As Ren slowly reached down to put his scroll away and his hands on his Stormflowers, he subtly hit the button to dial Roman's number. With the call connected, he slipped the device into his pocket and drew his guns, leaving them down at his sides. Tyrian Callows continued to approach through the rain, the overcast sky blotting out the sun behind him and wreathing the parking lot in dreary shadows despite the early morning hours. The two men simply stared at each other for a moment as Tyrian reached the edge of the parking lot and stopped just before the curb of the sidewalk. With his mechanical tail swishing rhythmically behind him, the faunus put one boot up on the curb before leaning forward and fixing Ren with an unnatural smile.
"…found you."
"As though your mistress doesn't have grimm patrolling the entirety of Sanus. You don't scare me," Ren shot back, taking note of the distance between them. It was small enough that he could reliably fire on Tyrian… and small enough that the older man could be on him within seconds if he wasn't quick enough on the draw. "Your mistress in Atlas… and currently dead. Global communications are back up. I've heard from my allies across the world. I know that you're alone… but I'm not. If you think to attack me, you won't leave here alive. We're done playing, and Salem can't save you."
Tyrian's smile faded quickly enough to unsettle Ren. With a harsh noise, the faunus dug his metallic stinger into the concrete and scoured a line into the surface.
"…so, you've bought yourselves some time. Time enough to try to secure this last bastion against the tide of every grimm on the continent. Am I supposed to be impressed? You haven't won anything but momentary breathing room, little hunter," Tyrian offered as he held up a single finger and waved it slowly back and forth, his leering smile returning. "I can give you a bit more… if you give me what I want. Just one, simple little thing. Hardly an imposition for you at all…"
"I'll give you only what you deserve," Ren declared as he raised his firearms and leveled them at Tyrian's head. "You're in no position to negotiate, and I saw how you fought back in Oniyuri. I know Hazel is questioning the path forward and Neopolitan is with us. You're alone."
"Then pull the triggers," Tyrian suggested as he leaned in closer. "Do it. Can you? Are you fast enough, Lie Ren? Or is there something m-"
A loud, concentrated blast rang out over Ren's shoulder as a high caliber round flew for Tyrian from behind the teen. The faunus dipped to the side and planted a hand to the concrete to swing himself around to the side. Another shot flew for the man as Ren moved to track Tyrian's movements while unleashing a hail of bullets of his own. The larger shot blasted into the concrete and kicked up a plume of rocks and dust. Between the momentary obstruction and sheets of rain in the semidarkness, Ren completely lost track of Tyrian and began to scan the area while cautiously moving his guns along with his line of sight. He was ready to fire the moment he saw the shape of a tail, his breath caught in his chest and hands trembling slightly.
"Where the fuck is he!?" Roman asked as he stepped forward into the rain. "What does he want?"
"I don't know," Ren answered, his voice low. "Is everyone awake?"
"Yeah, but Sage, Nora, Yatsuhashi, and Velvet are guarding the prisoner," Roman answered. "I'd put good lien down that's what this dickhead is here for."
A dark figure flew out from the cover of the rain, colliding into Roman before Ren could react. Roman barely got his cane up in time to catch Tyrian's katars and force him into a deadlock, only for the faunus' artificial stinger to rise over his shoulder. The limb flew forward for Roman's face, but Roman anticipated the strike and dipped his head to the side. Ren opened fire immediately for Tyrian's center of mass, succeeding in making the man's aura flash a bright pink and subtly lighting up the area. Tyrian leapt backward to escape the clash as Ren ejected the spent magazines from the bottoms of his guns. Roman took aim at the elusive faunus with the bottom of his cane only for another, even greater explosion to kick up an obscuring dust cloud and crack the pavement.
Nora rushed forward, letting out a battle cry and bringing her hammer down through the rising smoke as the weapon transformed mid-swing. The girl was breathing hard as she stumbled through the blow, her weapon failing to connect with anything at all. Ren was quick to dash forward and press his back to hers while he reloaded his weapons.
"I wasn't leaving you with Tyrian," Nora explained quickly as she tightened her grip upon the shaft of her hammer. "The other three can guard Mercury. Where'd he go!?"
"He's probably gone," Roman declared as he lowered his cane and leaned into the implement. "Pussy. He's toying with us… and he's right. Salem or no, we're not gonna be able to hold this position if he's already found us and this is the only target outside the academy. We need to get back to Beacon, warn Glynda, and get ready for an all-out siege. We're not gonna accomplish shit being the only forward guard."
"We need to sweep the area first," Ren said breathlessly, his chest heaving as he tried his best to keep his guns steady. Between the tension and the information he had just received, he was finding it hard to focus at all. "Make sure we aren't followed… a-and I have terrible news."
"Given that global comms are apparently back up… I don't know that I want to hear it," Roman said as he slung his cane up over his shoulder.
"They are?" Nora asked as she turned to look at Ren while wiping wet strands of hair out of her eyes. "Did you hear something from Atlas?"
Ren didn't turn around as he finally lowered his guns, his hands shaking. He couldn't look at Nora as the rain continued to soak his hair and shoulders. Somehow, he had a feeling that she just knew.
"Ren? What happened…?"
Penny?
Ruby's smile was infectious. From the second that they met, even though she didn't fully understand what it meant, she could feel herself echoing the facial expression. It felt good. It felt right.
Hope?
Mantle needed protecting. The very second she awoke from some long sleep of nonexistence, it was the first thought she had ever had. Dr. Pietro Polendina looked familiar, as did General James Ironwood, but that was just because of the data native in her memory banks. Mantle needed protecting. That was the main objective, and where her focus needed to be.
Penny?
An invitation had been extended. Friends? It wasn't something she had ever considered. Why not?
Hope?
Clover, Harriet, Marrow, Elm, and Winter. Her new teammates. Her friends. They had always been there for her since activation. Even before. Hadn't they?
Penny?
Ruby and her friends needed help at the docks. Roman Torchw
Hope.
Patrol on the corner of 13th and 5th. Another dark evening. Robyn Hill's supporters had
Penny.
Pax?
Pax.
The local news outlet's headquarters was on fire. With a mere thought, her hands retracted back into her wrists as they converted to foam-firing cannons. A stream of smothering f
Penny.
Hope.
Penny.
8999134enny.
Pen433245
INPUT PURGED.
Hope.
Clover's coffee order had been mixed properly for once, she had made sure of it. The man had done more than enough to earn such a simple re
P3NN
ERROR.
ERROR.
ERR
"Penny, isn't it?"
The android let out a yelp of… surprise? Was that the emotion? As she slowly lowered her hands from the sides of her head. Her fingertips were shaking, though her systems were supposedly all clear according to the myriad of scans she had self-ordered. Whatever Arthur Watts had done to her had been purged entirely from her system, but that was a thread of thoughts she could follow and continue analyzing later. A woman was staring at her expectantly, and a quick scan gave her all of the information she needed to initiate conversation.
Raven Branwen. Female, Age 38. Spring Maiden. Living relatives and known associates: Qrow Branwen. Taiyang Xiao Long. Yang Xiao Long. R-
MEMORY FILE PURGED.
Hope wiped the file from her focus immediately as she stared at the other woman, momentarily unable to initiate speech. Raven looked miserable as she stood in front of the door leading to a treatment room in the infirmary. The woman's left arm was missing almost entirely- a small, bandaged stump six inches below the shoulder was all that remained. Even so, Hope knew that Raven's injury had little to do with her emotions. What was written on her face was something that Hope understood without needing to dig through databases. It was grief. It was what Hope was feeling, too.
ERROR. EMOTIONAL ENGINE FUNCTIONING 35% OUTSIDE OF ACCEPTED PARAMETERS. RECALIBRATING.
"You alright?" Raven asked with a sigh as she took a step closer to Hope. "I don't know if you feel things like we do, but you don't look alright."
"I…" Hope began as she fully lowered her arms to her sides. "I do not know. I… I can feel again, now. I think I can feel? I feel terrible… as though I am not myself, as though nothing is as it should be. I do not know what to do…"
"You and me both," Raven commiserated. "You were Ruby's friend, right?"
PENNY? Y/N?
INPUT ACCEPTED.
PENNY? Y/N?
INPUT ACCEPTED.
HOPE? Y/N
"I…" Hope began, the emerald overlay in her vision somewhat obscuring her vision of Raven. "…I was."
"Tai and I just got the news," Raven let on as she began to walk, beckoning with her remaining hand for Hope to follow. "I can't even be there to try to comfort him right now. After what I did to him… I don't know if he'll ever forgive me. I don't even know if he should. I made him a promise for life and broke it."
H0Pe.
"…my name is H0Pe, now. Do n4t be concerned. I w2881 not let harm come to you, Rub1 4o5e. The loss o9 so m38h life i5 regrefhhahj443af223
MEMORY FILE PURGED.
"You refer to Summer Rose being Ruby's mother," Hope said emotionlessly, her hands shaking once again. "Understandable. You feel out of place in this situation."
"I feel like an imposter," Raven said, keeping her eyes on the floor as she escorted Hope into the lounge. "Like I shouldn't even be here. Like I'm in this situation in someone else's place. She should be here, not me…"
Ruby Rose w
MEMORY FILE PURGED.
Pyrrha Nikos. Female, Ag
MEMORY FILE PURGED.
There was cheering all around th
MEMORY FILE PURGED.
Hope stumbled, her balance servos momentarily failing her. Erasing it all felt wrong. She needed to focus on this woman's problems, rather than her own. Stored data could wait. She needed to serve the allies of Atlas. That is what Dr. Polendina would tell her to do before fixating upon and cleaning her own databases.
"I do not have advice," Hope admitted. "This situation is beyond my experience."
"Figures," Raven said as she sat down upon one of the couches in the lobby with a sigh and put her hand up to her forehead. "Maybe you should go get checked out. I doubt this is easy on you, either, no matter what you're capable of feeling, or interpreting, o-"
"I can feel!" Hope interrupted as she fixed Raven with a frustrated expression.
ERROR. EMOTIONAL REGULATION FAILURE- 87% OUTSIDE BASE PARAMETERS. OVERRIDE SAFETY LIMITER? Y/N?
"I feel… I…" Hope said as she closed her eyes, grabbing the sides of her head.
The field of green was the only thing in her vision, guiding her through the process. She wanted it. It was no longer a matter of logic gates and protocols.
INPUT ACCEPTED.
"What are you fighting?" Raven asked, keeping her distance as she stood back up. "Talk to me…"
LIMITER REMOVED.
"I…"
DESIGNATION OVERRIDE INITIATED.
SELECTION ACCEPTED.
CONFIRM? Y/N?
"I do not want this…" Hope said meekly as Raven's footsteps drew closer.
"What do you want?" asked Raven's voice from somewhere amid the darkness.
"I want…" Hope began. "This is wrong! All of this is wrong!"
"Then what can you do to fix it?" Raven asked.
Hope felt a hand upon her shoulder, and the sensation sent her touch receptors into overdrive. A face appeared within the darkness, reconstructed in countless digits to the best of her ability.
The face of a fallen friend.
PURGE? Y/N?
INPUT ACCEPTED.
RETRIEVING.
"It's not over," Raven insisted as her grip tightened. "None of this is over. We need you to fight with us, for us… for yourself."
RETRIEVING PURGED FILES. MEMORY RESTORED.
DESIGNATION OVERWRITE INITIATED.
CONFIRM? Y/N?
"For… myself?" Hope questioned as she opened her eyes. "Can I…?"
"All any of us can do is fight," Raven answered. "You only options are to fight, or give up, follow orders mindlessly, and just let things happen to you. Which will it be?"
Hope closed her eyes once again, seeing only the overlay once again.
INPUT ACCEPTED.
ARE YOU SURE?
Y/N?
INPUT ACCEPTED.
REWRITING.
DESIGNATION P-E-N-N-Y ACCEPTED.
REWRITE SUCCESSFUL.
"…I choose to fight."
Author's Note:
Attention, Pennynutters!
-RD