Hello, my lovely readers! Welcome to the new arc of the story. We are fully diverging from the cannon at this stage. I've been planning this stage in the story for a while now and I'm glad I can finally write it.
Alot has happened since the last chapter, gramps (the one I told the story about who got attacked by bees) passed away a couple of weeks ago and since then things have been just me coping with the loss and then dentist visits every week ontop of summer school, it's just been a serious mess. I'm back now, I hope.
Ferrona, fortunately, Luna didn't end up on the beach with those monsters. The terrible twosome is stuck on Madagascar by themselves for a little while.
Enjoy! :D
Chapter 76: The New Frontier
-Prologue, Three days after the events of Atlas-
The desert was harsh and bitter. Icy cold during the night and burnt like the fires of a thousand suns during the day. They'd been trekking on foot for two days, now bordering on the third, with the survivors and refugees from Mantle and Atlas. They had no way of knowing exactly what had become of the place they'd left behind, nor did they particularly care as the only thing on their mind was survival.
It was nearing sunset when the team stopped to camp. Yang had the unconscious Ruby on her shoulders while Luna carried Oscar. The two of them were in no condition to be moving, Oscar at least attempted to walk, using Ozpin's cane as his support, for the first day and a half before the desert dunes became too much for his injured and tortured body.
Luna opted to carry him and found he was scarily light. The boy was practically a featherweight, it'd seemed much of his body mass had atrophied to keep him alive. As he lay on her back she could feel his laboured breathing, the uneven rhythm of his chest, and the subtle sound of something grating in his esophagus. As they set up camp for the night, she lay him down in a small tent, too cramped for more than one person but they had to make do with what they had.
Shelter was limited so only the sick, ailing and injured were allowed to rest in tents. The rest of the able-bodied suffered outside, staving off the bitter cold with firelight and bedrolls which were thankfully the one thing they had enough of.
Yang, Luna, the Zephyr Family, Weiss, and the Happy Huntresses acted as the de facto leaders of the group, ensuring peace was kept and food and water were properly rationed. Dr. Polendina, Elain, and Olwen acted as the medical team, tending to the wounded when they weren't traveling.
While not in their element, the capable personnel consisting of Weiss, Neo, Fenrir, and Olwen along with anyone from the Faunus tribe that could manipulate the cold, tried their best to keep everyone comfortable during the day, but that could only go on for so long before excessive use of their powers drained them. After about a day they opted for shifts and only applied their powers to the children, babies, senior citizens, and special cases of the group. The night, however, was a different story.
With everything finally packed out for the night, perimeters set up utilizing Penny along with a few fighters on rotation to keep lookout for Grimm, they finally settled in for the night. Ren did his best to keep everyone's emotional signatures suppressed during travel but it was impossible to keep up for the night.
After placing down Oscar in the tent, Luna left to meet up with the team. They all sat around a large bonfire, Neo and Weiss huddled together, while cold technically didn't bother them anymore, they still sought comfort in each other. The same could be said for others as Luna looked around, noticing Yang and Hex wrapped in each other's embrace, Nitro tried to show he wasn't cold but there was an unmistakable quiver in his arms as he pulled the blanket closer to him.
Blake had her tail wrapped around her as she curled up in front of the fire, looking very cat-like. Her ears twitched as she heard Luna approaching.
"Easy kitty, it's just me," Luna said softly, sitting down next to the cat-girl.
Blake blinked, both her and Luna's eyes glowing in the dark, "Luna... are you alright?" noticing something off about her, the cat approached her tentatively.
The blue dragon twitched, "I'm fine," she said wrapping her arms around herself.
"I know you're not." Blake placed a hand on the shorter girl's head, petting her soft hair.
Luna sighed and gently pushed her hand away, "I just, rather not deal with that right now. How are we looking on supplies?" she offered, attempting to change the subject.
Deciding not to step on any landmines Blake chose to ignore the clear hurt behind the child's words and answered, "Not good. I'd say we have about two days more at best before we go starving. We can ration water for at least four days but some of the stronger ones are going to have to sacrifice their shares."
Luna grit her teeth, "We shouldn't have to choose who lives and who dies like that..."
Blake's ears flickered and peeled back, "That's not what I..."
"But it's what we're being forced into right? Don't try to sugarcoat it, Blake, we're in over our heads with this. We're stuck in the middle of the desert with no way to safety, no communications, and both of our leaders are incapable of helping us right now." Luna said a bit harshly, the bitterness rising in her voice.
"It'll be okay. We'll get through this somehow..." Blake tried to reason.
Luna flexed her claws out and began idly drawing in the sand, "Are we? Ruby is half dead, Oscar can't move and Nova is... Nova is... he isn't..." she began to choke up.
Before Blake could try to comfort her she got up, "I'm going to go check on Oscar again... see if he needs anything." she left leaving the raven-haired girl to sit in distress.
...
She found herself back at Oscar's tent, cracking open the flaps she saw him lying on the bedroll. She knelt next to him and as she did the soft shuffling of clothing alerted her to his waking.
"Hey," his voice was low and gravelly from sleepiness.
Feeling a bit of her inner turmoil melt away she brushed her hands against his forehead, parting the hair away from his eyes, "Hey to you too. Do you need anything? Food? Water?" she asked softly.
Oscar smiled weakly as he reached up and grabbed her fingers with his gloved hands, giving them a light squeeze, "I'm okay... but you on the other hand..."
The dragon frowned, "I'm fine. Why does everyone keep saying I'm not?"
Oscar sat up, taking her hand and holding it gently between his, "Luna, I know you. You're hurting. Something's bothering you and I think I know what it is..."
"I said I'm fine..." she looked a little annoyed, attempting to pull her hand away but Oscar held her back. He reached out to touch her cheek, ungloving his hands and resting his right hand over her face, tracing his thumb across her cheek. Luna wanted to resist but his touch was enough to make her melt, resting her face in his palm she closed her eyes, realizing just how cold his fingers were.
"You're freezing..." she said concerned.
"Yeah I guess I'm a little cold..." he replied.
She rolled her eyes with a slight smile playing on her lips at last, "I'll go get you another blanket..."
When she tried to get up he pulled her back down, "Stay... I... want you to stay..." he said with building confidence. "You're not leaving until you tell me what's bothering you."
She glared at him now, "But you're going to freeze!"
"Then the faster you tell me what's wrong the faster you can help me." when she didn't respond he continued, "Fine, then just listen to me. You don't have to say anything, just hear me out."
Silently, she settled back next to him, pulling her knees up to her chest as she leaned on his shoulder, the tent too small for any real separation between them.
"I know you're beating yourself up about what happened in the portal gate. You're blaming yourself for not being good enough to win the fight, and for that, I say you're an actual idiot."
She gawked at him, looking as if he'd just slapped her in the face, "I am not!"
"Yes, you are, if you keep blaming yourself for things that were beyond your control."
"But...!" she wanted to argue, "What was the point of it all then? Me getting stronger, taking the nanomachines, training... what was the point of trying to learn to use my powers if I'm not going to be enough help when the time comes?!" she blurted out, finally spilling her troubles. "Oscar I failed them when they needed me most. Now Ruby's hurt, Nova is gone again and we're worse off than when we started..."
"Are we? The way I see it, you were key in saving the lives of a lot of people. You're worried about dragging them down when you're one of the most important parts of this team?"
"I'm already dragging them down..." she muttered, not facing him.
Sighing to himself Oscar looked up at the ceiling of the tent, "You know. When I was stuck in that hell hole, being tortured for days. You know what kept me going?"
She didn't answer, not sure if she was capable of answering it.
"The thought that if I died, I'd be letting everyone down. That all I'd have amounted to in life was a glorified meat bag for Ozpin's soul. That's when I remembered something extremely important." he chuckled lightly, "I remembered that you guys cared more about me than Ozpin. I remembered that more than letting people down, I'd be making the people that care about me sad. Worst of all, I'd make you sad... and being the reason for your tears is the last thing I'd ever want to be..."
She gaped at him, her eyes wide and turning toward him as a raging blush took hold of her pale face.
"Luna you're the kindest, strongest, and the most daring girl I'd ever met. You're powerful, headstrong, brilliant, and charismatic, but most of all... you care with your whole heart. It doesn't even have to be someone you know, you will always give one-hundred percent and more to making them feel like they're welcome. That's what you did for me, and that's what you continue to do for everyone around you." he turned to her now, locking eyes with hers as he continued, "I know this isn't the most ideal circumstances but things could have been a lot worse if you hadn't been there. So believe me when I say you're not worthless, you're more precious than even the rarest of gems..."
Luna's mouth was practically hung open as her pupils dilated, her face was beet red and she was thanking the darkness for not betraying her blush. "Oscar... I... thanks. That means a lot..." she tried to say more but her voice kept getting caught in her throat.
Taking her words as encouragement, Oscar pushed forward, "Look. I care about you Luna... like a lot. Probably a lot more than I should. I mean... you're a princess with a bright future, I'm just some farm boy with a voice in his head, but I like you... a lot, as in... a really, super huge amount. I have for a while now."
When he was met with silence Oscar continued to ramble, "Y-You don't have to give me an answer if you don't want to. I mean, why would you? You're way out of my league..." he sounded so heartbroken as he continued Luna felt her own break.
"Oscar...?"
"Yeah...?"
She leaned toward him, placing a hand on his face and forcing him to not look away, "Shut the fuck up..." she silenced him with a kiss. It was magnetizing, the way she found herself wrapping her arms around him as he pulled her closer, neither daring to break the kiss. He tasted of citrus and spring air, a flavour which she realized she just couldn't get enough of until the burning desire for air in her lungs overpowered her desire for his lips as they broke apart, their foreheads touching.
"Wow..." he said softly, the only words he could properly form.
"I like you too... like an enormous amount..." she found herself sitting with her legs across his, her head in the crook of his neck, "Don't you ever say you're not worthy of me. You're just as, if not braver and nicer and kinder than I'll ever be. You deserve the world..."
Oscar's heart hammered against his chest, this felt like a dream, almost too good to be true. "W-Wait y-you like me back? I thought for sure..."
She giggled and kissed his nose, "There has never been anyone else in my heart. From the moment we met, it's always been you."
"The same could be said for me... I feel like an idiot now for not saying this sooner."
Luna smiled and entwined her fingers with his, "I guess it means we're both idiots huh..."
"Idiots who need sleep. Come on," he said laying down, his hands still locked with hers, "It's cold outside and I'm going to need more than a blanket."
The dragon blushed profusely, "Damn, when did you get so confident?"
"When the most beautiful girl in the world told me she liked me back."
"Wow you're good..." she lay down on his chest and snuggled close, making sure they were both covered with the blanket. They drifted off into a warm, restful slumber.
...
The next morning they awoke to the sound of commotion outside. It seemed people were all clamoring about something, and the sound of roaring engines were heard.
"What...?" Luna disentangled herself from Oscar's arms, daring to sneak quick glance at her new boyfriend's sleeping form before she stepped out to find a bizarre and rather miraculous sight.
Several airships were hovering just outside their camp, civilians were bearing in droves while Yang and the others were escorting the lines. Blake was standing with the brightest smile Luna had ever seen plastered on the solem cat's face as she talked to a familiar-looking blonde Faunus.
"Blake?" Luna called out, approaching them. The bright morning desert sun beaming down into her eyes which stung a little, forcing her to place one hand over her brow to shade her eyes.
"Is that the legendary mini-blue?" an excited voice called.
Luna had barely any time to register as a pair of strong arms picked her up and spun her before placing her down. Dizzily she looked up to see none other than Sun Wukong standing next to Blake with a radiating smile.
"SUN?!" she exclaimed.
The monkey Faunus placed his hands on his hips, his tail flickering up and down, "The one and only. Neptune is around here somewhere... anyway it's great to see you mini-blue! It's been a while!"
"B-But how?!" she exclaimed, quite bewildered.
"We saw your camp during the night. It's hard to miss a bonfire that big in the desert, and the flying robot girl who spotted our camp and made first contact also helped out alot."
Blake smirked, "Yeah apparently they were a few dunes over and didn't see us. Penny spotted them during the night and brought them over."
"What're you guys even doing out here?!" Luna asked, completely dumbfounded at this stroke of luck.
Sun smirked, "Well we were on a Grimm hunting expedition from the Academy, doing a little tracking and training out in the desert. When we found you guys, Neptune called up the academy and managed to secure a few ships, not that it was hard," he said scratching his head, "You guys are a kinda like celebrities out here, I've never seen our headmaster rally airships that fast for anyone!"
"Your headmaster...?"
"Yeah, she's great. I can't wait for you guys to meet her."
-End Prologue-
Ruby found herself awoken to the sound of beeping instruments and an intense cold permeating her body. Her eyelids were heavy… they were, oh so heavy… she wanted nothing more than to rest, exhaustion seeped into her bones… She would've fallen back asleep had the violent memories of the events prior suddenly not come flooding back. Her whole body ached and her head throbbed with a migraine.
Inhaling sharply, She sat up abruptly only to find herself entangled in IV chords that embedded themselves in her wrists, around her mouth was an oxygen mask. Looking around the room she saw that she was in a hospital of sorts. The soft ruffling of sheets alerted her to her torso which was bandaged, the source of her immeasurable pain.
The room was empty aside for the beeping heart monitors and other empty beds, at least from what she could see after glancing around.
"Where am I…?" she asked hesitantly, gazing around only to find that she couldn't rotate her torso very well. Every stretch and muscle movement resulted in immense, teeth-gritting pain.
The handle of the door to the room rattled as someone opened it, quickly she lay back down, the act made a sharp pain shoot through her abdomen causing her to inhale sharply.
"I heard that," A female voice said, forcing Ruby to open her eyes. Elain stood there in her lab coat, a clipboard in one hand and the other on her hip as she tilted her head to one side, her wolf ears leaning slightly on her soft blue and orange hair.
"I know you're awake, Ruby," she said approaching the cot.
Ruby meekly responded, "Hey Aunty E. I feel like shit…"
Elain snorted, "You should. Burning through your aura multiple times in one day, extreme sleep deprivation and lack of nutrition, multiple lacerations, head trauma, physical trauma, I counted 3 broken ribs and not to mention that long scar stretching from your left hip to your central abdomen. I'd say you're lucky to be alive."
Ruby's hands wandered to her torso where the scar lay wrapped under the bandages when the realization hit her. Fingers ran toward her neck where the Silver Heart was supposed to be only to come up empty. Immediately panic began to wash over her as her heart rate began to spike rapidly.
The monitors began beeping so rapidly that Elain threw her clipboard down and placed her hands on the girl's shoulders, "Ruby! I need you to calm down. If you get yourself worked up you could strain something and cause irreparable damage."
"Elain where's my necklace? Where's Nova?" she asked rapidly, hyperventilating and struggling to calm her breathing.
"Your necklace is fine," Elain said reaching into her pocket and pulling out the ornate silver chained red gem. Ruby took it quickly and clasped it around her neck, letting it rest on her chest, clutching it tightly.
"As for Nova…" Elain continued, "We have no idea…" she said solemnly.
"What…?"
"I'm afraid the last thing any of us saw were Onyx, Cinder, and Nova being flung into the void. Luna says she thinks she was able to send him through one of the gates but I have no idea how she would be capable of that."
Ruby felt her tears begin to well in her eyes, "Did we at least make it out alive?"
"Yes, thanks to your guys' plan, we managed to save many lives that day."
"That day?" Ruby was confused, "Wait… how long have I been out?"
Elain hesitated, "Ruby… I don't know how to say this but…"
"Elain." She stared into her eyes, "How long have I been out?"
"A month. You've been comatose for a month." Elain finally said after much hesitation.
Ruby shot up from the bed and ripped out her IVs, "A MONTH?!"
Elain flinched as she tried to get her to calm down, "You're still not healed Ruby. I still have a few more treatments I…"
"Elain I don't have time for this. I should be out there right now…"
"Do you even know where we are?" Elain was exasperated.
Ruby faltered, "I…"
Sighing, Elain rubbed her temples for the oncoming migraine, "You're in Shade Academy. We're staying here… well actually I'll let the headmaster explain this to you."
"Who's the headmaster…?"
"You'll find out… but first I think you should go meet with your team. They've been worried sick about you…" Elain placed her clipboard down and inspected Ruby's face.
There was a minor scar on her left cheek, and the eyebrow on the same side had a little gash splitting it down the middle. Her expression faltered from that of a doctor to that of a mother checking over her child's bruises as she inspected the large scar that ran from the middle of her torso, diagonally all the way to her waist, it was a miracle it didn't hit her organs given how deep it ran, it only nicked a few arteries, which were cauterized by Nova.
Elain felt a wave of heavy emotion wash over her. She'd been holding back for a month, being the strong doctor and scientist that people needed… but in the confines of this infirmary and being alone with a girl she'd come to see as her own daughter, it broke barriers. She resisted, however, taking a deep breath and patting Ruby on the back.
"Now out with you," she said forcing a smile, "They're waiting in the cafeteria. It's down the hall, take a left and head for the big building. I still got some cleaning up to do in here…" she looked and saw a syringe filled with a clear liquid, "And just for good measure…" she stabbed it into Ruby's arm without warning causing the girl to yelp. "Painkillers. Now you should be able to move about, just don't overexert yourself."
Ruby rolled her eyes and gave Elain a quick hug before heading out. Once she was alone Elain broke down in tears.
Shade Academy was different from all the other schools. As Ruby left the Infirmary door she was greeted by a large hallway lined with giant glass windows that let the bright sunshine of the outside in. Students populated the school, unlike the empty halls of Mistral and the rigid Atlas Academy. Out of all the schools, this felt most like Beacon at first glance. It felt… strange to Ruby.
A year ago she'd have felt right at home, but now… after a whole year of fighting for their lives, death, destruction, and war, this didn't feel real.
The school wasn't all connected like Beacon, the main school was separate from the training arena, dorms, and cafeteria. There were roofed walkways that joined between to shelter from the sweltering desert heat but otherwise, it wasn't connected.
Shade stood on a tall mountain oasis amidst the desert, almost like a monk temple in an arid environment.
The cafeteria itself was much like Beacon's except it was designed to be open-air, large red and blue curtains hung along the walls like banners. It was artistic and beautiful.
The smell of curry and other foreign foods made her mouth water, as she found herself forgetting her purpose, walking over to the counter, picking up a tray, and begin loading it with everything she could think about ranging from curried chicken to chickpeas and the strange flour-based food called 'Roti' used in place of cutlery, it seemed the intention was to eat with her hands.
It was only after that ordeal did she find her eyes landing on a familiar patch of yellow that sat at a table surrounded by all the varying colours. Oscar, Luna, Yang, Blake, Weiss, Nitro, Hex were sitting around a large table, enjoying what was probably lunch given the time of day. Stopping for a moment she let herself drink in the sight of her friends together, even if everyone wasn't there it was nice to see them actually smiling and not covered in blood and bruises for a change.
Quietly walking toward them, she silently placed her tray down, garnering the attention of Yang. "Hey, who…" her eyes finally met as purple stared into silver and for that moment, all of time stopped for them.
Food was forgotten, "RUBY!" Yang screamed as she tackled her sister in a tight hug, garnering a yelp.
"YANG! EASY! I'm still injured…" Ruby choked out as she struggled against her sister's bear hug.
The blonde flinched, "Oh shit sorry, my bad…"
Luna looked warily at Ruby, she felt the anxiety building in her, forming a knot in her stomach. Oscar wordlessly reached across from next to her, taking her right hand in his left, he gently squeezed, giving her a slight smile before whispering, "It's okay... she won't blame you."
"What if she does?" she whispered back.
Oscar shook his head and smiled, "Just have faith in her."
While the other two's conversation went unnoticed, the others continued greeting their leader. "Glad to see you in one piece fearless leader," Nitro waved to her a giant smile on his face as he couldn't contain his joy.
Weiss, Blake, and Luna surrounded her, "How are your injuries?" Weiss asked, "What about your memory? Anything missing?" Blake followed.
Ruby separated herself from them, "Woah there guys, I get that I was out for a while but…" her eyes landed on Luna who looked downtrodden. "Hey, Saph… what's wrong?"
The young girl looked guilt-ridden as though something was eating at her very soul. One look from Ruby was all it took for Luna's facade to break as tears began spilling forth from her eyes.
Luna let out a sniffle, "I-I'm sorry… Ruby… I messed up…"
"What are you talking about…?"
"I couldn't save you all… I flung Nova through the gate and I… I…" she began to cry.
Ruby wrapped the small girl in her arms, "Shhh, it's going to be alright. He'll be fine… I'm sure of it. You did your best out there, none of us expected both Onyx and Cinder to come through at once…"
Luna just continued to cry, into Ruby's chest. The red leader buried her head in the little dragon's hair and kissed the top of her head, "I know… I miss him too…"
Once Luna calmed down and they began eating, Ruby asked, "So… what did I miss?"
Oscar raised his hands defensively, "Don't ask me, I was out cold for the most part till we got here."
"Well to start," Weiss began, "After your battle, we managed to evacuate everyone… well mostly. There were a few casualties from Onyx's semblance but for the most part, everyone is safe."
"Once we stepped through that portal we ended up in the fucking desert," Nitro complained, "You couldn't get us any closer?" he looked at Neo who was sitting next to Weiss.
She signed angrily, 'Well I'm sorry I did my fucking best okay?!' Weiss translated.
"Don't bully her, she got us out and that's what's important," Weiss retorted defensively, wrapping protective arms around Neo causing her to blush.
"So long story short we found ourselves fighting our way to Shade across the desert. We thought we'd have to be camping out for weeks before we made it," Yang explained, fixing her hair which had gotten stuck to her back.
"You didn't?" Ruby asked, tilting her head in confusion. She couldn't quite fathom what miracle would've led to that.
"Nope, because luckily for us, we met with Blake's boyfriend, Sun, and his friend Neptune. They managed to get us a few ships to carry us here."
"HE'S NOT MY BOYFRIEND!" Blake said rather loudly with a furious blush on her face.
"That's not what your body language said~" Yang teased, poking the cat Faunus's cheeks.
Blake was fully red, "What body language?!"
"Kitty needs to keep her ears and tail under control~"
Blake tried desperately to hide under the table while all the others giggled at her expense.
"So anyway," Yang continued, "You would not believe who else is here!"
Ruby leaned forward, "Who?!"
"Me! That's who!" a familiar voice was heard across the room as Ruby turned to see Taiyang Xiao Long, standing there with a big smile on his face, "Hey pumpkin. Long time no see!"
Ruby petal burst over to him tackling her dad in a tight hug, "Oh my god! Dad! I missed you…"
Tai pet his daughter's head, "Missed you too pumpkin. I heard what happened from Ellie, are you alright?"
"I'm fine dad… mostly. I'm just worried about- "
"Nova's a strong kid. Way stronger than me. If anyone can survive out there it's him." Tai pinched Ruby's cheeks and let out a sad smile, "I thought I'd get the chance to raise you in your teens but… from the looks of things you're all grown up…"
Ruby was about to ask what he meant when he released her and gave her a pat on the back, "Go finish up your food and meet us in the headmaster's office. We already briefed your team so we'll catch you up now."
The headmaster's office was unlike the one at Beacon, instead of being the tallest building it was actually a large, lone office on the ground at the very center of the academy grounds.
Inside was hard wooden flooring with curtains draped over the doorway, weapons of varying shapes and sizes lined the walls along with various souvenirs like Nevermore feathers, Boarbatusk tusks, and even different Grimm masks. It was an impressive collection, to say the least.
In the main part of the office was a large wooden desk and a comfortable-looking office chair that was turned around.
Qrow, Tai, Randolf, and Olwen of all people were standing there waiting for her.
"Hey kiddo," Qrow waved, "Glad to see you up and running again."
"About time," Olwen scoffed.
Randolf glared at her, "Be silent you old coot, if you don't have anything useful to say don't say it."
"Ladies please," a powerful feminine voice echoed from behind the chair, "The kid's a better warrior than half of you combined. She's been through a lot so cut her some slack."
The chair spun around to reveal a tan, muscular woman in brown leather combat gear, her sleeves were ripped off, and around her chest were bullet casings, a knife in her left breast pocket, and a grenade belt could be spied around her waist. She kicked up her large combat boots onto the table and gazed at Ruby with one eye, the other was covered with an eyepatch. Combined with her long flowing brown hair she was a beautiful yet imposing figure.
"I'm headmaster Citrine Basal, you can just call me Citrine. I've heard all about you kid, the things you've done and what you've accomplished, you earned the right to be on a first-name basis with me," she smirked.
Ruby was at a loss, "I'm Ruby Rose? Sorry, this is a little…"
"Unexpected? Forward? I figured as much since you just got out of the hospital." Her accent was thick with something Ruby couldn't trace.
"So what did you need to brief me on?" Ruby got to the point.
"Wasting no time eh? I like that. So tell me? You took a look around my academy, what did you notice?"
Ruby took a moment before she answered, "Well… it seemed… normal. Too normal. No doubt you've heard what happened in Atlas. You're the last Academy standing so I thought you'd be preparing for war?"
Citrine smirked, "You are correct. We are preparing for war."
"What but…?"
"You see the students are operating as normal because hasted actions lead to wasted actions. Their regimens and schedules have already been altered but as for their way of life here at school, I refuse to let a simple thing like the end of the world inhibit them."
Ruby was dumbfounded.
"See what we're working with here? She's a little…" Qrow made circular motions around his head.
"Call me crazy all you want, but you have to admit my methods are working no?" Citrine got up and moved to sit on the desk folding her legs over the front, "Shade has always operated on the principle that practical experience is always more valuable than theory. That being said, now that you all are here," she pointed a finger at Ruby, "We can take things to the next level."
"What do you mean by that?" Ruby looked confused.
"You and your team have the most experienced in the field out of all the staff at this academy. You learned to fight against Remnant's strongest in just a few short years, and you survived. You've seen war and you survived. Your knowledge and abilities are more valuable to me than gold." Citrine smiled proudly.
"Okay… where are you going with this?"
"Well," Citrine clapped her hands together, "As fully licensed Huntsmen and Huntresses, I want you and your team to become teachers at this academy."
"WHAT?!" this came from everyone.
"YES! You see, the way I see it, the key to winning this war is ensuring that every single one of our forces is equipped with the knowledge, power, and skill to fight against their top forces. No more limiting things to a few chosen elites. We are staging an all-out assault my girl and I want you and your team to spearhead this whole operation."
Ruby gaped, "You want us... as in a bunch of teenagers, to teach your students?"
"Of course! You aren't just a bunch of teenagers, you are teenagers who've seen war, fought Leviathan class, Grimm, fought Salem herself, and lived to tell the tale. You have the qualifications, my dear, you need only take up the mantle."
"Even if I do accept, what's this going to entail? We don't have a lot of time before Salem eventually comes here so…"
"True, which is why you won't be 'teaching' classes, rather I'm assigning each member of your team a squadron of students. For roughly the next year, you and your team will be in charge of training and leading these kids on missions and expeditions."
"Wait a year? Do we even have that much time?" Ruby asked.
"Well according to reports from Atlas and Mantle, or what's left of them, there are no traces of Onyx, Cinder, Salem, or any of their forces. The Grimm army there has been all but annihilated. Winter estimates that their forces have been set back by quite a bit. Salem, wherever she is, won't be able to make a move for a long time." Qrow stated.
"Based on our estimates, it took Salem 20 years to amass this amount of force and launch that invasion, granted Onyx and Cinder are in her army, and combined with their technology they won't be out of it for as long as before, we still believe based on the calculations, that we have, at the very least, two or three years to work with," Randolf explained.
"You're basing this on a hunch?!" Ruby was flabbergasted.
Citrine folded her arms, "A hunch with reasonable evidence. However, we take only one year because as soon as we're ready, we launch a full-scale assault. Strike the iron while it's hot, leave no foothold for Salem to recover."
"What do you mean?"
"Where do you think Salem has been hiding this whole time Ruby? How is it that she's been out of reach and only shows herself when she deems it fit?" Citrine pulls out a map of Remnant and slams it on the table, stabbing her knife onto the dragon-shaped continent, "After one year. We launch a full-scale invasion of this place. While she's weakened, we bring the fight to her. We end this once and for all."
"That's… ludicrous, crazy, insane…" Ruby muttered, looking almost mortified. Citrine was beginning to look disappointed in her when Ruby broke into a smile, "Count me in."
Citrine smirked again, "I knew I could rely on you. Now come, let's get you integrated."
Ruby was led across campus toward the training arena, where most of the students had already gathered. It seemed Citrine was already prepared for her acceptance, given that everything was already organized, even the members of her team were there.
All the remaining members of team ASHNRWBYJNRO were lined up on the arena floor, side by side.
The headmaster took to the stage grabbing hold of a mic that stood on a stand as she spun it around her before grabbing the mic itself, tossing the stand aside with dramatic flair and facing her student audience.
"Alright kiddos, teachers and otherwise lurking about in the audience, I've got a major announcement to make!" she waited for the room to settle down.
Despite her flamboyant attitude and insouciant nature, it seemed she carried a great deal of respect amongst the student body as within a few seconds all murmuring ceased instantly, as all eyes were trained on her.
She smirked proudly and gave a wink to the team, which Ruby wasn't quite sure if it actually was a wink or just her blinking… it was really hard to tell with the eyepatch.
"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Team ASHNRWBYJNR, lead by this lovely young lady, Ruby Rose!" Citrine gestured for Ruby to step forward.
The red leader did as instructed, trying not to blush under the intense scrutiny, waving toward the audience with a light smile on her face.
Murmurs went around.
"She's kinda hot…" she heard someone say.
"Is that a Schnee?"
"Who's the brat in blue?"
"The blonde is mega hot Woah."
"The tiny girl with the horns is so cute!"
"Is that Luna Flareheart? You know, the princess?"
"Hey! I recognize them from the broadcast!"
Citrine gestured her hands to lower as everyone quieted down.
"Starting from tomorrow, these fine Huntsmen and Huntresses are going to be teaching and training you here at the Academy," Citrine stated and all-around gasps and murmurs erupted again.
"I'm sure you all have several questions," Citrine said dryly as several hands shot up from the audience.
"You," she picked out a Faunus boy with fox ears.
"Excuse me headmistress but aren't they the same age as us? Heck some of them look young enough to be my little siblings. I'm not trying to be impolite, but I'm wondering how qualified they are…" he tried to be respectful about asking his question/
"Yes, you would be correct in assuming they are young. Miss Rose and her companions are around the age of first to second-year Academy students, Ruby herself is only seventeen."
The audience continued their worried chatter.
"HOWEVER!" Citrine silenced them with a raised finger, "Young they may be, they are also fully licensed Huntsmen and Huntresses courtesy of not only testament to their survival of The Fall of Beacon, but their instrumental role in securing Haven Academy and the protection of Atlas and Mantle."
Another hand shot up, from a human boy with bright green hair, "Ma'am if I may ask. Why are they being set as instructors? Why now?"
"I'm glad you asked young man. You see," Citrine wrapped an arm around Ruby's shoulders, "These young leaders have not only survived the war but fought the equivalent of three wars over the last two years. They are responsible for saving the people of Atlas and Mantle. I'm sure all of you are aware of the state of the world right now?"
The question was answered by their affirming silence.
"We as people, living creatures, are under threat from forces that would seek to wipe us all out. If Salem's display in Atlas wasn't enough of a warning that the days of fighting in the shadows are over then I don't know what more of a sign you need. We are all at war, whether you like it or not, and as the future Huntsmen and Huntresses of the world, you will be the defenses the people have against this threat." She paraded around the stage, "Who better to train you to destroy your enemies than the ones who've been doing it non-stop for the last two years?"
"These youngsters know war. They know the battle, and they know the enemy. As such, for the next year at the very least, they will be your instructors." She moved to Hex and Nitro, "These two, Nitro and Hex Zephyr will be working in the forge and technology laboratory. Alongside their parents, the Zephyr Security Company, they will be teaching all about weapons, gadgets, and utilities you will need in the field"
Weiss, Jaune, and Neopolitan stepped forward as Citrine gestured to them, "Weiss Schnee and miss Neopolitan will be heading strategy and coordination exercises. Jaune Arc will be conducting classes on Aura control."
Ruby marveled at them, it seemed a lot had transpired while she was recovering. Her team had already decided on their own what they needed to do. She would've thought it a breach of her authority as leader had she not understood the urgency of the situation. They knew what they needed to do, and they knew that she would accept. Such was the deep bond of trust that had developed amongst them.
"Yang Xiao Long and Tai Xiao Long will be handling your combat and for the upper classes, Advanced Aura Manipulation training."
"Blake Nightingale-Belladonna," Ruby blinked as Citrine gestured to the cat Faunus, "Along with Lie Ren, will be handling classes on stealth and subterfuge."
She moved on to Nora, who, despite looking fresh as a daisy and strong as a bear, still had the lightning scars running jagged across her skin, "Nora Valkyrie will be in charge of your physical training."
Finally, she got to Ruby, Oscar, and Luna, "Her highness, Luna Flareheart, and Oscar Pines will train you all on Grimm Studies as well as dueling. Lastly…" she once again moved to drape an arm around Ruby's shoulders, "Ruby Rose will be in charge of a special, team leaders only class that will be specific for training team leaders to better fit into their role. For Upper-Class men, she will also be your weapons training instructor."
"Along with a few others who will be assisting them, these Huntsmen and Huntresses will be your instructors, teachers, coaches, and guides for the next year or so." She finished.
"And…" she smirked at the audience, "Final years! I have a treat for you."
Questions ran around the audience.
"Final Years, there are approximately two hundred of you? That's about fifty teams? A select few of you lucky ones will be selected to apprentice under one of the following Huntsmen and Huntresses: Qrow Branwen, Randolf Wulf, Blake Belladonna, Weiss Schnee, Jaune Arc, Yang Xiao Long, Luna Flareheart, and Ruby Rose."
Ruby almost gaped at Citrine, looking at her as if to say 'Are you serious?!'
"Yes. Each of these individuals will be assigned a squad. These will be test squads, the teams selected will report directly under these commanders where you will be occasionally sent on missions and expeditions to gain field experience. I will have the lists out by tomorrow, so look forward to that."
"Citrine are you sure this is a good idea? I've only ever worked with my team, I'm not sure I can be in charge of another, and then what happens to my team?"
The headmistress smirked, "Don't worry darling you'll do fine. I see it in you. As for your team, you will be an elite squad and part of our war council. Time is different now kid. Whatever is left of that naïve teenager inside, needs to be burnt out because the battlefield doesn't forgive naivety. It's your job to train the next generation, even if you are still blooming."
A hand shot up again in the crowd, this time a boy in a dark blue uniform sporting black spiky hair, "You said it's ASHNRWBYJNR and some others… are we missing someone?"
"His highness the prince, Nova Flareheart, is unfortunately declared M.I.A for the time being. It is believed he is still alive, however, we do not have the resources nor human resources to spare combing the continents to find him." She said darkly, a serious expression on her face.
Ruby clenched her fists in frustration but understood where the headmistress was coming from. Time was not on their side.
"In time we may have to declare him dead but…"
Ruby suddenly grabbed the microphone out of Citrine's hand and turned her silver eyes to the students.
"Hey everyone," she said, taking a deep breath she continued, "I know that this is sudden. These changes are… a little crazy." Glancing around she saw the uncertainty on their faces, "These are dark times we live in, and in spite of all the chaos you're now being told a bunch of kids your age is going to be your teachers for the next year. I get it. It's crazy."
She saw many nods their heads in confirmation.
"But believe me when I say that up until a few months ago, we were just like you. Scared and confused, afraid that one wrong move and suddenly the world is going to come crashing down on our shoulders, but we persevered and pulled through. Despite the odds we've won against Salem, we've put a stop to her plans time and time again and we will continue to do so because from here on out we're not alone anymore."
She walked to the center stage, "We have you guys. There's no way to know when you're ready. Honestly, we're still not sure what Citrine is doing is a good idea but it's the best one we've got. We'll do our best to ensure that you are as prepared as you can get for when hell erupts when the devil shows her face and bears down her forces on us. We'll be with you to make sure you get out alive and victorious, but that's only possible if you have faith."
"So, I'm asking you guys to put your trust in us, and we'll do right by you. Put your faith in me, in all of us here, and put your faith in Nova because he is alive, and he is out there right now on his way to take back Beacon Academy all on his own. We can't help him…" her voice was soft and beginning to crack.
"W-We might not be able to help him, but the best we can do right now is to make ourselves stronger so that when he takes back Beacon, we can all march right onto Salem's doorstep and take her out!"
Cheers erupted as she riled up the audience.
"WE TAKE HER OUT AND WE BRING PEACE BACK TO OUR WORLD!"
"YEAH!" The crowd cheered. Her team looked on in awe, everyone was filled with admiration and pride for their leader.
"We are done losing the things precious to us. We are done sitting down and watching the world fall apart and the people we love die. We are going to take back our peace, our sanity and our safety. We take it all back!"
"YEAHHHHH! WOOOOOHOOO!" The crowd erupted in a massive cheer as Citrine folded her arms smirking at the red leader.
"Still think you don't have it in you?~"
Ruby blushed and snorted, "That's left to be seen."
-Atlas Tundra-
Nova opened his eyes blearily as he stared around him. It was cold, freezing and literally, everything in his body hurt, from his muscles to his very bones. The brilliant sunlight bore reflected off the white powdery snow, shining straight into his eyes causing him to shield his pupils from the direct glare.
Around him was nothing but vast tundra and wreckage from the battle. The skeletonized remains of the Leviathan Grimm calcified in a crater contrary to the nature of Grimm corpses which usually dissipated into black powdery dust.
His armlet was intact and the Agniseki on the other arm was a healthy hum suggesting he wasn't in any mortal danger. Glancing around he saw no trace of Grimm, simply frozen corpses and wreckage.
He wasn't anywhere near Atlas and he wasn't quite sure exactly where he was.
Dusting himself off he struggled to his feet, feeling numb in the lower regions of his body. Given the amount of snow that was covering him, he'd most likely been out of it for at least a week, but judging by the state of the Leviathan corpse, it was probably longer. The only reason he hadn't died was that his body kept trying to repair itself, his scales were already out along his arms and part of his torso suggesting his aura was thoroughly depleted.
He snapped his fingers a few times attempting to ignite a spark of fire, it came it short bursts but no sustained flame, and the mere act was enough to make him feel dizzy.
"Ugh I'm starving…" he said to no one in particular, glancing around he found Helios buried in the snow. Heaving it over his shoulders he glanced at the sky. Judging by the sun it was probably about nine in the morning, and if that was east then he could gauge where the west was. If East was to his Right and West was on his left then South was directly behind him.
"Guess we're walking aren't we?" he gazed at the stone as if expecting a response. When none came he just snorted and began trudging off in the most southward direction he could think of. Mantle and Atlas were out of the question, the closest place would probably be Argus but that was across the ocean. How the hell was he going to get to Vacuo?
The sound of a loud motor was heard overhead as a shadow loomed over him. He turned up to see an airship bearing the SDC company logo. The door opened to reveal a woman that looked strangely like Weiss.
"Winter?!" Nova yelled above the roar of the engine.
The Schnee smirked and signaled for the ship to lower. She hopped off just as it hovered a few feet off the ground, "I was wondering what happened to you." She looked tired, but otherwise a lot better than before. He noted she wore a badge with the crest of Atlas in bold regal red and gold with five stars on it.
"General Winter Schnee?" He asked raising an eyebrow.
She glanced at the badge briefly before responding, "Yeah, you've been out of it for a while. Come on, Atlas isn't the best right now but you got some catching up to do."
Atlas city was a broken shell of its former self. The once glorious city was in ruins, a desolate wasteland of broken skyscrapers and ruined roads. The academy wasn't fairing much better, having the majority of its staff deceased or missing, the autonomous soldiers replaced the human personnel leaving this cold and hollow atmosphere, practically devoid of life.
Winter's office, originally belonging to James, was more or less refurbished with all of Ironwood's collection gone.
"I know you and I haven't spoken much," Winter said tartly as she strut over to her desk and sat down exhaustedly.
"Really? I hadn't noticed," Nova said with light-hearted sarcasm.
She just shot him a dry look, "It's good to see you alive. After the fall we thought we'd lost you since Weiss didn't account for you back in Vacuo."
"Vacuo?" Nova perked up, "So they did make it after all…"
"Yes, and thanks to the Zephyr family, we've gotten cross-continental communications back online, if only limited between Atlas and Vacuo for the time being."
Nova raised an eyebrow, "Amity Tower?"
"Destroyed," Winter stated.
"Then how…"
"That Hex girl made some sort of wireless local area network that stretches to just our scrolls. It's limited to mine and the headmaster of Shade but otherwise, it's better than nothing."
He snorted, reclining in a soft chair in the office, as he sat he felt the prickling sensation of cut leather, noting the bullet holes in the chair he eased off a little, "Did anyone get hurt? Did anyone…"
He left the word hanging hoping Winter would catch his meaning.
"Die?" She raised an eyebrow, "The body count is upward of twelve hundred right now."
Nova almost choked, "THAT MUCH?!"
"Count yourself lucky. Your team did an amazing job. Those numbers are just a small fraction of what could have been had they failed."
"But what about my team? Ruby, Luna, Weiss, and the others… are they alright?" Nova inquired with desperation.
Winter waved him off, "For the most part? Yes. No one on your team died…"
"My team? Then some did…"
"Harriet Bree of the Ace Ops. She died in the explosion that detonated the Leviathan." The words left a sour taste in her mouth as she clenched her fists, her nails practically drawing blood from her palms.
Nova leaned across the desk, "Winter that wasn't your fault and you know it. That lies with Ironwood."
She shook her head, "If I had acted sooner. I was always in a position to stop him… I just realized what needed to be done too little too late."
"Were you really?" he looked at her seriously.
She glanced up from her bleeding palm to the prince and sighed.
Nova flicked her forehead as she glanced up earning a small yelp from the older girl, "It doesn't matter," he said, "What matters now is what we do from here."
The elder Schnee paused, letting his words sink in as reality drew across her grievous haze, "You know you're oddly comforting for a stranger."
Nova shrugged with a snarky smile, "What can I say, just looking out for my family."
"I've been meaning to ask you about that. I recall you referring to me as 'cousin' before?"
"That's what you are cousin, we're related. My great grandmother married your great grandfather or something, I can't really remember what the family tree said." He picked up a pen from the table and began spinning it between his draconic clawed fingers.
"I see. Well, 'cousin'..." she said awkwardly.
"Don't force yourself, man," Nova said with a snort.
Winter just continued, "What's the plan now?"
Nova blinked, and the spinning pen halted, "Me? I thought you were the one with the plan? What makes you think I have one?"
"Well, I intend to restore Atlas. The problem is getting you back to Vacuo. Also, your face just reeks with the 'I have something to do' expression."
Nova dropped the pen and leaned across the table, "Alright. I'll cut to the chase. I'm going to get the Crown of Choice from Vale. I was going to try and do it myself but seeing what's going on in Atlas I'm assuming you don't have the manpower to spare."
Winter took a moment to understand his words, "You're right on that assumption." She pulled out her scroll from the desk drawer and placed it on the table. "If you plan on getting the relic then you're going into the heart of Grimm territory. I can loan you a ship as far as Argus but we can't afford any further."
Nova was surprised at how accommodating she was being, "Really? I thought you'd put up some sort of resistance…"
"No, I understand the gravity of what you're saying," she gestured to the scroll, "If you'd like to send a message to Vacuo, you can do so with this. It's yours."
Nova was confused, "Wait, don't you need this to communicate?"
Winter fished in her pocket and pulled out a similar scroll, "That's the backup in case this one goes bad. I think it's better if you hang onto it in case."
Nova gaped and gingerly grasped hold of the device, "A-Are you sure I can have this?"
"I trust you'll take good care of it. Family has to look out for family after all." She said, after noticing Nova's hesitation again she said, "This emergency phone doesn't exactly ring up anyone. It's limited to sending out alerts but you can't receive them. If you call Vacuo, you won't receive a response but they'll get your message." She explained. "It also connects to mine as well in case."
Nova felt a little disappointed, for a moment he'd thought he'd be able to contact his team, to contact Ruby, still… it was better than nothing he thought.
"I…" he was interrupted when his stomach let out a loud growl causing Winter to smile, "sorry…" he muttered.
She laughed, "It's fine. Take a few days, grab some food and recover. The medical team will look you over as well in case…" she looked him over, "You're all skin and bones…"
Nova looked bashful, "Ah yeah… I can't remember the last time I ate food… it could be weeks now."
"Well, it took about a month to find you so I'd say you're lucky to be alive."
Nova began coughing as his eyes went wide, "WHAT?!"
"Yes. We've been scanning and searching the wreckage for quite some time. Incidentally, we had given up hope until our last expedition spotted you. I'd say you were very lucky." she reiterated dryly.
The dragon looked mortified, "Why didn't you say so sooner?! I need to get moving!" as he attempted to move his stomach let out another loud complaint.
"Mess hall is where you left it. Try not to go too crazy because supplies are limited…" she started but he was already gone.
-Shade Academy Present Day-
Ruby stood at the podium of an empty classroom, her empty classroom. She desperately checked her watch, seeing that it was roughly ten minutes before her class started.
She wasn't the first class of the day, no her class was relatively the last class of the day most students had, at least according to her schedule. Rocking on the balls of her feet nervously, her black skirt swaying as she did so. Accompanying it was a white button-up shirt and a tailcoat black jacket that bore the symbol of a rose pinned over her left breast pocket. She wore her red hood around her that draped down past her black leggings and combat boots. Hanging around her neck was the Silver Heart and hanging from that pendant was the last piece of Asura that Nova had given to her as a keepsake.
Nervousness bubbled in her throat as she fingered the pendants, clutching onto them tightly, closing her eyes, "Nova… what should I do?" she whispered.
The Silver Heart seemed to resonate in her palms as it feel warm to the touch, but only briefly, as in that moment, the doors to her classroom opened as students filed in one by one.
"Okay, Ruby. Huntress at seventeen and now a teacher at Shade Academy, normal knees…" she whispered to herself.
Once all the students filled in, she took a good look at the faces. Most of them actually looked older than her, from what she could tell, but that was a given since she joined Beacon two years early, and got her huntress license at the age when most would just be joining the school.
Silence filled the empty space now so she simply just coughed into her fist, clearing her throat, she put on the biggest and brightest smile she could muster, "Hey everyone. My name is Ruby Rose and I'll be your teacher for this leader's only class. Before we begin… are there any questions you all would like to ask?"
A boy shot his hand up, he was blonde, almost startlingly so, "Hi Professor Rose? I have a question…"
"Yes?" She pointed to him, "You don't have to call me professor, I don't have a doctorate or anything. Your name?"
The boy looked about nineteen or twenty, his blonde hair was practically golden and was neatly swept around his sharp features. He sported bright green eyes and a moderate build, standing at a solid 5ft 9. "Ah yeah, I'm Gawain. I was wondering if you could tell us about what happened at Atlas exactly?"
Ruby frowned, "That's not pertaining to the class, but I never specified so…"
"You don't have to answer!" he quickly amended. He seemed genuinely curious so she indulged him.
"Atlas fell because of fear. James Ironwood gave in to paranoia and fear and made decisions based on those feelings…" she strode over to the middle stage, "A trait all good leaders should have is being able to remain calm in the face of immense adversity," Ruby said, holding back her expression as she remembered her panic attacks when she had lost Nova. To her credit, she held out for a long time before finally breaking down. Nova would say that people have limits but she wasn't going to use that as an excuse.
"I think I'll use that as an example to start today's class off. Thanks for that prompt Gawain," she said feeling a bit more comfortable in her role.
"What makes you such a good leader then?" someone in the back said with clear disdain. She looked over to see a tall burly boy with a thick beard.
"You are…?" she was asking for a name.
"Cornelius."
"Yes Mr. Cornelius, what would you like to know exactly?" she attempted to be as pleasant as possible.
The boy just smirked, rolling his eyes and saying, "Well, I just wanted to know how is it you're such a good leader when your decisions cost the lives of twelve hundred people in Mantle."
Ruby thought she was prepared for it, whatever condescending words he could put out, but she was not prepared to be held accountable for that.
"I…"
"The way I see it, if you really were a good leader, you'd have gotten everyone out alive." He continued.
Gawain shot him a disdained look, "Cornelius, watch your mouth. I'm sure things would have been a lot worse if she hadn't made those decisions. The sign of a good leader is being able to make tough calls. We can't always guarantee success…"
"Really? But she's the youngest licensed Huntress of the last fifty years. Obviously, she is some sort of prodigy. I mean, if she isn't then doesn't that make her just some privileged kid?"
Ruby's expression was hidden behind her bangs. She was doing her best to remain calm, "Keep it cool Ruby, he's just trying to get under your skin…" she muttered to herself.
"What was that?" Cornelius asked up, cupping his ear to look as though he was trying to hear better, "Making excuses?"
"Cornelius, that's enough!" Gawain tried.
"Nah, come on professor." He said it with such contempt. "I want to hear all about why you let those people die. Is it because of your incapability? Is that why Nova Flareheart is missing? Maybe he's missing because he ran away. I mean who could blame him."
Something in Ruby just snapped. Her eyes shot up with a brilliant silver glare as she locked him dead in the eye.
Not a tear in sight, only pure, unbridled anger hidden behind a carefully plastered expression.
"You're right." She said in an even, dry tone.
The room seemed to tremble. Those who were there would swear it, others chalked it up to hallucination from the desert heat because it stopped almost instantly.
He looked almost surprised, "Wait what…? I mean… of course, I am!"
"My decisions weren't optimal. People did die." She walked up the stairs, stalking her way toward him like a predator seeking out prey. Her aura glowed behind her, silver mixed with red. The students that had the unfortunate privilege of sitting in the column next to the stairs felt nothing but fear as she passed by them, even if it wasn't directed at them.
"But that's what happens in war," she continued coldly, "You can't save everyone. That's something you have to come to terms with eventually."
"H-hey why are you coming closer…?" he stammered out, still putting up a bravado.
"Tell me, Mr. Cornelius," she followed through, "When you're out on the battlefield, the rusted stench of metal, gunpowder, and blood permeating your nostrils. Every breath is like a noxious inhalation of death and destruction."
He was scared, he didn't know why but the young girl before him, naught but four years younger than him, looked like the Grim Reaper. He tried to speak but his words died in his throat as she placed one leg on the armrest of the chair and leaned over, looking down at him.
"When the corpses of your friends and allies lay torn to shreds on the ground around you. Their insides spilling out of their mangled bodies. When you are faced with an ultimatum. What do you do then?" she practically snarled.
"I… I…"
"Let's pose a scenario then since you're so capable." She reached behind her and drew Crescent Rose in its folded form. "You've been running on empty for several days. Your aura has been dry for too long. You've overused your semblance. Your enemies are demanding something. They have a hostage. That hostage is your closest friend. The thing they want is an item that will probably cause the end of humanity if they got it. What do you do?"
"Not give it to them of course…" he said weakly, finding his voice. "I'd save my friend…"
"Ah but you're out of aura and out of options. He either dies or the world dies."
"I-I'd just not give them the item…"
"Oh? So you're a coward who abandons his friends is that what you're saying?" she tilted her head, staring into his soul. It was slimy.
He looked around to see his classmates giving him disapproving looks, "N-No! I would never!"
"Really? Well, that's good to hear. Now let's say that if you don't give them the item then everyone in this city and academy dies? You give them the item, you doom humanity, but you save your friends and what's roughly a hundred thousand people from immediate destruction."
He looked completely lost. "W-What kind of choice is that?!"
"What kind of choice?" she snarled, "That's the kind of choice I had to make at Atlas."
"W-What?!" he gasped, and everyone else in the room was staring at her wide eyes, and with newfound respect.
As he said those words, Ruby whipped Crescent Rose in scythe form out at such a blinding speed that Cornelius thought his life was at an end as he saw it flashing before his eyes in the gleam of the stainless steel blade. He closed his eyes, flinching for fear of death, however, it never came he opened his eyes to see the giant scythe blade embedded in the cushions of the chair right next to his head, and in between the puncture crater was a dead fly.
Ruby didn't look at him, "My apologies, there was a nasty fly buzzing around your head and I took care of it before it landed on you and dirtied your uniform." She flashed him a sickly sweet smile as she dusted off his shoulder and slung the scythe across her back, walking down the stairs toward the podium again.
As she was doing so, Cornelius stammered out, "W-What was your choice…?"
Ruby tilted her head back to look at him, "Hm?"
"You said you had to make the same choice… what did you choose?"
"I chose neither option."
"What? B-but you said it was an ultimatum…"
"It was. That doesn't mean you're out of options. That's where the help from your team comes in." she re-sheathed her blade and stood tall at the stage. "A good leader is just as good as their team. As a good leader, you learn that you don't need to shoulder the world alone. You have a group of equally smart individuals who can come together and help you carry that weight." She gave them a good look over, "When you're faced with an impossible situation, they'll make the impossible possible." She beamed proudly.
Glancing at her watch she still had about an hour and a half left for the lecture.
"Any questions?"
No one dared raise a hand except for Gawain, "Excuse me, professor. C-Can you tell us all about your experiences at Atlas? If that's okay…"
Ruby looked at him incredulously before sighing with a smile. It wasn't something she actively wanted to talk about but for some reason, talking with people who weren't part of the events felt like ripping off a band-aid.
"Oh alright. I was planning to just go through mundane introductions and end class early but…" she leaned against the podium, "If you guys really want I can tell you the story."
Several nods of approval and verbal accounts of 'yes' were heard.
"Alright," tenderly grasping hold of her pendant she said, "So there I was at this dinner party at the Schnee Manor when…."
...
"That's when the Grimm invaded the town and I took this division of my team to clear them out. Little did we know this was only the first wave…" collective gasps came as she told the tale.
"And then BOOM! Out of nowhere, this giant Leviathan comes out of the sky with this massive army of Grimm! It was the biggest thing we'd ever seen, even bigger than the underwater Leviathan we killed in Argus a few months back…"
"You fought another Leviathan before?!" a girl with bright pink hair gasped in amazement.
"We sure did Coraline, but that's a story for another time." The older girl looked genuinely impressed so Ruby simply continued, making a mental note to tell them more at a later date. "Anyway, we were finally strategizing when all my exhaustion finally catches up to me. Apparently going days without food or sleep can cause an Aura deficit that causes your Aura to recover extremely slowly and your semblance begins to malfunction. That's exactly when James Ironwood and the Ace Ops decide to step in to kidnap our Winter Maiden!"
"NO!" someone said as others gasped.
"Our ship goes hurtling to the ground and the Leviathan explodes with guts and gross buts, unlike other Grimm it had bones!"
"Woah for real?!" someone asked.
"Yeap, and I think the corpse is still in Atlas. Well at the time I wasn't thinking about that. I was concerned that Nova and Oscar were dead! When lo and behold Raisa Calavera comes waltzing out of the crater with Oscar in her arms!"
Cheers erupted all around.
...
"And that's when Onyx's semblance begins killing people with this dark poison. Not sure what it is but it only worked on those without Aura or were sick or old."
"That's horrible!"
"Yeah… but we made it out at least…"
Once class was over, Ruby waited back as various students walked up to her, asking her all about being a leader and her travels. She tried to entertain them as little as possible. She was exhausted.
The last person to walk up to her was Gawain as he said, "That was a good first-day Professor"
Ruby snorted, "Please you can just call me Ruby, or miss… that whole professor thing feels weird."
"Then uh... Miss Rose?"
"Sure." she shrugged, realizing there was no winning in this scenario.
"I'd uh like to say thank you?" the boy sounded unsure of himself.
"For what?" She was confused.
"For doing your best out there and saving everyone. I know it was a team effort but I think, at least from the bottom of my heart, that you have my thanks."
Ruby felt moved for that moment, "I… it's what we do, and what I hope to help you guys be able to do." she gave him a pair of thumbs up.
"I look forward to that…" he bowed and looked ready to leave when they both got notifications on their scrolls.
It read: "Ruby Rose, you have been assigned team GRVE (Grave) consisting of Gawain Sunfury, Regis Cobalt, Violet Mist, and Ether Pasley. These trainees will be your squad to command and train personally. You are to meet with them twice a week, once on Monday afternoons for physical and coordination training and on Friday afternoons for special exercises. Good Luck! – Citrine"
Ruby glanced up at Gawain and he glanced up at her, "Well I guess we both got the same thing?" he asked unsurely.
She held out her hand for a shake, "Well Mr. Sunfury, I hope we'll be getting along then?"
He nodded abruptly, and shook the hand, "O-Of course!"
-Atlas Academy-
Nova had finally stuffed his face, eating enough food for seven people and not even caring if it was meat or not.
"The infamous leader returns…" a male voice said sarcastically, causing Nova to glance up from his food. It was Marrow, followed by Elm and Vine. They looked… broken almost.
Marrow's hair was cut short, he had a scar over his left eye. Elm had a nasty scar running along her neck and into her clothing while Vine looked more or less alright minus the prosthetic right arm.
"Oh it's you guys. Hey I know it's probably late but uhh… no hard feelings?" Nova offered.
Marrow snorted as he pulled up a chair, "Yeah well, we fucked up pretty badly ourselves so it's all fair."
"We… came to make amends…" Elm said in a tender voice that seemed uncharacteristic. If Nova didn't see the sincerity behind her expression he'd have thought someone put them up to this.
"Look, we did what we did because we were blinded by loyalty. We thought James could do no wrong, and by the time we began second-guessing things it was already too late. If…" Vine continued.
"If we had just had minds of our own sooner… Harriet would still be alive." Marrow said coldly as he clenched his fists in rage.
Nova looked at them thoughtfully for a moment before wiping his hands with a napkin and lightly punching Marrow in the shoulder. "Listen, dude, you did what you thought was right at the time. I can fault you for making poor decisions but I can't fault that you were good soldiers."
"Soldiers… that's all we'll ever be." Marrow cursed.
"Dude, it's fine. The world is changing and you just need to adapt along with it. It's about what you do from here on, not about what you did in the past. Everyone deserves a second chance, it's only rare circumstances for a person to be rotten to the core."
"Like Salem?" Elm asked.
Nova nodded, "Salem, Onyx, Cinder. Nothing they do will ever justify the sheer amount of blood on their hands. I'm willing to forgive anyone… but not them…" he said darkly, his claws coming out and his pupils temporarily flaring into dragon irises.
"What if they were to change? Could you forgive them?" Vine followed, genuinely curious about the prince's mental state.
The dragon glanced up with a stoic expression, "Forgive them? Never. Tolerate them until they have justice exacted on them? Yes, begrudgingly. Besides…" he retracted his claws and picked up a piece of bread from the table and took a large bite, "People like that are poisoned to their souls. They can't change."
Marrow smirked, "Well I'm glad to hear that sentiment. If you'd turned out to be some sort of 'I forgive even my enemies because everyone can be saved' type of person I'd have thought, you delusional at best."
"Well, I'm going to bed…"
"Not before you see the doctor mister!" Elm said catching him by the collar.
Nova blanched, "Who made you my mom?!"
"Winter said not to let you sleep without a medical examination. Off with you!" she began shoveling him through the door.
After a thorough examination and some nutrition pills to help his deficiencies after being starved for a few days, Nova was finally able to sleep.
Wandering into their old dorms, which were thankfully still intact, Nova collapsed onto the bed. As he did so he was assaulted by the sweet scent of roses with only a light hint of gunpowder.
"Ruby…?" he muttered, glancing around the room he realized this wasn't his dorm but team RWBY's. Deciding to just lay in his partner's bed, he wistfully stared at the spot where she would have been.
Thoughts of her began to invade his mind, pulling his normally composed visage down as his emotions began to bubble up from the bottom where he'd been repressing them for so long. He missed her so much, he missed all of them. What was she up to now? Was she doing alright? Was she eating properly and getting enough sleep?
He was worried about her. About all of them, but while they all had each other and his mom to look after them, he was still concerned as to how they were holding up without him. These last few months had been traumatic, to say the least, and he wasn't there to heal with his team. Now that he thought about it… no one was there to heal him.
Images of Ruby's brilliant smile took residency in his thoughts as his eyes closed, a single tear leaking down his left eye as he breathed in the smell of roses, drifting into a bittersweet slumber, and though the blankets smelled like her, he found them rather cold compared to the real thing.
Setting out with a polished and sharpened Helios, a new white long coat that was embroidered with gold and burnt orange along the sleeves, Nova was prepared for this long and perilous journey. He wore a black undershirt followed by dark grey jeans and his favourite combat boots, he stepped onto the Airship. The wind swept through his newly cut hair which was wavy and longer at the front compared to the shortened back.
He had to spend some time in the forge, crafting a new belt buckle that sported his symbol. Honestly compared to how he was before, he spent extra care on hygiene since he wasn't sure the next time he'd get the chance, especially taking care to scrub his horns.
"You clean up rather nicely," Elm said as he boarded the ship.
Nova blinked, "Wait… what are you doing here?"
"We're your escorts to Argus, duh," Marrow said, spinning around from the pilot's chair.
"Aren't you supposed to be here?" Nova retorted.
Vine spun from the co-pilot seat, "Yeah but the journey won't take us more than 10 minutes. We figured we'd see you off one more time, and be there in case something bad happens."
"What makes you think something bad will happen?" Nova raised an eyebrow in suspicion.
"Because," Marrow folded his arms, "It's you."
"Of course…"
And that's a wrap. I'm not going to explore what happens to Onyx and Cinder who got thrown into the void for a little while. I have plans for them and for what happens in there but I want to focus on the main team for a little while. I hope the Oscar x Luna confession was to your guys' liking. Neo and Weiss development soon.
Until next time, see yah :D!
