Here we are at Chapter 100 and the start of volume 7 for this story. Now we get to see how Velvet can handle herself in the kingdom of Atlas (this should be fun –_-). I do not own RWBY or Tales of Berseria. They belong to their respective owners. Here's chapter 100. Enjoy.


Chapter 100: Kingdom in the Skies

The gang have just arrived to Atlas, and already they're not liking the situation they see before them. Then again, that can happen when someone sees a massive military blockade right in front of them.

"Manta 5-1, maintain your current course and prepare for landing at Atlas docking bay Omega 12. A security team will meet you there. Over," they hear over the comms.

"What should we do?" Velvet asks.

"What do you mean?" Nora asks.

"We're here unofficially when their borders are closed. And we're not soldiers and we have one of their airships. That sounds like a good mixture for being put in jail cells if you ask me. I already spent three years in a cell back home. I'm not exactly keen on going back there again," Velvet explains.

"Uncle Qrow, do you know what's going on here?" Ruby asks her uncle.

"I wish I knew Ruby. What I do know is that this doesn't look good," Qrow replies.

"But, can't we just land and ask to speak with General Ironwood?" Jaune suggests.

"We can't just walk in through the front door. They'll never let us see Ironwood," Velvet says.

"I'm afraid I'm inclined to agree with Velvet. Our forces have never been set up like this before. The security team won't let us anywhere near Ironwood. If they catch us... they may bring me back to my father," Weiss worries.

Yang takes her hand, "I won't let them take you back to that bastard," she says.

Weiss then gets an idea, "Wait, Winter. If I can get in touch with her, she might be able to help us. Maria, get some space between us and the fleet while I try to contact her," Weiss asks.

"Roger that," Maria replies and moves the ship downward towards Mantle.

As they move closer to Mantle, Velvet gets a closer look at the former kingdom, seeing some buildings being rundown, old, and unclean. She can even see some of the citizens, and the sad expressions on their faces.

"This place might as well be a breeding ground for negativity. I'm surprised it hasn't been overrun with Grimm by now. Everyone here looks so... sad," Velvet notes.

"Welcome to Mantle," Qrow mutters.

"Hey, look," Yang points to their left.

They see a big screen with a recording of Ironwood on it, showing new clothes and a beard on his face.

"...These are indeed uncertain times we are currently facing, but rest assured that one thing that is certain is that our kingdom, Atlas, will remain strong and it will remain safe, and will be ready for whatever dangers may come our way. That is my promise to all of you," Ironwood says.

"General Ironwood. He looks... tired," Yang notes.

"James, what has gotten into you?" Qrow wonders.

"I just... This isn't right. Atlas... shouldn't be like this," Weiss sadly says.

"Hate to break it to you Weiss, but I got a feeling that it's always been like this. You can just see it more clearly now," Velvet says.

"...Manta 5-1, we noticed a detour in your route. You are to make your way to Atlas docking bay Omega 12 immediately. Do you copy? Over," they hear the comms again.

"Look, we gotta do something about this ship. If they come after it and find us in it, then it's bye-bye to seeing Ironwood and hello to wearing handcuffs. We can't let them find this thing with us in it," Velvet says.

"Look, I swear to you. We just need to find my sister. She can help us get to Ironwood," Weiss interjects.

"Um, Weiss," Blake nods outside.

Weiss looks out the window to see a recording of Winter on the big screen, also in a new outfit.

"A reminder: failure to cooperate with Atlas military personnel is a punishable offense..." Winter says.

"Winter?" Weiss appears shocked by the recording.

"Weiss, I don't think that seeing your sister is a good idea right now," Qrow says.

"There's obviously something very wrong here. If we just talk to her, then-," Weiss begins.

"Weiss, we don't even know if we should be talking to Ironwood right now. You saw what we saw outside that window. This is everything short of martial law here in Atlas and Mantle. Look, I consider Winter to be a friend, but right now, she's not your sister and she's not my friend. She's Ironwood's right-hand, which makes her a potential problem. We need to get more information and it won't be from them," Velvet explains.

"But-," Weiss says.

"Look Weiss, I know you want to see your sister again, but we need to be careful about this. We can't just go in blind. We'll see her again, but it just can't be now," Yang adds.

"Listen up, people. I know someone who can help us with our problems," Maria tells them.

"...Manta 5-1, you are to-," the comms goes on before Maria turns them off.

"Geez lady, take a hint," Maria says and steers the ship to land somewhere in Mantle.

Once they reach the ground level, the gang ditch the airship and begin walking through the city. Now walking on the streets, they get an even closer look at the state of Mantle. They see little kids hiding in alleyways, Dust mine workers covered in dirt and soot as they are coming from and going to the mines, looking exhausted. They see civilians walking through the streets, either trying to stay warm, or looking defeated.

"This place looks even worse up close," Velvet mutters.

"Come on, the place we're going to is this way," Maria says as she leads the group through the city.

"This place feels so... off," Yang notes.

They notice little Atlas drones hovering through the streets. One comes up and takes Velvet's picture, aggravating her before she slices it in half with one of her foot blades.

"Yeah, maybe me should pick up the pace a bit," Qrow says.

"There's a lot of military personnel here," Weiss says as she notices a few Atlas robot soldiers walking down one street ahead of them. "Way more than normal," she says.

"Yeah... I don't like it," Velvet says.

"Indeed. But you have to remember that the kingdom of Mantle had lost the Great War so long ago. The people needed a sign of a brighter tomorrow. And that sign was Atlas. A kingdom floating amongst the clouds is about as bright as it can get for anyone," Maria explains.

They look up at Atlas in the skies before looking back down at the city around them.

"More like only a brighter future for those that could afford it. Not to mention that living up there has caused most of the people in Atlas to be full of hot air, thinking themselves like gods and looking down on everyone else," Velvet voices her displeasure.

"Well, I won't argue with you on that one," Maria agrees.

"Oh yeah," they hear and look back at a drunk man behind them, a flask in his hand. "You don't like it here? You could always move out into the tundra," the drunk man says.

"At least you can breathe there," Velvet notes.

"Atlas is the greatest kingdom that ever lived!" the drunk man yells.

"Not from where I'm standing," Nora mutters.

"Look, the Dust embargo has everyone on edge right now, but it will blow over soon enough and then things can get back to normal," the drunk man's friend on the steps says.

"Look, we-," Ruby begins, but Blake stops her.

"We can't cause a scene," Blake mutters.

"We try and help the other kingdoms and this is the thanks we get? I say let them rot!" the man says.

"We didn't mean to insult. We'll be on our way now," Blake tries to pacify the situation.

"Stupid Faunus like you wouldn't-," the drunk man begins before Velvet suddenly appears right in front of him and roundhouse kicks him into a dumpster, followed by throwing a spinning hook kick to his friend, knocking them both out.

The others look shocked by her actions as she calmly walks up to them, "What? They asked for it. Come on. Let's go before the authorities arrive," Velvet says.

Speaking of which, a few Atlas robots approach to check on the unconscious pair, prompting the group to make a break for it before they get caught. After moving further into the city and making a few more turns around some buildings, the gang follow Maria as they come to one building in particular, noticing posters of a young woman with blonde hair in a short ponytail on the wall. They see a young Faunus girl with a prosthetic left arm walk out, waving to whoever is inside.

"And no more heavy lifting you hear. Don't want you to have to get that arm repaired again," they hear a male voice calling out from inside.

Maria nods for them to go in and walks inside first, "Hello, old friend. It's been a long time. How have you been?" she greets the man inside.

They all come inside and notice an elderly man with glasses, a bowtie, gray hair and a beard sitting behind a desk with stacks of paper on it.

The man looks down at Maria, "Ah yes, yes...Have we met before?" the man asks.

"I thought you said he was a friend?" Velvet asks.

"His memory isn't what it used to be. You remember my eyes. Cybernetic optical implants. You adjust them every ten years or so," Maria clarifies.

The man stares for a long moment before it hits him, "...Maria! Yes, I remember you now. How have you been?" he greets her happily, moving around the desk to show a quad-legged wheelchair for motion. "I'm sorry I didn't recognize you sooner. Has it really been ten years already?" he asks as he escorts her to a patient's seat.

"Hah, I know I age like a fine wine. I was on my way to you for my eyes when I ran into these kids along the way. I thought that maybe they could use some advice from a veteran huntress... They even managed to take down a Sphinx," Maria explains as he helps her onto the seat.

"Wow, must have been some experience," the man notes.

"Well, they've had more... interesting experiences than that. They at least kept me from getting bored, that's for sure," Maria adds.

"Um, I hate to interrupt but who is this?" Ren asks politely.

"My, always so impatient. I was certain I wouldn't need to introduce one of the finest minds in Atlas," Maria says.

"What's someone like that doing down here?" Ruby asks as she looks around his shop.

"Well, he likes to keep a low profile. Something none of you have any experience in," Maria says.

"A pleasure to meet you all. You may call me Pietro," Pietro introduces himself.

"A fine gentleman as well. This is a prosthetic pharmacy that he works at when he's not working with Ironwood up in Atlas, building the future of the kingdom in the skies," Maria explains.

"Oh, I can barely breath up there. It's much more pleasant down here, actually. I can help the people out down here, and have some fun while doing so. I'm working on a pair of shoes that can help you dance. A little pet project, like others, that I work on in my spare time," Pietro says.

"I see," Blake replies, raising an eyebrow.

"Listen, this is a wonderful reunion, but we kind of need your help. We came here to Atlas in order to talk with General Ironwood, but seeing the state everything is in, we're kind of worried about whether or not that's a good idea," Yang explains.

"Can you tell us what's been going on around here?" Velvet asks.

Pietro coughs a bit and then sighs, "The Fall of Beacon... effected everyone, not just those in Vale or at Beacon. James was no exception to this. I couldn't tell you what he saw over there, but whatever it was, it changed him. Greatly," Pietro explains.

Qrow glances away, "He's gotten scared," he suggests.

"Paranoid would be a more apt description. You have to understand. It wasn't just the Grimm attacks. Someone managed to completely dismantle Atlas security code, made it into their plaything, and turned our machines against us. They made us look like traitors to some and buffoons to everyone else. I admit that many didn't trust us to begin with, but the Fall of Beacon... made those tensions even worse. Whoever hacked those codes is either a genius... or one of our own," Pietro says.

"If it was one of your own, then couldn't it have been both?" Jaune asks.

"It is possible. The General seems to believe so," Pietro replies.

"What about the council? What do they think about all of this?" Weiss asks.

"Well, the council's so scared that they'll let Ironwood do just about whatever he wants. Of course, there are some representatives from both Atlas and Mantle most of all that aren't quite so supportive of his recent actions," Pietro says, but then gets another look at Weiss. "Wait... you're Weiss Schnee!" he realizes.

The group get defensive now, but Yang steps up to try and change the subject, "Wait, what was that about Mantle again?" Yang asks.

Pietro notices her right arm, "You... you painted it?" he asks.

"This isn't looking good," Velvet mutters.

"But that means that you're... Team RVWBY," Pietro says.

"You know about us?!" Ruby gasps.

"Hahaha, my dear, I know about all of you, and now I feel like such a dunce for not recognizing you sooner. My daughter has told me so much about all of you," Pietro explains.

"Your... daughter?" Ruby asks, confused.

But before they can continue, sirens start going off outside. They run outside, seeing civilians running for shelter and red lights coming on across the city. Getting a bad vibe from the apparent panic going on, everyone takes out their weapons. However, Blake's blade it still damaged from back in Argus, and keeps it in her pistol form.

"Sounds like the city defenses aren't doing so well," Oscar notes.

"What else is new?" Velvet notes dryly.

They look down the street to city a few Atlas robot soldiers firing their weapons in one direction, only for each one to get taken out by a pack of Sabre Grimm before those beasts start running down the street towards the group.

"Well, we didn't come this far to give up now! Let's go team!" Ruby yells.

Ruby aims her sniper-scythe at them, while the rest of the group charge ahead. Jaune readies his shield and Nora propels off of it like a springboard towards the Grimm. Velvet is at the front as she swings her arm blade to slice through one Sabre, followed by flipping around with her foot blades out to behead a second, and then stabbing her arm blade and firing off her gun into the skull of a third. Yang jumps over her, smashing her right fist into one Sabre and into the ground, followed by Ren who runs alongside her and swings his blades through another Grimm. Nora comes in from the air, smashing her hammer down on another that tries to attack him from the side. Jaune swings his sword to cut one Grimm in half and then blocks an attack from a second with his shield before stabbing it in the throat. Qrow brings out his scythe and twirls it around, slicing through two Sabres that jump at him, followed by cutting a third through the center. A fourth comes in from behind, but Velvet flies in and lands on it with her demon claw and crushes its skull. Qrow and Velvet nod to each other before continuing the fight. Two Grimm rush Velvet, but Ruby fires a few shots that nail them in the skulls, killing them. Weiss creates a few glyphs, allowing Yang to jump off of them while firing off her gauntlets at a few more Grimm. She lands and winks back at Weiss who blushes before getting back into the fight.

Oscar keeps to the read until one Sabre turns and stares back at him. It charges, and Oscar meets the charge while taking out his cane. The Sabre jumps at him, but Oscar slides under the jump while swinging his cane across its skull, and the Grimm's body lands behind him before evaporating into smoke. Wanting to really get in on the action, Ruby fires her sniper scythe behind her to propel her forward. She twirls in the air, her blade slicing through the Grimm in half and saving Oscar. The pair nod to each other before Ruby runs off to continue the fight. Velvet activates her demon claw and fires off a fire arte at one Sabre, incinerating it. Another attacks right after, but Yang comes in and punches it in the jaw, knocking its head up before she throws a hard cross at its stomach, sending it crashing into a nearby vehicle. Another Grimm attacks her rear, but Blake fires off a shot to kill it. The gang get ready as more approach them, but then suddenly green beams of light fly in and destroy all the remaining Grimm around them.

They look into the sky so see a figure flying in the air before landing on the street in front of them. Aside from some new clothes and longer hair, the figure is very familiar.

"Wait... is that..." Ruby mutters.

Now getting a clear view, the newcomer is none other than Penny with a new look.

"Penny?" Velvet mutters in slight awe.

"Ah, that's my daughter. Why don't you say hello to your old friends, my dear," Pietro says from behind the group.

"Wait, SHE'S youd daughter?" Yang asks in shock.

Penny looks over to see her old friends and gets a big smile on her face, "Sal...U...TATIONS!" Penny yells as she charges at Ruby and tackles her to the ground in a back-breaking hug.

"Whhhyyyyy..." Ruby groans in pain.

"Penny?" Velvet mutters.

"Oh, it is so good to see all of you again! I've missed you so much!" Penny cheers as she stands up while Velvet helps Ruby up.

"Penny, what are you doing here? And you look so different. I mean-," Ruby rambles.

"Well, after the Fall of Beacon, I thought it would be best to have Penny come home so she could get some upgrades and become stronger. Hench the changes in her appearance," Pietro explains.

"I'm a lot tougher than I was before. And now I'm the official protector of Mantle," Penny says.

"Well, aside from the craziness of it all... It's good to see you Penny," Velvet says.

"Wait, what do you mean, upgrades?' Yang asks.

Penny looks at Velvet and Ruby, "You didn't tell them? You kept your promise," she says.

"Tell us what?" Weiss asks.

Ruby and Velvet look to Penny who smiles and nods, "Well, the truth is... Penny is technically and android with an artificial aura," Velvet confesses.

"Wait, what?!" Yang yells.

"It's true. I built Penny with help from Ironwood, and gave her an artificial aura. This was supposed to be top secret, but she told me about how she told Ruby and Velvet. But I love and trust me daughter. She's not a tool to me, she's my precious little girl. If she trusts you with this knowledge, then I'm okay with it too," Pietro explains.

"Aw, thanks Dad," Penny hugs her father before turning to Ruby. "We have so much catching up to do. I cannot wait," she cheers, but then hears Grimm roaring in the distance. "It seems we will have to wait. We'll talk soon. Bye-bye!" Penny waves and shoots up into the air to go after the Grimm.

"Come with me. Penny can handle herself here, and I'm sure you've got more questions for me. Luckily, I have some answers for you," Pietro says as he walks away.

"Well, this has certainly been interesting," Jaune notes.

"So Penny is a robot?" Yang asks, confused.

"Come on, Pietro can explain back at his shop. Let's just be glad that things went better than I thought they would go," Qrow says.

As the group make their way back to Pietro's place, Velvet's head bolts up just as grappling cables wrap around her and everyone else in their group. Velvet looks up as she sees a group of six individuals landing around them, three males and three females, all wearing outfits of red, blue, and white. One man with short brown hair walks up in front of Velvet.

"Good job team," the man says.

"Hey, pal! I'm a licensed huntsman. Just helped save everyone!" Qrow argues.

"Confiscate their weapons and get them on the next transport," the man says as Atlas robot soldiers walk up and take their weapons while the man grabs the Relic from Ruby, though they didn't take Velvet's shoes with her foot blades.

"Hey, we were only protecting the people down here from the Grimm. Is it illegal to help those in need now?!" Velvet yells.

One of the females walks up in front of Velvet. She has fair skin and short blonde hair in a bob-cut. Her outfit is red-blue, and white like the others. Her outfit consists of a blue shirt with sleeves that reach her forearms, white gloves, and has on a red and blue sleeveless, zipped-up jacket with a tail that reaches the back of her knees. She has on blue and white pants and white knee-high shoes with red heels. She has light blue eyes and is carrying a pair of silver tonfas with small air Dust crystals around the short end and fire Dust crystals around the long end.

"Now, now, there's no need for that. You wouldn't want to do something you'll regret," the woman winks at her.

Just then, Pietro returns," What is the meaning of this? What are the Ace Ops even doing down here in Mantle?" he asks.

"Ace Ops?" Ruby asks.

"Dr., always a pleasure. We got a report about an unauthorized airship making an unauthorized landing followed by an unauthorized use of weapons by non-licensed huntsmen and huntresses. Don't worry, they'll be able to make their statement back in Atlas. Let's move out team!" the man calls out and the team disappear as the Atlas robots take custody of the gang.

The group are flung into an airship with Velvet and Qrow being the last two.

"Yep, this seemed much more like what I was expecting," Qrow laments before the door is closed on them.


And that's the chapter. Velvet and the gang finally make it to Atlas, but it's not going like how they hoped. And yes, I made an OC character as a sixth member for the Ace Ops team. You'll learn more about her throughout the volume. Will Velvet and her friends get out of this mess? Will they get back the Relic and see Ironwood? Until then, please Read and Review.

P.S. Keep sending ideas for Velvet's volume 7 outfit.