RWBY: Destiny of Remnant

by UGX7

In the wake of the fall Team RNJR sets out to bring Cinder Fall to justice while the new Fall Maiden overlooks her master's plan in Haven City. Meanwhile Weiss tries to help a friend, Yang struggles with the loss of her arm, and Blake deals with guilt over the White Fang. Meanwhile someone from Cinder's past returns and Salem's newest pawn rises. Arkos, WhiteRose, SunnyBees, Renora

55. Return Part II: Going Forward

Special thanks to RelentlessCrusader, GojiGrimlockSaurus, and Leaf Ranger for helping out with this chapter, plus a special shoutout to the RWBY Alternate History Community here on the site, do yourself a favor and check 'em out, and even add yourself to their followers. And most of all, thanks to every person who has ready this story, thanks to everyone who has faved and followed it. We wouldn't be here without you guys!

Theme for this chapter: Going Home by Mary Fahl

RWBY: Destiny of Remnant

Chapter 54: Return Part II: Going Forward

Somewhere within the mountains of Mistral's southwest, the Kagayaku Valley, to be exact, a lone figure stood atop a protruding crag of mountain rock which extended from the wind-carved cliffs of Anima, watching silently as the radiant glow of dawn slowly rose across the horizon, banishing the black and dark blue colors of the night by peeking over the mountain tops and illuminating the valley.

The rising sun gradually revealed the burnt out ruins of a town which had fallen to further desolation after it had been reduced to rubble and ashes. The landscape which dominated the area between the high mountain cliffs on either side was bleak and dreary, with burnt-out trees dotting and nearly no vegetation save for patches of brown and green weeds. The ruined skeletons of houses stood up like tombstones alongside mounds of rubble, and in the middle of the circular town square was the collapsed remains of clock tower, the clock face smashed upon the ground with internal mechanisms and glass scattered everywhere. As years had passed since the town was destroyed, lichen and moss had covered almost everything, crawling up walls and infesting the abandoned houses.

He had been standing there since the night before, walking up the mountain after leaving his motorcycle out of sight in the dense forest a little way down the mountain yet still within sprinting reach, its systems on stand-by yet with its scanners and weapons activated in case anything posing a threat has been detected. It never hurt to be cautious, as the place he was currently present in was said to have ravenous packs of Grimm roaming in its vicinity.

The lone warrior had always made sure he returned to the Kagayaku Valley every year, and stand vigil over the decimated ruins from night till dawn, paying his respects until the sun rose again at which he would take his leave, the vigil successfully completed. He didn't know who created the vigil, but he was thankful that there was at least a long-established way to honor the dead since that was all he could do until he found those who were responsible for wiping out the town's population.

As he stood there with his sword free of its scabbard and buried tip-first into the ground, his helmeted head bowed and standing at attention, the armored knight hadn't said a single word since the beginning of his vigil when the night was absolute, with only the shattered moon for company. However, he had unlocked his helmet visor, removing it so that his cerulean blue eyes could see the town's devastation and the burnt out dark patches where the inhabitants must have fallen while still engulfed in flames.

Long ago, before he had been recruited into the Remnant Knights, the decimated town below had been his home. However, his recruitment into the Knight Order meant that he had left everything of his previous life behind, save for his memories as well as the ornate third sword he always carried with him. His past only existed in the memories within his mind, sometimes needing deep recollection in order to remember those fleeting pieces of his past, as if they at risk of slipping back into the depths of his mind.

He didn't have much time to reminisce about his past when he was performing his duty as a Knight Errant to the Knight Order he served for so long, since those subsequent years after his recruitment was unceasingly filled with long hours of harsh training and learning, sparring in various combat sessions against other veteran knights in addition to being deployed on a variety of scouting and combat-oriented missions after he was officially knighted and given his knight name: Sharp Strike.

It was only during quiet moments such as the vigil, or those brief, dreary moments of waiting for sleep to take him that he could remember things he usually wouldn't have time to, glimpses of his past before his induction into the Knight Order, before becoming the protégé of his master Argentius and later becoming the senior knight's best student. As he watched the ruins, Sharp Strike momentarily remembered a certain number of things…

The warm embrace of his loving mother.

The training he had received from his father in the form using wooden sticks to spar between them.

The wondrous sight of shooting stars across the night sky with the shattered moon.

Playing with other town children by running through the town's streets until they reached a nearby lake of blue and gold, capturing the sunlight from high above them in the sky.

That girl… so kind and beautiful.

And… the night it all ended… when he lost them all...

He would search through his mind for those cherished memories as he maintained his silent vigil, recalling another memory if he thought hard enough and long enough, as if they were hidden treasures.

Each of those memories that returned to him brought forth a deep sense of longing and sadness, because the attached faces and events that had happened in those memories were years old, and the people those faces belonged to were almost certainly dead, their voices missing to him and their bodies long turned to ashes and dust by now.

However, the knight could not allow himself to forget them, even though he knew with silent apprehension that one day those treasured memories would disappear completely and never return. He had personally known other knights who had chosen to totally forget about their past, but Sharp Strike had resolved that he would never forget about the things that made him who he truly is, as those memories were all he had left of his previous life before the Knight Order took him.

The past six months after the sealing of the ancient agreement between the Guardians of Remnant and the Remnant Knights in Vale had been, for the lack of a better term, quite demanding in terms of activity. The various Knight Legions had become more active all over Remnant, stepping up in their various missions within each major continent to gather crucial information on the enemy and disrupting their operations whenever possible, from mopping up remnants of the White Fang which had slipped through the law-enforcement and military forces of the Kingdom and fighting Grimm hordes, to chasing down secret cells of spies and protecting the remaining Maidens from the clutches of Salem.

Sharp Strike was no exception, of course. The moment the knight delegation had returned back to their secret headquarters Tintagel, he was immediately given fresh orders to investigate possible insurrectionist sites with other Knight Errants already operating in the field. Soon the young knight was crisscrossing again across varied lands of Remnant in his movements under the orders of his superiors, gathering information on enemy activities while also saving innocents from the Grimm wherever he went. Over the past few months he had managed to destroy quite a few rebel groups singlehandedly, while discovering the locations of other hidden White Fang cells which he disclosed anonymously to the Kingdom authorities which resulted in their swift arrests.

His duties to the Order aside, Sharp Strike always made sure he returned to the Kagayaku Valley to pay his respects to the destroyed town below in a simple vigil, calming the sentimental part of his soul which hadn't been snuffed out by the strict training he had received. Sometimes, he wouldn't merely conduct a vigil, but walk through the uninhabited ruins slowly and carefully while allowing his mind to drift back to the happier days of his past and hopefully calm his uncertainties. As he derived a measure of calming peace from his former home, the knight also reminded himself that he would do all he can as a Remnant Knight to ensure that no other people of Remnant would have to suffer the same fate as long as he drew breath.

As the sunlight from the rising sun in the horizon caught the red and gold of his relic sword, Sharp Strike lifted his chin slightly and watched as the warm rays illuminated his faceplate and his cerulean blue eyes where he had removed his helmet's visor, and faintly he heard the morning songs of birds chitterling in the far distance, announcing the first light. He quietly said a prayer, "With the arrival of dawn, my vigil has ended. May the Gods of Remnant shelter your souls in the next world. For it is in passing that we achieve immortality."

Mentally thanking that he wasn't disturbed by any Grimm while performing his silent vigil, he knelt down on one knee and withdrew his relic sword, the red and gold blade catching the sunlight that gave it a gleaming sheen briefly before sheathing it smoothly back into its scabbard. As he stood up again and attached the relic blade to his waist belt once more thought back to other vigils he had performed.

One was when he had volunteered with a number of other knights to honor Wood Cutter's sacrifice, dying to stop Cinder Fall's attack on Vale, and guide his soul back to Avalon where he would rest with the greatest heroes and heroines of the Knight Order, the group of them standing in front of the deceased knight's stone casket deep in the Halls of Remembrance within Tintagel after the rites of passing for the honored warrior had been performed. He remembered standing in the circular hall where Wood Cutter's casket was placed in front of them, its surface covered with in a small, intricate language which displayed his achievements, triumphs and the many foes he had vanquished while in the service of the Knight Order. His emblem, two axes crossed in front of a lush tree, was engraved on his stone casket as well, while his personal shotgun-axe weapon was placed on the small altar at the front of the casket. After the vigil, Sharp Strike and the other knights who had served alongside Wood Cutter bore his stone casket on their armored pauldrons together and walked the candle-lit hallways down into the deep catacombs of Tintagel, laying the brave warrior at his final resting place alongside other heroic knights who had gone before them.

He had privately conducted another Vigil at Otium, standing before the grave markers of both Ashe Kasai and his beloved Mila. Their graves were simple, and had been recently cleaned by the burial ground custodians while fresh flowers had been placed at both grave markers by the inhabitants of Otium who had all kept the dearly-loved couple in their memories. No one disturbed the lone Remnant Knight while he performed his personal vigil there, and even though Sharp Strike had made his presence as scarce as possible, those who managed to see him all stood at a respectful distance.

Wood Cutter had died heroically trying to stop Cinder and the other forces of darkness, while Ashe had done the same and more to thwart the machinations of Cinder, his own sister, and deliver the justice Saul Jude so sorely deserved, and saved those who he treasured so much even after the death of his fiancé. While the world of Remnant had become a little darker due to the demise of such heroes, their actions were honored and inspired those who still lived to protect those who can't protect themselves.

Sharp Strike mentally vowed that he would not be found wanting in his duty as a Remnant Knight, and he will never stop searching for those who had destroyed his home and he would bring them to justice for their evil. He wouldn't let his home go unavenged, not when he still lived and breathed, and anyone who dare question his loyalty otherwise would be answered with the tip of the ornate sword.

A soft beep from within his Aegis armor which was slightly covered by the cloak of midnight blue attracted his attention as Sharp Strike replaced his visor piece of his helmet which covered his eyes once more, but not before taking one last look at what remained of his previous home. Then he produced his customized scroll from the depths of his knight armor and looked at the displayed information on its screen.

Another rendezvous and a fresh assignment which required his skills. Just another day of his eternal service to the Remnant Knights.

After making his way down from the forested cliffs and into the forested areas where his motorcycle was cleverly hidden from view behind a series of boulders and hills, Sharp Strike used his scroll to call his personal vehicle and watched as the gleaming silver-black bike with shining highlights roared out from the forest and skidded to a stop in front of him. Aside from some repairs he had administered to his mechanical steed, the knight had also added some additional upgrades to his motorcycle but he was still waiting for a chance to prove those upgrades useful, should any future missions call for them.

Settling onto his bike, Sharp Strike revved up the motorcycle's engine and turned the windshield to face the main path out of the Kagayaku Valley. Then he stepped on the accelerator and was soon vanishing into the distance in a streaking blur, leaving maelstroms of dust and scattered leaves in his wake as he headed towards the rendezvous point to meet with the other knights for his latest assignment.

However, if anyone else followed the deserted path in which the young knight had left they would find a fork in the road leading out of the same valley, and right at the area where the paths diverged was a shattered signpost, the words on it barely eligible and just barely conveying its intended meaning to whoever who came across it and stopped to take a closer look.

It was a simple blackened wooden panel with the name of the destroyed town carved onto its surface.

Himawari.

---

The village of Otium haven't changed much since the defeat of Saul Jude and the departure of Ashe Kasai. If anything else, it had returned to normal after another Huntsman had been assigned to protect the village, and aside from the construction of some additional buildings not much had changed.

The last time Team Beacon had been for Ashe's funeral a year ago, returning him to his rightful place besides his beloved Mila.

It had been one year since the Battle of Haven, one year since Ashe, Raven, and Cardin all died in battle. The other day the members of Team Beacon, along with Bianca and Ross, had visited the graves of Raven Branwen and Cardin Winchester to pay their respects to the ones who had given up their lives to save Jaune, Ruby, and Pyrrha from Cinder and Salem.

Yang hadn't said much at her mother's grave, since she would frequently visit it when she was home, she would only say that she wished that they had spent more time together. While they all paid their respects to her, it was rather awkward since Raven hadn't exactly made a stellar first impression since she said that she would kill Jaune should he be transformed into a Grimm hybrid and hadn't exactly been gentle with other things she had said, but still they all had respect for her, for all that she had done and how she died fighting Cinder.

Ruby had wished she had gotten to know her aunt, as she had never really met her in person at all, and had always wanted to know what Aunt Raven was like since one could never have too many family members. But now... she would never get that chance again. Still the scythe-wielding Huntress still felt as though she had an odd urge to keep an eye out for black birds for some strange reason.

When they had to leave, Yang had asked for them to let her just stay at the grave for a few minutes more which everyone agreed without question. All the members of their team quietly left except Ruby, who stayed with her older sister and they mourned Raven together for just a bit more.

So the two sisters had stood together on the cliff overlooking the sea in silence.

They then visited the Winchester Family tomb to visit Cardin; Velvet never thought she would have shed tears over her former bully, but remembering what he did for them on that night still made her heart ache with grief. Pyrrha hadn't been able to really get to know Cardin, due to his actions during their first year, but she knew he did not deserve the fate he had been given. So despite all he did to Jaune, and what he tried to do to her with those Rapier Wasps, she had forgiven him.

Ruby had felt guilty over his death, wondering if she would have been able to save him if she had been fast enough. She had learned that it was impossible to save everyone, but it wasn't a fact that she wanted to accept in the slightest, but reality didn't care what one wanted most of the time. But then again, their reality wasn't exactly predictable, so she had become determined to save as many people as she could.

Jaune, however, had been the first one to speak up, simply thanking Cardin for what he had done for them, and saying that despite everything that had happened between them during their first semester at Beacon, he had forgiven him. He added that Cardin's sacrifice had proven that he was a good Huntsman in the end, one who had tried to become a better person to make up for the past. If nothing else, he deserved their heartfelt thanks and respect for giving up everything so they could live.

Everyone agreed with that.

They had then flown over the ocean between Vale and Mistral overnight, and had stopped to help the village of Shion early in the morning. For the rest of the trip Ren, exhausted from using his Semblance on so many people, was fast asleep leaning on Nora's shoulder and had only been woken up when they were about to land.

Ross's ship had carefully settled down on the open field located at the other side of the cemetery, allowing Team Beacon and Bianca to disembark and go through the back entrance of the graveyard.

Yatsuhashi helped Bianca carry the portrait Bianca had made of Ashe, as the eldest Arc sister wanted to bring it to his grave for sentimental reasons. As everyone disembarked from the ship, with Jaune and Pyrrha carrying the Aura Crystal case, Ruby noticed that Ross wasn't moving to leave.

"Not coming Mr. Ross?" She asked.

The Valean military pilot slowly shook his head and told her "I… I stay away from graveyards. Don't go into them unless I have to for a funeral or something. Personal reasons. I have some respect for this Kasai fellow, but didn't know him personally. Seems like an alright guy though."

Ruby's natural curiosity made her want to ask him why, but she knew it was best not to pry into private matters. "Well… if you ever need to talk about it, I'm willing to listen." She told him graciously.

Ross looked at the young Huntress before smiling and letting out a chuckle. "Heh, if only there were more people like you kids. Thanks."

Ruby returned the smile before following her friends into the graveyard while the her uncle's friend sat down on the ramp of his ship, while taking off his pilot helmet and placing it on one knee. As they vanished from sight Ross took out a flask of honey-brown fluid and slowly sipped, while having a certain faraway look in his eyes.

The sun was now higher in the morning sky, and dew was still clinging to the grass as the group of eighteen made their way through the recently mowed yard. No snow was in sight as the frost had long since melted.

"Okay, so does anyone remember which grave is his?" Coco asked as the main entrance of the graveyard came into view.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I know." Jaune said as he began to look around for it.

"Uh, guys...I think I know which one it is." said Velvet. She pointed over to a grave that had an unusual amount of decorations on its tombstone. Jaune and Ruby looked to each other before smiling, and Nora was the first to make her way over.

"Whoa. Where do you think all the decorations came from?" Scarlet pondered.

"Guessing by the drawings, and the fact that the banner says 'Thank You, Hero of Haven Elementary', I think it's a bit obvious." Coco said to him with a slight smirk.

Nora kneeled down in front of the grave and let out a happy squeak. "Aw! Hey guys, come look at this! It's from those kids he saved!" Nora announced as she looked at the laminated cards and drawings nailed to poster boards that were propped up by stands next to the grave, which had subtly changed over the year it had been there, as the tombstone had now settled into the ground with grass now covering it the small burial mound. Most of the art were done by young children, drawings of a crudely drawn version, sometimes even a stick figure, of Ashe fighting off bad guys in a rather cartoon-y fashion. Some were well drawn, however, and did look like Ashe himself with his sword and gun out.

Ruby couldn't help but smile at the sight, knowing that someone who had suffered like Ashe had was at least getting rewarded in the afterlife.

Two poles were stabbed into the ground flanking the two graves, and hanging above the poles was the banner that Coco had mentioned.

"Look at these, not just from the kids, but the teachers too." Jaune said, as he looked at cards and letters, thanking Ashe and saying that they hoped he was in a better place. Pyrrha kneeled down next to him, and one in particular caught her attention; a picture of a pretty woman in her late twenties, hugging an infant to her while her husband had his arm around her, beneath the picture was a note that said 'Thank you so much for saving me and my child. You're our hero. Rest in Peace - Victoria and Matthew Silvers, plus baby Ash.'

"Jaune, look." She said, pointing to the picture and trying to get her partner's attention.

Everyone either looked or glanced at it, and Jaune, Ruby, Nora, and Velvet could only smile and try not to tear up at the photo and the note beneath it.

"I wonder if he would approve of a child being named after him." Ren wondered quietly.

"Maybe, maybe not, but it's not like he can complain about it." replied a teary Nora as she looked at Ren who simply nodded his head.

There was a brief silence in the graveyard for a while, with only the sounds of the birds in the trees and the rustling wind to break it.

"Since we're all here, someone should say something." Blake suggested as she looked around, getting nods in agreement from the rest of Team Beacon and their companions.

"May I go first?" Bianca asked hesitantly.

"Sure sis, go right ahead." Jaune permitted as Yatsuhashi gently placed the covered up portrait before the grave.

Bianca cleared her throat and spoke, "Hey Ashe, been a while, huh? Well I just wanted to say, thanks for everything you did for my family, we owe you a lot for helping Jaune out so much and helping us save him. I uh… I hope you're alright, wherever you are, and I hope you and Mila are together again. I've been working on a little something. It's a painting of you, and it has been a work in progress for a while now and I've been making finishing touches to make sure it's all good and well. I know you can't give us your opinion, but I hope you can see it, wherever you are."

She took off the tarp that covered it which revealed a very well done character portrait of Ashe, showing him standing atop a building with his robe/jacket fluttering in the wind. In one hand he held his sword and in the other was the shotgun. The background was a dark cloudy sky, and in the background one could see some of the Haven buildings, all done quite well, so it was clear that Bianca had put a lot of care and effort into this art piece.

However the thing that she absolutely nailed, that she had worked the hardest on was his face, but more specifically the eyes. The artwork had, while not perfectly, managed to capture the triumphant, yet sad look he had in his eyes when the Battle of Haven had ended and Jaune and Pyrrha had become the new guardians.

"So, what do you guys think?" She asked.

"It looks great!" Ruby declared without hesitation.

"I'm no art critic, but I would say it's pretty good." Fox voiced while nodding his head a little.

"You did a wonderful job." Velvet assured the eldest arc sister.

"Pretty sweet." Yang agreed wholeheartedly.

"You clearly put a lot of effort into this, and I think it all paid off." Blake added while having a smile on her face.

"Yeah, it looks good. Better than some of the modern stuff in Atlas's museums." Neptune said.

"Not the best I've seen, but it is definitely a fine piece of art." Weiss stated, as she had a bit more experience with art than the others had due to attending various formal events back in Atlas.

"Well done!" Pyrrha congratulated the artist of the Arc family.

"It looks awesome!" Nora cheered, as Ren simply nodded with a smile, letting her know his approval.

"It's great sis, you did a fantastic job. I know he'd be happy with it." Jaune said as he hugged his sister. Bianca teared up a bit as she returned her little brother's hug as tightly as she could, but it unsettled her a bit to see that he was now as tall as she was.

"So what are you gonna do with it?" Ruby asked as she took a picture of the painting with her scroll.

"Mom and dad would like to hang it up somewhere in our home, as a way to honor Ashe for what he did for us." Bianca told them.

"Sounds perfect to me." Jaune said with a smile before asking, "Okay, who wants to go next?"

Velvet raised her hand up a bit and stepped forward. "Well… to be honest, I didn't know Ashe that well. He made a rather… unique first impression." She said, remembering how she first saw him hanging upside down right in front of her face. "And then when there was that… incident with Bianca…" Bianca visibly cringed at the mention of how she tried to attack Ashe when she found out who he was related to, "When I saw him just break down like that, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. It was obvious to me that he had been holding that outburst in for a while, and he desperately needed someone to talk to."

She let her words sink in for the others before she continued, "So I let him know that I would be there if he needed to talk, and then he just poured his emotions out. It was pretty obvious he had held in those emotions for a long time, but that incident had broken the dam, so to speak. I wanted to be there for him, to help him. That's why I became a Huntress, to help people in need no matter what. I told him that he wasn't a bad person for what he had done, just a sad person and a complicated one at that. I didn't know him for very long, but I think that in the end he proved himself a heroic person, and a good friend."

Yatsuhashi placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a friendly smile as she wiped away the tears forming in her brown eyes.

Ren stood up next, surprising some of them, "I was the first among us to meet Ashe, I found him screaming in his sleep, waking up from a nightmare. I wasn't as trusting of him as the others were as I was never a very social person, but… well… I think Ashe ultimately proved himself in the end, and I appreciate everything he did, even if he wasn't exactly the nicest person we ever met."

Nora smiled and stepped forward. "I'm… not really good at this kinda thing. I liked Ashe, although I think he could be a real big jerk half the time, but I think he was also a pretty nice guy for the other half. I remember helping him out with something personal…" Nora stopped as she remembered what she had told him about Magnhild and encouraging him to listen to the message Mila had recorded for him, which had dropped a rather emotional bombshell on Ashe. "I had to tell him something about me, something really personal to help him out with something he really needed to do. So as much as he helped us, I guess we helped him out with a lot of stuff too… uh, I think I'm done." She wiped some tears from her eyes and added "Sorry, not good at speeches."

She stepped back, and Ren placed his arm around her, giving his best friend a tired, but reassuring smile. She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek.

Jaune and Pyrrha came forward, with the latter opening up the case, revealing the lightly glowing crystal to the world and everyone present.

"Ashe, I uh… want to say thanks for everything you did. You could be a bit of a jerk… okay, you could be a royal jerk and even overly violent at times. Heck that little incident with Pyrrha's circlet still sort of ticks me off, but I guess you wouldn't really have stomped on it. I hope not anyway. But you still helped me, gave me advice and the proper help that I really needed. And you… well, you really saved me that night. I think I would be dead if it weren't for you, and Pyrrha, and Ruby, and… well all of you. I owe everyone that helped me that night. But Ashe threw in everything you had just so I wouldn't die, he gave up his family's duty to save me. I hope we can contact your soul fragment soon. But… thanks for everything. I hope your pain has ended, wherever you are." Jaune finished up, before bowing slightly to his fallen friend and teacher.

"Oh yeah, that whole soul fragment in the Aura Crystal. Why is it taking so long for you guys to contact him?" Scarlet inquired with a puzzled expression on his face.

"We should be able to do so soon, we've been communicating with Ember's fragment and those of the other fallen guardians, and they claim that it takes about a year or so for a soul fragment to fully adjust to the crystal. We don't know why since what they've told us is rather vague... something about his soul's aura mixing in with the greater collective aura of the relic itself." Pyrrha explained, before realizing it was her turn. "Oh! Sorry, I didn't realize it was my turn."

She walked in front of Jaune who gave her a kind, supportive look. "Um...hello Ashe. I hope we're living up to the legacy of the Aura Crystal's guardians. We haven't had to defend it yet, but I can assure you when someone tries to take the crystal by force, we'll be ready. Actually, to be quite honest, I didn't know you very well in the brief time we were acquainted, but I do know you did a lot for my friends, and even if you had good intentions, your methods were… rather questionable at times. However, I truly appreciate how you helped my team, as well as Ruby, and how you have managed to help Jaune when I couldn't be there for him. When we escaped from that awful place and Jaune was dying on the floor of that ship, you made me promise that I will always be there for him no matter what. I was going to do that anyway, but I suppose you wanted to enforce it for me. I know you made that promise so we could be the crystal's guardians together, but even if we weren't I know I would never leave him. And you're one of the many, many people Jaune and I have to thank for our second chance at life."

She took a breath, and then added, "We've also met the Remnant Knights, and they known of your heroic actions. The senior knights and prognosticators have mentioned that they will honor you within their archives, so that your tale would be known to all who serve within their Order."

Pyrrha stopped speaking as she glanced around at the other members of Team Beacon, especially some of the other people she had to thank for her second chance. The ones she could actually make sure of knew how much she appreciated them and what they had done to save her. She stepped back to rejoin Jaune, who leaned in to kiss her on the cheek. They decided to close the Aura Crystal up, but both guardians had noticed that it had began to shine a little brighter than usual. They shared a knowing look, hoping that it was a positive sign from the relic, or a certain soul fragment that resided within it.

And finally, it was Ruby's turn. The little reaper stepped forward and glanced back at the encouraging looks from the rest of her team, so she gathered her breath and gripped the whistle which hung from a string around her neck.

"Ashe was my friend, and I could see that he was a lonely person, and I even asked him if he'd like to live on Patch when it was all over, just so he wouldn't be lonely. We didn't know Ashe for very long, but that time in Haven changed most of us. Physically, spiritually, and mentally. I never thought my life as a Huntress would be like this, I thought I would have fun adventures, save people, kill Grimm, and all the other hero stuff, and while all of that happened… so much more happened too. We are fighting a battle of save Remnant from evil. Ashe is dead because of that evil." Ruby said gently as she gripped the whistle tighter. "Ashe was one of the first people who helped me realize that good people can do bad things for the greater good. While he did some bad things, but I think he always meant well... because he did manage to do good after all, especially the way he tried to help us proved that, even if he did go a little overboard sometimes. I mean he even helped us fight his own sister that he hadn't seen for years because he knew what she was doing was evil, he could have easily joined her, but he didn't. He helped us despite everything that had happened to him, so I think that in the end, no matter what had happened...he died a hero, so I consider him to be a good person."

The female scythe wielder took a moment to compose herself, before finishing off with, "I… I don't really know what to say, other than Ashe was truly a friend to us all, and I won't forget him, or anyone else who have died because of Salem; Aunt Raven, Cardin, and even people like Torchwick. So I promise I will do my best to stop Salem and everyone who works for her. Who's with me?"

She held her hand out, as if to invite everyone in.

Almost immediately, Yang placed her hand atop her sister's, giving her a winning smile. Weiss quickly followed in suite, as did Blake. Jaune and Pyrrha smiled and added their hands to the hand stack, followed by Ren and Nora a mere two seconds later. Sun placed his hand in, as did Velvet, Penny, Neptune, Yatsuhashi, Coco, Scarlet, Sage, and finally Fox.

"We are all going to do our best to stop them, and we will make sure they will fail miserably at whatever they're planning." Weiss said boldly, her pale blue eyes looking into Ruby's fiercely

"So, how likely do you think it is that we will be the ones to stop her, and not Ozpin and his group or the Knights?" Fox inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"After everything we've been through, no way they won't let us get involved, and they know it." Coco told her partner.

"Besides, Salem probably still wants us for some evil plan of hers." Jaune reminded them carefully.

"And when the time comes, and her cronies come to fight us; bring it on." Yang voiced while a grinning face.

"Because we will defeat them every time." Sun added cockily, smiling at Blake who blushed a little.

"And we won't be alone, either." Pyrrha added, reminding everyone of their allies.

Ruby smiled, for a while the group either stood or sat around and just talked amongst themselves, enjoying each other's company, as they still had a while before they had to leave for Beacon.

"Yeah, the Remnant Knights, the Guardians of Remnant, our teachers, the Atlesian military and the armed forces of the other Kingdoms, not to mention the other teams like ABRN, FNKI, and NDGO, they will all fight with us." Jaune agreed.

"And we will never give up, no matter the cost." Blake added confidently.

"We won't let Salem win, as long as we are still alive." Yatsuhashi added.

"And that's a promise, right Team Beacon?" Ruby asked them all.

The voices of all the humans, Faunus, and the android that made up Team Beacon all answered her at once; "Right!"

"Long live Team Beacon!" Added Penny cheerfully.

"Yeah!" Chimed in Sage.

Ruby smiled, and for a while the entire group of Huntsman and Huntresses with an additional android either stood or sat around the pair of tombstones and just talked amongst themselves, enjoying each other's company, as they still had a while before they had to leave for the return trip to Beacon.

She looked at the drawings of Ashe, before remembering the art of herself and her friends that she had seen and how flattering it was to have art made in one's likeness, though she still never understood why so many artists saw fit to give Blake a dark skin color or why Yang's breasts were sometimes drawn as big as her head.

The art was kind of amazing at first, since she had never even thought about such as thing, yet Pyrrha and Weiss seemed to be used to it, which made sense given their lives prior coming to Beacon Academy, but it was still something incredible for her. She had personally saved some of said art from various net sites to her scroll's photo gallery, as a way of reminding herself that she was appreciated and looked up to. One of her favorites was one that she had gotten in the mail from a little girl, who had said, in crudely written crayon, that she wanted to be just like Ruby some day. Ruby had placed that one in her bed room in their dorm, to remind her of the people counting on them, and that she had to do her best to never let them down. As she looked around at her team and knew that as long as she had them, she would never totally fail.

---

The town of Higanbana was a decently sized and well protected town in the Mistral countryside. It has a considerable population due to the several dozen buildings that make up its overall townscape, in addition to an inn that also served as a tavern and local eatery, which was the most frequently visited building in town. While not a major town on the map, it was enough for the Mistralians who lived there to get by and live peacefully most of the time. In addition to its sturdy walls which were manned by a dedicated militia unit, there were also a sizable and well-trained police force to deal with any civilian matters while the several Huntsmen and Huntresses who lived there were diligent in their duty in repelling Grimm from their hometown.

Due to the average and peaceful nature of the town, it was the perfect place for someone to stop and rest in their journey to the capital of Mistral. Especially a certain someone like the traveler passing through the town at the moment.

The good-looking traveler was a youthful woman who looked to be about seventeen or eighteen with pale skin, and in spite of being a little on the short side, she was decently built with toned muscles. She wore a purple and dark indigo corset top that may tempt one to glance at her cleavage as well as a knee-length black combat skirt with its hem slightly hugging her somewhat wide hips, while her arms were covered by purple shoulder-length fingerless gloves. Her head and body was wrapped in a violet hood and cloak that had a black emblem of a sword piercing a gemstone, and laced purple-heeled boots covered her feet. She had a reasonably attractive face with a smooth nose and purple eyes, while her purple bangs were kept in check by a white hair band which arced over her head. She also wore an amethyst gemstone necklace shaped in the same emblem as on her cloak.

As it wasn't during the peak hours of the day, the dining section of the inn wasn't as crowded as it would be during the late afternoon or evening. The young woman sat alone at one of the tables near the back windows at the far end of the building, which were currently open and eating her lunch in peace. She was currently eating some fries and enjoying them very much. As she pushed her finished plate to the side, a decently waitress wearing a shoulderless red dress with a white apron tied around her waist and had her hair done up in an ornate braided bun style approached the table to pick up the finished plates.

"Would you like some more fries ma'am?" The waitress asked politely.

"You bet! Just make sure that there's some seasoning on 'em." The young woman said cheerfully. The waitress smiled and nodded before turning towards the kitchen, not noticing the flirtatious look the purple-clothed girl was giving her as she walked away. "Cutie." She murmured to herself before taking a sip of her drink.

"Another one of your crushes, Amethyst?" A distinctively masculine voice whispered from outside the window closest to her.

Amethyst Rilo turned her purple-haired head to glance out of the window to see who had just spoken, and saw a tall figure wearing a plain brown cloak and hood that covered his entire body, but his arms were crossed in such a way that she could catch a glimpse of the pitch black full-body glove in the cloak's small gap. He stood in the shadows cast by the roofs of the inn and its surrounding buildings, which rendered him unnoticeable to everyone else except Amethyst herself. The depths of his hood concealed the majority of his face, but if one squinted hard enough he or she would see the traces of a rugged face within, forged by harsh training and tempered in the fires of numerous battles.

"Not a crush, I was just saying she's cute. Plus, she'd never go for me, I look too young." The Spring Maiden replied before giggling, and gestured at the cloaked shadow outside the window she was sitting beside, "Man, you've stopped bothering to pretend you're not there ever since I let you guys know I knew you were shadowing me."

"As long as you are the only one who knows who I really am and no one else, that's acceptable to my given assignment." The hooded warrior said quietly.

"Oh Wind Runner, why be such a killjoy? You really need to relax and live a little! Come in and have lunch with me. I'd like to know you a little better and I bet you are also a real looker guy underneath that hood, plus burgers here are to die for." Amethyst beckoned in a hushed tone as she shifted her drink between her hands.

"While it is a kind offer, I'll pass." He said, giving a small shrug.

All of a sudden a small bowl of fries appeared in front of him out of the window, "At least have some fries, consider it a token of my thanks. You need to eat as long as you are shadowing me." She said perkily and shook the bowl a little enticingly.

Wind Runner sighed before taking the bowl of fries, allowing Amethyst's hand to shoot back inside. Luckily, no one noticed Amethyst's interaction with him for that few brief moments. "Thank you, Amethyst." He whispered to her, deciding to humor the girl he was assigned to protect.

Besides Wind Runner himself, there were also a number of other Remnant Knights hidden in the vicinity, either in the shadows of other dark alleyways or perched upon the rooftops, and lying prone underneath a chameleonic cloak on the rooftop of the building opposite the inn was his team's sniper Hawk Sight who was observing the town's surroundings through his sniper rifle's scope. All of them were exceptionally vigilant in performing their assigned roles, and each knight watched their surroundings closely for anything awry. Wind Runner himself had temporarily forgone his Aegis armor when they entered Higanbana so as to move around quickly, without the additional weight of armor. He had stashed it somewhere close and accessible, while maintaining a low profile while performing his duty to protect the Maiden. His personal weapon Cyclone Caress, a gunmetal silver-grey rifle with a revolving chamber capable of shooting a variety of customized Dust rounds under various shot settings, was mag-locked to his body glove's electromagnetic panels underneath his brown cloak.

"Dude, stop being so 'serious and edgy'." She said in a mockingly gruff voice in the hopes of lightening his mood before she heard him grunt indignantly, "Hey, it's not like I don't appreciate you, but you should lighten up. I mean, I know my current situation is serious, but I still try to make the best of it and enjoy my life."

"An admirable outlook for life, but I do wish that you would take it more seriously." Wind Runner commented softly as he raised his head a little, the shadows concealing his face withdrawing a little to show his sky-blue eyes.

"Who says I don't? That's why I am having lunch earlier than everyone else so there's fewer people to see me." The young girl said cheerfully before they both heard raised voices over in the main area of the inn.

"Sir, I will get to you in a minute, but I think you've had enough to..." The waitress who have served Amethyst earlier was currently speaking to someone else, and it was clear that she was a little distressed judging from her voice.

"Hey lady...I gotta say you're reaallly cute..." A clearly slurred voice then reached both of Amethyst and Wind Runner's ears. Amethyst looked over to see her waitress dealing with a reasonably good looking man who was clearly a bit drunk due to his slurred voice. He wore a black vest that covered a plain shirt, and there were clearly a number of loaded bandoliers on his chest. A weapon that looked like a sort of bo-staff was tied to his back, with gold-edged lining curling up and down the material of the said weapon.

"I... appreciate the compliment sir, and you're rather handsome as well, but I think you've had a little too much to drink, so I don't think we will be serving you anymore alcohol today." The waitress said politely, but her voice was clearly getting uneasy as she felt the man nearly grab hold of her wrist.

Amethyst watched the unfolding scene before her, and almost rolled her eyes when the less than respectable Huntsman laughed and said, "Well, that's alright baby, I got my own drinking flask, so no problem there!"

The Spring Maiden watched the scene with mounting interest, before casting a glance at Wind Runner who slowly shook his head, "Step in if he gets too rowdy, bt end it quickly and keep it subtle. We don't need you attracting unwanted attention."

All of a sudden the waitress let out a high-pitched squeak as she felt the drunk Huntsman put his hand on her rear and groped hard as he pulled her towards him, making her drop the tray she had within her hands in the process which hit the ground with a clatter.

"Sir! Please stop! This is...!" She tried to say something before he cut her off.

"Hey, don't fight it babe, they say you're flirty with customers, so why don't we..." The drunk Huntsman grinned as he looked at her suggestivley.

"Hey! Let her go and get out!" A stern voice which belonged to the cook of the inn ordered. He was a heavy set man who had just came out of the kitchen, brandishing a frying pan in hand with a cross look on his face.

The drunk man snorted before whipping out his bo-staff weapon which he pointed right at the cook. He pressed a small button on its handle and a small but deadly sharp blade slid out of the end of the staff, and with a lightning-quick strike the cook yelped as his hand had been cut, forcing him to drop the frying pan. The cook grasped his hand in pain even as his aura slowly healed him, but he could see that the blade of the staff was mere inches from his neck.

"Oh! you wanna make me, fatso?" The drunk man hollered darkly.

Amethyst grimaced and then muttered to Wind Runner, "That guy might be drunk, but he can still use his weapon decently. Ttime to move in." She stood up from her table and stretched her forearms by interlacing her fingers and pushing the palms out "This is gonna be good."

"Hey buddy, there's a bordello next town over, so why don't you go after those girls there?" The cook hurriedly said as he kept still while clutching his hand, not wanting to get his neck cut.

"That's tempting, but she looks rather tasty." The drunk said as he licked his lips at the shivering waitress who had a fearful look on her face.

"Hey, big boy!" A girl's voice rang out. The drunk, still holding the waitress to him and his weapon at the cook, turned around to see Amethyst coming towards him between the tables and chairs in the inn, swaying her hips suggestively, "If you want some fun, why not me? Am I not good enough for ya?"

"Well lookie here! Ain't this my lucky day? Two girls for the price of one!" He remarked, leering at Amethyst's bust, while the Spring Maiden came closer with a suggestive look on her face.

"There are an unusual amount of beautiful girls in this world." Amethyst agreed with a nod, "How about this buddy? Let the waitress go so I can kick your butt."

"Oh ho! A Feisty one huh? Wanna take me on, girlie? Try it!" The drunk shouted as he shoved the waitress to the ground, who cried out in pain as she dropped towards the wooden floor. With a sudden movement that seemed almost inhuman, Amethyst shot forward and caught the waitress, keeping her from falling while kicking upwards with her purple heeled boots, nailing the drunk in the gut and sending him onto his back a few meters away.

"You okay?" She asked the waitress even as she set the latter down on the booth. Amethyst quickly glanced around to see the cook scrambling for the phone while making sure that the rest of the place was empty, save the shadow beside the windows that was presumably Wind Runner who observed with silent detachment.

The waitress nodded, and Amethyst couldn't help herself and added, "I guess a kiss for your hero is a little inappropriate right now?" The waitress smiled, before sue gasped and pointed behind Amethyst to the drunk who was just getting up from the quick blow the Spring Maiden had given him with a grunt. Clearly he was tougher than he looked even when intoxicated.

"Alright, you wanna do this the hard way? Come on then, bitch!" He reached out and grabbed a chair in each hand and threw both of them at her. Amethyst quickly knocked one away with surprising strength before jumping atop a table to catch the other one, which she then placed on the floor before leaping down in front of the drunk, managing to land a couple of quick punches on his chest, knocking him back a step.

He growled at her angrily, and then quickly swung his weapon around pointing the sharp blade at the staff's end at her, all the while letting out sounds like a martial artist.

"I can drop him easily, Wind Runner. Just say the word." Hawk Shot's voice filtered smoothly into Wind Runner's ear through the communication device he had in place there.

The knight shook his head and replied, "Negative. Continue to maintain your cover. The Spring Maiden is more than capable of handling herself." A small grunt was his only reply, and he wasn't surprised to hear that given the sniper's somewhat stubborn personality, and returned his attention to the battle taking place inside the inn.

Amethyst rolled her eyes and gave him a 'bring it' gesture. He charged at her and opened up with a sharp jab of his weapon which she sidestepped, before swinging it horizontally at her which she ducked as the blade passed by her chin by mere centimeters. He tried to slam the staff down on her head but she expertly jumped out of its way, somersaulting over the drunk's hand and landing on the table behind him in a three-point posture.

He swung around and tried to take out her legs, but she easily hopped over the swings. After evading a couple of more attempts at hitting her legs, Amethyst stomped down on the bo-staff and kicked the drunk in the face, stunning him for a few seconds. She then jumped over his head, landing on a booth against the wall where she sat upright, her shoulder length gloved arms splayed out casually as though the fight was no big deal to her.

The man roared and tore his weapon into two, revealing a thick steel chain that kept the two halves together, revealing its secondary form to be a giant nunchaku. He came at the purple-clad girl, swinging the bladed end of his weapon at her. Amethyst suddenly attacked, whipping out her own weapon in the form of Gembreaker, a double-edged longsword that was three and a half feet long which ended with a straight-edged crossguard that led to a hilt wrapped in purple leather with a cap at the bottom.

She fought off his nunchuck attacks with ease, turning aside every single blow that came her way and smirked all of a sudden, a slight gust of wind came out of nowhere and knocked the drunk off balance, which she took advantage of and slammed the pommel of her sword into his side painfully, and sending him down on his hands and knees.

Amethyst stepped on his back and said, "Tell you what, I am feeling generous today. So make it easy on yourself and apologize to the nice waitress and cook. Because if you keep trying to fight me, I'm gonna have to get serious. Trust me, you won't like that."

The Huntsman simply snarled at her and backflipped off the ground, kicking his legs out, forcing Amethyst to jump away to put some distance between them. As she got up, she saw that he had already recovered, swinging his bo-staff, ready for another bout. He charged at her, thrusting and slamming his weapon at her while trying to land a hit on her body, but she kept expertly weaving away from all of his attacks, dodging the sharp blade with ease before she swiftly slashed out with her longsword and abruptly severed the chain of his nunchaku.

Her hand suddenly shot forward and grabbed him by the chin, and she pulled him close and jokingly said, "You know, there are better ways you could have gotten a date, but I guess this is fun." While she expected him to drop his weapons in defeat, Amethyst didn't expect him to bring his leg up high enough to kick her in the face, landing hard enough blow on her to send her tumbling face-first into the wall.

"You think this is a joke?! I'm not good enough to be taken seriously?! Someone's gonna have to learn a lesson today, you little…" The drunken man ranted as he gripped the bladed end of his weapon threateningly.

Amethyst pushed herself off of the wall, not letting him see her face as he came closer. Back in the corner of the inn, the shadowy form of Wind Runner had brought up his weapon, but just as quickly he lowered it, clearly knowing what was about to happen.

Just as the drunken Huntsman moved to cut her, Amethyst unexpectedly whipped around and swung her longsword out, severing the top of his weapon and removing the blade in one swift horizontal stroke. She then grabbed his wrist and twisted hard, making the man cry out in before she forced him to look her in the eye. He breathed sharply as he saw that something had noticeably changed with her eyes: they were no longer playful or full of energy, now they were stoic and cold.

"Very well, let me teach you." She said dryly before she attacked him with a series of quick but brutal punches and jabs on his arms, torso, and face. With a mighty uppercut he was sent down on his back upon the staircase that led to the second floor.

He looked towards Amethyst as she approached, glaring at him with emotionless purple eyes. The Huntsman laid there groaning painfully, letting her get close before kicking out in desperation at her, only for the purple girl to grab his leg before it could make it halfway to her!

"What the…?!" He cried before she hauled him upwards and then slammed him into the polished wooden floor. He weakly began to crawl away from her, and as he got up on his knees the drunk whipped around to see her directly behind him.

With his weapon now lost, the trouble-maker sent both arms swinging wildly outwards, trying to land a punch on her, but all his attacks were expertly blocked by the girl as if she knew where they would be before they even hit her. He then attacked with a desperate left hook that she effortlessly dodged, and without warning she landed a painful hit on him by kicking him directly in the crotch.

He doubled over, crying out in pain, but before he touched the wooden floor he was sent flying into the inn's counter by an uppercut once more from the young woman, with the strength that somehow didn't seemed physically possible to come from her.

He groaned as he pushed himself up, only to turn around and see her walking towards him.

"Don't, please! No more! I'm sorry!" He cried out agonizingly as he gripped the countertop for support. She said nothing, she simply glared at him as she came ever so closer. The agitator looked towards the waitress, who hadn't moved since the fight started, while the cook was speaking urgently into the phone in another corner of the eatery.

Knowing that he needed a distraction to make his escape, the Huntsman made as though he was going to move towards the shivering waitress, and then attempted to dart for the exit, but before he had taken a few steps he felt Amethyst grab him by his best and slammed her fist into his face.

The vulgar fighter didn't really see what happened next, as it all went by so fast. He could feel the punches landing on him, but they happened so fast that the pain didn't have time to register before another blow hit him. He then felt his body move very fast suddenly, and the next thing he knew he was on his back in the street outside of the inn. He had felt himself hit the ground, but it was just now registering in his mind.

Before the drunk could try and get up, he was roughly hoisted up to his feet and felt his hands being cuffed, his swelled-up eyes barely making out a pair of police officers who had arrived on the scene.

"Alright buddy, hold still. You have the right to remain silent…" One cop began to read out the rights while his partner walked into the inn to make sure that on one was hurt.

"We got the call and we rushed here as fast as we could. My partner is cuffing him now. Everyone alright?" He asked.

"We're fine officer, just a little shaken up." The cook mumbled as his aura stopped the bleeding, while the waitress slowly stood up from where she had been hiding.

"Who was the one responsible for taking him out?" The officer inquired, looking around the inn's eatery as though trying to find the person responsible for beating up the drunk Huntsman.

"She did." The waitress answered, pointing to Amethyst who sliding her longsword back into its sheathe.

"You did that?" The cop asked, surprise evidently showing on his features.

Amethyst looked up, her eyes a tad uneasy but recovering from the fight, "I am a trained Huntress, Grimm aren't the only things I can take out."

"Are you still supposed to be in an academy? You look a little young to be travelling alone." The cop pointed out.

"I've graduated, and I'm older than I look. Do you need me to come down and make a statement?" She asked while rubbing her face with the back of a gloved hand.

"Well, can you tell me what exactly happened?" The cop asked as he knelt down to recover the halves of the man's weapons, producing a transparent plastic bag to put them into.

Before Amethyst could answer, the waitress spoke up, "The man was drunk, officer. We'd given him some strong rum earlier and it went to his head, he tried to… make a move on me, and when my boss tried to stop him he took out his weapon to threaten us, but that's when this girl stepped in and stopped him. She really taught him a few things."

The officer looked at Amethyst. "Is that correct, Miss?"

She nodded, "Yeah, what she has said is true. I saw him harassing her and then when he pulled out that weapon I decided to kick his butt. Nothing else to it."

The officer nodded and looked towards the cook, "Yeah, that's what happened officer. Only after she started fighting him I called you guys. And during the fight he landed a hit on her and then she became a bit… harsh on him, but since he hit her on the face I guess it makes sense she'd get mad."

The officer nodded and replied, "That will do for now. We will take him in, let him cool his head in a cell for a few days while we slap a couple of disorderly conduct charges on him. Sorry for the disturbance."

As the officer walked out of the inn, Amethyst walked back to her table. As she sat down the waitress came over and gave her a grateful smile before saying "Thank you for saving me. I thought I was going to be beaten up by that drunk, but I am so glad someone stood up for me." She looked around and then leaned towards Amethyst and whispered, "We are going to give you another meal with those extra fries, on the house."

"Heh, fighting always does make me hungry. Thanks." Amethyst said gratefully.

"No, thank you." The waitress said before bowing her head in thanks and walking back to the kitchen.

As Amethyst laid back in her chair she heard Wind Rider's voice from outside. "Impressive, you only had to use your Maiden powers once."

"I don't use 'em much on punks like him. I have more restraint than that." She whispered back at the shadowy figure outside the window.

"But you must never become too confident that you allow your opponent catch you unaware." The knight mentioned firmly, "I almost was on the verge of firing a silent round into him when he kicked you in the face."

"That was a lucky hit." Amethyst replied as she picked up her drink, "It won't happen again."

"Make sure it doesn't." Wind Runner continued, "Because those who hunt you for your Maiden powers are experienced killers, and they aren't above playing dirty if it means getting an advantage over you. Amber was overwhelmed by them in a sneak attack, and you have to be careful."

"I will, and thank you for your concern." Amethyst answered, sipping from her drink.

"Hmm. It never ceases to amaze me how your Semblance changes your personality so radically." He commented.

"I hate it." She raised her voice a little bit more, getting his attention. "I never liked my Semblance. I mean, it's helped me out a lot and comes in handy during a fight, but I don't like how it just… shuts off or blocks out my emotions. It's just not… me. It's like I become the opposite of who I really am and it… changes me. It just makes me lifeless and cold and that's just not who I am."

Wind Runner nodded and quietly responded, "I understand your concerns, and I don't think you're wrong for disliking it, but I personally think it shows how strong you are."

"Whaddya mean?" She inquired with a tilted head.

"Well, since you dislike your Semblance so intensely, you could simply just not use it at all. However, you still use it when you have to and yet you don't allow it to control you afterwards, and from my experience if someone has a unique Semblance he or she would take full advantage of such a power quite frequently to make sure they always remain strong and powerful until it burns them out, but from what I have witnessed you are far more restrained." Wind Runner pointed out and then added, " The fact that you dislike feeling cold and emotionless is an admirable trait."

She smiled at him from inside the building and said "I knew you were a big softie deep down." She reached out and playfully ruffled his head through his hood, making him shake his head while she began to giggle. He did, however, allow himself a faint smile.

---

"...and that's how we lost the fight against Team SSSN during the Vytal Festival." Nebula Violette, the leader of Team NDGO, finishing up before taking a gulp of her soft drink to wash down her latest meal she had eaten not too long ago. Beside her, with the rest of her teammates either looked a little crestfallen, except for Octavia Ember who had her head on the table beside her own finished plate. Gwen Darcy had her face in her hands groaning softly, while Dew Gayl simply patted Octavia's back sympathetically. "I mean, they're nice guys and all, even tried to make amends while we were at Haven, but still…"

The all female team were currently seated at the upper areas of the cafeteria within Shade Academy, besides the tall curved windows that offered a wonderful view of Vacuo's capital as well as the amber dust and the harsh, hot desert that stretched out as far as the eye could see outside of the city, save for some patches of palm trees here and there. Warm rays of bright sunlight pierced through the warm glass panels, casting shadows across the brightly-lit and crowded cafeteria where the students lined up to buy food from the variety of stalls present and consume their meals during recess time.

Since the Vacuoan Huntsman Academies didn't have a standard uniform like the schools of the other Kingdoms, their students were commonly seen dressed in an assortment of casual or the individual clothing of their Huntsmen and Huntresses' calling. The students of Shade populated the entire span of the massive domed hall, sitting in small groups or within their own Teams around both circular and long rectangular tables with benches, while engaging in their own conversations or wearing their fingers out on games in their personal scrolls, making full use of their free time before going back to class later.

The young woman with maroon red eyes and blackish-brown hair the color of baked coffee beans sat opposite Team NDGO gave a nod of her head, the small colored beads around attached to her two braids which occupied both sides of her face making soft rattling sounds as she did so. Both of her hands, which were clad in fingerless gloves with orange sigils, adjusted around the mug of warm milk tea which she had been sipping while listening attentively to the leader with indigo hair and olive eyes and mentioned, "You might not have won, but understand that the four of you have managed to give the Team SSSN a run for their lien by getting quite a few hits in return, however."

"I guess that's one way to put it." Dew replied as she regarded the listener's rather pleasant face, as the other slowly sipped her milk tea once more, savouring the taste on her tongue for a few moments.

The girls of NDGO didn't really know this woman, as she was apparently a visitor who had traveled across the desert and would be a guest of Headmistress Luna Aria for a while, but she had made a bit of a show after defeating several of the highest ranking seniors in the sparring hall with only what appeared to be middling effort.

She looked to be in her early twenties and she was well-built with lean and toned muscles on her figure compared to the other girls studying at Shade Academy. She wore a red sleeved jacket with a dark blue collar which was cropped off at the elbows and a reddish-brown inner-shirt in addition to knee-length greyish-white pants with a couple of thin red lines running horizontally and diagonally across the cloth covering her inner thighs. She also wore also practical white and red boots which were presumably to keep the sand out and protect her legs and feet from Vacuo's harsh deserts. There were a number of small pouches around her waist, as well as an image that was likely her personal emblem embroidered in orange thread at the back of her jacket: a circular sun projecting its flames outwards, with the curved flames at the both sides forming a pair of flaming wings. She possessed a certain sharp, angular beauty about her while her maroon eyes seemed to project a sort of intense and knowing gaze into others.

"You know… at first a lot of the students here criticized us and Team BRNZ for losing to other Kingdoms. It stopped after a while, especially after we helped out at Haven, but you're… different." Nebula pointed out as she gazed at the maroon-eyed girl who thought for a moment before replying.

"While I have seen the entire battle between your team and Team SSSN through the broadcast of the Vytal Festival before, your separate firsthand accounts also gave me some more details on why you have been defeated by them." She said.

"How so?" asked Octavia as she looked up, resting both of her hands underneath her chin, suddenly attentive while Gwen removed her hands from her face.

Their listener simply gestured with her graceful fingers as she placed down her mug of milk tea, "For starters, the four of you should have avoided the water areas, as Neptune Vasilias of Team SSSN would most likely have a weapon that can make use of the water bodies despite his obvious fear of water. While it was smart to try and take advantage of that, you should have anticipated he had a way around it. Dew could have used her staff to form multiple wind gusts and whirlwinds to separate the first two members of SSSN, or at least keep them at bay while the rest of your teammates engage the most isolated of their number."

"In other words, divide first and then conquer separately." Nebula remarked as she placed a couple of fingers below her chin, "I do see the wisdom of that strategy. That's why Dew hurled Sage out of the arena with her wind gusts."

The girl slowly tapped a finger against her mug of warm milk tea, producing a soft tapping sound as she recalled the details of the battle account, "Yes, but you let Octavia engage Sun, the most powerful member of the team, alone, the latter of which having support from Neptune who provided clear overwatch from above, and that resulted in your teammate being eliminated rather quickly. Perhaps Dew could have whipped up a small sandstorm to obscure his view, which may have allowed Nebula here to engage Sun since she's the most experienced in close range combat, with Gwen as her backup and support."

"You managed to come up with all those different strategies just by watching the entire battle?" Dew asked the girl with a slightly astonished voice, with the rest of her team showing similar expressions of admiration and amazement.

"Well studying what went wrong helps, but being attentive and aware of one's area and opponents is important. One of my old teachers once told me that in order to overcome your opponents, you first need to identify their strengths and weaknesses from their varied fighting styles, and use what skills you have to effectively counter them. While your team isn't lacking in speed or strength, perhaps the four of you should work on your cooperation with each other so that you can change fighting formations speedily according to the developing situations."

The entirety of Team NDGO lapsed into deep thought, looking at each other after absorbing what their listener had told them as they contemplated about what she had told them. While they have indeed become quite a formidable fighting force on their own with each member working with the others like a finely-tooled, well-oiled machine, their overall adaptability still needed some work despite the fact that they have achieved quite a renowned reputation among the Teams from Shade as a crowd favourite during the Vytal Festival Tournament.

After quietly exchanging words amongst themselves, Nebula turned back to face the woman who had been patiently waiting for them to finish their own conversation while sipping her mug of milk tea once more, "I suppose we should thank you for pointing out what our Team can improve upon. You have our most grateful thanks for your interesting observations. What's your name anyway?"

"It's Adara Aenia, and you are very welcome. I was only giving my personal opinions based on what I witnessed from your battle." Their listener gently smiled as she tilted her head a little, while adjusting one of the braids at the side of her face, "By the way, I would also like to hear about your participation in the Battle of Haven. That is, if you all have the time to share?"

A series of booming chimes announced the end of the lunch period, and crowds of Shade Academy students began to get up from their seats while carrying their trays to the cleaning and disposal areas, before making their way out of the stone-wrought doors towards wherever classrooms their next lessons would take place. "Sure, as long as you tell us how you managed to fight and then defeat all three of the most experienced senior Huntsmen and Huntresses in Shade Academy in the sparring halls on your own!" Nebula answered with a grin on her face, while Dew, Gwen and Octavia all nodded their heads in agreement as they all stood up, carrying their food trays.

"Well I guess that's fair, isn't it?" 'Adara' agreed with a warm smile as she waved, biding them goodbye, and watching as they vanished into the crowds of students leaving the cafeteria. She shortly placed her own food tray in the cleaning area for the cafeteria staff to clean, and then left through one of the side doors leading into the various sandstone and concrete hallways of Shade Academy, easily blending in with other Vacuoan students.

It wasn't long before 'Adara' reached one of the higher balconies which offered a nice view of the surroundings that extended outwards from Shade Academy itself. From the balcony at where she stood, she could see the topography of the Vacuoan cityscape, comprised of blocky stone buildings mixed with a lot of bigger, more modern looking ones, as well tarp-covered marketplaces full of activity, temples and places of worship, and a number of thriving black markets cleverly hidden among the bustling landscape, as well as the highways that helped connect the different areas of the city, all of which stretched out towards the reinforced and heavily guarded walls of the Kingdom. As the blistering heat and humid air hit her face, she wrapped the thick long brown hooded cloak she wore when crossing the deserts of Vacuo around herself and pulled up the hood to protect her face from the harsh weather.

She leaned against the balcony's edge while resting her elbows on the parapet, breathing in the warm air of the desert and feeling the slightly hot temperature of Vacuo caress her tanned face. She had arrived at Shade Academy and into Headmistress Luna Aria's protection a little over six months ago, after she had been abruptly diverted from her journey across the surface of Remnant as she performed her personal duty of being one of the Four Maidens. While she hadn't suffered from any attack like the one that had claimed Amber, she had been careful with her own personal movements by constantly staying on the move like the Spring Maiden Amethyst Rilo, taking odd routes whenever possible and sometimes walking through densely populated regions, while other times buying horses to travel through mountainous roads and treacherous areas as she passed through them.

'Adara Aenia' was just one of her many false names she had used to throw off anyone who might be searching for her whereabouts or trying to track her dowe, and that was another layer of precaution she had taken alongside many others to avoid an ambush by any assassins lying in wait. She knew all too well the consequences should her powers fall into the hands of those who would misuse it for their own selfish purposes, whereas that power was instead supposed to be used to do good for all of Remnant. After looking at the busy cityscape around the massive pyramid-shaped buildings of Shade Academy, the Summer Maiden turned and walked towards a stone bench underneath the shade of a few large palm trees planted in a circular opening at the middle of the sizable balcony.

As soon as she took a seat, 'Adara' felt the presence of an armored individual nearby, and though she had grown used to his presence since her arrival at Shade six months ago, she still didn't like the fact that her every movement was being watched, her personal safety notwithstanding. Her hand instinctively reached for the haft of her personal weapon, Flameguard, which was attached to a special holder at her waist, her heightened senses coming alive as though she was about to engage a foe. Only when she saw the intricately-crafted and detailed gunmetal-grey plated armor with red trimmings, along with a weapon of a double-bladed sword and shield, did she see it was Fire Walker, the Knight Vanguard assigned to protect her by the Relentless Crusader Knight Legion, she relax slightly and nodded in his direction, which slowly returned.

"You have been quite busy as of late, Heliosia Ainea." Fire Walker remarked as he stood a respectful distance beside the Summer Maiden, his grey and brown cloak rippling a little in the warm breeze that gusted around them under the shade of the palm trees.

"Is that so? I have no idea what you are talking about, Fire Walker." Heliosia remarked as she crossed her legs and produced her personal scroll from the pocket of her pants, glancing at the gently glowing screen of the communication device as she read the latest news reports coming in from around other parts of Remnant through her scroll's connection to Vacuo's CCT system, which had been further upgraded by Atlas as a gesture of goodwill for the Kingdom of Vacuo.

The knight tilted his helmet a little as he looked at her carefully, as though studying her intently, or he was just considering whether she was telling him the truth or not. Soft clacks were heard as he moved a couple of steps closer and loomed over Heliosia who looked up at him with what looked like an irritated glare on her face.

"Then how can you explain to me what happened in the slums area in the northern quadrant just five days ago? A number of thugs from the Black Vipers gang were found unconscious with injuries and what looked like burns on their faces and limbs, and then the temple's orphanage just so happened to receive a very generous donation from an anonymous donor? If you are trying to be discreet, Heliosia… then you are failing. You most definitely need to work your subtlety." He told her.

The Summer Maiden turned her head to look at the knight, maroon-red eyes meeting the red lenses of his intricately-crafted Crusader helmet and held his gaze for a long while before she replied, "I was just trying to perform my duty to help any body I can to the best of my abilities, and since the Black Vipers had been extorting from the poor and the unfortunate in the slums, I decided that I might as well start from there to thwart their operations and use their ill-gotten money to do some good. Besides, it's not my fault that they didn't take my advice to peacefully surrender when I confronted them, and they instead went charging at me with their personal weapons which I might tell you are coated with viper poison." She took a breath and then added, "But it all worked out in the end, right? Many members of the Black Vipers have been arrested by the Vacuo Rangers thanks to their raids, and those that managed to slip through the net were also caught shortly after, and the money they extorted was returned to the rightful owners. So given what has happened I personally doubt that they can ever recover from such a grievous blow to their criminal activities."

"It's not the results that concern me, but the way you go about performing your duty as a Maiden." Fire Walker remarked as he pointed a gauntleted finger at Heliosia, "Do you know that we have taken every possible precaution to make sure that you were safely hidden from potential assassins and agents of darkness here? While your actions have indeed changed some things for the better in this city, but rumors and hearsays can easily reach the ears of the enemy if they look and listen hard enough for those little bits of information and piece them together. You could have just given the locations you have stolen from the Black Vipers gang to the law-enforcement authorities and they could have handled it just as well without putting yourself in danger."

"And wait for them to respond oh so slowly, allowing that gang to escape into the shadows once more?" Heliosia replied crossly as she flicked a gloved finger to prove her point, "I saw a chance and I took it, and besides I wore a mask over my face and I managed to get one of the thugs to tell me the location of their hidden base, and then I told it to the Vacuo Rangers and the law-enforcement officers when I called them in." She sighed a little and continued, "And if you are worrying that I gave myself away by using my Maiden powers, there's no need to, because I didn't. I only relied on my personal fighting skills and my Semblance, which I also used sparingly during the battle with the Black Vipers gang cell."

"At least you know the meaning of restraint." Fire Walker said as he slowly crossed his arms while turning his Crusader helmet to look at the busy city of various inhabitants which spread out from the edge of the balcony he and Heliosia were currently having a conversation in, "But you still need to learn to keep a low profile. Need I remind you that you actually summoned a series of sandstorms to fight off that group of bandits trying to rob a public transport? And what's more, those civilians actually witnessed you doing it!"

Heliosia slowly shook her head when she remembered that particular incident during her travels across the seemingly endless deserts of Vacuo during her journeys, and at that time she was just another passenger in a hood who wanted to remain inconspicuous. But it was just her bad luck that the train she was riding on was stopped by a ragtag yet powerful group of desert bandits intent on plundering the passengers' valuables. At first she only thought the bandits were only interested in money, but the sight of the other passengers being ill-treated by the bandits told her otherwise and clearly weren't strong in the ways of moral principles.

When one of the more despicable bandits decided to take a Faunus teenager from her parents, she suddenly snapped into action and started taking the whole group of bandits apart with a mix of quick-thinking and her fighting skills with Flameguard in its retractable staff and kusarigama hybrid forms. After seeing that his fellow bandits were either incapacitated or injured, the leader of the desert bandits took a child hostage to secure his escape. Only through a last moment intervention in which the child bit the bandit leader's hand and escaped, Heliosia summoned the powers of the sands around them and created a powerful series of sandstorms which swept up all of the bandits and their vehicles, tossing them screaming into a considerable distance away.

When the storms died down, the stunned passengers all went down on their knees and thanked her gratefully, and she quickly told them to rise, as she didn't want to be worshiped despite being the Summer Maiden. After making sure both the Faunus teenager and the child were safe and were back with their respective parents, she then politely requested that the other passengers keep the encounter a secret before continuing on her journey to the Vacuo capital, where she met a group of Remnant Knights from Vacuo's Knight Legion, known as the Relentless Crusaders, when she introduced herself to Headmistress Luna Aria at Shade Academy, and was then introduced to Fire Walker and his fellow knights who would serve as her protectors.

"We're lucky Strider managed to track down all those people and swear them to secrecy." Fire Walker remarked.

"They already promised to keep it secret, and besides if I was given the choice once more, I would still do it again." Heliosia sighed as she leaned back on the stone bench, "I just can't bear to stand and watch when innocents are put in harm's way. Besides, those desert bandits totally deserve their current predicament."

"That they do, but I hope you don't use your Maiden powers again." Fire Walker said as he turned back to look at the Summer Maiden under his protection, "It will attract unwanted attention in which would bring down a lot of trouble upon us should your true identity be discovered by enemy agents."

Heliosia thought about it for a few moments, before grudgingly admitting that her assigned protector was right after all, since she couldn't afford to be a focus for any unwanted attention as it may unintentionally disclose her identity as the Summer Maiden to certain less-than-kind individuals. So she would have to be more careful if she was to keep her cover as a personal friend and guest of Headmistress Luna.

"I will try to be more careful next time, would that be acceptable to you?" She eventually spoke up.

"Just don't do anything that will draw the attention of others to you." The Remnant Knight warned her carefully.

"I will do my best. I promise that I will do as little as possible to give myself away." Heliosia promised the knight, who nodded before slowly walking away. Heliosia looked back out to the city, all the while toying with a simple necklace with a round shaped circular clasp inset with a shimmering sapphire around her neck, which looked like it's split in half and seemed to be part of a set. As her fingerless gloves caressed her necklace gently, she was reminded of her other personal matter which had seen her roaming the various continents of Remnant in search of what she was looking for.

The Summer Maiden hadn't deemed it necessary to tell Fire Walker or any of the knights since it was a rather personal matter, and she still held strongly onto that vow that she search to the ends of Remnant itself to find the entity of her search, no matter how much time it would take.

---

Originally built by the scientific branch of the Atlas military to monitor the climate conditions of the continent of Solitas, Watchpoint Glacies was a sizable research facility built some miles away from the Temple of Krystallo into one of the higher points of the Atlesian mountain range.

It was of relatively simple, practical design, consisting of five grayish-white interconnected buildings with a variety of communication devices built on them, in addition to a tall and sturdy steel perimeter wall that surrounded the entire facility, and offered a breath-taking view of the land of ice and snow that made up the Kingdom of Atlas which was separated from the research facility through an expanse known as the Borealis Tundra.

It played host to a number of Atlesian researchers and their security force in the past, but now its occupants had changed, to say the least. Watchpoint Glacies was said to have been decommissioned, but was secretly repurposed for the use of giving the Winter Maiden and her guardian another place to live in besides the Temple of Krystallo. Making it another one of several safe havens for the Maiden to live in along the mountainous region.

It was the former study room of Watchpoint Glacies's head scientist that Elsa Vorst now found herself in, which served as her new home after General Ironwood had advised her to relocate to a more defensible location. While she was a little reluctant at first, but then she does see that the general meant well since the research facility had been upgraded with additional defenses and had enough resources to house her Atlas security team as well as the Winter Templars detachment which was assigned by the Knight of Air to protect her.

Sitting at the curved desk, she looked at the collated reports generated on the holographic screen before her while her fingers slowly manipulated the holographic keyboard set on the desk's surface. Placing a hand beneath her chin, the Winter Maiden carefully took them into consideration while trying to ignore the heavy tread of the upgraded Atlesian Knight-400 androids that were marching on their patrol routes throughout the corridors of the buildings, while the Winter Templar knights were scattered around the wall perimeter of the facility, their silver-white armor easily blending in with the snowy landscape outside.

Over the past several months, Grimm attacks had become increasingly frequent, with at least one outlying city or town reporting a Grimm incursion or sighting almost everyday. While there haven't been any massive Grimm attacks like the level nine incident during the Vytal Festival which took place in Vale, the number of incursions and sightings which had been steadily growing as of late was quite worrying.

Ever since the defeat of the White Fang and the death of Adam Taurus six months ago, the terrorist organization had fractured with the majority of its cells around Remnant having been arrested by the various law-enforcement agencies and military forces of the four Kingdoms. The remaining cells of White Fang had quietly vanished, some regrouping with Razor's reformed White Fang, and those who refused to cease their attacks on humans were promptly handed over to the authorities, but some were teaming with the organization that had arose from the ashes of Adam's twisted philosophy which was known as the Red Fang.

From what discussions and information Elsa had gathered from General Ironwood and her assigned Knight Vanguard Snow Blade of the Winter Templars detachment, Salem's faction hadn't been as active in the way she had usually been, save for the Red Fang's acts of terrorism scattered around Remnant perpetuated by their cells which was similar to the actions of Adam Taurus's White Fang, but those were mostly hit and run attacks which didn't do much damage other than causing mild annoyance for the various Kingdoms and settlements, hinting that this new group of Faunus zealots were much smaller in scale compared to Adam's.

However, if someone with an eye for detail were to look past these frequent Grimm activities, it would become obvious that Salem and her Grimm Commanders were indeed orchestrating those attacks. But there was one clear oddity as of late, the reports from General Ironwood stated that the Grimm activity in Atlas was usual, no increase but no decrease either, while attacks in Vale, Vacuo and Mistral had substantially increased. With the other Kingdoms under threat, the worsening situation has forced Ironwood and the Atlas Council to send many of their aerial battleships and sea-based naval forces from the Kingdom to help their allies combat the Grimm threat on the other continents.

What puzzled Elsa was that despite the decreased number of Atlesian military forces in the Kingdom, Salem and her agents weren't making a move as far as anyone knew, and if they had the specifics of it hadn't been made clear yet, but it's just like nature of those individuals within Salem's faction to work from the shadows and use others to get the results they want. It had now been over a year since the tragedy of the Vytal disaster in Vale as well as the death of her friend Amber, and yet so far there also haven't been any major attack on her or any of the other remaining Maidens.

Both of the other Maidens were under watch as well and not just the protection of Kingdoms' local military forces, but the various Remnant Knight Legions as well. The Atlesian division of the Knight Order, known as the Winter Templars, had been assigned to guard her and had done so diligently for months now.

Elsa didn't know why, but all these unknown factors were making her edgy. In her mind, she supposed it was because Salem had been like her once in the past, a Winter Maiden. But whereas most Maidens had a selfless quality when it comes to using their given powers to maintain balance and serve the people of Remnant, Salem had instead become lustful for power and hadn't been willing to surrender the power she had been given, which was what allowed the Darkness to consume her completely and remake her as the third Dark Mistress of Grimm.

The very idea that someone like a Maiden, who was supposed to be pure, strong, kind and compassionate, could turn to darkness so easily when asked to give up their power or make a sacrifice for the good of the world was unnerving and unthinkable. But then again, harsh lessons had given the ancients sayings like absolute power corrupts, hence people like Salem.

Waiting wasn't making it any better since no one knew where Salem and those who served her would strike from. Elsa had expected there to be some kind of attack on her by now, at least in battle she would show Salem and her pawns that she wouldn't go down without a fight. But aside from some far-off Saber Grimm being spotted about the Atlesian Mountains near Watchpoint Glacies, nothing else out of the ordinary happened.

She sighed and closed the reports on the holographic screen and was about to shut it down for the night when she stopped and brought up the photo folder which she transferred from her own scroll after arriving. While many of the photos were of various breathtaking landscapes including lush forests, sweltering deserts and wide expanses of beaches so that she would have something to look at other than snowy mountains. Nonetheless, there was always one photo the Winter Maiden always love to look at, as it brought back so many memories about the times where the Maidens come together to protect mankind. She touched the image on the holographic screen which enlarged the picture, showing it to be a picture of Amethyst, Heliosia, Amber and herself in a desert area, all four of them standing triumphant after defeating a massive incursion of Grimm in the desert.

Within the picture, the energetic Amethyst Rilo leaned casually against the trunk of the desert palm tree with a victorious smile on her face and Gembreaker embedded in the sand beside her, while Heliosia Aeina had her arms crossed with a slightly determined expression on her face, while Flameguard on her back in its staff form while the red Dust crystal at its top shone in the afternoon sunlight. Amber was sitting down on a nearby boulder, her retractable staff on her lap while resting her hands on her lap with a small contented smile on her face, and finally Elsa Vorst herself stood beside Amber, her personal weapon attached to her winter-themed clothing and resting a hand on the Fall Maiden's shoulder, while having a content expression on her face.

The story behind the picture happened about three years ago, shortly after Amethyst had received her powers and become the latest Spring Maiden. There had been an invasion by a massive gathering of Grimm, easily in the tens of thousands, in the vast deserts of Vacuo, and they were slowly making their way towards civilization possibly with the intent to wipe out the half of Vacuo. While the military forces of Vacuo had dealt some damage alongside significant support by the Valean militia forces, they weren't doing enough to stem the tide of the Grimm. As the Atlesian military forces aren't able to arrive in time to join the battle, Ozpin had suggested to allow the Maidens to deal with them before they could get near populated areas

It turned out to be a wise decision, as the four women had worked together and had utterly wiped out the Grimm horde within an hour once the combined Vacuan and Valean military forces had forced them into a bottleneck, with Amethyst using her Semblance of heightened sense which made her an incredibly fierce fighter, helping her to devastate the Grimm, helped out by her bow and longsword hybrid weapon Gembreaker, in combination with her ability to control various plant life by bringing up thick underground roots to ensnare the Grimm and protect her allies by throwing up various shield barriers made of plants, as well as Heliosia who used her Maiden power of pyrokinesis to incinerate the Grimm while ripping through them like a hot knife through butter with Flameguard, her hybrid weapon which was made up of a retractable staff and a kusarigama

For her part in the battle, Elsa had tapped into the desert water supplies to create ice spears that impaled the Grimm which charged at her, while using her personal weapon Winter's Wrath, an auto-crossbow which can fire off two dozen arrows per minute to keep the Grimm swarms away from her, while every single Grimm she shot at dissolved quickly into dust as they died. Amber had used her own staff to excellent effect by being quick and brutal in her strikes, empowering the Dust crystals in her staff to decimate the creatures of darkness alongside her abilities of calling upon gusts of wind and lightning strikes, with her own fighting skills easily holding strong.

Elsa remembered helping Amber as they encased a number of rocks in ice and then Amber used the wind to send those boulders flying into the Grimm weakening them enough to be finished off by the supporting military forces of both Vacuo and Vale. The Fall Maiden would then dart across the battlefield with Amethyst, eager to keep the monsters away from innocent people.

The platinum-blonde Winter Maiden had fond memories of working with Amber, using the wind to force the Grimm towards designated areas where Valean Troopers and Vacuo Rangers would open fire and exterminate them completely. She had been surprised how well she got along with Amber, who showed a surprising amount of maturity despite her age and relative inexperience, and they found that they had more than a few things in addition, she had also gotten along surprisingly well with Heliosia the Summer Maiden, since they were the senior Maidens while Amethyst and Amber were the younger ones, and they had often spoken about a variety of different matters through their secure contact with each other.

One of the side effects of being a Maiden was aging slower than one normally would due to the gift of the Maidens. In reality Elsa was actually in her thirties, but she looked to be in her early twenties. She had once worried about her relationship with Kaifin as she knew that her condition would affect it, but he assured her he would still always love her no matter what.

The other three Maidens had similar issues with aging as well, as Amethyst didn't look a day over seventeen even though she was supposed in her early twenties and Heliosia had barely aged either looking around the same age as Elsa herself, and Amber... she hadn't gotten to truly see its effects outside of a few years.

The pleasant train of thought about her friends stopped instantly as Elsa began to ponder the report on Cinder Fall, especially on how it stated that she was actually in her mid-thirties while she looked to be in either her late teens or early twenties, but she apparently had this effect before she stole the Fall Maiden powers from Amber, though Salem's dark magic were clearly the answer to the question of how Cinder was able to stay young.

Elsa shook that thought off and her mind went back to remembering the aftermath of that day in the desert after all the Grimm in the surrounding areas of the desert had been destroyed, the four maidens had gathered together after receiving the heartwarming thanks from both the Valean Troopers and Vacuo Rangers. While Elsa and Heliosia were already acquainted, Amber and Amethyst were clearly new additions to Maidenhood, so they made the most of the rare meeting and became close friends before going their separate ways once more. They took advantage of their allotted time and had hung out together and had gotten to know each other quite well, afterward they would frequently communicate with each other, either in the Mindscape of the Maidens or through secure scrolls.

The Winter Maiden's hand gently touched the picture of Amber's smiling face on the screen as she whispered to herself, "I hope you are happy Amber... I know you're in a better place now." As she looked at the image of the deceased Fall Maiden, her mind wandered to Pyrrha Nikos who had nearly been her successor, the student from Beacon who had been chosen by Ozpin to inherit Amber's powers as the new Fall Maiden.

While she had never met the girl personally, Elsa had heard of Pyrrha Nikos before the incident at the Vytal Festival due to the spartan's celebrity status, but when she had heard of what had happened to Amber she wept not just for her dead friend, but also for the innocent people who had been killed by the Grimm and the White Fang. She came to realize that Cinder's plan to acquire Amber's power had succeeded, which meant another innocent girl had inadvertently been put in danger by Ozpin himself, one who had been murdered by the same thief who had killed Amber and also taken the powers from the new, rightful Fall Maiden - Pyrrha herself.

She had been just as surprised as anyone when the truth got out that Pyrrha wasn't actually dead but was under the thrall of Salem, Ironwood had been under mind control for some months, there were Human-Grimm Hybrids and Pyrrha herself had been one of them according to the reports she had gotten from Ozpin, Ironwood, and the Councils themselves. It was a definitely a lot to take in.

And yet, in all that time since Pyrrha Nikos had returned they had never met, when Elsa herself had so much to talk to the young woman about, even though the spartan warrior herself didn't exactly become the Fall Maiden as Ozpin had intended.

Elsa breathed a heavy, sad sigh as she looked at Amber's gentle smile on her kind face as seen in the picture, and began to wonder...

She was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't notice the door to the study room slide open and was a little startled when she heard someone ask, "Are you alright?"

The Winter Maiden looked away from the picture on her holographic screen to see her lover and guardian walk into the study room, and she turned her head around to face him and nodded, a thoughtful look still in her eyes, "I am fine, Kaifin... I just have a lot on my mind at the moment."

The large bearded man nodded while giving her a kind smile, "I know that look. You are planning something, aren't you?"

"You know me all too well." Elsa admitted as she minimized the photo of the Four Maidens on the screen with a flick of her fingers on the holographic keyboard.

"You've been thinking about Amber again." He added, a concerned look on his features.

Elsa nodded again, knowing that if there was one downside to having Kaifin as her lover, it was that he could read people far too well at times. And since he had known her for so long, he had come to practically predict some of her actions, which made their sparring sessions run a little longer than expected at times.

"I have, but not just about her. It's about what Pyrrha Nikos had gone through that concerns me. I've read the reports but… what hardships she and her friends had endured… what those monsters did to them…" Elsa struggled to say. "Those poor children..."

"I know. It makes my blood boil." Kaifin said darkly. Elsa stood up from her chair and placed a calming hand on him, and with that he took her into his arms in an attempt to calm himself. "What do you wish to do?"

"I… I want to meet with Pyrrha, and her partner Jaune Arc. And that Ruby Rose girl as well. I think we could have some interesting conversations." Elsa said to him, while looking into her lover's eyes.

He nodded, "That isn't a bad idea. In fact, I think such a visit is long overdue. We'll need to call General Ironwood and Ozpin and see if we can arrange it."

"That's not all I want to do." Elsa stated as her expression turned slightly forlorn, "I haven't really talked to Amethyst or Heliosia since we found out that Pyrrha was alive. I mean, they've talked to each other but I… haven't really…"

"I understand your pain. Sometimes it hurts to face the fact that Amber's no longer with you." Kaifin finished for her while allowing the Winter Maiden to press her platinum-blonde haired head against his chest. One of the major conditions about being a Maiden was that they needed to be virgins. This was a big irritation for someone as flirty as Amethyst, but Elsa... she had wanted children for such a long time, but due to her condition they couldn't make love. Adoption was out of the question, as this life was too dangerous for a child, but it was a sacrifice the couple had been willing to make.

Elsa cringed briefly, but nodded and said. "I want to meditate, to meet them in the Mindscape of the Maidens, and share it with Pyrrha. She may not be one now, but she was the Fall Maiden, if only for an instant. I need to talk to her about this, to learn what she went through first hand. We all need to."

Her guardian thought about it carefully as he released Elsa from his embrace and asked, "Are you sure it's safe? Cinder might find some way to eavesdrop on your conversation within that mindscape, considering who her master is."

"Of course it's safe. Cinder can't get into the mindscape, if she could the others would have contacted me about it by now. Besides, the various rules that a Maiden must abide by to enter that particular mindscape makes it impossible that she could have made it through. Salem can't either, the darkness within her prevents that outright." Elsa gently assured him.

Kaifin nodded his head after considering her explanation, "Okay, I hope you know what you are doing." He paused for a moment and then reached for a communicator beside the holographic computer terminal, "Alright then. Let's contact whoever you need to talk to, and see if they'll, and Snow Blade, will allow us a trip to Vale."

"You really think Snow Blade will allow it?" She asked, referring to the Winter Templar Knight who had been assigned to them.

"We shall speak with him, and hopefully get him to see things from your perspective if possible." Kaifin gave the Winter Maiden a wink,

"Well... I suppose that can work." Elsa agreed and they gazed into each other's eyes, "Shall we get some coffee to warm ourselves?" She asked as she leaned up toward his lips.

"You read my mind." Kaifin grinned before taking her into his arms. After exchanging several heated kisses, he escorted her out of the study room, the computer terminal shutting down behind them as he closed the doors with a soft click which echoed throughout the room as they left.

This chapter was co-written by Relentless Crusader (who created the Remnant Knights and Heliosia)

Amethyst Rilo was created by Leaf Ranger and used with his permission.

Check out the art for the fic done by jkphantom9 at Deviantart, as well as a piece of Sharp Strike and Heliosia done by kats07!

Also, this story now has it's own TV Tropes page! Feel free check it out or contribute to it!

Sorry about dropping two chapters, but I decided that my readers deserved one after the long wait, and I hope you enjoyed it! We met the other two maidens, set up new character arcs, and I probably made everyone hate Ashe. I hope this chapter was good, so please let me know what you think.

Sorry the hiatus took so long, and I hope that all of you can forgive me. But stuff kept adding up to my to do list, personal issues and life in general.

On the bright side I managed to get a lot of things done; I watched both Fullmetal Alchemist shows and both are insanely good and I ended up falling in love with the series (though I wish there was a third version that could combine both versions so we could have the best of both worlds), I watched all of The Muppet Show, played Red Dead Redemption, saw Doctor Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Kong Skull Island, and Transformers TLK and enjoyed them all (though TF5 clearly needs a director's cut...), haven't seen Spider-Man Homecoming or Wonder Woman but I'm looking forward to them. Red Vs. Blue Season 15 was also enjoyable, but easily the weakest season thus far.

If you enjoyed this story, then please consider faving and following this fic and leave a review if you read it on fanfiction . net. If you're on An Archive of Our Own then please leave a kudos and a comment. Tell me what you liked and what you didn't, and how I can improve. Please guys give me some feedback, as it keeps me and this story going and if you want me to keep writing please tell me what you think, please! For those of you on the RWBY Reddit please give this fic a mention, thanks. Please guys, help me out here, let me know if you enjoy this story, what's good and bad about it, tell me if you liked it or tell me if it sucked, please, I work really hard to make this story good so please give me some feedback, please let me know that my efforts aren't wasted. Thank you all, once again.