Chp. 59: Project L.I.B.E.R.T.Y.

"Wait! Cinder? Cinder Fall?!" Watson asked.

"You're telling us that's her standing right in front of us?!" Ronin asked.

"Liberty has got to be pulling some trick on us! Maybe she's discovered her semblance and it allows her to imitate people?! Maybe?!" Weiss suggested.

"Believe what you will, Schnee. I am alive. But unfortunately stuck in this body with another soul," Cinder said, gesturing at Liberty's body she was hosting.

"What happened to you?" Jacob asked.

"And how are you in Liberty's body?" Ruby asked.

"It started after you both left me at Death's doorstep," Cinder began.

Flashback

Knoxville, Tennessee, USA

Turkey Creek Medical Center

Operating Room

June 11, 2020

Inside the operating room several doctors with the assistance of several nurses were performing surgery on a wounded Cinder who was laying down flat on the operating table.

"I had been put through several intensive surgeries after our battle for three days. I would learn from the doctors that due to the extensiveness of my injuries, and testing positive for COVID-19, I would only have a couple weeks left to live," Cinder narrated.

June 15, 2020

An armless Cinder with bandages covering her head was laying on a hospital bed motionless with wires and tubes tangled all over her body connected to machines. She hears the sound of the door open and turns her head to the direction of the door. Four men in black suits walked into her room and approached the dying patient.

"The following day later, a group of people came into my room and extracted me from the hospital," Cinder narrated.

Unknown Location

Several hours later, Cinder was being wheeled on a stretcher into a large laboratory by a few doctors. At the end of the lab was a large machine with lit screens hooked up to two rectangular pods.

"They took me to a laboratory and there it would be the place on how I came to become what I am now," Cinder narrated.

The doctors wheeled Cinder over to the machine as a few scientists stood by waiting.

"This is perfect opportunity here to study on the effects on aura," one of the scientists

"I've had some men gather as much information as they could on this aura. And we'll see if the effects are true as these Remnans claim," the second scientist said.

"And then after that, the real fun part begins," the third scientist said.

"But what if President Trump found out about this whole operation here?" the second scientist asked. "He will try to shut this project down."

"What the president won't know, won't hurt," the first scientist answered before turning his head to the doctors wheeling Cinder. "Get her set up."

The doctors wheeled Cinder to an operating table where several doctors were preparing their tools and a few scientists were standing a couple feet away ready to take notes.

"They had subjected me to horrible experiments on my aura for days. And one day, they would do something to me that would change me," Cinder narrated.

June 21, 2020

Six days had passed as a pair of doctors placed Cinder inside one of the pods of the machine after she had endured the experimenting that had been made on her. A pair of scientists were putting something in the second pod.

"Project L.I.B.E.R.T.Y. and Cinder Fall are secured," the third scientist said.

"Begin aura transfer," The first scientist ordered.

An engineer pressed some buttons on the screen, and both pods close up and then raise up. The machine hums to life as an orange glow surrounds Cinder as she begins screaming out in agony. The orange glow travels along the pipes connecting the two pods and enters inside the second pod. Cinder's screams slowly started to die down as she stopped glowing, and the rest of the orange glow entered inside the second pod. The heart monitor on Cinder's pod then all flatlined.

"Aura transfer is a success," a doctor said.

"Good. Now we wait for the subject to wake up," the second scientist said.

The pods opened up as Cinder's body fell out from the first pod to the floor.

"Even though I had died that day, I somehow opened my eyes and woke up. I immediately knew something was wrong because I had lost my other eye in our battle and wonder how I had my vision back, And I wondered how I somehow woke up in the other pod and also seeing my body on the floor,"

A pair of eyes opened and looked down at Cinder's body slumped on the floor. The eyes shifted upwards to see a mirror up on the ceiling. What they saw reflecting on the mirror was a skeletal robotic body laying inside the second pod. Cinder had become an android. She was unable to move her body, just her eyes.

"It worked. Project L.I.B.E.R.T.Y. is now activated," the third scientist said.

Cinder wanted to scream, but was unable to due to her new body not letting her.

"They had transferred my aura into an android's body. And upon doing so, they had unintentionally transferred my soul into it," Cinder narrated.

June 29, 2020

Cinder was put back into the second pod as a pair of doctors were wheeling a little girl lying unconscious on a stretcher towards the first pod.

"Days had passed and tests continued. And one day, they would orchestrate another test that would end up helping me in the future," Cinder narrated.

"So what's this next test all about?" the second scientist asked.

"We're going to transfer this girl's aura into Project L.I.B.E.R.T.Y. We believe that by doing so will give Project L.I.B.E.R.T.Y. more aura protection," the first scientist answered.

"So who's the girl?" the third scientist asked.

"I don't know. All I know is that she's an eight year old Mexican that had been raped and used countless times by Jeffery Epstine himself a few years back. She had gotten stage four cancer last year and her aura had just recently unlocked," the first scientist explained.

"And her parents?" the third scientist asked.

"Couldn't track 'em. They probably think she died years ago anyway," the second scientist answered. "Set the girl inside and we'll get this over with."

The two doctors picked up the girl and set her inside the first pod. The engineer closed up the two pods and started up the machine as the girl began to glow blue. The girl's eyelids fluttered as her aura started traveling up the tubes and into the second pod and into Cinder. Suddenly an alarm sounded on the first pod, capturing everyone's attention.

"What's happening?!" the third scientist asked.

"Something's wrong with the girl!" one of the doctors answered.

The aura then stopped transferring aura to Cinder. The alarm then stopped sounding as the girl's reading on the screen on the first pod all flat lined. There was a short pause before a doctor checked the readings. He turned to the others behind him.

"She's dead. Her cancer must have finished her," he said.

"And her aura?" the second scientist asked.

The doctor went to the screen on the second pod as it read '27% AURA TRANSFER.'

"A quarter of her aura has been successfully transferred," he answered.

"Eh, close enough I guess," the first scientist said with a shrug.

Inside a large white space, Cinder was wandering around, wondering what had just happened to her. She stops to see a girl with black hair and blue eyes.

"Where... Where am I? Who are you?" the girl asked.

"What is this?" Cinder asked.

"I... don't know who I am, or where I came from." the girl answered. "Do you know where I came from?"

Cinder looked at the girl for a moment wondering what had just happened. She then realized a part of the little girl's body was crammed into Cinder's android body. And that aura developed a fresh new consciousness of its own. An idea then came to her and then spoke.

"You are my sister. And you are trapped in my body."

Flashback End

"After the tests and experimenting, we had trained together, and I, or rather she, had been given the title Liberty Beckett. Thankfully I discovered that I still retain the powers of the Fall Maiden. All the times you saw Liberty use it, it was all really me," Cinder finished.

"So now you've been reduced to being a puppet to the government, huh?" Britney asked.

"I am nobody's puppet! They think that they have control of me. But in reality I've been controlling them," Cinder answered.

"What are you up to?" Ruby asked.

"Their mission for me was to break Raven Branwen out of her cell and bring her back to them to study her Spring Maiden powers. But I have plans of my own," Cinder answered.

"You're going to steal her powers," Yang said in realization.

"Yes but there is more to my plan than that," Cinder said. "I had Liberty convince the high ups to ship an android body here a few months ago and told them it would be essential for the mission. But it was really essential to me. After it was shipped over to me, I made a few final touches to the android body to make it fit my liking," Cinder explained. "I feared that if I do succeed in taking the powers of the Spring Maiden without that android body, Raven's powers would go to Liberty instead."

"You're planning to transfer your soul and aura into that new android body you've asked for," Jacob said in realization.

"That way the Spring Maiden magic would go to you," Weiss added.

"Exactly." Cinder replied.

"Why didn't you just transfer your soul into the body earlier," Watson asked.

"Because we would have gotten suspicious on why Liberty couldn't use the Fall Maiden powers all of a sudden. She was just waiting to maintain her cover," Blake answered.

"Yes. And I'm ready, me and Liberty would no longer share the same body," Cinder replied.

Her eyes flickered to blue as Liberty took control.

"And then we can truly be sisters!" Liberty said.

"Liberty, listen. Don't listen to her. She's not gonna keep her promise to you. She's lying," Watson said.

"Watson's right. She doesn't care about you, or anyone else but herself. She's just using you," Emerald said.

"No! You're wrong! She wants us to be together! I won't let you ruin it for us!"

"Liberty, please listen! We're trying to save you from making the biggest mistake of your life!" Rin said.

"Shut up!" Liberty yelled as Cinder then took control.

Cinder shoots herself up into the air with fire jets coming from her feet. She smirks down at the group below her.

"If you'll excuse us, I have a new body to acquire and take what is rightfully mine. And also there are some people inside that building that need saving," she said, gesturing to the UHL building before she turns around and flies away.

"They're heading for the prison!" Yang said.

"But what about the VIPs?" Blake asked.

"Britney and I will stay and protect the VIPs. The rest of you stop Cinder," Jacob said.

"He's right. It's going to take all of us to take down Cinder," Ruby said.

"Then let's get going," Ronin said.

Jacob and Britney run towards the UHL building, while Watson, Emerald, the Ferrer twins, and Team RWBY run off to follow Cinder and Liberty.

Mess Hall

Meanwhile inside the UHL headquarters, Elon, President Biden, Maria, Rachel, Ashley, Pietro, and the Queen were all hiding in the kitchen behind some counters as Keaton, General Ironwood, Happy Huntresses, and the Royal Guards and Secret Service agents were all taking cover behind some tables that were tipped over, shooting at the gunmen that were shooting at them and the VIPs. Zwei was lying next to Robyn, covering his ears with his paws. Professor Ozpin, Qrow and Taiyang were all out in the open fighting off the Huntsmen that were with the gunmen. Hera and Basil were standing out from the side watching the battle in front of them.

"General! Keep them occupied! I'll get the VIPs out through the back!"

Ironwood nodded as he kept on shooting at the gunmen with Due Process. Keaton runs into the kitchen where mother, sister and the VIPs were hiding.

"You guys need to go! I'll escort you out of here!" he said before pointing to the back door.

While keeping their heads down, Rachel with Ashley in her arms, Maria, Elon, Pietro, President Biden, and the Queen quickly went out the back door with Keaton following behind them. From the end of the mess hall, Hera noticed Keaton and the VIPs exiting through the back door of the kitchen. She turns to her brother next to her.

"Keep an eye on things here. I'm going after their guests," she said.

"Gotcha," Basil replied as his sister exited out of the mess hall.

Qrow slashed at a Huntsman's chest, knocking him to the ground. He turned his head to see Basil watching everything that was going on.

"YOU!" he yelled, catching Basil's attention.

Taiyang turned his head wondering who Qrow was yelling at and then saw Basil. He gains a furious expression on his face as he walks up next to Qrow. Zwei pops his head around the corner and sees Basil too. He growls viciously and runs up next to Tai and Qrow.

"We have a score to settle with you!" Tai shouted.

"What? Is this about Ruby? Get over it she would have loved what I would have done to her!" Basil retorted as he readied his gauntlets.

Tai charged at Basil as Qrow and Zwei followed behind him.

Lobby

Meanwhile, out in the lobby, Keaton had escorted his mother and sister, Maria, Elon, Pietro, President Biden, and the Queen out ointo the lobby and near the north entrance.

"I'll get us a bus and relocate you all to a safe location," Keaton said.

Suddenly a gunshot was heard from closeby, catching everyone's attention. They all turned to see Victor holding his weapon in the air and several Neo-Nazies behind him all staring down at them.

"Where do you think you're all going?" Victor asked.

"Oh shit," Keaton muttered.