Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY or Warframe.
Prologue
Jaune Arc had always been pathetically normal.
Perhaps it was his fault. After all, 5 of his 7 sisters were in the most prestigious combat schools in Remnant, one was a high ranking accountant in Atlas, and one was already a registered huntress. His entire family was a line of heroes. Of legendary warriors who left craters in history. His grandfather, his father, and now his sisters had continued that record flawlessly. But him? He was...
He was normal. Completely normal. He had no talent whatsoever within him for fighting, his grades at school were dropping, and despite being the inheritor of Crocea Mors as the patriarch of the Arc family, he knew better than anyone that he didn't deserve it. It was something that had to be earned. He hadn't earned anything in his life. Compared to the rest of his family, he was below a failure.
It was strange, since Arc genetics were supposedly as good as they got. Perhaps his birth had complications? Maybe he wasn't his father's son? Jaune had struggled to get those thoughts out of his mind in the past. They were bad thoughts. Terrible thoughts that would separate him from the only family he had.
But now, the strange looking sword in front of him made him question everything once more.
"JAUNE!"
At the mention of his name, Jaune shot upwards from his bed, frantically looking around for his clock. His eyes wandered around his room... Until his vision was met with the sight of his two twin sisters. Jade and Jasmine Arc were both students at Mistral's Haven Academy, and they were not supposed to be here.
Unless...
Jaune's eyes widened. It's the first day of vacation. Of course, how in the world did I forget? He could still remember his excitement the day before, waiting for the year to finally end. But how in the world did they arrive so soon? None of them are supposed to be here till tomorrow...
Now that he thought about it, there was definitely something else he was missing. Something else I was excited for yesterday... What in the world was it? He put the thought to the back of his mind, deciding to ignore it altogether until some miracle removed his current amnesiac state.
He decided to put the question to the test. "Why are you two here so early?" he asked, sighing at the grogginess that laced his voice. In response, the twins giggled at him like they were sharing an inside joke. Jaune's eye twitched. There's seriously no stopping these two... Put them alone in a combat academy, and you get this mess.
"We got released from school early! Are you jealous now, Jaune? We came back from our final missions a day early and got our licenses! The headmaster said we could go home afterwards." said Jade, as she proudly displayed a decorated card with her picture and information on it. A huntsman lisence. Oh, the things I would do to get one of those. If Jaune actually had any talent in combat, then he would be using it to the fullest possible. Although of course, there was the problem that he never had any in the first place.
Another crushing reminder of his mediocre existence.
Holding in a slightly envious sigh, Jaune smiled warmly at his sisters. "Congratulations! You guys are real huntresses now, good job. Have you told mom and dad?" he asked. The two sisters grinned, nodding quickly.
"Oh, you bet we have!" said Jasmine. "Although they didn't really care much, to be honest
In response, Jade let out a shit eating laugh and slapped her sister in the back, making Jasmine briefly squeal. "Keep dreaming, sis. So many of us are huntresses now that Mom n' Dad have stopped caring since... What? Was it Sapphire? Nah, wait. They threw a small party with Opal as well."
As the two sisters continued to banter more and more loudly, Jaune decided to simply take the easy route, and ignore them all together. Instead, he sheepishly went to his drawer and took out his casual clothes, moving to the bathroom to change. They don't even notice me... Oum, these two are just something else entirely. The single thing that the entire family agreed on was that regardless of time period, the twins had always been the loudest. Not necessarily the worst or the most annoying, but for sure the loudest.
Of course, there was another single thing, but he didn't have to go there. Thinking about it would only bring him down even more, and he didn't need that in his life.
"Oi, Jaune! Don't you dare leave! We forgot to tell ya something!" Jade suddenly interrupted as he opened the door to outside of his room. His curiosity ignited, he raised an eyebrow and looked backwards at his sister's chirpy face. Then suddenly, the girl started to laugh hysterically, almost making Jaune jump.
"Seriously? You don't know?" Jade said as Jasmine looked at her curiously. In a single staring match, all information was seemingly magically transported between one twin and the other, and before Jaune realized, the other twin was giggling as well.
Jaune scowled. "What are you two talking about?" he asked.
"It's your birthday, idiot!"
Jaune slapped his forehead. Of course, that was what I was forgetting.
His 13'th birthday. How in the world had he forgotten? Jaune sighed, pausing briefly before he exited his room, softly closing the door behind him. He chuckled to himself as he walked towards the bathroom across the hallway. Oum, of course I would be the one to forget my own birthday.
Still, he was glad that his sisters- or at least two of them- were here for it. The twins were annoying, but they were energetic and fun. Jaune would swear to protect them, but to be fair, they would most likely be the ones protecting him, instead of vice versa. It was a cruel irony.
After getting changed, he went down to the living room, noticing a figure standing by the couch. An extremely large figure. Father, Jaune thought. John Arc was a hulking beat of a man, with shoulders twice as broad as his and a stunning height of 7 feet. Jaune considered himself tall, but his father made him seem tiny in comparison. The shoulder's didn't help either.
"Jaune my boy! You're awake! Happy birthday!" said Jaune's father. Contrary to expectations, he was an extreme 'softie' to his family, much to both Jaune's relief and chagrin. It had its goods and bads, but in the end, his father was his father, and Jaune loved that.
"Hey dad," Jaune said as his father embraced him. "Thanks."
"No problem, my boy. Sorry if everybody is not here. The house is pretty empty nowadays, eh?" said John, in a more melancholy voice. Then suddenly, the Arc family patriarch looked down and scowled. "Shit, this is harder than I expected." he murmured. Jaune looked at his father with curiosity.
"What is it dad?" he asked.
"Nothing. I was actually planning to give you something today, because it's a year before you turn an adult and all... But..." John put an arm around Jaune's neck. "it's harder than I expected." said John. Then, the older man let out a chuckle. "Ah, screw it. I decided to do this long ago anyways." he said, before saying in a much more serious voice, "doing anything else would just be selfish."
Jaune flinched slightly as his father put an arm around him. "C'mon Jaune. There's something you need to see." said his dad.
As the Arc family leader briskly turned away from Jaune and started to step into the hallway, Jaune followed. The path was intricate, laced with golden linings, like all corridors in the Arc household were. Jaune had explored each and every one of them as a child, marveling in their details and complexities. Similarly, he had explored all of his family home's rooms as well, being a bit of a shut in. 'A bit is an understatement.'
Eventually, the path led to a dead end. As a child Jaune had wondered why such a thing was there, and had even asked his father about it. John Arc had dismissed it as a "problem during construction" that was never fully resolved. At the time, Jaune believed him. Hell, he still believed him.
But of course, things weren't so simple, were they? A nagging suspicion in his mind threatened to fill his brain with the temptation of curiosity once more. It was like he was a child all over again, forcing himself to reevaluate all that he had known over his life.
His suspicions were confirmed when his father- with complete silence- tapped the ceiling above him, and the wall opened outwards to a whole new corridor.
Bastard, Jaune thought. This was how he kept the room hidden? A height restriction?
It was almost hilarious, once he got past the fact that he had been practically lied to for his entire life by the man he was supposed to trust more than anyone. I do have to admit, it's smart. A baby won't be able to reach it, and he convinced me that there was nothing to this room to the point where I never bothered later on.
Great. So he'd been fooled.
Jaune felt an unknown feeling bubbling up in his chest as he followed his father, stepping into the descending staircase behind the wall. Anger? Disappointment? He wasn't quite so sure, but it didn't make him feel any better. It was... frustrating.
And then, the staircase stopped.
The room that his father had kept hidden from him was...
...
...
...
...Honestly disappointing. So much so that Jaune had to squint his eyes, rubbing them to check if he had seen the room correctly. He looked at his father with a single eyebrow raised, his mind bubbling with curiosity and suspicion as to what exactly was happening.
"What is this, dad?" he asked. His father didn't respond. Instead, the Arc patriarch walked towards the only decoration in the wooden-walled, uninspired room that looked like it was on the verge of breaking down. The decoration in question was a chest, with a design just as uninteresting as the rest of the wooden bunker.
Jaune raised an eyebrow.
Carefully, the older Arc set the box down on the ground and opened it, pulling out a long, black, wrapped up object that Jaune couldn't discern properly. Is this... some kind of joke? If this is his idea for a birthday gift, I'm certainly not amused. Jaune huffed, watching silently as his father unwrapped the object tenderly. What in the world is it?
Finally, the black cloth covering the object came off, revealing something Jaune hadn't expected entirely.
The object in question was a sword. A long, old sword that had a design similar to a katana, but was missing the hand guard. In fact, it looked more like a walking stick than a sword in its sheathed state, with the hilt and the scabbard being made out of the same material. The only clue that gave away its actual purpose was a thin line that separated the two parts, located where the crossguard of the weapon would usually go. At the tip of the hilt, there was a golden ornament that was shaped similar to two adjacent "U" letters.
The name of the blade came to Jaune's mind like an old friend, the identity of the sword seemingly popping out of thin air but settling down so naturally inside his head. It was like he had known the word his entire life, despite never having known it at all.
"Skiajati." he blurted out before his eyes widened.
What in the world had just happened?
Jaune's father looked entirely unsurprised by his reaction, nodding without hesitation before drawing the blade from its scabbard, pointing the golden metal towards Jaune. Golden. The blade was golden. Somehow, deep inside Jaune's head, he had been expecting that.
What is happening to me?
His head was a mess of rushing memories. Words that were unfamiliar became familiar, images and places he couldn't fathom felt so natural, and people he had never met were turning into acquaintances. Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra, Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra, Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra, Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra, Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra, Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra.
Stop!
The world moved in slow motion as Jaune's father suddenly pulled back the golden blade, pulling it above his head-
Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra, Orokin, Zariman, Sentients-
...
There's something missing.
Jaune's body moved on it's own, seemingly possessed by an unknown drive that he wasn't aware of previously.
Man in the wall. Man in the wall. Skiajati, Ballas, Natah, Lotus, Rell, Transference, Operator, Umbra, Zariman, Sentients, Man in the wall-
...What am I missing? Something important?
As the blade went down, Jaune's legs narrowly sidestepped the blade, his body moving with finesse he had never known existed.
What's happening to me? What am I becoming?
What am I?
With a single grasp, the Skiajati was out of John Arc's hands, and into Jaune's. With a flourish, Jaune pointed it back at his father, who only smiled with a strange bitterness.
Tenno.
Prologue: Fin
Author's notes
So, this is actually a fic idea I've had for a while. A warframe/RWBY crossover that effectively integrates the lore aspect of both worlds. And obviously as you can see, it's already diverging from canon. The exact nature of what will happen next will be revealed... as time passes on.
Please leave a review with your thoughts. Constructive criticism would be best, but flames are fine too. xD
Thanks for reading, for now!