A/N: Long AN at the bottom. Most updates from now on will be anytime from the afternoon to late in the evening, possibly even early in the next day (1am-5am). This is because my sleep schedule is quite erratic and I usually wake up at 2 in the afternoon and fall asleep at 3-5 in the morning. Yikes.

I DO NOT OWN RWBY

Chapter 19: How The Mighty Fall

The group almost immediately unleashed a hailstorm of firepower on the giant bat person, exploding on its torso and face and obscuring it in a cloud of dust. It unleashed another ear-shattering screech, one that held annoyance over pain, and I was mildly surprised when it was barely hurt, only a few burn marks here and there.

''Huh'' I mused ''I understand you presume it would be a SSS-Rank, but its pretty strong''.

''Of course it is'' Ozpin drawled ''SSS-Ranks are some of the strongest Grimm in existence, did you really believe only a dozen Hunter-Class fighters would be able to one-shot it?''.

''Well, yeah'' I shrugged ''It doesn't look all that menacing, I mean yeah its probably pretty strong versus buildings and the like, but its like a human trying to swat a fly; hard to do''.

Jaeger took aim and pulled the triggers on his guns, unleashing another volley of blue energy beams that did little more than annoy the creature. Kotori tried freezing it, but it broke out of it without a problem. Growling, the creature opened its maw as a flood of acid poured from its mouth, forcing all of us to scatter, with me using SchattenSchritt to teleport onto the trees.

''This should be interesting training for them'' I mused aloud ''Haven't given them a proper test for a while, so this should suffice''.

Kotori came in from the side, flying up on her broom and dropping bombs of fire as she flew, exploding on contact and making the beast roar in annoyance. Jaeger and Natasha hung back, taking careful aim and firing with precise, but ultimately useless shots. Most of the melee-oriented fighters were using their Aura Wings to fly high into the air, slashing at its legs and face, but also failing to do any damage.

Doran, who was on the ground, released a battle cry as his Semblance activated for the first time in a while. Behind him, a equally tall samurai formed out of pure Aura, but with black armour instead of crimson. It followed Doran's movements, its giant katana crashing into the bat and making it stumble as it released another screech. It recovered surprisingly quickly, grabbing the katana with one hand while the other clawed hand raked down the giant samurai's torso, this time making Doran/Giant stumble back, bleeding.

A volley of lightning bolts shot down from the heavens, striking its shoulders and collar and making the giant bat roar in pain. Small flashes of purple, blue and orange belonged to Homura, Aria and Kindle as they unleashed powerful shots at the giant, but to no avail either. Chrystal came flying down from above, her short Wakizashi digging into the bat's head before electricity sparked to life around her, engulfing her and shocking the Hive Mother, even if it barely hurt said giant. Roaring once more, it used the small frame of time it got from stunning them and lashed out, back-handing the airborne Aria and Kindle, sending them streaking down into the ground like meteors, kicking up a cloud of dust in the process.

''Ooh'' I winced ''That's gotta hurt''.

Still, the duo shakily got to their feet, determination on their faces as they used their intangible wings to become airborne once more. Juha, Gin and Ozpin were making their way around the giant, slashing and cutting the giant as they moved, the headmaster not being slowed down at all despite not owning a pair of Aura Wings.

Risa and Eleanor were by far the most out of their element, seeing as their strength lied in 1-on-1's. All of my Spirits were working in loose synergy to take down the giant, who was still occupied with trying to kill the Aura Giant that Doran created. It was an Anti-Army Semblance for a reason; one sweep of the giants sword was capable of wiping out an army, or good at fighting a large Grimm like this.

''Perhaps I should enhance the power of Doran's Semblance?'' I mused in thought ''Perhaps the ability to create multiple giants? Maybe having a rocket launcher? Hm...''.

Kotori, about to cast another spell, was taken off-guard when a Nevermore abruptly came out of the sky and dove at her, forcing her to redirect the spell at the bird Grimm, the giant fireball melting it instantly. However that act drew the attention of the Giant Batman, and because of it she took a hand to the body and was sent rocketing down to the ground like Aria and Kindle. Even from this distance, I could see Kotori glow brightly as her anger boiled over and she cried out something incomprehensible from this distance. Behind her, a giant ice-blue Sigil formed, and much like before at Beacon an ice dragon crawled out of it, only that this one was almost as big as the one I had fought at Rockledge.

The dragon emitted a loud roar as it jumped and latched onto the Batman's back, biting down on its shoulder and its claws digging into its sides. At the same time, Doran's giant swung its katana and created a long slash down its front. The combined damage made the bat roar furiously as it thrashed, unable to get a good strike on the dragon that was sticking to its back. The others took advantage of its distress, unleashing another volley of attacks with renewed vigour.

However it was not to last, as the bat finally managed to reach behind it and grab the dragon by the neck, before hauling it over its head and throwing it into the giant samurai, sending both to the ground before both dissipated, dead. Doran himself gasped as he fell onto his back, having felt the weight of the dragon crash into him. The Batman roared in triumph, before turning its gaze on Ozpin and my Spirits once more, who looked more uneasy than anything. They all conversed with one another, and because of the distance I was unable to hear what was said, but I could make out the flares in their Aura to decipher what their plan was.

''Ah, clever'' I smirked as Kotori and Jaeger hung back, both of their Aura flaring. The wolf by Jaeger howled as it grew in size, almost equal to the giant bat. Another two Sigils appeared by Kotori, one fire and the other ice. From both came a dragon of ice and fire, standing equal to the wolf as they glared at the bat, who glared back without needing eyes. With a roar both sides charged, the dragons splitting off to flank from the sides while the wolf sprinted right up to the bat and lunged. The Batman dug its claws into it, but the wolf still charged and bit its neck, making the bat screech in pain. However it was quick to change when the wolf howled in pain, acid leaking from the bats throat and onto the wolf's face, making it whine as it desperately tried to wipe the acid off.

Sadly, the bat took advantage of this and with a single slash, severed the head of the wolf. It reformed as a smaller one back with Jaeger, but the damage to his Aura prevented him from redoing that trick. The two dragons each came from the side, the ice one biting down on its shoulder and digging its claws into its stomach while the fire one breathed fire on its arm and neck. The Bat had only gotten wiser however, as it lashed out with its claws and quickly broke contact with the ice dragon, making it stumble back and roar in anger.

It turned its attention to the fire one, shooting acid out at it and forcing the dragon back. The Bat ignored my Spirits firing at it as it crushed the head of the fire dragon as its tail whipped around and shattered the head of the ice one. In short, the bat took down two dragons and a wolf in less than a minute.

''Perhaps I should intervene now...'' I mused thoughtfully ''...Nah, I'll give them a little longer''.

Humming, I watched as the Spirits slowly began to worry a little more, their Aura draining from the constant fighting. Chrystal and Kindle went flying past the tree I was standing on, unconscious from the looks of it as they went flying through several trees. Minutes passed and they still failed to one-up against the giant, and a frown slowly grew on my face. My Spirits were strong, incredibly so, but this being surely wasn't that much of an issue... was it? I was confident in my own ability to kill it with palpable ease, but was it perhaps because my own power was on another level compared to even the greatest hunters of Remnant? Whatever it was, it was time to intervene.

The fact half of my Spirits were now out of commission was also a factor in that.

''Guess its time to intervene'' I smirked dangerously, the thought of actually giving it a proper go an ideal thought. I used SchattenSchritt to land near Ozpin and Juha, who were beginning to tire, though the former still had plenty of Aura.

''Here, wouldn't want to damage your precious camera, Ozpin'' I smirked as I handed it to the man ''Its time I showed you how powerful I really have become''.

With open confidence Eien walked up to the lumbering giant, which glared down at the small teen with its eyeless face, yet did not attack. If anyone looked close enough, they would see hesitation within the giant, unsure on what it should do.

''My, for an SSS-Rank, you don't seem like much up close. Well, I suppose I should give you a taste of my full power...'' Eien chuckled lowly, his hood down and revealing his heterochromic eyes ''Seele Mitteilung''.

Monochrome energy burst forth into existence, engulfing him and shrouding him from sight. It exploded like a grenade away from him, kicking up a gust as his soul went into overdrive, a pair of X-shaped monochrome wings on his back, his cloak bleeding away to become a monochrome one, with a silver outline on the black side and a gold outline on the white side. Half of his hair had become snow white, the eye with the purple iris now backed by a black sclera.

''Hm... odd'' Eien mused aloud, looking up at the giant ''When I examined you from a distance, you appear to be relatively strong, and I acknowledged that activating my Seele Mitteilung would be a wise decision. But now... I feel like I overestimated you''.

In response to the subtle insult, the creature screeched at Eien, bringing its hand down to crush the short teen. Eien merely sighed in an almost bored manner as he raised his hand, stopping the giant hand without even flinching. Eien reached inside his cloak, pulling out a silver Colt M1911 similar to that of Homura's, but with a different feeling to it.

''Truly, you are unimpressive'' Eien said disdainfully as a pulse of Aura pinged off his palm, knocking the giants hand back, causing the large being to stumble lightly ''I see no point in wasting time cutting you down, so I will erase you instead''.

Holding that same palm up, his Aura flared to life around him as the ground beneath him became ash. That ash spread out like a plague, consuming the dirt, bushes, trees, any life it could touch it was absorbed, transmuted into Eien's body and up his arm, forming a ball of rainbow light that glowed like the sun. Soon the ashy plague stopped, the sufficient amount of energy sucked up and converted into the pure energy. The ball contorted its shape, reforming and melding into a small rectangle which he calmly grasped in his hand.

''Pure energy, stolen from nature itself'' Eien said in a musing tone, raising the silver colt and placing the magazine-shaped energy into the gun, locking it and with deliberate slowness cocked the gun ''So tell me Mr. Batman, when you combine the raw power of nature, and the finest handgun Remnant has to offer, what do you get?''.

If he expected a response from the Batman, he was sorely disappointed as it swung its arm down in a second attempt to crush him.

''How futile'' Eien admonished as he raised his handgun and pulled the trigger, unleashing a massive beam of rainbow energy, destroying and erasing the arm and continuing on its course high into the sky before finally dissipating after he released the trigger. The beast, predicatably, howled in pain at the loss of its arm. Eien shook his head in disappointment before he took aim, firing and destroying its leg, bringing it to its stump of a knee.

''How the mighty fall'' He said before firing again, blowing its head and half of its torso to dust with a charged-up shot. He watched as the Grimm began disintegrating for a moment before turning back to Ozpin, smirking at his stunned look ''I believe that proves that even at half of my full strength, I can give you a serious run for your money''.

''You were holding back, weren't you?'' The headmaster realised a moment later.

Eien smirked wider ''Of course, you said it yourself - if you were to go all out, you'd have destroyed the school with your enormous power. I am no different in that regard, I too had to hold back lest I harm the spectators of the fight, about a quarter of my full strength''.

Kotori pouted ''You never taught me how to do that''.

''Because you aren't ready to handle the power'' He gave her a lopsided grin, holding his palm open as some of the energy still stored within him formed in his palm, a tennis ball of rainbow power ''Besides, this was the most appropriate thing I could think of to take down the Grimm, as anything stronger might have destroyed part of the continent''.

''You're kidding, right?'' Kindle laughed lightly, but upon seeing his amused expression, she paled a little ''...You're serious, aren't you?''.

''Of course'' He smiled cheerfully, flicking the safety on and holstering the handgun on his belt as his wings dissipated ''One can never be too prepared''.

''Who prepares for that kind of monster?'' Aria raised an eyebrow.

''Me'' Eien just smiled, ruffling her hair and making a light blush come to her cheeks, Ozpin turning off the small camera ''The Bullhead should be here soon, so we shouldn't need to wait long, five minutes at most''.

Five minutes too late.

In the underground of Mountain Glenn, White Fang members hastily ran back and forth, carrying ammo and explosives onto the train cars. Roman Torchwick stood uneasily as Cinder stood nearby, watching over the members of the 'Fang. Since Emerald, Mercury and Adam had been 'swayed' by Eien, Cinder had been on his ass relentlessly, practically doubling his work to the point he considering contacting the little brat from Beacon and just making a deal with him to kill the bitch, but he held out. Despite how much he disliked being someone's minion, he'd do so if it meant he'd still be living the good life... or the better life, at least.

''Roman, we're leaving in less than a minute'' Cinder informed as she pocketed her scroll and I mentally cursed, deciding to go with the only plan that I could foresee resulted in me living; call Eien. He'd be able to sway the headmaster and gain him some leniency, probably, and kill the bitch Cinder. Without her annoying cronies around, he'd go back to living the good life and everything would be dandy.

''Sure, I just need'ta make a call'' I said as nonchalantly as possible. Her amber eyes narrowed, but more in annoyance opposed to suspicion.

''Fine, but make it quick'' She conceded as she turned elegantly and strutted off. I hastily turned and gained a little distance before pulling out my scroll, scrolling through my contact list before finding one labelled 'Contact 4' and clicked it. It rung several times, before the click was heard as Eien predictably picked up.

''Hello?''.

''Yeah, hi again bud'' I started off in a hushed voice, unwilling to say Eien's name aloud.

''Roman? What're you calling for?''.

''Oh nothing much, just to give you a little warning, since you know Vale's gonna be attacked and I wanted to warn ya''.

''What?! When, how?''.

''In a few minutes, through the-'' A searing flash of pain lanced through my chest, my breath suddenly fading from my lungs. I heard a dull, rhythmic thumping in my ears as warm crimson stained my shirt, the onyx black sword roughly being pulled out. My grip on my scroll gone as it hit the ground, my body joining it a moment later. I coughed as my own blood filled my throat, the crimson liquid splattering the dirty stone next to me.

''How pitiful, Roman'' Cinder mocked as her sword vanished at her will ''I knew you were a spy the whole time, and yet you think I believed your petty acts and plays. You were a pawn from the start, and now you die as a pawn''.

I glared up at you, intending to spit some of my blood at her, but from my position it did little other than dribble out of my mouth disgustingly.

''Hmph, I shall leave you to a fate best left to the Grimm'' She said smugly as she swiftly began moving to the train ''Say hello to the Beowolves for me, Roman''.

''...Fuck...'' I managed to curse one last time as my vision began to get hazy, the corners of my vision turning black. Just as my limbs became numb and my vision dying, I swore I saw two figures above me.

''Will he be alright?'' One voice said, voice distant.

''If we hurry, then yes'' The second murmured, their voice lower than the first.

''What about the train?''.

''Leave it to Beacon, they can handle it''.

''If you say so...''.

Then darkness claimed me.

''Of course she would strike on the one day that we're not there!'' Eien growled furiously as the crimson Bullhead flew him and Ozpin back to Vale and maximum speed. His Spirits were busy healing and preparing to fight once more, not one of them complaining at the prospect, knowing it was their duty to protect the innocent. Still, that sentiment alone did little to calm his furious mood at having been one-upped by his opponent.

''Calm down'' Ozpin tried to soothe him, but was failing in that regard so far.

''How can I? My bloody arch-nemesis is in Vale, likely killing innocents however she pleases, and I'm sitting in a bloody Bullhead flying halfway across the world. Knowing my luck she'll be gone by the time I get there'' He ranted slightly, his hands twitching. A Sigil formed behind him abruptly, Kotori rising from it, her broom diagonally across her back. Without a word she hugged Eien from behind, being almost a head shorter than him.

''Kotori?'' He said in mild surprise, Ozpin discreetly moving to the cockpit to give them privacy.

''Please, calm down, Eien'' She murmured sadly, tightening her hold on him ''I don't like it when you get all angry, none of us do, not even he does''.

Eien's face showed a mix of genuine surprise and shame for the first time in a long while. He turned around and hugged his little witch, sighing. He idly wondered he was bipolar, with how fast his anger appeared and disappeared.

''I'm sorry, Kotori. All of you'' He sighed, annoyed at himself for letting his anger show more prominence, and accidentally scaring his Spirits. The couldn't feel fear, but they could be scared to a degree, and this was that degree.

''Its okay'' She smiled happily, glad she had soothed the anger her creator had ''So, what's the plan?''.

Eien thought on it for a few moments, before speaking ''All of you who are capable of fighting will be deployed... the Monochrome Knights included. Our Seele Mitteilung won't recharge for at least a day, so we'll have to go without them. I'll handle Cinder, and I want at least two of you with Homura at all times to support her. If anyone on our side questions who you are, you are to say you are with Beacon Academy, and if they attack you regardless then you are permitted to perform a non-lethal takedown''.

''Affirmative'' All of his Spirits chorused in his head.

He smiled lightly ''Alright... lets go do our job''.

Amber panted lightly as she ran through the streets, fighting all over the place as she headed for the source of the other half of the Maiden power. Cinder was on top of the rooftops nearby, and after finding a ladder she managed to spot the woman, who immediately locked eyes with her, smirking.

''Amber, how lovely to meet you again'' She said with a smirk, as if she had been expecting me.

''Cinder'' I half-growled, half-murmured ''I won't hold back against you, not after all of what you've done''.

Cinder's smirk just seemed to grow ''Interesting. I don't remember you being so violent, I wonder what's changed?''.

''What's changed?'' I said with my eyes narrowed ''Lots of things, none of which I care to tell you about''.

''Hmph'' Cinder narrowed her eyes before sweeping her arm at me. I saw it coming from a mile away, hopping backwards onto the roof behind me as three pillars of orange flames erupted where I stood, scorching the rooftop. I summoned up some of the Maidens power, forming a dozen ice crystals in front of me, sending them towards her with a flick of my wrist. She summoned a black sword from nowhere and slashed several of them away in less than a second, the rest missing her. I tapped into more of the Maidens power as I went airborne, using the wind to keep me afloat as I called down the raging thunder above.

Cinder, seeing what I planned, glowed faintly before she dragged her hand along her arm as her dress glowed, before firing a spear of flames at me. I scowled and brought a bolt of precise lightning down in an instant, meeting the flames halfway and eviscerating it. I sensed Cinder coming in from the side and pulled out my staff, spinning around and blocking both of Cinder's swords.

I called upon the wind and shoved her back before spinning the staff around so the head was facing her, the pink crystal facing her, a little gift from Eien. I pulled the trigger on the staff and it sent a projectile of pink energy at her, making the half-maiden curse as she used the wind to gracefully fly out of the way. She flicked her wrist and sent equally fast projectiles of flames, forcing me to jump out of the way to avoid them while maintaining my airborne status with the wind. I formed a fireball above me and threw it down at her, which she matched with an equally large fireball, causing an explosion that momentarily blinded me.

That was a mistake, it seemed, as Cinder burst through the smoke before I could react and brought her blade down on my shoulder, my Maiden-Enhanced Aura protecting it from being anything more than a flesh wound, but the pain was enough to make my will falter, the wind below me dissipating and making me fall the short distance to the roof, making me grunt in pain on impact. I stumbled to my feet, my vision slightly shaky before my Aura corrected it, allowing me to see the three arrows hurtling at me. I called upon the wind and let it push me back, the arrows crashing into the roof where I stood. A low indescribable noise below me warned me and I cursed, moving to avoid the fire pillars where I stood.

I spun my staff, which reloaded the chamber and pointed the head of the staff in the direction of Cinder, firing again. It flew into the smoke, but judging on the grunt I received I hit my target. She came flying out of the smoke with another fireball above her, forcing me to jump to another roof before creating a swarm of ice spikes, sending them flying at her. She winced as they cut through her Aura, the fireball exploding on the rooftop ahead of her. I spun my staff around and pointed the tail of it at her, a bright teal crystal on it. I pulled the trigger and it fired, sending a single projectile that broke off into no less than a hundred one centimetre missiles.

Cinder cursed, jumping high into the air with the wind to avoid the buckshot crystals, which is where I wanted her. I spun it to the pink crystal and fired, sending a pink projectile at her. Her eyes widened as she covered her face with her arms before it impacted her, sending her sailing down to ground level. I smirked faintly, pleased I had gotten at least one good hit on her, and that all my training for the past year or so wasn't for nothing.

I called upon the lightning once more, beckoning it down on Cinder just as she got up. Somehow she managed to dodge it at the last second before her two swords joined up into a bow. She notched three arrows and fired and I rolled out of the way, letting them crash into the building behind me. A low buzz below me was all the warning I got before I was engulfed in searing-hot flames, my Aura protecting me from being burned but the pain still hammering to my core. It was over swiftly and it left me falling to my knees gasping, my Aura having took a severe beating.

''How pitiful'' Cinder mocked as she strutted up to me smugly ''I do wonder why you were even made the Fall Maiden in the first place, you're weak''.

I glared up at her ''I never... wanted this power''.

''Well, why don't you give it up willingly?'' She said, but it was clear she would kill me either way. Probably.

''Fuck... you'' I glared, defiantly stumbling to my feet ''I won't let... all of the help from... my friends... go to waste!''.

''How moving'' She intoned with narrowed eyes, as if she took offence to that. She flicked her wrist and nearly a dozen circles of flames appeared below me, making me curse as I pushed a lot of Aura into the wind, roughly shoving me out of the flames, even though my foot still got caught in it.

I stayed airborne, since it was the only way I wouldn't get caught in her fire pillars, and summoned both the wind and lightning, blowing the wind at her and making her pause in her advance before bringing a thundering bolt of thunderous lightning down on her. I took morbid glee in how her body lit up as she was shocked, but unfortunately I had to stop before I ran out of Aura. Still, I took advantage of her frazzled state of mind as I dashed over there with the assistance of the wind, slamming the side of the staff into her side, knocking the breath out of her lungs. I aimed the pink crystal at her face and fired, exploding at point-blank and firing her body several rooftops away.

I called upon more of the Maidens power, thunder booming above me as I struck down on where she stood. My vision was blinded momentarily, but when my vision recovered I saw three black projectiles heading for me. I had no time to dodge as the arrows pierced my chest, leaving me gasping for air as one of them likely hit my lung, the other two somewhere in my stomach. I stumbled as my breath came out in a wheeze, barely able to recognise Cinder in front of me through the pain. The handle of her sword smashed into my forehead. Spots filled my vision as I fell onto my back, breathing becoming more difficult as the drumming sound of my heart filled my ears.

''I was wrong, it seemed. You aren't as weak as I thought you to be, but you aren't strong enough to be worthy of wielding the Maidens might either'' Cinder said, her voice distance and muffled.

Even with my muddled vision and hearing, my eyes widened in terror at the sight of a horrifically familiar glove.

''Its time I took that power, wouldn't you agree?''.

''You all know what to do!'' Eien barked as he stared down at his Monochrome Knights, who lived within the Monochrome world where Nein resided.

''Lets kick some Grimm ass!'' Nein grinned bloodthirstily, the abrasive one as always.

''What he said'' I nodded as the first of the Grimm turned down the street, chasing civilians ''Go!''.

''Hai!'' The Monochrome Knights roared as they jumped off the building, charging the mass of Grimm with weapons drawn, Nein leading them. It wasn't the full force of the Monochrome Knights, just a small 20-man group of them. Alexia was leading some a little north here while Nazai was leading a larger group straight to the source of the breach, with Ozpin having called Glynda to meet them there.

I felt Amber's Aura fade, as if it was draining. Over the explosions and sounds of battle I could feel the pain her soul was taking, practically being torn apart. I clenched my jaw tightly in repressed fury before I took off in a run towards her. My friends at Beacon were strong enough to handle themselves, since no Grimm of considerable threat would be here. My Spirits were scattered across the city in pairs, protecting civilians and killing Grimm.

Using SchattenSchritt I quickly accelerated my pace through the city, hopping across rooftops. When I got close enough I went into another SchattenSchritt, finding Cinder smugly standing over a barely-conscious Amber and I gritted my teeth, fury rising. I grabbed her by the hair from behind and slung her, surprise on her face as she was sent flying into a building, crashing into it. I knelt down next to Amber, who's eyes were fluttering as her consciousness flickered, the amount of blood pooling around her likely meaning if she lost consciousness, she'd die.

''Amber, Amber!'' I called loudly after the first try didn't work. Her eyes looked up at me weakly, filled with such pain it was almost as if I was feeling the pain ''Stay awake Amber, don't sleep, not yet...''.

My lips pressed into a thin line ''I can save you... do you want me to?''.

It seemed like a ridiculous question, but at the same time it was courtesy more than anything. She was in pain, and while she could live past that, if she didn't want to live a life of pain and struggle any longer, who was I to deny her that freedom?

To my relief, she gave a barely-there nod and smile. Her eyes fluttered shut as unconsciousness took her, yet the smile didn't leave her face. I smiled faintly in returned as I pressed a hand to her chest, waiting for her heart to stop. It would be the least painful way for her. When it did, I acted.

''Seele Ernten, Auseinander'' I whispered, the golden beam coming from my upper back and around, piercing her chest with an intangible energy. I didn't waste any time, activating it and absorbing her soul into mine. Her body disintegrated to ash, which was blown away in a gust of wind. I took a breath to calm myself as I stood up, making a mental note to check up on Amber later.

''So we meet again, Cinder'' I intoned, turning around to look at Cinder Fall as she stood to her feet, stoic.

''Indeed, Eien'' She retorted calmly, a silence ensuing between us. There was a strange... air about it all, the whole scene. I hated Cinder, yet when I looked at her now I couldn't bring that hatred to surface, for reasons only now clear to me.

''You realise you won't be leaving here alive, right?'' I asked with a touch of solemnity.

She stared for a moment, before closing her eyes and tilting her head down, a smile on her face ''I am well aware of that''.

I raised an eyebrow ''Oh?''.

''I may not live to see the next sunrise, but I am willing to die knowing that Lady Salem will be your end'' She added, looking at me with bright sunset orbs.

''Hm'' I hummed, explosions echoing around the city block we stood upon ''I used to hate you, you know? Ever since you attacked Ruby, since your crimes came to light, all of it only fuelled my need to end your existence. But now I realise that it was a ridiculous act. You and I are not overly different, in a sense. We both have goals to achieve, being pawns to a greater being. The biggest difference is the side where we stand. You side with Salem and I with the Gods above, you plotted the downfall of Beacon while I planned your downfall. You gained strength by killing Amber and gaining the powers of the Fall Maiden, while I gained strength through a year of training under Death himself. You manipulate, I befriend. You use fire, I use ice. We're different yet the same''.

''And because of that, it is I who will bring you down'' I finished, drawing out my katana, Judgement forming in my free hand, manipulated by my Semblance.

''I couldn't have put it any better myself'' She huffed as she glowed, the Maidens power activating ''Perhaps in another lifetime, we could be friends''.

I smiled lightly ''Perhaps so''.

We stared at one another for a moment, before we charged. I sprinted across the rooftop as she flicked her wrists, forcing me to jump to the side to avoid twin bolts of lightning. I summoned my Aura and condensed it into my blade, slashing it in a wide arc in front of me, sending a purple wave of energy towards her. She jumped over it using the wind, but the small distraction was enough for me to get close to her. She summoned her onyx sword just as I clashed with her, standing on a Sigil to keep me airborne. I swung Judgement around, forcing her to break the deadlock lest her head get cut off by my scythe, though she managed to strike my chest with a spear of flames.

I jumped back, forming a Wind Sigil with a mental order, the power of the wind shooting me at her like a bullet. She barely had time to raise her sword again before I clashed with her, the force behind it off-balancing her. She was still weakened by Amber then, regardless if her power had increased. I spun Judgement around and broke the deadlock before hooking my scythe on her blade, pulling it. She was stronger than me physically and prepared for the manoeuvre it seemed, as she didn't stumble and instead dislodged my blade, firing a spear of flames at me in return.

I tapped into Era's power, causing the clock on my cheek to glow faintly as time slowed down a little. I dodged out of the way, my body feeling like it was surrounded by water in the process, and dashed at her while cancelling the power. To Cinder, it would look like I just doubled my speed, dodging her spear and rushing her. My blade came crashing against hers once more and I condensed my Aura within it. Her eyes widened slightly before the energy exploded point-blank, engulfing us in a cloud of smoke. I jumped back, prepping another one before firing it into the smoke, hitting her judging from her pained gasp.

Summoning a gravity Sigil, I took morbid pleasure as she was sent flying down to ground level, crushing a few tiles from the impact. I deactivated it almost immediately to save Aura, instead using SchattenSchritt to move down to her level. She was just getting to her feet when I appeared, so I solved it by kicking her in the stomach, knocking the oxygen from her lungs. I stomped on her hand and kicked the sword away, ramming my knee into her face and making her fall onto her back.

''Seele Ernten'' I murmured under my breath, the beam of energy burst out and piercing her chest in all of three seconds, paralyzing her. Her eyes widened and I stared back at her, shaking my head as she tried to struggle ''This is the end, Cinder Fall... any last words?''.

She glared ''You may have won the battle, but Salem will win this war''.

I smiled faintly just before I activated the technique ''Wise words, Cinder, but sadly not all wise words are true''.

''Seele Ernten, Ausnehmen''.

Her screams of pain were lost to the battle around us.

An hour of fighting later, the battle came to an end. The White Fang members had either been killed or imprisoned, the Grimm all eradicated and the injured taken to hospitals. After my fight with Cinder, in a fight where I obtained minimum wounds, I found Ozpin and was currently planning our next move with him within his office.

''With Cinder out of the way, Salem is likely to make a move sometime soon, possibly within the month'' I intoned, looking through my scroll which had been updated by Ozpin, allowing me access to the school records and such, giving me administration privileges. It allowed me to look through both student and teacher records and statistics, which I used with subtle care.

''Indeed, I'll have the council enlist more guards around the perimeter of Vale under the guise of preventing this incident once again'' Ozpin nodded, pausing to take a sip of his coffee and giving me a slightly concerned look ''Are you alright, Eien?''.

Was I? No, I wasn't. I felt like I had a sword through my chest, all because of Cinder's death. Never prior to this would I have thought I would feel like this after killing her, too obscured by my hate. The conversation prior to our short, but final fight was likely what was effecting me most. Could we have been friends? Could I have made her an ally, someone close to me, if I had tried harder? Was there truly no path of redemption for her? It was like a weight hanging over me, reminding me of my failure to save someone who could've. It wasn't only because of the potential to save her, but also that her presence on our side could turn the tide in the coming fights against Salem. That wasn't even mentioning the effects of Seele Ernten: Ausnehmen.

So was I alright? No, I wasn't, but moping wouldn't do anyone any good.

''I will be'' I answered neutrally ''Regardless-''.

I stopped myself as I picked up three Aura signatures behind me, literally appearing out of nowhere. The first was easily recognisable; Roman Torchwick, but given its state he was unconscious and wounded. The other two were strong, almost rivalling Ozpin prior to him removing his glasses. Both had a slightly familiar feel to it, but I couldn't pin it down. Ozpin also noticed them, his eyes wide as if shocked. With a swift spin of my hell, I spun to face them.

The one on the right was shorter, about 5'7 or so, just an inch taller than me. She had dark brown hair tied into a braid that laid over her right shoulder, and to my surprise she also had heterochromic purple-light blue eyes. She wore a grey cloak with an orange pauldron on her shoulders, she had a dark orange shirt underneath with elbow-length gauntlets, brown combat slacks underneath with grey boots. At her waist was a high-calibre revolver with a blade attached to the underside of the barrel. There must've been something on her back under the cloak, but I couldn't see it.

The second one on the left was taller, at around 5'9 or 5'10. She had dark hair that reached her chin with it falling to the middle of her back behind her, the ends of her hair turning red. Her eyes were a bright silver, akin to Ruby's. She was wearing a white cloak with a hood, said hood being down to reveal her young-looking face. She had a grey dress with silver cuffs and silver skirt hem, a black corset around her stomach, black stockings and a pair of boots. She looked eerily similar to Ruby, but the white cloak around her confirmed it wasn't Ruby.

''And who might you be?'' I wondered aloud, hand reaching for my katana.

''Marisol Haizen'' The brown haired woman said bluntly with a smile, my brain screeching to a halt from her comment, almost unable to hear the other woman.

''And I'm Summer, Summer Rose''.

...

...

Shutting down...

Rebooting...

Processing...

Comprehending...

Debugging...

...

...

''Eh?''.

Ruby wasn't sure why she was being called up to the headmasters office, though she did know it had something to do with Eien, since Ozpin had briefly mentioned it. She swore she heard voices that were not Eien's in the background, but she passed it off as one of his Spirits. She hoped maybe she could hang out with them more often, since they were pretty funny and acted like a family almost. One of the strange things she had noticed six months ago was that Eien never mentioned anything about the drain on his Aura when it came to his Spirits, so either he no longer felt the drain or he was just that strong and he didn't feel it.

Still, the invasion earlier might also be what she was being called up for. The rest of the team wasn't called so it might not be a mission, or maybe just her and Eien on a mission, or maybe not. She had did as Eien asked and led the team into the battlefield, clearing a major amount of Grimm and in the process running into... Alexia I think her name was? I hadn't seen her since Eien died, but she had been busy leading the monochrome-looking troops, so I didn't get the chance to stop and talk.

The elevator dinged open as she arrived, and was greeted to an odd sight. Eien was almost casually talking with an older woman, maybe around Goodwitch's age, who honestly looked like an older - and female - version of him. She wasn't much taller, had the same heterochromic eyes and brown hair. Both were casually talking with Ozpin, engaging in a three-way conversation, a look of reminiscence on Ozpin's and the woman's face apparently indicated they were thinking on the past. I stepped out of the elevator, drawing attention to me as the lull in the conversation allowed my entrance.

''Hey Ruby'' Eien smiled, waving to emphasis the greeting ''There's someone here to meet you''.

''Okay?'' I said with a trace of uncertainty, but was more curious than anything. I looked at the woman, but she shook her head and pointed behind me. Confused, I obeyed.

And froze.

Leaning against the wall next to one of the potted plants in Ozpin's office, was my mother. Her hair was no longer as short as it once was, and she looked a little older, yet still so young. She smiled softly when I spotted her, and it took my brain a second more to realise that she was hugging me.

''Hey sweetie'' She whispered quietly.

''M-Mom?'' I murmured, my brain trying to understand how she was here. The first, and most likely option was that Eien had somehow brought her back to life, but he'd likely have told me six months prior when he was exploring Death's Archives. The second was that she had been alive this whole time, yet chose not to return. That possibility hurt, but she must have a reason for it - even Raven had a reason; the mission.

''The one and only'' She joked lightly, running a hand through my hair and tittering ''We need to get you a haircut young lady''.

A couple chuckles came from Ozpin, the other woman and Eien. Despite that, I looked up at her silver eyes, asking the first thing on my mind ''How?''.

She smiled softly ''I faked my death, all those years ago, because I had to leave. I had a good reason to though, the same as Marisol over here; to protect you kids''.

I frowned ''Huh?''.

She smirked a little, a mischievous look in her eyes as she added ''I'm the Summer Maiden, Marisol is the Spring Maiden''.

...

...

''Eh?''.

''My exact thoughts'' Eien drawled in amusement ''Having my mother suddenly appear with Roman, claiming she's the Spring Maiden is not a common thing''.

''When I left on my final mission all those years ago I had nearly been killed by an S-Rank Grimm, but at that exact moment near my death I had been gifted with the power of the Summer Maiden, which healed me enough to live. I wanted to return, but not long before I reached Patch a group of militants came looking for me, raiding the town I was living in and looking for me'' She explained at length ''I fled, and I met Marisol not long after. As the Maidens, we hold an incredibly old power, one nearly as old as Remnant itself, so its not surprising some would hunt us down to claim that power, even if they're unaware that they had to be female and young to be chosen, and even that was unlikely''.

''We couldn't return, because if we did there was the chance they would harm our children or worse'' Marisol added, nursing a cup of tea ''But with the more recent... developments, we can afford to come out of hiding''.

I smiled then, looking at my mom ''Well, that just means you're now twice as cool as before, a super-super mom''.

Summer smiled, ruffling my hair and giggling lightly ''That's my girl!''.

''Summer'' Ozpin called out, pausing to sip his coffee ''Perhaps you would like to explore the school once more, reconnect with your daughter?''.

Mom smiled ''Sure, lead the way Rubes''.

''Eh? You want me to?'' I said uncertainly.

''Yep'' She grinned, pushing me to the elevator ''I always got lost, so you can show me!''.

'...but I always get lost too!'.

As the elevator door closed, I turned to look at my Mother and Ozpin ''You do realise Ruby gets lost too, right?''.

''She does?'' Mom said, slightly surprised but equally amused.

''Indeed'' Ozpin smirked a little ''I do not know how, but at one point she managed to get halfway up the tower before realising she wasn't in the dorms''.

Mom laughed ''That's just like something Summer would do!''.

''Yes... now, about the SDC...'' I hummed, calmly sipping my tea, idly musing it might need more sugar. The seriousness in my tone immediately dissipated the cheery atmosphere, but it wouldn't have lasted regardless. We couldn't make a move on Salem with the SDC potentially creating more problems and we couldn't directly expose them to the world, since that would hurt just as much as help.

''Have you managed to find anything?'' Ozpin asked in a musing tone.

I shook my head ''Eleanor, Risa and Mona are looking through it at the moment, but nothing overly incriminating so far... although there were little hints that there might be a larger, more advanced one at the SDC Headquarters in Atlas''.

''Do you know if its active?''.

''Perhaps, but its likely'' I conceded ''It'll be a few hours, but they'll get through it by then''.

''Then we shall have to wait until then'' Ozpin decided musingly ''Until we have more information, we cannot form a solid plan, though I assure you we will be acting quite soon''.

''I'll inform you when they're done'' I nodded, humming as I turned my gaze to my mother ''So...''.

''So...'' She drawled also, both of our tones a little awkward.

''Perhaps some training in the forest?'' Ozpin thankfully interjected ''I'm sure if anything, the two of you may find it interesting''.

''I'd like that'' Marisol smiled, the smile turning into a smirk as she looked at me ''Race you to the ruins in the Emerald Forest?''.

''Very well'' I smirked, my vision turning black as I used SchattenSchritt, the faint sound of another using it hinting my mother was adept in the skill also.

Perhaps I could enjoy myself, if only a little to take my mind of my troubles.

''So how've you been? Did your father treat you well since I, you know'' Summer said, starting the conversation and breaking the awkward air.

''Yeah, he kinda shut down though, so Yang had to take care of me until Dad started functioning again'' I shrugged a little, my mom furrowing her brows at that ''He did try, obviously, but after you left... it... yeah''.

''Sorry'' She apologised.

''Its fine'' I hummed, hugging her ''Because you're here now''.

She smiled, hugging me back, cloaking us in a mix of red and white. No words passed and we just stood like that for a few moments before breaking off and continuing our walk through the school halls. Only a few minutes passed before I came up with another thing to talk about.

''Ooh, can I see your weapon?'' I beamed at the prospect, which made her smile and nod. She reached behind her, oddly enough in the same spot where I stored my own weapon, and pulled out a rather unassuming brown bag, far too small to house a weapon, probably the size of a head. She just untied the top, revealing the inside to be filled with a weird purple-blue-red liquid-thing. She reached inside, her hand disappearing into the gel-liquid, her arm going further and further into it until it reached her elbow, then she smiled in victory.

Her arm tensed and she retracted it faster than how she pushed it in, pulling out what I presumed her weapon was. Only after she fully pulled it out and dropped the bag did I get a good look at it, and it make my eyes go wide. It was a long, silver-white pole with a scythe on either end, the metallic blades a light grey with an odd purple streak across it. The length of the pole as almost as tall, if not taller than my mom and had slight, intricately styled marks and designs on them, most in a consistent fashions of a rose, raven and sun. Near the halfway mark was a hexagonal diamond shaped ammo spot, currently holding a Dust Crystal.

The crystal in question was one I had never seen before. I wasn't an expert like Weiss, but I hadn't seen one that was dark blue, purple and blood red all in one, constantly moving and blending randomly like paint. At one end of the double-scythe I saw a barrel, meaning either it fired Dust-rounds or some kind of purified Dust from the crystal itself. It also had a rifle stock near one end, meaning it could be used as a gun.

Overall, it was badass.

''That's so cool!'' I squealed, staring at the weapon in awe ''Its awesome...''.

Summer giggled ''Hehe, yeah. I had a little help from Marisol since my original weapon got destroyed when I nearly died. I call her Summer Breeze''.

''Cool~'' I drooled a little, looking at the masterful craftsmanship.

''Can I see yours?'' My mom asked.

Suddenly self-conscious, I sheepishly pulled out Crescent Rose, feeling for once my weapon was insignificant compared to another ''Its not that impressive...''.

''Ooh~!'' Summer squealed, mimicking my earlier action ''Its so pretty~ What's it do?''.

''Its also a high-impact customizable sniper rifle?'' I said uncertainly, absentmindedly reminded of me repeating the same thing to Eien on our first day.

''Its awesome'' She grinned, ruffling my hair ''What's it called?''.

''Crescent Rose'' I smiled, a little more confident from her praise.

''Crescent Rose and Summer Breeze'' She giggled, attaching the bag to her back again ''I don't get many chances to see cool weapons, since me and Marisol have been travelled across Mistral and Atlas for the past few years''.

''We were in Mistral not long ago'' I informed wistfully, remembering our awesome time prior to Eien's temporary death - she had yet to receive and answer on why that was.

''Yeah, we saw you'' She smiled ''We were actually keeping an eye on Seraphim for a while, we tried to stop her but she ended up blowing up Rockledge, so we had to pull back and treat our wounds''.

''She was that strong?'' I frowned a little.

Summer sighed, nodding ''Yeah, one of Salem's pawns. We could've won, but we underestimated her and she had a countermeasure encase me and Marisol intervened, which resulted in blowing up the town. She's probably on par with an A-Rank Hunter, give or take a bit''.

''Oh'' I mumbled, nodding. I hadn't realised how strong she was, but I had thought she was on our level. That is (E)RWBY came together they could defeat her, even without Eien leading them.

''Still, he's come a long way since then'' Summer nodded, referring to Eien I think ''You two are pretty close, gimme the details''.

I flushed at the prospect ''Mom!''.

''I'm kidding!'' She laughed, a laugh melodic like the wind. An explosion cut that laugh off as our heads snapped to the side, staring out the window. In the Emerald Forest was a giant, flaming bird about the size of a Giant Nevermore, before it was obliterated by a beam of rainbow energy.

''What's happening?'' I asked, a little worried.

''Eh, just Marisol and Eien fighting'' Summer shrugged ''I can sense them from here, they're fine - probably training or something equally dangerous''.

''So... ignore it?'' I asked.

She nodded, smiling ''Ignore it''.

Their conversations continued from there, occasionally interrupted by explosions on the Haizen's part, but otherwise they continued. Mom told me tales of her adventures, both as a Huntress and her time with Marisol. The latter were more funny, since it seemed Marisol and Eien shared the trait of doing absolutely ridiculous things so casually it made people question their - and their own - sanity. As the conversation shifted to me, I told my own tales, of Signal, of meeting Eien and my time in Beacon with my team, everything. I had brought up the subject of Eien's 'Dunkelheit' since it was an important aspect of his power, and to my surprise my mom knew a fair bit about it.

''When you're with Marisol for that length of time, you get used to crazy things like that'' She smiled, ruffling my hair affectionately ''They aren't the only ones who can create sentient life though, my side of the family has always been able to do it''.

''Really?'' I said in mild surprise. I had asked Eien prior, but he had told me I couldn't do it because I didn't have Dunkelheit, maybe he didn't know?

''Yup'' Summer nodded, smiling ''Although we aren't as good at it, since we're more of warriors while they're a more complex type of fighter''.

''Can you teach me?'' I asked, excited.

''Perhaps you should ask Eien when he's got the time'' She smiled ''I learnt mine from Marisol, so you can learn yours from Eien. But one thing you need to remember when created life is that you always need to take care of them - they're people too''.

''I will!'' I beamed with determination, before a question appeared ''But who did you create then?''.

''Me'' A female voice suddenly said. Confused, I looked around, but found no-one ''Down here''.

Looking down, I froze upon seeing a reflection on Summer Breeze's blade, one of a woman in her mid-teens with stark white hair, pale complexion and crimson eyes. The thing was, it was literally a reflection of sorts, the person was basically on the other side of a mirror, said mirror being the blade.

''Wha...?''.

''I am Summer Breeze, Miss Rose's one and only 'Spirit', as it has been titled'' The girl said articulately, my mind clanking to a halt.

''Mom...''.

''Yes honey?''.

''Your weapon is talking''.

''I am well aware of that''.

''...You made your weapon come to life, didn't you?''.

''...Maybe?''.

''...Teach me... that's so cool...''.

A/N: And we'll end it there on a cheery note, before we get back into the thick of things in the next chapter.

So the SDC has been doing bad shit, Eien's got an insta-kill gun that shoots rainbows, Cinder is dead, Amber is dead, stuff will be revealed soon, Summer and Marisol are Maidens that had faked their deaths, this story is starting to seem more like a crack series than anything. I will try and interject my reasons into these things, because I know more than a few will be... uncomfortable(?) with them.

The SSS-Rank Grimm was powerful, yes, but the reason it died as easy as it did to Eien was because Eien was literally wielding the power of Life, Time and Reality in that instance. If you remember, those three gods gave him a tiny portion of his power, and he used all three in combination to create an energy that was, for lack of better word, existence itself. He literally erased its existence, which is why it died so easily. The gun won't be used to kill anything he actually has a hard time fighting for - its mostly just a flashy thing, if you understand. He could use it on a Beowulf just for jokes, but he wouldn't use it on someone like Cinder because he doesn't want to erase her, because he'd feel bad - for reasons later explained.

Also, Eien wasn't kidding when he said he could blow up half of the continent. The reason behind that is a suicide attack; he would destroy his own soul through Soul Suicide, acting like a mini-nuke. Add in the fact all of his Spirits would die with him, he becomes a super-powerful suicide nuke. However, its unlikely if not guaranteed that will not happen in the story.

Amber is dead, but is now alive and a Spirit like Neo is. For anyone wondering, Neo will make an appearance soon, but there'll be a reason why she hasn't shown up recently. For those wondering if Cinder is now a Spirit - no. Seele Ernten: Ausnehmen isn't the same as Seele Ernten: Auseinander. The latter is the original version, which absorbs the victims soul into Eien's, while Ausnehmen destroys the consciousness of the soul and just absorbs the energy of the soul. I'm sure you capable of theorising what I'm planning.

The reason why Cinder's fight with Eien was so short came down to a few reasons; Cinder was already injured from fighting Amber, Eien is a strong fighter, she hadn't been able to defend from the majority of Eien's attacks and one of the biggest was that she had no intentions of surviving the fight, and other reasons I may bring up in future. Cinder is not pure evil, merely a misguided individual.

The reason I decided to bring Summer back from the dead was to save me making one of the Maiden's an OC. Summer faked her death to prevent evil people from hunting Ruby, Yang and Taiyang down because they were her family, so she faked her death and fled. Marisol was the same; she didn't raise Eien because of this, and her husband died because he went with her.

Canon Season 2-3 are probably in shreds right now, I can assure you. Any prior promises of it coming around are now invalid, since we've moved so far from canon its amusing. I hope you are all enjoying the story so far, and if all continues as I had plotted, then this story will be around... 25-30 chapters? It depends on how long I make parts and how much details I go into to fill the 10K word limit. Also, the translation;

Seele Ernten: Ausnehmen = Soul Reap: Evisceration.

Till next time!