Pyrrha: Previously, on The Defenders of Remnant...
"What happened here?!" Cinder exclaimed.
"T-Taskmaster… i-installed the spinal implant…" Tinkerer coughed. "But it malfunctioned…"
"Malfunctioned how?" Cinder questioned impatiently.
"When implanted, its signal became cross wired with his nerves, and his mental implant. Those b-bloodthirsty tendencies of his tied with his barely restrained hatred of Parker rewired his head. I told him to wait for you, but he grew i-impatient. He left for Parker, and to find Black -Ack! B-Black Tarantula!"
Cinder growled and dropped Mason to the ground. "You were told not to perform the operation yet! Who gave you the orders to do so?"
"He did," Mason answered, "And so did Salem."
"We both know Salem won't like you creating such a personal attachment to someone. You have to be her toy to mold, her little maiden in the making. If anything were to take away from your focus, I'm sure Salem would do anything to remove that obstacle if she found out."
"I believe he's heading for Beacon," Mason said
"Wait… where's BT?" Blake asked.
"That's part of the problem," Luke said before pressing play on the scroll
"I will have blood tonight. The red will run through the forgotten streets of Mountain Glenn. If you want this experiment so badly, I will give him up for Spider-Man.
"You… can't seriously be going…" Ruby said.
"BT's life hangs in the balance. I'm going, and I'm going alone, just like he wants," Peter answered
"We're not seriously letting him go, right?" Yang asked.
"No, we're not," Ruby said firmly.
He broke free from the wires and looked up. Crouched on top of the lamp post was Logan, metal claws sprouted from between his knuckles..
"You're welcome, bub," Logan said.
He's not predicting them, he's just-"
"Insane," BT finished. "In his right mind, he was a cold-calculating monster that could snap you in two, stop your actions before you could even take them. But now, he's not a monster: he's just an animal."
"And animals are predictable," Peter said.
"We're not afraid of you. I'm not afraid of you. Not anymore," BT said sternly.
"What…?"
"I think they're here for you…"
"No! Nooo!" Soon his body was lost in the heap of animalistic forms piling up to tear him apart.
Peter just felt… nothing.
"I think it's time we give you a real name, BT. You've definitely earned it."
"What did you have in mind?" BT asked.
"Ben. Ben Reilly."
"So… Taskmaster is dead?" Salem asked.
Cinder gritted her teeth, and had to force the answer out of her mouth. "Yes."
"Do not let whatever attachment you had to Taskmaster cloud your mind. This mission and my will are what matters. Do you understand this?"
"Yes, Salem. I am a tool of your will and a bringer of your wrath. I will not fail you," Cinder said.
"And?"
"Without you, I am nothing."
"Wh-Who's there?" Peter asked.
"Strange. People of this universe shouldn't hear or see me. But you aren't of Remnant either, are you?" The voice said.
"I'm going crazy…"
"Normally only those in my realm needing a new purpose can hear my words. Are you seeking purpose?"
"Despite what the world thinks, we're not just teachers, or generals, or headmasters," Qrow said, "The people in this room, the leaders of the other two academies, we're the ones who keep the world safe from the evils no one even knows about. It's why we meet behind closed doors, why we work in the shadows,"
"I suggest… that we trust our current guardians, and find who will be our next," Ozpin said.
"And what does that entail, teach?" Logan asked.
"It means we find who will be the next Fall Maiden."
The Defenders of Remnant
Chapter 41: Amber
"And victory goes to Penny and Ciel of Atlas!" Oobleck announced. Both Russel Thrush and Sky Lark were unconscious on the ground with Penny and her teammate Ciel standing over them. Ciel was a dark-skinned human girl with short dark-teal hair and blue eyes. She had a gold marking of an oval shape surrounded by four smaller circles in the center of her forehead. She wore a blue beret, a plain off-white button-down shirt with an asymmetrical collar, a blue combat skirt with a black waistband, fingerless elbow-length gloves with a wristwatch on her left hand an black shoes alongside white, golden buttoned boot chaps.
Penny held her hands behind her back with a wide smile and said: "Thank you for a wonderful time!" With that, Penny and Ciel made for the arena exit.
While the group all sat together, the group being Team RWBY, Cardin, and Ben, Ruby and Ben were cheering extra loud at Penny's victory. Peter and the team thought it relatively safe for Ben to appear in public now, with Taskmaster's active search for him no longer a concern. They would just have to play off Ben's physical resemblance to Peter as him being Peter's younger brother to those not in the know of his true origins. Not entirely untrue, but not the truth itself either. A perfect white lie.
Cardin shook his head and facepalmed at his teammates' embarrassing and absolute defeat at the hands of Penny and Ciel. They barely posed any threat to the two Atlesian girls. "This is a joke…"
"Well, did you expect anything different, Cardin?" Yang asked.
"Not really, but still… they were stomped. If I didn't have to risk Venom coming out on accident, I'd have gone in myself."
"At least now you have a good reason not to show everyone how bad you are," Yang smirked.
"Very funny," Cardin deadpanned.
Ruby eyed Penny and Ciel leaving the arena and leapt out of her seat to rush to that exit and catch her before she left. Ben caught on and jumped up to follow her.
They caught Penny just as she made it past the bleachers into the hall leading out to Amity's landing pads. "Penny!" Ruby called out. The android turned around and her natural smile grew wider as she eyed her two friends.
"Ruby! BT!" She lunged forward and tackle-hugged them both to the ground, kicking their feet up from the impact.
"Why…?" Ruby groaned. Ben seemed unaffected. He and Penny quickly returned to their feet while Ruby groaned and rubbed her head, her rise much slower.
"Ruby, BT, this is my teammate," Penny introduced Ciel.
"Ciel Soleil," Ciel slightly bowed.
"Hi! I'm Ru-" Ruby started to say, but Ciel cut her off.
"Ruby Rose. Fifteen. Hails from Patch. Leader of Team RWBY. Status: Questionable," Ciel said, speaking in a monotone way as if reading off a diagnostic list instead of describing a human being. Very regimented, this one.
"I thought I was weird…" Ben muttered.
"Sooo… Penny! You two were incredible out there! How do you keep control of all those swords? It's so cool!" Ruby started to fangirl over Penny's combat when Ciel butt in again, gesturing to her wristwatch.
"Penny, I believe it is best if we move on to our next location," She said.
"Could we have just a minute to talk?" Penny asked. Ciel glanced at her watch, then back at Penny, giving her a firm nod, before stepping away from the trio. She then stared intently at her watch, as if counting down the seconds until a literal minute was up. Ben glanced at her in confusion before turning back to his two huntress friends.
"So… is she your friend, or…?" He asked the android.
"Well, in a way. She'e like Blake, but if Blake was ordered to spend time with you," Penny answered.
"Oh, so Weiss," Ruby remarked, making Ben snort.
"Precisely," Penny smiled.
"What happened to the scary guy with the skull on his chest?" Ben asked.
"Specialist Castle is training personally with General Ironwood today, so Ciel is watching over me in his stead," Penny answered.
"Does she know about…" Ruby started to ask, then looked over at Ben. He seemed to catch the meaning behind the glance fast enough.
"Don't worry, she told me about the whole… y'know… 'nuts and bolts' thing too," Ben said.
"Oh, yes! You two are the only ones besides the General and my father that know. The General doesn't want anyone to know, even Ciel," Penny answered. "There was an incident with a magnet, but I was able to play it off. Oh, while I'm thinking about it, BT?"
"Hm? What is it?" Ben asked.
"I thought you were supposed to stay in either Peter's laboratory or Ruby's dorm. What are you doing here?" Penny asked.
"Oh yeah, guess I never got to tell you. Well… Taskmaster's gone. I don't have to hide anymore. Just in time, too. I got to come see you fight in person!"
"Oh, that's wonderful, BT!" Penny smiled wider.
"Oh, right, and you don't have to call me BT anymore. I have a real name now," Ben said.
"Really? Do share!"
"I'm Ben now. Ben Reilly."
"What a wonderful name! It suits you well," Penny complimented.
"Thanks, Penny," Ben said, nervously rubbing his neck with a small blush coming to his face.
"I have something to share with both of you as well," Penny said.
"What is it?" Ruby asked.
Penny looked over at Ciel, who still stood well out of earshot staring at her watch, then stepped closer to her two friends, dropping her voice to a whisper. "I want to stay at Beacon."
"Penny, they'll never let you do that," Ruby frowned.
"I know…" Penny sighed, "But I have a plan."
Suddenly, Ciel was right next to the group again, pointing firmly at her watch. "It's been precisely one minute, ma'am."
"I'll talk to the two of you soon," Penny promised before exciting Amity with her by-the-book teammate, giving the two a small wave before she left their eyesight.
"Our next match will begin in fifteen minutes," Port's voice came over the speakers.
"Sounds like Weiss and Yang are up. Wanna get back to our seats?" Ben asked.
"Yep! Let's go!"
Peter opened his eyes slowly, soon realizing he wasn't in his dorm room, or his lab. He was just… somewhere else. It was like a starry void, with tiny droplets of yellow flight filling the space and sky. He groaned as he got up, and began looking around. "Where am I….?" He turned around and saw a large female figure silhouetted against the flames of a large smithing fire. He was confused, and hesitantly started walking towards her. When he got close enough, she spoke.
"I see you finally made it," The blacksmith said. The echoing female voice was familiar.
"It's you… you're the voice I heard before," Peter deduced.
"Indeed I am," She replied. She stood up and turned to face him. The blacksmith was tall, and fully mechanical, bearing a robotic skeletal appearance. Her eye sockets were hollow, her head made up of several segmented metallic plates. She wore a leather apron tied behind her neck and cinched with a belt buckle around the waist, a pair of large gloves, and a blue bandana tied around her forehead from which a chain draped similar to a braid. Thick wires atop her head formed something akin to dreadlocks tied back in a bun.
"Who are you?" Peter asked.
"Simply a guide," The blacksmith answered.
"A guide for what?" Peter asked.
"Helping those who need it find one's self. Normally, I can only do so with those of my own world. But that mark on your arm, it seems to have connected you to me." She gestured to the blackened wound on Peter's arm
"That… doesn't make any sense…" Peter said.
"Many things don't. But such things, sense or no sense, still exist as is. They are meant to be, regardless of comprehension."
"Sounds very vague and oddly condescending."
"Tell me, do you feel like yourself?" The blacksmith asked, sitting back down, leaving her eye level with Peter.
"I… don't know…" Peter said. He saw the blacksmith took an interest, and was waiting for him to continue. He sighed heavily. "For years, I've held myself to this standard of what I should be. For a long time now, I've found it hard to keep to that standard. I took a man's life, and have failed to save the lives of others time and time again. It's starting to make me wonder if trying to be what I'm trying to be is even worth it. I gave it all up once. Maybe that was the right decision, and what I'm doing now is just not wanting to let it all go…"
"You're struggling to figure out who you are, and who you're supposed to be," The blacksmith said, saying it as more of a statement than a question. Peter gave her a solemn nod. "Well, who do you want to be, Peter Parker?"
"What?"
"You use your past to define who you are. Who do you want to be? Do you want to continue to be Peter Parker, the selfless young man who carries the weight of two worlds and a dark past on his shoulders, or do you want to be none of it? Start new. What will be your purpose, Peter?" The blacksmith asked.
Peter didn't know how to answer. He was confused by her meaning. He was about to answer when his eyes really opened, and he was sprawled out on his bed in his dorm room. He let out a groggy groan and sat up, rubbing his messy hair, wondering if any of that was real. He looked down at the blackened wound on his arm, growing curious.
Who do you want to be, Peter?
His scroll chimed on his desk across the room. He groaned and grabbed one of his web shooters before web-pulling his scroll to him, his muscles feeling too heavy to get up further. He checked the scroll, and the results of the most recent match popped on its screen: "Yang Xiao Long and Weiss Schnee of Team RWBY vs Neon Katt and Flynt Coal of Team FNKI. Results: Team RWBY Wins!"
Peter sighed and smirked a bit before setting his scroll aside. Good job, guys… he sighed again and forced himself up for the day.
Cinder furiously sat on one of the beds in the dorm room, with Mercury across the room doing push-ups and Emerald laying on her stomach on the floor, kicking her legs back and forth as she was looking down at her scroll's screen. Cinder paid no attention to any of this. Her mind was too busy, her emotions just coming on the tipping point of boiling only thing keeping her calm was the risk of blowing the mission and exposing themselves, otherwise at the very least she would have turned this entire dorm building to ash by now.
She was absently scrolling through Atlesian files on a tablet scroll. Eventually, she came across a set of blueprints marked P.E.N.N.Y. She recognized the blueprints as the red-haired girl that had gotten involved with their plans before, at the docks, as well as saving Black Tarantula from Electro. Turns out she was an android designed for defense of Atlas. It piqued her interest, to be sure.
But that wasn't enough now. Vale would burn, but now it had been made personal. Anthony had been killed, mauled by Grimm after being defeated by Black Tarantula, Parker and their friends. Penny would presumably be a friend of theirs, but still that wasn't enough. Just going according to plan wouldn't be enough anymore. Not for Cinder, at least. She swiped the blueprints away and kept scrolling. Peter Parker. He took away something Cinder never thought she could get again: an attachment, some kind of life outside of Salem's mission. Something she could experience to feel human. Anthony was just as broken as she was, but their pieces fit well enough together.
Now she felt even more hollow than she had before their worlds had crossed. And she could pin all the blame to one face and one name: Peter Parker. The plan would've been to deal a blow to the reputation of the headmasters, dragging Ozpin and Ironwood's names through the mud. Now, she was going to do it to the people's favorite hero instead. But how…?
Then the memory of Penny's deeds against their mission reminded Cinder of something. Penny had first interfered at the docks.
The Docks… Cinder thought. That very same night, Peter had beaten Wilson Fisk nearly to a pulp, and would've killed him had no one interfered. A brutalization of a man no one knows would certainly cause doubt, panic and fear among all those who believe him to be a hero. Enough to draw Grimm in from far and wide. She searched files for a few more minutes until she found it: camera footage from the dockyards. There were several reels from that night from several cameras, but after some searching, she found it: a reel of the brutal encounter between the late Kingpin of Crime and the wall crawler. She smirked and let out an icy chuckle.
"What is it?" Emerald asked.
"Nothing," Cinder answered, "We're just going to be making a slight… alteration to the plan." Her two underlings traded glances before Mercury spoke up.
"What does that mean?" Mercury questioned.
"It means that this will be even easier than we thought," Cinder smirked, a prideful and vengeful flame sparking up inside of her.
"So… Taskmaster is dead?" Ozpin asked.
"Yes, professor," Matt said. "He was eaten by Grimm in our battle."
"I see. So, our red woman now stands on her own then," Ozpin deduced. "Any aid from inhabitants of your world has been cut off."
"I suppose that's one way to put it…" Matt sighed.
"You don't like this outcome?" Ozpin asked.
"Evil or not, Taskmaster was a criminal, and should've gone to trial."
"While I admire your lawful sentiment, Mister Murdock, reality is often a harsh mistress, as is one's karma. Taskmaster was a major threat to this kingdom, and he spilled blood to try and make it happen, so his own blood was spilled in turn. It isn't on your hands, you shouldn't feel guilty for it. The universe just made him answer for his crimes in the ultimate fashion."
"While I don't disagree, with myself personally thinking he deserved to die, it isn't my conscience I'm concerned about. It's Peter's," Matt replied. "He's always strived to spare the lives of even the worst people, even after his… incident. I can't imagine how he must feel after so many of our enemies are now gone without him being able to save them."
"Peter… is a pure soul. A shining example of what humanity can be. It is my opinion that he is what we all should strive to become. Strong but kind. Fierce yet passionate." Ozpin said.
"Certainly better than holding an entire kingdom as a shield protecting an ancient power, right?' Matt raised an eyebrow.
"Must we discuss this again, Matthew?" Ozpin sighed.
"I understand protecting a relic and a maiden at all costs, but using the populace to do so is out of line!" Matt exclaimed.
"Do you think if there was a better option, I wouldn't make use of it?" Ozpin questioned, his own voice starting to raise.
"Honestly? No, I don't. I believe that no matter what, you would use every option possible to keep Salem and the Grimm away from Autumn and the relic." Matt pulled his red tinted glasses off and leaned down, placed his hands on Ozpin's desk, and looked Ozpin straight in the eyes. Not through him or past him, as any of his other blind glances do, but at him, locking eyes with the headmaster. "Every option. I'm sure reincarnation tends to harden the hearts of even the most positive individuals to the point of not caring about the value of human life."
Ozpin sighed, then removed his own spectacles and rubbed his eyes, before locking the blind hero's gaze again. He stood up to match Matt's stature as well. "Mister Murdock, I have lived a thousand lives since this power was bestowed upon me, which has been a thousand too many. More than enough times through to learn that this ability is a curse, not a gift. My entire purpose for a millennia has been to thwart Salem's continued attempts to gather the relics and take power of the Maidens. At no point since my first existence as the knight called Ozma have I lived a remotely normal life. I am tasked with a duty I will serve for eternity. I can never rest, and I can never truly live. Believe me, I have tried. But no matter how I try to live a life, I inevitably lose those close to me in each one. I have experienced the same kind of loss all of you have countless times over. You may take the guise of a devil, Mister Murdock, but you have no understanding of real hell.
"So do not question what I believe the value a single human life holds, let alone an entire kingdom's worth. I do not wish to see a single person die in my mission. I hold a single citizen's life over all of my own. If it were up to me, I would bear this burden alone for eternity, content to fade out of the focus of existence and let the world continue in peace. But I learned the hard way that that doesn't work. I would not force this responsibility upon anyone, but these academies are symbols of peace and unity in the world, some of the only ones we have. Even if it is a white lie, I would rather everyone in the world feel safe and secure than risk panic and fear by telling them what we're really up against. It isn't their burden to bear. I have kept Salem from victory this long, and I do not intend on stopping now. I'm not asking you to like it, Matthew, I'm not even asking you to trust me. I'm just asking you to understand how much depends on this, and what all could go wrong if it falls apart. Please… help me keep my people safe. Be a defender of my people for as long as you are here."
Matt could tell by Ozpin's heartbeat he truly meant every word he said. Whether that meant it was right or wrong was still up in the air, but Ozpin truly believed this was the only way. And he was right: as of right now, what would an alternative be?
Before Matt could contemplate further, the elevator dinged and opened its doors, and Qrow entered the office with a mug in hand. Matt put his glasses back on and backed away, while Ozpin did the same and sat back in his chair, spinning around to view the Atlesian fleet filling the skyline out the clock tower window. Qrow stood next to Matt, then followed Ozpin's eyeline. "Y'know, he's making you look like a fool," Qrow said, referencing Ironwood.
"His heart is in the right place," Ozpin replied. "He's just… misguided."
"Sometimes I'm not even sure he has a heart," Qrow said before sipping the contents of his mug.
"So… concerning the maiden… have you chosen who will take up Autumn's mantle?" Matt asked the headmaster.
Ozpin spun his chair back around to face the two. "Maidens choose themselves. I simply believe I've found the right candidate. Ever since I met her, I had a feeling she would be the one. She's strong, intelligent, caring, but most importantly, she's ready."
"And who exactly is this candidate?" Qrow asked.
"Pyrrha Nikos."
"Dammit!" Tony cursed, striking the large machine he and Reed Richards were building with the wrench in his hand.
"Emotional outbursts will get us nowhere, Tony," Reed said, reading data off of a tablet.
"C'mon, Reed, you can't say this isn't like bashing our heads against a brick wall!" Tony threw the wrench across the room. The sound of its impact against the wall was hard to miss.
"It is admittedly… frustrating. However, we can't let that consume our process," Reed said.
"I thought you've made universe-hopping machines before, how is this different?" Tony questioned.
"That transporter was made for travel within our own multiverse pocket. But the way Doctor Strange described our predicament, the Defenders and Peter were forced out of our pocket and into another pocket. It renders any previous knowledge I thought I had moot. There are so many factors involved in what could have happened with a device of that scale that we couldn't possibly replicate from a technological standpoint. There's also the matter of making a stable space bridge as opposed to something as dangerous and unstable as Fisk's collider. It doesn't seem technically feasible."
Suddenly an orange portal appeared behind both geniuses and Strange stepped out, closing the gateway behind him. "Then you can't just rely on technology."
"Where the hell have you been?" Tony questioned, throwing his hands up. "Pulling rabbits out of a hat, sawing people in half?"
"Making balloon animals," Strange replied sarcastically, jabbing at Tony for the earlier comment against Strange. "All that matters now is I'm here to focus on getting them back. Much more is at stake than simply their lives."
"So what do you propose we do?" Reed asked.
"We mix technology with magic, and we might find a way to safely open the multiversal barrier," Strange suggested. Tony let out an insulting laugh, to which Strange raised an eyebrow. "You have a better idea, Stark?"
"Oh, you were actually serious," Tony remarked.
"Y'know, maybe I do feel like sawing somebody in half," Strange frowned.
"Now now, gentleman, let's try and remain copacetic," Reed said, putting himself between the two. "Tony, we've been hitting dead ends for days now. Let's try things Strange's way."
"Oh, c'mon, you can't be serious!" Tony complained.
"Why not? Clearly, this is out of our comfort zone, yes. But it is worth at least trying," Reed replied.
Tony sighed heavily. "Fine. I'll go get a top hat for our magician here to do his work," Tony said before patting Strange on the shoulder and stepping out of the room.
"We're throwing him through first," Strange said.
"Oh, of course," Reed agreed.
Pyrrha sat straight up with her hands in her lap in a seat directly across from Ozpin, while both Qrow and Matt leaned against the pillars against the elevator. "Well, it comes as no surprise that they've chosen you to move on to the final round of the tournament. Your performance has been exemplary," Ozpin said to the redheaded huntress.
"Thank you, Professor Ozpin, but I never would've made it this far without my teammates," Pyrrha replied.
"Personally, I think it's the other way around," Qrow cut in. Pyrrha felt a bit annoyed at the comment and stood from her seat to turn and face the older huntsman.
"I'm sorry, but I don't believe we've been introduced," Pyrrha said evenly.
"Name's Qrow."
"Qrow is a trusted colleague of mine," Ozpin clarified.
Pyrrah turned back around to face the headmaster again. "Professor, if you don't mind me asking, why have you called me here?"
"Please, take a seat," Ozpin said, gesturing back to the chair Pyrrha had just left. Pyrrha sat back down to listen to her headmaster's words. "What is your favorite fairy tale?"
"I'm… sorry?" Pyrrha asked.
"Fairy tales. Stories from your childhood. Surely, you must remember some of them?"
"Well… there's The Tale of the Two Brothers, The Shallow Sea, The Girl in the Tower-" Pyrrha started to list off.
"What about The Story of the Seasons?" Ozpin asked.
"Oh of course! 'A callous old man who refuses to leave his home is visited by four traveling sisters. The first understands his reclusive nature and urges him to use his time in solitude to reflect and meditate. The second brings him fruits and flowers, tending to his crops and revitalizing his garden. The third warms the man's heart, convincing him to step outside and embrace the world around him. And the fourth and final sister begs him to look at all that he has and be thankful. In return for their kindness, the man grants the maidens incredible powers so that they may continue to help others all over the world. They accept, and promise to share their gifts with the people of Remnant until the end of days. Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. The Four Maidens'," Pyrrha recalled. "My mother loves that story."
"Would you believe me if I told you that one's been around since I was a boy?" Ozpin smiled.
"You're not that old, Professor," Pyrrha giggled.
"Well… would you believe me if I told you it was true?" Ozpin asked, his smile turning to a serious neutral frown. Matt could hear Pyrrha's heart skip a beat for a moment in surprise, but her casual friendly smile remained.
"I… beg your pardon?"
"What if I were to tell you that there were four maidens existing in this world that could wield such tremendous power without Dust?" Ozpin asked.
"You mean like, a semblance?" Pyrrha questioned, tilting her head.
"Like magic," Ozpin corrected.
"I-"
"Yeah, first time hearin' it's pretty crazy," Qrow said.
"Such things exist on my world," Matt said, "Would it really be out of the question for it to exist in yours?"
"You're serious?" Pyrrha questioned, trying to look for the lie in Ozpin's face. It was emotionless, even.
"Do I look like I'm joking?" Ozpin asked. A long moment of uncomfortable silence passed, the only sounds being the turning of the large clockwork gears above their heads.
"No," Pyrrha finally answered, lowering her head. "Why… why are you telling me this?"
Ozpin looked up, past the young huntress to his two confidantes across the room, as if unsure of himself. Qrow furrowed his brow and nodded his head. Matt didn't give a sign either way immediately, clearly not happy about bringing this to her attention at all, but reluctantly nodded in the end, then glanced at the elevator doors. Ozpin's eyes fell back on the fair young huntress, and he took a breath, his mind now resolved. "We're telling you, Pyrrha Nikos, because we believe you are next in line to receive the Fall Maiden's powers," He answered.
Surprise came to Pyrrha's face. The revelations being brought to her attention kept stacking up. "'We'?" She repeated, then the elevator doors opened to reveal Goodwitch and Ironwood waiting inside. Ironwood had a bandage or two on his face now covering fresh cuts.
"Sorry we're late," Ironwood said, straightening his tie.
"Wait… what is this? Who are you?" Pyrrha asked, her voice slightly breaking. Matt clenched his fist, but kept his mouth shut.
"You know who we are," Goodwitch said, "We're still the same teachers and headmasters you met when you arrived at Beacon."
"Except we've got a little part-time job," Qrow added.
"We are the protectors of this world…" Ironwood said.
"... and we need your help," Ozpin finished, now standing from his desk chair. Pyrrha looked around and stopped her gaze on Matt, who was the only one not looking at her.
"Professor Murdock…? Matt?" she said, trying to get something from him. He'd only spoken once this entire time, and was clearly as uncomfortable as she was.
"I'm… I'm not really a part of this group of theirs… but I think you should hear what they have to say," Matt said. Pyrrha looked down and reluctantly nodded. The six of them piled into the elevator. The doors shut and the metal box quickly began to descend, much farther than the ground floor, Pyrrh annotated. They were going underground.
Matt could hear every bit of her anxiety. The rush of her blood, the nervous sweat beginning to come from the pores in her face, and of course the increased heartbeat. Pyrrha held her herself nervously, fidgeting as she felt chills up her spine. She glanced around the elevator as all the adults around her silently faced forward, the onyl sounds coming from the periodic dings of the elevator.
"Where are we going?" She finally asked.
"A vault, under the school," Ozpin answered. Soon enough, the elevator slowly came to a stop and the ornate doors slid open. The adults all quickly filed out, while Pyrrha was slower to follow, her steps stuttering behind as she looked around her new setting: a long hall with a sky-high ceiling and lights affixed to every pillar along the path. Both Matt and Goodwitch stopped for Pyrrah, letting her reach their point while the other three men continued ahead.
"I'm sure you must have questions," Goodwitch said.
"Maybe one or two…" Pyrrha said, continuing on with Matt and Goodwitch taking her sides. "I still don't understand. You said I was next in line to receive the maiden's power. What do you mean by that?"
"The maidens have existed for thousands of years, but much like in nature, the seasons change. No two summers are alike. When a maiden dies, her power leaves her body and seeks out a new host, ensuring that the seasons are never lost, and that no individual can hold onto the power forever," Goodwitch answered.
"So… how does the power choose?" Pyrrha asked.
"Through a series of stupid and convoluted rules," Qrow answered, looking over his shoulder at her.
"Qrow…" Goodwitch said sternly.
"Hey, don't get mad 'cause I'm right," Qrow replied.
"At first, the only thing that was certain was that the powers were specifically passed on to young women," Goodwitch went on to answer. "But as time went on, it was discovered that the selection process was much more… intimate."
"'Intimate'?" Pyrrha repeated.
"As we understand, when a maiden dies, whoever is in her final thoughts is the first candidate to inherit her power," Matt clarified.
"Unless it's a dude, or some old hag," Qrow added. "Then the power goes to someone random, and our jobs get a lot harder."
"Why tell me all of this now?" Pyrrha asked. "Why not wait until I've graduated?"
"Honestly? We've run out of time," Qrow answered. "I don't know if you've noticed, but things are getting a lot scarier out in the world. Tensions are high, the Grimm are growing stronger, more prevalent, and it's not gonna be much longer until this peace we've all been enjoying so much goes out the window."
"You're not… talking about war?" Pyrrha questioned.
"Not a war between nations," Ironwood said.
"We can fill you in on all the details once we know you're with us," Qrow said. "For now, all you need to know is one of the maidens was attacked, and for the first time in history, part of her power was stolen."
"And it's of my belief that the power is currently in the hands of our mysterious red woman or one of her associates," Matt said. "Whatever they're doing in Vale, it could be a distraction to find the maiden and get the rest of the power."
The group came to a stop as they reached the end of the hall, where a large machine with two pods was hooked into the wall. One of the pods was lit up, and inside dressed scarcely in white undergarments was an unconscious young woman with brown hair, tanned skin, and a large burn on the side of her face.
"Is that…?" Pyrrha started to ask.
"The current Fall Maiden," Ozpin sighed. "Amber."
"She's… still alive…" Pyrrha shuddered.
"For now," Ironwood said. "We're using state-of-the-art Atlas technology to keep her stable. There's a lot about this situation that is… unprecedented."
"What do you mean?" Pyrrha asked.
Ironwood let out a heavy, regretful sigh before answering. "Well.. we don't know what will happen if… when she passes."
"Won't her power just transfer to the next host?"
"Look who's been listening. She is smart," Qrow remarked.
"Under normal circumstances, yes. And that's exactly the problem," Matt said. "If the powers go to whoever is in her last thoughts, it could be who attacked her."
"And to make matters worse, no one's ever seen the power split like this before," Ironwood added. "For all we know, it'll seek out its other half."
"Her assailant…" Pyrrha muttered.
"And that would not bode well, for any of us." Ozpin said, finally turning to face the star huntress. Pyrrha looked down, holding her own hand in the other, and closed her eyes. She thought to herself for just a few moments before reopening her eyelids and approaching Amber's pod. She gently placed her gloved hand on the glass, feeling the icy cold temperature of the interior.
"If all of this is true… why keep it secret?" She kept her hand on the glass and turned to face the five adults. "If this girl is so important… if, if we're truly on the brink of war, why not tell everyone?"
"From what we understand, it used to be common knowledge," Goodwitch replied.
"How do you think legends and fairy tales get started?" Qrow questioned while unscrewing the cap to his flask. "Even the craziest ones come from somewhere." He then drinks from the container, letting the liquor pour down his throat.
"Our group was founded to protect both mankind and the maidens," Goodwitch continued. "Those hungry for power hunted them with the hope of inheriting their strength."
"And, as you can imagine," Qrow said after finishing his drink, "The ones who succeeded weren't exactly the kind of people you'd want to have unimaginable power."
"And so this brotherhood chose to remove the maidens from the public eye, allowing their existence to fade away into legend," Ironwood added.
"The things we're telling you go against hundreds of years of human history, religion."
"No one would want to believe, it'd cause panic," Matt said.
"And we all know what that would bring clawing to our kingdom's walls," Ozpin added. "Which is why we would like to-"
"I'll do it," Pyrrha said, cutting the headmaster off. "If you believe this will help humanity, then I will become your Fall Maiden." The huntsmen all traded glances, seemingly not expecting such a direct answer. "That's what you all wanted, isn't it?"
"It is, but I'm afraid it's not that simple," Ozpin said. "Given Amber's condition, you won't be able to inherit her power naturally. However, General ironwood believes he has a solution."
"For the past few years, Atlas has been studying aura from a more scientific standpoint," Ironwood said. "How it works, what it's made of, how it can be used. We've made… significant strides, and we believe we found a way to capture it."
"Capture it, and cram it into something else," Qrow added. "Or in your case…"
Pyrrha didn't catch on at first, but it scared her when it did. "That's-" She started to say.
"Classifed," Ironwood said.
"Wrong," Pyrrha corrected.
"The feeling is mutual," Matt said.
Goodwitch seemed to share his sentiment with a glare at the military leader. "But desperate times call for desperate measures," She relented.
"And these are indeed desperate times," Ironwood continued. "We can't transfer Amber's power to you, but we can give you what those powers are bound to."
"Her aura," Pyrrha deduced.
"Her life would become intertwined with yours. The question is-" Ozpin started.
"What will it do to you?" Matt finished. Pyrrha looked down, not meeting their eyeline, seeming to think about it deeply. "This isn't a weight being put on your shoulders. It isn't something being put in your way. It's your choice whether to accept the power or not. You can't be blamed for not feeling up to such a high task."
"You have an important decision before you, Miss Nikos," Ozpin said. "There's no guarantee this transfer will work, and there's no telling if you will be the same person if it does. I advise you to take time to think on this matter, but understand, before the Vytal Festival is over, we will need your answer."
Pyrrha slowly turned and once again placed her hand on the glass. She saw the reflection of her face on Amber's within the pod. But if she went through with it, which would she come out as? She looked away, not able to bear thinking of it.
"The assailant who attacked the Fall Maiden has made their first move, and there's no telling when their next move will be."
"I'll… think on it…" Pyrrha said, her eyes only falling on the ground beneath her feet.
"As you must," Ozpin nodded. "You may go." Pyrrha also nodded, and while still not meeting their eyes, started back down the hall again for the elevator, wanting to leave this room as quickly as possible. "I don't envy her…" He sighed.
"You really don't… do you?" Matt questioned.
"I was completely truthful with you before, Matthew. I truly wish this wasn't a choice she ever had to make…"