Chapter 2

To the review expressing concern about the alien turning out to be some Star-Trek type "guy in a cheesy costume", that's not going to happen. I intend for this to be a "hard" science-fiction story. That is, I will try to keep the content as scientifically accurate as the setting permits. Granted, I can't say the fic will be realistic, since we're dealing with soul-power and magic dust in RWBY, I can promise that you won't be having to deal with ridiculous excuses just because I want to convenience myself.

A set of pale eyelids fluttered, revealing two bright blue irises underneath momentarily before pressing closed again.

Weiss Schnee growled, pulling an arm from under her covers to rub the grogginess out of her eyes, and glancing towards the windows. There was no telltale glow of morning from the thin curtains. The fabric was billowing inwards, the blinds were probably open as well.

It couldn't even be five in the morning if the sky was still dark outside. The burning of sore muscles muscles permeating her entire body spoke much of her physical exhaustion, and she was by no means a particularly light sleeper.

A certain two siblings had also seen fit to bang around the dorm like idiots, denying her any rest until midnight.

Her eyebrow began twitching, almost instinctively. Not just at how much of an annoyance they were, but also a the naive, fifteen year old dunce was the leader of herteam! Her! Heiress of the SDC! It was already travesty to suggest that she would have to follow the orders of another person, but someone like, like…

Ugh…

Weiss shut her eyes, letting out a long breath. Winter had always told her that complaining in the confines of one's own mind achieved nothing. If she was going to have to negotiate or argue with her team, then she might as well save it for when she was well rested.

Gods forbid the impressions she'd make if she walked around with dark splotches under her eyes, which she knew makeup didn't cover, on the first day of classes. She had an image to maintain. Father would have her head otherwise.

Actually, he was already after her head. It would only get worse if he looked into the details.

Better to abandon that thought before it gave way to full-on anxiety. Weiss turned over, pulling her sheets - frustratingly coarse and definitely not silk - over her shoulders, doing her best to clear her mind.

Almost as if to spite her attempt to return to sleep, a low rumbling reached her ears just seconds later. It was a testament to her fatigue that the ridiculous thought of the sound being Yang's snoring actually crossed her mind.

Of course not. The noise wasn't coming from the room. It couldn't have been from construction because nobody in their right mind would do so in almost complete darkness, but then…

What was it? The sound was definitely getting louder now, to the point where it reverberated through the room and her body. She gave up her attempts to ignore the commotion when a bright light practically burned itself into her retinas - past her closed eyes. A distant crack reached her ears shortly after.

With a muttered curse she threw her covers aside, sitting upright. Flashes of reddish light flared through the curtains. Somehow a light snoring was still coming from the makeshift bunk above her. Yang's sleep was certainly more fitful, and she couldn't see Blake.

Padding to the window, Weiss drew aside the drapery.

And froze.

…

Glynda's eyes flicked left and right. Not out of nervousness, but more of a habit she'd developed. Perhaps it was to scan for possible enemies. Or just because her boss had a chronic tendency to appear out of nowhere.

All it would take was for him to get the jump on her when she was in a bad mood and Ozpin would end up flying five kilometres into the Emerald forest.

At the moment, though, the empty streets and deserted stores around her were a source of relief. Thank the gods the council had actually gotten their heads together and pulled off the evacuation, or the scene they arrived at would have been much, much uglier.

ETO-1, as Ozpin had been calling it, had smashed diagonally through a residential building, impacted on the street, and embedded itself into a coffee shop. Considering housing units in Vale were constantly full to the brim, there would have been casualties.

The unsightly hole in the apartment behind her still had smoke billowing from it, and the great furrows of melted concrete carved into the ground before her gave the scene a rather surreal quality.

That's coming from a woman who makes her living teaching teenagers to fight monsters...

Glynda shook her head. She wasn't here to contemplate the surrealism of a hunk of rock falling from the sky. She was here for business, except…

"We've been standing here for over half an hour. Where is he?"

The man hummed, raising his wristwatch up. "We are to ensure no one approaches ETO-1. Such would be a breach… of… confidentiality."

She stared at him incredulously. "Ozpin, the perimeter is secured by the police. You told me we were only here to assist Doctor Polendina. And besides, nobody in Vale could have missed a roaring fireball streak across the sky. What do you mean by confidential?"

"Er… I was afraid we'd be late."

Glynda turned away, hiding her face behind a fist and resisting the urge to burst out laughing. "Ozpin" and "punctuality" were not two words that appeared in the same sentence. "This is just an excuse to avoid paperwork, isn't it?"

"There were matters of higher priority to attend to." Much to his credit, he maintained a perfectly straight face. For several seconds, at least, at which point he quickly pointed upwards when it began to waver. "And, oh, wonderful! Our guest has arrived."

The space he was pointing at was empty, though not for long. The ship that arrived wasn't accompanied with the hum of engines most Bullheads sported. It glided overhead, slowing to a halt when the exhaust nozzles rotated downwards. The glow in the openings shifted from a bright blue to dull red, and the craft began to descend.

The AS-Inventum touched down with a hiss of hydraulics not long after. It had a sleek, aerodynamic design, contrasting of the bulky, angular appearance of most transport ships she was used to. A panel that fitted seamlessly into the smooth exterior whirred open, allowing a ramp to extend onto the ground.

"Ah, salutations!" The man standing at the open hatch called, following with an unnecessary wave. He hurried down to them, struggling with a large, silver case. "It's good to see you, Ozpin, and… Glynda Goodwitch, isn't it?"

"Correct." She smiled politely, taking the hand he offered. Ozpin had mentioned the scientist several times in the past, mostly offering praised on how he remained largely free of political and monetary influence in his work. He didn't strike the most imposing figure, with a slender frame and standing at the same height as her, but the emerald eyes behind a set of paper-thin glasses were constantly in motion. They scanned over her body, and presumably took in their surroundings, taking only a fraction of a second before meeting her gaze again. His grip had no force behind it, confirming his lack of Aura. "I'm pleased to be your acquaintance."

"The sentiment is returned. Now, if you'll excuse me for a moment." Polendina grinned apologetically, then turned to Ozpin. "Would you fill me in on the situation?"

"Gladly." The expression Glynda had learned to attribute to Ozpin's "headmaster" persona slipped across the man's face. "You are free to conduct research on the meteorite, on the condition that ETO-1 is to remain on Vale grounds."

The doctor nodded. "I can't say I'm not entirely disappointed. Vale is… Should I say, lacking, when it comes to equipment I may find useful, but I've brought what I can." He shrugged. "I hardly have the right to complain. Carry on."

"Obviously, we can't leave ETO-1 on the street." Glynda continued when Ozpin tilted his head towards her, a subtle sign she learned to read over many years. "We won't worry about property damages, which are covered by government insurance, but hopefully you're not planning on setting up a tent right here."

"No, no, absolutely not. Though, if I may ask, where would I go about this business? I have no laboratory branches in Vale, and no offense meant, but the local facilities here are… Less than ideal. The only place left is… Ah."

"The council recommends Beacon's infrastructure." Glynda finished. "Admittedly, when it comes to this, our infrastructure isn't particularly impressive, but it's the best place you'll get that's also private. I highly doubt the regular rooms we give classes in will suffice, so you've been granted access to Professor Peach's personal laboratory."

"It was actually called the 'International Honours Laboratory' several years ago, and was intended for the use of more academic Atlesian transfer groups. When tensions arose, unfortunately, we had to close it down."

Glynda noticed the meaningful look Ozpin sent Polendina, but chose not to comment on it. If the headmaster had anything to tell her he would have by now.

… Unless he forgot. There was that too.

"Anyhow… Are you satisfied with this arrangement?"

"I should be, and suppose I am. We should transport immediately - there's no point for secrecy by now. Better to get this over with before the reporters start mobbing us."

Oh, he was right on that. Vale would be getting it's fair share of sensationalist headlines by morning. She hated those. Thankfully, she wasn't responsible for dealing with media, and Ozpin would be wise to never mention anything remotely related to it to her. "How do you plan on transporting it?"

Polendina regarded the crater, feet shuffling on the ground. "About that… If I had the time I could have made some additions. It could carry the weight of the cargo, but the problem is how we can get that into a harness."

"That's not an issue then. Where do you need the object moved?"

"Glynda's semblance is a form of telekinesis. She won't have any trouble applying it on masses as small as this. She's more reliable than any machine we could bring in" Ozpin explained at the confused look she received.

"Hm. Very well then. I've no right to doubt your ability, but… Please, be careful."

Careful, indeed. She didn't understand his worry, especially since the thing had literally fell from the sky and crashed through a good amount of concrete and steel. Maybe he thought she'd break it apart by accident.

Stepping forward as the two men moved in the opposite direction, she closed her eyes. There wasn't a need for her crop here - the simple task of moving an object required more concentration than raw power the tool helped channel.

The sensation was difficult to explain. She couldn't see the object, but through an intrinsic grasp of not just where it was, but it's mass, shape, size, and a a list of characteristics too long to list. There was a tug on her stomach as she gradually channeled more of her Aura into the task, until with a rumbling of rock, the resistance gave away.

There was a curious tingling, too. Miniscule disturbances on her hold her target. It was there for one moment, but when she focused on the anomaly, the feeling had disappeared.

Glynda frowned, dismissing her confusion. When she looked again, ETO-1 was hovering before her, a faint purple glow encasing it. Another sign of her success was the groan of steel, as the storefront's supports finally gave away and the roof collapsed inwards.

If the poor owner didn't bother with insurance…

Then it was none of her business. She shrugged, turning towards the Inventum. Polendina was kneeling before it, working with several strands of metallic fibre that trailed from the back of the ship. With a click, and a push, the plates attached at the end of each cable secured together.

Immediately, the plate split apart, separating into an octagon of thin rods that pulled thinner lengths of rope with them. In a matter of seconds a spiderweb-like construct lay on the ground, glinting faintly in the moonlight.

"Over here! Just set it down and get on the ship!" Polendina called.

She nodded, sending ETO-1 gliding lazily over with a flick of her hand. When it drifted onto the centre of the net, the main cables retracted, pulling the edges upwards and wrapping the lattice around the rock firmly.

Finally, two more lines shot from the underside hull, anchoring onto the bundle so the weight would be spread evenly between three points.

"That was incredible." Polendina said when she stepped into the cabin, the opening sealing shut behind her. It wasn't an enthusiastic comment - more matter-of-fact than anything - but his genuine smile had her looking away nonetheless. "Sometimes I wish I had a semblance. And even then, it certainly wouldn't be as impressive as yours."

Out of the corner of her vision, Ozpin coughed into his hand. Her eyes narrowed when she noticed the edge of his lip curving upwards, but for the sake of politeness she returned her attention to the much less annoying man around.

"Hunters destroy. We kill Grimm, nothing more - no matter how fancy of methods we employ to do so. Minds like yours push Humanity forwards as a race."

Polendina laughed. "Such flattery. It's not as if you two have done nothing managing an academy for so many years. The outstanding hunters you've produced are proof enough of that."

"Why, thank you. You are absolutely correct." Ozpin said graciously, nodding towards her. "Of course, I couldn't have done it without the help of my wonderful assistant."

Bastard!

"Well, we'll find out about how useful I am soon enough."

…