Chp. 38: Volume 9 Night
It had been an hour since Teams RWBY, JNPR, GRMA, CFDT, OBSA, and JAAR arrived back into Beacon. They had just gone over the scripts for Volume 9.
Weiss was at first finding that a world from a fairy tale was real to be crazy, but then thought back to the other fairy tales relating to the war between Ozpin and Salem, and their arrival to Earth, and just ultimately chose to not question it anymore. When she read on how Jaune was the Rusted Knight and how he had 'matured,' she was constantly reminding herself that he was with Pyrrha and didn't want to cause tension between herself and the Invisible Girl because she knows that she wouldn't like it.
Blake and Yang were both blushing nonstop upon reading that they kissed in the Volume and became an official couple. The two looked at each other for a moment before looking away again. However Yang was shocked to find out that Raven Branwen went with Summer Rose to face Salem. She now wanted to ask her about what had happened on that mission they went on.
Jaune was conflicted about his role in the Ever After. He was stunned to find out that he was the Rusted Knight in the fairy tale, The Girl Who Fell Through the World. He would spend decades in the Ever After and would suffer so much. From getting poison by the story's main character, Alyx, to preventing the Paper Pleasers from ascending by saving them. He would be all alone for most of his time in the Ever After.
Neo was mostly interested in her evolved semblance that can now create clones of not only herself, but others as well. The clones can now physically attack others and are semi-autonomous and can mimic the speech and actions of the original. However that demeanor changes when the Curious Cat ends up possessing her near the end of the Volume after she convinces Ruby to ascend. And would then ascend into the Tree herself after coming to terms with Roman's death in the show. She was now questioning if she should ascend into the Tree or not.
Roman was worried for Neo's mental state in the Volume, even more so when she got possessed by the Curious Cat. He fears that she will not be what she used to be once she's ascended.
Pyrrha, Nora, and Ren were incredibly shocked to find that Jaune had gotten older in his time in the Ever After and his reveal to be the Rusted Knight. But they were also worried for their team leader who was spending decades in the Ever After by himself without nobody, and his mental state grew to slip over time in Volume 9. They all plan on talking to him after this. When Pyrrha saw a sketch art of an older Jaune, she started to drool and had some ideas wondering on her mind.
Professor Ozpin was stunned upon learning about the Brother God's origins, and that they were born from the Great Tree and inhabit the Ever After. They would create the Curious Cat, which would do their original job for them and binding up the broken pieces of the Ever After and send them to the Tree. Then they would create the Jabberwalker which would be brutal and effective and would finish what the Cat started. This caused the two brothers to disagreed on whether it disrupted the balance or not and began to wage war on each other, eventually causing the Ever After to create a door to a "greater beyond" for the Gods, so they can leave and experiment in creating new worlds as much as they like. Ozpin was now starting to think that he should not bring the gods back when humanity was united, and now seeing the gods as hypocritical menaces that don't learn from their own mistakes because they've made those mistakes before. He also wondered how Salem would react to this, but then believed that she wouldn't be that surprised.
Glynda was having similar thoughts about the Brother Gods like Ozpin. She believes that they should not ever come back to judge humanity because it would be a repeat of history. Upon seeing the sketch art of an older Jaune, she was trying to be rid of certain thoughts on him because he was a student and she was a teacher.
Keaton was now fully seeing the Brother Gods as a full on threat. He was now considering making plans on what to do about them with the UHL if they were to come to Earth, though he knows that beating them is easier said than done. He was also thinking about having everyone take manditory theorpy sessions.
Teams GRMA, CFDT, JAAR, and OBSA all had mixed reactions on the Ever After. They found the world of the Ever After to be beautiful, weird, and crazy. They grew worried for both Ruby and Jaune's mental states. They were also stunned to find out that Jaune had gotten older, spending decades in the Ever After and learned about his roll as the Rusted Knight. Watson easily got confused when most of the Afterans are non-binary, meaning they all pronounced themselves as 'they/them' and not as male of female, while Jacob, Jacket, Allen, Kendra, and Robert found it not only confusing, but also very stupid. They all found the Great Tree and its power of ascension to be both beautiful and in a way scary. They found it beautiful because you would become something new to fit a role you want, but also found it scary because you would become an entirely different being with no memories of your past role. However those fears were somewhat put at ease when the Cat mentions that 'the heart hardly ever forgets.' After finding out the Brother Gods origins, they were now even more convinced that the gods were nothing but a threat.
As for Ruby herself, she was conflicted about everything on Volume 9, but mostly on herself. Throughout most of the Volume, she was going through depression and and trama after what had happened at the end of Volume 8, and it would reach to a point to where she would attempt to commit suicide by ascension. After facing a memory of her mother telling her she was perfect just the way she was and completing her ascension as herself. As tears followed down her cheeks, Ruby felt the need to talk with her team about everything she had gone through in the show. Coincidentally, they all felt the need to talk to Ruby as well.
Everyone turned their heads to face Ruby. After a short pause, Weiss, Blake, and Yang All got up from their seats and walked over to their leader.
"Ruby?" Weiss spoke first.
"Are you... okay?" Yang asked.
"I... I don't know. This is... a lot to take in for me," Ruby answered.
"You're not well in this Volume and it showed. And we didn't even bother to see if you were alright," Blake said.
"Yeah, it fucking showed," Jacket said, causing Azumi to smack him in the back of the head. "Ow! Bitch, what the fuck?! You know that's true!"
"As we were saying, you were depressed and under a lot of pressure and we should have tried to at least check on you," Yang said as tears in her eyes started to well up.
"Ruby, if something's wrong please don't be afraid to talk to us," Blake said.
"We promise to work whatever bothers you. We're always avalible for you," Weiss said.
Ruby looked at her team for a moment and gave a smile to them. The four girls embraced each other into a group hug as everyone looked on.
"And we'll find a way to talk to my mo... Raven Branwen about our mom since she was involved with her last mission," Yang said.
"Jaune?" Pyrrha called out.
Jaune turns around and sees Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora approaching him.
"We want to know if you're alright," Ren said.
"Spending decades alone in the Ever After, and living with the tramas of my failures in the show. And I couldn't be a make-believe hero in a fairy tale," Jaune said. "And the worst part is I have to go into the Ever After at some point in order to be the Rusted Knight and have The Girl Who Fell Through the World come to existence."
"Jaune, I know you really don't want to go through with this, but I'm sure we'll figure this out," Pyrrha said.
"Yeah! You're our leader, Jaune! Besides, that bad kitty cat is in a desperate need to be skinned alive!" Nora said with a sadistic grin.
"We don't want to lose you, Jaune," Ren said.
Jaune smiled at his teammates.
"Thanks, guys," he said.
Jaune and Pyrrha embraced each other as Ren and Nora placed their hands on Jaune's back.
"By they way Jaune, I like your older look in the Ever After, especially the beard. It makes you look sexy," Pyrrha said, making Jaune blush.
Neo looks on, Roman walks up to her as she looks down at herself looking conflicted.
"So... what now?" he asked.
Neo looks up at Roman with a saddened look on her face. She places her hand on his cheek.
"Yeah... I know you don't want me to go... and you're afraid of what you would become next if I'm gone," Roman said.
Neo's eyes started to well up with tears.
"You know... these brats here as much as I don't want to say it... are beginning to grow on me... And I'm sure they're growing on you too," Roman said. "I'm sure no matter what happens we'll figure something out in the end."
After a short pause, Neo wrapped her arms around Roman into a hug as she silently cried. Roman rubs his hand onto his little partner's head.
"Maybe we should have some mandatory therapy sessions for all Huntsman and Huntresses in the UHL. Have them at least once a month," Keaton said.
"That may be a good idea," Glynda said.
"With all that out of the way, we can go on discussing what we know about the world of the Ever After... and the Brothers," Ozpin said.
"Yeah, uhhhhh... The gods are confirmed to be a threat to all mankind," Robert said.
"So in a way, they're nothing but children given too much power, which spoiled them to no end," Mercury said.
"Salem may be right about the gods. They were fallible. She just went at the problem the wrong way," Allen said.
"I'd doubt they would listen or not even give a flying fuck," Rebecca said.
"If you also think about it. This whole thing is technically the Tree's fault," Jacket said.
"What do you mean?" Watson asked.
"Instead of stepping up like a fucking parent and giving the gods a well deserving ass whooping for misbehaving, the Tree instead creates this doorway and practically kicks them out of the Ever After, and the dumbass Brother Gods would create Remnant. And they would then become Remnant's problem!" Jacket explained.
"Which would then eventually become Earth's problem too," Kendra added.
"So what do we do about them if they do come here?" Pyrrha asked.
"Well they can be ascended like everyone else, so maybe convince them to face their ascension and become something less... evil?" Kelly suggested.
"It's possible, but they wouldn't take demands from others," Ren said.
"I'll make a note of it," Keaton said. "I'll discuss this with the UHL council."
"Anyway, I've got one question to ask. Does anyone else find it stupid that most of the Afterans are non-binary?" Jacob asked.
"Yeah, why would Rooster Teeth do that? It's fucking stupid. Not to mention that it holds no relivance," Allen said.
"Oh, thank Christ almighty! I thought I was gonna be the only one to think that," Jacket said.
"And why do you guys have a problem with that? Weiss asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Because whenever someone pronounces someone else as 'they' or 'them,' I would immediately think that that person is talking about more than one person," Allen explained.
"Exactly!" Jacket said.
"They've got a point. What idiot would want to pronounce themselves as they/them?" Mercury asked.
"That's true," Emerald said.
"Not to mention the neo-pronouns, which to me is just making shit up and calling youself that made up shit. For example I saw a TikTok video of a girl dressed as a guy pronouncing herself as thee/thim/thers, and one of another girl pronouncing herself as e/em/xe/xem and just goes on and on about what she wants to be preferred to be and what not to be. They both makes it sound so confusing and make themselves look stupid!" Robert said.
"Really?" Oscar asked.
"Yeah, I remember seeing those videos too. And there are a few more I've found that are like them," Britney said.
"Honestly, it's like if I were to go and say, 'Hi I'm Jacob and I identify myself as an attack helicopter!' TikTok is like one of those freak circuses in the late 19th and early 20th centuries!" Jacob said.
"Okay, I see where you guys are getting at this," Ren said.
"I don't," Ruby said.
"It's kind of no wonder TikTok is banned in India. They probably didn't want to catch a bad case of the stupid from watching these crap videos," Robert said.
"But in all seriousness, the non-binary idea is probably an excuse for Rooster Teeth to be politically woke," Jacob said.
"Probably," Kelly said.
"If we do meet those Afterans, I'm pronouncing them as he or she. And to all of those who don't like it, can kiss my black ass," Jacket said.
"Go woke, go broke," Jesse said.
"If that's it, you all can go now," Ozpin said.
Everyone gets up from their seats and proceeds to walk out of the lecture hall. As soon as everyone is out, Yang grabs on to Blake's arm catching, stopping and catching her attention as everyone else leaves.
"Hey Blake, can we talk?" Yang asked.
"Is this about us... you know... together?" Blake asked.
"Yeah," Yang answered.
"After reading over the transcripts, I didn't know what to think at first. But the more I thought about us, the more I wanted to give it a shot," Blake asked.
"Yeah. Me too," Yang said, then paused for a moment before speaking once more. "Sooo... Do you want to... you know... go out some time? Just the two of us?"
"I'd love to," Blake answered as she smiled.
The two girls held each other's hands and walked down the hall.
"By the way, do you really think my ears are cute?" Blake asked.
"Yeah. They make you look cute," Yang answered.
Beijing, China
Great Hall of the People
Meanwhile at the Chinese capital of Beijing, hundreds of Chinese soldiers stood guard outside the Great Hall of the People. Driving up Tiananmen Square and up towards the state building was a black limousine and the soldiers aimed their guns at the oncoming vehicle. The limousine parks up next to a red carpet leading up to the Great Hall. The passenger door opens and stepping out was the immortal witch herself, Salem.
Following Salem out of the limo was Watts and Gillian. Watts was carrying a bag in his hand. The three looked around them, looking at the Chinese soldiers who were all pointing their guns at them. Watts and Gillian look at the soldiers with slight unease, while Salem looks completely unfazed. She walks up the red carpet as her two associates follow behind her.
"You sure this will work?" Gill asked.
"Due to China's history of trying to gain power and dominance, and add to the fact that we have more Gravity dust then we know what to do with, they'll be willing to do business with us," Watts explained.
"And once we have the necessary provisions and goods to create our new nations, we'll be secured," Salem added.
"I understand why you brought me, because I want my own kingdom to rule, but why not bring Adam with us since he and the White Fang want a new nation as well?" Gill asked.
"Because due to the attacks months ago, China has gained a negative view on the Faunus. Plus, Adam Taurus is too... unstable to be in a meeting like this. It would quickly go sour if he were with us," Watts answered.
"But can you even communicate with them?" Gill asked Salem.
"I've learned enough to understand and communicate with them," Salem answered.
As Salem, Watts, and Gill approached the stairs, they saw standing up at the top of the stairs were several men in suits. The man in the middle however was Salem's main focus. The man wore a pair of black dress shoes, black dress pants, and a matching coat with a white buttoned dress shirt and a dark red tie underneath. He has black, well combed hair with some silver streaks.
Salem, Watts, and Gill climbed up the steps and soon faced the man.
"问候塞勒姆，欢迎来到中华人民共和国。我是习近平，这个伟大民族的主席: Wènhòu sāi lēi mǔ, huānyíng lái dào zhōnghuá rénmín gònghéguó. Wǒ shì xíjìnpíng, zhège wěidà mínzú de zhǔxí. (Greetings Salem, and welcome to the People's Republic of China. I am Xi Jinping, the president of this great nation)," the man known as President Xi Jinping introduced.
"非常荣幸，总统先生: Fēicháng róngxìng, zǒngtǒng xiānshēng. (It is quite the pleasure, Mr. President)," Salem replied with a slight bow.
"跟着我们。我们有很多话要讨论: Gēnzhe wǒmen. Wǒmen yǒu hěnduō huà yào tǎolùn. (Follow us. We have much to discuss)," Xi said.
The Chinese communist president and the other men around him turned around and proceeded to head inside the Great Hall, while Salem, Watts, and Gillian followed them inside.