Neopolitan wasn't sure just what was going on in the hotel, but she knew that it wasn't anything good. From the second she had woken up, things had seemed different. The air was colder, and yet, somehow heavier throughout the entire building. Though winter was fast approaching, the temperature drop was too sudden and the air itself was more difficult to breathe. It felt like the humidity had gone up exponentially, but such a thing would be impossible during such cold weather. The dissonance was disturbing and alien, as was the fact that the eyes that occasionally dotted the walls of her room had disappeared entirely.

For several days, at least one grimm eye had been upon her at all times, tracking her movements throughout the hotel and watching her sleep. Neopolitan did her best to ignore them entirely and maintain her composure, but in truth, she wanted them gone. She thought that their disappearance would allow her to breathe a little easier once again. The sudden, unexplained absence was more foreboding than reassuring, and she knew that some big change was on its way. Neopolitan had spent the morning and early afternoon in her room, hiding away from her employers and keeping an ear out for anything strange. A heavy knock at the door let her know that her efforts to stay out of things had been entirely in vain.

"Neo," Hazel's gruff voice echoed through the wood. "We've been summoned. Don't keep her waiting."

No further explanation was needed, and after her encounter in the basement, Neopolitan wasn't about to tempt fate. She slipped off the bed and hurried to the door, taking her parasol with her. Hazel awaited on the other side, and for once, the man looked uneasy. She had thought that there was something odd to his voice but had assumed that it was simply being distorted by the door. His expression said otherwise.

"Come on. Tyrian and Mercury are already in the lobby. Whatever this is, it's time-sensitive, and she's not a patient woman."

Neopolitan nodded and jogged to Hazel's side as he turned and began to walk down the hall at a brisk pace. He didn't say a word for the rest of the journey down to the lobby, the sight of which was enough to give Neopolitan pause as she entered. Seemingly overnight, the entirety of the space had been coated with organic grimm tissue. The walls were quite literally crawling with black, sinuous muscle and beady yellow and orange eyes that moved about the space. Tyrian and Mercury stood before a floating orange orb surrounded by teeth and trailing dark red tendrils beneath it. The faunus was grinning from ear to ear, while Mercury kept his eyes away from the sphere. As Hazel and Neopolitan moved to stand opposite the others, Salem's face slowly appeared within the oculus.

"My grimm have sighted Ruby Rose and several of her friends on the road within a few hours' journey from here," Salem began. "She's carrying the lamp… and Raven Branwen is with her."

"…with the stolen powers of a Maiden…" Mercury said cautiously. "We won't be able to stand up to that with just the four of us…"

"Nor will you need to," Salem reassured with an uncharacteristic smirk. "I've been playing with some new ideas while making preparations for the siege of Atlas. The encirclement is complete, and Arthur Watts has done a wonderful job ensuring that James Ironwood has absolutely no idea what's coming. That little convenience has afforded me the time to experiment. I'll have a surprise waiting for Ruby and Raven when they arrive at your headquarters. All you need to do is buy me a little time, and then lure them in. Tyrian."

"Yes, oh goddess?" the faunus asked, his words more like a song than a question.

"Remain where you are and see that no harm comes to the chrysalis. The incubation process will take some time, though I'm not entirely sure how long. Hazel- lead the others to intercept Ruby. Distract them, stall them… but ultimately lead them to the resort. Keep their attention for as long as you can. Try to hold out until Tyrian gives you the signal."

"We'll get it done," Hazel said confidently. "They won't set foot in this hotel until you're ready."

"That would be ideal. Of course, if you do manage to get your hands on the lamp before they reach Tyrian… you know what to do. The answer will determine our next course of action, and that is far more important than this little trial run."

"Of course," Hazel replied with a nod. "Leave it to us."

Salem's visage slowly disappeared into the swirling fog of the floating grimm's eye. Without warning, the fog faded entirely, and the small beast dropped to the floor. After a few twitches, all life seemed to leave the creature and a ripple effect moved throughout the lobby. Every grimm eye within the wall receded into the black masses upon the walls, and the organic material seemed to freeze in place. A crackling noise from behind Neopolitan caused her to jump and turn around as she backed up into Hazel's side. Everyone turned to look at one particular spot upon the wall, where something new seemed to be growing.

It started as stream of black ooze spilling out of the wall in a gushing torrent. Within seconds, bubbles began to froth within the liquid and expand, creating a mass almost as large as Hazel. Plates of grey bone slowly emerged from the surface of the pulsing material, covering it in an armored shell as it continued to swell. In under a minute, the chrysalis had begun to pulsate with red light from beneath the plates as they formed, and frilled webbing formed to anchor the pod to the floor. With each pulsation, the structure grew just a bit larger, and the light became more intense.

"…what the hell is that thing…?" Mercury asked as he eyed the chrysalis with unease.

"Oh, it's quite simple," Tyrian answered as he flashed a smile at the boy. "Reinforcements."

"…and when Yang came up from the vault, she had the lamp with her. Raven and Cinder were just… gone," Ruby finished as she shook her head. She had been talking for what felt like hours, and her throat was getting sore. Her eyes were raw from crying, and she was filled with a feeling of total exhaustion. Recounting the events that had led her through the countryside of Anima and to Haven had been more taxing than Ruby expected, and she leaned her head back into her seat. "We've just been… so lost. I've been trying to keep everyone together and figure out what to do, but I don't have it in me anymore. Especially with Professor Ozpin acting so…"

"Untrustworthy?" Raven suggested. The older woman sat in the seat behind Taiyang and Ruby in the back of the truck, sharpening her katana as she kept her attention on the blade and away from the rearview mirror. "I told Yang and Weiss that he isn't what he seems. He spent our third and fourth years grooming Team STRQ to be his personal weapons against Salem. It sounds like he's doing the same thing to you."

"…I still think he's our best shot at solving this," Taiyang said warily as he kept his eyes on the road. "Whatever he knows that he isn't telling us, he must have a plan. There have been snags here and there, sure, but… he hasn't abandoned us. That has to count for something."

"That counts for him doing his job, and not much else," Raven muttered. "We may not know how, but he's tied to Salem and has been for centuries. They're old enemies. He doesn't deserve a medal for refusing to walk away from responsibility."

"Then what do you deserve?" Ruby asked as she looked up into the rearview mirror.

Raven didn't meet her eyes.

"Ruby…" Taiyang began.

"No, I deserve that," Raven interrupted. "You and your friends have every right to hate me. I've explained why I did what I did… and I'm not about to pretend that I did things the right way. That being said, look at the results- I have the powers of the Spring Maiden, and I'm here, now. I'm not running anymore."

Ruby let out a sigh and closed her eyes, pressing deeper into the headrest.

"…you sound so much like Blake… and I get it. I can't hold a grudge when you did what you to us did just to survive. I've been doing and saying things I normally wouldn't. It's so much pressure and stress… we were all ready to learn how to fight for and protect Remnant, but I don't think any of us thought we'd be fighting for our lives so soon."

"And you shouldn't have to," Taiyang offered. "But the fact that you are makes me so proud. You're walking the right path by choice, Ruby. Very few people do, anymore."

"…I don't know if I am," Ruby admitted. "I feel like I have to. Having my eyes and staying out of the conflict when it has escalated to this level would make me the worst huntress in history."

"You're not the only one out there with silver eyes," Raven replied. "It's rare, but you're not obligated to take to the front lines at your age just because of it. You're not the chosen one, and if you think you are… then you'd better wake up. All that's going to get you is killed."

Ruby opened her eyes and looked over to Taiyang. It took him a moment, but he eventually looked over with a dour expression.

"…Raven's right. You don't 'owe' Remnant anything."

"But I do owe Ozpin," Ruby explained. "He let me into Beacon early bec-"

"Because of your eyes," Raven interrupted. "It had nothing to do with Roman Torchwick. That event brought you to him, so you could become a weapon. It was convenience- not fate."

"How do you know about what happened with Torchwick?" Ruby asked.

"I have eyes all over Remnant," Raven answered as she finally slid her sword back into its sheath. "Being a Maiden without them would be suicide. You're no more obligated to jump into the fight than I am… and you may suffer the same problems. Salem wants us to oppose her, because taking either of our abilities would put her at a massive advantage."

"…taking them?" Ruby asked. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Ozpin hasn't told you?" Raven asked, her voice gaining a bit of smugness. "Grimm don't always just arise from pools, Ruby. People can be converted. Captured, tortured, twisted into grimm. I'm sure Salem would like nothing more than to have one with the powers of a Maiden or a corrupted version of your silver eyes. Being on the frontlines is a major risk for us, because if we fail… we might end up becoming some of her most powerful weapons."

"But we aren't going to let that happen," Taiyang reassured. "We'll keep you safe. This isn't the first time we've been up against grimm… including some varieties you've probably never even heard of."

Taiyang's statement fell on deaf ears as Ruby's head filled with nightmare scenarios about people as grimm. It was so easy to imagine her friends and professors standing on the opposite side of the battlefield and staring her down. The lingering thought that her mother had never been found also crossed her mind, and from what little she could remember of Summer, Ruby knew that seeing a converted version of the woman would destroy her entirely.

"…Ruby?" Taiyang asked.

"I'm fine," Ruby lied as she closed her eyes once again. "I just… I should probably get some rest before we get to the hotel. If grimm are already there, I need to be at the top of my game."

"They will be," Raven declared. "Do what you need to in order to be ready."

Ruby squeezed her eyes shut a bit more tightly, doing her best not to let herself cry again.

"…I will."

Author's Note:

Nice.

-RD