Chapter 60: A Maiden's Heart
Death finally comes for Team Rainbow.
"I know it won't console you very much, but this choice was not one made lightly," said Ozpin.
He knew. He knew it would switch our aura, our very souls, and he did it anyways.
"You have to understand. If this catatonic body and the dead mind within passed on naturally, we'd have no idea where the maiden powers would go. The transfer can't switch the maiden powers, but it can switch your souls. Salem is active, and we require a guardian now more than ever. I needed someone inside who would choose wisely."
He chose me. He targeted me because I was this lonely, isolated champion girl. I don't have any friends or relatives in the right age range in Mistral because of my fame. Most of the people I know are adults, except those in Beacon, those near him. The next maiden will be close enough for his needs.
"It was Jaune who convinced me that this was necessary. Not intentionally, but through the words of his heart. 'No sacrifice too great.' I will stop Salem. I will bring a golden age of glorious peace and renewed faith to Remnant. Your death will not be in vain, Miss Nikos."
Memories came to her.
"You want me to go to Vacuo? What's in Vacuo? It's just a sandy heap of trash."
"We've got intelligence suggesting Salem has set her sights on a remote village of–"
"Lemme guess. Shit farmers. No, shit-smiths. Shitmongers? It doesn't matter, Oz. They're small people who lead small lives. Why should I care about some village in the middle of assfuck nowhere?"
"Because I've reason to believe that one Tyrian Callows will be there."
"Ah, now we're talking."
"I do believe you've stated on more than one occasion that you seek revenge after your horrendous first mission. Quite the failure, that mission was, if I recall correctly. You know…the one where your team came back half dead and with nothing to show for it. Because of Tyrian. Who will be in Vacuo."
"See, I know you're pushing my buttons, but I really don't care. Just point me in Callows' direction, Oz. No one fucks with Summer Rose and gets away with it."
Pyrrha tried to speak, tried to accuse the poisonous, treacherous snake that stood before her of murder, but it made her lungs feel like they were being torn out. Her heart beat like it was going to burst out of her breast. Raven's skeleton body must've been on death's door, and all this sudden panicked activity after years of motionlessness wasn't helping. Pyrrha knew she was dying.
Blood began to drift out of her nose and float in the water before her. Her eyes grew heavy, so she closed them. Ozpin was probably rubbing his hands together and grinning like a cartoon madman, but she couldn't bring herself to fight back. He'd taken her body from her, but her mind was still her own. When she passed on, she would do so as Pyrrha. Her soul would endure. She could lash out and try to avenge herself, but it wouldn't change anything. It was too late.
"I only wish that the aura sickness hadn't impacted your performance during the tournament. Between your disastrous fight and Miss Schnee's equally disturbing performance, negativity in the city nearly caused a Grimm breach. Though I suppose the fault is my own in that regard. I forgot that you would be affected just as Summer and Raven both were last time."
Summer and Raven…
Summer had fallen in Vacuo before she could figure it out, but Pyrrha understood with all the clues laid out so clearly in front of her.
Ozpin sent Summer to Vacuo to die. She was getting unruly, disobedient, questioning his orders, so he let her run off to her doom in search of vengeance. But he couldn't let go of that precious pair of silver eyes. They were his ace in the hole if Salem utilized her true strength and launched armies of Grimm at the kingdoms. Thus, he recovered Summer's wounded body and made sure he had his silver guardian.
Summer had so many memories of being rude and abrasive. Qrow said Raven was once kind and only grew bitter a few days before she left. The aura sickness altered behaviors to match the recipient…
Raven had never run out on her daughter.
On her daughters.
And then, several years later, 'Summer' mysteriously died when tracking down 'Raven,' with Ozpin as the only witness.
Pyrrha's eyes shot open. Ozpin didn't care about any of them. They were just vessels to hold the key to his relic vaults or silver eyes or his own twisted leeching parasite of a spirit. Pyrrha wouldn't fight back to save herself, because that was futile. Death was coming no matter how hard she resisted. But she could make sure that the next maiden was safe from this wretched blight of the soul that was her headmaster.
Qrow and Jaune lay on the floor, no doubt having been attacked by Ozpin when they'd tried to help her. Harbinger lay next to him. Pyrrha reached for it with her semblance, hoping to gut Ozpin. The sword didn't budge, but swirling black and red portals appeared next to both her and Qrow. Healing fluid poured through it onto the floor next to the defeated huntsman.
Ozpin's head spun towards Pyrrha in surprise.
Kindred Link. More better or worse, Ozpin had changed both her, Raven's, and Summer's lives. They were all definitely emotionally bonded to him.
Pyrrha ended the first portal and opened a new one directly beneath Ozpin, causing him to drop into it. The immortal had fallen only halfway through when she closed it.
And that was that.
The time had come, but Pyrrha wasn't afraid. She'd been so worried death would steal her away, but it was only rest. It felt…right.
Pyrrha smiled as she felt the maiden powers finally leave her body. With Ozpin dead…
Ruby will be safe.
Ruby's eyes shot open and burned. Not in pain, but in power.
She looked down. Her legs were broken. She unbroke them.
She looked left. Yang was face down in a pool of blood. Her right arm lay three feet away.
She did a double take to the left. Yang was…
She looked right. Blake and Weiss were arguing.
"–can't talk me out of this!"
"Think this through! They'll investigate this! If even one person realizes you're with the White Fang, it will all be for nothing. My sister recognized you by your last name alone. Please, we can still save Yang!"
"I…I don't know! Shut up! Shut up shut up shut up! Just let me think!"
Save Yang…White Fang…Blake?
The world disappeared. All Ruby could see were the flames pouring out of her eyes.
Blake Belladonna was seriously reconsidering her life choices right about now.
It was supposed to be simple. One faceless maiden, three dead Schnees (they'd all be monsters anyways) and whatever three poor huntresses had the misfortune of landing themselves on her team. Ilia had been the first extra death, but she'd died fighting. That fact didn't take away the pain, but Blake could remind herself that it was a victory she'd earned in combat, not by murder or backstabbing. She repeated the same excuse for the Beacon professor, but it was starting to wear thin by then.
Blake would never say she was happy to see Gretchen die, but that washed-up whoremonger definitely deserved it. That whole trip to Mountain Glenn had reinvigorated her, reminding Blake of just how far the White Fang would go if she didn't hold them back. She was a moderate in the land of extremists. Weiss accused her of murder, but Adam would show her what murder really meant if Blake didn't do this. He'd make a new plan and keep fighting until all four kingdoms drowned in blood. Blake was saving the world from his wrath.
O̶f̶ ̶c̶o̶u̶r̶s̶e̶,̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶ ̶c̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶ ̶u̶s̶e̶d̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶m̶a̶i̶d̶e̶n̶ ̶p̶o̶w̶e̶r̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶s̶t̶o̶p̶ ̶A̶d̶a̶m̶ ̶i̶n̶s̶t̶e̶a̶d̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶s̶i̶d̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶h̶i̶m̶.̶
Now she was really starting to wonder if this was going to work. Not if it was the right thing to do – it most assuredly was – but if something would go wrong and ruin it all. She was losing control of the situation quickly. Russel's body was so thoroughly incinerated that his team would never even be able to honor their fallen with a funeral. And, to make matters worse, Ruby was somehow a fucking maiden herself – Ruby, who she'd bent over backwards to keep out of this.
In this confined space, Blake lost the usual advantage of stealth. Ruby was barely trained, but the sight of her dying sister must have lit a fire of rage in her that made her a match for Blake and more. Maiden powers were linked to one's heart and soul, so emotional outbursts could be just as meaningful as practice or discipline.
Silver light was filling the room. It had no effect on Blake, but she could barely see through the intense brightness. Ruby screamed as all manner of unnatural radiance burst forth from her outstretched hands. Lightning, smoke, ice, even levitated shrapnel from around the small room shot towards Blake in a dissonant stream of anger and pain. Blake zapped from wall to wall, pushing off just before the elemental blitz could catch up to her. Between trying to see, dodging, and pushing Weiss' words out of her mind, Blake couldn't find time to launch any attacks of her own.
It's okay. I'll keep dodging, she'll tire herself out, and then I can continue with the plan.
R̶u̶b̶y̶'̶s̶ ̶s̶e̶e̶n̶ ̶m̶e̶.̶ ̶ ̶S̶h̶e̶ ̶n̶e̶e̶d̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶d̶i̶e̶,̶ ̶o̶r̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶'̶l̶l̶ ̶t̶e̶l̶l̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶s̶.̶ ̶ ̶T̶h̶e̶ ̶w̶o̶r̶l̶d̶ ̶n̶e̶e̶d̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶b̶e̶l̶i̶e̶v̶e̶ ̶W̶e̶i̶s̶s̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶ ̶a̶l̶l̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶.̶
No! I have limits. I'm not a monster like Adam. I can still do this!
One moment, Ruby was attacking with her maiden powers. The next, she disappeared in a burst of flaming petals. Suddenly, her hands were wrapped around Blake's throat. The heat on Ruby's fingertips seared Blake's skin. She had just enough time to throw her aura up before Ruby crushed her windpipe. The pressure against her neck was inhuman, but it wasn't nearly as horrifying as the stench of Blake's own flesh being roasted.
Blake pushed her knee into Ruby's stomach. It had no effect.
Blake pushed her knee into Ruby's stomach again, this time bathing it in fire. It still had no effect.
It's all up to me…
If Blake failed here, all those people died for nothing. If Ruby killed her, there would be no one to rein in the White Fang. In a way, Ruby was trying to stop Blake from protecting the world. It was almost as though Ruby was standing in the way of peace.
I can do this! I have to do this!
With strengthened resolve, Blake raised her hands up and felt her way around the arms that were currently choking her. The light from Ruby's silver eyes hadn't let up, so Blake had to rely entirely on her sense of touch. Gripping the smaller girl's wrists, she squeezed with all her might and pushed outwards. Ruby's raw fury had augmented her strength, but she was still a fifteen-year-old. She may have been determined to win, but so was Blake. Slowly but surely, Blake pried herself free of her team leader's clutches and held her in place.
Ruby and the silver light disappeared. Blake had been pressing forward as hard as she could, and the sudden disappearance of her opponent caused her to fall forward. Blinking, she just barely caught sight of a rook before Ruby and the gleaming radiance of her eyes returned and began to throttle her by the throat once more.
Blake had previously said to Weiss that one's morality went out the window when their life was in danger. She was disappointed to find that her own was now slowly leaving, too.
Ruby was just as much a maiden as she was. Her semblance was far superior to Blake's, as shadow clones meant nothing when you had your opponent locked in close, hand-to-hand combat. Blake was physically stronger, but she couldn't restrain an opponent who had the ability to suddenly shapeshift and escape at any time. It was Ruby or her.
I'm going to have to kill RuNONONONONONO! NO! NEVER!
Not this time! I refuse!
Blake was not a child-murderer. No matter how far she fell, that would never change. She always loudly lamented the cloud of death around her, but she was the one to choose to use lethal force. She could've talked to Ilia, hidden her face from Oobleck, or given Gretchen a chance to make good on her promise to release her, but killing them was quicker and more convenient. Well, this time she was not going to take the easy way out.
Blake squinted to see through the light, but it was still too brilliant to make out any of her surroundings. All she could see was the burning color of silver and Ruby's eyes at the center.
Ruby's eyes…
The young girl was still strangling her, so Blake repeated the motions of pulling Ruby's hands from her throat. As expected, Ruby slipped from her grip as her body disappeared. When she reappeared from her bird form this time, Blake rushed for Gambol Shroud before Ruby could resume her assault.
A single swipe, and two silver eyes were closed, never to open again.
"YAAAAAH!"
Ruby's cries broke Blake's heart, but it was this or ending her. Even if Blake had surrendered, Ruby wouldn't have accepted it in her furor, not with Yang as she was.
"Ruby…"
Ruby was writhing on the floor in pain as blood seeped out from her ruined eyes, but she would live. The little girl had wormed her way into Blake's heart from the day they met. Her honest demeanor and genuine affection for everyone around her was impossible not to love. All she'd ever wanted was to become a huntress, and now that dream was dead.
Even if she hadn't taken a life, the Boss had killed once again.
Blake wanted to take it all back.
Blake wanted to die.
SHNK!
She looked down. Crescent Rose's bloody tip was sticking out of her chest.
Heh. I got my wish.
The weapon was ripped out of her back, taking a sizeable chunk of flesh with it, and Blake toppled to the ground next to a still kicking and wailing Ruby as she clutched her eyes. Blake could see Weiss standing above her, looking, staring, judging. After a moment, the heiress dropped the scythe and went to tend to the sisters. Blake saw her grabbing out her scroll and calling for help before her vision faded out. That was good. If she wasn't going to be able to complete her mission, so Ruby and Yang might as well live. No need to be wasteful with lives out of things like spite or petty vengeance.
She had a choice in front of her. Ruby or Weiss. Yang was probably going to die, and if she did survive, it was unlikely that she would be emotionally stable enough to responsibly use maiden magic anymore. Blake refused to let it leave Team Rainbow. Even though she'd done her damn best to tear it apart, she loved her team. She felt tears trickle down her cheeks. Damnit, she'd really, really, really loved her team. Weiss, Ruby, even Yang – they'd been the home she was looking but could never find.
SLAM!
"Friend Weiss!"
"P-Penny? Help me! Ruby's stable, but Yang is losing blood fast…"
Time was running out, so she focused her mind back to the task at hand. Weiss was responsible, and she would use the power to help the Faunus. She was clearly the right choice. Ruby was an immature child whose big dreams would inevitably be shattered when she realized that the world chewed up and spat out idealism.
But Blake had taken her eyes.
It had to be Weiss. She couldn't let this power go to someone who wasn't ready for it because of sentimentality. Maiden powers changed the course of history. They weren't some token gift to repay the loss of a little girl's senses and alleviate Blake's guilty conscience.
Goodbye, Yang. You suffered the most because of me. I took your happiness, your arm, and maybe even your life, and what did it accomplish? I bet you're wishing you had Dove or Nora on your team instead of me…
Goodbye, Ruby. I hope you can still become a huntress after all this. Weiss, please tell her why I did it. Don't let Ruby think that I'm just some Faunus terrorist seeking to kill all humans. Don't let that spark of innocence and hope die out.
Goodbye, Weiss. You were right. There were so many ways to change the world, and all I did was bring more death. I wish we could've been huntresses together. I wish I could've loved you.
Weiss
Weiss
Weiss
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Weiss
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Weiss
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Weiss
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Ruby
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Qrow was still unconscious. Raven Branwen was dead, likely from the sudden exertion of waking up. Pyrrha Nikos was comatose, certain to remain that way until she joined Raven.
Even though this neatly resolved all his problems, he was still not happy with the outcome. Miss Nikos would have been an exceptional huntress, Qrow had been loyal for years, and Raven's body would've been far more convenient to terminate at his leisure. Instead of being able to mull over candidates for a good host over the course of an entire generation, he'd had to sacrifice an innocent child and let the maiden powers be sent randomly to somewhere in Beacon. What if Miss Nikos thought of a poor candidate just to spite him, like Reese Chloris, or Neopolitan, or anyone from Vacuo?!
He'd have to begin the search immediately, or perhaps as soon as he wrapped up this unpleasant business. Standing up, he gingerly stepped over his corpse and picked up Harbinger. The cut along his torso was perfectly straight, so he dug into the flesh with Qrow's sword and made it uneven, as though a rough blade had bisected him. The Long Memory had been inside the portal when it closed, another regrettable casualty of tonight's mindlessness. It was quite surreal, dealing with his own body of so many years as though it were a training dummy. When he finished, he approached Raven's corpse in her tank and opened the chamber, stepping back to make sure none of the healing fluids got on his shoes. It simply wouldn't do to leave tracks stepping away from the scene.
Harbinger pierced her heart, but she had no response. He then repeated the same cutting procedure to roughen up the wounds on his old legs. Before he threw them towards his torso, he heard a faint jingle.
Could it be?
Reaching into the pocket, he retrieved Bartholomew's thermos. A survivor! And it was half full! The Brothers truly were feeling merciful today; praise be.
In the end, he left Harbinger pierced through Miss Nikos' heart. Her body was the hardest for him to mutilate, even more than his own. Not physically hard, just…she was in perfect health and possessed a fine semblance. Such a waste. If it were doable, he would've brought someone down here, an old huntsman or huntress on death's door, and had them switch with her. Alas, that was not in the cards. Time was not his ally tonight.
By the time Qrow woke up, he would be long gone, but not before leaving a tip to the Vale Police Department about a drunkard huntsman going on a killing spree and slaughtering the headmaster of Beacon and several innocent huntresses. He'd also have to break out some of that old blackmail material on a few major news conglomerates. Perhaps Qrow would come quietly, perhaps he would not, but the traitorous bird would be out of his hair either way.
Why are there so many traitors and deserters?
Four for four, everyone in Team Stark had abandoned him, as had Pyrrha of Team Adventure, and so had…had…actually, for now, it was probably best to not think about that betrayal.
Leo was working for her, too. The old Faunus must have lost his mind. Ironwood and his court of fools were still loyal…for now. Did these people not realize that the fate of the world hung in the balance as they went about their petty squabbles and aired their trivial grievances? He had watched centuries come and go, and he knew for a fact that Raven and Taiyang's little attempt at settling down meant nothing to the world as a whole in the long run. Marriage, children…how could it possibly compare to fighting for a cause larger than oneself? Qrow's rigid adherence to laws and rules wasn't going to matter when Salem laid her hands on the relics. That old bird cared more about cheating in a tournament than stopping the Queen of the Grimm. Lunacy! Reckless, arrogant lunacy! It baffled him to no end.
And Pyrrha…
Pyrrha Nikos.
The Invincible Girl.
…a shortsighted child! Pyrrha had been eager to throw her own life away as soon as possible. It would have been impossible for her to use her semblance to search for the relic when she was dead. She wouldn't even have kept her own semblance; she'd have Raven's! He had tried to talk her out of that foolishness, to get her to spend her last remaining time on Remnant with her loved ones, but did she listen? No! She'd turned on him, just for the crime of caring about her. That has to be my greatest weakness – I simply care too much.
The thought of Pyrrha and the relic brought him back to the present. The search for the next Fall maiden would have to begin posthaste. He would call students up to his office one at a time, under the guise of–
And then the realization hit him.
It was always like this, especially on the fast transfers when the next young man was especially likeminded. Memories of his previous host would linger until time forced them out eventually, but for now, the bewildering impact was like a Rock Dust grenade directly to the forehead.
He wasn't Headmaster Ozpin anymore. He had no influence here. He was Jaune Arc, student of Beacon.
…but that was so much better.
End of Volume 3
Omake
Ruby: *unbreaks legs*
Nora: NOOOOOO!
Omake 2
Pyrrha: To show you the power of Flex Maiden…I sawed this headmaster in half!
Omake 3
Ozpin: Regrettably, this marks the end of my thousand year name-starts-with-Oz streak.
Yang: Well, I guess *tips fedora* you don't know what you got 'till it's Jaune.
Next Chapter: The Killing Blow – In which Amber comes face to face with a monster.
Author's Notes
It'll be another short next, this time attached to Volume 3.
After that is the turning point in this story in terms of continuity. With drastically fewer surviving characters in the ensemble cast, all (most?) of our Volumes 1-3 mysteries revealed, and new locations on the horizon, the remaining 38 chapters and 1 shorts are very different. We'll have fewer POV characters, we'll be focusing on new things, and we'll be doing many different and new things (lots of travel). Honestly, I have it as The Empty Seat Part 1 and Part 2 in my outlines, drawing the line between Ch. 61 and Ch. 62 (though I never really seriously considered splitting up the story).
So, why did Jaune have two male friends on his team instead of Ren and Nora? Because I needed to make sure Pyrrha's powers went to Ruby, and her final thoughts would have been on her only female teammate if she had one. Thus, Duve and Rossel.
Nah, JK. They were actually there way before (mainly because I wanted Nora to be the super eclectic but super effective queen of her own Team Castle), but it does sorta fit, doesn't it?
Happy rats, and don't do crime!