To Thrive And Be Victorious

CHAPTER 12

My eyes slowly opened after being unconscious for what felt like an hour. I groggily shook off what remained of the sedative, taking in my surroundings. I was in a dimly lit room, with nothing but a single window and a plush carpet covering the floor. When I tried to move, I found out that my arms were tied behind my back and my legs were restrained to a wooden chair.

There wasn't much to see outside of the window aside from another building, though it made it clear that I wasn't in the coliseum anymore. Some screams and what sounded like roars of Grimm could be heard outside the window. Remembering what happened before I was knocked out, I knew that I was in a position that wasn't good. I tried to break free from the binds with all the strength I could muster but they were too tight and it only caused me pain the more I tried, aura be damned.

Thinking of a way to escape, I remembered a military trick my dad had taught me in case of capture. He had shown me how to untie different types of knots using my hands or mouth, depending on the situation. I never thought I would make use of them because I always made sure to never get captured but there was no other option. At least the White Fang took the cuffs off when they threw me into a cell.

As I was preparing to put my plan into action, I heard a familiar voice approaching. I froze, waiting for an opportunity to make my escape.

"Well, well, well. Look who's finally awake," A voice sneered. It sounded like it belonged to Mercury. I looked up and saw that it was indeed him. The most surprising thing was that he was walking as if Yang never broke his leg for the entire world to see. The fact that he was approaching me with a malicious grin after his teammate kidnapped me made it clear enough that Yang really was innocent after all.

He was accompanying his team leader, Cinder along with his other teammate, Emerald. Nico—or whatever her actual name was—the four-foot butcher who knocked me unconscious was nowhere to be seen. That was the only good news.

Cinder was wearing a different outfit, a dark red mini-dress, her shoulders exposed and adorned with golden motifs. She grinned at me in a way that was both alluring and intimidating. "Hello again, Jaune Arc. The Defender of Podunk, The Valish Defanger, and more recently The Hero of Beacon. I'm sure you already know who we are so I don't think we have to introduce ourselves."

I glared at her, not in the mood for snappy comebacks after being knocked out by a pint-sized murderer who would have certainly killed me if her team hadn't wanted to capture me alive for whatever intention they may have. "What do you want?" I asked curtly.

"I just wanted to tell you how much of a nuisance you have been," she began. There was some sort of dissonance with the same hush voice I've always been familiar with during her tirade. "You have no idea how many times I've had to revise my plans because of you. The White Fang's operations would have been much smoother if it weren't for your hindering. And if that wasn't enough, you've been going after the drugs I've been trying to supply as well. I'm honestly impressed, no one else has given me this much trouble before."

"So you're telling me that you're working with the White Fang?" I wasn't particularly surprised considering their collaboration with a criminal like Torchwick. What did surprise me is that she was also the one providing the drugs to Junior's gang. Considering the letter I had seen at the club, it all made sense now.

Cinder smirked. "I'm not working for the White Fang. They are working for me. They are nothing more than a means to an end. Their hatred of humanity makes them perfect for the front lines."

"You must be Torchwick's employer, aren't you?" I remembered what he told me back after his caper with the train. Ever since that day, I had been curious about who they were and had always feared that I would meet them like this.

"That's correct, my dear. You have quite the nerve to break his leg like that. A certain associate of mine wasn't happy about that. Fortunately for you, she's too busy with something else important to return the favor on his behalf," she answered. It was still chilling to think that someone was out there, holding a grudge against me. "Anyway, you sure do know how to thwart months worth of planning. It makes me wonder how you're able to do it."

"Trust me, I'm about as curious as you," I scoffed while being technically honest about it.

She gave an amused look. "You truly are a mysterious one. Whatever it might be. The Arc blood does run on you. Ozpin sure knows how to pick his pawns. Which reminds me, do the words 'relic' or 'maiden' ring a bell?"

I looked at her confused, not knowing what she meant by those words. "Huh?"

Cinder's tone became more insistent. "Do you know anything about Maidens? The Relics? Or The Ruinous Powers?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. Really!" I anxiously cried out.

Cinder leaned in closer, her glare intensifying. "You're telling me that Ozpin told you nothing?!"

"No, he kept me in the dark with a lot of things," I explained whilst catching my breath before remembering something that could relate to what she was talking about. It was the only thing I could think of and it might be the only chance I get to ask about it. "But… what about the name Salem?"

This seemed to catch all their attention, as I noticed all of their eyes widen. That alone was enough to tell me that she was connected to her in some way. Cinder stepped closer to me. "Did he mention that name to you?"

"No, it was Dr. Merlot. I've been wanting to ask Ozpin about her," I admitted since I didn't have a reason to lie.

"What else do you know about her?" Cinder asked, pressing further.

"Nothing, just her name and something about chaos," I replied.

Cinder stared at me for a few more moments before chuckling. "I understand now. Don't worry about her, you'll soon find out who she is one way or the other," she said with a sinister smile. "Whether you're more than just Ozpin's pawn or not, you truly have been quite the hero the public praises you as. Just like your daddy," she added, narrowing her amber eyes as she looked into mine. "But I don't want any heroes."

I gulped, feeling my heart race rapidly as she stared me down. "Now that I have you where I want, I don't have to worry about you anymore. Having you spice up some things was fun, I admit, but I think you've already done more than enough for me. Today is my big day, and I don't want you to ruin it. I should thank Emerald and Neo for their semblances or else we wouldn't be able to have you here."

"What are you planning to do?" I asked, increasingly aware that they were planning something big enough to get rid of me first.

"Get what I deserve. And I'm not going to let anyone stop me. Not you, not Ozpin, nor any of your friends."

Hearing that made me sick in the stomach. Capturing me was one thing, but planning on harming my friends was something I could not withstand. "Keep them out of this. Look, do what you want with me but don't you hurt my friends!"

She shook her head with an amused grin. "Oh darling, this isn't about you. You're not what I want, you were just in the way. Same goes for your friends. And one of them is already gone."

"What?!" My eyes widened in shock. I wanted to believe she was bluffing, but given how serious she sounded, she unfortunately wasn't. Someone I knew was already dead and I couldn't do anything but feel terrible about it.

"And she won't be the last. Don't worry about your partner. From what I know so far, she's not dead. Yet."

"Don't you dare try anything on her!" I instinctively tried to lunge toward her, only to be stopped by the tight ropes that still bound me.
"And what are you going to do about it?" Cinder taunted me with a smug look.

I kept trying to struggle out of my binds until I eventually gave up and stared at the floor, almost sobbing in defeat. "Why are you doing this?!"

"Because life is simply unfair. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices to get what you want. My father told me that; he was the only person I ever believed in," Cinder answered.

"Is this what you want then?" I asked, looking back up at her with a scowl.

"To show the world how it feels to be miserable? Yes," she answered coldly. I once again found myself at a loss for words. I had always known that the person behind all of this was ruthless, but I hadn't expected them to be this sadistic.

"Oh look at the time," she said as she checked her scroll. "You know, the wisest thing for me to do is to kill you, right here right now as swift as possible." She pulled out one of her dark swords and used it to slowly graze my jaw while I could only sit still and feel myself shiver. "But after everything you've done, that would be too kind of a fate. I want you to hear the screams of death and destruction of what you've been trying to protect as you burn with it. Slowly and painfully."

Cinder stared at me for a few more seconds before putting away her blade. "It's a shame that I have very important matters to attend to. I would have loved to watch you suffer." She leaned forward to peck my cheek. "I'll see you in hell, handsome."

The room's door opened to a brightly lit hallway. Cinder turned away, revealing a tattoo of a crest with a split in the middle forming a heart on the back of her torso. [1] Emerald followed her out while I remained repulsed by her unwanted kiss.

Meanwhile, Mercury approached me, holding my scroll and waving it in front of me. "By the way, you have some nice songs here. I didn't know you were into dad rock. Don't worry, I'll be taking good care of this."

While the loss of music and pictures wouldn't have bothered me too much, the fact that Mercury now had access to my contacts and private messages was a concern. At that moment, I made a mental note that I needed to find another scroll to log in and block access from my old device before it was too late.

Mercury followed Emerald out of the room. Cinder stood in the doorway and pulled out an ignited fire dust, tossing it onto the carpet. She gave me one last wink before closing the door.

The carpet burned as the fire steadily grew, drawing closer to me. With my captors gone, I tried every trick and method I knew to untie the ropes, but the knot was beyond anything I had learned, as if they had anticipated my attempts to escape. I stubbornly persisted, but it only left me exhausted and sore.

There wasn't much I could do. I was trapped in an empty room with nothing but a raging fire spreading around me. My only option was to scream for help. I didn't know where I was, so I couldn't tell if anyone could hear me or not. I kept calling out for help until I ran out of air. With the flames almost reaching me, I closed my eyes, believing there was no hope left and that I was about to die unceremoniously.

I braced myself for the pain of being burned as my life was about to flash before my eyes. That was when I suddenly heard the sound of footsteps approaching. My eyes widened as the door was pounded on a few times before it was kicked open. I then heard a fire extinguisher discharging, slowly putting out the flames. As the smoke cleared and my vision cleared, I saw that it was Cardin and his tea, of all people, who had rescued me.

"C-Cardin?" I said groggily in surprise, still feeling weak from almost suffocating in the fire. I never thought I'd be glad to see them again. How ironic that they had once indirectly put me in a situation that was almost like this before, and now they were rescuing me.

"Don't worry, Jauney-boy, you'll get out of this," Cardin said before turning to his team. "Get him out of there!"

Russel went ahead and used his daggers to cut my bonds. In the middle of it, a loud hiss was heard outside the building, making everyone in the room frozen in shock. After a few seconds of wondering what it was, Sky was able to identify it. "Oh no," he muttered.

I turned to the window and saw the black head of a King Taijitu looking at us. I didn't know how it got there, but all I knew was that the negative energy emanating from me was enough to grab its attention.

It shoved one of its heads toward the window, breaking it and the wall surrounding it. Russel's teammates pulled me away as he went forward and bashed its head with his mace. The giant snake's head was knocked back and it hissed in pain as Russel sliced the remaining ropes binding me. "C'mon, let's go!" He yelled.

Team CRDL and I ran out of the room before it was able to bite any of us. We rushed downstairs until we were out of the building. As I glanced back, I discovered that I was held in an abandoned residential building somewhere north of Beacon and that the King Taijitsu's other half saw that we were running and went on to chase us.

We all stopped and turned back to face the Katie. [2] Team CRDL readied their weapons while I checked my pockets, only to see that they were still empty. Without my scroll, I couldn't summon my locker to retrieve my weapons.

Cardin told me to run as he and his team prepared to engage King Taijisu. I would have taken his word but I wasn't sure if I should go unarmed especially if there were more Grimm on the way. And I still wanted to ask some questions and maybe even return the favor.

Team CRDL split themselves into two, with Cardin and Russel facing off against the white half of the Katie while Dove and Sky battled the black half. Cardin pushed against the white snakehead while Russel slashed the body. Dove and Sky fired at the black head, agitating it enough to turn its attention towards them. Dove narrowly dived away from its attack, while Sky tried to swing his weapon at its head, only for it to go around him and have him caught up with its coils. Sky yelled for help as Dove switched to his sword and leaped toward the black head. Unfortunately, it swung its head at him, making him fly toward a nearby building.

I thought of borrowing one of the scrolls from Team CRDL to get my weapons, but I felt the coin drop after scanning the Katie's black head. There was a crack on its bony crown from Cardin's earlier attack, and only a single well-placed strike would be enough to put it out of action. I took a deep breath before putting my plan into motion. "Cardin, toss me your scroll!" I ordered.

To his credit, he wasted no time and tossed his scroll at me while continuing to ward off the attack of the white snake head. I caught the scroll in the air and immediately accessed Beacon's locker application. "Keep that one busy! I got an idea," I told Cardin.

He nodded in acknowledgment as I typed my locker's launch code. Taking one last gulp, I thought of every bad memory I could think of, from certain childhood tragedies, to acts of betrayals, to my recent capture to generate as much negative energy in me as possible.

Both of the Katie's halves responded to my emotions, distracting the white one and giving Cardin an opening as he swung his mace to its nostrils. The black one forgot about Sky and slowly slanted toward me as I marked the locker's landing location near my front and activated its launch.

I stepped back and tensely stared down the black snake while encircled red dots glared above its head. It let out a deafening roar toward me, with its venom dripping from its fangs just inches away. It then lunged toward me, but as it was about to reach me, my locker fell from above and landed on top of it, crushing it beneath its weight. The other half's head screeched in pain, allowing Sky to escape from its coils.

I panted as I looked at my locker pinning down the white snakehead before it opened. I secured my weapons and placed my holster and my shield on my belt. With my sword and gun ready, I aimed my gun at the other half of the King Taijitu and fired. The lasers were sharp enough to scrape the side of its mouth and I could tell that we were close to killing it.

Russel continued to slice the white half's body, while Dove recovered from his crash and sliced through the Katie's jaw. Sky thrust his halberd towards its neck, causing it to fall to the ground. Finally, Cardin stepped in and smashed its head with his mace, unleashing an explosion on impact that finished it off.

The King Taijitsu lay dead, its body vaporizing into black particles. Sky jumped out of it and surveyed the results of our efforts. "Woah," he said in amazement.

Glad that's taken care of. Gods, I really hate snakes, I thought to myself.

"That's only one of them," Cardin reminded his teammates as he rested his mace on his shoulder. "We can't call it a win until we know that every Grimm in here is gone."

I looked up and noticed a significant amount of military aircraft and Grimm flying around the sky. Smoke was emanating from the courtyard, where gunfire and explosions could be heard. I couldn't understand how everything had escalated to this point. The last thing I remembered was watching the match between Pyrrha and Penny, and then seeing Weiss calling me. That was when I was ambushed by the Neapolitan Butcher, and then I woke up to this chaos. Since I was in a moment of relative safety, it was a good time for me to ask questions. "Can you tell me what's going on here?"

"I don't know. It all happened so fast," Cardin tried to answer, sounding almost as confused as I was. "One minute we were watching the tournament, and then all hell broke loose with the Grimm somehow passing the kingdom's defenses and the White Fang was releasing more of them to the school!"

I had no choice but to take his word for it. I still couldn't help but wonder why Cinder would go to such lengths to detain me. It seemed like she believed that I posed some sort of threat to her as if I could somehow stop whatever she was planning. My thoughts were interrupted by a burning question: "How did you find me?"

"Well, it all started when we were watching the match between Pyrrha and that Penny girl when Mr. Shorty here was looking for the bathroom after drinking up all our root beer. Then he saw a Bullhead landing on that weird place that nobody goes," Russel explained, gesturing toward Dove as he looked somewhat offended. "He told us that he saw you being carried inside by those exchange students from Haven when he went to check up on it."

"The most surprising thing I saw was that the Mercury guy was suddenly able to stand and walk again after his leg was shot by Xiao Long a couple of hours ago. After seeing that, I knew something was wrong." Dove added.

"When he got back to tell us what he saw, the match was heating up and then a woman's voice came up on every device connected to the CCT," Russel continued. "The woman talking over it sounded like that raven-haired chick if we heard right."

"Yeah and after that, Grimm alert levels went through the roof and when we got out to check what Dove saw, the Bullhead flew away, then the building caught on fire and we knew we had to go in and save someone there."

"It's Cinder alright. All evidence pointed toward her team being behind all of this. She's also working with—no—she's behind the White Fang," I asserted.

"You can't be serious," Sky remarked.

"Yeah, I know. The worst part is that I'm not even kidding," I said as I went to check the updates on Cardin's scroll. I saw that the Grimm Threat Level was dangerously high, with the bar glowing red. I knew Cinder was bad news but I didn't know she was much worse than that, being able to cause havoc within this scale. I had to check on my team and see if they're okay. "I'm going to make a call. Is that okay with you?" I asked Cardin.

"Go ahead," he nodded.

I dialed Pyrrha's number and waited for her call. To my relief, she was able to answer after a few seconds, indicating that she was alright for the time being. There was a hint of worry when in her voice, however. "Hello?"

"Pyrrha! It's me. I just wanted to let you know I'm okay." I said, sounding moderately ecstatic to hear her voice again.

"Jaune…?" she paused for a moment. "Oh, thank gods."

"Jaune! We were just wondering when we might hear from you again." I heard Ruby exclaim as her voice came closer to Pyrrha's scroll.

Nora followed suit and I assumed that Ren was listening closely too. "I knew you'd be alright, Fearless Leader!"

I felt better knowing that everyone was okay, but we were still in a rough situation and Pyrrha sounded distressed after I suddenly disappeared from the coliseum. "Where are you right now? I was getting worried."

"I'm at Beacon. Look, I'm really sorry for disappearing like that. I got jumped and I had to break out. Are you okay? I heard that the outbreak began during your match."

"I'm alright," she answered before her tone shifted into sorrow as she hesitated. "I can't say the same for Penny though."

"Penny?" I asked in deep concern.

"Jaune, have you heard of what happened?"

"No, I didn't. I was out when things went down."

Pyrrha took a short moment of silence before she explained, "She's… she's a robot. She was a robot all along."

"And she's gone..." Ruby added. She was audibly tearing up, and I could only feel sorry for her. I know how it felt like to lose a friend before your eyes. I stood there remaining speechless while realizing she was the casualty Cinder mentioned.

"And she was a machine all along! Those darn snowmen have a lot to answer for!" Nora yelled, clearly enraged over robots. I couldn't imagine how she would have reacted to that prior to this but that wasn't important.

"Jaune, you mentioned that you were captured," Pyrrha brought up. "Who were they and what did they do to you?"

"It was Cinder and her team. Nico turned out to be the Neapolitan Butcher and knocked me out. They took me to one of the old abandoned buildings at Beacon and even tried burning me alive. Luckily I made it out." I explained, summarizing what happened to me for the past hour. "All evidence leads to her. Not only that, but she said she's working with the White Fang as well."

"So that's why she always felt like she's up to somethin'!" Nora remarked.

"I knew that voice from the announcement sounded familiar," Ruby added.

It took a moment for Pyrrha to process all of that, something which I couldn't blame her for, it was a lot to take in. "I couldn't believe it, why would they do this?"

"Trust me, I've been asking the same thing. I don't know where they are or what they're doing right now. All know is that we need to find the Headmaster, he'll know what to do."

"Okay,' she said, still sounding apprehensive. "We're heading to Beacon now. Meet us at the courtyard, everyone should be there."

Ren took his turn to speak. "And watch out for the Atlesian machines. It appears that they are hacked to shoot at any Huntsmen and soldiers on sight. Best of luck."

Even Atlas's robots are a problem? I thought, feeling somewhat dubious given Ren and Nora's irrational fear of anything with an A.I. but I was willing to take his warning just in case. If Cinder was able to hack the CCT channels then it was plausible for her to hack the robots as well. "Alright, thanks for the tip."

"Take care, Jaune. See you when we get there!" Ruby said, sounding cautiously optimistic.

"Please be careful, Jaune. I don't want this day to get any worse," Pyrrha told me.

"I will," I replied before the call ended.

"Ready to head out?" Cardin asked after I handed him his scroll back.

"Yeah," I nodded as I looked around the apocalyptic scene for another moment. There were a lot of things I feared that might happen when I first went to Beacon, but I never expected something like this. I didn't even know what to expect anymore. "I still can't believe this is happening."

"We can't believe it either. I never thought I would see Vale like this. The Kingdoms have always made sure their walls are impeccable," Sky chimed in.

"It was a matter of time until the Grimm would eventually break in but this is too much," Dove added.

"The others are making their way to Beacon right now. They'll be waiting for us at the courtyard," I stated.

"Alright, let's head there now," Cardin said as he was about to proceed to the courtyard.

"Wait a minute," I told him as he and his team stopped to hear what I had to say. "I just wanted to say thanks. I couldn't imagine what would have happened if you guys didn't come."

It was still astounding to me that Cardin and his team would go as far as to help me out like this. I knew that Cardin had mellowed out on me and that Sky never had any issues with me, but this was a far cry from the team that had tormented me in the early days of Beacon, especially when Russel and Dove made it apparent that they still hated my guts a couple of days ago.

"Anytime, buddy," Cardin said, patting my shoulder. "Besides, I owe you a lot. I hope this helps make it up to you."

I thanked him with a grateful smile before continuing. "We better get going."

All four of them nodded in agreement and we set off towards the others, taking care of any minor Grimm that crossed our path as we made our way out of Beacon's dilapidated area and began to strategize on how to sort this mess out.

=o=

1. The tattoo Cinder has on her shoulder is the symbol of her former family. Records stated that she used the powers of the Maiden to tattoo herself with it after taking half of the Maiden's powers from Amber Burnell.

2. A shortened nickname for King Taijitus typically used by Huntsmen and most military units as an informal nickname. It is derived from the creature's initials, "KT."

As Team CRDL and I navigated through the debris and destruction toward the central campus, we were stopped by a squad of Atlesian Knights pointing their guns at us from a corner. Their glowing red eyes made it clear that they were not there to serve and protect. Ren wasn't kidding when he told me about Atlesian robots going rogue.

Drawing our weapons, I was about to lead the charge when Cardin stepped in front of me. "We'll take care of this! Go! You have a day to save like you usually do."

"Don't worry about us, we can handle a bunch of fancy tin-cans!" Dove said.

I hesitated for a brief second before complying, as there wasn't much time for me to lose. "Got it." I withdrew from the group and proceeded to the courtyard myself. Before leaving I turned back for a quick moment to tell them one more thing. "Oh and Cardin. Thanks again. I won't forget this."

Cardin and his team gave me a friendly smile. "Good luck out there, Bunny Jacket!" Russel said before lunging themselves toward the robots, followed by sounds of gunfire and the smashing of metal.

I made my way through the debris-filled path toward the courtyard, I encountered a few Grimm and small squads of AKs. I had yet to come across any White Fang members, even though they were reportedly responsible for releasing the Grimm contained at the academy. The only White Fang members I did find were unconscious or dead bodies, which were of little use to me aside from looting. My focus was on more pressing matters, and I knew who I truly needed to be wary of.

Eventually, I reached the courtyard where I saw my team, Ruby, Weiss, fighting alongside other teams against Grimm and rouge robots alike. Some of them were badly injured and stayed behind cover while the rest of them engaged the hostiles.

While the Grimm and AKs were disposed of with relative ease, my team and the other hunters struggled against the two giant mechs—or, the Atlesian Paladins to be specific. I don't think these were the same Paladin models as the ones the White Fang had stolen since they were black and white rather than dull gray, and they seemed to be operating without pilots. [1]

Weiss tried launching herself toward one of the Paladins with her glyph. Unfortunately, it swatted her out. I instinctively stepped in as soon as I saw her landing near me. All those aura trainings and trust exercises I had of catching a heavy Nora were able to pay off as I was able to catch Weiss without falling over this time.

"Jaune?" Weiss said, looking surprised as she found out I was carrying her.

Without another word, I let her go. Ruby rushed toward us to check on her partner. "Weiss!" she exclaimed before noticing me. "Jaune, you're here!"

There wasn't much time for discussion. All three of us glanced back at the battle as the others tried hitting the Paladins the best they could while doing their best to deflect their attacks. I searched for Pyrrha in the battle and spotted her trying to slash the torso of one of the Paladins. The Paladin retaliated by throwing a punch at her but she was able to block it with her shield.

The Paladins were powerful enough that one of them managed to push back Yatsuhashi and knocked both Ren and Nora back. guiding them back to safety as the two Paladins advanced closer to the line everyone was trying to hold.

The next thing I noticed was Velvet was approaching the two Paladins much to our confusion and concern. "What does she think she's doing? She's going to get hurt!" Weiss remarked.

Velvet seemed to have heard Weiss since she glanced toward us and gave us a reassuring wink. She faced the two mechs and summoned what appears to be a holographic copy of a very familiar weapon.

"Wait," Ruby leaned in and narrowed her eyes. "Is that—!"

Yes, it was. A holographic copy of Ruby's scythe. I have never seen Velvet fight before so this was quite a surprise. Not only that, she turned out to be a more impressive combatant than I thought.

Velvet leaped into the air, dodging an energy blast from one of the Paladins' guns before it could hit her. She used the holographic scythe to slash it before she landed. I turned to Weiss to see her dumbfounded. As Velvet landed, the holographic scythe disappeared, and another weapon formed in her grasp—a holographic version of Weiss's rapier, which she even wielded with her left hand. [2] She pushed the Paladin back with a burst of wind dust, then began rapidly slashing at it with the rapier.

When the Paladin tried to punch her, Velvet changed her weapon to holographic versions of Yang's gauntlets, using them to fire shotgun shells at the mech (even sounding like the real thing). The Paladin then began spinning with its fist forward, this prompted Velvet to change her weapon into a copy of Blake's Gambol shroud, using the weapon's rope to wrap around the Paladin's fist and swing around the spinning mech, tangling its legs until it lost balance.

The second Paladin was closing near Velvet, but she was able to slice off its arm as she turned back with a swift slash before throwing the katana's sheath towards its torso. Velvet's hologram then transformed into Coco's minigun, which she used to fire at the Paladin until it came close enough for her to counter its punch with a copy of Sun's staff. She then climbed to the top of the Paladin and used a copy of Nora's hammer to slam it, knocking off one of its parts. Her holograms then formed Penny's backpack behind her, from which a number of floating blades emerged. She jumped off the mech and used the blades to slice off each of its legs before firing a beam that finished it off.

Velvet panted as she noticed the other Paladin recovering and trying to strike her down. She avoided its swing as she summoned copies of my sword and pistol. She fired at the mech while rushing towards it, scraping the bottom of its torso as she passed between its legs and cutting one of its wires. Continuing to fire on its back, the Paladin turned to face her and attempted to throw a punch. Velvet jumped above its arm before lunging toward the Paladin's upper body, stabbing its head with her sword before climbing atop it and shooting at its top until electrical sparks began emanating from the Paladin as it crumbled. With a final leap, Velvet jumped off the mech as it finally blew to smithereens.

It was astonishing to witness her using copies of my weapons and utilizing them in a way I would. Granted, they were basic moves but those were tactics Huntsmen usually discard in favor of something flashier. Velvet certainly knew how to mimic someone else's fighting style while using a holographic emulation of their weapon.

Velvet walked away as she noticeably made heavy breaths, fainting in front of Coco who promptly grabbed her and held her steady. What she did must have taken a toll on her aura, but it was worth it as she had managed to put two metal giants down.

With the coast clear, I put my attention on my team. Pyrrha was looking after Ren and Nora who were resting on a bench and replenishing their auras after their recent battle.

"Pyrrha!" I approached them. Pyrrha heard my voice and was overjoyed when she saw me.

"Oh, Jaune, there you are!" She gave me a quick hug. It was something we both needed after everything that happened in those couple of hours of being separated. "Thank goodness you're okay."

"Yeah, they tried burning me alive," I replied. "You can thank Cardin and his team for saving my butt."

"Team CRDL saved you?" Ren rose a brow as continued to pant on the bench.

"I couldn't believe it either," I replied with a sigh as I looked around, observing the injured students and the destruction around them. It was staggering to think that we were happily celebrating the festival without much trepidation right before all of this. "It feels like I woke up in a nightmare."

"I know that feeling," Pyrrha regretfully chimed in. "The academies had always tried to prepare us for this but everything about this is all too much and too sudden for us to bear."

With nothing much to say, I sighed as I took a minute to contemplate before turning at my two teammates sitting on the bench. "Are you two alright?"

"Don't worry about us, we've been through worse than this," Ren replied before Nora followed, still full of vigor though not without showing hints of weariness either because of her injuries, the current situation, or both.

"Trust me, I'm not through with these hunks of junk yet!" Nora exclaimed angrily.

Speaking of hunks of junk, I remembered that not only Penny was mentioned to be a robot, but was also killed shortly after I was knocked unconscious. I turned to see Ruby and Weiss walking toward us, the former was lacking the bright smile she always wore. The last time I saw her, she was happily cheering for both Pyrrha and Penny during their match. But as of this moment, she felt nothing but fear, sadness, and confusion. It showed how bad things have become.

"Ruby, I'm sorry about Penny," I consoled.

"She didn't deserve this," Pyrrha said, it was the only thing she could say for her while Weiss gave her looks of remorse. Everyone else sympathized with her as well, except for Nora.

"I beg to differ," she callously snorted, grabbing all of our attention as the others were shocked by her remark. Most knew her as an eccentric girl who is as dangerous as she needs to be, and this was one of the last things we expected from her. "It serves it right for sneaking in and pretending to be like us. Atlas had the nerve to create such tech-heresy!"

"Nora…" Ren sighed, not looking too happy with how his partner was acting even though he shared the same sentiments toward robots as her.

Nora stood as she continued. "Open your eyes and look around you. This is what happens if you allow these plastic abominations to go rampant!"

Ruby was understandably repulsed. "I don't know why you hate robots so much but even though she wasn't a real girl, she was still a real friend! What makes you think you have the right to say she deserved this?!" She retorted without even raising her voice.

"Oh, boo-hoo. Call it whatever you like, it's not changing the fact that 'she' is a pretender created by Atlas as a weapon who for all we know is just infiltrating us while pretending to be our friend."

I often tried to ignore Nora's hatred for artificial intelligence, dismissing it as one of her many quirks, but this was uncalled for and it was getting out of hand. I had to step in before it escalated. "Nora!" I yelled, grabbing her attention. "Now is not the time for this. I don't care how much you think of robots or Penny right now. We need to stick together if we are to make this through and you're not helping if you're just starting fights! Whatever this crap is all about, save it for later! "

Ren stepped in to back me up. "He's right, Nora. As much as I have nothing but disdain against Atlas and their machines, we have worse things to worry about right now." Good to know that he was still in his senses even though he shared the same beliefs as her.

Nora obediently backed off. Although she and Ruby would continue to scowl at each other, this unneeded quarrel was defused before it got too heated. We already had enough problems as it is.

Yang eventually arrived on the scene, the tag on her ankle was noticeably absent, not that it mattered much. [3]

"Ruby!" she approached her sister, holding both of her shoulders. It was convenient that she arrived after the bickering with Nora was over. Being too familiar with her temper, I doubt that she'd make the situation any better. "Good to see that you're okay!" She glanced around to find out that her partner was missing. "Where's Blake?"

"She went after an Alpha and some members of the White Fang." Weiss pointed to the direction that leads towards the cafeteria.

"I'm going after her," she nodded before immediately heading out. "Take care of yourselves."

We watched her move forward to the cafeteria as Pyrrha reminded us of a pressing question. "This reminds me. Where do you think Cinder and her team are right now?"

I went into thought only to find nothing as the details of her plan that she gave me were vague aside from trying to get me killed. There was no doubt that she was seeking to destroy Beacon. So when I asked myself what I would do if I was in her position, I finally found one particular place I would target, especially after noticing the tall building behind us. "I don't know. But if Cinder really is trying to destroy Beacon, then she must be heading to—"

"The Beacon Tower," Professor Ozpin interjected as he stepped in. All eyes then fell on him. "Cinder Fall is very likely targeting the Beacon Tower. If we were to put a stop to her then we must go in there and protect what she is after."

Coco overheard the conversation when she was putting an inert Velvet on a nearby bench. "Wait, what does Fall have to do with this? Are you telling me she's—?" She contemplated for a moment, staring at us for confirmation. Straight looks and a few faint nods were enough to answer her query. "That bitch. First my shades, and now this. If I ever get my hands on her I'm going to—!"

"Be careful, Miss Adel. The current state of Vale and this academy is enough to prove that Fall is a very dangerous individual even for someone as lethally talented as yourself. I advise you not to take that risk. I cannot have my students fighting battles they have no chance of winning," Ozpin stated before turning to Pyrrha. "Miss Nikos, the time has come, I'm afraid."

Pyrrha noticeably responded with worry. "Oh no…"

"What is it?" I asked for Pyrrha, noticing her apprehension.

"We do not have much time, Pyrrha," Ozpin urged, ignoring my question before glancing at me. "Mr. Arc. If you wish to help, you may come as well."

I still wanted him to tell me what was going on and what Pyrrha had to do with whatever he was planning. But I knew if I wanted answers, I would have to comply. I figured it was the best way for me to find out what was going on while being able to look after Pyrrha.

"Whatever this is, we're coming too!" Nora insisted, trying to step forward in spite of the fact she and Ren had barely recovered their auras.

Ozpin shook his head, stopping her in her tracks. "No, both of you are going to stay with your classmates and help everyone get to safety!"

"But—"

"This is not up for debate, Miss Valkyrie!" Ozpin exclaimed, getting her to step back and frown.

Ren held her shoulder in comfort. This prompted me to try to reassure her. Knowing Nora, she would listen to me. It was one way to keep her compliant while cheering her up. "Just listen to the headmaster and help the others. You still have more robots to kill. You know that we'll be fine, right?"

Her face brightened, giving me one last salute before she and Ren reunited with the others. For all her flaws and her antics, you could always count on Nora to do your bidding. And you had to admire that.

Before we left, Ozpin faced everybody who was present in the courtyard. Many of them were demanding answers about what was happening and what they should do as they cried out instinctively. The clamoring eventually faded as Ozpin stared them down for a short moment before he spoke.

"Students, I'll keep this brief as usual. Vale is currently under attack by those who threaten our way of life. We are doing everything we can to stop them and we need your cooperation. I know you have many questions, but right now, we need you to gather as many survivors as possible and evacuate to the docks while we try to prevent this crisis from deteriorating further. Always remain vigilant as the instigators of this attack will not stop until there is nothing left in this kingdom to save. This is the moment you have all been preparing for. You have all heard stories of heroes and monsters, and now is the time for you to be a part of one. Good luck, and may all of you live long enough to tell this tale."

That was good enough. While there were some questions he did not answer, he at least was able to reassure them that he was trying to sort this mess out and he finally told us what needed to be done.

Ozpin walked away as he led me and Pyrrha to the Beacon Tower. As much as I wanted to evacuate out of Beacon with everyone else, I still had answers to uncover. I wanted to know what exactly Cinder was planning to do so much that she wanted to get rid of me first and what was Pyrrha's role in this and if her recent behavior had anything to do with it.

When I was about to walk the stairs toward the tower's entrance, I suddenly heard loud stomping coming from a distance. Turning my head back, I saw yet another rogue Paladin entering the courtyard.

"Great, more of these things!" Neptune exclaimed.

"And I'm not going easy on them this time," Nora loaded customized EMP grenades that Ren crafted the other day in case we face more robotic adversaries on her weapon. Begs to ask why she didn't use them earlier.

"They will be fine, Mr. Arc!" Ozpin shouted as he stood at the Tower's doorway. "Let us make haste!"

Since there wasn't a good reason for me to disagree and since I didn't want to fight one of those Paladins myself, I turned back and rushed toward the tower's entrance, but not before I heard Ruby calling me. "Wait, Jaune!"

I looked at Ruby, standing beside her partner and fellow classmates as they were facing the incoming Paladin. "Please stay safe!" she shouted, giving me a thumbs up with her free hand.

I gave her a nod of acknowledgment before catching up with Pyrrha and Ozpin. Everyone was counting on whatever the headmaster was planning to do to end this disaster. Little was I aware of how much sacrifice it would cost for him to do so.

=o=

1. They were actually finished versions of the same model released shortly before the beginning of the Vytal Festival only with a few additional features. The stolen prototypes from earlier chapters were unpainted and lacked an auto-pilot function.

2. Velvet is ambidextrous, which makes it more convenient for her to handle different types of weapons and mimic different fighting styles.

3. In one of General Ironwood's reports, it was mentioned that Yanbg tore it before leaving the room. Normally, this would trigger an alarm in the Atlesian system, but due to the White Fang's control over the system and the ongoing chaos, it was not a priority.