A letter from [REDACTED] to Schnee Dust Corporation CEO, Jacques Schnee

Dear Jacques,

It's recently come to my attention that you've been slacking off as of lately. As I'm sure you're well aware, your orders were to ensure that Dust deliveries were to be delivered to the specified location, precisely on the third day of the second week, without fail.
Your negligence is quite concerning. If you fail to uphold our agreement, my dear man, I can assure you that the whole world, much less the Atlesian Council, will learn of your more...questionable decisions.
Do not forget, Jacques.

You OWE me.


RWBY X Red vs Blue Crossover:

"Metastability"


Chapter VII: School of Metal and Profanity

"...motherfucker."

Leave it to Texas to colorfully, yet accurately, describe the situation. Maine stared down the imposing form of the dark and silver-colored Paladin, piloted by their primary target, the Brute Shot MK II held firmly in hand.

Said paladin's arms pointed directly at the two and fired its missiles. "Oh shit!" Church cried.

Maine and Texas moved out of the way, dodging the missiles. The latter scooped up two assault rifles, shooting at it. To her chagrin, the bullets only seemed to bounce off. "Dammit!" she cursed. "These bullets don't do shit!"

'Then let's give this a try!' Maine smirked viciously as he opened fire.

Unlike the bullets, the grenades managed to deal some damage. Though it wasn't much. At best, bits of metal was scraped off. [The Paladin's armor plating are quite durable.] Delta informed. [The best course of action is to destroy the joints to hamper its mobility.]

'How do we do that?'

[The plating on the back of their legs are relatively weak. Aim there. Also, incoming missile.]

'Activate Bubble Shield, Theta!'

[On it!] the purple AI chimed.

"Die human scum!" Rojo roared as he fired the ballistics. They shot out and impacted the space where the two soldiers stood. But once the smoke cleared, they were revealed to be unharmed, encased in an energy dome.

"Maine, you okay?!" Texas shouted over at him. The blonde gave her an affirmative nod. "Got any ideas how to deal with this shithead?" Delta sent the plans over to her HUD. Beneath her helmet, Texas had a shark-like smile. "Now we're talking~ Keep him busy! Got an idea!"

'Great, running decoy.' Maine thought as he switched his weapon to its battle-ax form. 'Alpha. Suggestions?'

"You're asking me?" Church asked. "Well, if you do want my opinion, try getting rid of those annoying ass arms. Unless you wanna be blown to sticky red bits."

'Got it! Taking out armaments!' Maine grunted as he aimed at the arm joints.

Rojo, in response, fired off more missiles. Maine charged in, weapon held firmly in hand. Texas, being the sharpshooter for them at this moment, destroyed most of them with her rifles as she made her way around the Paladin. Maine slid beneath the Paladin's arm when it attempted to bat him away, spinning around and pulling the trigger. The Brute Shot MK-II's swinging speed increased and slammed straight into the arm, obliterating it completely.

[One down!] Theta cheered.

Rojo growled and moved the Paladin to raise its foot over the Freelancer. Maine turned around in time to see it coming down on him. Quickly, he threw the Brute Shot aside and grabbed the incoming foot, straining his muscles while keeping the metal foot away from crushing him. "What?!" Rojo gawked. The weight of the Paladin should've crushed the bastard. Maine grunted as Delta activated the Strength Enhancement, allowing him to force the mechanized behemoth off of him, sending it into a stagger. Rojo then decided to try and swing at him again. This time, it connected and Maine found himself being sent flying, bouncing off the ground and into a wall before he fell off and onto the ground. Pulling himself up, the blonde hissed and ran over to his Brute Shot MK-II, scooping it up off the ground and switching it back to its firearm form, letting loose with the grenades. The White Fang lieutenant attempted to fight back with its remaining arm, but Texas leaped up and hitched a ride on the arm.

"Heads up, asswipe." Texas said as she slammed a sticky grenade into the joint of the arm before she jumped off. Ten seconds later, the arm exploded and fell to the ground in a heap.

"You bastards!" Rojo Desagra roared. "I'll kill you!" As if responding to this, several mounted turrets popped up, mostly on its broad shoulders and on its hips.

Texas immediately ran for cover, sliding behind a concrete road blocker. She checked her ammo and cursed, realizing she wasted her clips and tossed the rifles away. "Useless pieces of crap." she muttered. "Why can't they just use actual bullets and not this cheap Dust shit?" She looked over at Maine, who was taking refuge behind a reinforced armored truck. "Yo, Maine! How much ammo you got left in that thing?!"

[Huntsman Arc has only a few dozen rounds left.] Delta informed her. [Power is also running low as well. We've rerouted all remaining power to use the STRIKER's basic functions.]

"Well, that's just great." Texas rolled her eyes. "Any ideas how we're supposed to get behind its legs? I got one more sticky grenade. Could probably pop off the shielding for you to blow off the rest." Maine gave her this look that said, 'That depends, you planning on using me as a decoy?' "My armor isn't equipped to handle heavy fire like that. You're the best chance we got to get his attention."

'...Alright. What do you need me to do?'

"Easy. Blow his shit up."

Maine rolled his eyes, but smirked nonetheless. 'D, Theta.' he called to the two AIs. 'See if you can track his line of fire. When I give the signal, reroute power to the bubble shield, but only divert power to critical panels for five seconds. Can you handle that?'

[I can. I did the same thing with North back then.] Theta answered.

'Good. On my signal.' The Paladin drew closer. 'Sync!'

[Mark!]

'Go!'

Maine sucked in a breath and rushed out. In seconds, all gunfire was focused on him, allowing Texas to move and dash around to the back, readying her bomb. Translucent tiles deflected the bullets as they came, albeit flickering. When he got close enough, the shields powered down and the blonde soldier slid underneath a leg, avoiding being squashed before he got up to his feet and transformed the Brute Shot into its weapon form. With a roar, he leaped up and swiped at the torso. While he failed to do any actual damage, he did manage to destroy one of the turrets. To repay the favor, finding him clinging to the machine, Rojo began to flail about wildly and randomly stomped around the compound. Maine clung on tightly out of fear of what may happen if he let go, and promptly cursed when Rojo decided to plow through a warehouse.

While it was nowhere near as painful or as dreadful as some of the other situations he had been, like being tossed around on a highway after having his throat shot to hell, it was still an unpleasant experience. Even so, he stuck to the Paladin like glue, crawling his way around the mech before he managed to reach the other side, slamming his weapon into the turret. 'Two down.' he thought before the Paladin came to an abrupt stop and spun 180. Maine then found himself being thrown through the air before he slammed into several crates, all of which were filled with Dust - from fire to ice to electricity to gravity, all manner of crystals were now splashed against the concrete.

Rojo smirked evilly at the sight, relishing it withe very fiber as he approached. "Time to die, dog." he said as his last remaining turret prepared to fire.

During all of this, however, he had completely forgotten about Texas. She leaped onto the Paladin and ripped off the turret with her hands before jumping back off.

At this point, the grenade she stuck to its back finally detonated.

The machine stumbled forward. Maine smirked wickedly as he charged forward, dragging his battle-ax behind him. At the last possible second, Texas took some of the remaining Dust she grabbed from her rifles before tossing them at the back of the legs. The thrusters on the Brute Shot MK-II fired up and the ax sped up, striking into the Dust crystals and into the back of the Paladin's leg. In the next second, an explosion rocked the Paladin off its feet and destroyed its leg, sending it skidding across the pavement.

"Dammit!" Rojo cursed as he forced the Paladin to stand to no avail. No matter how hard he tried, it continued to fumble and fall. Frustrated, he decided to say "fuck it" and punch himself out of the cockpit.

He was promptly grabbed by the throat and pulled out from the cockpit, staring back at Texas' visor. "Well, hello, you furry asshole." she greeted cheerily. "Got time to talk?"

"F-fuck you!"

"Tsk, tsk. Wrong answer."

Rojo was promptly greeted with an armored fist to the face, knocking him out cold. 'Well, at least that's over.'

[Great! So can we go now before something comes and tries to kill us?] Church asked. [Pretty sure the military schmucks can-oh, wait. Hold on. Incoming call from Red.] Maine raised an eyebrow. A call from Ruby? What was all this about? He gave Church the okay to answer it. A second later, they were patched through. [Hey, Red. The hell's-]

[HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELP!] was the first thing that came from the other end. Then came the sound of something exploding.

The ground suddenly shook beneath them. In the distance, smoke began to rise into the air. "What the hell?" Texas said, bewildered before she put a hand to her helmet. "Red Crown, what the hell was that?"

[Verifying... Warning! Grimm have been detected in the central plaza of Vale!]

"What?!" she cried. "How the fuck is that possible?!"

'Doesn't matter!' Maine snarled, holstering his Brute Shot MK-II on his back. 'We're out of here!'


To say that Team RWBY's mission had gone completely FUBAR was a massive understatement.

Let's rewind time for a second. Their mission at Mountain Glenn was relatively simple. They were investigating the ruined city for any signs of White Fang activity. In that time, Team RWBY had been questioned by Oobleck for their reasons about becoming Huntresses. In the evening, though, Ruby had somehow managed to stumble across the White Fang's base of operations.

Everything after that was a bit crazy. To make a long story short, Roman Torchwick had commandeered a train and armed with explosives, intending to ram it into the center of Vale via the tunnels, allowing them to blast a hole that would let the Grimm pass through. Suffice to say, the girls all had a fight on their hands.

Unfortunately, the train had ultimately succeeded and blasted a hole in the central plaza. Grimm were now flooding into the city by droves. People were screaming and trying to flee. Yet that was not the worst thing. Some stragglers of the White Fang still insisted to try and raise chaos, taking control of the stolen Paladins.

The girls were doing their best to fight back against the Grimm and the White Fang, but they were four girls. Oobleck was off elsewhere, involved in his own battles. As much as his assistance would be valued, they needed to hold them off on their own.

Still, at least Zwei was able to cause some mayhem. The dog was doing good work. Plus, Ruby found it ironic that a tiny little corgi was capable of kicking Beowolf butt.

"Heads up!" Yang called as she delivered a one-two punch to a Creep before grabbing it by the head and throwing it to Ruby. She darted forward with Crescent Rose, gathering momentum with a pull of the trigger. A flash of red and the Creep was cut in half, left to dissipate. "Nice!"

"Don't let your guard down!" Blake called. "There's still more on the way!"

True to her word, another wave of Grimm charged at them. With a flick of her wrist, Weiss manifested a series of glyphs to throw them off balance. She twirled her rapier before stabbing it into the ground, creating a series of ice spikes to impale the creatures of the dark. Swiftly, Blake moved in, Gambol Shroud already weaving as it cut off the heads of Beowolves and Creeps. Once she passed them, she slid to a stop, panting slightly. She was still exhausted from fighting Roman. She was going to run out of gas soon. A shadow loomed over her, making her look over her shoulder and come face to face with a King Taijitsu, which hissed at her.

Faster than she could react, its head snapped forward, intending to swallow her whole. Before it reached her, however, a familiar pink blur came in and slammed the hammer into its face. "Hands off, leather skin!" Nora growled, plowing the giant snake into the wall. "No touching the kitty cat!"

"Nora?"

Following behind the girl were two other familiar faces. "Sorry it took us so long!" Pyrrha apologized. "The teachers are on their way here!"

"How long will it take them?"

"Five minutes." Ren answered. "We have to hold out until then."

A loud metallic groan filled the air. All eyes turned to see a half-ruined Paladin rising from the ground, rockets armed on its only functioning limb and turrets aimed.

Weiss grimaced. "Oh, son of a bi-"

She was cut off as the missile fired and impacted the ground around them, the force of the blast tossing them midair. some of them landed in a rough tumble while the rest managed to soften their landings. But they all prepared themselves for an even more intense fight. It took most of them to take out a Paladin the other night. They even had Maine to help dish out heavy damage. Now they had to worry about this scrap heap and the Grimm around them.

They had no choice. They needed to fight and hold them off until the teachers arrived.

"Can this get any worse?"

"Nora." Weiss pleaded. "Don't jinx it."

As it turned out, things had gotten worse. For what side, however, that was up in the air. The half-ruined Paladin readied its turrets, but something suddenly landed on top of it, causing the metal to crumple and creak. Following after it was an explosion that reduced it to melted shrapnel. Flames encompassed the area.

Strolling out from the flames was a chilling sight: a white armored-clad figure with an eerily familiar helmet, wielding a black-and-red weapon with a silver edge. Team RWBY and NPR felt a cold chill run down their spines, their minds racing back to that horribly day back in the Forever Fall forest. The setting only made the figure all the more imposing.

The figure stopped in front of them, hoisting the weapon on its shoulder before it gave them a two-finger salute. Then a flicker of sapphire appeared on its shoulder. "Sup, losers." Church greeted. "Miss us?"

"Church!" Ruby cried in relief. "Jaune! You guys are back!"

"Bout time!" Yang added as she punched a Creep in the jaw. "We seriously needed more firepower! There's no end to these guys!"

'Then let's take them out!' Maine reloaded his weapon and fired a grenade into the approaching horde.

An elder Deathstalker tried to rush at the group from behind, but a figure encased in black armor dropped from the sky and crushed its head. Its exoskeleton practically cracked beneath the pressure. Rising to her feet, Texas rolled her neck. "Okay." she challenged the stunned Grimm as she readied her rifles. "So who's first?"

A few Grimm looked at one another before turning to the ex-Freelancer, growling and howling and launching themselves at her. A Beowulf jumped up for an overhead swing, but Tex grabbed the outstretched limb, snapped it like a twig, and slammed the Grimm's body on top of another Beowulf. She kicked them aside and elbowed a Beowolf that came up from behind her in the face, shattering its jaw and knocking it back. Whipping out her rifles, she proceeded to unload a full clip into a group of Creeps. Several were killed immediately while others managed to dig into the ground, aiming to strike her from underground. Seeing this, Texas jumped away to avoid it and threw a grenade at the ground, right where the Creeps would appear. Two seconds later and the Creep emerged, only to be caught in the blast and killed on the spot. Three Beowolves charged at her, one leaping into the air.

Tossing her rifles away when she couldn't use them any longer, Texas intercepted it and delivered a haymaker to its solar plexus, throwing it towards an incoming Boartusk. The other two Grimm flanked her and aimed to take her down. Texas backflipped, avoiding them both and threw a roundhouse kick to the back of the second Grimm's head, throwing them both aside.

A Boartusk leaped into the other, spinning wildly and aiming straight for her. Texas looked and saw the same Taijitsu that Nora knocked away earlier slithering up to her, no doubt to attack her when she dodged. With a smirk, she jumped up and kicked the spinning Boartusk in mid-air straight at the open mouth of the Taijitsu.

The results were humorous: the Boartusk was lodged in the snake's throat, causing it to choke and allowing Texas to grab it by the tail. With a roar, she proceeded to spin it around like a rope, knocking it around and throwing several Grimm caught in the act away and into the piles of debris. She then threw it away, sending it flying in a random direction.

Sadly, in that direction was Jaune, who swung his Brute Shot MK-II right at that moment, thus cutting off the snake's head in the process. The rest of the snakes body flopped and tumbled, rolling over several Grimm in the process.

"Fuck! A bit of warning next time if you're throwing something in our direction?!" Church yelled.

"Sorry, heat of the moment." Texas shrugged as she shot a young Nevermore out of the skies.

"Jaune!"

The brute delivered a brutal uppercut to an incoming Creep, throwing it up to the air, allowing Nora to leap in and knock it straight into a nearby pile of debris. The pieces were sent flying, some embedding themselves into the Grimm. Pyrrha rushed in and cut down several small Beowolves in her way, Milo dancing in her grasp before she joined her partner and team leader. Ren met up with Nora, vaulting over an Ursa and shooting at its exposed back, staggering it and leaving it open for Nora to blow it to kingdom come.

Off to the side, Team RWBY were fairing slightly better than they had been earlier, in no small part to the two Freelancers evening the odds. Ruby stayed back and took a sharpshooting position to thin out the ranks. Blake and Yang took to the vanguard by slicing through or beating down the Grimm that approached. Weiss took a supportive role by augmenting them with her time dilation Glyphs while skewering nearby foes.

The blonde brawler delivered a barrage of punches to an Ursa Major that tried to sneak up on her. Each strike was enhanced via a shot from her Ember Celica before she knocked it into the air. As it came back down, she delivered another punch to its face. Its skin seem to ripple before it was sent flying and smashed straight into another Ursa, knocking it down and leaving it open for Blake to leap upon it and stab her blade into its skull. A Beowolf attempted to sneak up on her, but it only struck down a shadow clone before black cloth wrapped around its neck. With a tug, Blake pulled it towards her and put the Grimm in front of her, turning it into a shield just as a flock of Nevermores sent a wave of sharp feathers her way.

Weiss saw the flock and narrowed her eyes. She twirled about and slammed Myrtenaster into the floor, creating a spinning sigil underneath her. "Here's hoping this works...!"

Swirls of mist and light congregated around the si girl as if trying to manifest something. Unfortunately, just when something was about to take corporeal form, it dispersed.

'Dammit! Even in a situation like this?!'

"Weiss, watch out!"

"Huh?"

Due to her focus on her failed task, she failed to see the small Nevermores swoop in towards her. Thankfully, however, they were intercepted by Ruby, who spun her scythe in front of her to knock the incoming flock back. They were bounced right off, sent flying into the surrounding area.

"Are you okay?! It looked like you lost focus or something!" She cried in concern.

"I-I'm fine. Just tried something, but it didn't work. Anyway, where are the teachers?!"


Elsewhere, Zwei emerged out from the battlefield, leaping off the ruined remains of a half-dismantled Paladin. Nearby, a Beowolf was left on the ground, whining weakly and wondering how in the hell it could have lost a fight with a damned tiny dog of all things.

"Woof!" Zwei barked happily as it scampered off.

The ground then rumbled as another Paladin pulled itself out of the ground. However, before it could even move to attack, a fireball struck its cockpit. Zwei looked up, finding a Bullhead passing overhead. The doors were already open, revealing Port, armed with some kind of harness and blunderbuss. At his side were four students, all of whom were a year or so older than Team RWBY.

"Looks like one hell of a party down there." a girl with shades remarked with a grin, a dark-brown case with gold trims on her person. "What do you boys and girl say we spice things up?"

Port laughed heartily. "Well said, Ms. Adel! Now then, Team CFVY! Let's give the first years a hand, shall we?!"


The Breach, as it had been called, was one of the worst incidents that had ever occurred in Vale. Ozpin, of course, would like to disagree. He could count name well over a dozen times Vale had been in serious dangers. This had been the most tame incident to his recollection, but still no less dangerous.

Damage was sparse, with several buildings and shops either heavily damaged or destroyed. Quite a few lives were lost, and many more seriously injured. White Fang soldiers were arrested and sent to Ironwood's main ship, waiting there to be tried for their crimes. Glynda and the rest of the staff were in the middle of repairing the damage and the students who helped fight back against the Grimm horde were given a long respite. Many had already returned home or were resting and helping the teachers.

For their sake, and hard work, Ozpin cancelled any and all classes for the rest of the week. Glynda would have choice words for him, but for now, they more than earned it.

"What a mess..." Ironwood grimaced, looking at the reports in his hand before he turned to Ozpin. "Torchwick was arrested, insisting that he's the mastermind."

Ozpin hummed as he took a sip from his mug. A little bit on the cold side, unfortunately. "And do you believe him?"

"Hell no." the General scoffed. "The resources and planning this would have taken is far beyond him. He's a skilled criminal, yes, but he isn't this good. If I were to guess, it's probably the same person who hacked into the CCT tower."

"Sounds reasonable." Ozpin shrugged. "Still, this is quite the unfortunate event. And just when things were beginning to seem so hopeful."

Ironwood gave Ozpin a look, clearly having other thoughts on his mind. "Have you heard back from the Vale Council?" he asked. Ozpin nodded. "They contacted me earlier."

"What did you tell them?"

"I had half a mind to borrow from Qrow and tell them to "fuck off." The man's lips curved into a smile. To think he would hear General Ironwood himself say such words. "They have no right to question your competence. None of them would have been able to react as fast as we did!"

"Things would have gone much smoother, had we been able to prevent this from happening." Ozpin replied coolly. "Besides, the Council's already made it clear that they've grown tired of me. To be honest, my more recent ventures have started to make them irritated with me. They've been looking for an excuse to remove me from my position as Headmaster."

"Oz, while I will admit that your actions have become...questionable lately, I know what you do is for the greater good. Unfortunately, the Council fails to realize that. In the short term, I would agree, as it would seem you fail to take proper action. But you think of long term effects of events. As you would say, acting brashly would alert our enemies."

"Indeed. I must say, James. Pardon my bluntness, but I would've assumed you would've agreed with the Council's position of my incompetent actions." He smiled wryly.

"At some point, I probably would have. But certain circumstances had me...learn to keep an open mind." he said, with no small amount of shame. "Especially considering the state of things. Speaking of which, Rojo Desagra was captured and rounded up with the rest of his men. All of his supplies were either destroyed or seized."

"That's good at least." Ozpin said. "And what of the equipment found there?"

Ironwood's face shifted. "It's like we thought... The equipment used to contain and capture the Grimm were significantly modified and enhanced, but they're all without a doubt the trademark designs of Dr. Merlot."

"I see... That's troubling."

Troubling, Ozpin rescinded, didn't even begin to cover that. Merlot was enraptured by the beauty of chaos the Grimm presented. So many possibilities the man saw. Once, the man thought to bring this genius into his fold, but quickly pulled back when he realized doing so would only bring more harm than good. All Merlot cared for was exploring the possibilities these Grimm could offer him, the costs be damned.

Such a wild element should not be kept in a position of authority. Which was why when his crimes came to light, he was stripped of his assets and nearly incarcerated before his escape. His company collapsed shortly after that, and any and all assets were seized by his former benefactors. Chief among them was Jacques Schnee, who had invested in his business profits in the hopes of establishing a prominent hold in Vale. However, that never came to pass, fortunately.

Ozpin dreaded what the future held, if Merlot had thrown his bets in with Salem. Worse, with Watts. Two geniuses, both of whom with little morals, was something that was not to be underestimated.

"Enough of that." he decided, wanting to move away from such a depressing atmosphere. "How did the STRIKER test go for you?"

Ironwood smiled. "There are a few bugs, but for the most part, it functions perfectly." he said. "All I have to do is try to convince Parliament to help fund mass produce it without tipping them off. Naturally, however, Maine gave the armor back to me. As he said he would. He explicitly said he refused to return to military duty. This was merely a side job and one time deal."

"Indeed. It's a shame. You don't find soldiers of his caliber that often anymore, but it is for the best." Especially considering his experiences. "For now, we should investigate Merlot's activities. If he's alive, and he's working with Salem, I can only imagine what the man will be able to accomplish."

"Funny you should say that..." Ironwood walked over to the desk, fiddling with his Scroll before he set it down. A holographic map then appeared in front of their faces, showing what appeared to be a map of the Emerald Forest. "Merlot's equipment releases a special frequency. It's sort of like a tracking beacon. However, it only activates when there are large numbers of Grimm nearby. It seems Merlot has set up something akin to 'Grimm nets' in the Emerald Forest and in the Forever Fall forest."

The Headmaster studied the map intently, fingers drumming along his knuckles. "If I'm reading this right," he began slowly. "These 'Grimm nets' are located next to the Power Stations." The Power Stations more or less acted as sub-stations, powering small settlements close by and extending information transferred and received from the CCT towers. While the Power Stations in the forests were mostly just there to help things progress more smoothly in Beacon, it was still unnerving. "Why would they be there?"

"I have no idea." the General confessed. "But it's worrying nonetheless." Especially since this could imply that these Grimm nets were meant to be set up nearby populated villages.

He would have liked to believe that Merlot wouldn't do such a thing, but he knew better. The matter had to be resolved, and soon.

"I'll have someone keep an eye on the Power Stations." Ozpin said. "As things are now, I don't have the manpower to invest resources. Even so, I'd like to have someone investigate the matter."

"I'll see what I can do." Ironwood said. "By the way, has there been any word from our little bird?"

"Funny you should ask..."


[-in other news, the central plaza of the city of Vale suffered what was perhaps one of the worst national incidents in recent history. Without any warning, innocent bystanders watched as a train suddenly crashed out from underneath the plaza, allowing hordes of Grimm to invade the city. Sources say that the train was used by members of the White Fang, and that the incident was orchestrated by none other than Roman Torchwick. Despite the efforts of the Atlesian Military and the brave Huntsmen and Huntresses on the scene, many lives were lost in the ensuing chaos. According to some, the Vale Council has begun to question the competence of Beacon Academy's Headmaster Ozpin. There is no word whether this will affect the Vytal Festival yet, but Atlas has been asked to provide security detail for the tournament. This has been Lisa Lavender, of Vale Daily News. Back to you, Bryce.]

The news continued to blare and drone on, but the bar's sole occupant had lost interest after the report in Vale. His interest was focused on the drink in his hand. He swirled the liquid before chugging it down, the alcohol leaving a familiar burn down his throat. "Hey, pal." the bartender questioned him. "How much longer you gonna be here? It's way past closing time. The only reason I let you stay this long is because I owed ya a favor."

"I'm just about done." the man said with a sigh, setting his half-finished drink down. "Can't seem to get dead drunk today, anyway." He dug in his pocket and set a few Lien cards on the counter. "Here. Some extra for the leftover vodka."

"Sure thing." The barkeep nodded as he traded the half-empty bottle for the lien.

"Thanks." The man proceeded to drink right out of the bottle.

He then turned around to leave. Shortly after he did, the barkeep moved around to face the shelves, but in the process his arm bumped into the half-filled glass and toppled it, spilling the contents across the counter. The glass rolled off and fell to the floor, shattering into pieces.

"Oh, god dammit..."

Outside the bar, the drunk sighed. "Things back home are getting pretty tense. Wonder if it's time for me to head back?"


"Sheesh...I'm glad that shitstorm's over and done with..." Church commented once he and Maine made it back to their dorm.

The blonde had discarded his armor and promptly shoved it into the hands of the nearest Atlas soldier, telling Delta to tell the General that he could suck his dick as he would not put that damn thing on again. With his team, JNPR returned home to Beacon and practically melted into their bunks. Especially Nora, who had been extremely trigger happy during the whole thing.

Texas had chosen to go elsewhere, no doubt to help the other teachers as they repaired Vale. Not that Jaune cared. He was too tired to care.

"That was a thing." Pyrrha mumbled into her pillow. "I've never felt so sore in my life... And that is saying something." Given how she was the Mistral a Regional Champion for three years straight, no doubt as a result of severe training and dedication...that was saying something.

Ren had already passed out on his bed, snoozing away. A testament to how arduous the Breach was. They didn't know about Team RWBY, but he was willing to assume they were just as tired as he was. Ruby had filled him in on the details as they left for Beacon. 'Torchwick's working for someone, but who?' he thought as he laid down in bed. 'Same person who hacked into the CCT?'

"Why worry about crap like that?" Church asked, lying on the railing. "Way I see it, we get time off for this crap. Well, assuming General Morningwood doesn't come calling for you to play dress up."

'He can try, but I am not getting into that suit again.'

"I thought you looked good in it." Theta threw his two cents in. "It kind of reminded me of how things used to be. Well, before Sigma showed up."

'Please don't remind me of that either. The less I remember about him the better.'

"Amen to that." Church nodded. He only had one real encounter with the flaming AI, barring messing around inside Maine's head, and one encounter was enough for him. "Welp, time for some shut-eye... You know something? I think this is the first time I can actually get some good fucking sleep without Caboose or Tucker coming barging into my room to wake my ass up for some stupid reason."

Maine shot Church a small glance. 'Since when do ghosts need sleep?'

"Not sure. It's more of a pleasure than necessity. And without Tucker or Caboose, I can enjoy it with peace and quiet."

Maine rolled his eyes. Church flickered away, vanishing from view. Theta decided to follow Church's example and waved at Maine before he vanished, thus leaving the soldier by himself. He sighed softly and began to get himself comfortable on his bed.

Sadly, after about maybe twelve minutes, he realized sleep would not come. As it had for Pyrrha, who poked her head up. "Jaune? Are you still awake?"

'Unfortunately.' Maine waved a hand. 'Can't go to sleep. You can't either?'

"No." She shook her head. "I've been thinking about...you know, the Breach. It's scary. I never thought I'd see something like that happen. The cities are supposed to be safe from Grimm. Well, the ones closest to the CCT Towers, anyway."

'No one's safe from anything.' Maine rebuked. 'Take it from me, Pyrrha. You can never take something for granted.'

Pyrrha was then reminded what her team leader had been forced to endure, making her face morph into crest-fallen dismay. It was saddening to know that the dumb blonde boy she had been trying to earn attention from had changed so much. In fact, he had become someone else entirely. A harsh reminder, but at the very least, he was back with them. Changed, but still with them.

'With me.'

That brought a blush to her face and shook her head. Goodness, what was this? Since when did she start becoming a giddy high school girl with a crush? Admittedly, she did find Maine attractive, both before and after his disappearance. The shaggy and fierce look he sported now did do wonder and- No, wait. Focus Pyrrha!

'Something wrong?'

"N-nothing." she hastily replied, making him raise an eyebrow. "S-since we're both awake, why don't we talk for a bit?"

'I got nothin' better to do. What's up?'

"Well... Do you think you can tell me about your friends from Project Freelancer?" Maine tilted his head. "All we really saw about them was from your memories. Well, before you got Sigma. Is-is that okay?" She hastily added. "I don't want you to force yourself! I mean..."

Maine smiled thinly and waved a hand in dismissal. 'It's fine. I don't mind. You already know about Texas, so... I guess I can start with York.'

"Okay. What kind of person was York? From what we saw, he seemed like a jokester to me."

'Oh, he was. And he was a pretty good poker player, too. So long as you didn't involve Florida. Bastard would cheat you out of your pants.' Maine chuckled. 'He was like the group's big brother, alongside North. And as you might already know, he was in relationship with Carolina. Not sure how exactly that worked, considering how she was. Especially when Texas showed up and starting overshadowing her.' He always believed that damned scoreboard would cause trouble. Everyone had been so obsessed with doing their best and earning the Director's attention that once somebody showed up and starting doing better than everyone else. 'Anyway, he liked to crack a joke every once in a while, and made sure to look out for everyone. Even Wyoming, even though the bastard's the reason why he lost his eye.'

"I saw..."

'And his joked are better than Wyoming's...who tells nothing but knock knock jokes...' Maine cringed. God, they were so cheesy. Not to mention hardly funny. 'Then there's North. Like York, he was like the big brother of the group. Maybe a lot more so. Pretty much one of the only people who didn't care much about the whole scoreboard crap. And also the only person who could calm down South whenever she got really pissy.'

"What was South like?"

'To put it bluntly, she was a bitch.' Pyrrha blinked. 'Okay, she had her good moments, but for the most part, she was a bitch. Especially when North got Theta. She was jealous that she never got an AI of her own. Wyoming was just this really annoying guy. He was a crack shot, but man had no sense of humor. Also kind of arrogant. Then there was Florida. Chipper all around. Like North and York, they didn't care much about the scoreboard. He was just cared about getting the job done, and then relaxing. Then we've got Washington.' A strange sound rumbled from Maine's throat. It sounded like a laugh. 'Oh, god Washington. God I miss that idiot.'

"You two must've been pretty close."

'We were. When I was inducted into Project Freelancer, we were both newbies. So we pretty much looked out for one another. He was actually kinda a goofball, and admittedly, the worst fighter of Project Freelancer. Hell, this one time during an op, he somehow managed to get a grappling hook stuck to his balls!'

"R-Really?!" Pyrrha had to stifle her giggles from the absurd tale.

'I wasn't there myself, but the guys filled me in. He was the newbie before I got pulled in by the Director, so the two of us managed to hit it off pretty well.'

"And, what about Carolina?" Pyrrha asked out of curiosity.

'She was one of the best soldiers we had. She excels at CQC, determined, and dedicated to her cause. But her main flaw was that she was extremely competitive, and it would cause her to make stupid mistakes, such as when Texas showed up.'

"I see."

'Now that I think about it, she reminds me of you.'

"Of me?"

Maine nodded. 'Sure, she didn't have problems like you did, but... She did remind of you sometimes. Out of everyone in Project Freelancer, I felt maybe the most comfortable around her. It was weird. Of course, she still made it a point to drill things into my head via Drill Sergeant Nasty style.

"Sounds like when we first trained..." Pyrrha giggled at the memory.

'Yeah, kinda.' Maine chuckled. 'I'm still missing a few memories. Mostly just from stuff about my family. I know I've got seven sisters and parents, but other than that, I don't really know much.'

"That reminds me..." Pyrrha pushed herself upward, sitting upright as she looked at Jaune in worry. "Did you let your family know your okay?"

Maine nodded. 'Yeah. I had Ozpin handle it. They wanted me to come home, but I...' He sucked in a breath and dragged his hand down his face. 'I don't know if I can face them just yet. Not like...like this. I'm not Jaune Arc. At least, not the one they remember.'

Pyrrha stared at him with forlorn eyes. She couldn't help but agree. To Maine, he had served years in a military unit and killed many people. And that was before Sigma brainwashed him to become the Meta. How could one face their family after such painful ordeals?

She didn't want to imagine what the family reunion would be like, or how readjusting to his temperment would be like. Instead, she focused on the present and changed topics. "Are you excited for the Vytal Festival?"

'The what?'

"Oh, right. I forgot. You only came back a few weeks ago." she giggled over her little mistake. "It's a tournament, mostly. Basically, all four Huntsmen Academies from the Kingdoms gather, and representatives from the first, second and third year classes all compete against each other."

'So they're having us fight each other? What's the point of it? School bragging rights until the next tournament?'

"Not exactly. The Vytal Festival is to commemorate the treaty between all four Kingdoms that ended the Great War 80 years ago."

'So let me get this straight. To honor the peace that brought and end to the bloodshed of war, students who are not even full-fledged huntsmen are pit against each other to fight?'

Pyrrha opened her mouth to speak, but then she closed it and blinked rapidly. "...you know, when you put it like that..."

"Who cares...?" Nora's sleepy voice came from the other side of the room, face still planted in her pillow. She must have been either half-awake or on the verge of sleep. "We get to break legs..."

"Go back to sleep, Nora." Pyrrha told the girl. "We may not have classes tomorrow, but we might get sent off on a mission. No rest for the wicked, as they say."

"Okay~" She then turned over and resumed snoring.

Maine sweatdropped. 'You know...some days, I envy this girl.'


Mismatched eyes stared at the monitor with unhealthy fascination. The sight of the students battling against the Grimm that invaded Vale, courtesy of the actions of the White Fang, had proven to be excellent research material. Especially those Altesian Specialists. Their armor was incredible, especially the brute with the battle-ax.

Ah, how he wished he could've gotten his hands on that armor. But, for now, that could wait. There was so much to be learned. So much data.

A shame so many Grimm perished. They would have made for excellent specimens...

Oh well. It did not matter. He currently had more than enough material to work with. And his current experiments are producing quite exquisite data. Of course, it was still but a mere testing phase. He just needed to run some more tests. Preferably live field tests. He could send them out into the wild, but given how expansive the areas were, he feared he wouldn't receive proper data. And he sincerely doubted there would be anyone who would find themselves here on his island.

Perhaps he should call in a favor?

His Scroll began to beep, shaking on the table. His hand deftly scooped it up, albeit with some difficulty. He needed to replace this rusty old arm soon. He looked at the ID and then smiled widely before he answered. "Ah, Watts, my old friend. It's been too long."

"I wouldn't exactly call us old friends, Merlot." Arthur Watts replied. "At best, we were colleagues at most. I take it you received the data?"

"Oh, yes." Merlot answered giddily. "I do wish there was more to gleam, but I'll make due. At this point, all the data I require are live field tests."

"I see... Perhaps you could send them into the Forever Fall forests? Knowing Ozpin, it won't be long before he discovered how you tampered with the Power Stations."

"An excellent suggestion, though perhaps a bit too hopeful. Unless he were to send some particularly skilled students of his, like the ones who handled the Breach, they'd be ripped apart." A brief pause. "Then again... Perhaps it's time I delved into that old project regarding the effects of human-to-Grimm modification."

"That research could be worth looking into." Arthur mused. "I'll send some more equipment to your island. In the meanwhile, please continue to produce results."

"But of course, my old friend." There was a sound of disgruntlement on the other end, but Merlot didn't care much for it. The call ended and he set his Scroll down before he looked back at the monitor.

The information he obtained was a gold mine. It was only a matter of time before he can truly begin his most magnificent project.

But first: he needed data. And to to that, he needed to choose particular subjects for his field tests.

And he knew just what to send out.


The following morning had been mostly quiet. Well, as quiet as it possibly could, considering the dorm housed Team RWBY and JNPR, the latter of which had a sugar happy girl with a hammer/grenade launcher for a weapon. Church had returned to Maine with Theta in tow, the two having since bonded. The former had been trying to teach him about less than ideal things, such as how to hate somebody and the finer points of being a pervert while not stooping to Tucker's level and whatnot. Theta, being the child-like fragment he was, understood none of it, save for perhaps the hating part, though he attributed that to Church just hating Caboose. His name came up. A lot.

Everyone was still exhausted from the events of the Breach, so they decided to try and take some relaxation time.

"Try" being the key word here. As Pyrrha had predicted, even though classes were cancelled teams were still required to do missions when required. The Headmaster had requested Team JNPR, but he had given them the offer to refuse if they desired.

Maine was a little sore, but he was otherwise ready to take on whatever the old man had in mind. So long as it didn't involve him and the STRIKER suit.

Half an hour before Team JNPR would arrive at his office, Ozpin was in a meeting with Ironwood, the man having taken more frequent visits since the CCT Tower was hacked. Delta was also present, giving his own report in regards to tracking down whoever could have implanted the virus.

"No leads, I take it?"

[Not quite.] Delta answered. [In order to preserve the illusion that our mystery hacker's attempts at implanting the virus were successful, I input a "dummy virus" if you would that grants her a backdoor access to certain files.]

"A risky gamble."

Ironwood sighed. "Sometimes, we need to dare, Oz." the man said. "Whenever our "friend" accesses Atlas datafiles, Delta takes bits of information from their Scroll. Just enough for her not to notice. Slowly, but surely, we'll paint a clear picture, and have the woman we're after. It isn't ideal, but it is the best we can do on short notice. I'm just hoping that whoever this woman is isn't attempting to cause serious harm. With the way that virus was designed, she could have easily brought down the entire network, all with a few keystrokes."

[Indeed. Also, you may wish to open your window.] the green AI fragment advised Ozpin, making the Headmaster raise an eyebrow. [Qrow Branwen's Scroll ID is registered on my navigational systems. He is currently approaching the tower at high speeds.]

That, of course, meant he was traveling "in style" as the man put it once. Shaking his head, the Headmaster stood up and opened the window, looking out. Sure enough, there was a black bird, heading straight towards him. He stepped back. A few seconds later, the bird dashed into the room and suddenly expanded, changing shape in mid-flight. Landing on their feet was a man with graying black, spiky hair and dull red eyes, a slight stubble along his jawline. With a red, tattered cloak, he wore a gray dress shirt with a long tail, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. He also wore a ring on his right index finger, two other rings on his right ring finger, and a necklace with a crooked cross-shaped pendant. Strapped to the back of his hip was a weapon, folded in place with plates of metal curved on one another.

Ironwood wrinkled his nose. "Please tell me you bathed."

"Jimmy, in my line of experience, you never use the showers in Vacuo." the man, Qrow Branwen, said bluntly as he rolled his neck and shoulders. "Trust me on this one. Nice to see you, by the way." A slight grin started to form on his face as he folded his arms. "Heard what you've been up to behind the council's back. Welcome to the dark side."

"Yes, well, current circumstances have driven to change tactics." Ironwood admitted reluctantly. That being said, however, I would appreciate it if you didn't phrase it like that. You make it sound as if I'm becoming a villain."

"Well, technically, you were." Qrow shrugged. "Or at the very least, a tin man with a giant ass stick stuck up his ass."

"Good god, why does Ozpin tolerate you so much?"

"Because I'm awesome?"

Ozpin smiled wryly. Ah, he never got tired of such conversations. "While hearing you two bicker is amusing, I didn't call you back just to hear you banter with James." he said, folding his hands over his lap. "Tell me, were you able to find anything out in Vacuo, in regards to the favor I asked?"

"No dice." Qrow waved a hand. "From what I learned, seems like Salem doesn't have a good hold of that place yet. The Headmaster in Shade told me to say hey, by the way. Let me tell you, she's gotten goddamn fine over the years. I mean, really Oz. You shoulda seen her hips."

"Are you drunk?"

"Barely. Not nearly enough, if you ask me." the Huntsman answered, making Ironwood groan and drag a hand down his face. He then casted a glance at Delta and cringed. "Oh, great. It's the Leprechaun."

[Greetings, Huntsman Qrow.] the AI greeted. [I am afraid I am not a diminutive, mythological creature you speak of.]

"You know, I really can't tell if your just that stunted, or if you're just fucking with me."

[I am not.]

Qrow grumbled something underneath his breath. He had a small grudge against this little green hologram thingie ever since it startled his ass out of the blue one day while he was trying to take a leak. He had to go outdoors, since he refused to use the bathrooms in Vacuo. The less said about the incident, the better.

"Anyway, what did you call me in for?" Qrow asked, slouching against the wall with his hands in his pockets. "Doubt you had me come back on short notice because Jimmy started being a rebel."

Ozpin nodded, pleased that his friend didn't want to beat around the bush. "Tell me, Qrow. What do you know about Merlot Industries?"

"Only a little. I know they got involved in some kind of huge scandal, and that they were pretty much the reason why Mountain Glenn went to hell." the scythe meister answered. "Why? What's up?"

Ironwood spoke next. "Recently, the White Fang have started to act up in some...unusual ways."

"You mean like teaming up with Roman Torchwick?"

"Worse. They've begun capturing Grimm."

Qrow blinked. "...Okay, maybe I'm a bit more drunk than I thought." he murmured. "Did you just say the Fang's been trying to cage up Grimm?"

"And they've succeeded. All with the help of Merlot Industries technology. Given recent events, we believe Merlot has either thrown his lot in with Salem, or is at the very least collaborating with her for his own interests. We also discovered that the Power Stations in the Forever Fall and Emerald Forests have been tampered with, attracting any nearby Grimm."

The man's face hardened, immediately sobering up. "Okay... And where do I fit in all of this?"

"Originally, I had planned on sending Team RWBY, with our newest addition to our staff meant to advise them." Ozpin told him. "However, I believe the girls could use a break. Especially considering Raven was briefly involved in the Breach." Qrow's eyes widened in shock. Raven was here? Why? "Delta was able to track her whereabouts while we were reviewing the data from the student's Scrolls. It seems she protected her daughter, right when she was about to be killed."

"You don't say..." Strangely, Qrow didn't feel relieved. If anything, his face soured further. "And let me guess, she didn't bother to stick around and show her face to Yang?" Ozpin shook his head. Qrow's lips curved into a grimace and sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Dammit, Ray... Okay, so if you're not gonna send Ruby and her team out, who are you sending?"

"Team JNPR, led by Jaune Arc."

"Arc?" Qrow raised an eyebrow. "That name sounds familiar. Wasn't he the kid who was KIA or something?"

"It's a long story. One that involves Delta and his siblings."

The Leprechaun had siblings? Well, wasn't that a cheery thought? By now, Qrow knew what Ozpin had planned for him. He was basically going to play chaperone for a bunch of kids. Not the best job, but if Oz wanted it done, fine. Besides, how bad could they be?


Team JNPR arrived shortly afterwards. As soon as Church appeared on Maine's shoulder and started talking, Qrow felt a delayed hangover coming on.

"Who's the drunk?" the blue AI asked in a voice that Qrow was desperately trying to ignore. "He a hobo or something?"

"This is Qrow Branwen." Ozpin introduced the first years to the man. "He's a veteran Huntsman, and one of the best under my employ. He'll be acting as your adviser during this mission."

"Seriously? You're having a drunk chaperone a group of kids for a mission that can lead to certain death? Yeah, real reassuring, Oz."

He was blocking out his voice. He was blocking out his voice.

"Despite his...less than favorable choices, he is one of the best Huntsman in Vale." Ironwood insisted. "I'm sorry you all have to take on this mission, especially considering classes were still cancelled for the day."

"It's fine, General Ironwood." Pyrrha told him with a smile. "We're just glad we can be of help."

Maine grunted. "Alright, Wizard of Oz and Morning Wood." Church leaned on his shoulder. "What torture do you have in mind for them today?"

"Recently, it's come to our attention that someone has been tampering with the Power Stations in the Forever Fall and Emerald Forests." Ozpin informed them. "They're emitting a type of energy signal that attracts Grimm. Ordinarily, this wouldn't be too much of a problem, were it not for the fact that there are settlements nearby. I've already sent one team out to repair the Power Station in Forever Fall. Mr. Arc, your team will be handling the Power Station in the Emerald Forest."

"Sounds pretty easy." Nora commented. "But do you know who was tampering with it?"

"Yes. A man by the name of Merlot."

Ren tilted his head. "Merlot? As in, that old corporation that was dissolved and then absorbed by the Schnee Dust Corporation?"

"The very same man. Also known as the one who was one of the causes for Mt. Glenn's downfall due to conspiratory actions involving Grimm." Ironwood added. "Of course, we have no way of knowing if this is actually his doing. Even so, it is better to play it safe."

Ozpin nodded in agreement. "That is why the five of you will be heading into the Emerald Forest. Investigate the Power Stations there, repair them, and see if you can find any evidence of Merlot's tinkering. Delta will be transferring the data you recover from your Scrolls over to ours."

"Of course, sir." Pyrrha nodded. "We will do our best."

"Great..." Qrow muttered. "First job since getting back to Vale, and I'm being asked to babysit. And one of them's got a little shit for an AI. The hell did I miss?"

"You say something, bird man?" Church huffed.

"Fuck off, Blue." Qrow snapped. "Christ, I am NOT drunk enough for this shit. Wish I bought some of the good stuff before I left Vacuo. Only good thing about that place."

Church shook his head. "Does anyone have any problems with the fact that the supposed most badass person here besides Vomit Boy here is a drunk?"

'He can't be THAT bad.' Maine retorted. 'If anything, he's like a mix of South and York. Something I never thought I'd hear myself think. God that is disturbing.'


Before Team JNPR set off, they decided to say goodbye to Team RWBY. The girls had met them out on the platform with the Bullhead waiting for them.

Strangely, when Yang and Ruby saw Qrow, their eyes lit up. "Uncle Qrow!" A red blur shot past the four and hit Qrow, revealing Ruby who was clinging to the man's arm. "OhmygoshIcan'tbelieveyourheredidyoumissmedidyoudidyou?!"

"Nice to see you too, Rubes." Qrow grinned before he pried Ruby off of him. "So, how's my favorite geek of a niece?"

"Wait, what?!" Church squawked with the rest of them. They were not expecting that. "This drunk's your uncle?!"

"Yeah! He's the collest person ever!" Ruby squealed.

"Red, he's more like a drunk loudmouth."

"I prefer reckless rogue." Qrow interjected with a twitching brow.

Yang rolled her eyes. "Whatever floats your boat, uncle." she said. "Still, you should have told us you came back! We could have set up our Scrolls for the Annual Family Reunion Butt Kicking Tournament!"

"The what now?" Blake asked, completely confused.

Weiss, on the other hand, looked surprised. "I've heard my sister talk about a Qrow Branwen before. And none of it good."

"Let me guess. You're Ice Queen's little sis?"

"Wait, what?!" Church asked the same thing on everyone's minds. "You have a sister?!"

"Why is that so surprising?" the girl asked, feeling slightly offended. Sure, she may have not have told them everything about her family, but did they have to act so surprised? "Yes, I have an older sister, as well as a younger brother."

"Who's apparently a little shit." Qrow said, causing Weiss to choke. "Winter is a hell of a drunk when she wants to be. Never seen a woman in desperate need of a drink in all of my life."

"Wow. Bet you two would be perfect for each other." Church sarcastically remarked.

"Nah. Winter's sexy as hell, but until she gets that stick up her ass removed, I ain't touching it." Weiss couldn't help but feel irritated. How shameless was this man, talking about her sister in such a way?! And right in front of her no less?! Now she understood why Winter said she hated this man with a passion. She really wanted to run him through with Myrtenaster. "Anyway, why don't you brats go settle on the ship? I need to have a talk with my nieces for a sec."

"Okie!" Nora grinned before she turned to the four girls. "We'll see you later!"

"Break some legs for us, yeah?" Yang smiled back. Nora nodded exubiantly before she and Ren went over to the Bullhead. Pyrrha bowed before the team before she followed after them, Maine trailing behind her as he waved them. Theta also appeared and waved excitedly before going to join the rest of them. "So, what's up, old man?"

"Hey, I'm not old yet, Firecracker." Qrow smirked as he threw a weak punch to her shoulder. "Heard you girls and your partners got into a hell of a fight. You okay?"

"We're fine." Blake assured him. "Still exhausted, though."

The scythe meister chuckled. "I bet. Wish me and my team got in on that kind of action. Then again, maybe for the best."

"You doing okay, Uncle Qrow?" Ruby asked as she tilted her head. "You look kinda exhausted yourself. Was your trip that tiring?"

"Nah, I'm just... I'm just trying to ignore the fact that little blue Pixie sounds a LOT like your Dad."

"Tell me about it..." Yang sighed. "I've been trying to ignore it since the day he called Ruby a bitch."

"He's a meanie!" Ruby puffed her cheeks. "He's such a jerk too! Why's he gotta be so angry all the time?"

"Well, I've seen guys that act like him, and they're pretty much pessimistic assholes who get annoyed way too easily." Qrow shrugged. "But, that ain't anything new. Just make sure you don't overexert yourselves. Last thing I need is for Tai to come here and start freaking his shit out." The two sisters giggled, knowing full well that their father would do just that. He was a mother hen that way, but who could blame him? Ever since Raven left and Summer died, these two brats were all that he had left. Hell, even Qrow thought they were the only family he had, since Raven had more or less just gone back to the way she was. Part of him still wished that there was some of that woman who actually fell in love with that blonde idiot, and not whoever it was that was wearing that damned Grimm mask. "By the way, Firecracker."

"Yeah?"

"When I get back, we need to have a talk." Yang raised an eyebrow, but she didn't press the issue. Instead, she nodded. Qrow wasn't exactly keen on discussing this with her, but he figured she was old enough to know the truth and make decisions for herself. For now, though, he had to focus on babysitting duty.

Hopefully he wouldn't drain his flask dry before these little shits annoyed him all to hell.


A response from the CEO of the SDC, Jacques Schnee

Merlot,
I have told you once. And I will tell you again, until it finally becomes apparent in your mind.

I owe you NOTHING.

I admit, what I have done since achieving my position after Nicholas handed me the keys to his company has been nothing short of horrendous. I've received many complaints over the years about my working method, but what I have done, I have done for the sake of this Kingdom. And if history shall remember me a tyrant, then so be it.
We have crossed this bridge a long time ago, and I have long since burned it.
I refuse to associate myself with a madman who's so obsessed with Grimm that he'd damn the human race.
If you contact me again, you will find that I can do more than just bring down a company.

AN: Hey everyone, it's been a while. Sorry about that. College and other real life stuff has been happening, so I've had less time on fanfiction.

Speaking of which, a fellow writer on the site contacted me and informed me that things on the site have been really, really weird. I'm sure a few of you have probably already experienced it, but for those who haven't, apparently if you check out an author's bio while logged in and don't erase any cookies you've got on your browser history or some shit, then your computer's gonna get fucked up.

Also, for those who have been bugging me about bringing up the fact that Taiyang and Church have the same voice actor: here is your response. The idea of Church sounding like their dad is disturbing enough. Add that to the fact that Church's an asshole, and you've got one headache.

And Qrow is now in on the action. And we're nearing the finishing line to finishing up Volume 2! What better way to end off Volume 2 of Metastability than by settling it with Grimm Eclipse's storyline?! Also, speaking of Grimm Eclipse, does anyone know when that update is supposed to hit? I heard that it's receiving a major update sometime this fall, but RT hasn't said when it'll drop.

Real talk, though. I'm kind of dissatisfied with this chapter. It feels...weak to me. I feel like I might have botched Qrow's characterization. Tell me what you guys think, and if it is that bad, I'll revise it. Qrow is one of my fav characters, and I'll be damned if I let him suffer horrible writing.

And for those of you who are wondering if Maine will get the STRIKER unit back, yes. Indeed he will.

Again, I'm sorry for the late update. Also, big thanks to my co-write Daemon of Wrath for helping me out. Before I finish this off, I have a new poll up on my page. Check it out and give it a vote if you're interested. I also have a new story up. For fans of JoJo and the webtoon unORDINARY, you may enjoy it!

Well, that's it for now.

See You!