Arlene's head hurt. Her vision was hazy, her hearing muffled. As she blinked her eyes awake, the bright, morning sun stung her eyes, despite the cool mist around her providing minimal shade. Arlene's entire body ached as well. She could feel a combination of bruises and the familiar sensation of a hangover send signals of pain throughout. Her wrists hurt the most. Confused as to why that was, Arlene's eyes widened as she saw that her hands were bound. Not only that, but she was sitting on the back of a horse-drawn cart, surrounded by three burly looking Nords in similar bonds around her.
"Hey you, you're finally awake." The muscular, blonde haired Nord wearing a blue cuirass in front of her said. "You were trying to cross the border right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that horse thief over there."
Arlene slowly turned her head. To her right was a brown haired Nord, obviously a noble by the fine robes and furs he was wearing. Strangely enough though, he seemed to be gagged while the rest of them had their mouths free. Meanwhile, diagonal to her, was a grubbier looking Nord, wearing rags like her and covered in dirt.
At his words, the thief and the blonde began arguing while Arlene tried to recall what had occurred last night. She had planned on coming to Skyrim for a while, but she never had enough gold to pay the exorbitant tolls the Empire used to finance their Legions. So, after finishing off that last bottle of Alto wine, she decided to dust off her old stealth skills and attempt to sneak her way across the border. But pretty much right after she got through, she accidentally stumbled into an entire Imperial Cohort. Arlene knew some God was laughing at her misfortune, but she didn't know which.
As this all came back to her, she let her head hang as she muttered out, "Fuck."
This drew the attention of the Blonde Nord back to her. "You feeling alright lass?" he asked.
"Feeling a lot of things right now." Arlene grumbled. "Regret. Depression. A real mean hangover."
The blonde man chuckled as the gagged noble beside her gave her a strange, confused look.
"What's the matter with him?" the horse thief asked, gesturing to the noble.
"Watch your tongue!" The blonde snarled. "You're speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak. The true High King!"
Arlene had no idea who that was.
"Ulfric? The Jarl of Windhelm?" the horse thief conveniently explained, before his eyes went wide in realization. "You're the leader of the rebellion. But if they captured you… Oh gods, where are they taking us?!"
Jarl? Was that some kind of Count? Damn humans and all of their convoluted social hierarchy. The second part of the statement caught her attention though. Leader of the rebellion. She heard rumors of war in Skyrim down South, but didn't pay too much attention to it. If the gagged noble next to her was really the leader, then there's only one place they were going to send them. Arlene sighed. This was a fitting end, she supposed. After everything she's done, death by an Imperial headsman seemed like good karmic punishment.
The horse thief immediately began to freak out, praying to any god that would listen to him for deliverance. Meanwhile the blonde nord seemed to assent to his current circumstances, instead allowing himself to be lost within his nostalgia of the town, talking of lost love and juniper berries. Soon enough, they reached the end of the line as the carts rode into Helgen's town square, the Imperial Army already set up for an execution. The prisoners were herded out of the carts by the guards, and unsurprisingly, besides her and the thief, they all seemed to be the blue-clad rebels.
To her annoyance, the horse thief stood next to Arlene and cried out, "No! Wait! We're not rebels!" The thief looked on the verge of tears while Arlene only rolled her eyes.
"Face your death with some courage, thief." The blonde rebel grumbled out. "Look at the she-elf there, you don't see her mewling like a milkmaid."
Arlene glared at the blonde before looking back forward. No point in starting a fight here and getting a premature execution. Might as well draw this out for as long as she could.
The thief wasn't dissuaded however. "You've got to tell them! We weren't with you! This is a mistake!"
Then, a female Imperial officer, a Captain, if Arlene's memory of Imperial armor ranks was accurate, yelled out over him. "Step towards the block when we call your name. One at a time!"
"Empire loves their damn lists." The blonde growled under his breath.
Next to the Captain, a broad shouldered Nord with brown hair looked down at his book. "Ulfric Stormcloak. Jarl of Windhelm." The noble stepped forward, stoic and proud despite the situation, and made his way to the block.
"It has been an honor, Jarl Ulfric." The blonde said.
"Ralof of Riverwood." was the next name called. The blonde gave Arlene a curt nod, before walking to the block himself.
"Lokir of Rorikstead."
The thief panicked when his name was called. "No, I'm not a rebel! You can't do this!" With a burst of flight or fight adrenaline, the thief shoved his way past Arlene and sprinted through the Imperial lines. The Captain called for him to halt, but Lokir kept running. "You're not going to kill me!" he cried out.
A single order to the archers proved him wrong. As the guards picked up Lokir's dead body off the ground, the Nord calling out the names looked at Arlene, his brows furrowed in confusion.
"Wait. You there. Step forward." He called out. Arlene obliged. "Who, are you?"
Arlene sighed. "Arlene, no clan or hold name." she abandoned those long ago.
"Not many wood elves would choose to come alone to Skyrim." The Nord legionnaire looked down at his book, then back at the officer. "Captain. What should we do? She's not on the list."
"Forget the list. She goes to the block." she commanded.
"By your orders, Captain. Follow the captain, prisoner." the Nord said. At the very least, he looked genuinely sorry to put Arlene in this position.
Arlene just shrugged to him as she followed the crowd of prisoners and took her place in line to the headsman. An older Imperial in ornate armor walked up to Ulfric and began talking about his crimes. General Tullius, she recalled Ralof calling him. Arlene zoned out as they did, she honestly couldn't care less about their posturing or their war. However, a roar in the distance drew everyone's attention.
"What was that?" The Nord Legionnaire asked, concern coloring his voice.
"It's nothing. Carry on." General Tullious ordered.
That… was not nothing, Arlene thought to herself. Arlene, having been a ranger for years, knew what animals sounded like. She heard the howls of wolves and roars of bears. She'd seen massive lions in Elsweyr and griffons in the Summerset Isles. None of those sounded anywhere near as terrifying as whatever made that noise.
The execution continued on however. A priestess of Arkay began their last rites, only to be interrupted by an impatient prisoner who seemed eager to join his ancestors in the next world. The crowd surrounding broke out into both cheers and condemnation as the rebel's head fell into a wooden crate, and the executer kicked the body off the block.
"Next, the elf!" The captain called out.
Before Arlene had a chance to step forward, the roar came again, this time louder and definitely closer. Arlene froze and looked up to the sky, an action mirrored by those around her.
"There it is again. Did you hear that?" The Nord Legionnaire asked once more.
"I said, next prisoner!" The captain gritted through her teeth.
The Nord sighed. "To the block, prisoner. Nice and easy."
Arlene slowly approached the chopping block with resigned acceptance. She found it a little disappointing that she came all this way to end her journey here, but she supposed that was just how life worked. A life full of pain, disappointment, and then she dies. Reaching the still bloody chopping block, Arlene kneeled down, turning her head to the side so she could at least look the headsman in the eyes as he did the deed.
As Arlene watched the headsman raise his axe high, her eyes widened. Not from the sight of the man about to kill her, but at the sight of a fucking dragon coming right towards her. As the executioner brought his axe above his head, the dragon landed on the watchtower behind him, knocking him off balance. The dragon let out a roar that sounded more like thunder tearing apart the sky. And it must've done just that as the sky changed colors, shifting from blue to orange as fire rained down from above.
The scene immediately erupted into chaos. All around her, Imperial legionnaires were crying out, launching spells and arrows at the dragon that only seemed to ping off of its blacked armor. The attack seemed to distract everyone around her as she stood up and no one tried to capture her. She wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, or in this case a gift dragon. Especially when said dragon was burning people alive with its firebreath.
"Hey Elf!" The familiar voice of Ralof called out, no longer bound by his rope. "Get up! Come on, the gods won't give us another chance!"
Ralof took off running for a nearby watchtower, and Arlene moved to follow him. If the Imperials wanted to go toe to toe with a dragon, they could be her guest. She wanted to live. The next moments passed in an adrenaline fueled blur. Arlene ran up the tower, and was nearly incinerated as the dragon broke through the wall itself and released a torrent of fire. She then had to jump from the breach in the tower to a nearby burning inn, keeping a fast pace as the dragon burned the village around her.
Outside of the Tavern, Arlene caught sight of the Nordic Legionnaire once more, calling to a young boy to get into cover. Just as they ducked out of sight of the dragon, the beast spewed another stream of flames. The Nord, having caught sight of Arlene, then called out to her.
"Still alive prisoner? Keep close to me if you want to stay that way." he barked out.
He was the one with the sword, so Arlene wasn't going to argue. The Legionnaire, whose name Arlene finally learned was Hadvar from a local, pushed forward to the largest concentration of Imperials shooting into the sky in vain. Running through the burning town Arlene and Hadvr crouched behind a wall, getting ready to sprint to General Tullius' position, when the ground shook at the sound of the dragon landing above them.
"YOL… TOOR… SHUL!" The dragon roared, spewing fire from its maw.
Arlene fell to the ground, curling up into a ball as a large, black claw crushed the wall beside her, gripping onto the stonework. The dragon continued to roar as flames charred a half a dozen imperials in seconds. Arlene covered her ears at the sound, screaming as the tears that fell down her face instantly evaporated from the heat.
The dragon didn't seem to notice Arlene's panicked cries of terror as it leaped off the wall and took off to the skies once more. Arlene remained curled up on the ground, shaking in terror. This was all too much for her. Nothing about this whole situation made sense. She was going to die here, a charred, crispy corpse for the dragon to gnaw on. She made no motion to move as despair took over.
She felt someone grab the crook of her arm and lift her up. "Come on! Get up!" Hadvar yelled, yanking Arlene to her feet.
As Hadvar ran forward, Arlene dumbly followed, unsure of anything else to do. Running through another burning house, the duo reached the last of the Imperials, legionnaires loosing arrows and shooting firebolts into the sky while General Tullis spat out orders.
The General saw them approached and yelled, "Hadvar! Into the keep soldier, we're leaving!"
General Tullius' forces began to push out of the front gate, drawing the attention of the dragon while Hadvar grabbed onto Arlene once more and began making his way to the keep. "It's you and me, prisoner. Stay close!"
As they approached the keep, a familiar face intercepted them. Ralof, the blonde Stormcloak rebel, now armed with a sword of his own. The two nords stopped and stared at one another, hate and anger apparent in their faces, but tempered by current circumstances.
"Ralof! You damned traitor!" Hadvar barked. "Out of my way!"
"We're escaping, Hadvar. You're not stopping us this time." Ralof snapped back. Arlene could tell he didn't want to fight, but would if Hadvar attempted to stop him.
Hadvar relented first. "Fine. I hope that dragon takes you all to Sovngarde! Let's go prisoner, I'll cut you loose in the keep!"
"You!" Ralof pointed to Arlene. "Come on, into the keep!"
Huh. Two burly nord men fighting for Arlene's attention. Well something good had to come out of today she supposed. And neither were bad looking as well. The dragon roared once more, snapping Arlene out of her fantasy, and she made a snap decision to run after Hadvar. At the very least he was more courteous and less blatantly racist than Ralof.
Once inside the keep, Arlene felt her adrenaline dip as she felt she was out of immediate danger. To his word, Hadvar cut Arlene's bindings, freeing her wrists as he made some idle talk about the dragon and some myth about End Times.
"There you go. Take a look around, there should be some gear you can choose from. I'm going to see if I can find something for these burns." Hadvar said.
Nodding her head once more, Arlene moved to follow Hadvar's orders. In a nearby chest, she found a set of light Imperial leather armor, and an iron sword on a nearby weapon rack. Arlene found it ironic that she was now donning the armor of the men who had just tried to kill her, but practicality took precedence over anything else right now.
"You better get that armor on." Hadvar called out from behind her while applying a white salve to his burns. "Give that sword a few swings too."
Not wanting to waste any time, Arlene began to strip, removing the ragged tunic she was wearing and exposing her bare torso. As she began to untie the rope that held up her trousers, her sixth sense told her she was being watched. Peering over her shoulder, she saw Hadvar staring at her, wide-eyed and face tomato red.
"Uh… do you mind?" she practically whispered.
Hadvar coughed into his hand and averted his eyes, suddenly becoming very interested in the corner of the room. "Sorry." he mumbled.
Arlene lightly chuckled as she slipped out of her trousers and put on the armor. The armor consisted mostly of a leather vest and skirt, worn over a thick, red tunic. The style was familiar and comfortable to Arlene, giving her basic protection that didn't impede her movement. The sword wasn't honed to even a fine edge, but was still sharp enough that it would kill a man with enough effort.
"Done." Arlene weakly announced.
Hadvar was sure to give a quick peek behind to make sure she was decent before fully turning around. "Right…" Hadvar ignored what just happened and made sure to avoid looking at Arlene. "Let's keep moving, that thing is still out there."
Arlene nodded, more than happy to let Hadvar take the lead. Together they worked their way through the interior of the dungeon. Everytime Hadvar would give an order, Arlene would meekly follow. Luckily, within the keep Arlene found that things once more began to make sense. Instead of dodging a flying dragon, intent on burning everyone alive, the duo would engage blue-clad rebels similarly trying to escape the carnage. Arlene focused on following Hadvar's commands and killing the Stomcloaks, shoving any thoughts of the dragon out of her mind, pretending it didn't even exist.
Arlene would hide in the shadows, letting Hadvar attract the attention of any errant Stormcloaks they came across as she flanked them from behind. It was dirty fighting that no respectable Nord would partake in, but it's regrettably the only way she really knew how to fight. After all, fighting in a straight fight wasn't all that fair and honorable when every Nord she came across had twice the muscle mass she did.
Once they made their way out of the keep's dungeons, they found that the dungeons led to a natural cave system that provided a secret way out of the village. Hadvar provided her with a simple recurve hunting bow, which felt far more natural in her hands than the sword. After a well placed sneak attack on a local cave bear, the duo eventually found an escape into the nearby forest. Arlene found it strange that there just happened to conveniently be an escape here, but she chose not to question it and decided that the Gods work in mysterious ways.
Taking in a breath of fresh air, Arlene allowed herself a near manic laugh as they narrowly escaped death, letting the relief wash over her. As Hadvar approached her from behind to see if she was ok, a thunderous roar echoed through the sky once more. Hadvar instantly dropped low, crouching behind a boulder as the black dragon flew overhead. Arlene jumped as soon as the dragon roared, practically throwing herself into Hadvar's arms, unable to control her shaking.
"Whoa!" Hadvar cried out as Arlene latched onto him. Unsure of what to do, Hadvar awkwardly put his hands around Arlene in an attempt to comfort the traumatized elf. "Hey uh… you're ok. You're ok, I got you."
It took nearly a full minute after the dragon had flown off into the distance for Arlene to work up the nerve to let go of Hadvar, realizing the awkwardness of their embrace.
"Uh… sorry." Arlene gave a weak smile. "It's been… a long day."
"Heh, you're telling me." Hadvar chuckled, before looking back to the sky after the dragon. "Looks like he's gone for good this time. But I don't think we should stick around to see if he comes back. Closest town from here is Riverwood. My uncle's the blacksmith there. I'm sure he'd help you out."
Arlene nodded her head, grabbing her arm as she looked at the ground. "Yeah… yeah that sounds like a good idea." She then looked back up to her companion. "What about you?"
"I can walk with you to Riverwood, rest there as well, but afterwards it'd probably be best if we split up. The Legion will need my help. But I do want to say, I wouldn't have made it with your help today. And while we may not have made the best impression today, you should go to Solitude and join up with the Legion. We could really use someone like you."
Arlene felt herself brighten at the praise. Wow, her first real compliment in Gods know how many years. Usually the best she would get were other mercs calling out how tight her butt looked. Of course, she had no real intention on joining the Legion, as getting involved in the war was one of the last things on her mind, right next to fighting that black dragon. But it still felt good to be praised.
"Maybe, who knows what the future holds." Arlene shrugged before moving forward along the road. "But before that, some food and rest at your uncle's sounds lovely." And with that Arlene took her first real steps on her newest adventure in Skyrim.
Beacon Academy, Present Day…
Arlene groggily awoke, her crusty eyes straining to open. As they did, her sight focused on the sleeping face of Serana beside her, highlighted by the morning rays peeking through the curtains. Arlene smiled. While bed itself wasn't the pinnacle of comfort, there was nothing better than waking up in the embrace of a lover. Inching herself closer, Arlene placed a kiss on the vampire princess's lips, stirring her from her slumber as well.
"Morning." Arlene purred.
"Uggggh." Serana groaned, not wishing to leave the realm of dreams yet and buried her head back in her pillow.
The Dragonborn smirked. There was some kind of joke about a vampire not being a morning person, but she thought it was too easy. Gingerly plucking herself out of their bed, Arlene strode her nude form to the bathroom. Turning the nozzle of the shower, Arlene let the warm water flow over her, massaging her body. If there was anything Arlene loved about this world, it wasn't their powers, or their weapons, but their baths and showers.
Arlene had been to various bathhouses and hot springs in Tamriel. And she had very fond memories of visiting the priestess in the Temple of Dibella's secret bathhouse. Heh, good times. But to have hot, clean water like this on demand? Without the use of magic? Revolutionary. She'd give half her fortune to have these installed in her various manors and homes.
Her morning shower done, Arlene dried herself and moved to decide what to wear for today. With a snap of her fingers, a set of black and red vampire armor requipped over her form. She looked at herself in the mirror for a bit, before snapping her fingers again, her outfit shifting to the Dark Brotherhood's Shrouded Armor. After a few more seconds of thought, she shook her head, and with a final snap, she was requipped with her Nightingale Armor. While she wanted to change it up, this was the armor Ozpin and the others first saw her weeks ago, and she wanted to be very careful in showing what she had available.
Two weeks. That's how long the vampire sisters have been in Remnant for already. And they did not spend that time idle. Every day, the two vampires spent learning more and more about the world of Remnant, about its culture, history, and technology. Both women were fast learners, and a crash course from Glynda was all they needed to gain a proficiency with most of the world's appliances. She also taught them about Dust, its uses and applications, in addition to the many types of new weapons the world had developed.
Dust was something both Arlene and Serana found baffling. They were like Soul Gems, but instead of containing the souls of creatures, they held concentrated destruction or alteration magic. Serana had immediately begun collecting as much as she could for further experimentation, while Arlene began to integrate them into her weapons, creating dust crystal arrowheads. The creation of firearms were also baffling to them. A small, indignant part of Arlene's elven pride argued that her bows were the superior projectile weapon, but she knew that was a lie. The speed, rate of fire, and accuracy of such weapons were jaw dropping to her. Through the school, she was able to acquire an Atlesian pistol and pulse rifle, and would set herself to master this new way of fighting.
Beyond that, the perks of living within a school became apparent when the other professors also volunteered their time to teach the two vampires about Remnant. Doctor Oobleck was more than happy to teach them about Remnant's history and cultures, while Professor Port educated them on the various types of Grimm and how to combat them, and Professor Peach taught them of the world's many plants and medicines. Years worth of knowledge were being crammed into them over the course of weeks by the more than eccentric teachers, but the two women were prodigious students and consumed the knowledge greedily. While two weeks wasn't enough time to become experts, they had more than enough foundational knowledge that they could operate on this world without drawing suspicion.
So, with her outfit for the day chosen, Arlene left her bathroom just in time for Serana to groggily trudge in after her. The elder vampire gave a small yelp as Arlene stealthily pinched her bottom as they walked past one another. Serana turned and scowled at Arlene, pouting before she closed the bathroom. Arlene only returned a playful smirk. She'd admit, she was probably a little over excited, but today was an important day! Today was the arrival day for the prospective students. Children from all over Remnant were going to be testing themselves in Beacon's initiation tomorrow, all in order to become some of the greatest warriors Remnant has ever seen. And who better to train, develop, and manipulate them than Arlene herself. The idea of having dozens or hundreds of huntsmen and huntresses loyal to her was making her giddy.
A few minutes later, Serana was bathed and dressed as well and the duo left their rooms to go meet with Professors Ozpin and Goodwitch in order to prepare themselves for the new arrivals. The duo found the headmaster and his assistant within his office, sipping his usual cup of coffee.
"Ah, Arlene, Serana, please come in." Ozpin greeted as they entered.
"Ozpin." Arlene returned a neutral nod.
"I'm glad the two of you have arrived so early. How was your rest?" Ozpin asked.
"Rest?" Arlene raised a brow as she smirked. "All honesty, not the best. Had some excess energy we needed to burn off, all night long- ugh" Arlene grunted as Serana elbowed her for her salacious gossip.
Glynda rolled her eyes, already used to Arlene's juvenile nature, and if Ozpin was affected by the comments, he didn't show it.
"It is good to be, young I suppose." Ozpin said, taking the comment in stride. "Regardless, the two of you both remember your tasks for today?"
"Of course, Professor Ozpin." Serana cut in, seeking to ensure that Arlene stayed on track. "We need to keep an eye out for any potential troublemakers, and ensure that we are not seen by the students."
"Indeed." Ozpin nodded. "Now, as you've been told, your cover story is that you are both huntresses graduated from Shade, that lived in the Vacuan village of Tuff. When the town was destroyed several years ago by the grimm, you then left Vacuo. But being faunus, you didn't particularly feel welcome in any major settlement in any of the other kingdoms. So you spent your next years living a nomadic lifestyle within the wilderness, honing your skills are rangers and huntresses, after which you were recruited by an agent of mine. Impressed with your skills, he then brought you to Beacon where Arlene was given the invitation to become a professor."
Arlene grinned. "Save for the fact that we're from another world, that is pretty much the truth." That was a lie.
The discovery of Fanus on this world was perhaps the greatest boon the vampires could have stumbled upon, save for reversing time and hiding their magic. The fact that Ozpin and the other professors weren't surprised by Arlene's appearance made her believe that they had elves here as well. But the truth was, that they had mistaken both her and Serana for bat fanus, and the two women were in no hurry to correct them. This meant that their capabilities as vampires would be unknown and hidden from Beacon's staff, something that they will make full use of.
Ozpin returned the smile. "All good lies remain as close to the truth as possible."
"Don't I know it." Arlene beamed.
"There are however, a few more details we need to work out in your profiles." Ozpin continued. "Primarily, what do you two wish to put down as your relationship with one another? It's even a bit unclear to us, so it's best to get everyone's story straight."
"Wives!"-"Sisters." Arlene and Serana said at the same time, causing them to glance at each other, Arlene with a pout and Serana with a scowl.
"Ugggh, you just need to give in already." Arlene groaned.
Glynda sighed at their antics while Ozpin just raised an eyebrow. "Is there something you two wish to talk about?" he asked with a slight chuckle under his breath.
"Ozpin, we are not playing couples counselors with these two." Glynda deadpanned.
"There's not really much to talk about." Serana's monotone voice matched Glynda's almost perfectly. "Arlene's been courting me for the past decade, trying to convince me to marry her."
"You said yes that one time in Markarth!" Arlene complained.
"First." Serana snapped back. "We were drunk. Very drunk. Second, we agreed never to talk about Markarth."
Glynda's jaw dropped a fraction at Arlene. "Ten years. I'm shocked you have been so persistent."
Arlene turned to blonde and shrugged with a smile. "I'm a persistent woman. Not to mention I'm still young, I have time."
"Perhaps. But you two shouldn't wait too long. Youth only lasts for so long, and you wouldn't want to miss out on what could be." Ozpin sagely added.
Arlene grinned. "Of course not, professor."
"Regardless, I'll put you two down as sisters. As such it would be best for you two to refrain from any public displays of affection, lest you invite awkward questions." Ozpin said. The two women gave brief acknowledgement before he continued. "Now I believe that was the last of the important details we needed to iron out. Why don't the two of you go and monitor the arriving students? See what kind of children you will be teaching for the coming years."
"Funny you say that, since we were just going to go out and do that very thing."
"Well, I don't want to keep you waiting then. Go, and enjoy the rest of your day."
"Thanks professor. I'll see you around Glynda." Arlene winked at the senior teacher.
Glynda sighed and rolled her eyes once more as the two sisters left the office.
"You seem to be doing that far more often now." Ozpin commented as he took a sip from his coffee.
Glynda's eyes narrowed on her superior. "I am doing that Ozpin, because you deem it fit to allow that child of a woman free reign on our campus."
"Come now Glynda, while Arlene could do with some more focus, and Serana could learn more sympathy, I believe their talents and skills outweigh any negatives. And such traits are something we as teachers could impart onto them."
Glynda paused, mulling over Ozpin's words. "If you say so, professor. But regardless of how useful of an asset you think they can be, I feel you are giving them far too much trust."
"One does not build a relationship alone, Glynda." Ozpin reassured his subordinate. "By giving trust, we will get trust in return. And with that trust, we have the foundation for a strong alliance."
Arlene and Serana left Ozpin's office, the former having a bit of a jovial hop in her step. As they entered the elevator, Arlene's stride returned to normal, falling in step with Serana.
"Hm, so that went well." Arlene commented, hooking her arm into Serana's.
"Indeed. Ozpin seemed to enjoy your immaturity, while Glynda will come to appreciate my disciplined professionalism." Serana replied.
This was an old song and dance Arlene and Serana performed whenever they entered a new town. Arlene would play the fool, a child at heart whose humor would disarm and endear her to others as a friend, getting them to lower their guards around her. While Serana played the straight man, the serious, professional counterpart that would be approached whenever something needed to get done. It was a play that exaggerated their natural characteristics and set expectations for them, which they would later use to their advantage.
"Yep." Arlene said, putting extra pop in the 'p'. "Wonder how long it'll take them to catch on."
"If all goes according to plan, never."
"Ha, ever the optimist." with a ping, the elevator reached ground level and opened up its doors. "So, to the air docks then? I do want to ensure that we don't miss out on any potential recruits." Arlene's eyes gained a dangerous glint.
Serana returned the look with a predatory one of her own. "Of course." Grasping each other's hands, the two vampires called upon the shadows and vanished from sight.
Reaching the air docks was child's play for the women as they sat invisible underneath the shade of a tree. While they were powerful enough vampires that they wouldn't die underneath the rays of the Sun, it was still uncomfortable to them and affected their regenerative powers. As they sat undetected, the first of the massive bullheads landed, opening their exit hatches and releasing their passengers.
Within seconds, the first prospective student burst out, a blonde squire wearing a patchwork of plate armor that immediately rushed to a trashcan to start vomiting. The two vampires grimaced and already wrote him off.
"That's… pathetic." Arlene sneered. "How did that lumber footed monkey get into this school?"
"Initiation hasn't happened so the chaff has yet to be separated from the wheat." Serana flatly said as they moved onto the other incoming students.
Dozens if not hundreds of brightly colored teenages made their way off the airship and onto Beacon's grounds. As it was with the blonde knight, the majority of the students weren't impressive to either vampire. They were, as to be expected, children. Heavily armed children, but naive nonetheless. But that also made them perfectly impressionable for recruitment into their eventual vampire coven.
A small explosion stole their attention. Looking at ground zero, the two saw a red-themed girl get into an argument with a snow white colored older girl.
"Hmm, what do you think about them?" Arlene asked as she listened into their argument.
Serana watched the girl in white berate the younger one for a few moments before responding. "An obvious noble. Proud, headstrong, more than likely cutthroat. All in all a perfect vampire candidate."
Arlene nodded. "I agree. She even has servants moving her luggage for her. That means resources and connections at the minimum." As the white-haired girl left, the girl in red let herself lie flat on the ground, until the blonde swordsman came to help her up. Arlene wasn't sure why, but she had a strange feeling about the girl. "What about red riding hood? She seems… off."
Narrowing her eyes, Serana seemed to sense it as well. She waved her hand in front of her, casting Detect Magic. "That's because she has magic within her beyond just aura. It seems to be focused in her eyes."
"Well isn't that interesting. Explains why she is here when she is obviously younger than everyone else." Arlene grew a sly grin. "She is definitely on the list then."
"Agreed. Now, anyone else catch your eye?"
Arlene scanned the crowd. A few students here and there stood out, for example a pink haired girl that exuded confidence, or an amber-eyed black-themed girl with a bow that seemed to stick to the shadows. But one student in particular caught the Dragonborn's fancy.
The girl had a predatory gait, despite the reserved professionalism she exuded as her heels clicked on the ground. Every step she took was measured, and her stance was relaxed but ready to shift into battle at a moment's notice. She didn't even seem to be consciously doing it. It was the stance of a veteran warrior with years of experience and training that bled into her everyday life.
It also didn't hurt that the girl was very attractive. Tall with toned, long legs that were just peeking through her skirt and armored greaves, her body was sculpted and muscular in a way that would make the Nord women of Skyrim jealous. Her crimson and brown armor, which reminded Arlene somewhat of light Imperial Legionnaire armor, complimented her scarlet hair and green eyes. She must've held some form of importance or local fame, as many other students parted around her, eyes wide with recognition and admiration.
Arlene gave a low whistle. "Damn, look at her. She's like a younger, Imperial version of Aela."
Serana raised an incredulous eyebrow to her partner. "Isn't she a little young for you?"
"They're humans, they're all too young for me." Arlene defended herself, before looking at Serana accusingly. "Besides you don't have room to talk. You are ten times my age, at a minimum."
"True, but at least you were unquestionably an adult before I sunk my corrupting fangs into you." Serana rolled her eyes before focusing back on the redheaded faux-Imperial. "Regardless, we're getting off topic. I do agree that she looks a cut above everyone else here. Easily the most experienced."
Arlene had a grin plastered on her face. "Exactly. She's on the list."
Both Serana and Arlene continued their borderline stalking, people watching for several more minutes as the students milled about, eventually all making their way to the school's training area. Satisfied with their first round of scouting, they returned to the interior of the academy where they began plotting their next steps to subvert the future students of Beacon.
The next day came quickly as the prospective students all spent the night within the ballroom. While the teenagers were getting ready to deploy into the Emerald Forest, Arlene and Serana followed Ozpin's orders to keep out of sight of all of the students. After another short speech, the students were catapulted into the forest below to begin their initiation, leaving only Professors Ozpin, Goodwitch, and the two hidden vampires on the cliffside.
"You can come out now you two." Ozpin calmly called out.
Arlene didn't know if Ozpin actually knew they were there or was just assuming they were there, and while not appearing and making him talk to the air like a madman would be funny, it would also make them look bad. So the two vampires materialized out of the shadows of a nearby tree, breaking their invisibility and approached.
"I have to say Ozpin, I've seen a few crazy initiation rituals in my day, but this has to take the cake." Arlene said, appreciating both the deadliness and the spectacle of throwing kids off a cliff.
The headmaster smirked. "I'm glad I could entertain you. Unfortunately, you won't be able to stay up here to enjoy the showing for much longer." He then took a sip from his coffee mug.
Arlene raised a brow. "That so? So what, praytell, shall I be doing?"
"While this is an initiation for the students, this is also going to be an initiation for you." he flatly explained. "While I have no doubts about your skills and abilities, this will give me something more concrete than merely your word to justify your hiring."
Stuffing down her internal annoyance at being ambushed by this, Arlene smiled and shrugged. "Fair enough I suppose. So, what kind of test will I be taking? At the very least, could it not be one of those damned multiple choice tests Doctor Oobleck seems so fond of."
Ozpin suppressed a chuckle. "Don't worry, this is a far more practical exam. Now, if you were paying attention to my speech, I told the students that if they failed to perform at an adequate standard during this initiation, they will receive no aid from the instructors and more than likely die." Ozpin took a sip of coffee. "That was a lie."
Arlene snorted. "That so? Assume you wanted to scare the little buggers."
Ozpin nodded. "Indeed. I said that mostly to ensure the students treated this initiation with the proper respect and caution it deserves. After all, as you are aware we are fighting a war against a limitless foe. And wasting lives willing to fight that foe in such a manner is pointless to say the least. So while they may lack the skills and drive to become huntsmen and huntresses, they can still take up occupations with the militia, police, and military. Your test specifically, shall be to infiltrate the forest, remain unseen by the students still taking initiation, and exfiltrate any students who fail."
Sighing, Arlene nodded her head. While it was annoying that this was just being dropped on her, most of her adventuring career consisted of people dropping tasks on her lap that she didn't want to do, so this was nothing new. "Don't get spotted, kill some monsters, save some kids, got it. Sounds like an average Turdas to me." Arlene requipped her Nightingale bow and walked to the edge of the cliff.
"We have cameras set up throughout the forest, and we'll send you the location of any teams requiring extraction via your scroll." Glynda finally added in, tapping on her larger tablet, before looking at the Dragonborn. "I assume you have a landing strategy?"
Arlene grinned. "Please Glynda. That was covered in Adventuring 101."
The Dragonborn took a few steps back, standing atop one of the many launch pads. With a quick two-finger salute to Ozpin, she was catapulted into the air. Arlene had been sent flying through the sky many times in her career, whether it was jumping off mountains, soaring on the backs of dragons, or flying with Serana's power. It was an exhilarating feeling that sent her draconic self into a frenzy. In all honesty, fuck the Levitation Act of 421 for taking this feeling away from most mages.
And of course Arlene did have many options for landing. It was one of the most important skills to gain while traversing the heights of Skyrim's mountains or the depths of its caverns. But as was expected of her, she decided to go with one of her more subtle abilities. While she was never skilled enough in alteration to cast spells such as Levitate or Fly, she at the very least learned how to cast Slow Fall from Serana. So with an arcane gesture, Arlene's body was suffused with purple energy, reducing the speed of her fall as she gently landed on the ground.
Immediately Arlene was once more in her element. She took to the trees, climbing onto its branches to give her the advantages of cover and the high ground. Moving forward, Arlene leapt from tree branch to tree branch to close in on the highest concentration of students. She would maintain her distance so she wouldn't be seen, but wanted to be close enough to intervene if possible. Masking herself from the grimm both visually and auditorily was child's play, and she bled none of the negative emotions that would attract their attention magically.
The first few minutes passed by without event. Arlene could hear the sounds of combat, sporadic gunfire, explosions, and battle cries echoed throughout the forest, but until she received a message from Glynda, she would stay. Soon enough, her scroll pinged, giving her a waypoint of a team of nearby students needing help.
With an inhuman burst of speed, Arlene made her way to the indicated location. Powerful muscles infused with aura allowed her to run at speeds she never experienced before without the use of magic. She crossed hundreds of feet in seconds, and approached the endangered students. Leaping to another branch overlooking a clearing, she saw the group needing help.
In the clearing she saw two students, one boy and one girl. The girl had a forest green theme to her, with a green pony tail and similarly colored gambeson, wielding an arming sword and buckler. She had a terrified expression on her face as she swung her sword in a panicked frenzy, standing over her companion. The boy was oranged themed, wearing a puffy orange vest and had some kind of hoverboard next to him. Unfortunately, the weapon was useless as he was unconscious, bleeding from a head wound.
Circling above them was a massive grimm with the shape of a lion and two eagle like wings that kept it aloft. Instead of a mane of fur, its bone helmet protruded backwards with four crests. Arlene recognized the beast as a Sphinx, a rarer grimm in these parts, and deadly for those unfamiliar with fighting airborne targets. As the Sphinx flew around for another pass, it belched out two fireballs that exploded near the two teens. The girl was able to block one of its shots with her buckler, but was knocked down as the second fireball exploded between her and the unconscious boy.
With no time to waste, Arlene dashed forward to their position. The girl was having a full panic attack, rolling around on the ground and patting herself to put out the fire. When Arlene arrived, the fire was out but the girl was hyperventilating, obviously out of her depth. A quick Calm spell from Arlene got her to relax, reducing the likelihood she would be targeted. She then threw a quick Healing Hands on the boy, stabilizing him and healing any internal injuries he might've had.
"Sit down and shut up girl, and you might just see this day through." Arlene hissed out to the teen.
The girl dumbly nodded and crouched down, keeping her shield up to protect her unconscious companion. Satisfied that they wouldn't get in her way, Arlene watched as the Sphinx circled above them. Part of her considered using the Dragonrend shout, to see if it would ground the beast as it did dragons, but she nixed that idea. While Ozpin knew of her magic, he knew nothing of her thu'um. And she knew for a fact that both he and Goodwitch were watching her. So she'd hold it back for now, as the less he knew about her capabilities the better.
Reaching into her quiver, she pulled out a wooden arrow that had an ice dust crystal arrowhead. She had made sure to acquire a number of arrows with varying elemental dust effects, both for their utility, and to hide the fact that the bow itself had magical powers.
Leading the shot, Arlene loosed the arrow right for the sphinx's wings. For most people it was a difficult shot, a moving target several hundred feet in the air, but Arlene had years of practice shooting dragons out of the sky. The arrow flew true as it struck the wings right at the scapular joint where it connected to the main body. The ice dust fused with the magic of the Nightingale bow itself, causing an explosion of frost energy that froze both wings in their entirety.
No longer able to keep itself aloft, the sphinx fell out the sky like a sack of bricks. As it approached the ground, it spread its legs out in order to catch itself and use the momentum to keep going forward. It's plan was cut short as Arlene loosed another ice dust arrow, this time piercing the sphinx's right foreleg. The dust exploded in a white-misty cloud, freezing the limb completely. As the sphinx hit the ground, the limb shattered into a thousand pieces, sending the grimm hurtling forward as the momentum dragged it through the grass. Heavily wounded, the sphinx tried its best to lift itself off the ground, before a final arrow pierced its skull-mask, giving it a nasty case of brain freeze as it died instantly.
The girl's jaw dropped at the ease at which Arlene killed the sphinx. A terror which was likely to be her death was put down in a matter of seconds. She was snapped out of stupor as Arlene gave a sharp whistle, getting her attention. The teen looked up to the vampire in shock, mouth open and eyes wide.
"Get up kid. You failed initiation, but you get to live so… congratulations?" Arlene shrugged.
Overwhelmed by the entirety of the situation, the girl only dumbly nodded as she picked up her ally. Arlene escorted the two to the nearest extraction point, where they were then covertly picked up by a bullhead. This pattern continued on for the next few hours. Small groups of students would be isolated from any potential allies, surrounded by grimm. Arlene would ambush their attackers, slay them, and then escort the washouts to the edge of the forest. Soon enough, initiation came to a close as the last remaining successful teams brought their chess pieces back to the Academy.
With initiation finished, Arlene found herself publicly standing amongst the rest of Beacon's faculty as the team naming ceremony commenced. She could see students whispering to each other, giving subtle looks and gestures to Arlene. This wasn't out of place, as she was a complete unknown standing along some of the greatest huntsmen in Vale.
"And finally, Black Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as team RWBY. Led by… Ruby Rose!" Professor Ozpin announced to the passing student body.
A roar of applause erupted from the crowd, congratulating the teenage girls on their naming. As the blonde Yang Xiao Long ran to her sister to congratulate her, Blake gave a small smile to the two while Weiss simply looked shocked. Arlene didn't blame her, but also wasn't surprised. Having reviewed the footage of initiation, Arlene found Ruby to be naive and eccentric, but at the very least had a decent tactical mind and some charisma. Weiss, who obviously wanted to be leader, may be intelligent but had about as much charisma and likeability as Nazeem. Which was to say, none at all.
As the students made their way off of the stage, Professor Ozpin stepped up once more to address the crowd. "Now, while I know you all have had a long day and wish to see your new dorms, I do have one final announcement to make." The crowd's ambient noise and discussions fell away as Ozpin spoke. "The mission of Beacon Academy is not simply to train the next generation of huntsmen and huntresses, but to be exactly what it's named for, a beacon. A symbol of hope and progress that not only other academies can look to, but that the whole world can look to. But unfortunately, there are some areas at which we have failed to uphold ourselves to that standard."
The confused murmuring of the crowd began once more as Ozpin paused for a beat before continuing. "It has been many years since the end of the Faunus Rights Revolution, and despite the great progress we as a kingdom have made in bringing equality for the Faunus, hatred and bigotry still remain a constant. This cannot stand. We must be united in the face of our common foe, the grimm, for they do not care if you are human or faunus, Valean or Atlesian. For them, we are all prey. We must let go of the petty grievances and hatred of the past, and walk hand in hand to the future. But pretty words are worthless without action. And so, in order to achieve this goal, Beacon Academy is taking the first steps for greater inclusion and representation for the faunus at our school. This includes the hiring of the first ever faunus professor at Beacon Academy. May I introduce to everyone, Arlene Volkihar, Beacon's newest professor of Pathfinding and Wilderness Survival!"
Arlene, having stood through many such grand speeches, knew to step forward, smile, and gave some small waves. She watched as the auditorium was filled with a mixture of jubilant cheers and confused grumbling. The few faunus students she could see in the crowd were heartily applauding, while a minority of humans seemed disgusted. The rest merely gave the polite applause she deserved. And while Arlene gave her professional greetings under a well practiced smile, on the inside she was glaring at Professor Ozpin. That motherfucker used her for good PR.
A/N, 8/7/20: Been quite some time since I uploaded anything. So it goes, sometimes. I'm not going to bore you with excuses. Also, just in case anyone is confused, I am still the same author who uploaded this story and the rest of my fics, LunchablesPizza. I just decided to change my name to something slightly less copyrighted, so I am now WelcomeToEstalia.
Anyway, here we get to see some insights into Arlene's past, as well as pushing forward through the plot. Arlene had gone through a lot over her years to develop from the meek prisoner who made her way to Helgen to the now egotistical power trip of a woman she is.
Another announcement. I've also made an Ao3 account under the same name, WelcomeToEstalia. I'm going to start uploading all my stories there as well as soon as I figure out how, so if you want go drop me a follow there as well.
Review Responses:
JackWhitenight: Thanks! Glad you enjoy it.
Delta4873: Thanks! That's some really strong praise and I'm happy to hear you say that. And that's a pretty cool idea for a semblance, since she has the soul of a dragon and all.
Adelaide Darkburn: Don't worry, I don't plan on stopping anytime soon.
Ayee zeek: Thanks! That is a good idea for Arlene's soul, maybe I'll go back and edit that if I have time. And don't worry, I don't have any plans on doing anything like that. While I do take comments into consideration, I am more than happy to ignore the very vocal minority that wish to control my story.
Jctherebel: Thanks! Hopefully you enjoy where I take the story.
Lop90ful1: Thank you! And I update whenever I can, but I rotate this story along with my others, so expect me to try and get monthly updates out.
Mpyrkh: Ha that's a good idea. A deadpool on who gets bit first.
Guest: Thanks! And I'll keep that in mind.
Guest: Bye Felecia.
And with that, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, continue to stay safe, and I'll see you in the next one.