What Lies Within VI

"Like it? In here, with the darkness enhancing my Semblance I can imagine anything I want into reality. Meaning my ability is limitless because imagination itself is limitless." Neo sported a sick grin. "And right now, I plan to imagine the lot of you out of existence!"

Xxx

She remembered running…

Ever since waking up in this strange world, she could barely think of anything else besides running. She could barely remember if anything happened before all of that.

"Come back here!"

It was her again!

The red and black blur shot at her and she barely managed to dodge, not even bothering to watch as the blur cut through several trees. She took off running through the forest which seemed to stretch on forever.

What was with this crazy place?

It always felt like no matter how far she ran, she always was back in the exact same spot.

"You don't get to run away you monster!"

She was catching up!

She lost track of how long it had been like this.

Day in and day out, she was running.

Just running.

She remembered though that for a time that it had been she who had been doing the chasing, looking for the red and black spiral of death chasing after her.

The sound of her catching up made her jump, spin and leave behind a copy of herself to be bisected in half.

She really shivered as she watched her copy shatter from the cover of a nearby tree.

"Damn it!" The girl in red and black shouted, frantically looking around with bloodshot flaming eyes. "Where are you?!"

There wasn't a lot of time.

She needed to get away.

She took off running again, knowing that her hunter would find her again really soon.

She always found her shortly no matter how many times she had given her the slip.

It was always like this, and it always ended in her running…

How long could she keep this up?

Xxx

Trivia was trembling now, wanting to crawl away but Ruby held on to her, all of them facing down Neo…

Or was she even Neo anymore?

"I really don't get what's going on here." Yang admitted, holding up her fists. "I was pretty sure Neo was our enemy and then she turned into some heroic sidekick or something. Now we're seeing two of them wanting with one wanting to kill the other. Just how messed up this is girl?"

"Dissociative identity disorder." Penny spoke, keeping a sharp eye on Neo as Terra stood between her and the group.

"What's that?" Yang asked.

"It's mental condition where a someone experiences a trauma so great that a completely different personal arises from the physical and mental trauma they experience." Penny quickly explained. "Neopolitan was created out of both Trivia's trauma and wish for a friend when she was an abused child and combined her Semblance created a personality that she could physically interact with. You all saw it. This is her, corrupted even further while the girl here can be considered the true personality."

The four girls had to look at Trivia again.

This small, trembling and terrified little girl was the true self of the psychotic girl who had been an enemy to them since their first year?

The one who nearly killed Yang on the train, stole the Lamp of Knowledge from them and aided Cinder until she had been betrayed and knocked into the void with the rest of them.

This was her true self?

Looking back at Neopolitan herself, grinning madly with those golden eyes…

She looked even more maniacal than ever before, even more maniacal than Cinder.

"Well, aren't we going to fight?" Neo scoffed, blowing some hair away from her face. "Or are you going to try playing psychiatrist with me? Been there done that, Mommy and Daddy completely ignored the doctor's advice. Ain't that right, Trivy?"

Trivia just turned her head away, not wanting to look at Neo any longer.

"In fact, let's show you." Neo snapped her fingers.

There a blinding flash of pink light and suddenly they were not standing on the glass mural representing Neo's heart anymore. They stood in what looked like a mansion, almost similar to the Schnee mansion which Weiss thought it was for a second before realizing it was completely different.

"TRIVIA!"

They all jumped as a man appeared in front of Trivia, grabbing her by the neck and lifted her off the ground.

"YOU LITTLE WITCH!" The man shouted in her face. "WE GAVE YOU EVERYTHING AND YOU BETRAY US! YOU LEFT US TO DIE!"

Trivia looked absolutely terrified, closing her eyes and refusing to look the man in the face.

"WE SHOULD HAVE DUMPED YOU AT THAT SCHOOL AND MADE SURE YOU NEVER CAME BACK! ACTUALLY, WE SHOULD HAVE DUMPED YOU IN A LITTLE BOX AND SET YOU ADRIFT AT SEA!" The man roared with an enraged look.

He dropped Trivia on the ground as a woman wearing a white dress and white pearl necklace appeared, holding a glass of water in one hand and some pills in the other.

"Time for your medicine, dear." The woman said as she stepped forward.

Trivia tried crawling but the man grabbed her leg-

"LET HER GO!"

Unexpectedly, Yang jumped in and slugged the man in the face, knocking him back into the woman. "GAH!"

Trivia looked back with a surprised look on her face.

"You know, I've met some people who were some pretty crappy parents, but you two take the cake." Yang said, her hair blazing like and her eyes glowing red. "I can't believe you actually make me feel glad for my own crappy birth mother and actually made me feel pity for the same little twerp who has been driving us nuts. What the hell is your problem with her?"

Trivia glanced at Yang. "…Twerp?"

"Just roll with it." Yang quickly said before looking back at the man who was obviously Neo's father.

"She's a freak!" The man stood up, pointing at Trivia. "She was supposed to perfectly normal little girl, but she came out wrong! Normal means having you don't have two different eye colors. Normal means you can talk but for some reason that little witch never tried talking in her life! She is an embarrassment to us!"

The sheer hatred this man had for his own daughter, just because she had two different eye colors and was mute…

And Team RWBY thought that they had seen evil up close with Salem.

And yet it felt like this man and his wife had even less of a conscience than even her.

Yeesh, no wonder Neo turned out the way she did.

"Yeah, pretty sad when the only good thing in your life was a wanted criminal." Neo remarked, stepping forward, standing between the illusionary copies of her parents as their eyes started to turn yellow. "Then the idiot had to go and get himself killed and leaving us all alone. Well, good thing we're used to it, huh Trivy?"

Trivia stayed behind Yang as the rest along with Jaune, Oscar and Terra surrounded her.

"Wow, this is pathetic. Risking your lives for a mere mental projection of someone who doesn't exist. No wonder you all failed so much." Neo remarked, stepping forward with a disgusting smile. "Beacon, Atlas, the Relics…And now you're in here meddling in someone else's heart just because you want to play hero."

Ruby narrowed her eyes and was about to speak before Oscar stepped forward. "Oscar?"

"It's true. We've failed so many times that it almost feels like every decision we made was the wrong one." Oscar admitted. "We've failed and people have paid the price for it…But that's why we keep trying."

Neo scowled.

"We keep moving forward because we can't stop, not with everything on the line." Oscar then remembered what his…previous self told him. "We let our fear control us…But not anymore. I am done letting my fear control me, especially since how far we've come."

Oscar looked around, staring at every member of the group who smiled at him before his eyes landed on Trivia who looked surprised when he smiled at her.

He then looked back at Neo who was glaring now. "You're a manifestation of Trivia, created by her Semblance and her need for a friend…And that means you're not real."

Neo's eyes widened in shock as Oscar turned around and walked up to Trivia who was still on the ground, looking up at him with slightly fearful eyes. He smiled and knelt down, holding out a hand to her. She stared at the hand before looking up at Oscar who was smiling kindly at her.

"What are you doing?" Neo asked, taking a step forward but halted when everyone else quickly got between her and the pair. "What? You think offering a hand of friendship out and suddenly Trivy will forget everything? Forget how weak she is without me."

"Scared?" Yang asked with a taunting smile.

Trivia slowly reached out and touched Oscar's hand and a bright light appeared between them. Neo's eyes widened as the light grew even brighter, causing her and her parents to step back and shield their eyes.

"Wh-What?!"

Trivia felt…warm.

A warmth she had only felt a few times in her life, including when she befriended…

Aqua had a warm smile on her face as she offered a Keyblade…

Trivia gasped as she suddenly grew, reaching the same age as Neo but her hair remained completely brunette and fell down the back of her head. Suddenly, the mansion broke away, returning to the glass mural platform from before.

Only it was healing, the cracks slowly vanishing.

"What?!" Neo looked around, completely shell shocked as her parents disappeared. "What's going on?!"

"Looks like having a friend, even just one is enough to make things better." Oscar helped Trivia to her feet.

Trivia still looked…confused. "Why?"

The group glanced at her.

"Why go this far for me? Neo is right, I have been nothing but trouble for all of you since the day we met. How can you just forget all of that?" She asked.

Oscar placed a hand on her shoulder, making her look at him. "It's not about forgetting. It's not even about forgiveness. It's about doing what we have to do, to save people from the darkness…That's what Aqua did for you."

Trivia felt another hand on her shoulder, this time from Penny. "If we are unwilling to save one heart, even that of an enemy, then we don't deserve to think of ourselves as people who protects other. I think you understand that."

Trivia felt another light shining, this time from her chest.

"Oh, come on!" The rest of the group looked to Neo who had a dark aura surrounding her as she glared at them. "A few fancy hero words and suddenly she thinks it's getting better! She's still the same weak girl who relied on everyone else in her life to tell her what she should be! Who needed me to take over and do everything!"

"Maybe she doesn't need you anymore." Ruby cut in, surprising Neo as she placed a hand on Trivia's other shoulder. "You led her around and look where it got you. Focusing on just one thing, following people like Roman, Cinder and Salem. You ended up here, alone like us, only we had each other…You had no one until Aqua came around."

Neo growled as the darkness around her intensified.

"The way I see it, you're the girl who has been trying to kill us. She's the one who has been mourning in silence while you just lashed out at everyone around you." Ruby stated.

"Shut up! What would a brainless brat like you know anyway?!" Neo barked, the darkness growing even worse. "Acting like you're the hero who is going to come along and save everyone! I thought you were growing past that!"

Ruby held her ground as Yang, Blake and Weiss circled around her, Trivia and Oscar.

"Maybe she is…Doesn't mean she has to change and become someone completely different." Yang retorted.

"Nor any of us." Blake added.

"We may have made mistakes…But coming in here and stopping you wasn't one of them." Weiss finished.

The light in Trivia's heart grew even bright until it matched Neo's own darkness.

Oscar turned and glanced to her. "Call it."

Trivia looked surprised but slowly held out her hand…and in a flash of light, The Way to the Dawn appeared.

Neo gaped, seeing the Keyblade they thought they had lost was now in Trivia's hand. "But…But…It was gone. They made us lose it."

"No, it was never gone. It was just sleeping, waiting for its owner's heart to regain its strength." Terra cut in.

Trivia stared in awe at her Keyblade having returned to her, the same light from before vanishing and yet she felt warmer now than ever before.

Neo snarled, her parasol appearing and then being engulfed in darkness, becoming a dark wicked blade. "This isn't some stupid fairy tale!"

Everyone readied themselves, but Trivia surprised them by stepping forward. "No, this is between us."

They stared at her, surprised by what she was saying as she held her Keyblade in both hands.

Neo snarled at Trivia as she slowly approached. "Oh, so now you want to fight me? After everything I've done for you?"

"I am tired, Neo." Trivia was trembling now. "Tired of the hate, tired of the fighting, tired of all this. Do you remember why you were even born? Do you remember why you were with me?"

"It was so someone else could handle all of life's problems. You couldn't handle it. Not when Mama and Papa locked us up, not when they sent us away to become a 'proper' lady." Neo snapped. "Everything we did was because you didn't want to come out. Well, now we make sure you never have to come out again!"

Neo lunged at Trivia, the two blades clashing and creating a shockwave that shook the entire platform.

(Kingdom Hearts OST Squirming Evil)

(Information: Defeat Dark Neo and save Trivia's Heart)

Neo snarled and slashed at Trivia who bent over, allowing the dark sword to pass over her face, missing her nose by mere inches. Neo spun around in time for Trivia to kick at her, but Neo easily blocked the strike. Trivia was surprised by how easily she moved, almost like she was fighting just like Neo. She jumped back as Neo jumped back, launching a spinning kick at her head.

Trivia stepped back, missing the kick and then ducked under the second kick.

Trivia held up her Keyblade as Neo prepared to attack again. "Photon!"

There was a flash of light and Neo screamed, blinded by the light, covering her eyes and staggered back. Trivia went on the attack, slashing at Neo several times before Neo finally shattered. Trivia spun around and blocked a slash aimed at the back of her head from Neo.

"I know you're tricks!" Trivia said as they clashed. "You can't sneak up on me."

"Then maybe I need some new tricks." Neo grinned.

Several dark figures appeared around Trivia, punching and kicking at her before she could react.

POW!

POW!

KICK!

PUNCH!

"GAH!" Trivia staggered back, having been taken by complete surprise by the sudden appearance of Neo's new…allies.

The shadowy figures quickly took on more solid forms that some of Team RWBY recognized.

"Roman?" Ruby gasped, seeing Roman standing next to Neo.

Only he looked younger than the last time she had seen him. While wearing the same bowler hat that Neo and Trivia now wore, Roman wore his hair in a short ponytail under a hat. He also wore a green overcoat and black leather gloves.

"Those twins?" Yang looked surprised upon seeing the same twins she had beaten up at Junior's Club years ago.

The man and woman, Neo's Father and Mother were there along with a younger version of Neo but her hair was completely pink and the another was completely brunette.

Another was man who looked like an older version of Junior.

And the final was an extraordinarily tall woman, easily being six feet tall. She was a thin woman with fair skin and grey-blonde hair swept up in a beehive. She wore gold powder on her skin, dark eyeliner on her lavender eyes, and red lipstick. Neo described Beat as "smart, sexy, and a little dangerous," comparing her to a runway model.

Beatrix wore a dark blue jacket, white blouse, gold scarf, and matching knee-length dress with black tights and high-heeled boots, much like her students. She wore a silver pin over her heart, adorned with her triskelion emblem.

They all punched and kicked at Trivia before she could react, forcing her onto her knees.

"Hey, that's cheating!" Ruby called out, dashing in and delivering a kick at several of them before grabbing Trivia before rushing back over to the group on the other side of the platform.

Trivia sighed, rubbing her head as she sat up.

"You okay?" Ruby asked, solidifying herself next to the dazed girl.

Trivia's Aura shimmered but nodded. "Yeah, I'm good."

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised that Neo, or Dark Neo would call in reinforcements." Oscar commented warily as the dark group glared at them. "Who are they?"

"I recognize two of them. The Malachite Twins. They worked for Junior." Yang answered, glancing at Trivia. "How do you know them?"

"Went to school with them." Trivia said simply as she got up.

"Classmates?"

"More like class bullies." Trivia glared at the twins. "The old man with Junior is his dad, my honorary uncle. The previous kingpin of Vale before Roman and I took over after he died, and we exposed all of his secret dealings to the public. And the old lady was my principal at the same school I went to with the twins."

"So, what about the mini-yous?" Jaune asked, looking at the two girls who resembled Neo and Trivia the most.

"They're both me and Neo when we were younger. Young Neo is the pink haired one and when my mom shattered her, my Semblance turned half my hair pink like hers." Trivia then turned to the younger Trivia. "And that's me when I was around the same age my parents shipped me off to that school."

"So, we know how they got here. So, let's pick a partner." Terra simply said, readying himself.

Melanie and Militia shot forward first, the two of them lunging at Yang and Blake who readied themselves. Melanie made the first move, launching a spinning kick at Blake's head but she easily blocked with both hands and jumped back, somersaulting over Yang who charged at her with a punch. However, Melanie used a spinning kick to deflect Yang's punch and followed up with a kick to the chest that knocked her back. Militia shot forward, aiming a clawed strike at Yang's chest but Blake jumped in front of her, summoning Gambol Shroud to block Militia's strike.

The traded strikes while Melanie attacked Yang, likely to keep her from teaming up with Blake and double-teaming her sister.

"They are good." Blake admitted as she leapt up over Militia and delivered a double kick to the back of her head. "How do you know them?"

"Kicked their butts in a club at Vale." Yang answered simply.

"That's not surprising."

Yang smirked. "That I kicked butt?"

"That you were in a club." Blake clarified.

Yang shrugged and simply got back to the fight.

Meanwhile Junior and his father were fighting Weiss and Jaune, their weapons being rockets that could shift into clubs. Jaune had his shield and sword clashing against Junior while Hei Xiong contended with Weiss. Compared to his son, Hei Xiong fought smarter against Weiss but his style was clumsy against Wiess' sleek and elegant fighting style. However Hei Xiong was also stronger and his sheer brutality allowed him to gain the upper hand, managing to hit Weiss several times, sending her back.

As Weiss got up, Hei Xiong switched his club to its rocket launcher mode and fired several rockets at Weiss who created several glyphs, hopping on them and being propelled out of the way of each rocket. She then summoned a Boarbatusk that charged at Hei Xiong, slamming into him before he could get out of the way. In the meantime, Jaune was about to outmaneuver Junior, deciding it was futile to meet him in a contest of strength, slamming his shield into Junior's face, knocking him back.

Both Hei Xiongs staggered back, both of them colliding with each other and falling to the ground. Jaune and Weiss shared a smile, feeling for a second that things had…gone back to before.

Meanwhile Ruby and Oscar were facing down Young Neo and Young Trivia who shared the same fighting styles as their present selves.

However, Oscar had a surprise.

As Young Neo charged and jumped, aiming an air-kick at Ruby's head Oscar jumped between them and held out his hand and in a flash of light appeared the Keyblade known as Gungnir.

Ruby gaped, holding the mental projection of Crescent Rose tight to her chest as Oscar repelled Young Neo with a green colored energy barrier. "You have a Keyblade?!"

"Oh yeah." Oscar rubbed the back of his head. "Guess I forgot to mention a few things…Even though I kind of didn't know you could see and hear everything that Penny did."

Young Neo and Young Trivia moved to attack again but Oscar held out his Keyblade, firing several green energy beams that blasted them both back. Despite being enhanced by darkness, Oscar was able to easily repel them, and he even shot forward, leaving afterimages in his wake as he struck the two from all sides, hitting them before either could react.

"Okay, you have to see about getting me one of those." Ruby quickly said. "Too many people beside me are getting one."

In the meantime, Terra easily bested the headmistress of Neo's old school. She was skilled but not skilled enough to fight him, even if she was enhanced by the power of darkness. With a single slash, she disappeared into a dozen dark glass shards. He turned to Dark Neo who was simply watching as her summons were defeated.

As they turned to her, she smiled. "Well, how about this?"

With a snap of her fingers, a new figure appeared in front of her that was then engulfed by darkness and Terra froze when he saw who it was. "No…"

It was Aqua, an image of her given the power of darkness.

Her hair was now bleached blue, her eyes had turned yellow, and her clothes had darkened and become tattered, with scaly texture appearance. Her arms and legs had also begun to darken, and her hands were now black with red fingertips.

A dark version of her Keyblade appeared in her hands and she glared at them as Dark Neo stood next to her with a smile. "Let's see you handle this."