And here's the next chapter! I actually had this one done before I started the four original chapters I just did.
The elevator door opened and he turned in his chair; she was here. Ozpin forced a smile as she came to his desk, taking the seat across from his. She rested her hands in her lap, smiling politely. Ozpin looked past her, at Qrow and Winter as they stood near the door, watching; Qrow slouching and Winter standing at attention.
"Thank you for coming, I hope that this isn't inconvenient." He said. She shook her head.
"Not at all, Professor. What did you need?" she asked.
"I just wanted to check in with you. How are you feeling? Are you excited to be going to the finals in the tournament? Your performance in the first two rounds has been exemplary."
"I've been feeling well, and yes, I'm excited to be going to the finals. Though I wouldn't have made it this far without my team."
Qrow snorted, snickering as Winter gave him a dirty look. She looked back at him, seeming to notice him and Winter for the first time. She stood up, hesitant.
"I'm sorry, I don't think we've been introduced."
"Name's Qrow," he said. Winter nodded at her.
"Captain Winter Schnee."
"Schnee? Like, Weiss?" Winter nodded.
"She's my younger sister." She looked back at Ozpin. He motioned for her to take her seat again.
"They're colleagues of mine." She gave them an odd look before returning to her seat. He pressed his hands together, his fingers interlocking. "Do you like fairy tales?" he asked. She cocked any eyebrow.
"I-I'm sorry?"
"Fairy tales; the myths and stories we are told as children; presenting an early religious or moral code. Surely you must remember some of them." The girl eyed him before speaking.
"I remember The Girl in the Tower, The Shallow Sea, and my mother told me some of the Faunus' fairy tales, like The Lion and The Crane, and-"
"Do you remember the Story of the Seasons?" he asked. She paused, thinking for a moment, before nodding.
"I do."
"Would you mind reciting that one? It has been so long since I've heard it. Your memory starts to wane when you get to be my age."
"Of course, Professor." She cleared her throat. "There was once a callous old wizard who was bitter about the world. He never left his home. Until one day he was visited by four traveling sisters. The oldest and wisest sister understood his anger and bitterness and desire to remain alone. So she urged him to use his time alone to reflect and to meditate."
"The second oldest began to bring him fruits, vegetables, and flowers; tending to his crops and reviving his long dead garden. The third sister spent time with the wizard, warming his heart and helping break the shell he had placed around himself. She helped him love and embrace the world around him once again."
"The youngest sister, seeing all that he had and all that her sisters had done for him, begged him to look at all that he had and to be thankful for the glory of the world, that Remnant was not as cold and horrible as he had thought it was. In return for their kindness, the wizard granted these four maidens incredible magical powers. So that they may continue to help others around the world, doing for others what they had done for him. They graciously accepted this gift, taking their leave and spreading to the four corners of Remnant to help the people of the world until the end of their days. They were known as Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall." She smiled at him.
"I can't believe I forgot the name of that story. It's my mother's favorite." Ozpin leaned back in his chair; it always warmed his heart hearing about them again.
"Would you believe me if I told you that that story has been around since I was a young boy?" She giggled.
"You're not that old, Professor." His face darkened.
"And what if I told you that it was all true?" She looked at him confusion, her mouth parting, her eyes widening.
"I-I'm sorry?"
"Have you ever noticed how similar the myths in many of the world's religions are? How despite their differences in beliefs, the Ishvaraian's, Brothers Church, and Followers of Dust all have stories about four young women who were gifted with powers and granted with the task of protecting the four core values of Remnant; Knowledge, Creation, Destruction, and Choice? How each continent has its own version of the Story of Seasons, most of them appearing around the same time and before mass communication was possible?" She shook her head.
"I…I've never noticed that, Professor. Fairy tales didn't interest me that much, and I'm not the most religious of people."
"What if I told you that the Maidens still existed? That there are four young women on Remnant right now who can wield devastating powers without the use of Dust." She leaned back in her seat, not looking at his eyes.
"Like, with their semblances?" He shook his head.
"With magic." She shook her head in disbelief. She looked back as Qrow and Winter walked over to her.
"First time you hear it, it sounds pretty batshit doesn't it?" Qrow said, crossing his arms. She looked at them, shaking her head. She looked back at him.
"Are you serious? Magic?" He leaned forward, she leaned away from him.
"Do I look like I'm joking?" She looked into his eyes, fidgeting as she looked for the nonexistent lie. She swallowed, and shook her head.
"Why. Why are you telling me all of this?" Ozpin looked away from her, at Winter. She nodded. Ozpin inhaled, closing his eyes.
"We're telling you all of this, Pyrrha Nikos, because we believe that you are next in line to receive the Fall maiden's powers."
Pyrrha's jaw dropped, shaking her head. The elevator pinged, the door sliding open. She looked behind her, watching Ironwood and Glynda walk into the room. Pyrrha rose from her chair, stepping away from them, shaking her head, her breathing unsteady.
"What is all of this?" she demanded. "This doesn't make any sense, who are all of you?"
Glynda stepped towards her, her arms spread open; trying not to scare Pyrrha.
"We're all the same people that you've gotten to know, Pyrrha. I'm still your combat professor. Ozpin and Ironwood are still the Headmasters of Beacon and Atlas. Nothing has changed, Pyrrha. You can trust us."
"We just got a part time job," Qrow said.
"We are the protectors of this world," Ironwood said.
"And we need your help, Pyrrha," Winter said.
Pyrrha swallowed, closing her mouth, her breathing slowing as they watched her.
The elevator was cramped as it descended; the deathly quiet eating at her nerves. She looked at the panel, they had passed the bottom floor and were still going.
"Where are we going?" she asked hesitantly.
"Beneath the school, to its Vault." Ozpin said.
The elevator descended without noise, seeming to go on forever. It stopped, the doors sliding open. They stepped out, their steps echoing. She stared in shock at the hallway before her.
The floors were marble, torches lining the stone pillars, green fire igniting as they passed each pillar. She saw no end to the hallway, just an endless black void. She took a tentative step out of the elevator, her heel clicking against the stone, the sound echoing around her. Glynda stopped, looking back, waiting for her to catch up.
"You must have a lot of questions." Glynda said, walking alongside her. Pyrrha nodded.
"I don't fully understand what's going on." She motioned towards Ozpin and the others. "You said that I was next in line to receive the Maiden's power but what do you mean by that?"
"The Maidens have existed for eons, but much like in nature, the seasons change."
"Which means?"
"When a Maiden dies, her abilities are transferred to a new host. The Maidens have incredibly, terrible power, but they are not immortal. No one Maiden can hold onto her power forever, and whether she likes it or not, it will go to a newer, younger woman when she dies."
"How does this power get transferred? Is it random? Is it a bloodline?" Pyrrha asked.
"Through a series of stupidly convoluted rules. We wish it was as easy as a bloodline, makes it much easier to keep track of."
"Qrow." Winter said, annoyed.
"Don't get pissed cause I'm right. Shit's stupidly hard to track." Glynda sighed, and adjusted her glasses as she walked.
"We aren't entirely sure if we have the exact method down yet. When this order first started protecting the Maidens, all it knew was that the powers were transferred to young women; regardless of whether or not that was what they had been assigned at birth. As time went on this order managed to learn that the process is a tad more intimate."
Pyrrha felt heat creep into her cheeks.
"Intimate?" she asked quietly.
"Our current theory is that when a Maiden dies, the powers are transferred to the last woman in her thoughts."
"Unless it's some old hag. Then it just goes to someone at random. Which is a pain in the ass to track down." He looked back at Glynda with a smirk. "If you were about twenty years younger, Glynda, we wouldn't be in this mess." Glynda glowered at him as he turned away with a chuckle.
"Why are you telling me all of this? Wouldn't it be better if I was a fully-fledged Huntress? I'm still in training."
"We have run out of time." Winter said.
"Don't know if you've noticed but the world's going to hell in a handbasket. Tension between the Kingdoms, Grimm growing stronger and attacking more and more. It's only a matter of time before this long peace we've all loved so much ends and a new age of darkness begins."
Anxiety ate at her gut, weighing her down.
"Is… is a new Great War going to happen?" She asked.
"In a worst case scenario, yes. But the war that is happening right now is not between the Kingdoms." Ironwood said. Qrow looked back at her.
"We can give you all the details once we know you are on our side. Right now all you need to know is that one of the Maidens was attacked and a part of her power taken away."
Ozpin and the other's began to slow down, coming to a stop. The torches on the walls ignited, the black void disappearing. Pyrrha gasped; a large machine sat against the wall, bathing in the green fire light. Two pods were hooked up to a large central component, long transparent tubes connecting the two pods. A body was in the right pod.
"I-is that…?" Ozpin sighed, nodding his head.
"That is the current Fall Maiden, Amber Cadere."
Pyrrha stared at the body; she was naked, her skin a dark brown. A long ugly scar covered the left side of her face, her left eye missing, a scarred fleshy blob where her eye should have been. Wires and tubes were hooked up to her body, and Pyrrha could hear a gentle beeping coming from the machine. Amber's body shook as she took a breath.
"How much time does she have?" Pyrrha asked.
"We're using state of the art Atlas technology to keep her stable but we can't keep her alive forever. We expect her to pass relatively soon." Ironwood sighed. "And we're not entirely sure what will happen when she passes."
"Her power will transfer to the next candidate, right?"
"Under normal circumstances, yes." Winter said.
"But this is a very delicate situation. Amber was made catatonic after she was attacked. It's not wrong to believe that her attacker may be the last person she thinks of when she dies. To make it even worse, we've never seen a Maiden have her powers split; even if her attacker isn't the last person in her thoughts, will the remains of her power just want to go to its other half?"
"And that woman having the powers of a Maiden would not bode well for any of us." Ozpin added.
Pyrrha looked at Amber's body; the wires and tubes and scars. She stepped forward, standing in front of her pod, resting a hand on the glass. She could hear Amber's strained breathing. She turned to them, clenching her hand into a fist.
"Why? Why not tell everyone about the Maidens? Why are you allowing the world to get so close to a new war?" she asked them. Glynda stepped forward.
"This order was founded due to the Maidens being common knowledge." Pyrrha shook her head.
"That makes no sense."
"Listen kid, I know you're still in school and haven't seen much of the real world, but even you have got to know what would happen if everyone knew about four mortal beings with unimaginable power. That you can have the powers of a god if you slayed one of them." Qrow said. He pulled out his flask before pocketing it at the death glare Winter gave him. Glynda stepped forward.
"This order was founded thousands of years ago to protect the Maidens and the Silver Eye bloodline. Those who hungered for power hunted the Maidens, or would try and control them, turning them into weapons."
"And the ones who succeeded were not the kind of people you would want having unimaginable power." Qrow said.
"So this order took it upon itself to remove the Maidens from the public, turning them into nothing but a story." Winter said.
"This knowledge goes against thousands of years of Remnant history; it conflicts with the stories in all of Remnant's major religions." Glynda said.
"If the Maidens became public knowledge again it would cause a panic, and we all know what would come crawling at each Kingdom's walls." Ozpin sighed. "And that is why we want you to become the next Fall Maiden."
Pyrrha looked at Amber, her nails biting into her hand.
"You want me to kill her? To take her power?" she asked quietly.
"We would never make you do something like that, Pyrrha." Ozpin said. He extended his hand to her. "Given her condition, we are not going to risk her power's being transferred-" he paused as he thought of the word "Naturally." He turned, looking at Ironwood. "General Ironwood believes he has come up with a solution." Ironwood stepped forward.
"For the past few years, Atlas has been studying aura, trying to understand the science behind our souls. How the soul works, what it's made of, how our auras and semblances use it. We have made significant strides; we've learned how to capture a soul as a person dies." Qrow scowled, his voice dripping with venom.
"Capture it and cram it into some hunk of metal." Ironwood's lip twitched, his gloved hand balling into a fist. Qrow looked over at her. "Or in your case, force Amber's soul into your body."
Pyrrha's knees shook, backing away from Ironwood. Her gut was in knots, she grabbed her arms, trying to stop herself from shaking.
"That's-"
"What needs to be done." Ironwood said. He couldn't look at her. Pyrrha shook her head vehemently.
"No! That's wrong! That's evil! You're going to take what makes Amber a person, and-and-" she couldn't finish. She backed away from them, hitting the glass. Glynda and Qrow glared at Ironwood. Winter's face was a mask that Pyrrha couldn't read.
"The feeling is mutual, Pyrrha," Glynda said. She sighed, crossing her arms. "But unfortunately, desperate times call for desperate measures."
Ironwood shoved past Glynda, stepping towards her. Pyrrha leaned back against the glass. His gaze was stern.
"And these are desperate times. I can't transfer Amber's powers to you but I can give you what those powers are bound to, and we can prevent the enemy from gaining them." Pyrrha stuttered as she spoke, she could feel sweat drip down her side.
"What would that do to me? What would happen to my soul?" Ironwood looked away.
"Now there's the million lien question. We have no clue what will happen. Last time this machine was used the other participant didn't have a soul to begin with, and it left her without any memories when it was done. We have no idea what would happen this time. It might even kill you." Qrow said.
Winter stepped forward, her arms resting behind her back.
"We are giving you a choice Pyrrha; you can go about your life like before or you can become the next Fall Maiden. But we understand how overwhelming all of this is, and that it may be too much for you to bear." Winter's mask broke, just for a sliver of a second but Pyrrha could see the fear and anxiety in her eyes. "I was the original candidate Ironwood chose for this procedure. If you don't want to go through with this, I will do it in your place." Pyrrha saw her swallow, her breathing slightly less calm than it had been before.
"You said you're Weiss' older sister, right?" Winter nodded as she answered
"I am."
"And if you were to become the new Maiden, Weiss would lose you?" The briefest of hesitation.
"She would. And I am prepared to make any sacrifice for the good of Remnant." Winter said. She looked at each of them, at their stern expressions, the expectation for her to do as they ask.
"We understand that this is a huge decision to make, Pyrrha, and we don't expect you to have an answer right now." Glynda said, smiling reassuringly. Ozpin rested his hands on his cane as he spoke.
"But we will need it soon. We must know your decision by the end of the Festival." She turned to face Amber, resting her hand on the glass as she looked into her disfigured face. "The woman who did this is planning an attack on Beacon, and we don't know when it will come." Pyrrha saw her reflection in the glass.
Yang smirked, resting her hand on her hip as the crowd cheered, and the cameras flew around filming all of them. The arena's floodlights were a tad harsh, but that was better than fighting in the dark. She looked away from the cameras, looking down the line of other fighters. It was nice to have Pyrrha and Penny in the finals with her, but she hoped she wouldn't have to fight either of them. Ruby might not like it if she beat her girlfriend to a pulp. Not after the break down Penny just had.
"Ladies and gentlemen it's the moment you have all been waiting for; the one on one finals!" Port boomed. The cheering got louder, thunderously loud now. "Barty, care to go over the rules for the finals?"
"Of course, Peter. In this final round there will be no bracket system, each fight is determined at random right before the match. No time to prepare beforehand, just straight into the fight. And let's see who our first fighters will be!"
The arena screens went blank before two panels appeared, spinning through each of the fighters pictures at high speeds. It slowed down, the first one stopping on a pale man with gray hair.
MERCURY BLACK
The second panel began to slow down, and Yang's smirk grew.
XIAO LONG YANG
"Will all other contestants please leave the combat arena." Port said.
The arena stage cleared, Mercury giving her a smirk as the floor rose into the air, the spotlights on them.
"Better not go easy on me," she said with a wink. Mercury chuckled.
"You wish," he said.
Yang took a stance, her fists raised, her gauntlets sliding into place. Mercury shifted his legs, raising his hands, palms open. Port counted down, his voice bellowing over the speaker
"Fight!"
Yang threw a punch with a yell, her fist colliding with Mercury's boot. He grunted, jumping back. He charged her, his foot shooting out. Yang sidestepped him, punching him in the side. He hissed in pain, throwing up an arm to block her other hook. He swung at her, she ducked; his form was awful. She yelled in surprise as she was kicked in the gut, getting knocked back.
She slid to a halt, gnashing her teeth. He gave her a confident grin. She scowled, and opened fire. He sprinted towards her, zig zagging as he ran, her shotgun blasts sparking against the arena floor. He leapt into the air with a yell, his leg hurling towards her. She threw her crossed wrists over her head, grunting as his boot landed.
He kicked her with his free leg, back flipping off of her and landing. She fired, gasping as he ducked low before springing up, kicking her in the chin. Her jaw slammed shut, biting her tongue, blood filling her mouth.
His body whirled as he went for a roundhouse kick. Yang caught his boot, gritting her teeth, and tossing him to the side. He hit the arena floor, grunting as Yang leapt at him. He sprang to his feet, Yang's foot crushing the spot his head been. She spun towards him, grabbing him by the arm and yanking him backwards. He yelped in surprise before she punched him in the gut. She grabbed his shoulder, pounding into his chest and stomach with her fist, yelling with each blow.
Mercury head-butted her, his forehead slamming into her nose. She staggered back as pain shot through her. Mercury's kicked her shin, kneeing her in the face as she fell. She grit her teeth, ignoring the pain as he went for another kick. She ducked, her body contorting as she dodged his kicks. She swung her body, swiping his legs out from underneath him. She sprang up, slamming her fist into his nose, knocking him to the floor.
He sat up, glaring at her. He wiped the blood off his nose before charging at her. His kicks were relentless, his speed almost inhuman. His boot shot out at her legs, stomach, her head, her sides, every time she dipped and ducked around his blows his boot slammed into her. She grit her teeth and leapt back as he swung his leg in a wide sweep. She saw him sneer as he raised his leg, and fired. She fired, their blasts collided in the air, sparks raining down. She kept firing, yelling as the smoke and sparks filled the air.
Click!
Her eyes widened; she forgot to bring more ammo.
Mercury sprinted out of the smoke, smirking as he jumped towards her. Yang screamed as a blast fired from his boot as it collided with her stomach. She fell to the ground, clutching her stomach in pain. Mercury snickered, walking towards her. He stopped in front of her, glaring down at her. He smirked as he raised his boot.
"Say goodnight, blondie." He stomped down, and Yang caught his foot with a scream. She felt her hair ignite, her blood burning as she threw him off. He yelled in surprise, landing on his back. Yang pounced on him, screaming. She pinned his body to the floor, grabbing him by the neck and slamming her fist into his face. She pounded and pounded, slamming his head against the floor. He tried to grab her hands, struggling to grab her wrists. She bit him, causing him to scream in pain, reeling his hands back. She tightened her grip on his neck and head-butted him, blood spraying from his nose and onto her. She saw a flicker of white light around him as he groaned in pain. She raised her fist, and swung it at his face. Her fist froze, millimeters from his face as a buzzer rang.
"Mercury's aura has been completely depleted! Ms. Xiao Long is the winner!" Oobleck declared.
"And what an explosive way to start the finals!" Port added.
Yang got off of him, wiping the sweat and blood off of her face. She smiled at him as he lay groaning in pain.
"Better luck next time," she said. Mercury staggered to his feet, swaying where he stood, blood running down his face. He sneered at her
"There's not gonna be a next time, bitch." His leg shot out and Yang's eyes widened. She slammed her fist down, striking his knee with a sickening crunch. Mercury screamed in pain, collapsing and grabbing his leg, red starting to spread from his knee.
The audience screamed in horror, gasps and boo's intermingled with the screams.
"Cut the feed!" Port ordered.
Yang snorted as she watched him writhe in pain, clutching his broken leg.
"That's what you get." She said. She took a step towards him, freezing as she heard running behind her. She turned and saw Atlesian Knight's and an Atlas soldier halt in front of her, their rifles aimed at her.
"Stand down!" The soldier yelled. She stared at them in confusion. She jabbed a finger at Mercury, who continued to scream in agony.
"That bitch nugget had it coming!" she said. The soldier motioned with his hand, the Atlesian Knights encircling her. She heard the rifles click as the safeties were switched off.
"Relinquish your weapon and stand down! We don't want to shoot!" The soldier shouted.
"Mercury!" Yang saw Emerald run into the stage, sliding next to Mercury, her eyes widening in shock as she looked at his broken leg. She glared up at Yang, her eyes full of hate.
Yang looked around in confusion, at the guns aimed at her, the crowd's horrified faces. She slowly looked back, seeing the arena screen for the first time.
The image had frozen on her punching Mercury's knee. No. No that was impossible. Mercury was still on the ground in the image. No. No, no, no, no. She saw him get up, that couldn't be real. The soldier stepped forward, tightening the grip on his rifle.
"Stand down! Now! We will fire!" He yelled.
She slowly raised her hands, getting down to her knees. She heard the soldier run up, wrenching her gauntest off of her wrists. He shoved her down, grabbing her wrists and holding them behind her back. She stared up at the still image, something warm and wet running down her cheeks.
This couldn't be real.
And that's it! Next chapter is the last original chapter for V3. It will be about Amber.