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Act III

Scene 34:

Aftermath

A/n:

I'm alive, bitches!

Nah, but seriously, it's three-ish months after my last update

whoops

And, goddamn, things happened while I was gone.

But on the Madness front, it's passed 400 follows.

Damn guys, damn.

But that's enough outta me, on with the show.


"Remember Blake, always fight for what you believe in, and protect the ones you care about." He taught me.

"You will always be my precious little daughter, Blake." He told me.

"You will always have a home here, Blake." He promised me.

"I will always be there for you, Blake." He swore to me.

Then he looked up at me. He was lying on the floor, practically on his knees. He gazed at me with those golden eyes of his. There was…fear…in those eyes.

So much fear.

It was the first time I had ever seen him truly afraid.

It was also the last time.

"Blake, ru-"

BANG!

I jolted out of bed, panting in a cold sweat.

"Not again," I murmured, rubbing a cold hand over my face.

I closed my eyes, trying to force out the memories dredged up. It had been a while since I'd had the nightmare.

Instead it was replaced by different ones.

Each were terrible and sad in their own way, but none could really match the first ones.

Shaking my head, I shoved those thoughts out of my mind. Instead, I rolled myself out of bed, looking around to figure out what was happening right now.

Pyrrha's gone I noted, looking at her empty bed.

Glancing at the window, I saw it was still dark outside. I grabbed my scroll and saw it was nearly 6 in the morning.

Cracking my back, I wondered if Pyrrha ever got to bed in the first place.

I got up, got dressed, and decided to see if Jaune was back. Peeking into his room, I saw he wasn't and proceeded to make breakfast for myself.

Guess he slept over at his sister's I considered.

Immediately more unsolicited images came to mind. All of which I ruthlessly beat down. Most of them, anyways.

I think I need a new hobby I thought drily as I made myself coffee.

As if on cue, a memory flashed in my mind. Blood splattered along the walls, gore strewn about the carpet. Screams echoing in my ears.

Shaking my head again, I thought, maybe later.

Going back to my room, coffee and breakfast sandwich in hand, I looked through my library, searching for one of my favorite books. Finally spotting it's well-worn spine, I pulled it out, the leather bound book feeling comfortable in my hands.

I wonder if Adam ever regretted giving this to me? I mused, opening to the first page.

I stopped when I heard it.

Sirens, echoing in the distance.

My ears twitched, turning to the window instinctively.

Looking out, I noticed a warm glow in the distance and lights dancing in the sky.

I swallowed a lump in my throat as I realized what it was.

My hands clenched, pages crinkling under my grip.

Somehow, I had a feeling, this was the start of something terrible.


Ruby pov

I was back home.

In that world of black and white. Of Light and Dark. Of the Origin, and the Void.

It always felt nice to be back. Like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. It was comfortable, it was safe, and it was mine.

"Where am I?" A voice rang out.

I spun around, caught off guard by the sound of an unfamiliar voice. Before me stood a woman wearing what looked like winter BDU's. She had dark black hair with a few streaks of white, a black baseball cap topping it, and two ice blue eyes.

It was Lyudmila Odessa, the Faunus woman I had picked up.

My eyes narrowed in concern, wondering what on earth she could be doing here. I hadn't pulled her in yet.

… Had I?

No, I'd remember that, right? I thought. Dammit, my memory's still disorganized.

"Where am I? Who-what are you?" She questioned, panicking.

I brought a hand up to my head, trying to put all the pieces together. One by one I put together the puzzle of the last 24 hours. Entering the police station, finding Jack, finding Roman, finding Neo again, finding Lyudmila, blowing up the station, arriving in the base….

And going to bed, I realized.

Could I have accidentally brought her here? I wondered, I had been delving through her memories before I went to bed, I might have accidentally left some kind of connection between us in my haste.

"Tell me where I am," She said with more steel in her voice. I glanced back up at her, mildly surprised to see a gun in her hands. She was aiming a pistol directly at my head. My eyes, in particular. Her eyes were cold and hard, demanding and unyielding.

I stared her down, my mind racing over all the possibilities and paths. Finally I gave her a dry look, and gave her my response.

"Hello, Lucifer."

The woman scowled, her finger squeezing the trigger, time seeming to slow to a crawl,

Bang!

With that loud blast, instead of sending a bullet flying toward me, the woman… changed. It was like a wave passed through her, starting at the muzzle of the gun. As the wave traveled through her, it blasted a layer of colored ashes off her, as if incinerating her skin.

Beneath lay the same woman, but… not.

Hidden by the blast of ash, she stood in its wake different. She was no longer pointing the gun at me, instead holding it in a loose grip by her side. Her face no longer twisted into an angry scowl, instead, a grin tinged with the edges of madness was worn on upon her face. And her eyes.

No longer were her eyes icy blue.

Now they were black as night, with two pinpricks of almost blinding light in the center. Like her eyes were filled with stars.

And they smiled back at me with comforting recognition.

"What gave me away?" She/it grinned through Lyudmila's face.

"She's not supposed to be here." I frowned, "Not yet, anyways."

"Your memory's cleared up then, has it?" She/it guessed.

I grimaced momentarily, before deciding to show her/it. It's not like she/it couldn't find out on her/its own, she/it was just being polite.

I snapped my fingers, and suddenly we were in a library. At first glance, it resembled a normal library, but soon the differences became quite apparent.

The floor was an Onyx black mixed with a few tiny bursts of light, tiny sparkles in the endless darkness. The ceiling seemed to be a glorious and full night sky, showing ribbons and swaths of light interspersed with gaps of empty void. The Library itself was a massive circular room lined wall to wall with bookshelves. The central circular stairwell towered high into the empty column of the central tower, reaching into seeming eternity.

The books themselves a myriad of colors, some bright green, some blood red. Some had normal covers of a simple hard, black binding. Others had strange, exotic, and impossible covers, like one book which seemed to be made of sunlight, and another made of furred hide that seemed to move, as if still alive.

"I'm… still working on putting all the pieces back in their places." I admitted, gesturing to all the books still strewn about on the floor.

"But all the important stuff's where it's supposed to be." I said, pointing out how the overwhelming majority of books were in their place.

There were no labels for the sections, no words on the spines or common titles written in a human language. At least, nothing visible. In my hands was a book. The Book. The one that made it all possible. A physical manifestation of my memory, where and what everything was. How I kept this place organized.

"I guess it is quite the upgrade from the massive pile of books you had earlier." Lucifer commented.

I nodded. It had taken me all night to do this. About 32 hours of what Aunt Glynda thought was healthy sleep over the course of 4 days. In here, however, it was… harder… to tell how much time it had taken, seeing as how there was little to solidly tie it to the time-space of Remnant, other than me, so much of it revolved around my own perception and Lucifer. Still, I had quite a good deal of experience with this. All in all, I guessed I had spent approximately two months, or 64 days, in here.

2 days for every hour.

Hardly a constant exchange. Back when I was in a coma for a week, I hadn't spent 336 days in Purgatory.

At least… I don't think I did. I paused, a moment of worry for my sanity flaring before I dismissed it.

No, I shook my head, I didn't spend nearly a year here.

Probably 2 months at most.

"But you still aren't quite done, are you?" She/it said, pulling me from my thoughts.

"No." I admitted, "But the bulk of the work is done now. I can actually function like this."

"That's something." She/it acquiesced.

We stood for a moment in a comfortable silence. I took the time to put several of the books back on their shelves, cleaning up the last remnants of disorder in my mess of a mind. Each time I picked up a book I went through the memory contained within. At one point in time it was a shocking experience, suddenly reliving memories with but a touch. Now, however, I had mostly gotten used to it.

Mostly.

"… Lucifer." I started, getting her/it's attention.

She/it hummed, signaling that I had gotten it.

"Why… that form." I asked, turning. "Why her?"

At my query, Lucifer stretched her face, pulling her lips into an imitation of a grin, "I thought it was fitting."

"Fitting?" I repeated, confusion carrying through my voice.

"Oh yes, I mean, she's such a new and interesting acquisition of yours." She/it smiled.

"… And?" I questioned with narrowed eyes.

"And," She/it chirped, "we both know she reminds you of someone."

Bang!

Like that, another wave of ash blasted off of her. The sound of a thundering gunshot on the battlefield seemed to shake the world for a second. When everything settled, a different woman stood in her/its place.

This woman was older, in her mid-late 30's. She wore a dark green military dress uniform, a variety of badges and medals worn upon her breast. Shoulder-length brown locks spilled down her head, but those same two starlight eyes swimming in darkness shone back at me. A knowing grin was stretched across her/its face. A Makarov was held loosely in her hands. Casually, but easily drawn and fired in a moment's notice.

It was… someone I knew.

In another lifetime.

And now Lucifer wore her skin like a dress.

I grimaced as the memory was called up in my mind. "… Yes," I admitted.

"It also sets a rather… interesting precedent." I added.

"I would have thought your little boy-toy would have done that." She/it commented.

"To a degree, yes he did, but Lyudmila hammers the point far closer to home." I explained.

"Speaking of home," Lucifer began, "where is that, for you these days?"

And with that, she/it began walking in certain direction in the Library. Towards a very particular door.

"Huh?" I recoiled rather unflatteringly, taken off guard by the question.

Still, I followed after her/it.

"Well, you're living with your dear 'Aunt Glynda', but you're also staying in that White Fang base." She/it explained, "In case you didn't notice, the two are a bit at odds with each other."

"I-" I started, about to make a remark, before pulling back and rethinking it. I actually thought it over, trying to decide what I actually wanted to say.

"… It is a very delicate situation." I finally spoke up.

"But…?" Lucifer supplied with a knowing smirk and a hand gesture.

"But…" I shuffled.

"Glynda makes me feel nice." I finally admitted.

"You like her." Lucifer simplified, punctuating her statement by pushing open a door, leading to an impossibly long hallway.

Its floor was much like the floor of the Library, but… harder. As if going from carpet to polished stone. The walls were clear, but an empty and ominous black, save for an incredibly bright line in the middle, almost acting as a divide between where the top ended and the bottom began. Each step was marked with a loud, echoing clack.

"Yes." I replied curtly and honestly.

Lucifer was one of the few entities I felt I could be totally and truly honest with, without having to put up some level of deception or secrecy. Something I couldn't even bring myself to do with my family.

Not that I felt that would have solved my problems.

"She's nice to me." I spoke, my eyes drifting to the ground as I felt my cheeks heat up at the confessions, "She makes me feel… warm… safe…."

"I can see the appeal." She/it said with a bob of her/its head.

"But why are you calling her 'Aunt Glynda'?" She/it asked, tilting her/its head. "She's not actually your aunt, a fact you know well."

"Why shouldn't I?" I asked, confused. "It's the role I'm playing, after all."

"I wouldn't think you would be so quick to get so close to her." Lucifer commented. "Considering what you've gone through."

Before I could open my mouth, she/it continued, "But, then again, you are doing your best this time around to play human."

"You wouldn't understand," I frowned.

"No, I suppose I wouldn't." She/it admitted, sighing through the woman's lips, giving me an imitation of exasperation.

"But," She/it interjected, jerking a hand into the air.

"It doesn't really matter what I think, now does it?" She/it said, pulling the woman's lips into an inhuman replication of a grin, something other spilling forth from the boundary between her/its lips and what should have been her/its mouth, her/its star filled eyes flitting to me.

"W-what do you mean?" I stammered, not liking the look in her/its eyes, nor the words from her/its mouth.

If anything, her/its grin grew wider, stretching to what should have been disturbing and unnatural lengths. The fact that it was only mildly unsettling, and even then, only because of what I knew it meant, spoke volumes about my current mental state.

"Isn't it obvious?" Lucifer said with a tilt of her/its head.

Then, suddenly, she/it threw her arms out to the sides of the hallways, gesturing to the walls.

To what should have been walls.

Instead, there lay enormous doors with equally massive locks and colossal handles. Each had a different design, a different theme, and a different symbol upon it. One was made from what seemed to be burnt, black wood; another stone, finely crafted but aged and damaged; and yet another fashioned from hardened, military-grade metals.

There were dozens of them, lining the walls in this area. We were still in the Library. Technically, at least. But this? This was a very special section.

These were the Vaults.

I gulped, deep down knowing full well where this was going, but not wanting to admit it. I desperately tried to deny it, to think of something- anything else but the cold, hard, and mad truth.

"Don't you notice something? Something… wrong?" She/it prodded, her/its grin showing far too many impossibly white teeth.

And against my wishes, I looked. I looked closely at the Vaults, and saw what I desperately tried to deny.

They were opening.

Most were still closed, but their locks twisted in just the right ways. The tumblers shifted ever closer into the correct places. Some dangerous few went even farther, actually being cracked open.

Just a smidge, just a peak, but it was enough.

It was dangerous.

"I-I…" I stuttered, searching for the words. "I needed it."

"Oh, I know you did, sweetie, I know." She/it said, her/its tone falling from madness into what was supposed to be warm and comforting tones expressing understanding.

"You just needed them to do what you needed to do." She/it said, suddenly up against me, her/its hands on my shoulders as her/its star-filled eyes bored into mine with empathy.

"You used them to protect what was precious to you," She/it spoke, "and you used it to put on a glorious show."

"But…."

"That doesn't change the facts." She/it said, a grin creeping its way onto her/its lips.

"I know." I all but sobbed, the truth burrowing into me like a sickness.

"The floodgates are opening, my disciple." She/it grinned, the madness surging back into her/it.

"And soon you'll be swept away."


"General!"

I glanced behind me toward the officer running up to me, papers in her hands. Despite this, my pace didn't so much as slow.

"Lieutenant." I said courteously, dismissing her salute.

"The Vale Council made a request to see you, sir." She opened.

"I already made arrangements for my arrival here." I responded, about to move on.

"This is different, sir." She interjected hastily with an undercurrent of fear, but with an iron resolve over it.

I held back a sigh with a modicum of effort, and instead gave the lieutenant my full attention. "How different?"

"Apparently there was a major terrorist attack on one of the major police precincts for the kingdom. It's suspected that it was the work of the White Fang, but at this point the evidence is mostly circumstantial." She explained.

"They put together a small report for you to look over, sir." She added, handing over the papers in her hands.

"When did this attack happen?" I asked, growing concerned as I began to look over the report.

"The morning we were coming in. We arrived in Vale's airspace approximately 3.5 hours after the attack."

"I see…." I nodded, looking through the notes. Then, something caught my eye.

"Lieutenant Niflheim, huh?" I murmured, raising a brow at the familiar name.

"Yes, former Major Niflheim managed to avoid being caught up in the attack, and is now aiding in the investigation." She added.

Looks like it isn't such a vacation after all, I thought wryly.

Folding the papers up, I placed them inside my coat before opening the door at the end of the hall. The airlock hissed open, and suddenly we were buffeted by harsh winds and the roar of engines starting up. My boots automatically engaged the magnetic clamps that locked them to the deck, a safety measure that was standard issue.

"Tell me more about what they wanted." I shouted over the deafening sound.

Nodding, she moved onto the flight deck herself, "In short, sir, they want to ask for your help in dealing with this matter."

"Don't they have their own forces that can deal with this?" I asked, wondering why they would us to deal with this.

My fleet and I were here expressly to provide security for the Vytal Festival, a multinational event with multinational security. This, on the other hand, seemed to be a very in-house issue, something Vale should be fully capable of dealing with themselves.

"They said that they wanted to have the insight of an experienced veteran in these matters." She answered.

"Major Niflheim should be all the 'veteran' they need." I shot back, trying to get to the heart of this.

"Knight 2, cleared to launch for escort patrol." Came over the loudspeakers on deck.

Looking further down the gunmetal grey flight deck, I saw two planes, side by side, sitting in the launch positions.

"Knight 3, cleared to launch for escort patrol."

Shortly afterwards, the rear exhaust of each jet lit up with an angry orange hue born from deep inside its heart. They screamed as the backblast reverberated through the air. Even from the other side of the deck, I could feel the faint waves of heat from them. In short order, each jet shot off from the deck, before arcing high into the sky.

Each jet, a symbol of Atlesian military engineering. The best Air Force of the four kingdoms, Atlas had indisputable Air Superiority in all matters. Where most kingdoms still tended to rely on a VTOL capable Air Fleet, often centered on Bullheads or their counterparts, Atlas was one of the only ones that extensively used fixed wing aircraft.

In air to air combat, they were without equal. But in this day and age, it was rare that one pilot would have to face another. Closest most came to that was fighting aerial Grimm. Something that the rotary craft were capable enough at.

In the end, it was just practicality and economics for most Kingdoms. Why have the expensive fixed craft when a rotary can do the job required and more?

But god-creator dammit, we have pride in our work I thought, admiring the flying forms of the silver bird-like craft as they twisted through the skies.

Looking around at the rest of the deck, not a single person was standing around idle. Pilots were sitting in their craft, coordinating with the flight crew. Fighters, Dropships, and Gunships all arranged themselves on the deck, moving into the places they needed to be. In some ways, a beautifully balanced dance of order and chaos, in others, an intimidating mess resembling a Wasp's nest stirred to action.

Across the way, I saw my destination, a silver Albatross Dropship.

My attention was stolen by a Wyvern Fighter crossing the deck between us, angling towards the launch pads. Catching my eye was the notable symbol on the two tailfins. The emblem of a Black Devil.

"Knight 1, approach the Launch pad." Called the intercom

Forcing my mind back on topic, I directed a question at the officer.

"What are your thoughts on this?"

"Sir?" She asked, not sure how to respond to that.

"What are your thoughts on the council's actions? Your interpretation of the situation." I clarified.

She looked taken off guard for a moment, before stealing herself and giving me a response, "It seems like the council is panicking, and is grasping out for any help they can get. It's been a long time since Vale has had any real attacks directed at it, and longer still since the fabled Warrior King held the throne."

"In short, they're soft and this was like a sucker punch to the gut, and right now they're reeling, grasping out for the ropes to stabilize them." She summarized.

"And we just happened to show up right in the nick of time, didn't we?" I commented.

"Indeed, sir." She nodded.

"It could also be that they see this as an opportunity." She brought up.

"Oh?" I said with a raised brow, signaling for her to go on.

"Just in the wake of a terrible disaster, an Atlesian fleet shows up to provide security for an event they're hosting. They can, and probably will, try to spin this as being related to the Vytal Festival, and that responding to the threat is part of your duty to provide proper security." She elaborated, "If they do that, they can hold back most of their forces, only providing a token effort for face value, while we do most of the work."

"And take most of the losses." She added. "And in the end they get to say it was a great big collaborative effort."

"They get the good press, a problem mopped up, but we get stuck holding the bill. Leaving them feeling nice and safe with their fat wallets and padded forts." She finished with a bitter tone.

"Lieutenant." I said curtly, giving her a firm look.

"Oh, uh." She halted, having the curtesy to look sheepish at her little outburst, "Sorry, sir."

I held my gaze for a moment, before I relaxed.

"…No need." I said, causing her to perk up in surprise.

"I was actually thinking the same thing." I said, answering the question on her face.

"Sir?" She questioned, looking quite confused.

"Congratulations, Lieutenant, you passed." I remarked with a small smirk.

"I passed? This was a test?" She asked before hastily adding, "Sir"

"I'm in need of an aid for these proceedings. Had to leave the one I normally have back in Atlas." I explained, starting up my pace again. "You didn't bring me coffee, but it's a good start."

For a moment, her soft green eyes almost glittered with hope and adulation, before she regained control of herself and said, "Thank you sir."

"General!" A voice shouted from the dropship.

Looking ahead, it was a young woman, a girl practically, wearing the female Atlas Academy uniform, A long blue skirt, dark blue belt, white shirt with golden trim, and sky blue cap. She had mocha skin and dark hair, her face in a stern professional look that gave no hint of the impatience she was no doubt feeling. In the center of her forehead was a golden star, and she wore two black gloves that went to the middle of her bicep the only deviations from the standard dress.

Her figure was lean and fit, and while some could say that puberty had been kind to her, most of it was either hidden by her dress, her lean muscle, or her stern appearance. What stood out most of all, however, were her bright, almost unnaturally, bluer eyes.

"We are on a time table, sir." She said, doing her best to remain respectful and keep the annoyance out of her voice. Unfortunately for her, I knew her too well. She was irritated at the prospect of potentially being off schedule or running late.

She was just too much of a good soldier to show it.

"Apologies, Cadet." I greeted her, "But it seems the Vale Council wants a meeting with me."

Her face twitched into a frown for a moment, before discipline brought it back to its neutral base.

"I see." She said in a clipped tone. "Shall I make adjustments to the schedule, sir?"

"We can make adjustments later, Cadet. For now, we have an appointment to keep." I answered her.

Turning back to the lieutenant I spared a glance and memorized her name, before looking back up at her.

"Dismissed, Lieutenant Cross." I waved her off.

Saluting, she turned and left us, barely able to suppress a smile.

I sighed, deeply wishing that they had finished construction on my flagship on schedule, instead of having its launch delayed by 6 months. It would have been nice if I could have flown with a full crew I actually knew, as opposed to people with a small case of hero worship.

Still I considered, I suppose meeting new people isn't all bad.

"Alright, Cadet Soleil, let's go." I said, stepping into the dropship.

"Yes, General Ironwood."


"Is she going to be ok?"

"Yes, general." The man answered, wearing a lab coat and having all the odds and ends a typical scientist of the Kingdom needed.

"It's pretty banged up, but nothing some spare parts and time in the lab won't fix." He answered. "It'll be back to full combat readiness well before the festival. Better than ever, sir."

I couldn't help but notice the pointed use of "it"

"I see." I nodded, not exactly pleased with the results, but not exactly surprised either.

Still, at least she was still alive.

Well, as alive as an android could get.

Brushing past the scientists, Cadet Soleil and I moved through the warehouse we had taken over for the purposes of the lab before ending in the maintenance room. In it lay the body of Penny Poledina.

Looking at her like this…it was far from a pretty sight.

Hell, if she was human, she'd be dead.

Half of her face was missing, the synthetic skin ripped from the metal skeleton underneath and a torn out optic sensor, as well as a few deep scratches in the faceplate itself. Impressive, considering it would take, at minimum, an anti-material rifle to even hope to dent it.

Her right arm was just gone, torn right from the socket. It leaked the blood-like fluid that went through her body. The main difference between the fluid and blood, on the cosmetic level, was that it was darker and thicker. Not quite black, but still a deep crimson.

On her left arm, red synthetic muscle was visible in some areas where deep rents and scars lay, exposing the innards of her creation. Her chest, similarly, had damage to it, showing the artificial layers beneath.

She was a revolution in technology.

And an abomination to nature something in the back of my mind told me.

Forcing those thoughts away, as I always did, I focused back on the task at hand.

Getting my report.

"Cadet Poledina" I began, raising my voice to get her attention. Technically she was missing an ear. I wasn't sure if that would actually hamper her hearing or not, but I felt it didn't hurt to account for it either way.

Sure enough, her remaining eye activated. A whisper quiet whirring sounded from her as her optic sensor reactivated with a small green glow, before dying down, leaving what appeared to be a normal, if vibrant, green human eye. The "pupil" widened and contracted several times before steadying. It began to wonder around the room, before it finally focused on my face.

"General Ironwood!" She chirped, a smile stretched across half her face, while the other half showed a gunmetal grey skull. Her voice was more static filled than normal, obviously a sign of damage to her voice box.

All in all, it was an unnerving sight.

But what does it say about me that it doesn't even rate on my top 10 disturbing sights? I didn't even think of flinching.

I should probably take Qrow up on that offer of a drink, shouldn't I? I considered, depressing thoughts rising in my mind again, or go see a shrink

Maybe later I dismissed it, pushing the thoughts to the back of my mind as I resisted the urge to rub my face.

"Cadet, what is your combat effectiveness?" I started, going through the regular checkup.

"38.7%, well below acceptable threshold, sir!" She responded, acting as if she hadn't been practically torn to pieces.

"What were the events that lead to this?" I asked

"I was carrying out my mission to investigate reports of the so called "White Wolf" in Vale. Upon discovery of the subject, I engaged a pursuit of the subject." She answered in that happy tone of hers.

"So the White Wolf is real." I murmured.

I had thought as much.

"What can you describe about the subject, "White Wolf"?"

"The White Wolf closely resembles Beowolf type Grimm, with several notable and crucial differences." She answered.

"It is approximately 15 feet tall, as opposed to a Beowolf's 7.5"

I frowned heavily at that. If it was twice the size as a normal one, it had to be old.

"There were no bone-like spikes or protrusions to speak of, nor was there a proper mask or any kind of red markings."

I paused.

That…was unusual. From what we could tell, that was a baseline all Grimm had.

"It's coloration was also off. Instead of being black, its fur was a silver white and its eyes appeared to be a dark black." She explained. "In reality, its eyes were more of a super black, only reflecting about .oooooooo12% of light that reached it, and that was likely because of the surface of the eye itself, or the air around it.

At that, I stopped, my eyes going wide and my blood freezing to the bone.

I was wrong, it wasn't old.

It was Ancient.

The only Grimm I knew of that were completely white, were the Ancient ones. Ones in excess of 1000 years in age. Each one was considered, at a generous minimum, an A-class threat. The black, or superblack in this case, eyes were strange. All Ancient Grimm we had records of had fiery red eyes that could often affect one's psyche just by looking at them. Often an instinctual level of fear that went beyond the normal for Grimm.

Technically, they were classified. If the public knew what kinds of things an Ancient Grimm could do, it would sow panic in the people. Something that would just attract more problems.

Part of this was because they, by themselves, were strong enough to fight and kill an entire veteran Hunter team.

"Shit" I cursed under my breath.

This…this changed a lot.

Perhaps everything.

Especially with the terrorist attack.

I'm going to have to make some plans I frowned.

"Cadet Poledina, what do you judge to be the general threat level of the White Wolf?" I asked.

"At minimum, A-class, if not S. It exhibited speeds in excess of mach 1 and, despite being covered in fur, it displayed unusual properties." She explained.

"Unusual how?"

"At base, it behaved like normal fur, bending and swaying. When hit with something of considerable impact, however, such as a gunshot or blade, it acted more like a solid, of comparable strength to old Grimm-Bone, if not stronger. In addition, it was extremely heat resistant." She elaborated.

"In addition, its claws resembled, on many levels, a natural monomolecular blade in its effect, without being prone to shattering or dulling. Combined with its strength levels, comparable to a Goliath's, it would be capable of cutting through heavy armor."

"So it's fast, durable, and hits hard." I summarized, "not a great combination."

"It also displayed a considerable intellect." She added in a…helpful, tone.

"It was smart?" I questioned, hoping I was misunderstanding something.

"It lead me through the city before ambushing me in an abandoned district. All through the fight it displayed considerable combat tactics, and ability to adapt under adversity and to changing circumstances." She answered, crushing my hopes.

"It was learning?" I said breathlessly.

"The longer the fight went on, the better it fought against me. I was barely able to get away. Based on available data and previous behaviors, that is likely in large part because it let me." She elaborated, "Should we fight again, I believe it would be able to dismantle me in a much more efficient matter."

My frown deepened. This…was extremely bad news. Penny was a powerful fighter, and this thing tore her apart. From the sounds of it, she didn't even leave a scratch on it. The worst part was that it could learn. Intelligent Grimm were few and far between. A Grimm that could learn and think on their feet was unheard of.

Then again, considering all the bullshit that came with Ancient Grimm, it's really only par for the course.

At least this one doesn't shoot lightning I all but sighed.

"Cadet Poledina." I said, breaking out of my thoughts.

"This," I said, gesturing to the young woman beside me, "Is Cadet Soleil."

The young woman in question stepped forward at me introduction.

"She shall be your partner for your team at the academy."

She tilted her head quizzically, her empty socket flashing with raw exposed wires. "But I do not attend the Academy."

"You do now. At least according to the records." I responded, "She and her team have been appraised of your situation, and have the same security clearance as you."

"You will be made aware of their situation after repairs are complete. Needless to say, you're all in the same boat, more or less."

For a moment, Cadet Poledina just sat there, looking at me. I could all but see the gears in her head turning, processing the information and figuring out what to do with it. Finally, slowly, she nodded in understanding. "Yes, sir."

Then, she turned to Cadet Soleil, and her face, the half remaining, lit up, "Salutations Cadet Soleil! Shall you be my friend?"

Cadet Soleil quirked a brow, sending a questioning glance toward me, which I responded with a nod, before grudgingly looking back at the girl.

"…yes." She all but ground out.

"Sensational!" Penny cheered in a burst of grinding static. Cadet Soleil's restrained cringe was almost enough to make up for all the bad news.

Almost.

Still, I can't help but admit it's a bit strange.

The girl of iron was far more human than the girl of blood


A/n:

Right, well, that wraps up chap 34

honestly, I sort of didn't do all the things I wanted in here, but it was actually running a bit long, I couldn't solidly figure out what I specifically wanted to do, and I had other shit to do.

Still, we got a glimpse of Blake, some more insight into Ruby's fucked up shit, and Ironwood shenanigans

At this point, I've basically decided Atlas is Ice America, plus the other stuff. I mean, it's a capitalist military-industrial complex that seems to be both diverse and racist.

That's basically America.

In other news, RWBY V4.

Well...it's sort of old-ish news by now, but in general, I've decided I'm not going to try and follow RWBY canon that hard.

I mean, Qrow's description of the world's origin story?

"Once there was a bad god a good god. The bad one made bad stuff, like death, while the good one made good stuff, like life"

That's same basic five-year-old shit.

Hell, The Lion King had more depth than that, what with the circle of life. At least they talked about how death didn't = bad.

Plus, how the hell did it make sense that the Grimm came before Humans? Or, at least, were bad before humans came? As far as I can tell, all they do is kill humans. If all they do is kill humans, then they couldn't have been any worse than a normal animal before humans came.

Point is, that basic "good and evil" shit pisses me off. It's even more basic that normal good and evil stuff, and I'm really hoping that it's not the actual story and it's actually just that some people (Ozpin) are idealists.

Plus, Wacky Wavy Inflatable Tube Grimm? Come on guys, give the Nuckalevee a fair shake.

Anyways, I could rant on for hours about all the stuff about V4, but I won't.

Instead, I'll shift back to Madness for a moment.

Now, Imma try to actually post once a month. The reason I haven't posted for these past three months are, essentially, I was busy. In February, I moved, so that was a whole thing, and in January I was trying to churn out 4 chaps for 3 different fics I started, which...didn't fail miserably.

So I'll try to keep that from happening again

No promises

Speaking of those fics, however, I'm finally getting around to posting the last of them.

If you haven't already given them a look, I highly recommend it. Look on my profile for better details if you want them.

Hungry, the Frozen one, isn't getting a lot of love, which, based on the reviews, seems to be more because people don't expect it to be good since it's Frozen. Something that's kind of disconcerting. It'd be one thing if you guys didn't like it because it was bad, but it's another thing if it's not getting a fair shake.

In short, if you hate Frozen and think it's dumb, that's really all the more reason to read Hungry. It's, well, in many ways more of a dark twist than this.

At least in RWBY killing is a thing.

But, hey, you do you.

So, long story short, today I'm posting the 4th and final chapter of the trial period. The ones that do well I'll focus on and get to live, the ones that don't. Well, I'll probably drop them, or at least put them on ice.

In any case, that's all for now.

I'll have more (hopefully) for you later.

See you later.