RWBY

Origins Of LUNR

Chapter 48: A New Face

In the Vault under Haven Academy, a weapon clanging is heard. Neopolitan stares at the door that once guarded the Relic of Knowledge; it is now a stone wall since it was removed. Cinder was sitting on a rock, flicking her dagger and changing its form in her right hand. Paul stood beside her while Neo, Senka, and Ryder stood before the stone wall.

"Now you understand." Cinder paused as she looked at them. "I've got to get the Relic before it can be secured in Atlas. It's the only way that Salem…" She sighs before she finishes. "It's the only way we can accomplish our goal."

Neo and the others look back at Cinder, who shows a bit of frustration with her expression. "You're not the only one who wants Ruby dead. But unfortunately, Salem does not feel the same way…" Neo places her umbrella on her shoulder and walks toward Cinder.

"I've been... instructed not to kill her…" Cinder melts her dagger in her hand and then looks up at Neo. "But you... You have no such orders. So you can do as you please."

Cinder's dagger disintegrates; she then stands up to walk toward Neo. "Help me get to Atlas, help me find her... and the rest is up to you."

Senka walked over to Cinder and put a hand on her shoulder. "No, you have a say in this. If you want to do things your way, I'll support you however I can." Senka said to her.

"But if you want to work with Cinder, then we'll also offer our support. We're with you no matter what. Roman would've done the same." Ryder added, putting his hand on her other shoulder.

Neo ponders Cinder's words momentarily before smiling at her and holding her hand out. Cinder takes Neo's hand with her own, sealing the deal with a handshake.

"Well, if you are going to do that, then maybe I should try and make it a bit easier for you."

Everyone turned to look at Paul, who smirked as he walked towards them. "What are you talking about?" Cinder asked with an annoyed tone.

"You're heading to Atlas next, right. I know Bayne and his companions are likely preparing to go there. But they'll have to stop before they can get there. So if you go there for the next objective, you'll need to shave their team down. I can do that for you." Paul explained as he chuckled.

Cinder thought momentarily and then walked towards him to look him eye to eye. "What's in it for you? What is helping me doing for you?" She asked.

Paul's smirk grew wider as he knelt and gently held her before gently kissing her. "Helping you achieve your goals and seeing your pretty smile is why I need to help." He said, which sent shivers down Senka's spine. She thought of him as a creep, proving her point.

Back with team LUNR, they were sitting on a train towards Argus, hoping to meet up with the others. However, each of them was having their own conversation amongst themselves. Uzziel was sitting with his uncle and sister.

"Estelle, you stuck to your training, and it shows. Next step, I'll show you the best Protein powders for women." Jarvin said, which made Estelle smile.

"I'm looking forward to it, Uncle Jarvin." She responded.

Jarvin smiled back and then looked over at his nephew. "You've been controlling your semblance. I can see you've come a long way." He said.

Uzziel closed his eyes and smiled. "Well, that's because I had two great teachers." He said as he crossed his arms.

"Yeah, well, just because you've learned to control it doesn't mean you hold a candle to your big sis." Estelle teased with a prideful grin plastered to her lips.

Uzziel smirked as he opened his eyes and looked at his sister. "Oh please, without that sword, you're nothing special." He teased back. Estelle laughed at his remark and then leaned closer toward him.

"Is that so? How about we find out right now…Uzzi." She mocked.

Uzziel smirked and leaned closer to where they were now face to face. "I'm ready anytime!" He quickly responded.

"Alright, you two, that's enough."

The three of them would look up to see Miyabi walking towards them. She looked at Jarvin and put her hands on her hips. "Control your family." She said, which made Estelle chuckle.

"This is how they show each other affection. It would be rude of me to butt in." Jarvin jokes, which makes Miyabi smile at him. Jarvin loved his family, and she knew it. With everything that had gone on, he deserved this. Losing his sister and his brother-in-law took a toll on him. It's been a while since she saw him this happy. This was the side she loved about him. Her cheeks tinted a bright hue as she realized what she was thinking.

"Miss Midori! I can't believe I found you."

Everyone's attention turned to see a man in a butler outfit standing across from Midori, sitting with Regulus and Krisis on her shoulder. The man looked to be in his late 20s; he had neck-length black hair and amber eyes. He wears a white jacket with a navy blue overcoat lined with light blue accents. He bowed to Midori as her eyes widened in disbelief.

"Jude?"

The man, now known as Jude, smiled and nodded at her. "It's been too long, Miss Midori. I'm so glad to see you safe and sound." He responded.

Midori smiled at him as he spoke to her. Her heart was overjoyed, and it showed. She stood up from her seat as Krisis jumped from her shoulder and landed on Regulus's shoulder. She would embrace the man, proclaimed to Jude, and warmly hugged him. He was surprised for a moment but smiled and hugged her back.

"I've missed you, Jude." She said

Jude closed his eyes and nodded. "I've missed you too, Miss Midori."

"Is this a friend of yours?" Regulus asked.

She let him go and looked at Regulus with a cheerful smile. "Yes. This is Jude; he's a butler at my father's estate. Jude, these are my friends."

Jude bowed to her Regulus and the others. "It's a pleasure to meet you all. Thank you for watching over Miss Midori." He said.

"Hey, It's no problem. Although Krisis here was the one doing all the watching." Nolo said as he pointed at the tiny Humanoid Grimm on Regulus' shoulder. This shocked the butler, and he stepped back, not knowing if it was safe to be near Krisis.

"Dear me!" he exclaimed.

Midori raised her hands and patted his arms to calm him down. "Don't worry, Jude, it's alright. Krisis isn't dangerous, I promise you."

Jude looked at her with a worried look on his face "Miss Midori, are you sure?" He asked. Midori smiled and nodded, letting him know everything was okay. Then, he took a deep breath and bounced back at her.

"By the way, Jude, what brings you out here?" Midori asked.

Jude cleared his throat as he focused and closed his eyes. "Yes, about that." He paused before looking at Midori.

"It's your father. Your father has fallen very ill." He informed her.

"Wait…what? Father is sick?" She asked in disbelief.

Jude nodded, knowing this would be hard for her to hear, but he needed to tell her. "I was going to Argas to see if the military could pass the message on to you. I'm just glad we ran into each other." Jude explained.

Midori looked down as thoughts of her father ran through her mind. She was fighting the worst-case scenarios. But it wasn't easy, as her father meant the world to her. Jude could see it was bothering her, but he had to tell her everything.

"The doctors say that this sickness is an unknown one, and they're trying to find a way to treat it. But that's not the only problem." He paused for a moment as Midori kept her eyes on him.

"Grimm has been repeatedly appearing on the lands, and the guards have been fighting them off when they appear, but it's starting to become too much. We need your help; your father and everyone else need you." He explained.

Midori didn't need to think this through at all. Her answer was already decided since the start of the conversation. "Say no more. I will gladly go." She replied.

Regulus nodded at her and stood up. "I'll go with you." He said.

Midori turned to look at him and shook her head while smiling. "No, your team needs you, and you have a mission to take care of. I will take care of it." She explained.

"Yes, and We will be going with her as well," Krisis stated as he flew to her shoulder and sat on it. Midori smiled at him, feeling he would decide to do that.

Regulus gave her a worried look, showing he was concerned about the situation. "Are you sure?" He asked. Midori nodded at him as she gave him a warm smile, letting him know that everything would be okay. Jude smiled at the both of them; he was happy that Midori was making new friends.

A Scroll's ringtone can be heard by everyone. Midori pulls her Scroll out and gasps in excitement.

"It's Arrossire!" Midori said

Everyone says, "Huh?" unison as they wonder how Arrossire contacted them.

"How?" Lance asked.

Midori pressed the screen to answer, "Uh, hello?"

"Midori! Oh, thank you! I've been checking my Scroll for your signal since we made it to the city!" Arrossire said.

"The city? Wait…." Midori said as she looked at her Scroll, her contact name for Arrossire being "Super Hero." She looks at the little signal symbol under Arrossire's portrait, watching it improve as she points her Scroll toward the window. The group sees a walled city in the distance along the ocean.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived in Argus," Dyna stated.

At the entrance to the city of Argus, everyone takes the time to admire their surroundings. Through the crowd, a certain bubbly ginger-haired girl in pink zooms in.

"They're here!" She exclaimed. Midori looked confused but was tackled by Nora for a hug.

"Oh, come here!" She says as she nestles Midori.

Team RWBY, JNPR, ARAM Qrow, Oscar, and Maria started to appear behind her walking towards Midori and the others. The gang was now all back together again and greeting one another.

"Are you all okay?" Yang asked as she hugged Lance.

"We were so worried!" Arrossire Said as he hugged Blake

Weiss walked over to Uzziel, standing near Estelle, Dyna, and Miyabi. Uzziel noticed her and gave her a warm smile taking 3 steps forwards. The two clasped one another in a gentle and warm hug. Uzziel placed his chin on the top of her head as she pressed her cheek against him.

"Aw, would you look at that?" Dyna said as she gushed over their relationship.

Miyabi crossed her arms and smiled as she closed her eyes and shook her head. "You were always a sucker for romance, Dyna." Miyabi teased.

"Isn't that the truth?" Estelle added with a chuckle.

"I'm glad you're okay," Uzziel said as he looked at Weiss, who released him from their hug.

"It's been kind of a crazy trip," Yang said.

"That's an understatement." Weiss chimed in.

Nolo smiled as he hugged Arrietty and then looked over at Maria. "Wait, who's the old lady?" He asked with a confused look on his face. Arrietty was about to answer him but got distracted by Jude, watching everyone greet one another.

"Who's the hottie?" She asked with her eyes lighting up. This made Jude blush a little as he nervously waved at her.

Jarvin walked over to Qrow, who looked absolutely miserable. He didn't seem too thrilled at the moment. "What's got you all down in the dumps. Did you run out of alcohol?" He asked in a teasing voice.

"Yeah, whatever," Qrow mumbled as he looked. Something was going on with him, and Jarvin could see it, but now wasn't the time to question him.

Jude then cleared his throat to get the attention of everyone. "I'm sorry to break up the reunion, Miss Midori, but we should hurry soon." He said. Midori looked at him and nodded at him, knowing he was right.

"Okay, seriously, who is this Midori?" Arrietty asked as she looked at Midori.

"Everyone, this is my father's butler. He works at my father's estate." She explained.

"Jude Matthews. It's a pleasure to meet you all." He greeted as he bowed.

Midori then looked at Arriety, who was gushing over Jude. "There's something I need to tell all of you." She said as she explained everything Jude had told her on the train.

Two minutes had passed, and Midori had finally finished explaining the situation. Arrietty nodded as she crossed her arms. "That's terrible, Midori. I'm so sorry this happened. If your family needs help, then I'll go with you." She said without a second thought.

Arrossire walked over to Arrietty and put a hand on her shoulder. He gave Midori the thumbs up with a smirk on his face. "You can count me in too. It's a hero's job to protect people you know."

Roy nodded as she also crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "We are a team, after all. We will fight together!" He exclaimed.

Midori was filled with emotions, but all she could was smile for the moment. She was grateful for meeting such wonderful people who would be willing to help her protect her family. She couldn't ask for anything more. "Guys…Thank you, guys, so much. I love you all!" She said as she hugged Arrietty as tight as she could.

Miyabi smiled at them and made her way over toward them. "I'm proud of you all. This is what teamwork is all about. You all stay safe and protect everyone there." She said as she put her hands on her hips.

"RIGHT!" Team ARAM exclaimed in unison.

Moments later, Jude and Team ARAM was beginning to head back to the train station until Midori ran over to Regulus, who was standing near Nolo.

"Regulus!" She called out.

He looked at her as she finally made it to him. "What's wrong?" He asked.

She extended her hand out toward him, which made him give her a confused look. "I just wanted to say thank you for everything. You have made this journey an experience I won't ever forget. I know this isn't goodbye forever, but I thought you should know."

Regulus's eyes grew wide for a moment as he looked at her. She was being genuine with everything she was saying. Regulus smiled back at her and shook her hand. "I feel the same way. The times we've spent have been enjoyable. Protect your family and come back safely…Both of you." He said as he looked over at Krisis.

"Got it, sir!" Midori and Krisis exclaimed as they saluted him. Midori and Regulus cracked a smile and then blurted out a laugh. Midori then pressed herself into his chest and gave him a tight hug. Regulus hugged her back before letting her go so she could return to her team. Nolo smiled at his brother and put a hand on his shoulder as everyone waved at Midori and the others; they started walking away and eventually were not in sight anymore.

While the group was watching their friend leave, there was another curious pair of eyes that was looking at them. Her fingers curled over her staff; there was something that caught her attention about couple of them — an instinct that led the woman to want to reach out. She would tip her pointed hat, tilting it upwards.

"Hey, you!"

Everyone turned around to see a woman standing before them. Upon first glance, what one sees from the start are silver hair and fuchsite eyes. She stands about 182.7 cm (6'0"). The girl maintains the same green eyes, full of determination and goal. Her skin was ivory colored, without blemishes but a single, frail wave of freckles across her nose bridge. Her body is athletic, resembling a rough hourglass statue; what was once kept in gentle care was now covered in a muscle layer. The woman's lips are bow-shaped and rosy colored, often carrying dark purple rouge. Silver hair is reaching past the half of her back, and it's straight, slightly uneven at the ends.

In terms of attire, she kept her fashion simple, whereby she is recognized for her trademark wizard-esque hat, dark gray tunic that keeps her shoulder bare, bell sleeves that go past her fingernails, and black leggings, adorned with a belt around her waist. The woman often has a unique, tall staff with a crystal in the middle. Her footwear consists of black leather boots that reach half of her shin. Her figure was half hidden underneath a black cloak, with her hood kept down.

The girl seemed to be pointing at Lance, which confused him. He looked back and forth, then lifted his finger to point to himself. "Are…are you talking to me?" He asked.

"Yes, you!" She said as she walked closer to him.

"Um, do I know you?" He asked.

The woman looked at the top of his head as she stopped walking. "With that hairstyle? No." She said rather bluntly. Her tone seemed to express her annoyance with Lance. Nolo burst into laughter, which made Jaune laugh.

"Excuse me?" He asked in disbelief.

"That's rude," Weiss said.

The girl then looked over at Weiss and smirked. "That doesn't sound like my problem."

"There's a thing called restraint. Maybe you should try it." Regulus said. The girl's eyes met his, and the two stared momentarily at one another.

"I could show restraint." Her eyes averted back to Lance as she paused.

"But then I wouldn't be able to save him from this disaster." Once she said this, her eyes focused on Uzziel, who was already looking at her.

"Your hairstyle matches you. Just by looking at you, I can tell that you have an edgy side to you." She said frankly.

Lance continued to look confused as he didn't understand her logic. "So you're saying he looks edgy, but I don't? You don't even know me, so how-"

"It's horrible. You look the same like that dude. Go blonde." The girl said bluntly as she held up her staff. Before anyone could do anything, the crystal on her staff started to glow and before they knew it, Lance's hair went from black to blonde.

As the crystal stopped glowing the woman found herself suddenly checking the time. It made her pause for a moment, before she would turn around and head out, leaving the scene without a second word. This caused Lance to be confused as he looked around to see if anyone was hurt but they weren't. Instead they were looking at him in shock.

"What?" Lance blurted out.

Nolorona's laugh started to get extremely loud. His voice started to crack a bit as he hit a high pitch. He was living up to his Hyena ways with excessive laughter. Yang started to chuckle but turned away so Lance wouldn't see. Jaune still couldn't contain himself as she walked off. The girl was now out of sight.

"What the hell is so funny?" Lance asked.

"You should use your camera in your scroll and take a look at yourself." Dyna said.

"What?" He quickly took out his scroll and clicked the camera button. Switching the screen to look at himself, his heart stopped once he saw the color of his hair.

"Wha-What… WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" Lance yelled out in anger.

"HEY! Get back here!" Lance yelled out. The change to his hair clearly annoyed him, and it showed on his face.

"Well we can't do anything about it now, she's already gone so for now deal with it." Miyabi said as Lance growled in anger.

Nora started to laugh as she saw the look on Lance's face. Ren tapped her to try and make her stop, but it was useless. Lance's face started to turn red with embarrassment as the group began to make their way through the city.

Later on, the group is seen traveling through the city on a trolley. Weiss stood near Uzziel, looking at all the stores they were passing. Nolo was still chuckling in a corner near Regulus, who shook his head in shame at his brother.

"It's a lot bigger than I thought it'd be," Yang said.

"It's actually one of the largest non-capital cities in all of Remnant." Ren chimed in.

Ruby gasps upon hearing that. "No way! But wait, wouldn't it be harder to settle something this big away from the main Kingdom?"

Jaune nodded at her as he looked at her. "Well, it was until Mantle showed up. Early settlement attempts by Mistral didn't go well. But colonists from Mantle were able to help them brave the cold climate and return for goods that Solitas couldn't provide."

"The two nations worked together to create a hybrid city. While it falls under the Mistral domain, Atlas keeps a military presence here to help keep the people safe and keep trade between the two nations steady." Ren added.

"Well, until recently…." Nora said as the trolley made a stop, and everyone hopped off.

"We should probably start looking for a ship," Blake suggested.

"So, where have you guys been staying?" Oscar asked.

Jaune chuckles nervously and scratches his head. "Uh…"

"There you are!"

As the trolley leaves, a blonde woman with wavy, dirty blond hair and blue eyes appears. She wears an orange sleeveless top with a beige vest, light brown trousers with orange stitches on each side, and dark brown boots. In addition, she wears her wedding ring on her left hand and a bootlace necklace around her neck. The woman with a baby in her arm is seen waving to Jaune on the other side of the street.

Yang looked at Ren. "Is that...?"

"Hey, Saph." Jaune greeted as he smiled and waved back.

Ruby, who was overly excited, started to become all starry-eyed. She looks back and forth between Jaune and the woman and gasps upon realizing who the woman is.

The group later reconvenes in a living room at home. The home seemed cozy with the beautiful colors on the wall and the new furniture. The woman sat next to Jaune on a couch with Ren and Nora. Maria Oscar and Rwby sat on the sofa while Qrow, Jarvin, Blake, Estelle, Dyna, and Miyabi stood behind them. Weiss and Yang were seated next to the baby on the floor, and Uzziel, Regulus, Nolo, and Lance, who still looked annoyed, sat across from them.

"I can't believe I'm meeting your sister! I have so many questions." Ruby said.

Nora grinned at her. "Oh, I can give you the rundown later!"

"Will you guys knock it off?" Jaune asked in an annoyed tone.

"What? I love telling stories about my baby brother." Saph said as she squeezed Jaune's cheek

Jaune groaned while also flailing his arms at his elder sister. "I am not a baby! That is a baby." Jaune said as he pointed at the baby named Adrian, who huffed back at him.

Yang and Weiss get all wide-eyed as they fuss over Adrian. Both of them make baby talk at him.

"Aww, you're so cute! Yes, you are! Oh, look at your little face!" Yang said.

Weiss followed up as she also made noises. "Aww, coochie-coochie! Aw, baby! Oh my!"

"So Saphron, you're the only Arc living here?" Estelle asked.

A picture on the bookshelf of the Arc siblings can be seen, with the young Jaune at the center with pigtails and a deadpan expression while holding a sign that says "HELP." At the same time, his sisters do various crazy things around him.

Saphron nodded as she looked at Estelle. "Yep! Moved the second I could. Jaune and I are the only two living away from home. I guess he just wanted to be like his big sis." She said in a teasing voice.

"I, uh…" Jaune groans as his sister continues teasing him.

"Aw, you didn't deny it!" She continued.

Estelle giggled as she looked at Uzziel. "You both remind me of Uzziel and me." This caused Uzziel to look at her, which made her laugh again.

The two siblings fight each other by pulling each other's cheeks. Then, a door is heard opening. A dark-haired woman with glasses is seen walking in with bags of groceries.

"Everyone, this is my wife, Terra Cotta." She said.

Everyone greets Terra as she begins to make her way toward the kitchen.

"Hello!" Ruby greeted her.

"Hey there!" Nora added.

"Nice to meet you." Blake also added.

Terra chuckles as she continues to make her way towards the kitchen. "Why, hello there! Wow, quite a party; you weren't kidding. Hun, can I get some help, please?"

Saphron quickly runs over to help Terra in the kitchen. Later on, Jaune, Ren, and Nora are seen preparing sandwiches for everyone.

"And you're sure it's alright if we stay with you?" Weiss asked.

"There are a lot of us," Uzziel added.

"Of course, we're happy to house Huntsmen and Huntresses," Saphron said.

"You all risk so much to keep people like us safe. It's the least we can do." She said as she paused, turning to Qrow.

"Especially for such an elite Huntsman like yourself. Although, I will say I was surprised to learn you had students helping you. Is that even... legal?" She asked.

Qrow, not paying attention, gets his arm bumped by Jarvin. "Uh, of course. Think of it as an extended training mission. Trust me, I was a professor. Even went to the same academy as them. Let me tell ya, these kids are way better than we were at their age."

"With a little more training, these kids will be ready to take even us Elites if they want to." Jarvin chained in

Jaune, Ren, and Nora walk back into the room with plates full of sandwiches. Ruby gasps happily upon seeing them.

Qrow looked at Jarvin and shook his head. "Well, not me specifically, but maybe–"

"Shut up, there's food!" Ruby said, cutting him off.

Everyone heartily eats the sandwiches. Saphron and Terra share a look with each other before the latter's Scroll is heard buzzing.

Terra sighs as she stands up. "Excuse me, I'll be right back." She answers her Scroll and walks out of the room. "Hello?"

"Is everything okay?" Dyna asked.

"Oh, yeah, it will be. Terra's a technician for the town's relay tower. But, unfortunately, the military's radar system is also housed there." Saph said, making baby talk at Adrian. "Guess what's been on the fritz lately and who's getting falsely blamed."

Terra poked her head out, peeking back into the room. "Me." She whispered while pointing to herself.

"So, what's your plan for tomorrow?" Saph asked.

A mouth-stuffed Ruby takes a gulp. "Well... We're trying to make our way to Atlas. We'll probably start with the military base." Nora and Ren share concerned looks.

"So, we kind of already tried that, and... it didn't go... super great," Jaune said nervously.

"Come on, it couldn't be that bad…" Nolo said. The next day, Team RWBY and LUNR walk up to the Atlesian Military base on the island off the coast of Argus, only for the gates to abruptly close on them before they could even enter.