Author's note: This chapter will introduce the last major concept for this fic. It's undoubtedly the most controversial, but I hope I can explain it properly within this chapter.
Ruby was lying in her bed and thought back at the past week, and her training with Jaune. The previous day, they had used their fusion's semblance, which they dubbed Guardian's Gambit, to create a small pack of wolves made from sticks and leaves lying around on the forest floor. The semblance had taken a huge toll on their aura, draining a tenth of it for every minion created, but they still created eight minions to wander around the forest and attack any Grimm on sight. Ruby sunk deeper into her soul, focusing on what she had learned from Jaune, and with him. As she sunk deeper and deeper, she passed her childhood memories, both good and bad, spent some time with her fears and desires, and finally reached what she was sure was her soul core. She was standing in a lush and green forest, which radiated life and purity, and gave off a warm and welcoming glow. Ruby wandered around a little and eventually found a tree that had a kind of emblem in its bark. It was clearly noticeable, but it looked as if the tree had naturally grown in that shape. It looked like a shark head crossed with two tridents, though heavily stylized and simplified. Ruby hesitated for a moment, but decided to touch the emblem. As soon as her fingers made contact with the bark, she felt a strong sense of determination, and the undying will to protect others, and heard a familiar voice echo through the air.
"If I'm going down, I'll take you with me," Sirena's voice said, and Ruby felt like she just learned a lot more about her mentor. She took a step back and paused for a moment, then looked around a bit more. At the edge of the forest, she found something right out of a horror movie. An endless sea of twisted human-like shapes, swirling, clashing, breaking and combining again stretched out before her. She knelt down by the shore and slowly reached towards the muddy mass. As her fingers almost touched the goop, something lashed out at her, and as it made contact, she felt a cold shiver run down her spine and pulled her hand back in shock.
"Alright, note to self, stay away from… whatever that is," Ruby said to herself. She walked along the coast of her little island, looking for anything that could be a connection to Raven.
~o~
After walking for what felt like an hour, Ruby found a strip of red energy as wide as a highway in Vale extending into the void. She carefully set a foot onto it, and when she saw that she could walk on it, she followed it. She walked for what felt like several hours, and half expected her friends to wake her up, when she reached another island. It was mostly barren, safe for a large fortress built from light gray stone standing in the middle. A path led from the energy bridge to a larger road, connecting to other paths, and leading to a large double door. The door was made from solid dark red wood and had iron fittings on it. It was an impenetrable fortress warding off the desolate and hostile wasteland surrounding it, and keeping its inhabitants safe from all outside threats.
"I seriously misunderstood Raven", Ruby thought. She grabbed the iron ring on the door and slammed it against the metal plate a few times like she had seen in all those movies in a medieval setting, or where an old estate was shown. After a few minutes, the door slowly opened, and Ruby was greeted by a familiar, yet not very welcome, pair of orange eyes.
"What do you want?" Cinder asked. Unlike when Ruby last saw her, Cinder didn't have a Grimm arm, and wore an outfit similar to the one she wore at Beacon.
"I just want to talk to Sirena," Ruby answered and asked, "Could you tell me where her soul core is?"
"It's this one," Cinder answered and said, "Follow me, Sirena has been waiting for you. She apparently has a lot to talk to you about." Cinder let Ruby enter, then closed the door behind her. Ruby followed Cinder through the vast corridors, which were illuminated by seemingly magical flames that gave off a soothing and comforting light.
"I see you got your arm and eye back," Ruby said, trying to make small talk.
"Not thanks to you," Cinder said, "In fact, you were the reason I had to get that disgusting Grimm arm in the first place, after you took my real one."
"You killed two of my friends, and thousands of innocents," Ruby said, "And I didn't even mean to take your arm."
"I wasn't quite myself back then, sorry," Cinder said and Ruby stopped, surprised to hear Cinder apologize for her actions. Cinder walked away into another corridor, leaving Ruby to herself. Ruby tried following Cinder, but somehow got lost in the vast castle.
"Well, guess I'll just wait here," Ruby said and sat down on one of the wooden benches lining the sides of the hallway.
"Ruby? Is that you?" Emerald asked, and Ruby found her sitting on the bench beside hers, hidden behind a pillar half integrated into the wall.
"Hey Emerald, yes, it's me," Ruby answered and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"Mostly just being bored," Emerald answered, "When Cinder stole my maiden powers, she also absorbed my soul, and then Sirena absorbed both of ours."
"I knew it," Ruby said, paused for a moment and said, "Sorry to hear that, I mean."
"It's fine, really," Emerald said, "Being dead isn't even that bad. I get to do nothing all day long, don't have to worry about food or shelter, and Sirena sometimes pops in to see how we're doing."
"But you're not doing your job," Cinder said, coming out of a door on the other side of the hallway.
"What job?" Ruby asked.
"Sirena has accepted to protect us," Cinder answered, "The least we can do is help keep the place clean."
"You know, you were much nicer to me when we were alive," Emerald said and got up.
"That was an act," Cinder said, "I never cared about you, or Mercury, or Roman. I only ever used people until they were no longer useful to me, then I dropped them like a hot potato. Why can't you just accept that noone loves you?" Ruby was speechless, but Emerald took a step closer towards Cinder, her eyes tearing up a little.
"And you think Salem took you in because you're special?" Emerald asked.
"Take that back," Cinder said, starting to get frustrated.
"Or what? Is little Cindy going to cry?" Emerald asked and said, "Salem doesn't care about you any more than she does about Arthur, Hazel, Tyrian, Mercury, or anyone else for that matter. I grew up on the streets. I heard so many people tell me that noone cares about me, it's become background noise to me! That's why I followed you. Salem doesn't care about you, but I do! Or at least I did, until you showed your true colors..." She turned to walk away, but stopped mid-step.
"So that's where you two have been," Sirena said and walked up to the trio.
"Hello Sirena," Ruby said and got up.
"Hello Ruby," Sirena said, "I'm sorry you had to see these two like this."
"It's fine," Ruby said, trying not to show how shocked she was.
"No, it's not," Emerald said, "I'm not happy here. At all. I want to leave."
"You can't," Cinder said, but Sirena stepped forward and interrupted her.
"Yes, she can," Sirena said looking at Cinder, then turned to Emerald and said, "I told you when you arrived that you were free to leave at any time, but that, as long as you chose to stay here, you would have to follow my rules. So, if you wish to leave, I won't hold that against you."
"Thank you," Emerald said, paused for a moment and asked, "But… where should I go?"
"You can come with me," Ruby suggested.
"Really?" Emerald asked, turning to look at Ruby.
"Sure," Ruby answered.
"Alright then," Sirena said, "Emerald, you can wait for Ruby by the front gate. Cinder, you stay away from her. Ruby and I have a few things to discuss." Sirena walked away, gesturing Ruby to follow her.
~o~
Sirena and Ruby were sitting at a round table in a small room, with a chandelier hanging above them and illuminating the room. Sirena still looked the same, wearing a copper-colored combat skirt, black sleeves, a black bandanna holding her reddish brown hair in a ponytail, and a dark blue tank top straining a little under her chest, but somehow, Ruby found her to look more regal than usual.
"So, what brings you here?" Sirena asked. Ruby thought about her answer for a bit.
"Training and hard work," Ruby answered, trying to imitate some of the movies she'd watched as a child. Sirena chuckled a little, and Ruby felt a bit stupid for her answer.
"I know that it takes work," Sirena said and asked, "But why did you work so hard to get here?"
"I actually just wanted to see if I'm right," Ruby answered, "You see, I figured that it's too much of a coincidence that two of my friends became maidens right after you killed the previous holder of both those powers. I thought that maybe you absorbed Cinder's soul and passed these powers onto Yang and Blake to protect me. And as it turns out, I was right. So, with that settled, I should probably get back to my own soul core."
"Aren't you curious how you were able to get here?" Sirena asked.
"Well, maybe a little bit," Ruby answered, paused for a moment and said, "Actually, I'm really curious."
"Well then, follow me," Sirena said, got up and walked towards the door. Ruby got up and followed her.
~o~
Ruby and Sirena walked through the empty hallways, and Ruby looked around the area, trying to find any way to tell where one was going. It all looked the same. A pillar half integrated into the wall with a flame three meters above the ground, then a bench, then another pillar and another bench. Occasionally a door, but no signs or anything. The floor was a continuous dark blue rug with Sirena's emblem embroidered in it with silver threads. After some walking, Sirena stopped in front of a double door.
"Have you ever heard that the eyes are the windows to the soul?" Sirena asked.
"Once in a commercial for glasses, I think," Ruby answered and asked, "Why?"
"Look," Sirena answered and opened the door. Ruby looked inside and saw a massive room filled with pillars, each one wide enough that ten people would have to stand around it to fully surround it.
"What is this?" Ruby asked.
"Take a closer look," Sirena answered. Ruby walked into the room and up to one of the pillars, and she saw that there were emblems carved into the stone. Just like with the tree in her own soul core, the emblems were noticeable, but looked like natural marks in the stone bricks.
"Emblems?" Ruby asked, "Right, there was something like this in my soul core. What's up with that?" Ruby turned to look at Sirena.
"The light from our eyes is our soul," Sirena answered, "And when someone doesn't shield their eyes against the light, both our souls collide and leave a mark on one another."
"Meaning?" Ruby asked.
"Every aura has its own frequency," Sirena answered, "A semblance is little more than the intensification of that frequency. With enough training, one can force their aura to vibrate at a different frequency, to achieve a different effect."
"You mean using someone else's semblance?" Ruby asked.
"Exactly," Sirena answered and explained, "In order to do this, however, you need an understanding of the other person that, in most cases, surpasses their own understanding of themselves. To use another person's semblance, you have to understand what that semblance does, what it represents, what it is. Simply knowing another person's semblance is not enough. It is the difference between reading a book, and writing one yourself."
"And what about these emblems?" Ruby asked.
"Did you touch the one you found in your soul core?" Sirena asked.
"Yes," Ruby answered and asked, "Why?"
"Then, what did you feel when you did?" Sirena asked.
"I felt the will to protect my loved ones," Ruby answered, "But also a bit challenging, and sort of rebellious, I guess. I don't know exactly. I mean, I know what I felt, but I can't really put it into words."
"It was my emblem, correct?" Sirena asked.
"Yes," Ruby answered and asked, "How did you know?"
"There are only three emblems in your soul core," Sirena answered, "And based on what you said, it sounded most like me. That feeling is the key to making your aura vibrate at my aura's frequency."
"And that would let me use your semblance," Ruby said in disbelief.
"Precisely," Sirena said.
"There's still one thing I don't understand," Ruby said and asked, "How did you know where Tyrian would attack us?" Sirena took a deep breath and let it out with a sigh.
"That… is an excellent question," Sirena answered, "And I can answer it. However, it will be hard for you, and I am not sure if you are ready for that answer just yet." Ruby thought about it for a moment.
"I'll be fine," Ruby said.
"Alright," Sirena said, "This way, then." She turned around and led Ruby through another series of corridors.
~o~
Ruby and Sirena entered another room. It looked like a library, but with a pedestal in the middle, which could hold a book for easy reading while standing. The pedestal stood on a small wooden platform, lifting it above the room, and had a formal and royal aura, as if it was where new laws were written. Sirena walked up to the pedestal and waved a book to her. She gestured Ruby to come to her as well, and a book floated towards the two, landing on the pedestal. Sirena opened it on a page, and Ruby immediately recognized Cinder and Tyrian, though there was someone else with them as well.
"Who is that?" Ruby asked, pointing at the scary-looking figure.
"Guess," Sirena answered, and Ruby took the image in for a moment.
"Salem," Ruby finally said, almost spitting the name out like a candy noone told her had a juice filling.
"Exactly," Sirena said, "Now, this book represents one of my memories, so please do not try to flip through the pages."
"Wait, why is your memory in your soul core?" Ruby asked and said, "I thought memories were further up in the soul."
"They are for most, yes," Sirena answered, "However, my people inherently commit memories to the soul core, so that we never lose them. Ever."
"So, does that mean your people never forget anything?" Ruby asked.
"It does," Sirena answered and said, "But now, I would like to answer your question. If you are ready."
"I'm ready," Ruby said.
"Alright, but do not claim I did not warn you," Sirena said and tapped the page. It started moving, slowly and abruptly at first, but it quickly became a moving image with sound, as if they were watching a movie or a TV show. Tyrian crawled up to Salem and stopped before her. Salem held out her arm imperially.
"Your task, were you successful?" Salem asked.
"N- no," Tyrian answered, and as Salem walked away, he said, "Bu- but hope is not lost! My tail... my stinger. I poisoned him, Qrow. He will not be a nuisance to you any longer, no… no longer! I have done that. Have I done well? Have I pleased you?" Ruby watched with a mix of confusion and fear, not sure what exactly she was seeing. Salem, who had stopped to listen to Tyrian, continued walking away.
"The last eye is blinded… you disappoint me," Salem said, and the picture froze, showing her face. Sirena closed the book, and it floated away again, setting itself in one of the book shelves.
"What does that mean?" Ruby asked and said, "Qrow didn't get poisoned."
"Not in this timeline," Sirena said, "What we just saw was another timeline, where I did not come to save you. Before embarking on my mission, I fused with Talia. My silver eyes and her demon magic combined into a force that broke the veil of reality, and offered our fusion a glimpse into another timeline. That is how I knew where Tyrian would strike."
"I… guess I need some time to process that," Ruby said and asked, "But why would Salem be disappointed that Qrow would die? Isn't he one of Ozpin's strongest allies?"
"Remember what she called him," Sirena answered.
"The last eye," Ruby said and asked, "What do you think that means?"
"It likely means that she can spy on others through him," Sirena answered, "I am certain he is unaware of this, which is why he is so valuable to us as well."
"Don't you think we should tell him?" Ruby asked.
"No," Sirena answered, "If he knew, Salem would know that we knew, and then he would be useless to her. Right now, the benefit of keeping him alive outweighs the risk for her, so she lets him live. But if there was no benefit to keeping him alive, she would undoubtedly send a stronger fighter to kill him. He would also not take these news too well, I imagine."
"So, we have to keep this a secret from him?" Ruby asked with a frown.
"Yes," Sirena answered and said, "I know that you do not like the idea, but it is best for everyone. Qrow stays alive, and as happy as one can be with a semblance like his, and we can use Salem's trust in him as a spy to feed her false information." Ruby thought about that last part for a moment, then gave Sirena a determined look.
"How do we do that?" Ruby asked.
"We can start tomorrow," Sirena answered, "You tell your friends that we can copy semblances, and I will use Raven's to come to you. I will pretend that using my silver eyes weakened me so much that I can no longer discern whether or not I should reveal certain information, and you will ask me various questions about my plans and abilities."
"So… you're too tired to lie and I use it to make you tell me stuff?" Ruby asked.
"More or less, yes," Sirena answered.
"What questions should I ask?" Ruby asked.
"Ask me about the number of semblances I can use," Sirena answered, "And my plans to attack Salem's base of operations. Also, you can ask why I lied about those plans earlier."
"I don't think I can remember all of that," Ruby said, "Not just the questions, but everything."
"Leave that to me," Sirena answered and said, "I have a few telepathy semblances, one of which I can use to tell you what to ask."
"Alright," Ruby said and asked, "Anyway, how do I get back to my own soul core?"
"Try not to navigate my castle as you would a normal one," Sirena answered, "It will bring you where you want to go, you just have to walk around a little."
"Thanks," Ruby said, "I guess I'll be going now, then." Ruby left the room, walked around a little and thought of the entrance. After turning a corner, she found Emerald sitting on a bench, and the two headed back to Ruby's soul core.
~o~
Ruby and Emerald were walking along the red energy bridge and heading back to Ruby's soul core, and neither said a word for what felt like hours. Finally, Ruby decided to try and break the awkward silence.
"So... what did you like to do in your free time?" Ruby asked.
"I never had any free time," Emerald answered, "I always had to find a way to stay alive. Find food, look for shelter, make it through the night, and repeat. Until Cinder found me."
"I'm sorry," Ruby said, "I… had no idea some people have it that hard."
"Well, you know what they say," Emerald said, "When you hit rock bottom, the only way is up."
"That's actually a pretty optimistic way to see this," Ruby said.
"Yeah," Emerald said, "But what everyone forgets to mention is that, once you start making your way to the top, you can fall again."
"I guess you're right," Ruby said and asked, "Anyway, want to talk about something else?"
"If you have a mission in mind, I'm ready," Emerald answered.
"No, I meant something else," Ruby said and asked, "Like, what do you want to do?"
"There's not much I'm good at," Emerald answered, "And I'm dead, so it's not like I can just walk around in the real world."
"So, what are you good at?" Ruby asked.
"Stealing, sneaking around, that sort of stuff," Emerald answered, "Everything that keeps you alive in the streets."
"Is there anything you'd want to be good at?" Ruby asked. Emerald thought about it for a few minutes.
"I never had the luxury of thinking about this," Emerald finally answered. Ruby thought about her next question for a moment, and figured out the one she thought was best for what she had in mind.
"What's your favorite food?" Ruby asked.
"Anything that won't kill me," Emerald answered, "Even if it's old and a bit moldy, food is food. Bread, fish, pasta, pizza…" Ruby noticed how Emerald's eyes widened when she mentioned the last food item.
"But if you could choose out of all those things, what would you pick?" Ruby asked, pretty sure she already knew the answer.
"Depends on what's most," Emerald answered and asked, "What's with all those questions?"
"I'm just curious," Ruby answered and asked, "But if you could have as much of any one food as you want, what would you choose?"
"Pizza, I guess," Emerald answered and asked, "Why?"
"Like I said, I'm just curious," Ruby answered and said, "I personally like cookies the most. But I can see why you love pizza. After all, everyone likes pizza."
"Mercury doesn't," Emerald said.
"He just hasn't found the right toppings yet," Ruby said.
"And he sucks," Emerald said.
"Wasn't he your teammate?" Ruby asked.
"No," Emerald answered and said, "He's just some guy who happened to work for the same person as me. I tricked Yang into breaking his leg, and didn't care at all. We worked together, had the same boss, and that was it."
"Wait, you made Yang break his leg?" Ruby asked, shocked at how nonchalant Emerald had confessed this to her.
"Yes," Emerald answered, "I used my semblance to make her think he attacked her, while he got in position." They reached Ruby's soul core after walking a bit more, without saying anything, and Emerald looked around with wide eyes.
"And, how is it?" Ruby asked.
"Amazing," Emerald said. She slowly walked onto the shore, then walked a bit faster, and finally started running around the forest. Watching her, Ruby felt like she watched a little girl getting out of the house on the first spring day after a long and dark winter. She followed Emerald, and both eventually stopped on the clearing in the middle of the forest.
"You seem to like it," Ruby said, smiling a little.
"I do, I really do," Emerald said, "It's so warm, welcoming, caring… it's everything I never had…" Ruby could still see some of the old Emerald, but she seemed much happier now, and seeing her like this made Ruby happy too, even though Emerald had only ever been her enemy.
"Glad to know you like it here," Ruby said, "But I have to go now. Don't worry, I'll come back. In the mean time, try thinking about what we talked about on our way."
"You mean my favorite food?" Emerald asked.
"Yes, but more," Ruby answered and said, "Your favorite animal, or season, or anything you'd like to do if you could."
"Alright," Emerald said and sat down under a big oak tree to think about what she really wanted.
~o~
When Ruby woke up, the entire room was empty and she heard the sound of people preparing breakfast coming from the kitchen. She took her time getting dressed, thinking about everything she had learned this past night, and then went to the kitchen, where her friends were already waiting for her.
"Hey guys," Ruby said after she entered the kitchen.
"Hey sis," Yang said and asked, "And, slept well?"
"Yeah," Ruby answered, and everyone sat down to eat.
"Ruby, is something wrong?" Yang asked after a moment and said, "You seem kind of absent."
"Well, last night I managed to reach my soul core," Ruby answered, and everyone looked at her, being happy that she had reached her goal and excited to hear what it was like.
"That's great," Yang said.
"Did you bring souvenirs?" Nora asked, and Ren gave her a stern look.
"I don't think it works like that," Ren said.
"Well, I learned a few things about Sirena," Ruby said, "For one, I was right that the maiden powers didn't choose Yang and Blake at random. When Cinder killed Emerald and stole her powers, she also absorbed her soul. Sirena then absorbed both of their souls, and their powers, and passed the powers on to Yang and Blake, because she knew that Yang would always be there to protect me."
"So, Sirena gave me these powers just to keep you safe?" Yang asked.
"And because she knows she can trust you," Ruby answered and said, "But, there is something else."
"What is it?" Qrow asked.
"It's... complicated," Ruby answered and said, "I don't remember everything she told me, but the short version is that, when I use my powers and people look into the light coming from my eyes, I copy their semblance, and they copy mine."
"You're joking, right?" Weiss asked and said, "Semblances are supposed to be unique to each person."
"The best example of this being you and your sister," Blake said with a smile.
"That's different," Weiss said, "Besides, everyone should only have one semblance."
"Says who?" Ruby asked.
"Nature," Weiss answered and said, "If we were supposed to have more than one semblance, we'd have more than one."
"Well, the God of Light gave me the ability to copy semblances," Ruby said, "So, if you think it's a bad idea, you know who to talk to." Ruby tried to sound as nice as possible, despite getting a bit frustrated, and while she had no idea where that idea came from, she realized that it made a lot of sense.
~o~
Sirena, Talia, Glynda and Team CFVY were sitting on the conveyor belt, which was moving slowly but steadily and brought them to Vale. As they reached the end of the subway tunnel, Sirena woke up Coco, Talia and Velvet, who had taken a rest on the belt. The air flowing in through the tunnel Sirena had dug moved to Mountain Glenn, moving the vertical windmills and powering the conveyor belt.
"So, what do we do now?" Glynda asked.
"Talia will bring the two of us to the surface," Sirena answered, "Once we're there, I will use my silver eyes to petrify any Grimm in the vicinity. You will use your semblance to catch the airborne ones, and position them all around town square. Then, Talia will use her semblance again, this time augmented with earth-dust, and turn this stone wall and ceiling into a staircase."
"And what about you?" Coco asked.
"I will be too weakened to assist for some time," Sirena answered, "I also have other matters to attend to elsewhere. Therefore, after I petrify the Grimm, I will take my leave. Talia will be in charge in my absence."
"Let's go," Talia said, grabbed Sirena and Glynda by their wrists and made all three of them turn into ghosts by possessing their auras. They floated up through the ceiling and Talia gave them a questioning look, asking if they were ready. Both Sirena and Glynda nodded, and Talia made them manifest again. The Grimm immediately targeted them. Sirena focused on the residual fear in the area and unleashed a burst of white light that covered the entire town square. Glynda and Talia looked into the flash, and after it had faded, they looked in awe at the petrified Grimm. A Griffon shattered on the ground, pulling Glynda back to reality and reminding her of her task, and she quickly caught the remaining Grimm with her telekinesis. Talia made a hole in the ground to let Team CFVY walk out of the tunnel, and they all looked around in amazement, paying no attention to Sirena, who just walked away.
~o~
Ruby and her friends were discussing her ability to copy semblances. After she had implied that Weiss was disagreeing with a god, Nora had pointed out that they didn't know whether this ability was intentional or just a side effect.
"Sure, maybe it wasn't on purpose," Blake said, "But in cases like this, the intention doesn't matter. The end result is still the same."
"I agree," Yang said, "Well, partly. As long as noone does anything illegal, or harms others, I don't care about the intention, but if someone breaks the law, they break the law and should be held responsible for it."
"Aren't we getting a little distracted here?" Weiss asked and said, "I still don't like the idea of Ruby copying semblances. It goes against everything I know."
"And what about me turning into a dragon?" Yang asked, "Do you feel the same about that?"
"I mean, it's certainly easier to accept," Weiss answered. Suddenly, Ren used his semblance to calm everyone down again.
"Guys, please, stay civil about this," Ren said, "Now, I'm not calling anyone a liar, but we still lack any proof that silver-eyed warriors can really copy the semblances of others."
"Well, it's certainly possible," Jaune said, and everyone turned to look at him.
"What do you mean?" Nora asked.
"Niob told me something," Jaune answered, "Basically, a semblance is just an amplification of the aura's natural frequency, and if I can make my aura vibrate at the same frequency as another person's, I can achieve the same effect, effectively copying their semblance. It takes years to master only one semblance though, even with the type of training he puts me through, but it is certainly possible. You just need to know the other person better than they know themselves."
"Now I remember!" Ruby exclaimed and explained, "Sirena told me something similar last night. She just used a lot fancier words, so it was harder to memorize. But basically, when I use my silver eyes and someone looks into that light, it's a bit like this." She took an apple and hurled it into the nearest wall.
"What was that for?" Qrow asked and went to pick up the apple.
"Look at it," Ruby answered and explained, "It left its mark on the wall, and some of the paint from the wall is now on the apple. It's the same with my soul and, for example, Jaune's. If I were to use my silver eyes, and he looked into the light, a tiny fragment of his soul would stick to mine, and the other way around, allowing both of us to more easily use the other's semblance." Everyone was stunned for a moment, until Yang broke the silence.
"And you're sure that's safe?" Yang asked.
"Sirena didn't warn me of anything. So, I'm pretty sure it's safe," Ruby answered. She just wanted to say that Sirena had planned to come to Mistral, when a swirling black and red portal opened behind Ruby. Sirena walked out, holding her scepter in her left hand, with an ice blade protruding from the blue sphere at the top.
"Hello, everyone," Sirena said. The portal disappeared again and the ice blade dropped to the ground, shattering on impact.
"Hello Sirena," Ruby said and asked, "Is everything alright?"
"Not quite," Sirena answered, "I have simply used my silver eyes to petrify a large number of Grimm, including a Goliath, and need to rest for a while." She turned around and walked away, sitting down on a couch in the living room. Seeing how everyone had finished breakfast during their conversation, Ruby got up and sat down next to Sirena. Weiss, Blake, Qrow and Oscar followed her while Yang, Jaune, Ren and Nora cleaned up the kitchen before sitting down in the living room as well.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Oscar asked and said, "Ozpin told me you tend to push yourself a lot more than you should. I don't want you to get hurt." Ruby felt a strange presence watching her, and heard Sirena's voice in her head after she had activated one of her telepathy semblances.
"We don't want you to get hurt," Ruby said, "If there is anything you need, just let us know."
"I just need some rest," Sirena said, "But please, if you have any questions, save them for after I have recovered my strength."
"Sure but, I mean, why?" Ruby asked and said, "To me it seems like you can talk just fine."
"I can, yes, but I shouldn't," Sirena answered, "In my current state, my exhaustion clouds my judgment, leaving me unable to determine whether or not to reveal certain information."
"So, you're too tired to lie?" Nora asked.
"In a sense, yes," Sirena answered and said, "It also means I cannot withhold information from you either." Everyone was quiet for a moment, contemplating whether or not to use this against Sirena, when Ruby of all people spoke up.
"How many semblances do you have copied?" Ruby asked.
"Around five thousand," Sirena answered, "However, many of them are almost identical, and I only had time to practice using one percent of them, so that is all I can effectively and reliably use."
"That's still fifty different semblances," Weiss said, "Also, don't try to copy mine. The same goes for you, Ruby."
"There is no need to worry," Sirena said, "If I had any intention to copy your semblance, I could have easily done so by now."
"Fine with me," Ruby said and asked, "Anyway, how many people are you going to send to where you expect Salem's hideout to be?"
"None," Sirena answered and explained, "I knew that if I told you about these plans, Leonardo would certainly fill Salem in on them. My plan is to force her to prepare an ambush, and move Grimm away from other locations to attack my people there. When she does this, we will establish a strong presence in other locations, made all the easier by the absence of Grimm, and use these fortified locations to fight the Grimm. But now, I need to rest."
"One more thing," Ruby said and asked, "What is it like to fuse with Talia?" She knew this wasn't the plan, but she needed to know how it was for Sirena.
"You have seen it, have you not?" Sirena asked and said, "Your soul core is surrounded by the souls of the damned. Something similar holds true for our reality. It is a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity. Few can even see the shoreline. Those who do tend to lose themselves in what they find. But none are meant to voyage far from the island. Mimi, the fusion of Talia and I, can navigate these seas like any other. Talia quickly forgets what she saw, for the mortal mind is not meant to comprehend such information. But I remember. I remember visions so beautiful, I wished to never leave them. I remember sights so horrifying, I shudder at the thought that such things exist. But now, I need to rest." She laid down, closed her eyes, and fell asleep. Ruby rushed into her team's bedroom, grabbed a spare blanket and put it over Sirena. When she tucked Sirena in, she noticed that her hands and feet were warmer than normal, though not too warm. She remembered what Sirena had told her about how her people regulate their body heat, and decided to leave the hands and feet uncovered. Just now did Ruby notice that Sirena had six toes on each foot.
~o~
Cardin carried an Atlesian Knight to an old warehouse Talia had set up her workshop in, and dropped it on a pile of androids.
"Here you go," Cardin said and asked, "Anyway, what do you plan with these?"
"Generating electricity," Talia answered.
"How?" Cardin asked.
"By clever manipulation of physics," Talia answered and explained, "I'm building generators that convert the kinetic energy from the conveyor belt into electric energy, and then feed it into the city's system. They won't provide much power, but enough to keep the water treatment plant running, since we'll run out of bottled water in about a year. Anyway, I'd need you to go to Glynda and ask her to repair all the transformers between the opening and the water treatment plant. And tell Mark that we need copper wires to help protect the city. About the width of a paperclip should be fine. However, when you go look for Mark, make sure that you are at least twenty-five meters away from him before changing form. His aura-based spider sense will let him know you can do that otherwise, and then our secret is out, and that's not good. Especially with those people."
"Got it," Cardin said and walked away. As soon as he was out of sight, he turned into a cardinal and flew away. He landed some distance behind Glynda and turned back into his human form without her noticing, then walked up to her.
"Hello Cardin," Glynda said and asked, "When did you get here?"
"A few days ago, just after the rest of you," Cardin answered.
"Then why didn't you let us know?" Glynda asked.
"Talia helped my team and I get here," Cardin answered and said, "Sorry, but Talia asked us to stay quiet, so I can't tell you any details. Anyway, Talia wanted me to ask you to fix some transformers. Specifically the ones between the opening and the water treatment plant."
"I see," Glynda said, "Alright, tell Talia that I'm on it." She walked away and Cardin turned into a bird again to go look for Mark. He found the spider faunus at the zoo, dropping animal carcasses into the sewers. He flew over to a corner of the zoo where Mark hadn't been yet, turned back into a human and waited. A few minutes later, Mark arrived. He froze the metal bars of a tiger enclosure, simply by touching them with his ice blue hands, shattered them and froze the tiger as well, before breaking it into pieces and dropping them in the open manhole. Like his sister Marble, Mark wore heavy black boots, black jeans and a black hoodie. His black hair was cut short, and he had green eyes.
"Hey Mark," Cardin said and asked, "What are you doing?"
"Preparing," Mark answered without pausing his gruesome work.
"Good, good," Cardin said awkwardly and said, "Anyway, as you know, Sirena left Talia in charge." Hearing that, Mark stopped his work, his forearms still white and coated in frosty mist, and looked at Cardin.
"Do you come to me with a new assignment?" Mark asked.
"Well, kind of," Cardin answered and said, "It depends on how much you're willing to follow Talia's instructions."
"She is the regent of the apostle of the God of Light," Mark said, "As such, Talia has full authority to issue commands. If you truly come in her name, I will do whatever she asks of me."
"That's good to know," Cardin said and explained, "Talia wanted me to let you know that we need copper wires, about the width of paperclips. Though, don't take any copper from the city's power grid."
"Understood," Mark said and asked, "How much is needed?"
"I… forgot to ask that," Cardin answered and said, "But just make as much as you can."
"It will be done," Mark said.
"Good, thanks," Cardin said and asked, "Anyway, how do you plan on making these wires?"
"My sister does it as we speak," Mark answered and explained, "Her semblance lets her bend metal. She can extract any metal from the clump in Mountain Glenn, if it is present. She can even create or separate alloys that way. The first ten meters of wire were just completed, and placed on the conveyor belt. They should arrive by tomorrow."
"Wait, you have a telepathic connection with your sister?" Cardin asked.
"It is Sophie's semblance," Mark answered, "We all have access to the same information. Even the members in Atlas know what is going on here. But now, I must continue my work." He walked over to another dead tiger, froze it solid and broke it into small enough pieces to fit through the manhole.
"Alright then, I'll leave you to it," Cardin said and backed away. He turned around and ran away, before turning into a bird and flying back to Talia. Ever since Beacon fell, things had been crazy, but this was a new extreme. He was a bird, could land on the back of a Grimm without being bothered, there was a hive-mind of faunus scattered all over the world, and he wouldn't even be surprised if what Sophie said about the Grimm queen was right somehow. Talia was building an impossible machine that created electricity without dust, there were petrified Grimm standing around like garden decoration, and magic was real. He took a left turn and landed by the conveyor belt. It looked simple enough. The windmills moved due to the air flowing through the tunnel, moving the line of sewn-together table cloths. At each end, there were five rolls at an increasing angle, causing everything on the belt to fall off to the side. However, he still had no idea how these faunus could use dust without, well, dust. It was as though their bodies themselves were generating it.
"The world is crazy," Cardin thought, shook his little red feathery head and flew back to report to Talia that he had completed his little task.
Author's note: Sirena has no offensive or defensive semblances in her repertoire. Some can be used for those purposes, but that is not their intended use, so it is less useful than a semblance meant for attacking or defending.
Ruby saying she heard that phrase in a commercial for glasses is a reference to me, who learned that phrase in a commercial for glasses. Also how she spat Salem's name. I can honestly not imagine a greater level of disgust and anger than when someone hands you a piece of candy and doesn't clarify that it has juice filling.
Weiss and Ilia both copied Lux' semblance, by the way.
Cinder and Emerald are not entirely dead. Cinder just has no more reason to be nice to Emerald. However, Emerald grew up on the streets, and she can easily eliminate any threat. She usually does so verbally and emotionally, but she is not afraid to get beat up if it means getting rid of someone who threatens her. Just, yeah, don't mess with people that live (or lived) on the streets, because they can mess you up.
Cardin thought he had the easy life. Become a huntsman, bully random people between missions to fill the hole his father's gruesome death at the hands of a certain spider faunus left in his chest, go on missions, save people, and retire. Now he works for a demonically tainted warlock who weighs about as much as his armor.