Beta: ShadowMeister234

The start of Yang's and Emerald's expedition was largely the same as Jaune's had been. Cryphilictal was mostly silent and still as they traversed the twisting labyrinth of stone streets and buildings. Their goal was the upside-down tower thinking (correctly) that Jaune would have tried to get to the only obviously landmark in the whole city. They tried following the most direct path but quickly found, just as Jaune had, that Cryphilictal disliked direct paths, and because of that the path they chose to follow diverged from Jaune's original path pretty early on.

The other key difference between the two journeys was while Jaune had to bear it alone, the girls had each other to talk to and it shouldn't be underestimated just what a difference that can make.

"Do you think we could cut through one of these buildings?" Yang asked.

"I doubt it would be that easy," Emerald replied, "but if we go too far off course, we can try looking for a backdoor."

Yes, so far, whether by luck or design, the choices the girls had made at each signpost had pushed them closer to the tower more consistently than Jaune's path ever did. Not that they could have recreated their path since in their haste they didn't think to mark their choices like Jaune.

"Even if there isn't a backdoor we can always make one," Yang said bumping her fist together.

"Do you really want to start breaking down walls and draw attention to ourselves?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure there's anything here to draw attention from?"

"There is, you can trust me on that," Emerald stated.

Yang didn't look convinced. It was amazing how quickly someone could normalize such abnormal events. They were walking through an underground city that reeked of unnaturalness and yet Yang had adapted and was acting like the city itself was as deep as it went. That just by seeing it she understood everything.

She didn't, not even close. Yang had only just gotten her feet wet with the unknown world when it's depths were unfathomable.

Emerald couldn't really blame her, though. She was new and even Emerald wasn't immune from thinking that the unknown world couldn't surprise her, as proven back at the ruins above. She had believed that Cryphilictal was dead, it's magic a mystery that was all used up, and she had believed that right up until the point it had been shoved right in front of her face.

Jaune never doubted. He had never fallen for the trap. He believed in Cryphilictal before they even boarded the airship. Maybe that was because he used magic himself. Since he knew so much more about what went into the unknown world than her, he recognized that there was nothing that couldn't come from it. Perhaps being a caretaker actually did make you immune to such confident assertions.

Emerald brought her hands up to look at her palms. They were rough and calloused, proof of her hard work and her time on the street. All that effort and all that sacrifice and it hadn't done her any good. Cryphilictal had knocked her aside with ease.

Jaune had offered to teach her how to use magic after they had gotten back from Bury in return for the combating training she was giving him, but she had declined. He had seemed very confused over that and asked her a few times if she was sure, but he let it go after a while. Maybe he thought she just didn't want to dedicate the time to it and to an extent he was right. She had witnessed the hours on hours of research he poured himself into so he could make even the littlest bit of progress. Spending so much time glaring at a book didn't appeal it her, but she mainly refused because she didn't like how any magic she did learn wouldn't be under her control.

That might seem silly but it mattered to her. Magic always came from something else. No matter how much it might look like it, none of the magic Jaune used was actually his. It was just him manipulating something for his own benefit. He could give his theories and explanations for why his etches work for hours, but at the end of it all, the only true answer was that the etches worked because they worked. If one day they stopped, then Jaune wouldn't have any recourse and really no right to even complain. It was completely out of his control and relying on the good grace of some external force wasn't something Emerald wanted to do.

She wanted everything she did to come from her own power. Perhaps you could make the argument that her aura and semblance were a type of magic, and even Jaune admitting things got a little blurry there, but as far as Emerald could tell those things came from within her. She could feel them, control them, and nobody else could have them. They were all hers.

Now she was wondering if she had made a serious mistake. With Jaune gone they had a serious gap in their otherworldly knowledge. Emerald only knew what she had picked up for Jaune and that had been enough to get by, but this was Cryphilictal, more or less the capital of magic. If something appeared that required some fine-tuned understanding, then they were screwed.

She wondered if things might be different right now if she had been a little more knowledgeable and a little less sure of herself back above ground. Would she have recognized the sickness for what it was? Would they have been able to do something about it beforehand? Would it have stopped Jaune from being forced to dive into the city alone?

Would he still be with them?

She knew these were useless thoughts. The past couldn't be changed and decisions couldn't be taken back, but that didn't mean she could just stop thinking about it.

"You're being really quiet?" Yang mentioned.

Emerald looked up only to realize they had travel quite the distance and even made a few turns without her noticing. "Sorry, I've just been thinking about some things."

Yang didn't miss how sad she sounded and moved a little closer so their shoulders were almost touching as they walked. "Worried about your boyfriend?"

"Of course, I'm worried about him. He also not my boyfriend," Emerald clarified just because it felt like she should, "but we've been through a lot together. If he's," she could bring herself to use the word dead, "not well, then I don't know what I'm going to do."

"He means a lot to you, doesn't he?"

"You probably wouldn't understand."

"Did you forget why I am here? My sister means the world to me. I would do anything for her."

"I'm don't disagree. I'm sure Ruby is the most important person to you. If you lost her it would be awful, but you'd still have others: parents, friends, teachers. It's different for me. Jaune is the only one I have. If I were to lose him, I wouldn't have anyone else to turn to. I'd be completely alone…again," Emerald finished in a whisper Yang barely heard.

But Yang did hear, and unfortunately Emerald was right. Yang didn't know what it was like to be completely dependent on a single person. Even during the worst time of her life, when Summer died, she still had her sister and dad. She couldn't imagine what it would have been like if they had somehow all died and left her behind. To have absolutely no one else would unthinkable, but evidently, that was the reality Emerald seemed to be facing. Clearly, Jaune was her everything, or at least that's what she believed.

Yang placed a hand on the green-haired girl's shoulder. "You'd have me."

Emerald looked her in the eyes with an ambiguous expression. "I was under the impression that we didn't like each other that much."

Yang was shocked at first, but quickly felt her lips tug upwards as she realized this was Emerald version of a joke. Probably made to take her mind off more disturbing thoughts. If that was the case, Yang was happy to play along.

"Well, we did sleep together. I think that more than proves we got over our issues with each other."

"You sure? I've heard that sometimes people who hate each other still get it on. What's it called? Angry sex."

"But, things didn't go that far, unless there's something you remember that I don't. All we did was cuddle and last I checked there was no such thing as angry cuddling."

"Then maybe we've broken new ground," Emerald pointed out.

Yang couldn't keep it together after that and burst out in laughter which in turn caused Emerald to do the same. If there had been something watching and waiting to ambush them, they would have been in trouble, but at the moment neither of them cared. In this gloomy, decrepit place a moment of distraction to lift their sprints was probably worth it.

"Thanks for that," Emerald said once they got themselves under control.

"No problem, that's what friends are for and we really are friends now."

"I guess," Emerald shrugged acting like it wasn't a big deal, but she couldn't quite hide her happiness from Yang.

They continued on their journey with a little more vigor and picked their paths with more confidence which only seemed to tip things further in their favor as they started closing in on the tower even quicker than before.

"So, what's Jaune really like. I've only really known him when he's in mission mode or close to black-out drunk?" Yang asked now that Emerald was a little more composed, and if there was one thing Yang loved, it was getting all the juicy details.

"He's not that much different than what you've been seeing. He's horribly stubborn and acts like it's his responsibility to fix every little problem he comes across, but he's hard-working, clever, and willing to bend the rules to get the job done. He's a little goofy but he can trade word jabs with the best of them. More than anything, though, he's kind and caring. Nice enough to take a chance on a dirty street rat even though she left her first impression by pickpocketed him and then forcing him to buy her dinner after he caught her."

"Sounds like an interesting story."

"It is. Afterward, we went and robbed a museum." Emerald smiled thinking back on those early days.

"Is that why you love him?" Yang said quickly hoping Emerald would slip up.

Sadly, for Yang, Emerald wasn't someone that would fall for that trap so easily. That being said, Emerald didn't have anything to hide and it might be nice to finally talk to someone about it.

"Yeah, I love him," she said confidently.

Yang missed a step and nearly went tumbling forwards, but she caught herself and continued on like nothing had happened. "But, he's not your boyfriend?"

"No, we're not together."

"Why not? Obviously, you know what you want."

"Do I?" Emerald question, worryingly. "Jaune is the only boy, the only person I've ever been this close to in a very long time. I barely interact with anyone besides him. I don't even know what a proper relationship looks like, let alone what it means to be in one. What if I'm just mistaken and these feelings are only because he's the only one I can have feelings for?"

"If there your feelings they can't be wrong," Yang said feeling bad for this total mess of a girl. Just what kind of life had she been living if she was questioning her own emotions? "Besides figuring this stuff out is the whole reason dating exists."

"We've been on a few dates although I don't think he recognized them as dates."

"Well, you said you live with the guy, right? Did you make it clear it was a date, the romantic kind?"

"I hinted at it."

"Yeah, that's not going to work," Yang stated. "He's the type of guy that will never be able to pick up the subtle clues of a girl's heart. Which I was able to figure out after only a few days with him so I know you knew that too. Why did you ever try that approach?"

Now Emerald was looking somewhat embarrassed. "Like I said, I didn't quite understand what I was feeling, so I wasn't sure if I even wanted them to be romantic dates. I decided it would be better to test the waters and see how he felt. If he felt something for me, then wouldn't he try and make it romantic? But, he never did so maybe he's just not into me."

"Or he's just got no balls. Ugh, you sure know how to pick them. Those types are the worst. Guys who can't read the room to save their lives but are also too cowardly to make a move. Listen, you've got to make your position as clear as possible."

"How do you suggest I do that?"

Yang smirked in a way that made Emerald's danger senses tingle. "When we find Jaune, you need to jump into his arms and give him a smooch on the lips."

For the first time in years, Emerald's face exploded in red which Yang counted as a victory.

"I can't do that," Emerald almost yelped.

"Why not? And don't tell me it's because it would be too embarrassing."

"It just wouldn't be the right time."

"I think it would be." Yang changed her voice to sound deeper like she was narrating a movie trailer. "Two people separated in a strange and dangerous city. The man having to leave his lover's side looking to find a cure for her mysterious sickness, but the girl wakes up and chases after him only for the two to share a passionate kiss when they finally reunite. Sound like the premise of a romance novel if you ask me."

"Well, you're wrong. Jaune and I have not been on the best of terms lately. You saw how we were fighting after he decided to go on this mission."

"Yeah, but that was only because you were worried about each other. That's a difference and that was days ago. You two aren't fighting anymore so trust me, it'll be fine."

"And if it isn't?"

"Then you'll always have me, honey muffin." Yang winked.

"Sorry, I don't swing that way."

"You right. I'm a better fit for honey muffin. With your green hair, you'd be pistachio muffin."

"That's not what I mean."

"I know," Yang chuckled, "but I like the pistachio muffin name. I think I'll tell Jaune about it."

"Don't," Emerald said with the utmost seriousness, "he'd definitely go for it and no matter what my feelings are, I don't think I'd be able to stop myself from killing him."

The two of them let that sentence hang in the air for a bit before they shared another good laugh. Sadly, happiness wasn't meant to last in Cryphilictal and the sound of another pair of footsteps killed it immediately as the girls went on high alert.

Emerald grabbed her weapons and Yang ready her fist as the sound of approaching footsteps slowly got closer.

"You think it might be Jaune?" Yang whispered.

"No, he would have heard us laughing and said something," Emerald replied.

They both stood their ground waiting for whatever it was to show itself, but what came around the bend wasn't what either of them were expecting. Far from any eldritch monsters, the source of the footsteps was just a normal guy although he didn't look like he was in very good shape.

He was barely able to stand as he wobbled forward like a zombie. His shirt fluttered around him, looking like it was about two sizes too big, and his hair hung in front of his face like a drape. He probably didn't even realize Yang and Emerald were in front of him.

"Are you okay?" Yang said dropping her fists and stepping forward.

"Don't!" Emerald yelled, throwing in arm in front of Yang to stop her. "This might be a trap."

"He needs help," Yang chastised, slapping Emerald's hand out of the way.

Emerald clicked her tongue, angry that Yang was being so reckless. She was just like Jaune in that sense.

Not being able to stop her, Emerald followed Yang but unbeknownst to her, she used her semblance on the injured man to make him think they were a few feet ahead of where they actually were. If this was a trap and he attacked when they got to him, their illusionary bodies would be the target instead of their actual ones.

That careful precaution didn't end up mattering though, as the man collapsed just as Yang reached him. She caught him, but then her face turned a sickly green as she got her first good look at him. Gently, she lowered herself to her knees so she could rest the man's head on top of her legs.

Emerald knelt down too and got to witness the same sight. It was far from the worst thing she had ever seen, but it was so unusual and disturbing that it made Emerald want to puke.

The man looked like a dried-up mummy. There was no other way to say. His clothes had engulfed him not because they were too big, they had probably fit perfectly beforehand, but because the man had shriveled up like a raisin. His glassy eyes were so shrunken into his head that they looked like hollow craters. His skin was stretched thin and was full of cracks like he was a statue; however, the red muscle Emerald could see peeking out from between the cracks clarified the reality.

"Can you hear me?" Yang said accidentally shaking him a bit in the process. A piece of skin fell off his cheek, and Yang only grew greener as she watched the skin petal drift away. She took her hand completely off him, just letting him lay in her lap.

"My name is Yang Xiao Long," she tried again. "I'm a huntress from Beacon academy. Who are you? Who did this to you?"

The man blinked once, and even that seemed to be an exhausting process, as he looked up at Yang's face. "M-Maple…" he gasped.

"Maple," Yang repeated, "Who's that?"

"Why…" was the only response she got before the man turned his head and died.

They crossed under an archway, that may have been guarded long ago, and exited what Jaune had considered the city's slums. The area they arrived in was much more open with building spread apart and clear pathways. It wouldn't take them much longer to get to the tower.

They might have been there already if Yang wasn't moving at the speed of a snail. Ever since they had encountered that walking mummy, Yang had been moving with her head down and her arms slacked at her sides, and genuinely just looking lost.

"We should have done something for him?" Yang mumbled for what must have been the eighth time.

Emerald hadn't responded anytime before, having wanted to give her some space and let her work things out on her own, but this time she did. It had already been dangerous for Yang to be acting like that in the labyrinth of buildings, but now they were in an open space, where attacks could come from everywhere. Yang couldn't afford to be distracted anymore.

"There was nothing we could have done to save him," Emerald said.

"I meant after that. It just feels so wrong to leave him there."

"What else could we have done. This place is made completely from stone so there's nowhere to bury him, and it's not like we could have carried him with us."

"I know," Yang signed, "it's just that it feels like we discarded him. No one deserves that."

"It the sad truth of this world that a lot of people don't get respect, either before or after their deaths."

"You've seen people die before, haven't you? You're acting way too calm," Yang said as they walked over a small bridge that crossed over a canal. If she had been paying more attention, she might have noticed how crystal blue the water was and have been tempted to take a drink.

"I have," Emerald replied. There had been all the stuff that happened in Bury, but even before that, there had been Robin and those death matches while she was under Sir. Maybe she could have told Yang that story to help her in the same way she had helped Jaune with Lily, but that time in her life was deeply personal to Emerald. Even after their little moment of friendship, she just wasn't close enough to Yang to reveal it. "You move on, eventually," Emerald settled with.

Yang didn't seem to like that answer even if it was the truth. Honestly, it should be easier for Yang since she didn't actually know the guy. "How could you ever move on from someone's death?"

"You just do."

"Doesn't it get to you?"

It did, but not for the reasons Yang was thinking. Seeing that man die only served to make her worry about Jaune even more. As if there had been any doubt, Cryphilictal had just proven that it was capable of killing. What did that mean for Jaune? If they made it to the upside-down tower and he wasn't there, what would they do then? Emerald didn't want to think about a scenario where they were forced to wander around the city just hoping to bump into Jaune. That way would almost certainly lead to their deaths.

"Who do you think that guy was?" Yang asked having given up on getting an answer to her last question.

"Someone who came here looking for something," Emerald said. "Same as us."

Yang grimaced. "What do you think did that to him?"

"Something we don't want to run into."

"I'm with you there."

The girls crossed another canal and enter the center compass that was the land of step pyramid shrines. The tower was in their sights in all of its majestic glory. If they had arrived from the east side they would have found the signs of the fight Jaune had been in, but since their labyrinth path had taken them southbound, they missed it completely.

The tower stood as tall and mighty as ever, but many things were different, even if the girls didn't know. For one the gaze that had followed Jaune throughout his exploration had never made an appearance. The warmth and soft beating of the tower that had driven Jaune to embrace were also absent.

In replace for all that was a narrow staircase that led up and into the tower about four feet up. Seeing what was inside the tower was impossible. The only thing that appeared to be at the doorway's entrance was a lightless void of inky black.

"So, you think Jaune went in there?" Yang asked.

"If you were traveling alone looking for a way to cure your friends of an unnatural sickness and you saw this, would you go inside?" Emerald asked back.

"I guess," Yang relented, "but I wouldn't like it."

"I don't like it either, but in this city, I doubt there are many places I would like to enter."

"It just felt too easy. Besides running into that poor guy, we made it to the center of the city without hitting a single danger or obstacle. It doesn't feel right."

"Nothing about this city feels right."

Yang threw her and into the air. "That's what I'm saying but we didn't have a single problem. It's like we were being protected by something."

"Or we were being led here by something," Emerald commented.

"Are we really going inside?"

"We have to."

"I know, but it doesn't even look like there's enough room for both of us to fit inside," Yang offered as an excuse.

"If you scared just admit it."

"Of course, I'm scared. Look at that doorway. It's creepy."

"Scared enough to turn around and risk losing out on your little sister's cure."

"Never."

"Then why are you complaining?"

Yang shrugged. "Because I want to."

"You did strike me as the kind of person that complains about everything just because they can."

"I felt the same way about you."

Emerald sighed. "Let's just go already."

"I'll let you take the lead. I'm okay with Yang-ing back."

"Whatever," Emerald said fighting the urge to groan at the awful pun.

Emerald wouldn't lie and say she wasn't a little nervous while she climbed the white stairs. When she reached the last one, she carefully pushed her fingertips passed the entrance and into the inky darkness. When her finger didn't burst into flames, explode or melt away, she grew more confident and took her first step into the upside-down tower.

Yang followed close behind.

The world was dark, yet it was hot. He knew he could take care of one of those problems by just opening his eyelids. He didn't want to, though. They were heavy. The strength it would take to force them open was more than he was willing to give. The best option was for him to slip back into a dreamless sleep. He didn't think he had ever been so tried before. What on Remnant had he been doing to end up like this?

He tried to recall. It must have been something important. Surely, he wouldn't have worked himself so hard if it hadn't. There had been an explosion, he was sure of that, and maybe a light show. Had he been at a concert? No, that wasn't right. He had been looking for something. Yeah, that was it! He had been looking for something for Emerald and Yang. He had been trying to save them.

Jaune's eyes shot open as he remembered everything from his arrival to the end where the arrow of light had ripped open his side. He saw the empty husk of the binder compass in front of him so his memories weren't wrong but that meant he should be dead. That fact that he wasn't meant something very peculiar had happened, not that he was going to complain.

He used his arms to push himself off the floor and in the process found that he actually felt pretty good. Not great but way better than what a man who had been shot through the side should be feeling. He also noticed once he got into a sitting position, that his whole body was surrounded in a whitish hue. It looked and felt a lot like his aura but there was something strange about it. He didn't get a chance to investigate it because it disappeared right after he noticed it making him wonder if it had been some kind of hallucination.

He could worry about that later, for now, he moved his hand to his side where there should have been a rather large chunk missing, but instead, he found it completely intact. It was by no means in perfect condition with a definite tightness and most of the skin near his pelvis and stomach an ugly pinkish-red that would probably be with him for the rest of his life, but it was all there. Even more than that, his dislocated pinky was back in place. Tooth was still missing, though.

How had it all healed? The puddle of blood that had formed on the floor after he had been pierced was still a little wet, so nowhere near enough time had passed for his side to heal on its own especially since his aura was competently shattered. Even if his aura had been full, he doubted it could have repaired a wound that large.

That's when he noticed another anomaly on his body. While bringing his left arm up to his face, he saw that there were several silver lines running from his wrist to just below his elbow. They bend at random places as they moved up his arm reminding Jaune of those mazes that were on the back of some kid menus at restaurants.

None of the lines every intersected and as he turned as arm he counted eight in total. Where these strange tattoos what saved him? If so, how and how had he gotten them?

Actually, upon further investigation, they weren't really tattoos at all. When he pushed, or wrinkled, the skin around them, they didn't move at all. They were locked in place like thick silver veins running beneath his skin.

That thought was only mildly terrifying, but for now, the lines weren't causing him any pain or discomfort, so he could probably leave it alone for a bit. For now, his goal was to make it back to Emerald and Yang to see if they were alright.

He got to his feet, which was easier than it had been a while, took one last look at the destroyed binder compass then climbed the stairs to the metal mesh balcony. A lot of the lights on the console up there were violently blinking red which only boosted his confidence that the binder compass was out of commission for good.

He walked back out in the maze of hallways and did his best to retrace his steps. He must have done a pretty good job since it didn't take him long to find the staircase leading back up to the cathedral. He almost couldn't believe he had navigated with such accuracy; in fact, he couldn't believe it. No way should he have found his way back so easily.

He looked at the silver lines on his arm again wondering if they had something to do with it. Maybe they did or maybe he really had just gotten lucky. It wasn't like the lines were glowing or anything like that, so there wasn't any way to tell.

The sanctuary was exactly as he remembered with one huge exception. The ice sculptor that had revealed the way forward was no longer there. In its place was a puddle of water and two milky white orbs which even now seemed capable of staring at him.

Not wanting to put too much thought into the implications of the ice sculptor being melted, Jaune quickly exited the cathedral entirely and descended the hundred or so steps down to the water's edge only to be met with the worst possible sight.

The ferryman and the gondola he possessed were gone. Jaune couldn't see it anywhere on the lake and had no way to call it back which meant he was marooned on cathedral island. "Damn it!" Jaune spat kicking empty air towards the lake. It wasn't even that far of a swim back to Cryphilictal proper, but he couldn't even do that since the water disintegrated whatever it touched.

He sat on the steps for a bit trying to think of a way off of the island, but nothing came to mind. It was possible Yang and Emerald could rescue him but he didn't even know if they were awake, and even if they were, they'd have no idea he was here.

He shouldn't have trusted the ferryman. He should have been more skeptical when it had brought him to an island, but of all the ways he expected to die in Cryphilictal being left on an island to starve had been pretty low on the list.

Without a clear goal in mind, Jaune marched his way back up the stupid stairs and into the cathedral. The lobby had nothing for him so he continued to the sanctuary thinking that he might try the underground maze again and look for an alternate exit.

However, he didn't make it that far because the melted ice sculptor had reformed. This time not into a person but a door. It was glassy smooth with no elaborate designs on it, but there was a single word, one written in a language Jaune could actually read, chiseled across it.

"LIBRARY"

He walked up to the ice door finding that it was the perfect size for him to fit through. The doorknob was just a larger version of the white orb that had once been the ice sculptor's eyes. Walking around to the other side of the doorway just revealed a mirror image and should have indicated that opening the door would have led nowhere, but Jaune knew better at this point.

He grasped the doorknob and felt a chill race up his arm. Then he turned it, and just as easily as every other door he needed, it opened.

Excerpt from the book

Semblances, just like aura, have difficulty being categorized into either the known or the unknown world. They definitely can't be natural but fall just short of what could be considered magic since 1) there is no defined way to unlock or control them 2) they differ from person to person and 3) they don't have any connections or interactions with the rest of the unknown world which means they can't be expanded on or built upon with outside effects. (Note: Some semblances do seem to interact with dust but this is better contributed to the attributes of dust than the attributes of any semblance.)

A popular theory is that semblances are simply a leftover of the Brother's magic when they left Remnant, and while there is evidence to suggest that, I find it hard to believe that the Brothers could make such a mistake as to accidentally leave some of their power behind.

What I believe is that when the Brothers left Remnant, the humans, and faunus shortly after, somehow evolved with the power to unlock semblances making it a type of pseudo internal magic that normal beings are not capable of. All living things have a soul after all, but it's only these two species that are capable of unlocking semblances.

There are many problems with my theory but that's just the nature of semblances. There's just so much we don't know about them. For instance, are semblances decided at birth or is it shaped by our experience and personality. Unless one has a time machine there's no way to know for sure and there's plenty of arguments to be made for both sides.

For the decided-at-birth side, there's the fact that some semblances move through a family from generation to generation. Then there are the semblances that reveal themselves the moment the user unlocks their aura. There are also some who never manifest a semblance at all even with their aura unlocked.

For the variable side, there's the fact that more often than not a semblance suits the personality of their users. Also, the vast majority of semblances awaken during a time of high stress or intense training and almost always the semblance manifest in a way that is abnormally well suited to handle the trouble the user is in. It's that phenomena that has many people claim, although it's hard to prove, that a semblance is at its absolute strongest when it first awakens.

It's a one-time cheat that some humans and faunus are granted when they need it most. Whatever is gained afterward is nothing more than a bonus.