HAPPY NEW YEAR! Thanks for waiting. Let's gets started.

Elma led Ruby and Yang over to an elevator that took them to the lower levels. Elma activated the lift and they descended down to the main level of the city. As the lift took them downward, the tower in the center of the city changed from a countdown timer to a screen of a control room with a man in a tan suit, looking directly at the camera filming him. The caption beneath him read: "Maurice Chausson, Director General."

He spoke to the camera as if he was giving a speech. "Brave citizens of New LA. I come to you today bringing tidings of good news. Today, ten more white whale crew members were repatriated into our fine city. These fellow pioneers will become a valuable asset to our grand city and will bring unique skills with them. Our city will begin to flourish more rapidly and grow more stable as a result of these members' addition to our cause. I encourage you all to treat them as one of your own and help them feel at home here in our city, and to help them adjust to life here on Mira. This, of course, is just one of our latest successes that I bring to you today…."

As his speech continued, the elevator reached the bottom of the lift. Elma lead them to a clearer view of the tower.

Yang scratched her head. "Who's the political icon?"

Elma crossed her arms. "He is Maurice Chausson, leader of our city. But when was he given the title 'Director General'?"

A voice from behind them spoke in turn. "It happened two days ago, Ma'am."

As the three turned to the new feminine voice, a more masculine voice piped in. "From 'Political Aide' to 'Director General' in less than two weeks. If this keeps up, he'll be crowned 'Emperor' by next Friday and 'Imperator' by the end of the month."

Elma smiled slightly. "Irina, Gwinn, good to see you two again."

Irina and Gwinn saluted her. "Nice work out there, Ma'am," Irina followed up with Elma's acknowledgment.

Ruby tapped her foot, nervously. "Not to be rude, but who are these soldiers of yours?"

Elma shook her head. "You could say, 'Colleagues' to be more accurate. Meet Irina Akulov and Gwinn Evans."

Ruby waved and Yang extended her right hand. "My name's Yang Xiao Long! This is my sister, Ruby Rose!"

Irina took Yang's hand and shook it. "A pleasure. Are you two of the new survivors?"

Elma corrected her. "The only two. They were the result of the only two intact pods in Starfall Basin."

Gwinn frowned. "Wait, what happened to '10 more crew members'?"

Irina scoffed. "C'mon, seriously? Chausson was never one to let the details get in the way of a good speech. I'm not all that surprised by this." She turned back to Yang. "Still, every set of hands counts, no matter how big or small. I'm with the Interceptors. Call me Irina."

Gwinn grinned a little. "Same here, but call me Mr. Evans! Or just Gwinn."

Ruby muttered to herself. "Almost like 'Crater Face' from Beacon."

Yang nudged her sister. "I heard that, and Jaune only teased you with that name!"

Gwinn wondered what they were talking about. "Wait, why 'Crater Face'?"

Ruby shook her head. "The shortest way to explain it is that when I sneezed on my first day at Beacon Academy, I exploded a hole in the school grounds."

Gwinn smiled mischievously. "Gotcha, Crater Face!"

Ruby looked a little red in the face at that comment, but on the inside, she was throwing a fit about mentioning the nickname. Yang turned her attention to Elma. "So, why Ma'am?"

Elma shook her head. "I wish they wouldn't do this. We served in the militia on Earth and on the White Whale, specifically the Exoskeleton Unit. I was a Colonel, Irina a lieutenant, and Gwin was our more recent recruit. I keep telling them we don't need these old accolades anymore."

Irina placed her fist above her hip. "Nonsense. It's not about a title. It's all about respect. I can vouch for your right to it. You definitely worked for it."

"And the award for the best kiss-up goes to…." Gwinn shut his mouth as Irina glared at him.

Elma continued on. "Anyway, I need to take our new recruits to the BLADE Barracks before register them. We'll see you around."

After leaving Irina and Gwinn, the three warriors walked down another staircase towards the cleared streets below. As Ruby's boots hit the sidewalk, a loud POW! coming from the sky captured her attention and set her off balance. Yang looked up to see a robotic figure flying overhead, teetering left and right along its flight path. It jostled around a moment, then part of it exploded, sending it tumbling down from the sky. It landed with a loud CRASH! that shook the ground. Screeching tires could be heard in the opposite direction, followed by a vehicle rushing by. Yang caught sight of the jeep as it passed by. What surprised her was the driver: a 13-year-old girl, by the looks of it. Yang and Ruby ran after the vehicle with Elma dashing after them.

Over at the mech's landing site, the girl from the jeep was looking at her comm device, scanning the mech for irregularities. It appeared that the pilot was furious at her, with his rapid pacing and helmet tossed off to the side. She found what she was looking for: the exhaust intake/bypass valve was in reverse.

"Glad I caught that," she began, about to set about repairs.

"Caught that?" The pilot seemed furious. "You were the one who cleared me for takeoff!"

Elma stopped few feet away. "Off your A-Game, Lin? It's not like you to flub a flight check."

"Maybe so, Elma, but progress on the flight module is getting better," Lin replied. Then she noticed Ruby and Yang. "I take it these are the new recruits?"

Elma nodded. "May I introduce Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long."

Lin grinned. "Nice to meet you two. It's always reassuring to know that there's another survivor among us."

Ruby shook her head. "Wait, 'survivor'?"

Elma looked up slightly towards the sky. "Yes. A human survivor from Earth."

Yang crossed her arms, befuddled by what she just heard. "I'm sorry, but correct me if I'm wrong. You said, 'Earth,' right? You're not from Remnant?"

Now it was Lin's turn to frown. "Yeah. I remember something about additional humans joining us from another place, but not another planet or realm. 'Remnant' doesn't ring any bells here."

Ruby shook her head. "Regardless, I'm curious how a young person like you came to be such a brilliant mechanic."

Lin clasped her hands together. "I almost forgot! I'm Lin Lee Koo! And yes, I look 13 because I am 13."

Elma smirked. "Still, she's one of our top performing Blades and one of our best mechanics."

The pilot scoffed. "All the praise about the women. When do I get my turn?"

Elma shook her head. "Then, by all means, introduce yourself to them."

He shifted his stance to stand more comfortably. "Very well. The name's Doug. I'm one of the top Skell Pilots in BLADE"

Lin grinned. "He's also the bravest out there. None can stand against his courage so easily."

Elma turned to the newcomers. "We'll need to head to BLADE Tower and get you two added into the database, as well as figure out living arrangements."

Yang looked out towards the tower. "Is there a faster way than walking?"

Lin jumped at the thought. "Why don't we take the aerial transport? It's the fastest way to get a full tour of the city!"

Elma smirked again. "Wonderful idea, Lin. Lead the way."

Lin started down the street but stopped after a few steps. "Doug, would you call a crew to pick up the Skell and park it in the hangar? I'll fix the exhaust when I return tomorrow."

Doug groaned. "Fine! I'm just glad that I don't have to fly it or pilot it back with all of those fumes."

Lin strolled on with the other three damsels keeping close behind her. Lin lead them to a parked jet back towards the entrance to the city. Lin gave directions to the pilot and boarded the shuttle. Yang, Ruby, and Elma followed her onto the jet and took seats on either side. The door folded up and the shuttle set off on its leisure flight over the colony. Behind them, the panels of the wall lit up to show the city below and the sky around them. Ruby was reminded of the flight to Beacon Academy, looking out and seeing the city in the sunset's golden light. The lights of the city slowly began to turn on as the night drew closer. Lin decided on the express tour of the city, just hitting the highlights of the city.

"We departed from the Industrial District, where the West Gate is located. In it, all manner of factories and test hangers are placed to manufacture and test all of the weapons, gear, structural materials, and devices at a safe location while leaving room for the citizens to live. On our right, the Commercial District. It's the home to the best, and only, bargains on the planet. Baristas, restaurants, apparel boutiques and tech-savvy appliance stores are all found here. Off to our left is the Residential District. Housing, housing, housing, and more housing. Don't forget about the park and the cathedral. If you need a spot to zone out and relax during the day, that's the place to be. And finally, our destination: the Administrative District. Home to BLADE Tower and our central government. We'll be resting at the barracks on the other side from where we land."

A moment later, the plane landed on the platform in front of BLADE Tower. The four of them stepped out onto the helipad and walked off to the northern side of the building. They passed by an armor vending machine and a weapons distributor. Ruby almost lost herself in the advanced weaponry, but Yang pulled her aside.

"We'll have time to look around later. Let's just figure out what's going on."

They followed Elma and Lin into a building behind the tower. The sign above it read: 'Barracks.' Upon entry, the two newcomers were welcomed by a familiar voice.

"About time you returned! Blake took a catnap and I was wondering where you vanished to."

A figure walked around the corner, dressed in white armor with a laser sword clipped to her belt. Two psycho launchers were clipped to her back, designed to blend in with her thin armor. Her white hair was longer than Elma's and her skin was paler. Her beautiful image was marred by the scar over her left eye. Before she got her answer, she was immediately hugged by Ruby.

"Weiss! It's really you!" Ruby clung tightly to her partner.

Weiss hugged back. "Ruby, I'm glad you're okay."

Yang had already moved on to the sleeping figure on the couch around the corner. She was dressed in a black shirt, black pants and belt to match Yang's, and had two guns and two swords clipped to her back. Her black bow was still perched on her head, hiding her cat ears from view. Her hands were curled up in front of her like a Neko's, facing outwards and by her chin.

Yang placed her palm on the sleep Faunus' shoulder. Blake's eyes opened slowly, revealing her golden amber pupils to her teammate. She braced herself as Yang hugged her tightly, smiling upon realising who it was.

"What's up, Blake?"

Blake winced at the embrace. "Hey there, Yang."

"Miss me?"

"You bet," Blake then noticed her arm. "Where did the arm come from?"

"I don't really know." Yang turned it over twice. "Regardless, I don't feel any different with the arm's weight or composition, so I'm not letting it bother me."

Blake squeezed tighter, a tear rolling down her cheek. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

Elma just stared as the four friends hugged out their worries. She had never seen such care for someone so dear. She felt comforted inside, like a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders.

Lin, on the other hand, was interested in how the team knew each other. "You four know each other?"

Ruby let go of Wiess. "Yeah, we kind of went to the same academy."

Weiss cut in at this point. "Beacon Academy was our home and our source of experience in combat. It's only through Beacon that we were grouped up together for our classes and training."

Elma broke out of her temporary trance. "We found Weiss last week on monday and Blake was awakened last friday. It's outstanding that you four know each other from before Mira. Team cooperation, both internal and external, is the key to our survival."

Yang and Blake got up off of the couch. Yang posed her thoughts aloud. "So, how do we get started in BLADE?"

Elma crossed her arms. It's not an easy process, but I'll fill out the paperwork for you two. It may take about a day or two, but…"

The door to the barracks opened and a well dressed man walked in. "I heard the last section of your conversation, Elma. I'll cover the paperwork on my end so you can help with their training on Frontier Nav."

Elma nodded. "Right… I should introduce you. This is Secretary Nagi. He is in charge of all operations that BLADE handles. This is Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long, the two newest recruits."

Nagi nodded and shook Ruby's hand. "The pleasure is all mine. From what Elma has told me, you two know how to handle yourselves in a fight."

Yang came forward and shook Nagi's hand. Nagi winced a little at the strength the blonde expressed. When he pulled back, he posed the question no one was ready to hear, but excited Ruby beyond her wildest dreams.

"Elma, would you get our new recruits some upgraded weapons?"

Did this answer your questions? Maybe, but I'll be able to answer the three questions from Novice4129 more clearly down here.

1) Are Remnant and Earth two separate beings?

Yes, Remnant and Earth are considered to be two entirely different worlds.

2) Is Elma assuming that Ruby and Yang are late survivors from Earth?

Yes and No, Elma is just now finding the last of the life pods that were intact. She assumed they were from Earth, yes, but she did not assume they were late survivors from Earth, just a few undiscovered ones.

Your confusion may come from this. In the original game, Elma only found a single pod intact in Starfall Basin: yours. In this story, there were 6 life pods that stayed intact in Starfall Basin: Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, and two others who were revived prior to them. This allows for two OCs and Team RWBY to both be on Mira.

3) How and why are they here?

I can't really talk about that here. That's SPOILER territory for now.

To everyone else, if you have any questions, please PM me or review the chapter with your questions and thoughts.

Next chapter should be out on January 15th. See you all then!