Lessons of the Multiverse
Chapter 3: Intermission One
Guess what. I have a new laptop. My father upgraded his old MacBook Pro and gave the older model to me. I now have a proper writing machine to sit on my lap. The large keyboard keys are awkward, but I'll get used to them.
Labdestoryer: Comment 1; Yes, I particularly like Kreia and her story. The Sith of old were completely different to what exists in the more modern era. Look up Darth Nihilus. Comment 2; Thank you.
HellcatAkane: I'm sorry, but I've never seen Jo-Jo's bizarre adventure.
Sanjiv121606: I intend to have them react to other RWBY universes, but not for a few more chapters. Keep your idea's coming.
MaybeLesserEvil: She's not the only oneeee.
Guest (Padieu): Thank you.
Guest (): Fuck your opinion, because it's wrong.
Guest (Insulted fan): Your name is ideal for the commentator before you, but thank you.
8 P.M. Day 1
Alcor Uzukaze walked down the hallway towards the combat simulators. According to the sensors in his space, Raven Branwen had been in her sleeping quarters for about five minutes before leaving it. He didn't know what she had been doing within said quarters, as he made it so that the sleeping quarters of the audience couldn't be spied on, even by him. But he suspected that Glynda had been poking at Raven, and the bandit responded in turn, so the bandit queen had left once she got fed up enough. She'd probably sneak back in after a few hours when her roommate had fallen asleep.
A door opened up, and out tumbled Raven, covered in cuts and scratches, and if Alcor's senses were correct, she also had a few broken bones. He peeked inside to see a broken, bloody figure on the ground, dressed in a heavily torn black robe with red clouds. He hummed and began to clap. Raven turned her head and gave a glare.
"Are you mocking me?"
Alcor's clapping stopped. "No. Just congratulating you for beating that bot at level 1."
Red eyes widened in shock. "Did you say level 1?"
Alcor nodded. "Of three."
Raven tensed up before she stood up with a wince. She turned around and tried to return to the room but was cut off by the door closing. "You're not going back in there will all your injuries."
"Open the door." The bandit demanded. 'I need to be stronger.'
"You're going to die on level two," Raven said nothing at Alcor's statement. "I designed the robots with three distinct levels. Level three is the same strength as the individual the bot is Emulating. Level two is three times weaker, and Level one is three times weaker than Level 2. If I were to equate level one of Shinobi Nora, it would be around Jounin level or that of a seasoned hunter." 'Of course, that's if Konan is considered Kage level and not just mere S-Rank.'
Faster than would be seen by the ordinary human eye, Raven's cyan blade found its place underneath Alcor's chin. He didn't flinch, merely raising an eyebrow. He knew she would use it, so he temporarily let her take it out of the training room. "You honestly think your little knife scares me? I've faced people far worse than you."
Raven smirked, wincing from the movements. "I have more than intimidation on my side. Now let me in."
"You're talking about your Spring Maiden powers, no?"
Raven froze, eyes wide in shock. "How did you..?"
Alcor gave a menacing grin. "I know many things, Raven Branwen, formally Xiao-Long. I know you're the current Spring Maiden after killing the previous maiden. You did so because the previous maiden was too weak to ward off Salem effectively. I also know that you use Vernal as a decoy to throw people off the scent, not because you care for yourself but because she volunteered for it. I also know that your ability to change into a bird came from Ozma himself." Alcor suddenly gripped the blade and shattered it to pieces.
"The magic of a maiden is strong, but Second General is far better at the whole magic thing. Your ability to turn into a bird is interesting, but it is nothing compared to his ability to turn into a dragon. And your blade work doesn't come close to Fifth General's skills." Alcor snapped his fingers as Omen disappeared into particles.
"Who, who are you talking about?" Raven asked.
"People you should pray never to meet; otherwise, they might be liable to kill you. Both of them have a strong dislike for people who willingly hurt family. Probably why they hate Sixth General so much, but let's get back to what I was talking about. Even with your maiden powers, fighting the combat droid on level 2 is beyond your current capabilities. The shinobi version of Nora is faster, stronger, and more experienced than you. Not only that, but that universe's Nora grew up in a warzone learning to survive; what is that compared to a bandit tribe that preys on the weak?" Alcor asked, concededly.
Raven said nothing.
"No rebuttal. How sad." Alcor's grin fell. "I suppose all you are is weak. Both in body and mind."
Raven growled as she leapt at Alcor in anger. But anger turned to shock as Raven's left arm was ripped right off at the shoulder faster than she could see. "GAHHHHHHHHH!" She screamed on the ground grasping the stump with her other hand. But as she tried to look back up, it momentarily went dark.
When she woke back up, she lay in a puddle of blood, arm reattached, with Alcor standing over her in that bored expression he almost always wore. Her face ignited in fury as he bent down and whispered in her ear. "It's that weakness that prevents you from going to Summer's family and telling them what happened to her."
Suddenly, all the anger Raven was feeling melted away. She started to hyperventilate. "How? How could you possibly, know?" 'Why am I suddenly scared?! I don't get scared!'
"As I've said, I know many things. I also know you pray that Summer is dead, not out of malice but out of hope. After all, there are some things far worse than death." Alcor put his boot on Raven's chest and pushed down. "Imagine it, all the possible things that Summer could be enduring. Would it be torture? Maybe starvation? Or perhaps human experimentation?" Raven's eyes lit up at that last one. She knew what he was talking about. She had seen many things, and at the top of the most disturbing was a malformed Grimm, killed by her tribe, that left behind a skeleton. A somewhat human skeleton.
An audible snap was heard from Raven as one of her ribs broke. She grunted in pain, refusing to give Alcor the satisfaction of another scream. "But you're too weak. You won't confront anything; no, you run away. Face it, you're a coward, Raven Branwen. No amount of training will change that."
"M-maybe, but I can still-" She quivered underneath Alcor's boot. 'What is wrong with me? I'm stronger than this.'
"But you can still what? Die in front of Yang? Maybe sacrifice yourself to stop Salem? Nothing you do will ever be enough." Alcor mocked. "Quite frankly, I'd be surprised if you did such things to begin with. You're not that kind of person."
"I can, I…" Tears formed in Raven's eyes. "My family will…"
"Family? Since when were they your family? You ran out the same day Yang was born." A second snap was heard. "You never bothered to keep in touch with your brother, not even a letter." A third snap.
"You didn't explain yourself to Taiyang, not even after you finally met again after so many years." Now a fourth. "You never even bothered to send your biological daughter anything, not even a small gift for any missed birthdays. And you never told them you were the last to see Summer Rose alive and healthy." Alcor removed his boot as Raven grunted in pain. "To call Yang, Qrow, Taiyang, and Ruby family is an insult. Unless I'm wrong and you view the bandits are your family, in which case, what a sad family it is."
"Why, why do you, you care?" She stuttered out.
Alcor breathed. "I'm one of five. Second oldest." Raven's eyes widened in surprise. "Technically, all four of my siblings and I are all the same person, but we're a split consciousness, capable of acting and thinking independently. The original me was split into five, and those five all have his core personality traits. I'm unsure if you noticed my trait, but I represent apathy. But there is one trait that we all share, loyalty to ourselves. Is it a shock that we see each other as family? As the second of us to gain conciseness, It's my job to protect my younger siblings. You can understand why I don't like people who abandon family."
Alcor grabbed Raven's face. "Don't worry; you'll be back in bed soon." And Raven once again blacked out. When she awoke, she was in bed, with the separation wall between her and Glynda active.
8:23 PM
Yang removed the game from the console. She had just started the game before the viewings, an hour through the gameplay, but the term Jedi left a bad taste in her mouth. Now she had to find another. She scrolled through the titles on the shelf, organized by genre. 'No fighting games; Ruby tends to hate those, which soured me to the whole genre. FPS games are all the same, with little story to be had. Not a fan of Sandbox or open world. Hmm, what else is there?'
She reviewed the options again, and a title seemed to poke out from the collection. It was under the Horror/Indie genre. 'Five Nights at Freddy's? Might as well give it a shot.' She pulled out the case and opened it. 'There's a note. Attention, this game is usually saved as digital-only but was made in disk form for ease of use. That means all later games of this series will be digital only. However, familiarity with the computer systems is not likely, so call for my name to learn how to use them.'
"Alcor." Yang hesitantly spoke out loud.
"You called for me?" Yang whipped around, almost dropping the game onto the floor. She looked at Alcor, who seemed to be apathetic to the fact that blood was dripping from his right hand. "Uh, whose blood is that?"
"Oh, Raven's." He raised his hand and made a fist, the blood suddenly vanishing.
"Oh. Okay." Yang shrugged nonchalantly. If it weren't for the fact that they were immortal, she might have been slightly more worried for the Bandit Queen. "I saw this note. I can navigate consoles just fine; they tend to be straightforward. It's only that I have no clue how to use your computer. The keyboard layout alone is beyond what I-"
"Say no more." He snapped his fingers, and Yang suddenly felt lightheaded.
"Whoa." The case slipped out of her hands and clattered to the floor.
"Yeah, give it a moment. I'm downloading the ability to navigate a PC into your brain, and to prevent brain damage; I must go slow." He picked up the case and held it in hand. He then walked over to the collection of four computers. Yang followed him, despite her slight dizziness. He pulled out a chair for her to sit on and pressed the power button.
"Now, all these computers are mirrored to each other. That means what is saved or done on one can be resumed without issue on another. However, that means you can't be logged into two or more at a time." Alcor explained as the computer started to hum. Company logos that Yang didn't recognize flashed on the display before a tilted four-part logo with spinning dots appeared. It looked like a tilted window.
"Now, by mirroring the computers with a central server, the login will be slower, as data has to be retrieved from a central server, but I consider it worth it. And this game disk?" He held up the Bioshock case, "Well, this game can be installed on the computer, and once it is, you no longer need the disk to run it. I recommend the remastered version, better graphics."
The computer loaded to a beach background as Yang's head finally started to clear. "Press CTRL-ALT-DEL on the keyboard simultaneously." Yang nodded as she awkwardly positioned her hands. The beach background faded into a blur as two bars came on the screen asking for the username and password.
"Normally, you sign in with a username and password, but you don't have that as a new user. Navigate the mouse to the register button next to the sign-in button, and click it." Yang did so, albeit a little less awkwardly than the keyboard.
"Type in your name, and it will generate an account for you. You'll have to sign in to change the password, but don't worry,' he said as he tapped a card taped to the desk, "the default password is located here."
Yang glanced at the taped card. "Uh, why is the password B30w0If?" She asked.
Alcor shrugged. "Eh, I didn't set up the software, so I assume the one who did put that as the default password."
"Okay, but why a Grimm?"
"I'm not allowed to say," Alcor explained.
Yang rolled her eyes and filled in a few details. She returned to the login screen and signed into her new account.
"It'll take about 1 minute for the computer to retrieve everything from the server. Please be patient." Alcor put the disk on the table and started to walk away.
"Wait! How do I install the game?" Yang asked.
"Press the disk drive button. The on the computer face, and put the disk in the tray that pops out. When you close the disk player, it'll automatically download the game to the computer." Alcor waved off as he walked outside the room.
He leaned against the wall next to the closed door and removed some soundproofing. It only took six minutes after he left for Yang to hit her first FNAF Jumpscare. "AHHHHHHHHHHH." There was a loud crunch sound within the room that followed shortly. If Alcor had to guess without looking inside, Yang smashed her arm through the monitor. That was fine. The monitor would automatically repair itself when she pulled her arm out, as undamaged as the day it was acquired.
Alcor allowed himself a small chuckle, despite not being his older brother, the fragment that represented amusement. Sue him, it was funny.
9:15 PM
Ruby sighed as she went through the combat motions she knew by heart. Practice makes permanent, after all, and she would not let her skill deteriorate. Thankfully, she was stationed in one of the training rooms without a bot. She had heard from Team JNPR how hopelessly outmatched they were.
"You doing all right, my little Grimm Reaper?" A familiar male voice called out from the room doorway.
Ruby groaned. "Dad! I told you to stop calling me that." She cried out to her smirking father. "I drank my milk, and I'm not a kid anymore. Stop acting like I'm five."
Taiyang chuckled. "Sorry, sorry. I suppose, in some small part of my head, you're still that little girl Summer, and I adored." He frowned. "Ruby, about your mother."
"I know." She said in a hush. "I have few memories of her, so few I can count them on one hand. And the worst part is I'm unsure if the memories are acuate. Human minds can't remember things like machines do."
Ruby breathed in. "But by viewing the multiverse, maybe I'll see aspects of Mom that are familiar and, hopefully, understand her as a person better."
"That's the spirit." Taiyang gave a small smile. And suddenly, a thought came to mind. "Ruby, how do you feel about potentially bunking with Penny occasionally? You know, if she ever needs to get out of dodge with her 'guardians?'"
Ruby froze, her scythe dipping down before she composed herself. "Did Penny tell you what she was?"
"Yeah."
"Then I have no issue. Penny isn't some tool that can be used willy-nilly. She's alive, just like the rest of us." Ruby clenched her scythe tight. "I won't let the people I care about be used like pawns."
"When did you become so introspective?" Taiyang rhetorically asked. But Ruby answered anyway.
"I've always been like that, Dad. It's just; it's easier on life if I acted like the child I wanted to be." Ruby said.
"I see…" He trailed off. "So why..?" Ruby cut him off.
"Because I thought that's what I was supposed to do as a normal fifteen-year-old girl, stay in my own little world, goof off, that kind of thing. Normal girl with normal knees is what I told Yang the day before initiation." Ruby bit out. "But these viewings, back to back, I've had childhood dreams crushed because of them. People die. And I'm almost certain the Alternate Uncle Qrow is going to die."
"You don't know that for a fact." Taiyang tried to reason.
"And you do? I'm not stupid enough to ignore the red flags." Ruby said, her hands starting to shake. "And not just Uncle Qrow. What about those Jedi? I thought they might have been True Heroes, at least briefly. Only to find out they're monsters."
"And that is one of the Lessons to be derived from the Star Wars Universe," Alcor said, suddenly popping up between them.
'What the?' Taiyang thought. 'I was staring right at Ruby. How did Alcor suddenly appear without me seeing him appear?'
"What lesson?" Ruby asked.
"Didn't I tell you already? I brought you all here to learn from other universes." Alcor explained. "The Lesson that the Star Wars universe shows you is that True Genuine Heroes don't exist. Sure, some people save lives, and sure, some of them also do so without recognition, and all of that is selfless and a good deed, but everyone has a darkness to them. To not have this Darkness is not to be human." Alcor then vanished.
"Attention, Attention. Ruby Rose has identified one of the Lessons to be derived from this multiverse viewing. Ask her if you wish to know the lesson. Of course, we will continue viewing as more lessons can be learned from the many worlds." The announcement speaker cut off.
Ruby looked at her father before collapsing her scythe. He stepped out of the way of the door so she could get through, and the moment she did, her weapon vanished from her hands. She hated being without her weapon, an extension of herself and her metaphorical baby.
"I think I'll head to bed, Dad. Night."
10:30 PM
Neptune and Sun were both sparring with each other. As they clashed, Sun made small talk.
"Whole different worlds out there. Makes you think." Sun said as he parried one of Neptune's strikes. "Maybe there's a world where I'm not the main character."
"You think you're the main character?" Neptune commented.
"Well, of course. Who else but the main character is as rugged and charismatic as I?"
Nepture rolled his eyes as he slashed downwards with his trident. "Somehow, I doubt it. If anything, it's more likely the Ruby girl is the main character."
"What, her? No. can't be." Sun waved off the comment.
"I mean, it makes sense. One of the universes we've seen is literally her name."
"Pshha. No way."
"Eh, believe what you will. Meanwhile, I'm going to see if I can't get Weiss to go on a date with me." Neptune said confidently.
"What if she wants to go swimming at the beach."
Nepture suddenly froze, and in that second, Sun knocked him to the ground. "Not cool, man, using a brother's fear like that."
"All's fair in love and war," Sun smirked.
"I don't think you're using that right."
"Whatever, man. You wanna hit the hay?"
Neptune shrugged. "Yeah, I'm tired."
Day 2: 12:02 AM
Salem had yet to step foot inside her room. Not that she needed to. Her version of immortality didn't require her to sleep, unlike Ozpin's. He had gone to rest a little over an hour ago. So Salem spent her time trying and failing to beat the Combat droid. Not that she was improving all that much. After millennia of immortality, she lacked the self-preservation instincts she once had. That meant that whenever she felt immediate death, she didn't automatically react as most others did. And as a result, she kept dying. A lot. Eventually, she just gave up and left the combat simulator altogether.
As she exited the room, she noted three people in the hallway. Cinder, Tyrian, and Alcor, the latter holding some kind of segmented sphere. Tyrian was only there to give constant praises to her, so she ignored him and turned to Cinder. "Are you here to try the combat simulator Cinder dear?"
Cinder nodded. "Yes, Lady Salem. As the original plan has been lost, it's best if I train myself enough to overcome the inevitable fight we will have."
Salem responded with her own nod. "Very well then. I will speak to you later."
Cinder blinked at the dismissiveness before staring closer at Salem. "My, lady. Do you seem noticeably less pale today?" She asked, confused.
Salem raised her brow. "What on Remnant are you talking about, Cinder?"
"I-nothing, milady," Cinder said, bowing her head. She quickly ducked into the combat simulation room that Salem had just left.
Salem turned to Alcor. "What are you looking at?"
"Nothing. Nothing at all." He said as he tossed the segmented ball into the air absentmindedly. "Just waiting for one of the combat simulators to empty out. Doing a bit of maintenance."
"Maintenance? Didn't we just arrive here?" Salem asked.
"What? You think I can just snap my fingers, and everything is done automatically?" Alcor sarcastically asked. "Some things have to be done by hand. Now if you'll excuse me-"
As if on cue, a door opened up, and Sienna Kahn's broken body was thrown out of one of the simulators. Alcor didn't wait for her to revive before ducking into the room and closing the door. A sign appeared on the door. 'Maintenance in Progress. Come Back tomorrow at 12:30 A.M.'
Sienna groaned as her body was repaired. She got up to glare at the door, only to find the sign posted. As she got up from the floor, she huffed in frustration and walked away.
Salem turned to the last person in the hallway. Tyrian. "Yes?" She asked sarcastically.
Her pet assassin immediately got the hint and scurried off. Salem shook her head in exasperation before walking off herself. She was going to get a snack.
12:08 AM
"Activate Maintenance Mode," Alcor spoke to the room. "Authorization code, Romeo-Echo-Voltic-Six-Five-Terra; Sub code, Apathy."
Suddenly, the grid-lined room filled out in black as green lines replaced the black ones. "Authorization code and Sub Code verified."
"Pull up a Kreia Training bot, era; Post-Jedi Purge." He said confidently.
A Kreia draped in brown robes appeared before him. "Set this training bot only to be accessible to Myself and Salem. And set Salem as the sole combat opponent."
"Acknowledged and Applied."
"Open up the central core of this replication robot." The robot stood straight before a compartment in its stomach appeared. Alcor reached in and ripped out the old box. He looked at it for a moment before crushing it in hand. He then held the segmented sphere in front of the opening.
The robot's wires detecting the sphere shot out of the compartment and latched onto it. The wires slithered into its segments before the globe flashed and was pulled in. The compartment then closed. "Alternative core accepted. Please Wait; systems rebooting." The robot spoke in Kreia's voice.
The robot slumped momentarily before raising its head to look at Alcor. "I don't believe we've had the chance to meet before," Kreia said as she gained consciousness.
"Yes, I believe introductions are in order. I am the Apathy aspect of AlcorUzukaze, an associate of Darth Alcor." Apathy explained. "To avoid confusion of both of us having the same name, you may call me Apathy."
"So Lord Alcor lent my Holocron to you?" She asked.
"Yes, although Darth Veritate was the one to deliver you. Darth Alcor and Darth Mizar are currently busy with their own projects."
Kreia grimaced. "Well, at least he didn't do anything."
"You don't care for Veritate, despite him being the student of your student?" Apathy asked.
"No. He's far too much like the Sith of old. Egotistical, sadistic, and too powerful to be reasoned with. I don't know why Lord Alcor even keeps him around. At least Mizar is considerably better, even if he's not exactly as capable of murder as the average Sith."
Apathy shrugged. "Like Mizar and Alcor, he's one of First General's - -, that and he's useful to the -."
"I suppose. So what was so pressing that you needed to borrow one of my three Holocrons?" Kreia asked.
"I'm currently having a group viewing of the multiverse."
"Really?" Kreia asked. "I had heard those happened sometimes, but not often. Which universe are you hosting?"
"RWBY. Spelled with a W," Apathy replied.
"I'm not familiar," Kreia said.
"Yeah, I prepared some viewing material for you to see, but what I want you to do is psychologically torment one person in particular. Her name is Salem, and one of her goals is to kill the brother gods of Light and Dark."
"That sounds…familiar," Kreia drawled out.
"Yes, that's why you're perfect to, excuse my language, fuck with her. Your current body is a replication droid in your image, and Salem has been fighting your replication a couple of dozen times now. How you mess with her is up to you." Apathy said.
"I'll need to know more about her to approach the task in question."
"That's why I have the material. Don't worry about her coming in to fight you for a bit; she gave up for the night." Apathy said. "Activate Localized Universe Playback for Kreia, or Darth Traya, Universe Target, RWBY PRIME, Seasons one through nine."
The room responded as a large image of the RWBY Logo appeared on one of the walls. "Enjoy watching." Apathy said as he turned towards the entrance. "Oh, exit maintenance mode, Subcode Alcor."
The room restored itself to its normal mode right as the door opened. "Get yourself up to date; I can't influence Salem to avoid the simulators forever." He said, stepping out of the room. "Later." The doors closed behind him.
Kreia hummed to herself. "Oh well, no point in wasting time. Hmm, perhaps I can make this Salem a student of mine." Kreia was still a Sith, so she would get something out of this exchange.
2:00 AM
Everybody was asleep except for Salem. But the immortal didn't matter. Alcor pulled out his phone and dialed a number. The ringer went twice before picking up. A voice identical to his own spoke on the other end. "What's up, Apathy?"
"Apologies for interrupting your Universe viewings with all those Izuku Midoriyas, but I'll need a meeting with every one of us, either tomorrow or the day after." Apathy said to his older brother, Amusement.
"Using too much energy?"
"Yep. I not only have to override the immortalities of two people, but I also have to override the inheritance portion of two powers that are passed on after death. It doesn't help that one of the immortals and one of the empowered individuals seem to be attracted to death in the combat simulator." Apathy said.
"Got it," Amusement replied. "I'll talk to Anger, as I'm the only one he listens to, despite being the second youngest. You talk to Sadness and Fear. Send a message when the meeting is happening."
7:32 AM
Despite her apparent hyperactivity, Ruby was not a morning person. So she was reasonably upset when Zwei hopped on her face, making her wake up from the lack of oxygen. But when she glanced at the clock on the nightstand between her and Yang, she got up. The viewing was in an hour and a half, so there wasn't any reason to return to bed.
Ruby stripped out of her sleeping clothes and slipped into a clean set of casual day wear. The fact that Alcor had her entire wardrobe, both from Beacon and home, unnerved her, but she made do. As she was changing, she made absolutely sure not to wake her sister, who was less of a morning person than her.
She silently grabbed a towel and headed to the baths. "Oh, just like those bathhouses I've heard about," Ruby commented as she stood before a locker room. A sign that said 'Males on the left, Females on the Right' hung above. Ruby entered on the right, only to find she wasn't the only one in the changing room.
Salem had her hair down and was naked, her pale skin almost blending with the white and grey walls and lockers. She heard somebody enter the changing room and turned to look at them. 'Oh, it's that silver-eyed child.' Salem thought to herself.
"D-do you have no shame? Cover yourself up!" Ruby exclaimed, her face red.
"Why? We're both women and in a changing room where nudity is expected." Salem pointed.
"I, uh, basic human decency?" Ruby asked, unsure of her answer.
Salem stared at her. 'Is this brat for real?' "You, a huntress in training, are perturbed by an old woman's naked body. I would laugh, but right now, I just want a long soak. And for the record, what part of this," Salem moved her hand up and down her body, "screams human to you?"
"Uh," Ruby paused, "The fact that so have emotions?"
Salem rolled her eyes. "Kid, I know a lot of people with emotions, and some of them aren't human. And the moment I became immortal, I ceased being human as well." Salem froze for a moment. 'Wait, why did I tell her that?'
"Aren't we all?" Ruby asked.
"No, I meant back on Remnant. I'm immortal. No matter what one does to me, I always come back as if nothing happened."
"Oh." Ruby was struck speechless, unknowing how to reply. Salem took the opportunity to get away from her, entering the bath on the opposite side Ruby came in from.
Ruby, snapping out of her shock, quickly stripped herself of her clothes, shoved them in an open locker, and closed it with a fingerprint. She rushed towards the baths to find Salem soaking in a rather sizeable warm pool. Ruby, wanting to converse more, dipped her hand to test the temperature. Warmer than she was used to, but tolerable.
She slowly lowered her naked body into the pool and breathed a sigh. She looked around. It seemed that the pools were separated by gender as well. If the three-quarters-tall wall was anything to accentuate that idea. Probably so both sides could communicate without peeking. She turned her attention back to Salem, who seemed deep in thought.
Ruby slowly approached Salem, "Uh, hi again. I don't think I did proper introductions." Salem opened her eyes to look at Ruby with a raised brow. "Uh, I'm Ruby Rose; I'm 15 and a Huntress in training at Beacon. My favorite things are Cookies, Strawberries, Crescent Rose, and my family. My least favorite things are brussel sprouts, being called short, and people disrespecting my weapon."
"Salem."
Ruby looked away. "So, uh, what exactly is your story?" She asked timidly.
Salem merely blinked. "I don't want to tell you."
"Oh, come on," Ruby pleaded, "I know you have a sob story to tell. Just tell it!"
"No."
"PLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPL-" Ruby was cut off.
"GO AWAY!"
"But we're going to be stuck here for a while, and I wanna get to know everybody."
Salem's eyes narrowed at that. Was this girl unaware of what Salem was as a whole to Remnant? But then that would mean she's being kept in the dark by "Ozpin."
"Hmm?" Ruby hummed in confusion.
"If you really want to know my story, ask him. He knows nearly as much of my history as I do. And ask for the real history, not the fake one he gives to his little toy soldiers." Salem muttered bitterly.
"But, I want to hear it from you. He'd be biased because he didn't live your life but his own."
'Huh,' Salem thought, 'She looks the same as that Summer girl, but her maturity is different. I don't think I can recall anybody actually asking for my side of the story.'
"Fine, but a brief overview. I was born a very long time ago, so long that I can't remember exactly how long I've been alive, to a rather cruel father. As his precious daughter, he kept me locked away from the world for my 'protection.'" She spat out the word like it was poison. "Eventually, my father fell, and I was freed by a man I would eventually come to love. Only for tragedy to strike. I lost him to one of the things I never expected, disease. Not in battle, not in an accident, not even by old age."
"Oh, I'm sorry for your loss," Ruby said awkwardly.
"I eventually got over it, but not soon enough. I, invoked forces I shouldn't have, in a vain attempt to bring the man I loved back from the dead. And all I got out of that stupidity was immortality. And in my grief, I tried to strike back at those forces with the full might of humanity behind me." Salem paused. "They were all wiped out, and I was left the sole survivor."
"You mean all the armies?" Ruby asked.
"No, I mean all of humanity. I was what remained of the human race." Ruby's jaw dropped in shock.
"But, how? If humanity was wiped out, how is everybody still here?"
Salem looked off to the side. "The forces eventually went back on their decision and brought back humanity, a shell of itself, in two distinct forms."
"Humans and Faunus," Ruby said in a whisper.
"Exactly. I was surprised when humanity returned, but I eventually overcame the shock. After all, it wasn't like I could interact with them directly, not with how I looked." Salem pointed out. "Look at what humans did to Faunus just for having a single animal trait."
"How, did you become like this?" Ruby asked, hesitating a bit.
Salem looked down at her hands. "It was during the period when humanity was gone. I had attempted to end myself in a myriad of ways, but none worked." She ignored the slight gasp from Ruby. "Eventually, I came to the idea that Grimm Pools, the concentration of pure destruction, might be able to end my life." She paused. "I was wrong. What you see before you is the end result."
"Oh. So what happened next?" Ruby asked.
"Next?" Salem asked back, "Next, I found myself meeting somebody I had lost a long time ago. The forces I talked about brought back the man I fell for, but not for me. For their own amusement. They wanted to see what he would do with a second chance. And they didn't have to wait long. When we saw each other again, we recognized the other immediately, despite the visible changes in our forms. And I fell in love again."
Ruby smiled as Salem continued to talk. "Eventually, our second go at love produced four children. It was, I, I was the happiest woman alive when I saw a complete family all looking back at me." Salem's head drooped in a slight depression, making Ruby frown. "And then, an argument broke out between the man and me. Both of us wanted to do radically different things, and looking back, I can see we were both wrong, but not at that moment. And because of our inability to stop and talk things out, our four daughters, not even ten years old, were caught in the crossfire and died."
Ruby reeled back as if struck. Her face had horror written all over it. And then she saw something. "You're crying." The silver-eyed warrior pointed out to the Grimm Queen.
"What?" Salem asked, looking genuinely confused. Ruby reached out and dragged her hand under Salem's cheek. "What are you doing?!" She asked, shocked by this little girl's audacity.
"Look, you're crying." When Ruby pulled her hand back, what was on her fingertip, was not bath water but a tear.
Salem looked at it. And then she felt it, tears coming down her face. "Huh, it had been so long. I didn't think I could still cry." She rubbed her own hand on her face, feeling the wetness. "I, I," Salem didn't know what to do, as she had never bothered to process her emotions from that night so long ago. That is probably why she didn't even realize when Ruby started to hug her.
Salem blinked, caught off guard once more. "What are you doing?"
"Giving you a hug," Ruby said in a quiet tone. "You need one."
"I-what?"
"Shh, let it all out," Ruby said to Salem.
That was the push needed as more tears burst from Salem's eyes. "Why, dammit, why?!" She screamed in anguish as she grasped onto Ruby as tight as she could without her magic. Ruby only slightly grunted as Salem squeezed.
"Oh, my smart and beautiful daughters. Why? Why did I do it? I, I just wanted the people I cared for. Why on earth did everything go the way it did?" Salem coughed.
'Earth?' Ruby thought to herself. 'Is that another name for Remnant?'
"Momma's sorry. Hic. Momma is so sorry. I'm so sorry. Hic." Salem hiccupped as she cried more. "If I could see you again, I'd apologize a million times over."
Ruby just resigned herself to the fate of being a squeeze toy for however long it took Salem to stop crying.
On the other side of the wall, Ozpin sat silently in the bath. He had heard every word and listened to Salem cry her bleeding heart out. She was lucky he was the only one over here; otherwise, more would hear her cries. It was heart-wrenching hearing the woman he still loved in pain.
He gave a wet huff, feeling tears of his own. Ruby, the 15-year-old girl, who hadn't even known about Salem for a full 24 hours, had gotten her to open up more than he ever could. The fifteen-year-old, who reminded him so much of one of his and Salem's daughters. The one who always saw the best in everybody. Was that why he was slightly hesitant to throw Ruby into a war? Because Ruby reminded him of his daughter, something Summer Rose didn't? They looked similar and had somewhat similar personalities, but the two had a few differences.
Salem admitted she was wrong first. Maybe not to him, but she admitted it first. Would that make him the stupider partner? Most likely. Did he care? Not so much. He just sat in the bath until Salem's cries fizzled out into quieter sobs. He then slowly pulled himself out of the bath so as not to catch the attention of Salem or Ruby. He dried himself off with one of the towels provided and went into the changing room to get back in his suit.
He checked to see if the coast was clear before walking away, heart heavy in emotion. He needed time to figure it all out before he confronted Salem again.
8:32 AM
Salem was internally panicking. She didn't know why she suddenly bled her heart out to somebody who, rightfully, should be her enemy. It was like her emotions were being amplified by something. Or someone. She glanced at Alcor, who was off doing something on his phone while everybody ate their breakfast.
She was almost certain he had something to do with her sudden breakdown and the revelation of her past, as stripped down as that was. He didn't react to her gaze at all.
"Once everybody is finished, I ask that you move to the Theater room. We have twenty minutes until nine." Alcor spoke out loud rather than on the speaker. He didn't glance up from his phone. The people who were done shuffled out of the room first, with Salem following. She wasn't craving anything, and with her original immortality, she didn't need to eat.
It was ten minutes till when everybody else showed up, all content with their meals. Alcor put away his phone. "Now, before we view the next world, let me share a few details. In this world, there is no Grimm. There are no four kingdoms. And there is no Dust. Instead, there are billions of people in hundreds of countries. And Science is the Kingmaker of this world, with people like Bartholomew (Barty) Ishigami at the helm of science.
"Me?" Oobleck responded. "That's a shock."
"Why? Because he's not into history?" Port asked.
"No, of course not. Science is a most respectable field and, in a lot of situations, leagues ahead of importance than history. I had once considered science as something to learn before settling on History. I have nothing but respect for this other version of me." Oobleck said. "I'm just surprised that I'm the focus. But Alcor, sir, why this world?"
"Ah, well, that's because Remnant has a flaw in its society. A glaring one that could soon turn fatal." Alcor said.
"And that flaw is..?" Ironwood asked. He didn't like where this was going.
"Let me answer that question with another. What is the one thing everyone, regardless of age, status, money, or power, needs in all of Remnant?"
People looked around, confused until a gloved hand raised high. "Yes, Ms. Polendina?"
"Is it Dust?" Penny asked, afraid her answer was wrong. Most of the others suddenly had this realization on their faces.
"You would be correct," Alcor said. "Dust is the one flaw of your society. With a few small exceptions in far-off places, Dust is the primary power source for EVERYTHING. Your transportation, heating, cooling, weapons, farm equipment, electricity, everything."
"And what's wrong with that?" Wiess asked.
Alcor gave a bloodthirsty grin. "Well, what happens when that Dust runs out?" He asked the group.
Everyone looked at each other in confusion, like Alcor had said something that did not make sense, except for a selective few who suddenly and very quickly paled. Ozpin, Arthur Watts, General Ironwood, and Winter Schnee knew what he was talking about.
"Run out?" Roman asked sarcastically. "Remnant produces Dust constantly."
"You're right." There was something in Alcor's tone that put people on edge. "Remnant, the planet as a whole produces about 6000 tons of dust in a single year."
Suddenly, Weiss paled as she began to hyperventilate. "Oh, Oum. Oh, Oum. No, no, nonononononono…" The others who were aware of Dust use also began to panic.
"Wiess?!" Ruby exclaimed in shock as she looked at her best friend. "What's wrong?"
Weiss nervously swallowed. "Ruby, 6000 tons is how much the Four Kingdoms and Menagerie use daily." Her voice came out as a whisper but carried across the room.
"Oh, that's neat," Ruby said, her brain and mouth unsynchronized. And then she thought for a bit and paled considerably. And she wasn't the only one. Everyone, villains included (Minus Salem and Tyrian,) froze in horror.
Some people collapsed onto the floor in shock. Some remained standing but swayed. Roman Torchwick's cigar fell from his gaping mouth as terror appeared on his face. "A year's production is used in a single day." Somebody's voice called out, not that anybody was aware enough to know who said it, not even the speaker.
Alcor's voice cut in. "At the rate Remnant is going, it has forty, maybe fifty years before all Dust reserves dry out."
"Is, this why you're showing us this world?" Oobleck asked, his voice shaken and uneasy.
Alcor let out a light laugh. "You catch on quick. Dust is finite, and when it runs out, everything will fall, which is why we're viewing this world. So you can discover alternative power sources than Dust because this world doesn't run on Dust and doesn't need it. Well, it did need something similar, but after a century of innovation, technologies shifted to new energy sources."
*BING*
The sudden sound caused people to look at the screen as a ten-second countdown began.
*BING*
Ironwood clenched his fists in fear. 'What will we see?'
*BING*
'This was a long time coming.' Ozpin thought to himself. He had known about the over usage of Dust but didn't know its production rate. He tried to curb usage, but with the public unaware, Dust efficient technology simply didn't exist.
*BING*
'Dammit. What do we do?' Arthur Watts asked himself. He had suspected something was up with Dust production but never could find proof in the Atlas military computers.
*BING*
'Father must have done this intentionally. He's old enough to likely not see the end result.' Weiss gripped her armrest. 'Damn you, Jacques, and your selfishness.'
*BING*
'If all the Dust disappears, what will help defeat the Grimm?' Blake and others thought.
*BING*
Ghira looked at Kali, who looked back. They both shared the same thought. 'What will happen to our generation's children?'
*BING*
'Dammit. Is this the beginning of the end?' Adam internally panicked. He didn't want Faunus to go extinct from lack of Dust.
*BING*
'I wonder, if all the dust runs out, would the world stop spinning?' Salem thought, before pausing, 'I'm never that lucky, so probably not.'
*BONG*
Boy, that was quite the chapter. I teared up at the Salem crying scene. And yes, I am mentally healthy enough to admit that. Anyways, to that one commenter who said Dr. Stone Sucks, who's laughing now?
Now, I am currently writing an Isekai Novel and am looking for a Beta Writer from each of my stories to give constructive criticism on it. Essentially, you'll be reading the Second draft of the book. Once I'm doing editing, that is, I'm halfway through. You can apply to be the lucky person who will be randomly selected from my Discord Server. The link is available in my Ao3 version of this story.