Author's note: And now, finally, the gang can clear up the ice blocking the manhole covers.
Ruby, Weiss and Nora walked towards the dust processing facility, a lot more relaxed now that the Carcolh was dead. They made their way through the large halls and reached the main factory room, where a conveyor belt fed dust into machines to make it safe for consumers. Weiss started the machines, and Nora took up position on a walkway overlooking the belts, while Ruby stood behind her.
"Alright, they just need to warm up a bit," Weiss said, "Once that light turns on, you can start." All three looked at the light, and when it turned on, Ruby began recharging Nora's aura, while her nine clones recharged hers, allowing Nora to crystallize her aura into dust. As soon as one of the clones had used up the ice near her, she opened a portal to a member of Team CRDL and went to the next chunk of ice.
~o~
Glynda looked at her tablet and checked the city's power grid, to make sure that everything went well. After the agricultural district had been somewhat cleaned up, the rotting animal waste that was pumped into Mountain Glenn had caused an uptick in airflow, causing an unexpected spike in electricity and threatening the system. However, as the waste continued to be decomposed by the swarm's mushroom, that airflow dropped again, meaning that they still needed to remove the ice.
"And, how are we looking?" Qrow asked, drawing Glynda's attention.
"Pretty good," Glynda answered, "If all goes well, we'll have a stable supply of power soon. And then, we can work on reclaiming Beacon." She sent a few messages around to various teams, including the bandits and Atlas soldiers, to update them all on their actions and progress.
~o~
Jaune and Khione led a group of Atlas soldiers through the agricultural district, trying to clear out more Grimm. Jaune had used Douse on one of them, who had used his semblance to enhance everyone's attacks. When they reached a road Ruby had told them about, which led to a large pack of Grimm, Jaune turned his sword into its broadsword form and swung it downwards, sending a wave of water along the filthy road and washing most of the waste away.
"There you go," Jaune said with a satisfied smile, returned his weapon into its sword and shield form again and started walking down the road, leading the soldiers.
"Good idea," Khione said, held her right arm with her left hand and said, "I just wish I could be of more help."
"You'll get there. I mean, look at me," Jaune said, "When I enrolled at Beacon, I almost died during the initiation. Now I'm leading my own platoon of soldiers into Grimm-infested territory and working to reclaim one of the four biggest cities in the world."
"Wait, really?" Khione asked, "Is the initiation that hard?"
"No, I was just that bad," Jaune answered with a chuckle, "But like I said, I've gotten pretty far from where I started." Suddenly, the soldiers opened fire, and Jaune deployed his shield facing the enemy, while Khione prepared her crossbow.
"What are those?" Khione asked, looking at the bundles of moss and twigs handing from webs between the buildings. Before Jaune could answer, a barrage of wooden splinters came for the group, and he had to block it with his shield. Another barrage hit, and Jaune began charging his special disk. When the third barrage came, he fired the disk into it, creating a barrier on impact.
"Those are Ankle-biters," Jaune explained, "They normally use trash to make their armor, but it looks like plant matter is also an option. We'll have to let Glynda know when we get back."
"What do we do?" Khione asked.
"Leave that to me," one of the soldiers said, "My Crosswind semblance makes me immune to projectile attacks."
"No, you stay here," Jaune said, "Those things are too unpredictable to just rush in. We need to be smart about this."
"What about that barrier?" Khione asked, "I mean, can we still hit them?"
"We can, yes," Jaune answered, "It only blocks attacks one way."
"Then I might have an idea," a woman said and explained, "My Aura Needle semblance may not deal a lot of damage, but if I had dust, it could help us a lot."
"Would any type be good, or do you have preferences?" Jaune asked and explained, "Because if you want water- or plant-dust, I can use Douse or Grassy Terrain."
"I mean, ice would be ideal, I think," the woman answered, "You know, to freeze their web and make them unable to move. Maybe fire to set the web on fire, or lightning to hit them all at once. But whatever works, works."
"We still have that dust," one of the men said, reached into his back pocket and pulled out a steam-dust crystal.
"Oh, right, that," the woman said, much less enthusiastic than Jaune expected, and almost a bit upset.
"What's wrong with it?" Jaune asked.
"It's from that pink cat faunus," the woman answered, and Jaune could practically hear the resentment in her voice.
"Is there a problem with faunus?" Khione asked and took a step towards the woman, who suddenly found herself uncomfortably aware of Khione's massive horns.
"Well, I wouldn't exactly put it like that," the woman answered and backed away, trying to avoid eye contact.
"Then there doesn't seem to be a problem," Jaune said, reasserting his authority, "I say do it." The soldier in the back handed the crystal forward, and the woman took it in her left hand. She let go of her assault rifle, letting it dangle from its shoulder strap, and held her right hand towards the Grimm. A black energy disk formed in front of her hand, just a bit larger than her spread fingers, and a barrage of needles shot out of it. The needles passed through the force field and the Ankle-biters returned fire with wooden shards, leaves, and orbs of dark green energy.
"That could've gone better," Khione said as she watched the needles collide with the Ankle-biters' attacks and burst into puffs of steam.
"I need cover fire," the woman said, and the other soldiers aimed their guns at the Grimm.
"Hold on a second," Jaune said and fired a second special disk, replacing the initial barrier before it ran out. The woman tried again, and fired another barrage of Aura Needles at the Grimm, while the other soldiers opened fire in their general direction. With the Grimm distracted, the needles hit their mark, exploding into puffs of smoke on impact. The Grimm immediately began taking damage from the steam, and when the first Ankle-biter died, it exploded in golden flames, quickly killing the entire pack.
~o~
A group of Vale police officers trying to help reclaim the commercial district fled from a pack of Grimm, consisting of Beowolves, Creeps, and Boarbatusk. They made their way across a crossing, but had to stop and catch their breaths. When the first Grimm ran onto the crossing, a somewhat beaten-up black van hit it in the side, killing it. The Grimm stopped before running into the van, the back door swung open and Yang jumped out.
"Get inside if you want to live," Yang called out, then charged towards the Grimm. She punched the ground with an earth-dust round, creating a large boulder, and kicked it into the air. She jumped up and hit the boulder with a palm thrust and aura shockwave, shattering it and bombarding the Grimm with a barrage of rock shards. After she landed again, and the Grimm died, she got into the van and closed the doors again.
"You know, you didn't have to be so dramatic about it," Blake said with a smile, "If the Grimm had gotten past you, I could've dealt with them, too."
"Yeah, I know," Yang said with a chuckle, "But I always really wanted to say that, and this was the perfect opportunity."
"Anyway, where to now?" Taiyang asked, looking back at them from the driver's seat.
"How about the food court?" Yang asked.
"We're not on vacation," Taiyang said.
"We were actually heading there," one of the officers said and asked, "But, how did you get this van going again?"
"I know a thing or two about bikes," Yang answered, "And vans also use combustion engines, so I figured it can't be that hard. Anyway, dad, to the food court."
"Alright, the food court it is," Taiyang said, "Everyone, hold on tight."
"I still can't believe that worked," Blake said.
"Well, I do have my strong points," Yang said with a playful smile. However, when the van hit the curb, the engine gave out and the van rolled into a street light. Everyone looked at each other while Taiyang tried to restart the van, until the engine started to smoke.
"And what would those be?" Blake asked with a smile.
"Hey, it worked for a bit," Yang said, "But yeah, I guess vans aren't exactly like motorcycles." She was a bit upset, not about Blake teasing her for failing, but about failing in the first place.
"Well, I guess we'll be walking from here on," Taiyang said and everyone got out of the van. While the police officers checked their equipment, more as a standard procedure before heading into unknown territory than anything, Blake already sent an incendiary-goo Combat Drone down the road, to clear out some of the Grimm in advance.
~o~
Ren made his way through the residential district, mostly as a safety to ensure that the soldiers and police hadn't missed any Grimm. He swiftly made his way along the rooftops and occasionally used Petal Burst to get across larger gaps. When he saw a small group of Beowolves, he shot a salvo of crystal bullets at them, and internally scolded himself for not picking up Spectral Assault while he had the chance.
"That must do," Ren thought, seeing how he at least had Spectral Healing, and Ambush worked so well with his own semblance, "But I should probably ask Ruby to fuse with me again, so I can get Immortal Resistance." The Grimm looked around to find out what had hit them, but couldn't see Ren due to his semblance. A patrol of Knights came along, and the three robots immediately opened fire, killing the Grimm before they could reach the robots. Ren checked his scroll to see the robots' patrol route, and decided to help them out a little.
"Who's there?" Velvet asked after Ren had run ahead a little, and jumped onto the five story building in three impressive leaps.
"Hello Velvet," Ren said and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, Ren, it's you," Velvet said and answered, "That's actually a pretty wild story. Coco and I were coming back from an assignment, and we kind of got into an argument. I think I was just hungry. Anyway, I stormed off, and the next thing I know, I'm here, and surrounded by dozens of open cans."
"Wait, what?!" Ren asked in shock, "But, why didn't Coco say anything? When was that?" Velvet pulled out her scroll and checked the date.
"About three days ago," Velvet answered, "And, well, things get kind of difficult when you have a prey animal's instincts, so I usually tell people to not come after me if I storm off like that, since it can make things more complicated for everyone. But it's never been this bad before."
"Can you show me where you woke up?" Ren asked.
"Sure, this way," Velvet answered and jumped off the roof, leading him to an apartment building. Just as she had said, it was filled with canned vegetables, with most cans having bite marks on them.
"This… I didn't expect this," Ren said.
"I honestly have no idea what happened," Velvet said anxiously and asked, "Do you know what's going on?"
"I actually have an idea, wait here," Ren answered and focused on the ambient aura.
"What are you doing?" Velvet asked when she sensed his aura change.
"Aura tracing," Ren answered, "It allows me to see what happened here. I can only go back a few days, but that should be enough." He looked around, and saw Velvet enter the room with bunny hops. She had a wild look in her eyes, and her aura had manifested as a tail and teeth. She opened a pantry and grabbed a can of food, then proceeded to gnaw it open with her aura teeth, drink the liquid, and pour the vegetables into her mouth, spilling some of both.
"So, what happened?" Velvet asked when Ren relaxed again and she felt his aura return to normal.
"I may not be the most qualified to explain this to you," Ren said, "But it appears that your instincts took over."
"Wait, what does that mean?" Velvet asked and said, "Talia didn't mention anything like that."
"Like I said, I'm not exactly qualified for this," Ren said, "However, Blake or Sirena can probably tell you more about this, and how to use it to your advantage."
"Well, alright, I guess I'll ask them about it later," Velvet said and asked, "Now, why did you come here in the first place?"
"I mostly came to kill some Grimm," Ren answered, "I know the military has things under relative control, but I still wanted to help them, since I know that they can be a bit helpless at times."
"Sounds great," Velvet said, "I can also use a little distraction from whatever just happened to me, so I guess I'll come along."
"If you're up for it," Ren said, "Now come, the Knights are probably already past us." The duo left the apartment building and quickly caught up to the robots, then passed them and took out some of the Grimm the Knights were headed towards.
~o~
In the late afternoon, Cardin landed by another chunk of ice, and waited for the next Ruby clone to arrive. He sat down on a nearby bench and contemplated his situation again, since there was little else he could do. About ten minutes later, the clone arrived via portal, and Cardin was about to fly to the next location when she stopped him.
"You can go to the base again," Ruby said, "This is the last one for today, we'll keep going tomorrow."
"Got it," Cardin said, walked into an alleyway, transformed into his bird form and flew back to the train station. One by one, his team members arrived as well, until finally, a red portal opened and Ruby, Weiss and Nora came back. By the end of the day, everyone else had come back as well, including Velvet.
~o~
The next morning, everyone got up early, and while Blake explained the alpha state to Velvet, Ruby fused with Ren and had Lotus share their semblance with him. After that was done, the fusion split up again, and Ruby, Weiss and Nora went back to the dust processing plant to continue their work there. After the trio and Team CRDL went on their way, Ren hesitantly approached Sirena when she was free.
"Sirena, can I ask you something?" Ren asked.
"Of course," Sirena answered and asked, "What is it?"
"How do you choose who to fuse with?" Ren asked, catching Sirena by surprise, which in turn surprised him.
"That… may be a bit difficult to explain without upsetting people," Sirena answered, "But in short, I fuse with people when I can gain something from it."
"And what did you gain so far?" Ren asked, "From Weiss, and Nora, and the others?"
"From Weiss, I gained certainty," Sirena answered, "Fusing with her put my mind at ease that she would not turn on her friends. Nora taught me how to enjoy the simple things in life. Everyone else falls somewhere between those two. Well, except for Blake."
"So, why did you fuse with her?" Ren asked.
"She asked me to," Sirena answered.
"And, can we fuse if I asked you to, too?" Ren asked.
"Of course," Sirena answered, "But perhaps I should warn you. Apparently, my sensory abilities exceed what surface-dwellers are capable of by quite a bit, leaving my partners a bit… stunned."
"That is fine," Ren said, "I was mostly interested in acquiring a new semblance, and the ones of fusions involving you tend to be more offensively oriented."
"I figured it was something like that," Sirena said, "Alright then, I'm ready when you are." The two of them hugged, and Sirena initiated the fusion. Unbeknownst to them, Velvet was just around the corner, intending to ask Sirena for the same favor Ren had asked, but when she heard what was going on, she decided to keep a respectable distance.
~o~
Maria walked through Atlas Academy, not exactly knowing what she should do over the weekend. Over the past few months, she had trained to sense anger in others, and while the people were getting more easily agitated by the day, she couldn't pin down a cause. Suddenly, a red portal opened near her, and Sirena and Velvet walked out.
"Hello Maria, I hope I'm not interrupting anything," Sirena said.
"No, not at all, hello," Maria said and asked, "Who's this?"
"I'm Velvet Scarlatina," Velvet answered, "My dad works here in Atlas, actually."
"I'm Maria Calavera, nice to meet you," Maria said, turned to Sirena and asked, "So, what are you planning this time?"
"What makes you think I'm planning anything?" Sirena asked.
"Because of her," Maria answered, "You brought someone from somewhere else to Atlas, completely unannounced. There has to be a reason. I'm not upset, of course, but I'd like a head's up next time, so that I can be in position, and make sure the right people are here, too."
"I appreciate your support, but I'm not planning anything," Sirena said, "She just wanted to come here."
"Well, alright then," Maria said, turned to Velvet and asked, "So, what is it that you want?"
"I saw Blake use this one semblance, Shooting Star," Velvet answered, "And I wanted to copy it so I can use it for myself, too. You see, with my rabbit instincts, I can use my aura for a prey sense, meaning that I know when Grimm target me. And in those cases, having a homing ability like that would come in handy. Plus, I have some additional abilities, like sensing fear or another semblance, that work well with this setup."
"That does sound like a good plan," Maria said, "Alright, I'll show you where Ivori is. Follow me." She took the lead, and as the trio walked through the academy, Velvet looked around in awe, mainly because she had heard that it looked a lot more sterile, and boring, than it actually did. While she had the chance, she also observed the different students practice combat, and took pictures of their weapons for later use.
~o~
Taiyang fought a pack of Grimm in the agricultural district, with Jaune helping him out. Taiyang had his fists and feet coated in blue energy spheres, enhancing his unarmed attacks and releasing splashes of water with every hit he landed. He killed an Alpha Beowolf with a kick to the chest and sent the energy ball flying into the pack behind the Grimm, then made another one and rushed the Grimm, while Jaune followed him, ready to recharge his aura or reapply Douse as needed. As they went deeper and deeper into the agricultural district, Jaune felt increasingly uneasy about the situation.
"Shouldn't we take a break or something?" Jaune asked and said, "I mean, I know you're a professional and all, but this feels a bit reckless."
"I guess you're right," Taiyang said after killing another pack of Beowolves, "I guess I got a bit carried away with Ruby's drive to protect the city. We'll keep going until we hit that corner, then we'll take a break." As they reached the corner, they spotted a lone Alpha Beowolf and wanted to engage it. Suddenly, Ren dropped down behind it with his weapons in his hands, but their blades were covered in a dark purple energy. He swiftly decapitated the Grimm, and after it evaporated, dark purple bubbles rose from where it had died, popping after rising about three meters.
"Hey Ren," Jaune said and asked, "What are you doing here? And what are those bubbles?"
"Hello, you two," Ren said and turned around, and the glow faded from his weapons, "I was looking for Grimm, and when I saw you, I decided to help you. I fused with Sirena, and those bubbles are from that fusion's semblance, just like the glowing blades you just saw. Every time I kill an enemy with it, those bubbles start rising, and keep rising for about ten minutes. If another enemy like the one I killed approaches, the bubbles pop and fire a small burst of energy at the enemy."
"That's pretty nice, actually," Jaune said, then processed the first part of the explanation and asked, "Wait, you fused with Sirena? Why?"
"Because I wanted to get better," Ren answered, "While we were traveling, I could barely help with fights, aside from making us invisible to Grimm, but that was rarely necessary. I can't do a lot of damage, so I have to get better at hindering the enemies as much as I can." Before Jaune could fully process the information, another pack of Beowolves appeared at the end of the road, and charged towards the trio. Taiyang got ready to fight, and as soon as the Grimm got close to the bubbles, they started popping, firing energy bullets at the Grimm. While the bubbles did little damage, they triggered Spectral Healing with each hit and left a purple film on the Grimm, which dealt damage over time. The trio then proceeded to quickly dispose of the Grimm, and took a break.
Author's note: Nothing like talking to someone with horns more than half as long as your arm, who has a habit of goring weaker Grimm with them, to make you realize that maybe being racist isn't the safest road to walk in life.
Aura Needle was a semblance suggested to me by someone on r/fnki, in a thread about Oscar being able to use all his previous incarnations' semblances. I like this one. It's a simple mid-range attack semblance that can lend a lot of support, depending on the situation.
Yes, the steam-dust does come from Neon. Sirena also helped out, as promise, namely by fusing with both Cinder and Yang, one at a time, meaning that Neon can now use Deathzone and Daybreaker. However, due to only having one source, it's fairly rare, and needs to be managed well.
Sirena is pretty blunt about what she can gain from people, at least if she wants to. And depending on whether she likes you or not, you can be just as blunt if you want something from her, especially if it helps you protect yourself and others.