Rawr, everyone… This is probably a terrible chapter to tell you guys this, but I have decided to put "Wings of Dust" on hiatus as of the beginning of July. While I do know what I want to have happen overall in the story, the details of how to get there from where I currently am are not coming to me. I've hit the end of my outline and typing backlog chapters has started feeling more and more like a chore. I'm in severe danger of pumping out halfhearted filler chapters, and you guys deserve better than that. So, I'm going to step back, outline a bit more, and puff out the backlog. I'll try to get back on track with this as soon as I can. Thankfully, I do have enough backlog for the rest of the month, so you will get a few chapters in the meantime.

That being said, enjoy!

Cardin sauntered into the earth barn at the beginning of the day, oblivious to the glares targeted at him from many dragons who were already very familiar with the kind of person he was. He rapped his fist against Mudslide's stall. "Hey. Wake up already."

He noticed with some satisfaction that the stable hands had actually changed her bedding and refilled her food and water dishes. There was no litter area, as the dragons were now old enough to use the fertilizer pits that sat at the very edge of Beacon's border, near the forest. Good. The help is starting to catch on. Training does take consistency, as Dad always tells me.

His smile faded, however, when his dragon stood up. As Mudslide's wing lifted, it revealed another form lying in the bedding.

Scowling, Cardin walked over and kicked the lump, which let out a grunt. "Hey! Who said you could sleep in my dragon's stall?" He took a step back when the lump stood up, revealing itself to be Sky.

"Sky?! Dude, you look like shit." His nose wrinkled. "You don't smell much better. Don't stable hands get time to shower?"

Sky dusted himself off, glaring at Cardin, not bothering to disguise the hatred in his eyes. "Like you would care. You didn't even try talking to me after I ended up out here."

Cardin shrugged. "Not my fault you dropped out."

"I didn't drop out. My dragon was killed, or have you already forgotten that?!"

"Dude, chill." Cardin held up his hands, flashing an easy grin. "Okay, you didn't drop out. That mean you're gonna take a new egg next semester? Good for you. I knew you'd get over it. Hopefully, you won't get another retard."

He took Mudslide's harness and put it on. "Close your mouth, dummy," he muttered, whacking Mudslide's suddenly-lax bottom jaw, nodding once when she quickly snapped her mouth shut.

"It sucks, though," he muttered as he attached the lead. "You'll have to start all over again. I swear, if I had to go through dealing with a squawking reptile baby again, I'd kill myself. Too bad they don't just give us our dragons when they're full-grown and actually useful, am I right?"

He turned around, just in time to see Sky's fist before it smashed into his nose.

…..

The closing ceremonies for the Remnant Dragon Festival consisted of a show of basic military maneuvers by the Flight Squads, and another massive firework show. Afterward, the Squads settled in the arena. Weiss was thrilled when she saw Winter descend from the dragon perches to sit with her. She hadn't gotten to speak to her at all throughout the week due to their busy schedules.

Winter glanced at her sister, allowing herself a small smile before devoting her attention to the center of the arena, where Dragonmasters Ozpin and Ironwood were waiting for silence.

Mercury and Emerald sat nearby, Emerald looking around curiously. "Where'd Ruby go?"

"You'll see," Yang muttered with a mysterious wink, staring intently at Ozpin.

"Excuse me," Ozpin said into the microphone. "I know everyone is eager to pack up and prepare to go home, but I ask for your attention for a little while longer. I promise you won't regret it. You are, after all, about to witness a crucial moment in the history of dragons and people."

The crowd became quiet after that, except for a few confused murmurs.

Ironwood took the microphone from Ozpin, who left to fetch Ruby and Storm. "For the past two years, Atlesian scientists, including the great Doctor Geppetto, have been developing a device, something that will not only revolutionize the training of dragons for combat, but the communication between a dragon, its Rider, and any who come into contact with them!"

As Ruby and Storm emerged, he continued. "Young Ruby Rose of Vale, and her wind dragon Storm, were selected out of many qualified first-year pairs to show the flexibility of this device, and how beneficial it is to the development of the next generation of Dragon Riders."

Ozpin opened the box, holding up the plate. "This tiny plate, as you will soon see, expands when connected to the dragon's brow, doubling as a flexible suit of armor. Electronic pulses connect the machine directly to the dragon's mind, so that mental cues can be interpreted and amplified."

Storm was trembling, staring at the crowd with wide eyes. She didn't like being in the center of this arena. She hoped that Penny would be able to calm her down.

"Easy, Storm," Ruby whispered. "You're doing great." She tried to appear confident, and not at all put off by the blatant lie Ironwood had just told.

The plate was placed on Storm's brow, and the familiar voice greeted them. "Salutations. Detecting a large number of organic presences, as well as high stress levels. Combat mode activated."

"No, Penny!" Ruby hissed. "It's fine. We're showing you to a bunch of people. Nothing to worry about."

"Acknowledged. Salutations, Ruby. How may I be of assistance?"

Ozpin let out a silent sigh of relief. The device seemed to be working. "First, we will show you how this device aids in development, and in basic attacks. Ruby, have Storm demonstrate her wing gust, then have her fly."

There was a great deal of muttering at this. "The dragons are still learning to fly," Emerald muttered. "Even the wind ones are still mostly gliding."

"Just watch," Yang said with a grin.

Ruby gave the order, and Storm stood up on her hind legs.

"Executing. Wing gust." Storm flapped her wings, creating a gust that blew back several people in the front rows.

Storm landed on all four paws as Penny spoke again. "Assisting with flight. Engaged!"

The wind dragon allowed her mind to surrender to the mechanical voice completely and found herself running toward the crowd before spreading her wings and taking to the sky. She did a single lap, not even noticing the wind in her face as she allowed Penny to experience it fully this time.

This is glorious! Penny thought.

I'd like it better if there weren't so many people staring… Storm replied, skidding a little as she landed after circling the arena once.

"Finally," Ozpin continued, "We will show its most fascinating feature: By reading brain waves and interpreting them into spoken words, this device will allow dragons to speak directly to us!"

There was a collective gasp in response to this.

Ironwood took a cord leading from the amplifiers and brought it over to Storm. He patted her cheek gently as he plugged the cord into the port. "Good girl," he murmured.

Ruby patted Storm's shoulder before hesitantly accepting the microphone from Ozpin. "I would like to communicate directly with Storm," she said, reciting what she had been taught to say. Ozpin had thought that saying Penny's name might not be a good idea.

"Acknowledged." Penny's voice echoed through the arena before the light flickered.

"They're all just staring- Whoa, that's loud!" Storm jumped back, her head fins trembling as her words were amplified through the speakers.

"Easy, Storm," Ruby urged. "You're doing great. How are you feeling?"

"Kinda nervous," Storm replied, glancing around. "Are we almost done here?"

Ironwood took the microphone. "Almost. First, would you choose a volunteer from the audience, preferably someone you don't know, to come down here and talk to you for a few minutes? Then, you will be done."

"O-Okay." Storm looked around for a moment before noticing a little girl sitting in the front row with her parents, staring at her with a delighted expression, a cream-colored tail wagging back and forth. "Um, the small Faunus over there."

Ozpin and Ironwood exchanged a smile as the family came down. Storm choosing a child was probably the best thing that could have happened. Since children ask such unpredictable questions and say the most random of things, it would be hard for anyone to argue that any of this had been pre-recorded.

The Faunus family, who looked absolutely stunned at their luck, approached Storm. The father held the little girl in his arms, whispering excitedly to her.

Ruby smiled. "You can pet her."

Obligingly, Storm moved closer so that the child could stroke her snout. "Hi, there," she said. "What's your name?"

"Maggie," the girl replied as Ozpin held a microphone close to her. "Your name's Storm!"

"That's right. Did you like the Festival?"

"Yeah! Mommy took me to the mochi stand. Do you like mochi?"

"Never tried it," Storm admitted. "My friend Specter gave me some of his snack yesterday, though. Melon ice. It was super good!"

"I like strawberry best."

The two talked cheerfully for a few minutes. When Maggie brought up her pet cat, Storm eagerly talked about Zwei. The little Faunus was delighted to hear that Storm's favorite color was also red. It honestly looked as if the two would easily be able to talk for hours.

Ozpin moved away from the girl with a smile after a few more minutes. "I think that's enough. Thank you very much, Maggie."

Maggie waved goodbye to Storm as her parents led her back to their seats.

Ozpin turned to the crowd. "We will now retire Storm, and accept any questions concerning-"

He was interrupted by a sound like an unbearably loud static crackle, followed by a rush of light along several cords, including the one leading to the plate. Storm reared up, roaring in pain as she felt the shock go into her, then fell forward, lying still on the ground. Penny had seized up and wasn't letting her move.

"I have a question."

Everything was silent. That voice had come from the amplifier, but it wasn't Penny's voice. At the same time, the screens overhead that were showing what was happening in the arena changed, showing a static picture of a black chess piece on a red screen.

"My question goes to Dragonmaster Ironwood," the voice said. It was modified, so it was impossible to tell if the speaker was male or female. "How many dragons that didn't meet your standards did you kill at the beginning of the first semester? How many infants fresh out of the shells had their skulls cracked on a hard, stone floor, so that you could then incubate a replacement?"

Ironwood's face turned bright red with rage. He listened to his earpiece for any news concerning what was happening, but his people were just as confused as he was.

"No answer?" the voice continued. "Very well, then. How about Dragonmaster Ozpin? How does it feel putting yourself on a pedestal, advertising yourself as a protector of dragons, when you are really nothing more than a lapdog who will bow before anyone to keep your precious position?"

Ragnar stood up from his perch, letting out a loud, enraged roar.

Ironwood cursed. "Enough of this," he muttered. He moved to unplug the cord, only to get sharply zapped by another surge of electricity.

"How rude. Trying to shut me up when you haven't answered a thing," the voice taunted. "Don't worry. I won't be long. My last question is to every person here, everyone who claims to love dragons: What would you do to protect these beautiful creatures, who trust us and love us unconditionally? Would you fight for them? Would you sacrifice riches, prestige, and your place in society for them? Because I promise any dragon would do that for its Rider, and for any other human or Faunus it cares about."

"Or," the voice continued. "Are you like the dragonmasters who cower in the face of a Council that sees dragons as replaceable commodities? Are you like Ironwood, who kills infant dragons if they so much as have the sniffles? Are you like Ozpin, who only recently stood idly by while a first-year dragonet was killed for having a temper tantrum? Or, are you like Lionheart, who chose to keep bowing to the very Council who murdered his dragon?"

Lionheart visibly winced, making a strangled noise in his throat.

"I'd say something about Vacuo's dragonmaster, but I don't see him. And…I honestly couldn't say who their current one is." One could almost picture a human shrug in that voice.

"Think about these questions, people of Remnant. Think, and figure out what side you're on. A revolution is coming, and it will be the dragons and their allies who will emerge victorious. As for the Council of Dragon Affairs…" The voice then became deadly and filled with unsuppressed rage. "You murderers will be the first to go."

The screen went black, and Storm collapsed on the ground with a groan.

Ruby hugged her tightly. "Penny, detach! Detach now!" She pulled the cord out and threw it to the side.

"Ruby, I hurt…"

"I know, Storm, I know," Ruby cooed.

"I'm…not Storm."

"Penny? Penny, you need to get off. It's the electricity. We need to heal Storm and fix you. Detach, please!"

"Acknowledged." The armor retracted into the plate, the light went out, and the plate dropped into Ruby's outstretched hand.

"Miss Rose," Ozpin called over his shoulder, his voice almost lost in the almost immediate din that followed. "Take Storm into the tunnel and wait for me!"

Ruby hurried into the tunnel under the arena with Storm, just as the alarms started to ring.

"Alert. Grimm attack on border. Threat level: seven. All Dragon Riders please report to the following coordinates…"

Just as the darkness closed around Ruby, she felt a sharp tug as a pair of hands suddenly snatched Penny from her. "No!" she shouted. "Storm, someone just grabbed Penny!"

Storm let out a roar, which only served to cover up the footsteps as the thief retreated.

Ruby hurried down the tunnel, bursting through the exit, where there was already a mob of people being herded back to their hotels. She tried to see whoever had come out, but there was no way to pick them out in the crowd. She sank to her knees, her heart dropping.

"I just lost the most important piece of technology in Remnant…" she muttered, shaking her head slowly, disbelief written across her face.

Storm sat down next to Ruby, draping a protective wing around her, letting out a long, sad keen. We didn't just lose that, she thought mournfully, remembering the joy and sadness she had felt whenever wearing the plate, the emotions that had come from Penny and Penny alone. We lost a friend.

…

Twiggy was playing with her siblings when Mudslide approached her. Instinctively, she hid behind Titan, who hissed a warning at the approaching earth dragon.

"I'm not here to fight," Mudslide growled. "I just have a question for you."

Twiggy exchanged a glance with Titan before hesitantly coming out from under his wing. "What question?"

"What did you do?" Mudslide asked, digging her claws into the ground. "What did you do to make your Rider love you? What did any of you do?!" She looked at each of them, growing more frustrated and puzzled by the second. "A runt, a fireless fire dragon, a water dragon without gills, and a wind dragon that sleeps all day. What did you do?"

The dragons exchanged an uncomfortable glance, unsure of what to say. Mudslide, however, had plenty to say.

"I'm a perfect earth dragon. I'm not deformed at all. I do what I'm told. I know how to fight." Her tail thumped on the ground. "So, why? Why doesn't my Rider love me? What else can I do?!"

Twiggy took a step forward. "Cardin's not a nice human. That's not your fault."

"It is, though," Mudslide snarled. "I chose him, didn't I? When I hatched." She shook her head. "How was I supposed to know? I was a baby. I don't even remember my hatching day. How could I have known?"

All four of the JNPR dragons were looking at her with sad expressions. It was Titan who spoke first. "I'm sorry."

Mudslide sat down heavily. "Maybe I deserve it. Maybe I'm a lousy dragon."

"You are not!" Twiggy insisted. "I mean, since you stopped being a bully, you're not."

"I let Sky beat him up," Mudslide said, her voice coming out hollow. "Sky started beating up Cardin, and I didn't do anything. I just watched. I watched my Rider get hurt and didn't do anything." She looked up at them, her green eyes wide with fear. "I enjoyed seeing him get hurt! What does that make me?!"

Before any of them could say anything, Mudslide abruptly got up. "Shouldn't have said anything…" She walked away, still muttering under her breath.

Twiggy swallowed loudly. "Can a dragon hate their Rider?" she asked. The idea seemed so weird, so foreign, so impossible.

Ao Guang scratched at his neck. "Looks like they can. I wonder what made Sky hit Cardin."

"I hope he broke his face!" Twiggy growled, surprising herself with her anger.

"Maybe Mudslide'll break his face," Ao Guang suggested.

That idea was immediately met with silence as the dragonets digested it. If Mudslide hated her Rider…was that a mental problem? Would she really attack Cardin one day?

Would another CRDL dragon be culled by the Council before the year ended?

The dragonets thought and wondered, unaware that, miles away, a battle cry was sounding, one that would have a direct effect on the rest of their lives.

Let's be real: Ya'll were waiting for Cardin to get punched in the face, weren't you? As you can see, I didn't kill off Penny in this version, nor did I make it as apocalyptic as Volume 3. That comes later.

If you like what you see and want to show extra support while earning sweet rewards, my P/atreon is Solora Goldsun.

Peace out!