Hunters of Justice

by trestwho

Remnant has fallen, its cities captured and its greatest defenders defeated at the hands of the alien conqueror, Brainiac. In the aftermath of his victory, the people of Remnant's last hope lies in the hands of two teams of students, whisked away to another world. A world where Gods walk among them.

33. Training with the Bat-Family

Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC)

Chapter 24: Training with the Bat-Family

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November 8th, 1:00 AM

Batcave, Gotham City

"Wait, so you guys took down Bane?" Damian asked as he, Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang flew back towards Wayne Manor in the Batwing.

"Yang did," Blake clarified, pointing her thumb towards the still sleeping blonde who snored loudly as though in response. "As you can see, it took a lot out of her."

Damian looked at Yang, then nodded. "I'm impressed," he admitted.

"Oh, what is this? Damian Wayne actually impressed? I'm shocked," Weiss joked, showing a faux-scandalous expression on her face. Damian gave her a slight glare in response and rolled his eyes.

"Listen, Schnee," Damian began, "Bane is one of my father's most dangerous and persistent foes. Even without Venom, Bane has been able to match my father for body and mind. He is not one to be underestimated, and Yang managing to beat him after taking down dozens of Penguin's thugs is a worthy accomplishment."

"Don't let her hear you say that. It'll go straight to her head," Blake said, looking at her partner, then turned to face Damian. "Still, enough about us. How was your mission?"

"Eh, it was alright," Ruby replied, twirling her hand around in a lazy circle. "Went pretty much as we expected."

"What Ruby is trying to say," Weiss clarified with an annoyed expression on her face, "is that we had to deal with perhaps the most egotistical, insufferable man we've ever met. I swear, if I didn't know any better, I'd think Edward Nygma was in love with himself. And let's not even get into how stupid some of his riddles were!"

Weiss' face was growing redder by the second in righteous indignation, but before she could continue, Ruby burst over to her partner in a cloud of petals and began to massage her shoulders.

"There, there, Weiss. It's okay," Ruby soothed. "The crazy Riddler can't annoy you anymore."

Weiss growled, then huffed and crossed her arms. "I certainly hope not. If I ever have to deal with him again, it'll be too soon."

"He's in Arkham, now," Damian said, leaning back against his seat and crossing his arms. "Let's hope he stays there, this time."

"Hopefully," Ruby agreed with the young sidekick, then frowned. She looked down at her feet, fidgeted for a few seconds, then looked back up. "We saw the Joker, by the way. He was…disturbing, but what was worse was just how scared everyone was of him. Is he really that bad?"

"Yes," Damian stated with absolute certainty. "If it were up to me, he would've been put down long ago."

"If that's the case," Weiss began, "then why hasn't he? The death penalty's a thing, why hasn't it been used?"

Damian looked at her. "Every single time he's been arrested, his lawyers successfully manage to argue that because the Joker is so insane, he's not responsible for his actions. Also, the death penalty has been abolished in Gotham for decades, and no one wants to bring it back since it's so 'barbaric'. Meaning, so long as the Joker is tried by Gotham courts, he'll keep being sent to Arkham. He's always been careful to ensure that remains the case."

Damian frowned and looked to the side. Weiss frowned as well, then tried to wrap her head around the entire situation. From everything she had read about the Joker, the man certainly deserved to be executed. But there was a part of her that was uncomfortable with the concept of such a practice, about the possibility of an imperfect system executing innocent people in other circumstances and cases. After a few moments, she shook her head and let those thoughts subside. If she ever came into conflict with the Joker, which she hoped would never be the case, she'd answer those questions then.

The teenage heroes felt their stomachs shift as the Batwing descended beneath the clouds, flying towards a seaside cave underneath Wayne Manor. Rocks shifted, exposing the inner workings of the Batcave, where Alfred was waiting for them with a covered, silver platter in hand.

"Greetings, Young Masters," Alfred said as the Batwing touched down and its ramped door opened. The engine whined as they slowly shuttered off, allowing the natural ambiance of the Batcave to make itself known once again. In the distance, Blake could hear the soft chirps and fluttering of leathery wings as bats flew about. Sometimes she even managed to see a few, but her attention was focused mostly on the butler before them.

"I made a midnight snack for everyone," he revealed, opening the platter to reveal several servings of steaming hors d'oeuvres. They could smell the confections perfectly, causing their stomachs to grumble and managing to rouse Yang from her sleep with a start.

"Huh, wha?" she asked as her body registered the food. "Oh, that smells good. Just what a girl needed."

"Why, thank you, Ms. Xiao Long," Alfred replied as everyone began to take one to chow down upon. "The others are on their way as we speak. Their missions, from what I've been told, were a success, with a few complications thrown in."

"What kind of complications?" Ruby asked through a full mouth. Weiss shot her partner an offended look, but Alfred didn't seem to mind. In fact, he looked more amused than anything.

"I'll let them answer that," he answered. "Don't want to get anything wrong. But, rest assured that they are alright."

"Good to know," Blake replied while chewing on her food. She savored the taste, but not as much as Yang, apparently, as the blonde girl was positively moaning. Blake chuckled at her reaction, it must have been because of the ordeal she went through previously. Something told her that anything would have tasted like that ambrosia Donna talked about to Yang right about now.

They then heard the roar of an engine as the Batmobile pulled into the Batcave. Team RWBY, Damian, and Alfred turned towards it to see the doors open on both sides. They saw Jaune, Pyrrha, Jason, and Cassandra step out of the Batmobile, and Ruby smiled as she walked towards them.

"Hey, guys! How was the mission?" Ruby asked, only to cock her eyebrow when she saw a crimson blush cross Pyrrha's face. Jaune was similarly flushed, although his was much less noticeable.

"We infiltrated Black Mask's gang," Jason explained as he hefted a duffel bag to a nearby workbench. "The bastard was recruiting, so we pretended to be prospects to slip right under his nose."

"How'd that go?" Yang asked after taking a drink of water. Once again, Pyrrha blushed and fidgeted, causing the blonde brawler to wonder what, exactly, had occurred. Before she could ask, however, Jason beat her to the punch.

"Without a hitch," Jason revealed, then turned his head to look at Pyrrha with a smug grin, "at least until P-Money here decided to go all gangsta on everybody."

"Wait, what?" Yang asked, her full attention shooting towards a crimson Pyrrha.

"Yep," Jason replied, popping the 'p.' "Apparently, Pyrrha's idea of 'blending in' was to act as over the top as possible while at the same time struggling to hide how nice she really was. She and Jaune ended up getting kicked out of the recruitment for 'being too nice.' I have videos, if you want to see it."

"YES!" Yang shouted without a moment's hesitation.

"You said you didn't record any of it!" Pyrrha shrieked, her blush now luminescent.

"I didn't," Jason clarified, "but you did. Contacts, remember."

Pyrrha moved to counter, but found that she was unable to do so. Nothing she could say would be sufficient, and so she hung her head and sighed. Jaune was on her immediately, patting her back while shooting Jason a look.

"Says the guy who almost joined a gang because he couldn't dial it back a bit," Jaune countered, causing everyone's attention to turn towards Jason Todd. The Red Hood looked at everyone, then shrugged.

"Ain't gonna argue with that, 'cuz it's true," he admitted. He then looked around and pursed his lips. "Say, where's Tim's team?"

"Running a little late, I'm afraid," Alfred revealed, handing out more small plates of food. "But they should be arriving shortly."

"Alright." Internally, Jason and the others were beginning to worry, but felt that Alfred's assertion was enough to alleviate their concerns. So they hung around the Batcave, conversing among themselves about the specifics of their missions. Ruby, Damian, and Weiss detailed some of the more complex riddles they had to answer, Blake and Yang talked about the firefight they had with Penguin's goons and their meeting with Catwoman. Yang also took the time to show off her Mossberg 500 she 'liberated' from the Penguin, which Ruby and Jason were especially impressed by.

"What're you going to do with it?" Jason asked as he and Yang inspected the pump-action shotgun.

"Don't know yet," Yang admitted with a shrug. "Either strictly as a trophy or as a backup weapon."

"Hmm," Ruby hummed, "maybe... I think we can use the frame as a base for a lot of things, actually."

"That's what I was thinking," Yang replied. "Rubes, think we can add a mechashift to it?"

"Yeah, totally!" Ruby exclaimed with a wide smile, prompting her older sister to laugh. Jason, meanwhile, remained silent. The idea of Yang creating a backup weapon was a smart one, in his opinion, and no matter what she did, he doubted she could go wrong. The Red Hood then looked at Yang's gauntlets, which the Golden Dragon noticed.

"You know," Jason began, "we could've used you against Solomon Grundy."

"Pyrrha was talking about that," Yang mentioned. "Heard it was a hell of a fight."

"That it was." Jason frowned then shook his head. Truth be told, he was more annoyed with how Two-Face used Solomon Grundy as a distraction to get away. With two super-powered fighters on his side, plus the Batmobile, the fight wasn't too difficult, but it still sucked to see Solomon used like a weapon again. The zombie deserved rest and nothing more. Yang seemed to pick up on his sentiment, and nodded.

"Poor guy. Can't imagine reanimating over and over again," she admitted, and Jason nodded.

"Let me tell you. Coming back to life? It ain't peachy," Jason murmured. It was then that Yang remembered that she was talking to a man who literally had come back from the dead. Despite how he might appear ambivalent about it, she suspected that Jason was still haunted by the experience. She knew better than to press forward on it, though, and looked back at her captured shotgun.

"…Maybe an axe?" she offered, to which Jason chuckled and shook his head.

"You people and wanting to turn all your guns into melee weapons," Jason joked, and Yang smiled.

"Guilty as charged." She paused, then threw her thumb over her shoulder towards Jaune. "Except for Vomit Boy over there. He's more old school."

"I heard that," Jaune yelled out in a jokingly defensive tone, "and there's nothing wrong with being old school."

"Never said it was, Vomit Boy!"

"And stop calling me that!"

"Oh, yeah?" Yang smiled and cocked an eyebrow. "What'cha gonna do about it?"

Jaune gave Yang a half-hearted glare. "I grew up with seven sisters, Yang. You don't want to know the things I can do to you."

"Really?" Yang's smile grew wider. "Try me, Vomit Boy."

Instead of responding, Jaune narrowed his eyes then looked away. Yang took her victory and smiled, then turned back to the weapon on the worktable before her. Running through her mind were various ways to make use of her newly acquired shotgun, modifications and attachments she could use when they all heard an engine grow nearer. It was coming from the waterway, and in unison everyone turned towards the seaside entrance to the Batcave. They saw the Batboat come in, Ren at the helm and Nora by his side. Tim and Stephanie were clearly talking Ren through operating the crafting, telling them how he learned to drive it. At first, they were happy to see their friends arrive safely, but then they saw the solemn expressions on their faces. More worrisome, they saw Tim and Stephanie sitting on the back of the boat, nursing obvious wounds.

Jaune and Pyrrha were on their teammates first when the Batboat finally docked. "Ren, what happened?" he asked while helping Tim off the boat, Pyrrha doing the same for Stephanie.

Ren looked at his leader's worried face passively, then answered, "We got to GothCorp. The CEO met us there, cooperated with everything. Then it turned out he had previously kidnapped Nora Fries for research."

"Mr. Powers did what?" Alfred gasped, having not heard this part of the story. All he knew was that the GothCorp mission ran into some complications, but to hear that Mrs. Fries was taken from Victor Fries, it appeared that 'complications' was an understatement.

"Where is he now?" Damian asked, giving Ren his full attention.

"Mr. Freeze…killed him," Nora answered with a sigh, her eyes closed and her head drifting to the side in regret. "We'll talk more about it when Batman gets back."

The others stared at her, then after a moment, nodded.

"Alright. Tim, Stephanie, let's get you two patched up," Ruby ordered, not that the Red Robin and Spoiler were in any condition to do otherwise. On the trip back, their painkillers had subsided, allowing the pain of their injuries to come to the forefront. Neither of them knew their full extent, but both guessed at least a couple of broken ribs and deep bruises.

"Aagh!" Tim gasped as Jaune accidentally ran his hand across one of his bruises, causing the White Knight to recoil away.

"Sorry!" Jaune apologized, but Tim waved him off.

"It's fine, just…set me down," Tim ordered. Jaune did as instructed, laying Tim Drake down on a cushioned chair while Pyrrha did the same for Stephanie. The two vigilantes were then treated by Alfred, having returned with a first aid kit and was beginning to properly inspect them.

"Ren, Nora, you guys okay?" Yang asked, walking over to them.

"Nothing our Aura can't fix," Nora revealed, her tone much less lively than before. Yang began to wonder what, exactly, went down in GothCorp, but knew now was not the time figure it out. Instead, she and Blake assisted Alfred with caring for their more injured teammates, while the others helped in whatever ways they could. By the time Bruce Wayne finally came down the service elevator into the Batcave, Tim and Stephanie both sported cloth slings across their arms, with gauze and bandages wrapped around their various injuries.

"Is everyone alright?" Bruce immediately asked despite already knowing everything.

"We're fine," Tim insisted with a small wince, to which Bruce slightly frowned.

"We're grounded for a bit, aren't we?" Stephanie asked with a dry expression. After a moment, Bruce nodded.

"In your current condition, yes, you are," Bruce replied. The two young vigilantes looked at Bruce for a moment, complicated feelings running through their minds, but after a few moments they sighed and nodded in agreement. Logically, they knew that trying to fight crime in an injured state was never a good idea, but their pride didn't want them to see it that way.

Bruce then walked over to the Batcomputer, pressing a few keys to bring up a list of all the information the various teams had acquired over the course of the night. Once again, the Batfamily and teams RWBY and JNPR saw Barbara Gordon's face in a corner-box on the screen while the rest of it was filled with various video feeds, documents, images and more.

"First off," Oracle began, continuing to type away at her keyboard, "job well done, guys. Over the past few hours, we managed to nab the Penguin, Black Mask, Bane, the Riddler, Mr. Freeze, and well over a hundred gangsters and criminals from across the city. A productive night, if I say so myself."

"Indeed," Bruce added with a gruff tone. "You all did good work."

"Aww, thank you!" Ruby flashed a toothy grin at the Batman, who almost immediately turned his attention back towards Oracle. To his various protégés, his reaction was something they expected. Bruce never was the best at showing approval, especially when it came to working inside of his city.

"Oracle, were you able to determine anything?" Damian asked, wanting to get the debrief back on track.

"Yes, actually," Oracle replied, highlighting several pieces of evidence and bringing them to the forefront. "Thanks to all the evidence we've acquired, both from tonight and from before, I've managed to pinpoint several key events and figures that led to Scarecrow's fear gas attack. Crane had been planning this for quite some time, for at least a month based off what I could see."

"Did he already have a buyer?" Blake asked, leaning forward and resting her chin on her fingers.

"That's the idea," Oracle answered.

"So, all of this was just a product demonstration?" Weiss asked, disgust filling her voice. When Oracle nodded, Weiss recoiled. "Madman…"

"Indeed," Jason muttered, wishing he had managed to put a bullet in his head that night. From the corner of his eye, Bruce looked at his adoptive son with a disapproving glare, and decided to talk to him alone after this was over.

"Oracle, what else were you able to determine?" Bruce asked, moving the debriefing along.

"Right." Oracle typed a few more keys, then nodded at the group. "Whoever this mysterious buyer was, they then proceeded to assist Crane behind the scenes. They bought off several of Penguin's goons to arrange for a covert smuggling of high-grade weaponry a few nights before the attack. They also managed to convince various criminal groups and gangs to join Scarecrow's cause, several of which came directly from Black Mask and other powerful crime families. I believe the intention here was the throw the authorities off track and give themselves breathing room."

"Sacrificial lambs," Jason added. Despite only being on Earth for a few months, the eight Remnantians understood what that allusion referred to, and nodded in agreement.

"No honor among thieves, am I right?" Yang quipped, to which Oracle smiled and nodded before continuing.

"The bombs themselves were mostly made out of consumer goods," Oracle continued. "with two notable exceptions. The first was the Enigma operating system, which made it difficult for the GCPD to track and disarm. The second was the aerolizing chamber from GothCorp, which exponentially boosted the bombs' strength. Had we not managed to disarm most of them, I do not doubt that the entire city would've been consumed."

"We already know this," Damian pointed out with a huff. "Were you able to figure out anything new?"

From her screen, Oracle looked at Damian then rolled her eyes. "Yes, my fair prince. Thanks to the evidence obtained at GothCorp, I can now safely determine that the backers of Scarecrow were the League of Shadows. The attack was yet another attempt by them to destroy Gotham City. I swear, each one gets more and more outlandish. Moving on, using the data the Titans nabbed from the White Portuguese, I was able to make another discovery regarding the smuggled weapons."

"Don't leave us hanging," Nora spoke up, crossing her arms and leaning back. "What did you find?"

"The ship they arrived on, the Red Son, belonged to the same smuggling network as the White Portuguese. As such, I think I can find out where the ship came from."

The heroes digested the information, then one by one nodded in understanding.

"That's great!" Ruby exclaimed. "We find out their base and we take 'em out! Problem solved."

"How soon can you narrow it down?" Weiss asked, realizing the difficulty of Oracle's situation.

"A few days. Week, at most," Oracle explained.

"Please hurry. The last thing we need is for them to cut and run," Bruce insisted.

"Will do, Batman."

Bruce nodded at Barbara, then furrowed his brow. "What about Robinson Park?"

Oracle's expression shifted into a frown. "It's…not looking good. I wasn't able to get enough data on my own, but from what I've been able to find, Poison Ivy's involvement is suspected."

A tense air filled the room. Teams RWBY and JNPR knew who Poison Ivy, or Pamela Isly, was. How she could control plants after a chemical accident, and how her body could exhume pheromones that allowed her to control people. She once managed to mind control Superman, even, so there was no telling what her limit was.

"If Pamela Isly's on the loose, she has to have a reason," Damian pointed out. "She's an ecoterrorist, so likely something involving that."

"I'll inspect the industrial sector," Bruce stated. "Get to the bottom of this. In the meantime, Oracle I want you to continue compiling all the evidence you can. Find out where the Red Son came from."

"Understood."

"Everyone else," Bruce turned to the young heroes, who wondered what he was going to say, "take the next few days off to train and recover. We have a lot more work ahead of us before this is all done, and I want you all at your best."

The younger heroes looked at Bruce with slightly tilted eyebrows.

"Hold on, are you giving us a vacation?" Stephanie asked. Bruce turned to look at her, then shook his head.

"No," he stated simply. Rather than elaborate further, he instead turned around and walked away, leaving his wards to themselves.

"…This is gonna suck, isn't it?" Jaune quietly asked, and the sidekicks all nodded.

"Don't worry," Jason said, slapping Jaune's shoulder as he and Tim started towards the elevator. "We'll all suffer together."

"Joy."

---

Luckily for all of them, there was no training waiting for them that night. Instead, only soft, warm, freshly made beds courtesy of Alfred. Yang had practically slipped into unconsciousness as soon as her body hit the mattress. So fast, she didn't even have time to pull the covers over her. Luckily, Ruby was able to do so for her, then she, too, fell asleep. Blake soon followed, leaving Weiss the last member of team RWBY to hit the hay after she ensured that the door into their room was locked. The last thing she needed was for another 'visit' from Bat-Cow.

She tested the door, jiggling the handle slightly to ensure that it was locked. When she was satisfied, she smiled and nodded to herself then quietly walked to her bed, slipping under the covers. It was only when her head hit the pillow that she finally noticed just how exhausted she was. Her eyes felt heavy, and a deep, unladylike yawn escaped from her lips. As her eyelids drifted shut, she pulled her covers up to her neck, then fell into a deep sleep and began to dream.

---

Weiss found herself inside her family's estate, more specifically in her old room. Stark white and faint blue walls surrounded her, consuming and constricting everything even as servants performed their daily tasks. For some strange reason, everything seemed to be bigger than what she remembered.

She then heard her door's handle jiggle, and Weiss shot her head towards it. Someone was trying to enter, but who? She looked around for Myrtenaster, but it was nowhere in sight. She tried reaching for her Aura, but nothing came up. Fear began to fill her mind, and in desperation she dived beneath a bed just as the door opened. She saw a pair of black dress shoes attached to a pair of dress pants, but she couldn't identify the owner.

"Now, where is she?" she heard a familiar man's voice call out into the room. "I know she's in here, so where, oh where, can she be?"

The shoes went to her closet and opened it. "Not in here."

They then moved to her drawer. "Is she in here?" He opened it, then slowly closed it while saying, "Guess not. How peculiar, I could've sworn that a little girl was in here."

Despite herself, Weiss couldn't help but giggle at the man's tone of voice. The man stopped in place, and Weiss covered her mouth with her hands in an attempt to block any other sounds from escaping.

"Now, what was that? Is it a giggle? From a young, mischievous girl?" the man asked aloud as he walked around the room, slowly drifting closer to the bed. When he finally reached the bed, he stopped. She could practically tough his feet, now, but she didn't dare to do so less he catch her. She heard muffled sounds as the sheets were rummaged through, then the man sighed loudly.

"Guess I was just hearing things. Obviously, Weiss isn't in here. I'll just check another room," he declared while moving towards the door. Internally, Weiss cheered. Why shouldn't she? She had managed to successfully hide from him, after all. For a little girl like herself, that was an amazing accomplishment.

That pride dissipated as she felt a tug on her feet, and with a slight shriek she felt herself being pulled out from under the bed and out into the open. She looked up to see a moustached face gleefully looking down on her, shaking his head. Weiss stared at him for a moment in defiance, then her expression broke and she giggled.

"Klein! You found me!" Weiss declared as Klein Sieben, her family's faithful and loyal butler, chuckled to himself and helped Weiss to her feet.

"You certainly made it very difficult for me, my little snowflake," Klein declared, then placed his hands on his hips and leaned forward. "Now, today is a very special day, but for the life of me I can't remember why. Do you remember?"

"Yes, silly!" Young Weiss decreed while holding up ten fingers. "It's my birthday!"

"That's right, it is your birthday!" Klein said. "How could I have forgotten?"

"Because you're dopey!"

"Ah, that explains it," Klein replied while offering Weiss her hand. "Now, come along. Your mother and father are preparing a party downstairs, with a great, big cake and a lot of presents!"

"Really?" Weiss' eyes sparkled. "Will Winter be there?"

"Of course, she will, my little snowflake," Klein clarified, then took Weiss' tiny hand into his own. Weiss happily held on tight, then together they walked towards the door. Weiss could already hear the party from outside, filled with laughter and the clattering of wine glasses. But, when the door was fully opened, she wasn't greeted by a party or even a hallway. Instead, it was nothing more than bright, white light that consumed everything.

The voices didn't stop, though, even if Weiss suddenly wished that they did.

"Just say it! Do you love me or not?!"

"You want to know the truth? Fine. I don't love you. I only married you for the Schnee name."

"Winter, you get back here, now!"

"I'm enrolling in Atlas Academy, and there's nothing you can do to stop me!"

"If you think that running off will make the Schnee name stronger, then you're a bigger fool than your grandfather!"

"Klein, where's mother?"

"She's…in the gardens, again. I'm sorry, Weiss. I…don't think anyone is coming."

"…That's unfortunate."

"Damn those White Fang terrorists! An entire train filled with Dust, gone in a single night. That shipment was worth millions of lien, and they stole it for what? Their 'cause?'"

"Father, what about the crew? Were any harmed?"

"A few injuries, but nothing we can't replace. I see the look in your eyes, Weiss, but understand that we and our family have been at war with these animals for years. There's no negotiating with them, and you'd do well to remember that."

"Weiss, as heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, I must insist that you reconsider your desire to enroll at Beacon Academy."

"My mind is made up, father. I've already submitted the application papers, and I've been accepted."

"Grrgh, fine. If you're so insistent in following your sister's footsteps, I will allow you to go. On one condition. I have a little test for you, daughter. Pass, and you're free to go and join Beacon Academy as heiress with my complete and unyielding support. If you fail, you're not leaving Atlas. I couldn't bear to see you getting hurt. The world out there's a dangerous place, and I'm not certain you're ready."

"I'm more than ready."

The light finally subsided, but Weiss no longer found herself in the Schnee Family Manor. Instead, she found herself in a war-torn Beacon Academy. Students, soldiers, and huntsmen battled against an unending robotic horde. Bullets and rockets met plasma bolts, and fighter aircraft from both sides battled for supremacy overhead.

"Weiss, come on!" she heard someone shout over the chaos. Weiss was in a daze, her ears ringing for some reason. A smoky crater was next to her, indicative of an explosion, but she couldn't remember what had happened. When another plasma ball shot past her head, however, Weiss snapped herself out of her daze and dove for cover. More plasma fire streamed by her previous location, and she looked around the battlefield for her weapon.

To her dismay, the apparent explosion had knocked it away into an open clearing. Plasma and bullets streamed by near it, making any attempts at retrieval a dangerous proposition, at best. Yet, still she crawled along her belly towards it, ignoring the weapons fire that shot past her body and only missing her by mere inches. Occasionally, she could even feel the scorching heat of the plasma, but she grit her teeth and pressed onward.

Just when she finally reached her weapon, however, she felt a kick on her side that sent her flying away. She landed against a chunk of rubble, and she could only watch as a Brainiac Drone raised its hand towards her head.

"Keep away from her!" the voice from before commanded just as a tall woman with white hair sliced the drone apart. Surrounding drones raised their weapons at her, only for Winter to summon a flock of small Nevermores that tore them apart, leaving the two Schnee women breathing room.

"Are you hurt?" Winter asked as she helped Weiss to her feet.

"No, I'm good," Weiss insisted, slightly wobbling while holding her hand to her head. A warm sensation was traveling down it, and she quickly saw the red trickle of blood running across her pale yet dirtied skin.

Winter was clearly unconvinced, but another explosion redirected her attention. Weiss saw it as well, then steeled her face and picked up her fallen weapon.

"If you think you can make me leave, you're sorely mistaken," Weiss told her sister with no room for any argument. Winter looked at her sister for a moment, then a proud smirk crossed her lips.

A loud crash filled the air as more drones rushed towards them. They both looked at the advancing horde, and with a wordless yell, they charged forward with their blades outstretched, a gleaming-white snowflake forming behind each of them. Swords danced, fire and ice shot over everything in sight, and mounds of twisted metal grew higher and higher with each fallen drone. Weiss was fighting back to back with her sister, and despite the situation that caused it, Weiss couldn't help but feel exhilarated. Like she was on top of the world, invincible to all that opposed her.

Reality then crushed those dreams as a large explosion tossed her and Winter off their feet, scattering them apart and breaking both their Aura's. Weiss landed belly first, and felt an unending exhaustion consume her. She then felt a strange object poke her side, and slowly turned her head to see the Mother Box clutched in her arm. It was glowing and shaking now, and with wide eyes she realized what was about to happen. Weiss looked towards Winter, who was unmoving even as the horde of robots advanced upon her.

"NO!" Weiss grunted out as she clawed her way forward, bringing the Mother Box with her even as it shook harder and glowed brighter. "Stay…away…from…her!"

To her surprise, the drones did stop. For a moment, part of Weiss thought that she had won, only for the drones to part ways as Brainiac himself strode towards her and her sister. He looked at both, almost as though he was appraising them, then noticed the Mother Box clutched to Weiss' side. His eyes widened but soon returned to their expressionless gaze.

"Take the elder," Brainiac ordered his drones. "She'll be enough for study."

The drones wordlessly did as instructed, lifting and binding Winter's unconscious body for transport. Weiss screamed at them to stop, but found no words escaping. She tried to move forward, but her body wouldn't let her. Instead, she could only watch in horror as Winter was taken away into Brainiac's ship, and just as the Boom Tube was opened and sucked her in, Brainiac's spoke directly towards her.

"How…disappointing," Brainiac stated, his voice a horrific mixture of his own and her father's. Then, everything went white.

"No!" Weiss gasped as she shot upward, clutching her bedsheets close to her chest. Her body was covered in a cold sweat, her heart pounding, and her breathing erratic. In a clear panic, Weiss shot her head around the room, trying to find any threats. She found none, only seeing their room inside Wayne Manor along with her sleeping teammates. Slowly, Weiss' breathing returned to normal, and she hung her head and closed her eyes.

"…Dammit," she muttered to herself, feeling tears form on the edge of her eyes. She wiped them away on the sleeve of her pajamas, then looked back up at the rest of the room. Most of the others were sleeping soundly, or in Yang's case snoring loudly, but to her alarm she saw that Ruby was mumbling to herself in her sleep. With sympathetic eyes, Weiss quietly got out of her bed and walked over to Ruby, where she softly ran her hand through her partner's hair. The action seemed to sooth the young sixteen-year old as she stilled into a peaceful slumber.

Weiss sighed in relief, then stood back up and looked at her bed. She immediately dismissed going back to sleeping, knowing that after her latest nightmare, it would be a futile effort. Besides, the clock on their alarm said it was nearly six o'clock, and they'd be getting up in an hour for training, anyway. So instead, Weiss quietly exited the room and made her way towards the main hall. All of the lights were off, leaving Wayne Manor in complete darkness, but Weiss didn't' mind. It felt soothing, more than anything.

When she finally got to the main hall, she looked up at the various decorations and paintings that lined the walls. Sets of medieval armor, weapons, and shields emblazoned with the Wayne family crest were abundant, as were decades-old lamps, candelabras, clocks, and more. The more she looked, the more she felt that this house was lived in, and she took in the rustic smell of it all.

"Miss Schnee?" she heard a voice call out to her. With a start, Weiss whipped around to see Alfred looking towards her in concern, a lit candlestick in his hand.

"Oh, hello Alfred," Weiss greeted the butler. "I apologize if I disturbed you."

"Not at all, Miss Schnee," Alfred insisted, then took a glance at the clock. "However, I can't help but notice you're up so early. Is everything alright?"

Weiss looked at him, wondering how to respond. Her pride screamed at her to insist that everything was perfectly fine, that how dare he think otherwise, but the concerned expression on Alfred's face quickly stamped those prideful thoughts to the ground. Instead, she felt a deep sigh escape her lips, and she closed her eyes and looked away while rubbing her arm.

"I…couldn't sleep," she admitted. Alfred seemed to understand immediately and nodded slowly. His previous task all but forgotten, Alfred moved towards the young girl to keep her company, which Weiss clearly appreciated.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Alfred offered. "I may not be a licensed therapist, but I've been told I'm a good listener with good advice, on occasion."

Weiss couldn't help but snort at Alfred's lackadaisical admission, then looked away once again. Fear that he had overstepped his bounds crossed Alfred's heart, but before he could apologize, Weiss started to speak.

"I'm not the only child of the Schnee family," Weiss softly said, which Alfred listened to intensely. "I wasn't even the first. No, I was the second child of the illustrious Jacques Schnee. The second of three, actually."

"Who were they?" Alfred asked gently.

"My older sister, Winter, and my younger brother, Whitley. Winter was born a few years before me and was the original heir, and Whitely was a few years after me. But, when Winter grew older, she ran off to enroll in Atlas Academy and become a huntress, prompting my father to cut her off and name me heir to his fortune." Weiss chuckled harshly. "He had tried to turn Winter into an extension of himself, morals and all, but she wasn't having it. She joined Atlas to get away from it all, and so he tried to do the same to me. Whitley, on the other hand, took after my father extremely well."

"What's your father like?" Alfred asked while starting a fire in the fireplace, then sitting down on a chair while Weiss sat across from him.

"The closest description I can offer is 'Lex Luthor-lite,'" Weiss stated. Alfred winced, immediately understanding what Weiss was saying, and she nodded back. "He took over the Schnee Dust Company after my grandfather, Nicholas, died. Under his direction, the SDC grew to become the largest company on Remnant, but in doing so employed morally questionable business tactics. He was completely and utterly relentless, driving smaller Dust companies out of business even if they weren't realistically a threat to him. My father exploited the underprivileged of Mantle and other kingdoms to work in his mines, which was a highly dangerous occupation that often resulted in injuries. Both accidental and…deliberate. The Faunus were frequent victims, which led to the White Fang declaring war on my family. Many people died, some of which I knew, all so he could get another lien."

Alfred frowned. "He sounds like a vile man," he noted, and Weiss nodded.

"He is." Weiss then looked into the fire, and her frown into a scowl. "What's worse is that he isn't even a Schnee. His real name is Jacques Gelé, and he only married my mother for the Schnee family name. Told her herself on my tenth birthday, in fact. My mother couldn't cope, so she picked up a wine bottle. Then another, and another, and by the time I left for Beacon, I hardly ever saw her outside of the gardens without a glass of wine in hand."

Weiss clenched her fists, part of her pajamas being scrunched up on her lap. "My father destroyed my family. He took the Schnee family as his own, then corrupted it. Twisted it into a name that is reviled when it used to be respected. Honored, even. I became a huntress to try and win at least some of that respect for my family back, to prove to the world that Jacques Schnee isn't what makes a Schnee a Schnee."

Weiss sighed and hung her head. "But I suppose I was really just trying to get away from him. In the end, it doesn't really matter. Remnant's gone. For all I know, I could be the last Schnee."

"You don't know that for certain," Alfred offered, but Weiss shook her head.

"Brainiac was curious about my family's Semblance," Weiss revealed, forming a small glyph in the palm of her hand in emphasis. "I can't say I blame him. My family's Semblance is remarkable. He was going to study it through me, but now that I'm out of his reach, he has three other Schnee's to test on. One whose mastery of it surpasses my own, in fact."

Suddenly, it all seemed to click into place. Weiss wasn't worried about her father, her brother, or even her mother. As morbid as it seemed, Weiss was truly only fearful for her sister's safety. As he pondered what Weiss' feelings meant, he saw a sparkling tear drip down Weiss' face. She was crying now, holding her body close.

"I left her to that monster," she wept, and Alfred felt his heart break. Silently, Alfred rose from his chair and sat back down next to Weiss, offering any form of comfort he could give.

"Weiss," he began, "you did no such thing. What happened to your family is not your fault. I have only known you for a short time, but I can already see how courageous, dedicated, and strong you are. If your sister is anything like you, she'll persist against anything Brainiac can throw at her, just as you did. Even then, the Schnee family lives on through you. You can make it mean whatever you so desire, and nothing your father can do could ever change that."

Weiss looked at Alfred, tears burning in her eyes, and saw his warm smile. She sniffled, then slowly felt a smile grace her lips. She wiped the tears and snot from her face, then smiled more brightly.

"Thank you for listening, Alfred," Weiss said, her eyes still red from the tears. "Sorry if I disturbed you."

"You did no such thing, Weiss," Alfred countered. "I am more than happy to lend an ear, now or in the future. All you need to do is ask."

Weiss smiled again. "I'll keep that in mind."

Alfred nodded, then stood up off the chair. He looked down the hallway he was previously working in, wondered how to proceed next, then felt an idea pop into his head. With a warm smile, he looked back down at Weiss, who met his gaze in slight confusion.

"You know," Alfred began, "I've always found that, after an emotionally trying time, a warm batch of cookies soothes the soul. Would you care to help make me some?"

Weiss stared into Alfred's warm gaze, then smiled and stood up. "I'd love to."

---

Ruby awoke with a groan as their alarm clock sounded off. She rolled to the side and glared lightly at it. The alarm read seven o'clock, and with a yawning grumble she turned it off then sat upright.

"Time to get up," Ruby drowsily ordered, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"I don't wanna," Yang complained, her body feeling sore. "Five more minutes…"

"No, Yang," Ruby chastised, then yawned and stretched her arms. She blinked a few times, then looked around the room to see Blake and Yang reluctantly getting out of bed. For whatever reason, however, Weiss was already gone. Both of her teammates noticed this development, and they all frowned slightly. Ruby, Blake, and Yang looked at each other knowingly then, at a much quicker pace than before, moved out of the room and headed towards the dining room. Team JNPR was already ahead of them, their bodies slowly trudging themselves forward while their heads hung low. Except for Nora, however, who was walking backwards while looking at Jaune and Pyrrha with a disappointed expression.

"I cannot believe you two would keep this from me!" Nora chastised as Team RWBY passed by, causing them to slow down as curiosity filled them.

"We only decided on it last night," Pyrrha lightly protested.

"Yeah," Jaune added. "Besides, it's just a date. It's not that big a deal."

"Not a big deal? Not a big deal?! Two of my best friends, my sister in arms and my fearless leader, have finally decided to go on a date, after she herself has been wanting it for months, and you say, 'it's not a big deal!'" Nora sounded offended, not noticing RWBY having already stopped in their tracks and whirling around to look at the two embarrassed teammates in astonishment. Ren, for his part, glanced at the three women and gave an acknowledging nod, telling them this had been going on for some time.

"Worst of all, you didn't even tell me until this morning! The nerve of you people," Nora finished, telling everyone exactly why she was so offended in the first place.

"Honestly, Nora, it's not. It's just one date to see if it works," Pyrrha insisted, a slight blush crossing her face.

"Besides, last night was hectic," Ren reminded his partner. "There wasn't any time to say anything."

"I know, but still!" Nora huffed and crossed her arms, lightly glaring at Jaune and Pyrrha. They looked at Nora then at each other before silently coming to an agreement.

"Nora, would you and Ren like to come with us?" Pyrrha offered. Nora waited for a moment, her arms still crossed and a small frown furrowing her face.

"…Like a double date?" Nora asked neutrally.

"Yes, Nora. Like a double date," Jaune clarified. Almost as though a switch was pulled, Nora reverted back to her normal, excitable self, and she embraced Jaune and Pyrrha with a large grin.

"Yes! This! Is! Happening!" Nora cheered, then forcibly pulled the two further down the hall forcibly and past a stunned team RWBY. "Hi, guys!"

Before Ruby, Blake, or Yang could respond, Nora was already gone, leaving only Ren behind with them. They blinked their eyes, then turned their heads towards the Verdant Lotus. Without even needing to say anything, Ren already knew what they were wondering about.

"Jaune and Pyrrha decided to go on a date last night," Ren explained. "Just one, to see if it works out. Nora took offense to not being notified immediately."

The three girls looked at Ren for a moment and blinked. One by one, they turned their heads towards the direction Nora had gone, then slowly smiled warmly.

"Good for them," Yang declared, nodding to herself. "I hope it works out."

"Same," Blake added. Jaune and Pyrrha were two of her closest friends, and she honestly wished them the best. When the Faunus looked at Ruby, she laughed upon seeing the stars twinkling in her silver eyes. Even after all that's happened to them, Ruby was still a sucker for cheesy romance.

Their curiosities satisfied, the four Remnantians continued their journey towards the dining room. As they drew closer, the smell of crackling bacon and fresh eggs filled their nostrils, making their stomachs growl at the same time. They quickened their pace, soon finding themselves at the dining room door. Alfred was waiting for them and nodded in acknowledgement as he opened the door.

"Young Masters," he greeted the Remnantians, who each smiled at the kind butler as they passed him by.

"Hey, Al!" Yang replied. Ren and Blake said nothing other than nod back, while Ruby stayed behind to speak with the butler further.

"Alfred, did you see-?" Ruby began, but Alfred cut her off.

"Weiss? Yes, actually," Alfred explained, his expression turning serious. Ruby's did as well, and at once Alfred knew he could trust Ruby with the contents of his talk with Weiss.

"How bad was it?" Ruby quietly asked after Alfred gently closed the dining room door.

"I'm afraid I don't have enough experience with her to fully make that distinction," Alfred explained with a sigh, rubbing his hand across his balding head. "But she was crying at one point. I'd like to think I helped, but to be honest, I don't if I did enough."

Ruby looked at the butler, then smiled in understanding. "You did more than enough, Alfred. Thank you for being there for her."

Alfred looked down on Ruby, then smiled back. "Of course. Happy to be of assistance, Miss Rose. Now, your breakfast awaits."

Ruby smiled warmly as Alfred opened the door for her, allowing Ruby entry into the lively dining room. There she saw the rest of her team chatting with team JNPR along with the other occupants of Wayne Manor, with the lone exception of Bruce himself. The primary discussion was about the upcoming double-date for team JNPR along with further details about their missions from the night before. Ruby, however, focused on Weiss, who was sitting by her friends with a warm smile on her face. Her scroll was in hand, reading an article from the Daily Planet that Ruby couldn't quite make out. Weiss then noticed Ruby's attention was on her, and the two partners made eye contact. They smiled and nodded at each other, then Ruby grabbed a plate, filled it with food and freshly made cookies, and made her way over to Weiss to sit by her side.

"Hey," Ruby greeted as she shoveled some pancakes into her mouth, causing Weiss to roll her eyes affectionately.

"Don't chew with your mouth open," the heiress chastised, and Ruby quickly swallowed, grinned, and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

---

"Ahh! That was so good! You really know how to make a good breakfast, Al!" Yang declared as the young huntress led the other heroes out into the main foyer, her arms crossed behind her head.

"Why, thank you, Miss Xiao Long," Alfred replied with a smile. "Although, I must be honest that Miss Schnee helped me with the eggs. She did quite well, in my opinion."

Weiss smiled at the compliment, then saw the look on Yang's face. The Golden Dragon prepared to say something, and Weiss was about to cut her off, when they heard a startled gasp come from the top of the main stairs. Everyone's attention shot towards it, where to their bewilderment they saw an equally surprised Selina Kyle wearing nothing but a bathrobe looking down on them with wide eyes.

"…Selina?" Yang called out, the gears in her head locking up.

"…Hey," Selina hesitantly replied. "I did not know you lived here."

"…Yeah, we do," Blake replied, slowly putting the pieces together.

"Why is Catwoman here?" Weiss asked, knowing who Selina Kyle was but not understanding why she was in Wayne Manor. More importantly, she didn't understand why the rest of the Bat-family let out a collective sigh, Damian frowning deeply while the others merely shook their heads.

Then Bruce entered the room in a similar state of dress as Catwoman, and everything fell into place.

"No," Jaune gasped. "Isn't she-? But you're a-? What?!"

"Batman's…dating Catwoman?" Nora softly spoke, her mind racing at a mile-a-minute. Weiss and Pyrrha felt a red-hot blush consume their faces, while Yang had already begun to laugh.

"Have…have you no shame?" Weiss demanded towards Bruce, who in departure from his normal, stoic expression, looked slightly embarrassed.

"No, no he does not," Damian complained, crossing his arms while Alfred walked up the stairs towards Bruce and Selina.

"Miss Kyle, a pleasure to see you again," Alfred said, and the Catwoman smiled warmly.

"Hello, Alfred. Sorry for barging in," Selina apologized. Whether or not she was sincere, the children didn't know, but Alfred took it in stride.

"Not at all. Come, let's get you decent," Alfred stated firmly, leaving no room for argument. Selina could only meekly nod, and together the butler and the thief disappeared down a hall. Bruce was left behind, and slowly turned to face the rest of his wards. Weiss and Damian were frowning in equal measure, tapping their feet and crossing their arms. Ruby, Pyrrha, and Blake were blushing profusely, Jaune was looking around with wide eyes trying to find an explanation, while Yang was trying her best to stifle her laughter. Only Ren wasn't showing any external reaction, but Bruce could see he was shocked. The rest were all resigned, while Nora turned her head towards where Catwoman had disappeared. She then looked back at Bruce, pursed her lips in thought, then nodded.

"Nice," she firmly declared, and Yang felt the dams break as hysterical laughter filled the air.

---

"So, how long has this been going on?" Weiss demanded to know as Bruce, now adequately dressed, was interrogated in the dining room by the rest of the vigilantes. Selina had already escaped the Manor out a window, but not before Alfred had thoroughly checked to make sure she hadn't made off with a trinket or two.

"Oh, it's been on and off," Jason replied before Bruce could answer. "It comes and goes, really. Sometimes they're enemies, sometimes they're allies. Sometimes, they wind up in bed together. So, you know, typical couple stuff."

"A typical couple doesn't usually involve both parties being on opposite sides of the law," Weiss pointed out.

"…Technically, aren't all superheroes outside the law?" Ruby pointed out meekly, still trying to wrap her head around everything.

"Not anymore, and you're missing the point," Weiss replied, turning her attention back towards the Dark Knight. "Well? What do you have to say for yourself?"

Bruce stayed silent, slowly turning his gaze across all of the assembled young heroes before them, then centered his attention on Weiss.

"My relationship with Selina is…complicated," he finally revealed, and Weiss slapped her forehead.

"'Complicated' is an understatement," Damian chastised through a frown. "Honestly, father, your taste in women leaves much to be desired."

Amused more than anything, Bruce raised his eyebrow. "Really? Care to elaborate on that?"

Damian held up a finger. "Your past choices in romantic liaisons have been poor, with a baffling tendency for them to be enemies of ours in some way or another."

"He has a point," Jason agreed, and Damian nodded.

"Look, I get it. This never-ending mission of ours is lonely, and if she provides some carnal release, then so be it. Better her than my mother, in any case," Damian continued, causing Yang to give a choking snort while the others shot their heads towards him. "All I ask is that you be smart about it. Furthermore, I hope you used protection last night. I do not want a little brother or sister running around."

Bruce paused and looked at his son. "…Thank you, Damian." He then closed his eyes and breathed deeply. After a moment, Bruce opened them again, seeing that everyone's attention was focused back on him. Another moment paused, allowing everyone to collect their thoughts, then he began to speak.

"Look, there are many…facets to Selina. She's a criminal, yes, but not a bad person. When I said our relationship is complicated, I meant it. That's the most accurate way I can describe her."

Blake and Yang thought back to when they met the Catwoman last night. They remembered how the thief clearly used them as a distraction to steal whatever she wanted from the Penguin, yet when they were in danger, she revealed herself to help them. The more they thought about it, perhaps 'complicated' truly was the best way to describe her. Weiss remained unconvinced, however, and rolled her eyes alongside Damian. Ruby, meanwhile, finally came to a conclusion about the situation and looked at Bruce with stars in her eyes. Yang couldn't help but smile at her sister's expression, then Bruce rose to his feet.

"Now, if you're all done talking about my romantic life—" Bruce began.

"I'm not!" Nora interrupted, but Bruce ignored her.

"Let's get started on today's training. I've already reviewed the footage from last night and have identified areas of improvement for all of you."

At once, the expressions on the young heroes shifted into complete and utter seriousness. They looked at each other then back at Bruce. Then, all at once, they nodded.

---

Sweat trickled down Blake's brow as she focused intensely on the task before her. In one hand was a pair of scissors, the other holding tweezers. An analog clock was ticking down, adding to the tension as she shot her eyes between multiple wires of varying colors. Weiss was next to her, equally serious as she held her scroll in hand.

"Cut the red when I say so," Weiss ordered. Blake immediately placed the scissors on the wire in question, nodding towards Weiss to continue.

"Three…two…one," Weiss counted down. "Cut."

Blake did as instructed, and when nothing happened the two women continued to the next step.

"Green in three…two…one…cut."

Again, Blake cut the wire. Her feline ears twitched as she clock continued to tick down, and she knew they didn't have much time. Blake shot her eyes towards Weiss, silently pleading for her to go faster, and the former heiress silently complied.

"Cut the blue," Weiss ordered. Blake went to do so, only to immediately notice a problem.

"Which one? There's three?" Blake asked. Indeed, there were three blue wires outstretched before her. One was on the top of the switchboard, intertangled with a yellow. Another was by itself in the middle, and the last was on the bottom intersecting with an orange. Weiss studied the schematic intensely, then gestured towards the top. Trusting her teammate, Blake gently grabbed the wire in question and placed the blades of her scissors to it.

"Three," Weiss began to count down, hearing the clock approach the zero-mark, "two…one…cut."

Blake immediately cut the wire, and then heard the clock cease. The two huntresses waited for a moment, then sighed in relief.

"Whew. Good job, Blake. We—" Weiss began, only to suddenly be engulfed by confetti as the dummy bomb 'exploded'. Their faces were covered completely, strands of multicolored paper sticking to their hair and fluttering through the air. Weiss closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, then began to pull the confetti off of her.

"We didn't disarm the bomb. Joy," Weiss corrected herself as she and Blake backed away from the training station. She pulled out her scroll once again, flipping through the schematics to determine where she went wrong. When she found it, she sighed and rubbed her forehead.

"I confused the blue with the yellow," she groaned, then felt a hand clasp her shoulder. Weiss looked up to see Stephanie giving her an accepting smile.

"Hey, don't worry about it. We've all made mistakes," she explained. "Better here than out there."

"I know, but it's still frustrating," Weiss replied, crossing her arms as Tim reset the bomb for the next participants.

"Bomb defusal's difficult," Stephanie pointed out, leaning back against a wall before wincing and forcing herself off. Blake and Weiss looked at her in concern, but the girl waved them off. "I'm fine, just a little sore."

"How long will you and Tim be out of action?" Blake asked.

"Couple weeks," Stephanie revealed. "League medical technology can only do so much. In the meantime, Tim and I will be assisting in the background with Oracle."

"That's good," Weiss replied with a smile, then looked back at the dummy bomb as Ren and Nora made their way towards it. Tim was walking towards them in turn, standing next to Stephanie and giving Ren and Nora the signal to start.

"Say," Tim began as they watched the bomb defusal, "did Beacon have any bomb defusal classes?"

"It was an upper-year elective, I believe, and a relatively new one at that," Weiss explained. "You have to understand, though, that Beacon was mostly meant to train students on how to fight the Grimm. Counter-terrorism wasn't our main focus."

"Which left us unprepared when we started getting into conflict with Roman Torchwick and the White Fang," Blake finished with a frown. Weiss couldn't find it within herself to argue against it, despite what her pride would love to argue. At the same time, she couldn't help but continue that train of thought further. After spending over two months on Earth, studying its vast history, she had come to a grim conclusion: Remnant had spent so much time trying to survive against the Grimm that, when another foe made himself known, they were powerless to defend themselves. Not that she could truly blame themselves, of course. The Grimm were civilization killers and trying to ignore them over a threat that may or may not have existed from beyond the stars was, up until Remnant's final days, a stupid decision.

Stephanie and Tim looked at Weiss and Blake in concern, pursing their lips. They hadn't meant for the conversation to shift this way, and both knew they had to do something to get their minds off of it. An idea sprung into Stephanie's head, and then looked at Weiss intently.

"You know, I just realized something," Stephanie pointed out.

"Realized what?" Blake asked, tilting her head towards Stephanie Brown in slight confusion.

"You guys have been with us for over a week now, yet you haven't truly explored Gotham," Stephanie pointed out. Weiss narrowed her eyes and prepared to retort, but Stephanie cut her off. "I meant in the day, when it's not as much of a crime-ridden cesspool."

Weiss swallowed her retort, then nodded. "That's true. I have wondered if Gotham is better under daylight."

"It's no Metropolis," Tim acquiesced, "but it's still pretty nice. Plenty of shops, restaurants, attractions, and much more. We have at least a week before Babs figures out everything, and there's no need to stay cooped up in the Batcave the entire time."

"It would be nice to get out more," Blake agreed. "We'll have to run it by the others, but I wouldn't mind travelling around Gotham City for a few hours."

"Splendid!" Stephanie exclaimed with a clap of her hands, then winced as the bruises on her body made themselves known again. "Uggh, obviously Tim and I can't go with you, but I'm certain that one of the others could show you around town. I'll ask them for ya."

Weiss and Blake smiled at Stephanie's generosity, then nodded.

"Thank you, Stephanie. It's much appreciated," Blake said, but Stephanie waved her off.

"Nah, don't worry about it. You guys are friends, and friends don't let friends stay locked up in a dark cave all day," Stephanie joked, and the others laughed alongside her. They then heard a click and turned towards Nora and Ren to see a jubilant Pink Lightning standing victoriously over the now-defused bomb.

"Yes!" Nora proclaimed while pointing both of her fingers towards Weiss and Blake. "We win! In your face!"

"How?!" Weiss shouted, only for Nora to wildly grin and place her hands on her hips.

"Why wouldn't I learn how to disarm a time bomb? Who knows when you might get stuck with a bomb that's about to explode, and if you don't already know how to disarm one, then it'll be too late for you to learn before going boom! You'd have to be craaazy to not be prepared for that!" Nora declared, her ever-present smile plastered across her face. Weiss paused for a moment, then reluctantly nodded in acceptance. Stephanie and Tim lightly smiled and shook their heads in bemusement, then went to reset the bomb for the next participants.

"Ruby, Yang. You're up."

---

November 9th, 3:00 PM

Batcave, Gotham City

"Easy, easy," Tim Drake insisted in the copilot's seat of the flight simulator. Yang was sitting next to him, her face scrunched in concentration as she maneuvered her 'aircraft' through a simulation of Gotham's tight airspace. She was flying the Batwing through the gaps between buildings, taking it slow and steady so that she didn't accidentally fly into one.

"Okay," Tim said, seeing that Yang was getting the hang of it thus far, "now try to speed up a bit."

"'Kay," Yang replied, slowly increasing the craft's thrust. She made sure not to go too fast. The last time she did that, she lost control almost instantly and plowed straight into the simulated Wayne Enterprises building. She did not want a repeat of that instance, especially after the stern talking to she got from Bruce afterwards. The only consolation was that the crash happened inside the simulator, so the only thing that got hurt was her pride. Which still sucked, in the blonde's opinion, but it was better than the alternative.

The buildings were whizzing past her now, Yang trying her best to dodge them. Occasionally, the wings would edge dangerously close to a building, but she was able to maneuver out of the way in time. As time went on, Yang found that she was growing more and more confident. A small grin began to make its way across her face, but she prevented herself from letting her confidence grow too far. That lesson had been beaten into her repeatedly over the past few months, sometimes quite literally, and she wasn't about to let it fail her now.

"Alright, looking good so far," Tim declared as the simulated Batwing neared Gotham Bay. "Right, let's try to land the Batwing. Head for the Wayne Manor landing pad."

"Will do," Yang said as she gently turned the aircraft towards their destination. Wayne Manor was easy to find, and she quickly began circling around its back before arriving above the landing pad. She pressed a few buttons, and the Batwing began to hover in place above the Wayne family crest emblazoned onto the pad below.

"Easy, easy," Tim cautioned as Yang slowly descended the Batwing. A few times she shifted the joystick too much, causing the aircraft to shake in response, but she was able to right herself almost immediately. As the ground grew closer and closer, Yang felt beads of sweat trickle down her brow, and she held her breath as the landing gears touched down onto the pad. She waited for a moment, her body tensed as though in expectation of some calamity, but none came.

"Huh," Yang finally got out, "I landed it."

"Good job, Yang," Tim congratulated her as the simulator doors swung open. "Told 'ya you could do it."

Yang looked at the vigilante as he got out of the cockpit, then Yang smiled to herself and nodded. A sense of pride and accomplishment filled her heart, and unlike her earlier bout of overconfidence, she didn't feel the need to stamp this one down. To be sure, she was nowhere near ready to actually pilot an aircraft. That wouldn't be for a few more weeks or months of practice, at least, but with each step she took it felt as though she was getting closer and closer.

She took a deep breath and looked around the Batcave to see what everyone else was doing. She had been in the simulator for a few hours, and by now everyone had changed what they were doing. Jaune was practicing his swordplay with Damian, the young boy appearing to take enjoyment out of knocking Jaune to the floor while he himself took it in stride. Pyrrha was sparring against Cassandra, their spar on much more even footing with Pyrrha slightly edging it out. From the look on the Crimson Guardian's face, she was having a blast. Yang could imagine why, after all it was the same look she had during her bout against Artemis of Bana-Mighdall. The girl loved a challenge.

Weiss, meanwhile, was experimenting on new materials to use with her Semblance. Vials of Firefly gel, Freeze Gas, and powdered Nth metal laid before her, as did samples of materials Yang didn't recognize.

"What 'cha working on?" Yang asked Weiss as she made her way over.

"New materials for Myrtenaster's blade," Weiss answered, holding out a block of Nth Metal and a pale-white metal that Yang didn't recognize. "After what happened to Crocea Mors, the last thing I want is for my weapon to break after stabbing something."

"Yeah, that would suck," Yang replied, shaking her head in sympathy. The boy was still working on a replacement, but from what she could see it was coming along pretty well. She couldn't wait until it was finally finished. Same with Ruby's replacement weapon, but both were pretty tight lipped about what was going into them.

"Precisely," Weiss continued, holding up the two blocks in emphasis. "I was also curious about depleted promethium, but after doing a few tests, I think I'm going to stick with Nth Metal. Its anti-magical properties are more than sufficient for my needs, and I already have experience using it with my Semblance."

"Glad to hear it," Yang said with a smile. She then hummed and rubbed her chin. "Say, can I borrow some of that depleted promethium? I've been thinking of upgrades for Ember Celica."

"Sure," Weiss replied as she handed Yang the block of metal. "May I ask what your idea is?"

"A pair of punch-daggers," Yang replied. "Had the idea after I almost got eaten by a shark. Turns out, trying to punch something underwater while being thrashed around and drowning is extremely difficult. Who knew?"

"I can imagine." Weiss shuddered. If she was being honest with herself, the thought of being eaten alive by a shark while drowning sounded terrifying, and she was glad Yang was able to walk away from that encounter in one piece. She then returned to her weapon, drawing out schematics on how best to apply the new material as Yang sat down next to her and did the same.

"By the way, where's Ruby?" Yang asked while continuing to draw.

"Test track," Weiss answered, not bothering to look at her teammate.

"Why?"

"Bruce's teaching her to drive."

Yang was about to inquire further when she heard a slight squeal of brakes. She shot her head towards the source, only to see nothing. A roar of an engine followed, only to be immediately silenced by another squeal. Slowly, Yang saw the Batmobile inch its way forward along the test track, an extremely nervous Ruby clutching the steering wheel with bone-white hands while a non-plussed Bruce sat in the passenger seat, giving her pointers.

"Yeah, it's been like this for a while," Weiss admitted as the Batmobile continued to inch away, soon disappearing behind a rock wall. Yang stared after it for a while, then chuckled to herself and turned back towards her weapon design.

---

November 10th, 8:00 AM

Pyrrha watched as Jason and Jaune practiced their shooting in the Batcave's target range. Her partner was only using a .22 rifle versus Jason's boxy handgun, but overall, he was doing a decent job. For a beginner at least. Even if Jaune was only considering using a gun at this point, it was still good that Jason was insistent Jaune learn proper gun safety before moving forward on anything. She then turned her attention back towards Cassandra, who was crouching low to the ground in preparation for their spar. Both of them were unarmed, and Pyrrha crouched in preparation as well.

"Begin," Bruce ordered, and at once Pyrrha and Cassandra raced towards each other. The Crimson Guardian threw a light punch towards the Batgirl's head, but Cassandra perfectly read her movements before the punch was even thrown. She twirled to the side and dodged, reaching up to grab Pyrrha's arm intending to hurl the champion away. But Pyrrha was expecting that, and as Cassandra flipped her, Pyrrha maneuvered her body so that she landed on her feet instead of her back, grabbed Cassandra's body tightly, and flipped her to the ground in turn. Cassandra felt the air being knocked out of her lungs, then Pyrrha lifted her up and hurled her across the mat outside of the ring.

"Pyrrha wins by ring-out. Cassandra, you can't rely on the same tricks for everyone. That's why Pyrrha was able to anticipate your movements," Bruce declared. Pyrrha nodded towards her newest mentor, then walked over to help Cassandra to her feet. The young girl grumpily muttered to herself, displeased with her performance, but otherwise held no ill-will towards Pyrrha.

"Hey, don't worry about. You'll probably win next time," Pyrrha said, attempting to cheer Cassandra up. Given how their mutual win/loss record against each other was around 50/50, she was fairly confident what she was saying was the truth. Regardless, she looked forward towards their next match, as undoubtedly Cassandra would ten times as hard to put Pyrrha to the ground.

Pyrrha and Cassandra walked up to the podium next to Batman, watching as the next combatants, in this case Ruby and Blake, entered the ring. Bruce gave the signal, and at once Ruby and Blake charged towards each other and fell into a tightly-packed melee.

"Ruby's overextending," Bruce noted, which Pyrrha and Cassandra quickly picked up on.

"She's getting better, though," Pyrrha pointed out, and after a moment Bruce nodded in agreement.

"Still more work to be done," he finished, falling back into a studious silence. The three fighters watched as Blake won their bout, then readied themselves again for the next round. As Bruce gave the signal, the two sparred once again, Blake clearly the better of the two but Ruby was showing her progress.

Despite her best attempts, however, her eyes drifted back towards Jaune. A nervous frown crossed her lips, and she had to force herself to look away.

"Is something wrong?" Bruce suddenly asked, startling Pyrrha who reacted with a slight jump.

"Uh, no. Nothing wrong," Pyrrha insisted, but neither Bruce nor Cassandra were buying it.

"It's about Jaune, isn't it?" Bruce asked. Pyrrha moved to retort, then paused and sighed while hanging her head.

"…Yes," she admitted, reluctantly. "I'm just a little nervous about our upcoming date."

"Hmm," Bruce wordlessly hummed, then turned his attention back towards the spar. Blake had won once again, and he seemed content with ending the subject there. Now that it was brought up, however, Pyrrha's mind couldn't shake it off. She pursed her lips, remembering their meeting with Catwoman just a few days before, and she began to realize that she was standing next to a person who apparently had considerable experience in this area.

"Bruce, can I ask you something, actually?" she asked. From the corner of his eye, Bruce looked at Pyrrha while keeping his attention primarily focused on the spar before him.

"Go ahead," he replied, and Pyrrha nodded to herself.

"Can you…give me any advice for Jaune and I's double-date? I have to admit, I've never actually been on one before," Pyrrha admitted, a nervous smile on her face while rubbing the back of her head.

"Hmm," Bruce hummed in response, furrowing his brow. "You really want my advice?"

"Yes, I mean…we all saw you with Catwoman the other day." Pyrrha still couldn't wrap her head fully around that development, even after several days to digest it. Ever since she arrived on Earth, she had honestly thought that he and Diana had a thing for each other. Did she read them wrong?

"I'm not sure you'll like my advice," Bruce admitted. Pyrrha paused, slightly frowning while wondering exactly what he meant by that. For a brief moment, she thought of taking back her question, but she shook her head.

"I would greatly appreciate any advice you can give," Pyrrha firmly stated. Bruce looked at her, his eyes boring into her own, then looked back at the two sparring teammates. Pyrrha could feel that Bruce was about to give her what she wanted, and she wondered what, exactly, his advice would entail. Be herself? Have fun with it? Don't rush things?

"Never date within the team," Bruce declared, grinding Pyrrha's thoughts to a halt. Out of all the things she expected to hear, that wasn't one of them.

"Uh, wha?" Pyrrha muttered, not fully understanding why this was the advice he chose to give. Had she misheard him, somehow? Bruce looked back at her, seeing her confusion, and began to speak again.

"My advice is to never date within the team," he repeated, confirming that Pyrrha hadn't misheard him.

"Wh…why?" Pyrrha asked, beginning to feel a little incensed. Bruce took her changing expression in, and calmly looked her in the eyes.

"Dating within the team is an inherently risky relationship, both between the two romantic partners and for the greater team dynamic," he explained. "It can lead to emotional compromises, which in our line of work can lead to disaster."

"Explain," Pyrrha insisted, and Bruce nodded before proceeding to do so.

"Being superheroes requires us to place ourselves in high-risk environments where there is a significant chance of bodily harm. This environment necessitates that a hero is able to keep a calm, rational mind in order to minimize the danger, both to themselves and others. When working as a team, a strong team dynamic is crucial for this, as is each member of the team being able to take in the entire picture to best come up with a strategy.

"Adding a romantic relationship to that picture muddles it," Bruce continued. "As humans, it is almost impossible to separate personal relationships from our line of work. Should an environment be too risky for a hero's romantic partner, they very well may be less likely to send them into that area. Even if they are more than capable of handling themselves or if their presence is needed."

"Are you saying that Jaune would try to coddle me if we started dating?" Pyrrha asked, feeling a little insulted, but Bruce shook his head.

"No, not at all. Jaune has a good head on his shoulders, and I'm confident that he'd make the right decision when needed." Bruce paused. "What I'm concerned about is what happens when the danger proves to be too much."

Pyrrha paused, narrowing her eyebrows while looking at the Dark Knight. "What do you mean?"

"You and Jaune are already partners," Bruce explained. "The relationship you two have built between yourselves is extremely strong and powerful, and there is very little I could see that would tear you apart. I have no doubt that entering a romantic relationship would make that bond stronger."

Bruce paused, then looked at Pyrrha with a serious expression, "What happens if that relationship is tragically cut short? How would Jaune react if you died, or vice versa?"

Pyrrha recoiled. Slowly, she began to realize where Bruce's concern truly laid. He wasn't concerned about their decision making, or even their ability to work cohesively as a team. He was concerned about how the other would react if one of them…died. It was a sobering thought. Pyrrha gulped, then looked back at Bruce.

"We would be destroyed," Pyrrha realized, and Bruce nodded.

"Exactly," Bruce somberly said. He looked away, hanging his head. "Romantic relationships are among the most intimate humans can make. They can make us stronger, but they can also tear us down just as easily. The loss of a partner, whether it be a close, personal friend or a lover, is among the most traumatic in human existence. Many heroes have suffered from this loss, and many don't recover. Some do, but only after they pick up the pieces."

Pyrrha paused, wondering where Bruce got this philosophy from, then she looked over to see Damian practicing his swordplay against wooden practice dummies. Suddenly, it all fell into place.

"You're talking about Talia," Pyrrha realized. Bruce said nothing, but that was all the answer she needed. Although she was Damian's mother, Bruce didn't like to talk about her all that much. Damian outright despised her, and from the uncomfortable looks everyone gave when her name was brought up, whatever Talia did ruined whatever chance of a true relationship that had been fostered between them. Pyrrha understood his words, now, but she still didn't fully agree with him.

"What about Dick and Kori? Tim and Stephanie?" she pointed out. "They're dating, and I don't see anything wrong with their relationships." Ren and Nora went unsaid, but even Bruce realized that nothing was going to prevent that from happening.

"And I gave them the exact same advice I gave you," Bruce countered, looking at Pyrrha again. "They chose to take that risk, and I won't stop them. I hope that everything works out between them and wish them the best. Should you and Jaune decide to take that step after your date, I will lend that same support. Ultimately, who you date is your decision, whether it be a partner, a civilian—"

"Or a criminal," Pyrrha finished. Bruce paused while Cassandra chuckled, and despite himself, Bruce couldn't help but slightly smirk.

"Or a criminal." He looked at Pyrrha once again. "I meant no offense, Pyrrha. I honestly do hope that you and Jaune can make it work. All I ask is that, if it doesn't, don't let it destroy the strong bond you already have."

Pyrrha looked into Bruce's eyes, then nodded. "It won't," she declared, then walked away towards the sparring arena as Blake and Ruby finished. Cassandra walked alongside her, and she didn't say a word. Her thoughts, however, drifted back towards Bruce's words. For a moment, she worried, then shook them off. No matter what happened, she vowed, whether the date proved to be a one-off or turned into something more, Pyrrha knew that nothing would sever the bond she and Jaune had. Nothing was more important to her than that.

---

November 11th, 1:00 AM

Robinson Park, Gotham City

Batman silently prowled Robinson Park, holding aloft a small, cylindrical device while keeping his senses peeled for any suspicious activity. A rebreather was masked over his face, preventing him from being contaminated by anything foul hanging in the air. His cowl's HUD was linked to the device, showing him air quality as well as particle composition. Thus far, the air quality was standard for a park in the middle of an industrial city. Carbon dioxide, ozone, sulfur dioxide, and other standard polluting agents.

That and, of course, trace amounts of plant-based pheromones that are known to interfere with the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that controlled lust and attraction.

'Poison Ivy,' Batman thought to himself. The pheromones were mostly faded and null, the quantities still hanging about not enough to affect to affect anyone, but that meant an incident occurred here several days ago. He immediately set up a crime scene, using his cowl's HUD to catch anything of interest. Unfortunately, the amount of traffic that had occurred in this area of the park since then made it difficult to find anything. After several solid minutes of searching, he finally caught a lucky break when his cowl picked up the footprint of a boot old enough to match the age of the remaining pheromones.

Batman immediately found and highlighted a trail, following it as it led away from the park trail and into the underbrush. The large boot-print was joined by a smaller pair of feet, this one not wearing any shoes at all. His cowl immediately matched it to Pamela Isly, further confirming her involvement, and Batman's frown deepened.

"Where are you taking him, Pamela?" Batman asked himself as he was led further and further into the park. He eventually came across an old greenhouse, the glass long since cracked and broken from the stresses of time. The victim's footprint was joined now by dozens of others, and Bruce quickly lost track of it in the chaos. It was no matter to him, he was easily able to gather more evidence from here.

From what he was able to gather, this abandoned greenhouse served as a holding pen. Sleeping areas and food, obviously meant for her 'servants', were scattered around the building. This soothed Batman's nerves somewhat, as it lessened the possibility of someone being dead by now. But the fact that he couldn't find any footprints leading out of the greenhouse caused his concerns to rise. Someone had come in after the fact and swiped away any trace of where they had gone, and now the trail was cold.

"Damn…" Batman muttered, then pressed his fingers to his ear. "Oracle, any updates on potential sites of pollution?"

"Plenty, but none are really sticking out at the moment," Oracle admitted with a slight sigh. "Between this and finding out the League of Shadows' base of operations, my attention has been a little stretched at the moment."

"Hmm." Batman paused, thinking Oracle's words over, then came to a decision. "Focus on Ra's al Ghul first. That's the priority. In the meantime, I'll work on uncovering Ivy's motives."

"Got it," Oracle responded, typing a few keys in the background. "Also, just for your information, you have a call from the Watchtower."

"I know," Batman replied, already raising their comms. "Batman to Watchtower, ready for transit."

"Acknowledged, Batman. Beaming you up in five," Mr. Terrific replied. Batman braced himself, then felt his body tingle as the Watchtower's teleporter picked him up and transported him into the teleporting bay. Diana was waiting for him, resting her arms against a railing while looking down on him.

"Bruce," she greeted, and Batman acknowledged her with a nod.

"Diana," he replied, and together they walked down the corridors of the Watchtower in comfortable silence. Neither felt any need to say anything, figuring that whatever they could say would be best served in front of the others, and soon found themselves in the Founders Meeting Room. The door opened automatically, and they saw that the rest of the League founders were waiting for them.

"Good, you're here," Superman greeted them as he walked over to pat Batman on the shoulder and give Diana a hug.

"Good timing, too," Flash added, motioning towards the large plate of snacks he had assembled. "Just went and got these from the cafeteria. Feel free to help yourself."

"No thanks," Batman dryly replied, while Diana smiled and shook her head.

"Thank you, Barry, but I'm good," Diana added. Rather than feel offended, Flash merely shrugged and pulled the food closer to him.

"More for me," he said before beginning to grab a few bits to eat. The others patiently waited for Batman and Wonder Woman to sit down, and once the last Founders did so, the meeting officially began.

"First, Diana," Superman started, prompting everyone's attention to turn towards the Wonder Woman. "Any update on Themyscira?"

Diana frowned and clenched her fists, but otherwise remained calm. "Not much. Whoever this Amazon was, she wasn't raised in Themyscira or Bana-Mighdall, yet somehow knew enough about our customs to know when to sneak onto Paradise Island and when to strike her target. The only Amazons who got a look at her were the vault's guards, and they were knocked out almost immediately. All they know is that she was young, at most thirty to forty years old."

"That's younger than Donna," Hawkgirl noted with surprise.

"Yes," J'onn J'onzz murmured. "How often do Amazons have children, Diana?"

"Not often, since we're immortal," Diana replied. "Any that do are gifts from the gods and are celebrated across the island. Which is why her young age is perplexing. We would've known about an Amazon that young, but we didn't."

"Perhaps she was born outside of Themyscira or Bana-Mighdall?" Green Lantern suggested, but Diana shook her head.

"Not thirty or forty years ago," Diana insisted.

"Are you certain?" Batman asked, leaning forward to rest his weight on his knees. Diana looked him in the eye, then sighed.

"It's…possible that other Amazons had left the island after me as exiles, forbidden from ever returning," she explained. "Only Amazons guilty of heinous crimes are punished this way, and one could've given birth afterwards."

"Which would explain the apparent hatred towards Themyscira," J'onn finished. "I'll start looking into possible sightings of Amazons over the past forty years. Am I correct that an exiled Amazon keeps their powers?"

"Yes."

"That'll make them easier to track. I'll notify you of any updates. In the meantime," J'onn turned to look at Batman, "how are teams RWBY and JNPR, Batman?"

"They're adjusting quite well," Batman explained, sitting back in his chair. "Weiss had an incident a few nights ago regarding a nightmare, but Alfred was able to help her through it."

"That's good to hear," Flash spoke up, swallowing his food. "Knew there was a reason I liked that guy so much."

"Alfred Pennyworth's a good man," Superman added, smiling to himself, then the Man of Steel turned more serious. "What about their training and equipment? Any updates so far?"

"Beyond the standard maintenance and modifications, nothing significant. Weiss has replaced Myrtenaster's blade with Nth Metal, while the others have used depleted promethium in its stead."

"Sounds expensive," Hawkgirl joked, knowing that Bruce was more than able to pay for it. "If they need any pointers on the finer properties of Nth Metal, tell them I'm more than free. How goes the replacement weapons for Crescent Rose and Crocea Mors?"

"They're almost complete," Batman revealed. "By my estimate, they should be finalized in the next few days, hopefully before Oracle can finalize the location of the League of Shadow's base."

"Any major candidates?" Superman asked.

"Somewhere on the north Atlantic seaboard. Other than that, she can't say," Batman admitted. "She's requested access to the League's satellites to expand her search."

"She can have it. Barbara's a friend, and if she needs them, she only has to ask," Superman stated, then he pressed his hands together and rested them on the table. "Which brings me to our next point of concern. John, if you please?"

John Steward nodded, then flashed his lantern ring towards the table. At once, the lights inside the room dimmed, and a holographic projection of the world shined above the table. The planet itself was a pale blue, with several red dots scattered throughout the country.

"Ever since Trigon's attack on Jump City," Superman explained as the corresponding red dot was highlighted, "there have been reports of isolated Grimm activity in conflict zones all around the world. Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria, Nigeria, South Sudan, Kashmir, and Mexico to name a few, and governments are scrambling to respond before the public learns about it."

"The scale's increasing," Wonder Woman noted, looking at the timeline of the various incidents. Indeed, the number of incidents had been steadily growing in number, each one closer to the last.

"Yes," Superman grimly noted, frowning slightly. "Our primary suspect is Luthor, but without conclusive evidence, we can't bring him in. In the meantime, I motion for the League to aid countries in stopping these Grimm attacks while searching for the source."

"Agreed," the rest of the League Founders immediately replied. They all knew how bad things got on Remnant with the Grimm running around, and it was imperative that they destroyed the Grimm before it got to that point.

"Batman, do you think you can track down where the Grimm are coming from?" Diana asked, but Batman shook his head.

"Not right now. I have my hands full with Gotham at the moment," he admitted, but Flash rolled his eyes.

"As always…" he muttered, only to flinch when Batman shot him a glare. "Heheh…"

Batman ignored Flash's nervous mutterings then looked back out towards the rest of the Founders. "But I'll have the Question start looking into it in the meantime."

At once, everyone besides Bruce groaned, some leaning their heads back while rubbing their foreheads. Batman had expected this response, as he often had the same one when dealing with the Question, but he raised his hand up placatingly.

"I know, I know. He's a little wound up," Batman argued, but Flash shot him a look.

"The guy's a crazy conspiracy theorist, B-Man," Flash pointed out, while Hawkgirl's face held a haunted expression.

"I once had to spend an hour listening to him ramble on and on about how toothpaste made our teeth detectable by spy satellite…" Hawkgirl shuddered at the foul memory. The only reason why she was forced to listen to him was because they were in a Javelin together working on a case. Green Lantern gave Hawkgirl a look of sympathy and patted her shoulder, while everyone's attention refocused back on Batman.

"Bruce, are you certain the Question is the best man for this?" Diana pleaded, but to her disappointment, Batman nodded."

"Yes. As…questionable as his theories often are," Batman explained, "he's still a brilliant detective. With my hands full as they are, he'll be able to find the source."

A heavy pause hung over the air as everyone looked at Batman. After a minute, he sighed and narrowed his eyes.

"None of you have to be partnered with him," Batman added, and at once the Founders' dispositions shifted into one of acceptance.

"Alright, I can work with that!" Flash exclaimed. "I'm good for it."

"As am I," Hawkgirl added.

"Agreed," J'onn plainly stated. The others simply nodded, and seeing as how they were all in agreement, Superman turned to look at Batman once again.

"I'll let you deliver the news to him," Superman said. When Batman said nothing, Superman sighed and hung his head. "He's already looking, isn't he?"

"Since before the attack on Trigon, yes," Batman admitted. "He said something about 'paint shipments' clued him in."

"How does that…?" Flash began, only to shake his head and sigh. "Never mind. Anyway, GL? How's the search for Remnant?"

"The Corp think they've found a lead," John revealed. "Brainiac's been busy, and they're following a trail of destruction to try and find where Remnant was located, as well as where the psychopath himself is going next. Which by itself is a mystery, as up until RWBY and JNPR showed up, not even the Guardians knew Remnant existed."

"Why's that?" Hawkgirl asked, tilting her head inquisitively.

"They're not sure," Green Lantern admitted. "It's like some kind of impenetrable veil was cloaking Remnant, blocking it from view."

"Then how'd Brainiac find it?" Flash questioned, but J'onn perked up.

"Perhaps the veil creates a small but noticeable anomaly when compared to the surrounding regions of space? Such a thing could've clued Brainiac in that something was amiss, capturing his curiosity," he suggested. The League Founders ruminated over it for a moment, then one by one nodded in acceptance.

"That makes sense," Green Lantern stated. "I'll contact Hal. He's leading the search, and he'll appreciate any leads he can find."

"Speaking of Hal," Diana said, her voice growing more somber, "how's the newest recruit?"

A sad look crossed John Stewart's face, and he sighed regretfully. "The poor girl still won't leave her room. Even after getting the ring, she's too terrified. I keep trying, but nothing's really working."

"Do you need any help?" Hawkgirl offered, knowing who Green Lantern was referring to, but he shook his head.

"No. This is a Green Lantern Corp responsibility, and I'll continue to work with her." He then smiled and looked towards Batman. "Perhaps we can introduce them, even? Once she feels ready, of course?"

Batman looked at Green Lantern and understood at once exactly what he was referring to. He nodded, adding, "I'm sure if you asked RWBY and JNPR now, they'd be more than willing to meet Jessica. All you have to do is say the word."

"Only when she's ready," Green Lantern maintained. "The last thing I want to do is force her into something uncomfortable."

"On that, we all can agree." Superman nodded towards the rest of the Founders, then straightened himself. "Now, let's move on to funding."

---

November 11th, 3:00 AM

Waziristan, Pakistan

A man watched as the village below was overrun by pitch black creatures covered in bone armor. The villagers tried to fight back as best they could, but their weapons proved ineffective against the monsters' hide and bone, and they were quickly torn apart. Those who ran were simply run down and devoured, and after only a few hours of fighting, the entire village was wiped off the face of the Earth. He had, of course, seen it all through the scope of his sniper rifle, but he didn't do anything to stop it. There was a possibility he could've, but stopping it weren't his orders. They were simply to observe, then clear them out once they were done.

"I got eyes on the package," a gruff voice spoke over the radio, his thick, Australian accent making it difficult to listen to. "Crikey, these things give me the creeps. I'm on my way out. You betta not let me get eaten by one of these bloody things."

"Don't worry, baby! Momma's gonna keep you safe!" a shrill, hyperactive voice maintained, but the sniper could hear the Australian roll his eyes even from his position.

"The hell you will! I'd feel safer with these Grimm than you, ya nutcase!"

"Knock it off, both of you," a deeper voice rumbled, the sound of flesh tearing in the background as the sniper saw black smoke filter into the night sky. "Hurry up so we can get out of here."

"Ya don't have to tell me twice, ya stinking lizard."

A deep growl sounded through the radio, and despite himself, the sniper couldn't help but smile in amusement. A crazed, feminine chuckle accompanied it, but as his comrade exited the building, the sniper returned to his professional stature. He watched as his ally, a bearded man wearing a navy-blue coat and beanie, hurried his way to safety away from the village. The man made sure to avoid any of the Grimm, and luckily so far none had seen him.

That changed when the man rounded a corner, only to run face to face with a Grimm the League had started calling 'Beowolves'. From here, the sniper was easily able to see why, with its bipedal, wolf-like appearance, but he couldn't focus on that at the moment. Instead, he aimed his sniper rifle and fired three shots in rapid succession, each landing on the exact same spot on the creature's skull. The first stunned the creature, the second fractured the bone, and the third broke completely through the creature's brain, killing it instantly. It fell to the ground lifelessly, not that it was alive to begin with, and soon evaporated into black smoke that drifted into the sky above.

"Oy! Warn me next time, ya bloody bastard!" the man hissed into the radio, waving a metallic boomerang in his general direction. The sniper merely smirked, then frowned as he felt his other radio line buzz. Someone was calling him, and he knew exactly who that person was. Part of him thought he should ghost it, but he also knew that such an act carried a high probability of getting him killed. So, he sighed and pressed his fingers to his ears.

"Waller. We got the package, and everyone's out of the village," he revealed. A few seconds later, large explosions blossomed in the village as a gunship high above them rained death. Any Grimm still standing were instantly killed, and gunshots echoed across the valley as the rest were mopped up by those on the ground.

"Good," Amanda Waller replied callously. "Lawton, you and the rest of Task Force X are to report stateside at once."

"Going back to the states?" Floyd Lawton asked, spying a straggler trying to rush a girl wearing a red and black harlequin suit. She was firing dual handguns at the creature, who staggered with each hit before collapsing to the ground in a heap. The crazed girl then pulled out a giant mallet and whacked the creature's head repeatedly, eventually crushing the head like a watermelon.

"Yahtzee!" Harley Quinn exclaimed jubilantly, watching as Killer Croc wrestled a Creeper out of the ground and tore open its jaws. A sickening crack sounded as they were broken, and he tossed the evaporating body aside as though it was nothing.

"Yes," Waller said, nonplussed about the sounds of combat echoing in the background even as Lawton joined in.

"May I ask why?" Lawton asked, firing five shots that hit five separate targets in the eye, killing them instantly.

"I have a mission for you, Deadshot. Isn't that obvious?" Waller revealed in an annoyed tone. Deadshot rolled his eyes. He'd figured that was the reason, but if he could drag out even an ounce of annoyance from Amanda Waller, he'd figure it was worth it. Deadshot spotted another Ursa charging towards Captain Boomerang, who was focused on killing a Beowolf. Part of Deadshot wondered if he should simply let the prick get mauled a little, but then shrugged and fired a round straight into one of the Ursa's ears and out the other. Its brain was shredded instantly, and the creature fell to the ground dead as a doornail.

"Goddamn!" Boomerang cursed, jumping back a little, but Deadshot merely smirked.

[~][~]

Hello, everyone! Here's the latest chapter of Hunters of Justice. Special thanks to NaanContributor and Jesse K. After several high-intensity chapters filled with action and intrigue, it's nice to have a bit of cooldown. Another cooldown chapter is up next, then we'll pick back up on the action.

Anyway, onto the Q&A:

Jc: In regards to the Batcomputer files, I will not be going back to update them as they're supposed to be snapshots in time of Batman creating them at a certain point.

NRF: The costumes for RWBY and JNPR do not exist currently as pieces of fanart, unfortunately. I would love for someone to make a piece of fanart for this story, though.

Hey It's That Guy: Well, something similar happened here!

Vein Bloodborne: Yep, the Mr. Freeze chapter was ripe for heartwrenching moments, and I'm glad came across well. And yeah, we're in for a few calmer moments for now before things pick back up.

Le MAO XXVI: Thank you, I really appreciate that. Yeah, that's the thing about Nora. She'll always surprise you, not to mention is pretty emotionally mature. As such, we felt her calming down Mr. Freeze was within her character. As for missed opportunity, whether or not Mr. Freeze faces of against Weiss in the future is a potential outcome. You'll have to wait and see.

RandomName3064: Mr. Freeze is one of my favorite villains as well, and he was perfect for a chapter theme of moral greyness. I'm glad that the chapter title didn't give it away immediately, but at the same time we wanted it to fit the encounter.

hirshja: Yeah, a big theme of this chapter was moral greyness. You were supposed to feel for both Mr. Powers and Mr. Freeze.

stephenadezio: Yeah, the BTAS incarnation of Mr. Freeze was definitely the core of our interpretation of him. Still, we felt that a few different things being merged in would allow for greater flexibility. Plus, some of the one-liners from Batman and Robin were too good to pass up.

meeyaaargh3412: Thank you. I'm glad I got Mr. Freeze down for you all to enjoy.

Jackalope89: Yep, Condiment King was fun to write for, and you are definitely correct that not all villains are completely evil and crazy. Some are much more complex than others, and Mr. Freeze is one of the best of those.

captaindickscratcher: No, people from Earth cannot have their Aura unlocked. Trying to unlock it wouldn't impart a copy of the Remnantian metagene into them, and it wouldn't work. As for Jaune and his Semblance, I'd argue that severing of the spinal cord is a bit too much for his Semblance to heal. Remember, all Jaune does is boost the capabilities of the individual's body, which includes their Aura and their healing. He can't make a body do what it normally couldn't, and the healing of a spinal cord is a bit too much for the body to heal.

Steelrain66: Yep, Mr. Freeze is one of my favorite villains as well. Glad you enjoyed it so much.

edinosaur25: Actually, Daniel Powers may or may not be Derek Power's dad. It's meant to be purposefully ambiguous.

That's it for today. I hope you all enjoy it, and let us know what you all think! See you all next time!