A/N: Twila Azure, Diana Mirai, Hathor Isatari, and Akane Shidou all belong to my friend, decode9. Aiden Keegan and Silver Starbright both belong to my friend Persona1.
In southeastern Anima…
Twila led Colby and the others into the building, which looked and felt like an ancient temple. She led them through its hallways until they reached the inner sanctum, where a silver-eyed woman was looking over a map of Anima on a table. Those who had gone to Beacon saw that she bore a striking resemblance to Ruby Rose. She had the same dark red hair with lighter red tips that Ruby had, and she wore a white cloak similar to Ruby's red one. In fact, it seemed like she was just an older version of Ruby. She looked up at Twila and the others.
"Ah, Twila," she said with a smile. "I see you've brought visitors."
"Yes," Twila replied. "These are students from Beacon and Shade Academies, including my friend Colby Castanho."
"The Gray Lightning?" The woman asked. "Twila's told me an awful lot about you. Said you were a great fighter and an even greater friend."
"Yes, I am the Gray Lightning," Colby replied. "Are you Summer Rose?"
"The one and only," Summer replied. "Why have you come here?"
"My friend Pyrrha said you would be able to help us defend Vacuo," Colby answered. "As you probably know, Atlas was attacked by Salem's forces. The city was destroyed, but we got the survivors out. We know that they're going to come after Vacuo next, and we need help defending the city."
"Yes, I'm well aware of what happened in Atlas," Summer replied. "I know of it thanks to my beloved daughter, Ruby." She gave a proud smile. "I saw her broadcast, and I must say that I've never been more proud of my little girl. I knew that she and her sister would become great huntresses someday. But where are they now? Did they make it out of Atlas okay?"
Now was the moment Colby had been dreading. He dreaded how Summer would react to the deaths of her daughters, but he wasn't about to lie after seeing how Ironwood had handled being lied to. If Summer was going to help in the defense of Vacuo, she was going to find out anyway. In light of all this, Colby knew that telling the truth would be the best thing to do.
"No…" He said sadly, lowering his head in shame. "We were attacked by the Fall Maiden, who's working for Salem. Ruby and Yang…they sacrificed themselves to get us to Vacuo. I'm so sorry…"
"Oh…" Summer replied sadly. "My poor daughters…if only I'd been there for them…" Tears started to well up in her eyes.
"It's not your fault. You have your mission, and they had theirs. They went above and beyond the call of duty and sacrificed everything to save their friends. They died heroes' deaths, both of them."
"You…you're right. They fulfilled all the ideals that huntsmen strive to achieve. And I'm sure they would want me to keep fighting. I will miss my daughters, but I can mourn later. There's still work to be done."
"So you'll help us defend Vacuo?" Sun asked.
"Of course. But before I leave Mistral, there's a task I need your help with."
"A task? Colby asked. "What kind of task?"
Meanwhile, in the other world…
"Oh, come on, Anne!" Jaune begged as he ran after the Atlesian girl into the forest. "We can't just give up! We have so many people counting on us in Vacuo!"
"Sure, because trusting you with the lives of others worked out so well back in Atlas!" Anne snapped. "They're better off without you!"
"Anne, no one would have survived Atlas if it weren't for Ruby!" Jaune pleaded. "And besides, we got Penny to Vacuo safely, remember?"
"We let that crazy fire bitch get away with the Relics!" Anne replied. "And who knows how many people will die in the heat of Vacuo?!"
"We can save them if we get back to Remnant!"
"We had a chance to save them, but we threw it away when we went with Ruby's stupid plan. She tricked me and Penny! Ironwood's plan would have saved the city!"
"There are too many what-ifs, Anne. Ironwood's plan might have just slowed Salem down, and it for sure would have doomed Mantle. We'll never know how it would have turned out. All we know now is what actually happened and what we can do going forward."
"Enough!" Anne snapped as she put her swords in gun form and pointed them at Jaune. She also activated her semblance, which allowed her to make others feel whatever emotions she was feeling, so that he could know just how angry she was. "If you say one more word, I will shoot you!"
"You're bluffing, Anne," Jaune said, a bit nervous but firm in his conviction. "You're hurting now, I know. We all are. But we have a task ahead of us. We can't turn our backs on our mission. That's not what those back in Atlas would have wanted us to do. That's not what Penny wants us to do."
"Well, I'm sorry to disappoint her," Anne replied coldly as she lowered her guns. "And you. Our world is doomed because of people like you and Ruby." She walked away.
"Anne, stop!" Jaune shouted at her. "Come back!" Anne ignored him and kept walking. The two kept walking through the forest for a while and appeared to be going uphill. The trees seemed to open up at the top of the hill, and the two of them saw what appeared to be an abandoned castle. Anne couldn't help but stop and look upon the castle in awe.
"Woah…" They both said in unison as they looked on.
In Vacuo…
Coco and Velvet walked through a neighborhood in Vacuo to the address that Oren had given them. They hoped that they would be able to convince Ringo to rejoin the fight against Salem, despite the bitterness caused by Chloe's death. After walking through the streets, they approached a lonely-looking house at the end of a cul-de-sac.
"Is this the place?" Velvet asked as they got close to the house.
"Yep," Coco replied. "This is the address that Oren gave us. Let's go say hi to Ringo." They walked up to the door and knocked. After a while, a grumpy-looking man approached the door. He had black hair, brown eyes, a mustache, and a beard.
"What do you want?" He asked the two girls in an irritated tone.
"Are you Ringo?" Coco asked.
"Yeah, that's my name. But you didn't answer my question, so now I will repeat it: what do you want?"
"Do you know Oren Halstein?" Velvet asked. "He wanted us to talk to you about something."
The man groaned. "Oh great. What does he want?"
"Let us in and we'll talk to you."
"And just why should I?"
"He's your friend and your teammate, isn't he?" Coco asked.
"He was, but not anymore. We had a falling out a while back. I don't like to talk about it."
"You don't need to, because Oren told us all about it. We're so sorry about Chloe, Ringo. She was your teammate, and we know you cared about her. But don't blame all the huntsmen for the betrayal of one."
Ringo's expression changed from anger to sadness. "Why should I trust the huntsmen anymore after Arnold's betrayal?"
"Because Oren still trusts you," Velvet told him in a firm but compassionate voice. "You may have given up on him, but he hasn't given up on you. Please, don't let him down."
"I…you're right. Okay, come in. Then you can tell me more about what he wants me to do." He opened the door for them, and they entered his house. The inside of the house smelled like alcohol, and the girls noticed beer bottles lying around the living room. They sat down on the couch, and he sat down in a chair across from them.
"What did Oren want you to talk to me about?" He asked.
"Salem is about to invade Vacuo," Coco said, getting right to the point. "I'm sure you've noticed the influx of refugees entering the city by now. Those are the survivors of Salem's attack on Atlas, which they tell me was completely destroyed."
"And Oren wants me to help defend the city?"
"Yes," Velvet answered. "But that's not all. Salem sent two of her best assassins, Mercury Black and Tyrian Callows, to destabilize Vacuo. They broke Arnold out of prison, and they're going to kill our high-ranking huntsmen unless we stop them."
"So, that son of a bitch got out of prison?" Ringo asked angrily.
"Yes," Coco replied. "And we have to stop him and the others."
"How will we do that?"
"We hunt them down and kill them first," Coco replied. "I know that what we're asking isn't easy, but Arnold and his friends are a serious threat to our city. They could cripple our chain of command if we don't stop them."
"And we can't risk them ever getting out of prison again," Velvet added.
"Alright, I'll do it," Ringo told them. "Oren and I should have killed the son of a bitch when we had the chance, not put him in a prison that he might escape. Let's go."
"Alright!" Coco said to him. "Oren and our other friends are currently investigating into the locations of the three assassins. We should get back to them."
The three of them exited Ringo's house, and Coco pulled out her scroll. "Professor Halstein," Coco told him, "We convinced Ringo to join our fight. We're heading back to your location."
"Excellent," Oren told her. "I still don't have the whereabouts of our three assassins yet, but I'll have them soon enough."
In Anima…
"Did Twila tell you what I do here?" Summer asked Colby and his friends.
"I told them, Summer," Pyrrha told her.
"She told us you rescued silver-eyed people and recovered ancient magical artifacts," Colby explained.
"That is all true," Summer said. "My sources have located another silver-eyed person who may be in danger. We need to save her. Once we do, I promise I'll help you in Vacuo."
"Alright. Who is this silver-eyed person we need to protect?"
"Her name is Akane Shidou. She's a Haven student, and my insider in Haven told me about her. But she may be in danger. Salem has many spies and mercenaries all over Remnant, out to kill or kidnap silver-eyed people. We need to go make sure she's safe. Go to Haven and talk to my contact there. He'll tell you what you need to know."
"Okay, who's the contact?"
"Aero Girasol," Summer explained. "He's a teacher at Haven Academy, a silver-eyed warrior, and a survivor of the recent mass killings of huntsmen in this kingdom."
"He's the winged faunus who saved my life during the Fall!" Pyrrha added happily.
"Yes," Summer said. "He's an honorable man. But he'll need your help protecting Akane."
"You can count on us!"
Summer smiled. "Good. Have any questions?"
"None, ma'am."
"Alright. Good luck, now!"
"Okay guys, we have a job to do!" Colby told the others. "We won't let any harm come to that silver-eyed girl!" They all left the temple and boarded the airship to fly to Haven.
In the other world…
"What is this place?" Jaune asked as he looked at the castle.
"Some kind of abandoned castle, obviously." Anne replied. "Well, at least we have a place to spend the rest of our short, worthless lives." She continued up the hill to what looked like the front entrance to the castle.
"Anne, wait!" Jaune said to her as she neared the entrance. "We don't know what this place is! We aren't even in Remnant anymore!"
"Better here than that gods-forsaken forest!" Anne told him. "Or anywhere in Remnant, which is now doomed because of you and Ruby!" She went past the gates and into the courtyard, which was also very quiet. There didn't seem to be anyone in the castle.
"Anne, remember what you signed up for when you enrolled at Atlas Academy! We're supposed to protect the people of Remnant no matter what! That means we never give up, no matter how bad the odds are!"
"Nothing you say is going to convince me, Jaune. Even if I wanted to keep working with you, there's just no way back to Remnant.
"What about that giant tree in the middle of the island?" Jaune asked. "I think that tree is Yggdrasil, the world tree. It connects all the different realms of existence. We can use it to get home."
Anne scoffed. "You believe in Yggdrasil?" She asked as she entered the great hall of the castle through the front door. "That's just a fairy tale!"
"So many of the fairy tales I heard back in Mantle have turned out to be true!" Jaune replied as he entered the hall himself. "The Maidens, the Gods, the Relics, silver eyes. They're all real, Anne!"
"Yep, our worst nightmare came out of a fairy tale!" Anne replied bitterly as she kept walking. "The greatest army in Remnant couldn't even defeat a fairy tale!"
"Aww, don't be like that!" Jaune begged.
"Why shouldn't I?" Anne asked as she went through a door and entered what appeared to be a library."
"Because it's our job as huntsmen to keep fighting for the good of Remnant no matter how bad things get!"
"What do you know about being a huntsman?" Anne asked angrily. "You should know that part of being a huntsman is making tough calls for the greater good! You doomed Atlas and the rest of our world because you weren't willing to do what was necessary to save them!"
"Anne, abandoning Mantle was the easy way out!" Jaune shouted back. "It was a cowardly plan, and Ironwood had gone insane."
"Don't you dare speak ill of our General!" Anne snapped at him.
"He was a coward and a murderer," Jaune told her. "You may not like to hear it, but it's the truth."
"AAAARGH!" Anne jumped forward to punch Jaune, but he jumped out of the way before she could hit him. Her fist hit the bookshelf that had been behind Jaune, and a book fell from it and hit her in the head. She screamed and fell to the floor.
"Anne?" Jaune asked as he looked down at her. "Are you okay?"
Anne looked up at him with a smile on her face. Not a happy, friendly smile, but a cruel, evil smile. The look on her face made Jaune very nervous.
"I've never felt better in my whole life, Jaune," she told him. "You were right. Remnant can be saved. And I know exactly how we're going to do it."
"And…how is that?" Jaune asked nervously.
"We release the great dragon from the depths," Anne told him. "It will stop Salem. It will save our world."
"Great dragon? What are you talking about?!"
"The World Eater. A beast of immense power. Not even Salem will be able to stand against it."
"World Eater?" Jaune asked. "That sounds like a terrible idea! That thing will destroy Remnant!"
"Not if we learn how to control it. This world contains all sorts of magic. Far more magic than anything we could ever find in Remnant."
"Anne, you can't do this!"
"Oh, but I will! Anne replied with her most terrifying smile yet. "Right after I kill you, Ruby, and all her teammates!" She put her weapons in gun mode and opened fire on Jaune, who quickly activated his shield to block them.
"Anne, stop!" Jaune pleaded. "You've lost your mind!"
"I've found the perfect solution to all Remnant's problems, and a way to achieve justice for Atlas!" She put her weapons back into sword mode and attacked Jaune, who blocked her attacks with his shield and pushed back. This moved sent her flying away from him and into another bookshelf, allowing him to run back through the door and into the great hall.
"You can't escape me!" Anne shouted as she pursued him. She fired at him as he fled, and he kept blocking her bullets on the way out. He went out the great hall and into the courtyard, seeing that she was still pursuing on him and slowly getting closer. When he went out the main gate, he thought of a solution. He grabbed a small rock that he passed by as he was running, then threw it at his pursuer. It hit her in the chest, causing her to scream in pain and fall down. Her aura protected her from injury, but it was enough to slow her down long enough for Jaune to escape into the woods and out of her sight.
"I've got to find the others!" Jaune thought to himself as he ran. "I survived the fall, so they could have too! And then we'll bring Anne back to her senses and get out of here!"
Meanwhile, at Shade Academy…
Penny was in the weapons workshop with Tsukiko and Shade's weapons specialist, Professor Rowena Sunnybrook. She was creating a device for controlling her swords the way she did when she was a robot. That ability gave her a very important advantage the first two times she fought Cinder. When she lacked it during the third fight, she had taken a lot of hits. She would have been killed had it not been for Anne. She knew that she would have to fight the Fall Maiden again soon, and she wanted to be as well-prepared as she could possibly be.
"Tsukiko," Penny said as she looked up from her weapons and toward the Summer Maiden. "Ever since I got these powers, I couldn't help but wonder…am I really worthy to be the Winter Maiden?"
"Of course you are, Penny," the blonde girl replied. "You got all these people from Atlas and Mantle out of those cities alive."
"Yes, but so many of my friends died to get me to this kingdom alive," the redhead replied sadly. "Team RWBY, Jaune, Kent, Lily, Hathor, Anne…" Her eyes started to tear up. "They all died because of me. A Maiden is supposed to protect her friends, is she not?"
"You did everything you could, Penny. And besides, friendship is a two-way street. They were your friends, and they did for you what any friend would do. And I'm sure you would have done the same for them."
"That makes sense, but if I had just been stronger, they might not have had to sacrifice themselves for me."
"Penny, how long have you been the Winter Maiden? Just a few days, right? You expect too much from yourself. Trust me, I know that being a Maiden is a lot of pressure. I always felt like I had to be the best if I was going to lead my tribe someday. But you have to forgive yourself for your failures, and think in terms of progress, not perfection. Think about where you are now and how far you've come. You saved the people of Mantle and Atlas, Penny. If it weren't for you, no one would have survived."
"That…that's good advice, Tsukiko. I just hope I'll be able to become a good Maiden someday."
"You will. I know you will, Penny. I'll help you."
"I'll help you too, Penny," Rowena told her. "My weapons workshop and all the tools and materials in it are yours to use, Penny. And if you need help upgrading your weapons, you know who to ask."
"Thanks, Professor Sunnybrook."
"Of course, Penny. And remember, it's not just me and Tsukiko who are here to help you. The whole academy is here to help you in your fight against Salem."
"Wow, really? Those girls on Team NDGO aren't very nice."
"They uhhh…don't count," Tsukiko told her. "They're not good people. But they'll come around once you help us achieve victory in the coming battle."
"I appreciate your faith in me, Tsukiko," Penny told the blonde girl with a smile. "You too, Professor Sunnybrook."
Meanwhile, an airship landed outside Shade Academy. Out of it stepped Qrow Branwen, Robyn Hill, Marten Steinbrecher, and the remaining members of the Ace Ops. They entered the courtyard, where Robyn saw a couple of familiar faces.
"Robyn!" Shouted an adorable sheep faunus who ran up to Robyn and gave her a hug. "I'm so glad you're safe!"
"I'm glad you're safe too, Fiona." Robyn said as a muscular, blue-haired woman approached as well. "You too, Joanna."
"Do either of you know what happened to my nieces, Ruby and Yang?" Qrow asked the Happy Huntresses.
Fiona looked at him somberly, then gave him the news. "They…they didn't make it. I'm so sorry. They gave their lives to get us here safely."
"No…" Qrow said as he broke down in tears. Robyn, Fiona, and Joanna leaned in to hug him.
"I know how difficult this must be for you," Steinbrecher told him, "But we have an important task ahead of us. Salem is coming. If we don't stop her, she will do to Vacuo what she did to Atlas. And this time, we don't have a magical staff that we can use to evacuate everyone."
"Alright…" Qrow said in response. "Winter and Team FNKI shouldn't be far behind us." Just then, another airship landed. Out stepped Winter and Team FNKI.
"Qrow!" Winter shouted. "I'm glad you made it. What do we need to do now?"
"Salem is coming to destroy Vacuo," Qrow told her. "She's probably coming for the Sword and the Summer Maiden powers."
"Yes," Fiona added. "She's also after the Winter Maiden, who got here safely thanks to your nieces' sacrifice."
"Very well," Winter said. "Team FNKI and I will defend Shade Academy to our dying breath."
"As will I," Qrow added. "I will avenge my nieces, or join them in death."
But then, Steinbrecher thought of something. "What happened to the General, Winter?"
"He attacked me in the Winter Maiden's Vault. I…I had no choice but to…"
"I'm so sorry, Winter," Robyn told her. "I know how close the two of you were."
"Yes, he was the closest thing I ever had to a father. But my duty to Atlas came first. He was a threat to the people of Atlas. The people I swore to protect…"
"Still, I know it couldn't have been easy…" Qrow told her.
"It wasn't. And he didn't go down without a fight either. If it weren't for Team FNKI, we'd be dead right now."
"Really?" Qrow asked. "We owe Team FNKI a big thanks, then."
"And we owe Steinbrecher thanks for helping us see the light," said Flynt. "He convinced us that getting the people out of Atlas was what really mattered. Because Atlas isn't a place. It's the people who lived in that place."
"Indeed," said Joanna. "Now, we need to get ready for Salem's invasion. We have to give it everything we've got. "If Vacuo falls, we're finished." The others nodded and followed her into Shade Academy to prepare for the coming invasion.
Meanwhile, in one of Shade's dorms, Professor Silver Starbright was calling someone on her scroll. After it rang for a few seconds, a female voice answered.
"Have you located the Maidens yet, Onyx?"
"Yes, my Queen. My Silver Starbright persona has them totally fooled."
"Good. When the battle begins, seize them both. Then, Cinder will come and take their powers."
"There's only one problem. Penny is growing stronger. She may not be as strong as she was when she was a robot, but she is still quite a force to be reckoned with. And she has the Summer Maiden backing her up. Tsukiko has more experience than Penny, too."
"You will seize them for me," the voice replied. "Your pay-and your life-depend on it. And once my other agents in Vacuo kill their targets, the huntsmen will be thrown into disarray. The Maidens will be isolated, vulnerable, and demoralized."
"It will be done, my Queen…"
"Now that's what I wanted to hear. Cinder will be seeing you soon…" With that, the call ended and Onyx got back to planning how to capture the two Maidens.
Meanwhile, in a shady part of Vacuo (no pun intended) …
Oren and the others walked through the streets of Vacuo to a run-down part of town. The place made the students uneasy.
"This is the bad side of town," Oren told them. "Stay with me, and you'll be safe." The others nodded and followed him through the streets. Those who hadn't seen this part of town weren't surprised that such a place existed in a kingdom that was infamous for not having anyone to enforce the law other than the huntsmen. But despite the kingdom's lawlessness, they were determined to save it. Vacuo was the last bastion of resistance against Salem, and the huntsmen could not surrender. They would fight until the very last one had fallen.
The students followed Oren through the streets until they made their way to a bar. This restaurant was full of tough, mean-looking people. The students knew that they were dealing with hardened criminals and made sure not to look at anyone funny. They made their way to the bar area, and Oren spoke to the bartender.
"We're here to see the boss," Oren told him.
"Ah, Oren," the man said with a smile. "Miss Nephrite is right upstairs. I'll radio her and let her know you're coming…but you do know that whatever you want from her is going to cost you?"
"I am well aware," the professor replied. "I've dealt with her before, you know."
"Alright, go on ahead. But…make sure your kids over there behave themselves around her."
"Don't worry, I will. Alright, students. Come with me." They all followed him to a stairway in the corner of the bar. It was guarded by a couple of bouncers, who let them through. After going upstairs, they entered an office where they found a woman who appeared to be the boss of the establishment.
"Jemima Nephrite," Oren greeted her. "It's been a while."
The woman smiled. "Oren Halstein. It's good to see you again. Who are all these kids?"
"Some very gifted young huntsmen and huntresses. We need some very important information, and we know that a woman with your resources must have it."
"I do happen to be one of the most powerful crime bosses in Vacuo," Jemima replied. "What kind of information are you looking for?"
"We know that there are three dangerous assassins on the loose in this kingdom. Agents of the Grimm queen that the young huntress in Atlas warned us about in her broadcast. They broke my old teammate Arnold out of jail, and they're going to kill some important huntsmen in our kingdom unless we stop them."
"Ah, yes. I have eyes all over this kingdom. They spotted a couple of huntsmen fleeing the prison with your old teammate. But you know that I'll need a favor done before I'll tell you where they were headed."
Oren sighed. "Fine. What do you want us to do?"
"There's this huntress, Kauri Kiefer. She owes me quite a lot of lien, but she has refused to pay me thus far. I want you to go to her and collect the payment through any means necessary. Do that, and I'll tell you where those assassins went."
"If that's what it takes. Alright, where is this Kauri Kiefer?"
"I'll send you her address on your scroll. Good luck!"
"Alright," he said, clearly irritated at the request. "Let's go, everyone." They exited the bar and saw Coco, Velvet, and Ringo outside.
"Ah, Ringo!" Oren said with a smile. "Long time no see! I'm so glad you've finally decided to rejoin me."
"You trusted me to do the right thing even after I no longer trusted you. I'm here to help you get rid of those assassins. Judging by the fact that you just came out of Lady Nephrite's bar, you need information from her and she's asked you to do a favor."
"Yep," Oren replied with a sigh. "And I don't think you're going to like it…"
Meanwhile, on the island…
Ruby, Lily, and Little ventured west toward the cliff that the leader of Little's village had mentioned. They walked through the forest for miles, talking about the strange world they'd fallen into and what they would do after they got back to their own world.
"So, Yggdrasil is real." Lily said to Ruby. "And so is Alyx. At this point, I think it would be easier to list the fairy tales that aren't real."
"I remember hearing the stories about Yggdrasil and the Maidens and the Gods when I was a kid," Ruby replied. "My mom told them to me when I was really little, and then Yang did after mom died…"
"I'm so sorry about your mom, Ruby," Lily told her. "I know how much she meant to you."
"It's because of her that I decided to be a huntress in the first place," Ruby told the fox faunus sadly. "I can't help but wonder, what would she think if she saw the things I've done since I arrived at Beacon? What would she say to me if she were here right now?"
"I think she'd be proud, Ruby. You've come so far and sacrificed so much for what you think is right. You could have just stayed in Vale where it was safe. Well, safe compared to the rest of Remnant at least. But instead, you chose to seek the truth about what happened at Beacon on that awful night. You did it because it was the right thing to do, and because it was what a true huntress would do."
"But Ironwood went crazy because I lied to him," Ruby replied. "And we don't know what happened to Penny or the Relics. l even let Yang sacrifice herself for me."
"She wasn't going to just let you die, Ruby! And besides, she might not even be dead! We survived falling into this world, so why couldn't she have survived?"
"It's the principle that counts, Lily."
"She was willing to sacrifice herself for the greater good, as were you. What happened in Atlas wasn't your fault, Ruby. No one could have predicted that Cinder would catch on to our plan. I calculated the probability myself before we went into the portal. It was 10,003 to 1."
"Well, it is true that our plans can't account for every possibility. But you know what? I bet Cinder didn't account for the possibility of us surviving our fall and returning to Remnant!"
"That's the spirit, Ruby!"
"We'll make my mom proud. Wherever she is…"
"Ruby, I'm sorry. I haven't seen my own parents in years. They were in Mantle, and I don't know whether they made it to Vacuo or not."
"Well, I hope they did. I know what it's like to lose a parent. Especially one you look up to so much."
"Yeah," Lily turned to Little. "Hey Little, is there anyone you look up to?"
"Well, I certainly look up to you two! You're so much taller than me."
Lily chuckled. "Not literally, Little. I mean is there anyone you really admire."
"Oh, yes. There have been many brave mice in my village's history who helped drive off the evil cats and bring us tons of food! Like our leader!"
"Wow, really? You'll have to tell us some of the stories sometime." Just then, they heard something that sounded like waves hitting rock.
"We must be near the western cliffs!" Ruby said with excitement. "Alyx must be around here somewhere!"
"Alright!" said Lily. "Let's go find her!" They ran west until they reached the cliffs, which overlooked a vast expanse of ocean. Lily wasn't sure how large this ocean was or whether there were even any other landmasses in this world.
"It reminds me of the cliffs on Patch," said Ruby. "Where my mom's grave is."
"I'm sorry, Ruby."
"We can be sorry later," Ruby said, trying to regain her composure. "Right now, we need to find Alyx. Where could she be?"
"Right here," said a new voice from behind them. They turned around to see a blonde haired, blue-eyed girl wearing a blue dress.
"Are you Alyx?" Ruby asked. "The girl who fell through the world?"
"That I am," the girl replied. "But who are you…?"
A/N: Anne's insanity in this chapter is inspired by fan theories that Jaune will lose his mind and become a villain in Volume 9, and that he is the knight that is briefly seen in the trailer. Since Jaune didn't kill Penny in this timeline, I figured Anne would be the one to go crazy instead.
