A/N: Hello everyone! I'm back with another chapter! Like I said before I will keep my Author's notes short and sweet until the next chapter. But I will go over any interesting reviews and key moments in the story...
Guest Isa: Oh you have no idea how many juicy ideas I have in store... The dream sequence has some of the ideas I thought of beforehand and after I posted it, the list of ideas only grew thanks to the movie, DB Legends, Super Dragon Ball Heroes, and a certain YouTuber that makes dope fight animations that incorporates lore and theories perfectly from the DBS Anime and Manga, DBGT, SDBH, and DBZ (If anyone can guess the YouTuber I am talking about, you are a legend). As for the AU with partial elements of the story... the only elements I will be considering are locations, characters, and lore showcased in the anime; the plot I won't even look at. With how I set up this fan fiction, the events will end up snowballing into an AU after Vol. 5... It's going to take a while for the snowball to grow, but it will grow nonetheless...
Recent Update Log:
3/15/19 - N/A
9/20/19 - minor grammar fixes
12/22/21 - Grammarly overhaul and removal of unnecessary bloat
Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OCs, plotline, and concepts for the story. The rights of both RWBY and anything Dragon Ball (Z, GT, Super) related, including the music that I suggest listening to, go to their respective owners, and so on.
That's all... Now get to reading! I know you people want to!
Chapter 3: A Mission Executed! With a Minor Hiccup!
Beacon Academy, Kingdom of Vale
During the past week, our heroes were making progress in their training, while Greene got acclimated to living on Remnant and going to his first classes in Beacon. The Green Lantern's reactions to each of his classes were varied. Combat Class was the easiest to get acclimated to since he had been in many battles alongside his old team; the only thing he needs to adjust to is the aspect of having an Aura and how it protects them in combat as well as having useful utilities. History was the second easiest as the only things that would make him struggle is the fact that he has a lot to catch up on and the fact that the professor (DOCTOR!) was speaking and moving hyperactively. Survival Class and Advanced Weaponry Care were tied: Survival also required him to adapt with the factor of having an Aura and how to conserve it over a long period of time, excluding combat, while AWC threw him for a loop due to the hybrid or "Mecha-shift" weaponry that many students, save for a handful, had with them. The Last one, Grimm Studies, was with none other than Professor Port himself; from what Manami, RWBY, JNPR, CRDL, and CFVY told him, he was in for a long class. However, little did they know his time working with a certain Hardcore Detective lite taught him to check a story from all possible angles, and what he got out of it was a lesson in one of many possible ways of dealing with a specific type of Grimm. After talking with Manami about this, she smiled to see that he had reached the same conclusion when her first week of the class started.
On the other hand, Manami had gotten all of her students through the basics of Ki control and as well as some conditioning; on the weekend they'll kick things up a notch and find them fighting styles that suit each of them. Greene, Sun, and Neptune got along with her pretty well considering the former two got to work with her in the past at least once and Neptune was a nice person even if he was trying to impress her. The result of Neptune's flirtation was only met with platonic yet friendly jabs due to Manami's Saiyan instincts kicking in when it comes to looking for her significant other; in other words, she is looking for a man that has a certain… strength to him, to put it mildly. Anyways, RWBY and JNPR made some progress in their training as well, incorporating their weapons into their training. However, team RWBY had to cut their training session short to make a plan for their mission especially with the extra hands they're receiving. On one of their planning sessions, they were in the midst of assigning roles when Manami brought them their help for the mission; the extra hands turned out to be Greene, Sun, and Neptune. With such perfect timing, the roles were set: Ruby & Weiss will make a call to the Schnee Dust Company to gather info on missing shipments; Yang & Neptune will head to Vale's underworld to ask some questions from one of Yang's… old friends; Greene will meet up with a contact he has before said contact leaves for Vacuo; while Blake & Sun head to a White Fang meeting.
Now it is Friday and their classes have now ended, allowing the girls to dress in clothing more suited for their mission. For Ruby, her outfit consists of a long-sleeve, light gray shirt with black belted cuffs near the ends of the sleeves. Over the top of the gray shirt is a black pinafore with two vertical lines of red stitching that resemble the lacing on a corset. She wears a red skirt with a large black print of her emblem on the side and matching black tulle underneath. Her stockings and shoes remain the same as her Original outfit, though the boots lack the red trim that decorated the top. A few pieces of metal arranged in an abstract shape are attached to the shoulder of her left sleeve, and her cloak's hood has been wrapped around her neck in a scarf-like fashion, while the rest hangs down like normal. This is her "Slayer" outfit.
Weiss surprisingly wore something her teammates never expected; while her clothes had the colors the Schnee usually preferred, the clothing she picked were made more for substance rather than extravagance, yet somehow retaining a bit of the latter. She wore a simple, white button-up jacket with black accents, a light blue shirt that eventually graduated to white from top to bottom, and a blue scarf with her family's emblem. The biggest surprise was that Weiss was wearing black skin-tight pants instead of a skirt; she finished the look with white high heel boots with black accents. This is her "Duality" outfit.
As for Blake, her outfit consists of a white, v-neck, zip-up crop shirt with a black hem and three-quarter sleeves. Her emblem is printed in off-white on the left side of the shirt. She wears black pants that have a vertical gray stripe on the outer side of each leg and a black belt. Attached to the rear of the belt is a black piece of fabric that covers her from hip to hip. Underneath this is a longer, translucent, purple piece of fabric. She also wears black high-heel boots with two straps and buckles and purple under soles, reaching to mid-calf. She retains the black ribbons on her forearms and her black bow. This is her "Intruder" outfit.
Finally, Yang wore a deep-collared cream vest worn over a low-cut black shirt; both are covered by a dark gray shrug with a raised collar, three-quarter sleeves adorned with a single black stripe down the outside of each sleeve, and gold cuffs. A black mini skirt is worn under the cream vest. A pair of crooked black belts with gold accents are slung around her hip, with a purple piece of fabric attached to the left-rear section of the lower belt. She wears thigh-high stockings attached to her miniskirt by garter-belts on the front and back of each thigh, decorated with four golden studs above her knee and her emblem on the outside of each thigh in gold. She also wears black ankle boots with multiple buckles and white ribbons on the back tied in a bow. Around her neck is a purple pendant set in silver.
As the girls were finishing up their preparations for their little "outing," there was a knock on their door. Since Weiss was already finished with her prep, she took a peek to see who it was, before opening up to reveal their other three helping hands, letting them enter the dorm. Sun still wore his usual clothing.
His friend, Neptune, wore a white dress shirt and black tie under a red jacket adorned with a wide, upturned, black collar, and a silver reticle across the back. He also sports a pair of gray jeans with black padding strapped to the sides, as well as black shoes fastened with straps instead of laces. Notable accessories within his attire include black fingerless gloves and a pair of yellow-tinted goggles typically worn on his forehead… As he usually does when not wearing his uniform.
Greene, however, had looked more like a true huntsman-in-training now in his current outfit. He wore a black, sleeveless jacket that had a hood with the Green Lantern Symbol on the back and a dark green shirt underneath, brown cargo pants, and black combat boots. A few notable accessories included black fingerless gloves, a necklace with an emerald (which was a gift from his parents on his fifteenth birthday before their untimely demise), and of course his power ring… for obvious reasons.
"I see you girls are just finishing up," Greene stated.
"Yeah, how did you feel in Professor Port's class?" Blake asked.
"Honestly, I thought it would never end considering he tells stories from his youth," He answered.
The Cat Faunus gave a knowing smile before Ruby jumps off her bunk as she announces, "Alright, guys, today's the day! The investigation begins!"
"I'm glad to see we're taking this so seriously," Weiss sarcastically drawls. Yang on the other hand weakly counters, "Hey, we've got a plan! That's... moderately serious."
"Right!" Ruby acknowledged before asking, "Everyone remember their roles?"
Weiss answers, "You and I will head to the CCT and check the Schnee records for any other Dust robberies or inconsistencies. Seeing as I'm in the family, it shouldn't be a problem.
Followed by Blake saying, "The White Fang has regular faction meetings to hand out orders and recruit new members. If Sun and I can get in, we can hopefully find out what they're planning."
"Try 'will' Blake, I have a feeling that we will find something big tonight," Sun interrupts in good nature.
Yang adds, "I have an old friend on the shady side of town that typically knows everything going on in Vale. Getting information out of him shouldn't be too hard..."
Followed by Neptune saying, "And hopefully you can get some information peacefully…"
"Meanwhile I will meet up with a contact I have in Vale before he leaves for Vacuo tonight, I might be able to see what he knows about what his brothers and sisters in the Fang are up to," Greene finishes.
Ruby smiled as she says, "Great! We'll meet up tonight near Yang to go over what we found. Let's do this!"
"And remember guys, be careful; with the Time Breakers out there, we don't know when or where they might show up. If anybody gets into a mess, bug out and take the fight to an isolated location," Greene reminds everyone. The others simply nod before heading their separate ways.
(Ruby and Weiss) Beacon Commons, 15 minutes later…
"Woooow! I forget how big the Transmit tower looks up close!" A certain red reaper gushed as she got closer.
"You should see the one in Atlas!" her partner stated proudly.
"That was the first one, right?" Ruby asked.
"Correct," Weiss said before explaining, "Atlas developed the Cross Continental Transmit System to allow the four kingdoms to communicate with one another. It was their gift to the world after the Great War."
"Oooh, look at me! My name's Weiss! I know facts! I'm rich!" Ruby mocks her partner before snorting in laughter.
Weiss turns around to scold her childish partner and leader, "Don't be a pest! Besides, the only reason we're here is because you like the tower so much! We could have just as easily made a call from the library!"
"I know, but it's so cool! Ooh, I'm going to take a picture!" Ruby says before hurriedly pulls out her scroll but fumbles and launches it… right at the feet of a familiar orange-haired girl; she picked it up and offers it back to Ruby, "You dropped this."
Ruby was shocked and exclaimed, "Penny?!"
Penny was also surprised but could not make any sound except, "Uuuh..."
The young Rose approached her and asks, "Where have you been? We haven't seen you since that night at the docks!"
"S-Sorry. I think you're confused," Penny said before immediately hiccupping and tossing Ruby's scroll into her hands, followed by her quickly turning away, announcing, "Uh... I've got to go!"
A baffled Weiss then asks, "What was that about?"
Ruby, being the kind young lady she is, decides to run after Penny, but not before telling her partner, "I don't know, but I'm going to find out. You go make your call! I'll meet up with you later!"
"Wait!" the Schnee heiress called out before sighing in defeat knowing that it would be a futile attempt to call back her childish team leader. However, she smiled; she was happy, if not a bit envious of the young Rose with how her life is lived. Giving one last glance at Ruby's retreating form as she catches up to Penny, she then makes her way toward the CCT.
Ruby on the other hand had to run in order to catch up to the orangette; upon doing so she asks, "Where have you been, Penny? It's been weeks!"
"There seems to be a... misunderstanding," Penny tried to deflect but failed miserably.
"What?!" Ruby exclaimed, before asking, "Penny... Is everything okay?"
Nothing. Not one reaction from the awkward orangette.
"Penny, please stop!" Ruby begged, to which Penny actually listened, reluctantly turning to her friend as the Leader of RWBY continued, "Look, I don't know what's wrong, but you have to listen to me! Those guys we fought at the docks, we think they're up to something big, something bad! I need you to tell me what happened to you that night! Please... As a friend."
Penny sighed, then glanced to her sides swiftly, she walked over to Ruby's side and whispers in her ear, "It isn't safe to talk here."
Ruby was now confused as she watched Penny look around cautiously, she only had one thought, "What in Oum's name is going on?"
Meanwhile…
Weiss walked through the grand, glowing lobby of the tower with an unusual amount of tempered pride, avoiding the central terminal and heading straight for the elevator doors. Once she got close the doors opened up, allowing her to enter and close afterward. The CCT AI that assists the tower's functions greets the young Schnee, "Hello. Welcome to the CCT. How may I help you?"
She politely asks, "I'd like to go to the communications room, please."
"Absolutely. Could you please place your Scroll on the terminal to verify your identity?" The A.I. asks her. Weiss retrieves her Scroll and places it as directed; once the process was complete, the A.I. states, "Perfect! Thank you, Miss Schnee."
As the elevator took her to the correct floor and room, Weiss' expressions shift from pleasant to serious; she was not looking forward to a possible talk with her father and is hoping to avoid it. Her thoughts however were interrupted upon the doors opening up to the communications room. When she entered, four symbols are seen on a computer – twin axes and wreaths, the symbol of Vale; three flying swords pointing down, the insignia of Vacuo; a spear and shield inside a fragmented circle, Atlas's coat of arms; and a precise winged shape, the regalia of Mistral. Weiss walks up to the front desk where a holographic secretary appears in the seat. The CCT A.I. greets her, "Welcome to the Beacon Cross Continental Transmit center. How may I help you?"
"I need to make a call to Schnee Company World Headquarters in Atlas."
"Absolutely. If you could head over to Terminal 3, I'll patch you through."
Weiss smiles and nods, thanking the A.I. before walking over to her assigned cubicle-like computer, passing a few Beacon students in uniform. She sits at her assigned display, taking a deep, unhappy breath to prepare for the call ahead. The face of a young woman with short, brunette hair appears on the monitor with the Schnee snowflake rotating behind her. She does not realize who she is talking to until she looks up, "Thank you for calling the Atlas- Oh! Miss Schnee! Good afternoon! Would you like me to patch you through to your father? I think your sister Winter might be here as well."
Weiss, like many times before, hid away her discomfort at the mention of her father as well as the regret of not talking to her sister and politely responds, "No, thank you! I was actually wondering if you could find some files for me. I've compiled a shortlist."
Weiss produces her Scroll and places it into a slot on the keyboard, sending the list to the operator. The operator, subtly grew nervous as she replied, "I see. If you don't mind... what may I ask is this for?"
Without missing a beat, Weiss lied without breaking a sweat, "School project."
The operator's nervousness was now starting to show, "Um... There are some sensitive documents on this list, ma'am.
Weiss assures her, "Well, then, I'll be sure to treat them with care."
The operator's nervousness was now clear as she responds, "Right... Very well. The data is being transferred to your Scroll now."
"Wonderful! That will be all, then."
"Are you sure you wouldn't like me to patch you through to your father before you go?" At this, Weiss' friendly mask dropped, but quickly replaces it, politely responding, "Yes, I'm sure."
The young woman on the other end managed to shake off the last of the nervous air around her as she politely said, "Well, then... Have a nice day!"
The call is dropped, and so too is Weiss' happy act, seen in the screen's reflection. Sighing she took her scroll back and began inspecting the files as she made her way to the exit to head somewhere private…
Vale, 1 hour later…
Penny is currently standing alone near a two-story building with patio furniture, listening as the citizens' somewhat peaceful city went on about their daily lives. She is looking around nervously when a hand grabs her shoulder, causing her to jump. She turns to see Ruby grinning and smiling in return before they began walking around the city and catching up on what had happened.
"I wish I could help you, Ruby, but I don't know anything about those men," Penny sadly states.
Ruby frowned at that but moved on to the next best thing she could ask since she separated herself from Weiss, "Well, what happened to you that night? We were all together, and then you just disappeared! Were you kidnapped?"
"Oh, no! Nothing like that!" Penny hurriedly replied, derailing any line of thought that went too far.
"Then where did you go?" the young Rose asked.
Penny began explaining, "I've never been to another kingdom before. My father asked me not to venture out too far, but... You have to understand, my father loves me very much; he just worries a lot."
"Believe me, Ana, Yang and I know the feeling," Ruby chuckled then asks "But why not let us know you were okay?"
Penny scowled as she explained, "I... was asked not to talk to you. Or Weiss. Or Blake. Or Yang. Anybody, really."
"Was your dad that upset?"
"No, it wasn't my father..."
"Let me guess, it's the General isn't it?" a familiar voice asked. The two turned around to see who asked the question, only to find a smirking Greene; Ruby semi-shouts, "What are you doing here, Greene?"
The green-clad huntsman-in-training chortled at her question before rebutting, "I think I should be asking you that Ruby, aren't you supposed to be with Weiss?"
"Well, it's just a phone call, one that I had practically had no business being a part of anyways," Ruby retorts.
Greene merely gave her a look that screamed "I told you so!"
"Oh shut your face," Ruby grumbled, "I only placed myself with Weiss because I had nothing to assign myself; I couldn't go with Yang and Neptune because I'm still 'too young' to go to a nightclub - let alone an underground nightclub, I'm not a Faunus so I can't join Blake and Sun, and I would only get in the way of your investigation."
"Alright I get it, Ruby," Greene conceded before noticing Penny tilting her head in confusion and saying, "So you gonna introduce us?"
Ruby was confused for a few seconds before realizing that Penny and Greene never met; she gasped, "Oh right! Penny this is Greene, a friend that the others and met very recently; Greene, this is Penny, she was the girl I told you about that we met around the time of the "Docks Incident."
Greene's eyes widened slightly at the reveal, "So you're Penny."
"Yes I am; it's nice to meet you, Greene," Penny greeted.
"Likewise," the Green Guardian replied.
A few moments of awkward silence set in before Ruby asked, "I just remembered, what happened on your part of the job?"
Putting a finger on his chin, he recalled the events of his job, "Well…"
(Flashback) Over an hour earlier…
Greene had just arrived in the city a few minutes ago. He was currently making his way to his informant's shop; the shop in question was none other than Tukson's Book Trade. In other words, his informant was Tukson, a panther Faunus who had decided to leave the White Fang due to its change from an organization founded on the goals of peace between Humans and Faunus to an extremist group hellbent on Faunus Superiority. However, someone gave him up and informed the higher-ups on what he had planned to do; needless to say that he almost lost his life nearly two weeks ago when two human assassins, a mint-haired girl and a greyish-silver clad young man, appeared at his shop. It was only thanks to Greene that he was still alive and kicking. Now he was a permanent global informant for all of the kingdoms since he worked as a high ranking spy within the White Fang; because of his former rank, quite a few of his loyal subordinates decided to become double agents and work with him to try to save innocent lives before blood could be spilled. A plan that is now about to take off without a hitch since he was under the watchful eye of the local police force; mostly just in case his "old friends" decided to pay a visit.
Speaking of which, Greene was now a few meters away from the shop and he noticed two things: a foreclosure sign that showed that the shop is now closed permanently and a man at the door messing with the lock. Upon closer examination, the man in question was Tukson who was simply engaging the locks. Knowing this, Greene casually walked up to him, smiling as he asks, "So you're finally leaving Vale huh?"
Tukson turned to see the man who saved him; he returned his greeting with a smile of his own and replied, "Yeah… As much as I want to stay, it isn't safe for me considering the fact that the White Fang just received reinforcements in the form of two young women and one young man; two of which already tried to off me. The young man is a full-fledged assassin after killing his own father – a father that groomed him into the assassin he is today, the mint-haired girl is a master thief with a "mind-trick" semblance, and the absent member is a girl that radiates both authority and power to the point of the latter seeming supernatural."
"Heh… No wonder you were such a high-ranking spy in the White Fang, you found information that would normally take many months to uncover in just about two weeks," Greene chuckles.
"Flattery will get you nowhere," Tukson jokes as he began walking towards the airport.
"It ain't flattery if it's the truth!" The Green Lantern rebuts as he closely followed the spymaster.
Tukson chose to not retort at that remark since it was indeed the truth, instead, he decided to ask, "So, what brings you to these parts?"
"Information on what the current plans for the Vale chapter of the White Fang," Greene states without missing a step.
"I see…" Tukson mutters as he pondered the information he memorized from his agents during the past two weeks, "From what my network has gathered, the White Fang has moved its base of operations from an industrial warehouse in Vale to somewhere in the southeast… likely hidden in the ruins of Mountain Glenn."
Greene frowned upon hearing that; during his two weeks he stayed up until midnight in order to catch up to his fellow classmates in his studies, Specifically, he was most interested in the History of Remnant and did research on the many wars that befell the world, all the achievements that made history, and more recently the tragedies that wounded both Humans and Faunus alike. More specifically he recently learned about the failure of the Mountain Glenn Expansion and how thousands had died when everything went to hell. An unofficial mass grave surrounded by Grimm... and a perfect place to hide. A moment or two passes before he decided to ask another question, "If that's the case, do you know what kind of firepower they have in their possession?"
"From what the reports entailed, the White Fang has recently acquired quite a few of Atlas's new military project – a mech of some kind."
"That's not good."
"No, it isn't… It seems the White Fang has a few spies within the SDC and the military."
"Damn… I can understand the military, but the SDC? What kind of Faunus are spying on them?"
"Likely a few Chameleon Faunus since their features are more subtle than most Faunus – so much so that they could pass for human."
"Shit… Weiss isn't gonna like that," Greene stated before asking, "Do you know how much of those mechs they've got?"
"Not an exact number no. I can only guess that they've only a handful of them and even then it's still enough to make Atlas and Vale worried."
"That's just fantastic," Greene said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. From then on the two would speculate what plans the White Fang would have; they have a few sound theories but could not yet prove them without further investigation. By the time the two were finished Tukson need to head off on his own to finish a few more errands on his way to the airport, leaving Greene alone downtown. He silently thanked that his ring records his conversations for review before moving to head back to Beacon. However he noticed a familiar red hood nearby and double-checked to see if his eyes weren't playing tricks on him; when he confirmed they weren't, he silently made his way toward her and the person she was talking to and see what was going on.
Present time…
"…And that's pretty much what happened," Greene said, finishing his story; he then went on to ask, "So what about you Ruby?"
"Um…" was all she uttered before she, Penny, and Greene hear the sound of megaphones announcing something, turning around the corner to look at the platform in the center of a plaza where the holographic image of James Ironwood is seen before six AK-130 Androids, who are in turn standing in front of two large metal storage cases with the spear-and-shield emblem on their doors.
"The AK-130 has been a standard security model of Remnant for several years, and they have done a fine job. Wouldn't you agree? Wouldn't you agree?" James announced. The clapping of the gathered audience answered him while the drones take a jerky bow. However the General was not finished continuing his presentation, "But... the kingdom of Atlas is a kingdom of innovation, and 'fine'... Well, that's just not good enough, is it?"
"Presenting... the Atlesian Knight-200!" The General announced, directing the audience's attention to the cases, as the doors roll up and reveal six new, bulkier, shinier automatons standing at attention before knocking their obsolete predecessors down; this was followed by the applause of those watching.
"Smarter, sleeker, and admittedly, a little less scary," Ironwood continues as the robots flex and pose as a demonstration gaining some laughter in response. James followed with, "These models will become active later this year, but they won't be alone! Now, the Atlesian Military has always supported the idea of removing men from the dangers of the battlefield. However, there are still many situations that will undoubtedly require... a human touch.
The last line draws Ruby's attention as she notices the change in the mood. Penny was now nervous as she didn't want to be seen by any Atlesian authorities as she prods her friend, "Ruby..?"
Greene notices but is more focused on the presentation; the General continued, "So, our kingdom's greatest minds, in cooperation with the Schnee Dust Company, are proud to introduce... the Atlesian Paladin!"
Ironwood's image is replaced with the hologram of a robotic white behemoth, featuring hinged piston legs, large guns for hands, and a rectangular head, standing at least twice as tall as the Knights below it. Ruby and Greene were speechless but for different reasons; the former thought the suit was an amazing piece of technology due in part to her fascination with weaponry while Greene was surprised with hints of concern due to a few experiences with similar technology. His concern was not eased due to their investigation of the White Fang; in fact, it probably increased with this new information.
Ironwood, while not visually there, continued the presentation, "Now, we couldn't have one here for you today, but these mechanized battle suits will be seen defending the borders of our kingdom within the year!"
Ruby, who's still in awe, exhales, "Whoa..."
A concerned Penny asks, "Ruby? Greene? Maybe we should go somewhere else."
"Why?" Greene inquired, turning to the orangette. Unfortunately, before she could answer, Penny saw that the two soldiers at the side of the stage noticed her, pointing her out and calling in backup. She backs away before breaking into a dead run, snapping Ruby out of her weapon-awe-induced stupor. Ruby called out, "Penny! Wait! Where are you going?"
"Ruby, I think that's our cue to move," Greene said as he glanced back before running after her.
Ruby turns to look back at the soldiers chasing after her friend, and realizing Penny's situation, swiftly follows them in an attempt to catch up to the two as they run through the winding alley. She took the same right that her friends took, following them; though she didn't look back, Ruby could hear one of the soldiers shout, "Down here! She went this way!"
The three runs across the street with the soldiers following them, though a honking car nearly runs one over. He manages to brace his hands against the hood, luckily the driver stops the vehicle before any harm could be done, while the other soldier runs along after the trio. Meanwhile as Ruby is still trying to catch up with Greene and Penny, she sees a high stack of crates supported by a flimsy wooden structure; in one swift motion, the Red Reaper unfolds Crescent Rose and cuts the support, causing a wooden avalanche of boxes to block the path behind her. She took the next left to see Greene and Penny, now side by side, right ahead of her. Ruby leaps into the air and lands on the alley wall, bouncing off to place her arms around Penny and Greene in the middle of the alleyway.
She whispers, "This way!"
Ruby dashes down another alleyway as fast as she can while using her newfound natural strength to hold on to Penny and Greene, but the strain is too great since she still has not practiced carrying something as big or even bigger than her whilst using her semblance, and they crash to the ground after a short period with Ruby falling all the way into the street while Greene and Penny were still off it. Luckily Ruby's training kicked in and she corrected her body mid-flight, allowing her to land in a three-point landing. Greene and Penny were a bit dazed but were still okay; however, their faces contorted into one of horror as they noticed a particular detail. Ruby on the other hand, quickly got up and dusted herself off but she doesn't notice the large truck coming up from behind her until she heard the warning honks too late. Ruby turns around just as she's about to be hit, hearing Greene shout, "Ruby!"
Just when Ruby was about to do a Vanishing-step, Penny pushes her out of the way and holds her palms out towards the vehicle. In the split second where the two make contact, the ground beneath Penny cracks and crumbles into pieces, and the back of the From Dust Till Dawn truck is lifted a little into the air by the girl's sheer strength. She puts it down, and the shop-keep stares in awe at the crumples in his hood, just like the Huntress who got saved as well as the Green Guardian in disguise. Ruby's eyes widened at the scene, hints of terror and uncertainty within them as she mutters, "Penny…?"
Penny, not realizing the situation, asks the shop-keep, "Are you okay?"
The shop-keep nods, but his features still show fear as he mumbled an audible, "Uh-huh..."
It was at this moment that Penny backed away, looking at Ruby's frightened expression, Greene's that was filled with a mix of confusion and another undiscernible emotion, then at the bystanders murmuring to each other in an attempt to understand what just happened. Penny panicked… and in her panic, she ran down another alley, away from the scene of the accident and from the Atlas soldiers still chasing her down, and bumps into Ruby, knocking the poor girl out of her stupor as her friend tries to get away again. The Red Reaper called after her, "Penny! Come back!"
She starts going after Penny, quickly followed by Greene, as the people look at the destruction Penny caused with her bare hands and the soldiers find they lost their target. Penny came to a stop once she gets out of the alleyway, looking around for where to run next. However, before she could do anything, an exasperated Ruby and a wary Greene caught up to her; the former of the two pleaded, "Penny! Please! What is going on?! Why are you running? How did you do that?!"
Penny was very nervous and it has shown with each word, "I-I can't! Everything's fine! *HICCUP!* I-I don't want to talk about it! *HICCUP!*"
Ruby on the other hand insisted, "Penny if you can just tell us what's wrong, we can help you!"
"No! No, no! You wouldn't understand..." Penny snapped.
"Let me try!" Ruby responded; Greene added, "Trust us, after what we've seen and experienced, I'm pretty sure what you're hiding is a much smaller matter."
Penny looked between the two, hesitating on whether or not she should explain; she finally relents, however, as she conceded to Greene's logic. Sadly the desperation had not faded yet as she got up in their faces as she asked them, You're my friends, right? You two promise you're my friends?!"
"I promise," Ruby swore, followed by Greene, "As do I."
Penny was silent for a few moments before she looked down at her hands as she showed the results of the accident, announcing, "Ruby… Greene… I'm not a real girl."
Ruby and Greene looked at the girl's hands and were in slight shock at what they were seeing. Parts of her palm's skin have ripped away, revealing the gray metal underneath. Penny stares sadly at their faces, now slightly astounded by their friend's secret as all they can simply say is…
"Oh."
Meanwhile, in another part of Vale…
The city went about its business as usual; however, while they hid it well, a few people were on edge after what had happened at the docks a few weeks back. Fortunately, it wasn't enough to dampen the city's mood. On a nearby roof of one of the taller buildings; a few birds were perching on the edge, not having a care in the world.
Unfortunately for them, a blinding teal light appeared near them, causing the flock to panic and disperse. Soon the light dispersed to reveal a large, almost egg-shaped pod that had a glass hatch/viewport at the top, four thrusters that had the Capsule Corp. logo on them, and five stabilizer legs – two on the side, three at the bottom; the glass hatch opened up, allowing the pilot to exit. The pilot was a young man with lavender hair and blue eyes; he wears a black trench coat with a fur-lined collar and an olive green sweater underneath, brown gloves, olive green pants with lighter-colored bandages around his shins, and brown colored laced boots. On his back was a sword that he used to kill Frieza and King Cold. This man was none other than Trunks, more specifically Future Trunks of the Time Patrol.
After he exited the pod – a more up-to-date version of the time machine that allowed the user to enter a timeline/universe without changing history – Trunks hit a switch and capsulized the pod before looking at the grand city within the Kingdom of Vale.
"So this is the Kingdom of Vale, huh?" Trunks thought, "It's as peaceful as you said, Ana. I just wish that the peace of this world would last longer; after all you've done for us, you definitely deserve it…"
As he surveyed the city below for a safe place to fly down so he would not attract unwanted attention, he had one determined thought…
"Back up has arrived, partner… and we will change your world's future!"
A/N: OH SHIIIIITTTTTT!
Trunks is now on Remnant folks, but for now, he is laying low until an opportunity presents itself to locate his friend and partner...
Tukson on the other hand... I've decided to give him an important supporting role. So while we won't see a lot of him, he will be a recurring character when the plot requires it so... I bet you guys never expected him to be a spymaster.
Now, I have one more chapter for you guys, one that I've been excited to get out for a while but for now, I have to hold on to it and make sure that it is as polished as possible. Review what you guys thought as long as it complies with my review policy on my profile and I will see you guys for the next chapter.
Next Chapter: A Skirmish in Vale! Painting the Town