Without further ado, and whatnot...
Chapter 35
Time advanced far faster than Emerald had any real desire for it to.
A week had gone by without her noticing it, without her in a state of mind appropriate to face Penny or Ms. Goodwitch, and then another after that. Suddenly, there was a week and some change to the Vytal Festival's kickoff, and the entirety of Vale was shaking in anticipation.
Emerald herself was too, although of an entirely different origin.
That, of course, wasn't the only reason that Emerald was stressed. As she'd just admitted, she'd yet to actually talk with Penny, Ruby, or Ms. Goodwitch about… well, about any of what was bothering her, currently.
Perhaps it was the act of starting said conversations that was preventing her from making any progress. That scary first step.
She sighed as she rubbed at her eyes, and tried to pay some attention to the teacher at the back of the room, one of the second-year professors, who was currently talking about how their classes would work around the Vytal Festival.
Apparently they'd have the majority of the actual fight days off, but would be given some homework that would be due at the end of the event. Emerald heard the way that many of the students around her groaned, upset to have to do any work around what was supposed to be an international event.
Perhaps Emerald would've joined in with that complaining in a normal world. As it was, she knew something they didn't.
Namely, that said homework wasn't ever going to be collected.
It was a bitter thing, leaving an even more bitter aftertaste in her mouth as she stood from her place when the bell rang, and quickly exited out of the classroom.
And she saw Penny.
Because of course she did.
She had not been avoiding the girl, although if she had been asked, she might have postulated that Penny had been avoiding her. Still… she hadn't been about to complain about the fact that she'd been able to avoid having this conversation for so long.
She was always putting these things off. Always waiting too long.
…
With more bravery than really existed in her heart, she sucked in a breath, and forced her feet to carry her forwards.
She'd been putting this off too long, and soon…
Soon she wasn't going to have a chance for this conversation at all.
In a little more than a week… it would all…
…
Penny saw her coming. Penny always seemed to. She had some odd sixth sense to be able to detect anything around her, and her reaction time was staggeringly quick. Emerald supposed that could have had something to do with what Emerald had always assumed was her savant syndrome, but she didn't know enough about the condition to really draw any conclusions.
Emerald tried not to feel guilty about the way Penny smiled, so openly, so warmly, as she turned around. As if she'd been looking forward to this. Hoping for this.
Emerald had made her wait two whole weeks, and for what?
She rubbed at the back of her neck, trying to think up how she should start this, as the corridor around her flooded with students of all different ages.
Beacon had always seemed fairly empty before. What with it only containing some eight hundred students in a set of buildings that had seemingly been built to house easily three times that. But now… well, Emerald was starting to understand just why it might have had so much extra room.
Accounting for the Vytal Festival's numbers would be a rather important thing. An extra four or five hundred students, dignitaries, guests, and all sorts of others that would be staying in Beacon for a good two months was not at all an easy thing to suddenly find the room for.
…She was thinking rather aimless thoughts, Emerald couldn't help but realize. Distracting herself from the task at hand.
Even so, some of what she'd been thinking about was relevant. This wasn't exactly a conversation she wanted to be having in the middle of the hallways of Beacon.
"Penny… uhm…" She felt weak already. "Is there… somewhere the two of us could talk?"
Penny smiled, lacing her fingers together and holding her hands up in front of her chest.
"Actually, I have just the place. It was something I wanted to show you as well." Penny cocked her head to one side. "I believe this would be what some refer to as 'killing two birds with one stone', although I find that phrase oddly violent."
Emerald found herself chuckling, despite everything. "Yeah, it is a bit violent, isn't it?"
"Poor birds." Penny muttered matter-of-factly.
Emerald couldn't stop the snort that bubbled up within her, nor the embarrassed red that came to her cheeks in the next moment.
"Well, regardless, would you follow behind me, Emerald?"
Huh. She hadn't called her 'friend Emerald' like she normally did.
"Yeah. Will do. Where are we off to?"
Penny seemed to stumble somewhat, almost as if she was feeling nervous. Emerald found herself surprised to see such a thing on the girl's face.
"To my room." Penny stated, finally managing to wipe the anxious expression from her features. "I wish to be… truly honest with you."
And with those confusing words, Emerald followed behind Penny as the two of them made their way towards the visiting students dormitories.
/
Emerald had expected Penny to be in the building with the other transfer students, perhaps amongst her other teammate. She'd been filled in, of course, about Penny only having a singular teammate, someone who acted more as a life-coach for her.
She had not been expecting her room to, instead, be in the teacher's building, only a hallway down from Ms. Goodwitch's office.
When Emerald asked about that, Penny hesitated for a moment, before admitting, "My circumstances are slightly… unique. Due to this, General Ironwood thought it would be best to separate me from the student body at large. I was a bit sad to not be around the other students, but I did not disagree with his basic assessment."
Emerald supposed that was fair enough.
Penny walked over to the door, and it was only then that Emerald noticed that there was some odd form of lock upon the handle. It was nothing she recognized – far too mechanically complex for her to have any real grasp on, either.
And yet, Penny placed her finger… inside of it?
The door gave a single click, and then Penny pushed it open.
"Come in." She stated simply, before stepping into the space, and disappearing into the dark room beyond.
Emerald… saw no real reason not to.
…
Emerald hadn't really spent her every waking moment imaging what the room of Penny Polendina would look like, but she would admit to having had the thought before. She had imagined a sterile space, fit with only the amenities. She had also imagined the exact opposite, a place cluttered with things of similar types, the sorts of things that left Penny tremendously fascinated.
She had not expected anything even remotely like this.
The room resembled a high-tech laboratory that one might see in some horribly futuristic sci-fi show. There were panels everywhere, machines beeping that Emerald could not discern any purpose for, along with what seemed like a massive metal sarcophagus propped up in the center of the room.
Judging by the lack of any discernable furniture, Emerald was left with the impression that that was Penny's bed.
Which really only spawned further questions.
Especially with Penny still smiling at her like all of this was perfectly natural, albeit with some small doubt hanging about the corner of her eyes that Emerald realized was likely due to her own reaction.
"…What is all of this?" She felt the need to ask.
"This is the equipment that Atlas has provided me with to make sure that my stay in Beacon Academy is as safe and fruitful as can be!"
"Right…"
Emerald couldn't help but feel like if she'd been provided with all of this stuff that her stay at Beacon would've been a lot less safe and fruitful, but hey, maybe Penny had a thing for tech.
"I am aware that this is not how the average teenaged girl decorates her room. My teammate Ciel makes sure to inform me of this often, although I have rarely had reason to ever decorate, or try and disguise the room as I do not have those over who are not already made aware of my circumstances."
Emerald nodded, although, "And… what are those circumstances, exactly? I kind of get that you're a bit different from most people, but that's not a big deal."
Penny's eyes widened briefly. "You… know?"
Emerald chuckled. "Yeah, Penny. I don't mean to offend, but it wasn't exactly all that hard to figure out. You're probably the nicest girl I've ever met, but you're undoubtedly a bit weird."
Emerald had never once seen Penny blush, and now was no different, and yet… she couldn't help but think that if she'd been capable of it, she might've then and there.
"You think I am the nicest person you've ever met?"
"By far, Penny." Emerald tried for a laugh, but the sincerity in Penny's tone wouldn't allow her to weasel her way out of the sentiment of what she'd just said. "You're uhm… you're a really great person. And I'm… I'm really sorry. For how I acted the other day. I was upset, and I took those feelings out on you when it wasn't your–"
Penny closed the distance between the two of them a bit too fast for Emerald to be cognizant of.
"It was not entirely your fault, Emerald! I continued to ponder as to the nature of your troubles far past where you had made it clear to me that you did not wish to speak of them."
"No, I…" Emerald sighed, feeling again like an asshole. "No. I've long since understood that you aren't able to read social cues very easily, and yet I yelled at you anyway, that was my fault. I'm sorry for screaming at you."
"I forgive you. And I am sorry regardless for pushing your boundaries past their breaking points." Penny said, looking up at her with a soft expression. "Now we have both apologized for what we think we have done wrong, and thusly, we are once again on even footing."
"I forgive you too, Penny." Emerald said, mirroring Penny's look. "And… yeah. I guess we are."
"Mm. Now, there is something I want to show you. Or I suppose it would be best for me to say that there is something I want you to know."
Emerald was pretty sure she already knew what that was, but she smiled and bobbed her head up and down regardless.
Penny looked a bit nervous as she took a step back, and moved towards the metal… bed? The metal bed in the center of the room. She pressed a button on the front, and the entire contraption rotated so that it directly faced Emerald.
Penny then climbed into it, sat against the back, and was perfectly still.
Emerald was just about to ask what was going on when the machine pulled off both of her arms.
That part really kind of took the wind out of her sails.
Emerald was lucky she'd seen enough shit in her life not to scream.
Penny must've noticed her pale face, however, for she sat forward immediately, and seemed to try and make some sort of gesture with her arms, which was a rather moot endeavor given her then lack of them.
"Ah, it is okay, I am not harmed." Penny stated, even as she gave a little laugh. "As you may be able to tell, this machine is what I use to service my body when it requires maintenance. This station in particular can maintain it in small ways, but for larger repairs I often retreat to General Ironwood's carrier, so that I may be properly serviced."
Emerald felt like she was missing several key variables here. Number one on her list was how the hell had Penny's arms just come off!?
"Penny uhm… what's going on?"
"Hm?" The girl tilted her head to one side. "This machine services my body. It is currently tuning my core motor functions, as I noticed a small deviation in my index finger and thumb that I believe was caused by an earlier spar."
"No, not the…" She pointed rather uselessly. "Arms. Made of metal. What?"
Penny tilted her head to the other side. "You said that you knew my secret."
"I said that I knew there was something a bit odd about you, not…" Emerald shook her head. "I thought you had some form of savant syndrome, not that you were…" She flailed around helplessly with her hands. "What, a robot!?"
Penny blinked. She blinked again.
Once more, Emerald had the feeling that, had Penny been capable of blushing, she would have.
"Oh. So, you do not know my secret?"
"Well, I think I have a pretty good idea of it now, if that's what you're asking, but if you mean earlier, then no, I didn't!"
Penny nodded her head. "I understand that this must, in that case, come across as rather odd."
"You think!?" Emerald yelled a bit too loudly, grateful for Beacon's soundproofing. "I just watched my friend get her arms ripped off!"
"I am in no pain."
"I know that now! I didn't at the time!"
"I can see how that might have disturbed you."
"I–" Emerald had been half a second away from going on a rather long spiel, but decided against it. "No, I know you didn't mean to surprise me. You thought that I already knew, right? Based on what I said earlier."
Penny gave a hesitant nod.
"Then… I guess I… well… my bad?"
"It was not your bad, Emerald," Penny shook her head. "It was a simple misunderstanding. I am sorry for any disturbance I have caused you."
"No, it's fine." She shook her head. "So, uh… are you a… robot?"
"I am the world's first synthetic being capable of generating an aura." Penny said the words like she was reading off of a pamphlet, and actually, Emerald had a feeling she probably was. "I weigh 300 kilograms, have a combat capability equal to a fully-fledged huntsman, and am both fighting fit, and combat ready."
Emerald couldn't help herself. She snickered.
"Penny, you don't have to give me the sales pitch, you know."
Penny gave the clearest sign that she'd been embarrassed thus far, gazing away from her, and mumbling out, "My apologies. It is what my father has taught me to say to potential investors."
"Your father. Was he the one who… made you?"
"Indeed." Penny suddenly looked minorly affronted. "Beyond that, however, I am afraid I cannot reveal to you anything regarding my creation. That is a level of clearance I do not have a right to let you bypass."
Emerald laughed. "Don't worry about it. Honestly, I was only curious."
"I am glad you are not upset. I feel terrible that I am not able to break clearance on this matter, not even for my girlfriend."
Emerald's brain ground to a halt. If she'd been drinking anything, she'd have likely spat it out in a comedic manner.
"Uhm." She barely managed to get out. "What?"
"My girlfriend." Penny smiled, seeing absolutely nothing wrong with this. "You are someone who I care about. Someone whose company I value, and someone who I wish to spend time with. You are also someone who I have slept with." Emerald gagged on air. "According to General Ironwood, this means that you are my girlfriend. Ruby is not my girlfriend, as I have not slept with her."
Emerald took a deep, pained breath. "Penny? I think you may, uhm…"
"Yes, girlfriend Emerald?" Penny said the words so innocently, so free of any bias or expectation, that the denial that Emerald had been planning on spitting out was suddenly caught in her throat.
And again, despite knowing that she was going to pay for it later in some way, she didn't have the heart to correct her.
"Nothing." She said, her lips splitting into a pathetic smile. "Everything's… good."
Oh yes. She was going to regret this.
She already knew.
/
Glynda had known that Ozpin would be calling another meeting amongst his inner circle soon, especially after what the two of them had discussed within the bowels of Beacon's vault. It only made sense. A decision made in haste was dangerous, but they had all been going back and forth on this for months.
As of tomorrow morning, The Vytal Festival would be a week away. It was time they made a decision.
It was time to put a student in the line of fire.
Glynda felt sick, even as she stepped into Ozpin's office from out of the elevator, and took in the scene.
James and Ozpin were already here, discussing something she wasn't privy too, likely the use of the aura transfer machine itself, the specifics of which Glynda had never learned all that much about. She'd learned to operate it in the case that Ozpin were to be injured or… well, out of commission, but nothing more.
The window at the side of the room was open, and looking out of it, Glynda could see a bird on its way towards their tower. She made sure to stand back as Qrow flew in, and transformed before he hit the floor, letting out a quick breath as he gave a mock salute.
"I dare say I was on time for once."
"Surprisingly, you were." James said with a roll of his eyes. "Yet the way you say that like it's something to be proud of, and not the bare minimum expectation–"
"Let's not begin to argue so soon into this, gentleman." Glynda cut that potential argument off before it could begin. "I doubt we will manage to escape this evening without several. We might as well limit their number as best as possible."
No one saw fit to argue with that conclusion, which was perhaps the smallest positive that Glynda could think of. That they all agreed that an argument was likely coming was perhaps not the best thing.
"So." Qrow was the one to break the ice. "You're picking a student for this, Oz?"
"I am."
"You're still sure you don't want to get me to call up a few younger huntresses?" Qrow seemed to implore, oddly enough. "I have a few contacts. Powerful people–"
"We need to be able to keep them under our supervision."
"Then make them Professors at Beacon, Oz."
"And do you not think that would invite the wrong sort of attention onto them?" Ozpin asked, his voice sounding strained. "Do you not think Salem would realize precisely what was going on the moment a woman fitting the exact criteria for a Maiden candidate was suddenly invited to join Beacon."
Qrow scowled. "It's better than putting all of this on some kid."
"In that we are in agreement." James stepped forward. "Once again, I must ask you to consider Winter for this. She is highly trained, completely under my jurisdiction, and someone I trust with my life."
"Winter Schnee is too important a figure." Ozpin shook his head. "One of the reasons that Amber was able to escape Salem so long on her own was that she was a relative unknown."
"Yes, but that's because she got the powers randomly." Qrow explained, shaking his head. "When the last Fall Maiden croaked, she thought of no one."
"Indeed. That is…" Ozpin sighed. "Not exactly a feat we can look to recreate, when I am nearly certain the Maiden power would seek out its other half instead. Whatever the case, the half of the power that is still within her is eating away at her. My guess is that whoever was her assailant took a much larger portion than that which currently still resides within Amber. And it is costing her."
They all went quiet at the reminder that no matter what they did, Amber was, effectively, already dead.
"…Who is on the table in terms of candidates, then?" James eventually spoke up. "I assume you would have already picked out a few?"
"I did, initially, have my eyes on a good four or five, yes." Ozpin spoke, massaging his chin. "Two of which were Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao-Long."
Qrow stiffened, and everyone in the room felt the tension now lurking over all of them.
"…Why them?"
"Simply because both are first year students, and thusly going to be under our protection for four full years." Ozpin began. "But also, they come with their own unique strengths. Ruby Rose is a genius; I believe you can tell such a thing already. But she is also Summer's daughter. She possesses her gift as well."
"Helluva' gift." Qrow muttered.
"As for Ms. Xiao-Long, her semblance is powerful, allowing her to redirect damage taken during battle onto her opponent. I have seen a few more useful semblances in my time, but few that can match the raw combat potential of hers."
"And yet you haven't selected either of them?"
"I have not." Ozpin admitted. "For Ms. Rose, she is simply too young. I fear she would be far too willing to take up this mantle, not fully understanding what she was doing in accepting such a role. As for Ms. Xiao-Long, she has many positives, but a negative I have seen in her time at Beacon is her temper. I fear it would not be difficult for our enemies to make a plan based around such in order to attack her."
Qrow seemed relieved, although the man probably wouldn't say anything about it.
"There were a few others, of course. Ms. Adel came up early in the year, as I saw how powerful she was in certain aspects. Still, she and her team have been good, but not overwhelmingly so. And her individual skills leave her near the top of the class, but never quite cresting it. She might be a good person to give the powers to if we were looking to keep them hidden, and if no one would know that they'd been transferred, but…"
"But they will know." James spoke. "In fact, they likely understand what it is we're doing here. That attack on the CCT… well, let's just say that a competent hacker – and we know that whoever did this was, with how elusive their virus has been thus far – would not have to do too much more work to be able to break into some of our more classified files. To find the specs for our aura transfer machine, and make the connection."
"Mm." Ozpin hummed. "Then, finally, I believed to have found an answer."
They all stood a bit straighter.
"Ms. Nikos." Ozpin did not leave them to guess. "Her skills were well and beyond a first-year huntsman, leaning more towards a late-second year, or early third-year student. She would likely be unable to take on any of Salem's agents on her own, but her baseline power is such that I believe we could mold her into a potent weapon, one that could, hopefully, withstand any such assault from Salem on her own."
Glynda felt a bit sick hearing Ozpin talk about Pyrrha Nikos as if she were a weapon to wield, and not a bright young girl with social anxiety, but…
But that was there they were now, wasn't it? Being forced to say and think such things.
"You said you believed you found an answer." James spoke up, and Glynda finally keyed into what his words meant. "Do you mean to say that you have found a different answer, now?"
Ozpin took a moment to collect himself, placing both of his hands in front of his face, and interlacing his fingers.
"I do. There is another candidate. One whom I was initially unwilling to consider due to several factors, but one whom I have seen time and time again impress me. One who I believe would be more than capable of defending the power now, let alone in the future, when we could further mold her strength."
"And who's this mystical girl, exactly?" Qrow said, his eyes narrowing. "Cause I have a feeling I know who you're about to say, and I can't say I like it."
Perhaps Glynda was out of the loop, for she found herself looking back and forth between Ozpin and Qrow with confusion.
"Just who exactly are you two referring to?"
/
A buzzing from her scroll alerted her to the fact that someone was calling her.
This would not have been an oddity. She'd been expecting a call, after all. She was sat in her room, waiting for the report that the operation they had planned would soon begin. After all, tonight was the night that the final piece was put in place. She had even gone so far as to open a bottle of wine.
Ostensibly, it had been to celebrate.
It was actually to calm her fraying nerves.
And yet… the caller… she had not expected to see that name.
She answered the scroll on the third ring, and brought the device to her ear.
"What is it?"
"Ah… there's been a uhm… a sudden development."
Her eyes narrowed.
/
"Before, I had thought Ms. Nikos would be the obvious choice, but now… now I think there might just be a better option." Ozpin spoke. "Someone whose power has proven to be above Ms. Nikos', has proven to be perhaps the single strongest amongst the second-year students."
And Glynda put the pieces together, and her stomach fell as her eyes widened.
Because she knew who the man was suggesting.
"I will admit that at first, the security question did bother me," James cleared his throat, "But Ozpin investigated her thoroughly, and found no anomalies that she herself did not admit."
/
"It is Ozpin. He contacted me out of the blue no more than fifteen minutes ago."
Her brow creased in confusion.
"What for?"
"Well, it… it was about you."
Her heart briefly skipped a beat.
"And what did the two of you discuss, exactly…"
Her voice grew harder.
"Headmaster Lionheart?"
/
"I'll speak with Leonardo… let him know the importance of this."
James nodded his head. "I'll put in a word on your behalf, if need be."
"Thank you, that may very well be necessary. He has been oddly cagey of late."
Glynda couldn't help but interject.
"Wait, wait…" She shook her head. "Why… why her?"
Ozpin eyed her uncertainly, before he eventually spoke up.
"I think it an obvious choice."
"Mm." James seemed to agree. "Even if she is a transfer student, she has the experience, the skill, and the creativity to adapt to this new power. Not to mention her loyalty to Beacon."
"Loyalty to Beacon, or loyalty to a certain someone?" Qrow cocked an eyebrow, and Glynda felt herself go red as she looked away, feeling called out. "You think that if the two of them have a falling out, she's gonna' stay loyal?"
"Glynda believes she is to be trusted, does she not?"
Her breath quickened.
"I…"
/
"He has requested you be transferred to Beacon." Leonardo Lionheart's voice came in a rather tinny tone across the call. "Permanently."
Cinder's eyes narrowed.
That was… odd.
"Why? Did he give a reason?"
/
"Yes." Glynda spoke, biting down on the doubt in the back of her mind. "She can be trusted."
Was it a lie?
She was not entirely sure herself.
"Then that settles it." Ozpin nodded his head, smiling smally to himself. "I feel we are in agreement, then…"
"On nominating Cinder Fall to receive half of the Fall Maiden's might."
/
Cinder felt like she was a rather steady person. She was not prone to overreaction. Nothing fazed her, and if something somehow did, then she reacted to it with poise and grace.
The way she spat the wine she'd been drinking across her scroll seemed to say otherwise.
"Well…" She murmured quietly, even as her scroll hissed and sputtered as droplets ran down it, before, with a final spark, it died in her hands, effectively ending her call.
"That… changes things."
End Chapter 35
What's that Doctor Strange quote?
Oh, right.
"We're in the endgame now."
...In all seriousness, we really are entering the final arc. Or, well, we entered it a few chapters ago, but the real meat of it's really starting up in earnest now.
Alright, see you all next week!