, bringing down her aura and causing her to collapse on the floor in pain.
"Cinder!" Rhodes cried out in terror before Lloyd attacked him again. Cinder could only watch helplessly as the fight went on. Rhodes fought well, but without his numerical, advantage, he was quickly overpowered and stabbed through the heart. His blood spilled everywhere, and he fell to the ground.
"DAD!" Cinder yelled. She attacked the traitor again, but because of her wounded state and her comparative lack of experience, she lost. He cut her across the chest, causing her to bleed and lose consciousness. By that time, the neighbors had heard the ruckus and called the police. When Lloyd heard the sirens, he decided to run away instead of finishing off his foe. The police found Cinder's unconscious body and managed to stabilize her until an ambulance arrived and took her to the hospital.
"Wha…?" Cinder asked when she woke up. "Where am I? And where's my dad?"
"I'm sorry," the doctor told her. "He's dead."
In one day, Cinder had lost the only person she had ever cared about. The man who had freed her from her abuser in Atlas had been murdered by his own friend. Every fiber of her being burned for revenge. She would kill the traitor and avenge her adoptive father. She would have to break all the rules of being a huntress and act outside the law, but she considered it all worth it. After getting out of the hospital, training for a few more years, and doing quite a few shady dealings in Vale's criminal underworld, she finally tracked him down and snuck into his house through the window. But he heard her come in and confronted her.
"So, Rhodes' bitch of a daughter has come to avenge her dead daddy," he said with a smug grin.
"You took away the only person I ever cared about," Cinder replied. "Now, you die!"
She lunged at Lloyd and clashed weapons with him again, determined to finally kill him and avenge her adoptive father's death. They fought for a while, but Cinder was stronger than she was before. She was healthy, more experienced, and full of unstoppable rage. It was still a tough fight and Lloyd managed to make her bleed a little, but this didn't stop her. After a long battle, she stabbed Lloyd through the chest with her swords.
"You took everything from me," she told him as he bled out. "It's only fitting that I take your very life from you." After he was dead, she sheathed her swords and left the house. She returned home and slept soundly that night knowing that her father was avenged. But a few days later, a huntress would approach her.
"Cinder Fall," the huntress said. "You're under arrest for the murder of Lloyd Farran. "We found your blood at the crime scene."
"You should be glad I killed him. He betrayed his friend and disgraced everything huntsmen stand for. Not to mention, I saved you the trouble of killing him or bringing him in yourselves."
"Our duty as huntresses is to uphold the law. You've stepped outside the law and outside the scope of your duties as a huntress."
"He killed my dad!" Cinder shouted angrily. "The only person who ever cared about me!"
"I'm sorry, but that doesn't justify killing him. Now, I strongly suggest you come with me or else I'll have to bring you in by force."
"Come and get me!" Cinder responded before pulling out her swords and clashing with the huntress. She was a tough opponent, but Cinder's unstoppable rage and her hot glass-creating semblance could not be beaten. After they fought for a while, Cinder slashed open the huntress's throat, killing her. She then ran away as fast as she could before anyone would see what she had done. Cinder fled Vale and ran into the wilderness outside before settling in a cave for a while. She slept there for the night, and when she woke up the next morning, she was greeted by a large, tentacled Grimm. Much to Cinder's surprise, this Grimm started to speak.
"So you're the one who killed Brina Rozov?" The voice said. It was a female voice, one that sounded human, and seemed more likely to be coming from someone speaking through the Grimm than the Grimm itself. "She was causing me quite a bit of trouble."
"What the?!" Cinder asked in fear. "Who the hell are you?"
"I'll explain that in a moment. For now, you will know me as 'Salem.'"
"What is it you want with me?"
"That huntress you killed yesterday has been a thorn in my side for quite some time. You did me a great favor by killing her, and I would like to offer you a place in my organization. I have much use for someone of your abilities."
"And what is that?"
"Have you ever heard of the Maidens?"
Cinder's eyes widened. "You mean from the fairy tales? They aren't real!"
"They are very real, I assure you. And I need someone to become a Maiden for me."
"Why is that? And how will I become a Maiden?"
Salem spent the next several minutes explaining how the Maiden powers could be used to open vaults and retrieve ancient relics. She also told Cinder that, through the use of some advanced magic, she could give Cinder Grimm body parts that could steal the powers from Maidens, theoretically allowing her to be all four Maidens at once.
"Those are my terms," Salem said at the end of the lecture. "You can work for me, or you can keep running away from the authorities for the rest of your life. But if you join me, you'll be the strongest woman who ever lived. All the power in the world will be yours."
Cinder thought about the offer for a moment. She didn't know who this "Salem" was, but she made a very good point about being the most powerful woman ever. And with the Maiden powers, she could ensure that no one would ever hurt her or those she cared about ever again. She could build the kind of world that Rhodes died for.
"Very well," Cinder told Salem. "I accept your offer."
"Good. Now, follow this Grimm. It will lead you to my location."
Cinder followed the Grimm to where Salem was. Over the next several years, she would slay many of Salem's enemies in her quest for power. But with every enemy that Cinder killed for Salem, more and more of Cinder's humanity left her. The sense of power that came from killing her enemies stuck with her and infected her mind like a drug. Over time, she became completely consumed by her lust for power and completely forgot that she was trying to build a better world in Rhodes' name.
End of flashback.
Cinder woke up to the sound of Mercury and Emerald arguing. They informed her that Mercury would no longer be working directly under her, and that they should all head to the bridge of Monstra. Something big was about to happen.
Meanwhile, in the tundra…
Yang's group was trying to contact Atlas about the river of Grimm they had found moving toward the city. They weren't having much luck so far.
"It's headed straight for Mantle!" Jaune cried out. "I repeat, a large mass of Grimm is headed straight for Mantle! Please, anyone!"
Just then, an airship landed in front of the group. Its doors opened to reveal the Ace Ops along with Winter Schnee, the sister of Weiss Schnee and a high-ranking member of the Atlesian military.
"Great, you guys!" Yang called out sarcastically.
"Did you hear our message?" Jaune asked them. "It's right there. We need to hurry." He gestured over to the Grimm river.
"Where's Penny?" Harriet demanded.
"Are you serious right now?! There are people in danger!"
"There are people in danger because you kids are acting selfish, and-"
"Screw you!" Kent cut her off. "You're the ones who are acting selfish! There's a river headed toward your kingdom that could kill thousands, perhaps millions of your citizens, whom you are sworn to protect! The same citizens that Ironwood is abandoning because he's too much of a coward to stand up and fight Salem! And you want to kidnap the Winter Maiden and force her to help you with your plan to abandon those people to certain death! You're no better than Ironwood!"
"How dare you insult our General!?" Winter shouted back. But before she could continue, everyone heard a loud rumbling noise. A geyser shot out of the Grimm river, launching the liquid high enough in the air to reach Atlas. Centinels formed out of this liquid, and they managed to penetrate the shield before proceeding to burrow into the ground and dislodged the two pylons that kept the city's hard light dust shield up. With their destruction, the entire shield was down. The massive Grimm whale then vomited more black liquid into the city itself, and a wide variety of Grimm emerged from it and started wreaking havoc in the city.
"Look what your selfishness has done!" Winter told Yang and the others. "Ace Ops, arrest them!"
Kent gripped the hilt of his katana. "You'll never take me alive!"
"No, Kent!" Yang told him. "Fighting them won't solve anything. We have much bigger problems to deal with right now." Kent seemed to agree to this, as he took his hand off of his sword's hilt. The Ace Ops handcuffed them and took them into the airship. While they flew back to Atlas, Winter contacted Ironwood and told him what had happened.
"Sir, Schnee here," she told the General. "Penny is still MIA, but we've apprehended Arc, Xiao Long, Ren, and one other person who appears to have been helping them. I don't know his name."
"Kent Kasai," Kent told Winter. "The legendary Samurai of Haven. Ironwood, if you're hearing this, I want you to know that you're a coward. You're abandoning your people to save your own skin."
"I didn't ask for your opinion!" Ironwood snapped. "Schnee, wait for further orders. Do not let those fugitives escape!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Still just following orders," Yang said to Winter in a disappointed tone. Jaune and Ren looked out the window, shocked to see how big Monstra was.
"That's where the Grimm took Oscar," Jaune told Winter and the others. "It's even bigger than I thought."
Vine narrowed his eyes to show that he was skeptical. "Grimm don't take prisoners."
"This one did!" Yang told him. "If you would just let us go-" She tried to stand up, but Elm and Vine grabbed her shoulders and forced her back down. Just then, Ironwood's voice came on over the radio again.
"Cease fire. Manta squads, concentrate on secondary hostiles. Command is working on a solution to the creature."
"What did you have in mind, sir?" Winter asked.
"We aren't making any progress attacking the thing from the outside. But from the inside, it could be vulnerable. Science team is putting together a bomb. When it's ready, we'll drop it off as close to the target as possible. Then, your team will deliver it on foot. Sending your rendezvous coordinates now."
"Yes sir," Winter replied.
"You can't just blow it up while Oscar's still in there!" Yang protested.
"That creature causes more and more damage every minute," Vine told her. "We cannot wait."
"So you're down to killing kids now?!" Kent yelled in fury. "This is a new low, even for you cowards! You're supposed to protect children, remember? For the Gods' sake, Oscar's just fourteen!"
Harriet scoffed. "You're even worse than these other guys. How many more children will die if we don't kill that thing? Don't you know that we're protecting millions of other children by destroying that thing, even if one child dies in the process? Huntsmen are supposed to protect the greater good! You call yourself a Samurai? You're a SCAMURAI!"
"Let us go in there," Jaune pleaded. "You don't know what's in there, and we can go ahead while we look for Oscar."
"Do you really want to go inside that thing?" Marrow asked.
"Wouldn't you do it for Elm?" Yang asked. "Or Harriet? Or Vine?"
"No, because we don't let feelings get in the way of making the right call," Elm replied. "Trading three lives for one is stupid."
"Isn't that what huntsmen are supposed to do?" Kent asked. "The first thing I learned at Haven was to never leave a fellow huntsman or huntress behind."
"The Headmaster who taught you that was a coward and a traitor!" Harriet told him. "He wouldn't even follow that rule himself!"
"Maybe so, but that doesn't mean we can't live by it. This conversation is about us, not him."
Ren's head seemed to be bowed. "We care about Oscar, and he's our friend. We'll do whatever it takes to find him."
Harriet scoffed again. "I thought you were the most level-headed in this group, but you're just as naïve as the rest. Feelings don't matter, the job matters. When you lose someone on the team, you move on. You replace them, just like Marrow replaced Tortuga, and Winter replaced-"
"No!" Ren shouted as he raised his head in defiance. "No one is replaceable!" Just then, something that appeared to be red flower petals that were rising from below her."
"You don't really believe that. You're still furious over losing Clover."
"You don't know anything about me!" Harriet shouted furiously.
Ren looked around. Marrow seemed to have blue petals falling around him like snow, Harriet had red and yellow petals surrounding her, and Vine had green petals floating gently around him. Ren finally looked down at himself to see that there were pink petals rising up around him.
"That's why you lost against Team RWBY," Ren continued. "You try to fight how you feel about each other, so you'll never truly work as a team."
"Shut up!" Elm snapped. "You don't know what you're talking about!" She raised her fist to punch Ren, but Winter held it back.
"Everyone, calm down," Winter told the Ace Ops. She looked around at everyone's faces, then spoke again. "Fine. We'll drop you as close as we can to the monster."
"You can't be serious!" Harriet protested. "They're fugitives and traitors!"
"I outrank you," she told Harriet indifferently before turning back toward Yang's group. "If you aren't out in time, we drop the payload. No matter what."
"We understand," Jaune told her.
The airship landed outside Atlas, and Winter unlocked everyone's handcuffs. As Ren exited the airship, he spoke to Marrow. "You don't like this either. In fact, you don't want to be a part of it at all anymore."
Marrow seemed to be struck by this. "I-I have a job to do," he replied nervously. "And I'm going to do it."
Before Ren left, he turned to Winter. "And I know you don't either." He saw red, yellow, and blue petals surrounding her. After he said this, he and the others set out to find a way into Monstra and rescue Oscar."
Meanwhile, aboard Monstra…
In a torture room inside the Grimm whale, a giant man was beating up Oscar. Ozpin seemed to have taken control at the moment, and outside the room, Emerald was listening in on the conversation. What she heard would shake her to the core.
"You never wonder why she recruited you?" You, specifically, to help her find the Relics?"
"We share a vision," the man replied. "She's going to create a new world order. No kingdoms…" He stepped closer to Oscar, shoving his face in the boy's face. "And no huntsman academies."
Oscar chuckled. "New world order. No. When Salem gets all four relics, there will be no world left at all. Don't you get it? She's been alive for longer than you can comprehend. All she craves now is release. Death."
The man responded by punching Oscar. "Stop lying! Salem can't be killed! When she first came for me, I killed her over and over again. The longest she was gone was just a few hours, before she put herself back together. When I couldn't lift my arms anymore, she showed me that, through her, I could have the vengeance I needed."
"Oh, Hazel. Don't you see? That is why she came for you. Because she could make you believe that this is what you needed."
"This is what you deserve!"
"Yes, but Oscar? The people of Atlas? Remnant? You haven't done what you've done for justice. You've done it for yourself. Because she pushed you to think it would help you. Well, has it?"
The two continued arguing for quite a while, with Ozpin ultimately telling Hazel through Oscar that the Lamp of Knowledge was home to a deity named Jinn, who could be summoned simply by calling her name. He also told Hazel that the Lamp still had one question left, and that Hazel could learn the truth by using the question himself. Emerald left the room and told Mercury what she had heard, but he did not believe her.
"Salem's not ending the world," he told her. But just then, they were approached by a scorpion faunus named Tyrian, who was laughing maniacally.
"Of course she is!" He told them while laughing. "You're surprised? Salem is destruction incarnate! Our Mistress wishes to see the end of it all! There is no ideal more beautiful."
Tyrian then departed to Vacuo with Mercury, leaving Emerald by herself. She pondered what to do next. Emerald couldn't help Salem destroy the whole world. So many innocents would die. Emerald was not a heartless woman. The memories of the Fall of Beacon still haunted her every night. She remembered all the pain, suffering, and death that she had been responsible for. She remembered the role she played in causing the death of Penny Polendina. Pyrrha Nikos had torn her apart with her semblance. And now, just when Penny had been given another chance at life, she was fighting to help Salem and Cinder put an end to it all over again.
But then she remembered everything that Cinder had given her. Cinder had saved her from homelessness and given her life a purpose. Without Cinder, she would either be dead or struggling every day just to survive in the streets of one of the kingdoms. Cinder was the closest thing that she and Mercury had to a mother, and opposing Salem would mean turning her back on the one person who had given her everything she had.
But then, she remembered the words of Andromeda Lumiere. "The Atlesian military gave me everything I had," Anne had told her. "But I left them to help my friend save everyone because Ironwood's plan was wrong. Do the right thing, Emerald. Help us save our kingdom. And our world."
After remembering those words, Emerald finally knew what she would do. Anne had been willing to help Penny against Ironwood's orders. Not just because Penny was her friend, but because it was the right thing to do. Anne's words reminded her that doing the right thing sometimes required not only going against orders, but cutting ties with those who were doing wrong. Yes, Emerald owed Cinder everything she had. But she owed the world even more. She would do the right thing, leave Salem, and fight to save the world. She owed it to all the innocents in Atlas, to Penny, who had been given a new life despite Emerald's attempt to kill her, and everyone else in Remnant. And who knew? Maybe she could convince Cinder to leave Salem as well.
Meanwhile, at the Mirai estate…
The members of Team COAL watched their scrolls in horror as the Centinels destroyed the shield generator, thus bringing down Atlas's shield and leaving the city vulnerable to the Grimm that would soon pour in.
"They've breached the city!" Autumn shouted. "We have to get out there and help defend the place!"
"Agreed," Lily responded. "But we also need to make sure Team RWBY and the others are okay."
"We'll fight our way to Schnee Manor and find them!" Ouranos added. "We'll figure out where to go from there."
"Guys, are you sure you want to go out there?" Diana asked them nervously. "it's dangerous out there! But here, in the Mirai mansion, you're safe. We've got top-notch security to keep those Grimm out."
"Maybe so," answered Colby, "but we cannot simply stand by and let our friends die. Not them, or any of the other innocent people in this city. We'll risk life and limb time and time again to save them, because that's what huntsmen do."
"If you insist…" Diana paused for a moment, as if she were contemplating something. "You know what? You all risked your lives to save mine. It's only fair now that I risk mine to help you save others."
Hathor smiled. "We'd appreciate the help."
"Be careful out there, darling," Alice told Diana nervously. "Stick with your friends. They seem to know what they're doing."
"I will, mother." Diana leaned in to hug her mother, who hugged back.
"Alright," Hathor said in a determined voice. "Let's go!" They all headed out the mansion and into the Grimm-infested streets to fight their way to the Schnee Manor and save as many civilians as they could along the way.
Meanwhile, above the Schnee Manor…
Anne was doing her best to control her stalling airship and land it as close to Schnee Manor as possible. Meanwhile, Penny fought the virus with everything she had. She appeared to be in control at the moment, but neither of the girls knew how long that would last.
"Down there!" Penny told Anne as she pointed toward a large house. "That's were we need to go!"
"I'll try to land us in the street outside!" Anne shouted. "Here we go!"
Anne extended the landing gear and touched down in the streets outside the Schnee Manor. The airship came to a safe stop, and the two girls got out and ran up to the door.
The girls in the mansion seemed to hear what was going on outside. They went out to witness what had just happened, and looked on in shock.
"Anne?!" Weiss shouted angrily. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Let us in!" Anne begged. "Penny's being hacked! She needs help!"
"Why should we trust you?" Blake asked.
"I could have brought her anywhere, and yet I brought her here!" Anne answered. "Please, let us in! Do it for Penny!"
"Anne's right," Ruby admitted. "Alright, come in with us. We'll do what we can. But if you make one wrong move, you're dead."
"Fair enough. Let's go." They all went into the mansion, hoping to be able to help Penny somehow. They also hoped that they'd be able to do something to save the city from the massive Grimm invasion…
A/N: I decided to change Cinder's backstory because there were many things in the show's version that frankly didn't make any sense. Why didn't Rhodes take Cinder out of that situation? How did Cinder become such a sadist? Wanting to kill her abusers is one thing, but enjoying the pain of those who never hurt her is another matter entirely. And how did she meet Salem? More changes will take place in the next few chapters. I'm excited to write them.
Also, my friend Persona1 came up with the Samurai/Scamurai joke.