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The halls of the ancient Valian castle were dead silent, save for the predictable armored footfalls of the knight making their way towards the trio of invisible timewalkers. Ben's and Ruby's gazes were practically glued to the prominent insignia that this new-new to them, anyway-knight sported on their chestplate. They were just frozen with confusion and dread at the sight of seemingly another one of these strange enigmatic warriors. The professor standing next to the stunned duo seemed unfazed at the revelation, but then again, it was Paradox. What would actually come as a surprise to the man?
"That's...the Forever Knight's crest!" Ben finally yelled, overcoming his shock, "How?!"
"You're right, it is. Though, it's not the Knight you've encountered. Before you ask, no, not even I could tell you who's behind his mask," Paradox admitted.
"Wait, so...that's not the Forever Knight?" Ben asked.
"No, but it is a Forever Knight," Paradox smiled, putting emphasis on the third to last word.
Ben stared at Paradox, a bit confused. "Uh, what?" Paradox rolled his eyes.
"And here I thought you were smarter than most Bens..." Paradox joked, as he led Ben and Ruby in pursuit of this previous Knight. The trio followed them up to a point, taking a left while the armored figure kept going straight. Rounding a corner and heading up a long flight of stairs, the group found themselves at a balcony, providing them an overlook of a roundtable meeting.
Sitting next to each other at the table were three fully armored figures, each one sporting the Forever coat of arms, emblazoned on red tabards that covered their chest-plates. Two of the figures shared the same chain mail hood as the first knight, but their masks were different. Both were bronze in color, but while one wore a fixed grin, the other was given an eternal frown; comedy and tragedy. The twin knights shared very lithe and acrobatic builds, well suited for agility and speed. The third figure sat at the table was sharpening a greatsword, the blade itself imbued with Dust as evidenced by the crystal embedded in the crossguard. This one, unlike the others, was clad in a full suit of plate and wore a more traditional knight helmet that only covered the top half of his face. He was taller and bulkier in comparison to the other two knights, clearly the muscle of this operation.
The most important sight that drew Ruby and Ben's attention, however, was what sat on the middle of the table. Six red tentacles ending in white, spear-like barbs snaked across the wooden surface, leading back to a black, spherical and jellyfish-like body. Instead of a normal head, the creature had a smoky orb-like structure covered in bone plates that obscured a muted, orange-colored glow.
"Is…is that a Grimm?" Ruby asked.
"One with Skype capabilities, apparently." Ben noted. "Look..."
"What is taking her so long?" a voice asked, resonating from the Grimm. The speaker…there was no doubt, it would only be Salem. Ruby hated hearing the Grimm queen's voice- it sounded too motherly to be an evil woman like Salem.
The larger knight looked up from his weapon and smirked.
"You say that, your Grace," he said in a heavy British accent, motioning to the knight who just entered the roundtable room. The Grimm shifted a little, getting a line of sight on the trenchcoat-clad knight, presumably the leader of this iteration of Salem's circle, as she walked in.
"Forgive my delay," the lead knight said, her voice carrying a metallic echo thanks to her mask, "I was...tying up loose ends."
"You could not settle this issue later?" Salem hissed.
"Believe me, my lord...these ends were much trickier to deal with than one would think," the female knight smiled behind her mask.
"Knowing you, you probably took your time on purpose," the brutish knight chuckled, "You never could just kill someone quick, huh?"
"Traitors have to be dealt with accordingly. That means they are afforded the slowest of deaths. Us Forever Knights don't take so kindly to betrayal after all, and we need to set...an example," the lead knight said.
"Yes, yes, Blood Knight...we understand," Salem droned, like she was bored.
"You're really still using that name?" the brute knight asked.
"If you have a problem with my chosen title, Morton, then please...say it," Blood Knight said, her hand moving to the hilt of her weapon.
One of the jellyfish-like Grimm's tentacles curved up before loudly jamming its barb into the table, splintering the wood, signaling the two that this argument was over.
"Emzara, so help me..." Salem gave an angry sigh, "Need I remind you of your creed?"
"Yes, yes...defend the weak, freedom, sacrifice so that others will live free..." Emzara groaned.
"Wait, what?" Ben asked, looking at Ruby.
"Oh, good, you heard that, too," the red-hooded huntress said, thinking she must have been hearing things. They both turned to Paradox, hoping that he could explain that. This was one of Salem's underlings after all, a predecessor to Cinder, Tyrian, Cass, Charmcaster and so many others. And she made a vow to defend the weak?
"Oh, yes, their creed...quite an interesting detail, is it not?" Paradox said, "Salem was more operating by voice, and preferred not to show her face. No one would trust a visage like hers, after all. Her voice was much more alluring. Like a siren of Greek mythology, luring in unwitting lost souls."
"So she's passing herself off as some 'benevolent queen' or something? And they believe that when she's using a Grimm to talk to them?" Ben asked.
"She claims it to be proof of her power. Beasts of darkness serving her so that they 'may find redemption.'"
"Now then," Salem said as the Grimm wrenched its barb free of the table, "As you all know, you are not my only...followers in the world. You are, however, the ones I trust with handling the most important tasks. And one such task has come to my attention. Something that must be dealt with swiftly..."
"She's conning them," Ruby frowned, "And they're buying into it."
"Yes, sad as it is," Paradox sighed, "They did lose direction for a while, but...I can assure you. They'll be back on track after the events that transpire."
"Another rogue Huntsmen?" Morton asked, "Easy enough to hand-"
"No," Salem interrupted, "it's not. This Huntress has not gone rogue...yet. But, if she finds the answers she seeks...I feel as if everything we've worked for, everything that you have sacrificed...will be for nothing."
"Who is the wench that dares to throw a wrench in our plans?" The Blood Knight was quick to anger.
"Her name...is Summer Rose." Salem said.
"You said she hasn't gone rogue, yet. I stress that last word. You're asking us to kill someone who's innocent," Morton pointed out.
"Sir Morton...I see where you're coming from. 'Why does she deserve death, she hasn't done anything yet?' But unlike your other targets...if she is allowed to go rogue...then you won't be able to stop her. Especially if he finds her," Salem explained.
"...I see." Morton hummed, "That is… most certainly a conundrum..."
"And one we can overlook, should our benevolent queen demand it," Blood Knight said.
"She will try and convince you out of this, talk you down, but do not be swayed. No matter what heartfelt plea she chooses...ignore it. And those of her teammates," Salem said.
"A more interesting fight then...four on four. Good," Emzara smirked behind her mask.
"No. You must divide them first. Morton, you and the twins will go after the rest of her team. Emzara? I entrust Summer's execution to you."
Emzara smiled, "Oh, believe me, my queen...her death will be most wonderful..."
"So, she failed pretty bad, I'm gonna guess." Ruby hummed.
"Oh, without a doubt," Paradox nodded.
"Are we jumping to see that fight?"
"Saving the triumph for last. Like Salem said, she wanted team STRQ divided. But before we jump, I merely want to point this out: keep an eye on the twin knights," the time traveler said before winding the watch up again, this time skipping over a mere few days.
The trio was now standing in the courtyard of Beacon Academy, near the garden. Ruby noted how it was...less developed than it was when she attended.
"Here again, huh?" Ben asked.
"We're about to see the start of the battle. Believe it or not, the Knights were brazen enough to waltz right on campus," Paradox said.
Tai was out there with Summer, the two having spent most of the day trying to investigate what Team STRQ's leader had done atop that Mistralian mountain. Ever since she woke up and got back to Vale, her mind was preoccupied with that single question. It was a team effort, of course, so they split up, leaving Raven and Qrow to comb through the library for anything that might connect back to, as Qrow dubbed it, "Summer's death gaze." A few hours ago, Tai had gotten a message from the Branwen brother saying that he'd made progress and to meet him and Raven out here so he could share his findings. STRQ's brawler was looking around for the Branwen siblings, thinking they were just late, which was definitely in line for the two.
"I swear, did those two fall asleep in the library again?" Tai asked.
"They do everything together, so...yeah, I'd assume so," Summer bemused.
As the two were looking around, neither of them heard a Dust arrow being knocked. The owner of the bow took aim, eyeing the ground between Summer and Tai. The shining red crystalline tip glinted a little before the archer loosened their shot. The arrow flew out, striking the ground between the two and shattering, releasing a large fiery explosion. The blast sent the two flying in opposite directions as dust and dirt fell from the impact site.
Emzara smirked and put away her bow, before unsheathing her twin shortswords with a flourish and moving down to deal with Summer.
"Think you can handle the boy?" Emzara taunted her partner. Morton just ignored her, rolling his eyes behind his helmet. Instead, the muscle of this older generation of knights prepared his own greatsword and moved in to deal with Tai. With their weapons drawn, the two knights made a break for their respective targets.
"W-what the hell was that?" Summer yelled, grabbing her weapon from behind her back.
"Either a really, REALLY shitty prank that that nosy teacher's pet Glynda is gonna kill someone for...or an ambush!" Taiyang said, slapping on his gauntlets.
"I'm gonna go with the latter!"
And her assumption was proven correct when the duo saw the knights rushing at them. Emzara zeroed in on Summer, her blades at the ready. She yelled out, slashing at Summer with a quick flurry of attacks. Summer brought up Silver Bloom and parried some of the slashes, though one or two managed to get through and strike her Aura.
Tai, meanwhile, dodged a heavy swing from Morton as his blade embedded itself into the ground. The heavy knight wrenched the blade free before activating the Dust crystal situated where the blade met hilt. Stone quickly crept up the edges of the weapon, just as sharp as the metal it covered. Without wasting any time, Morton jabbed his blade back into the ground before swinging it in an upward arc, sending a wave of earthen spikes towards Tai.
Summer dodged and weaved through the attacks, still processing the sudden explosion. "What do you want?!" Summer asked, summoning her Semblance to flutter around her body. Without warning, her Aura flared for just a brief second, before a whirlwind of white flower petals surrounded her.
Emzara ignored Summer's question and simply jumped back when she saw the storm of petals surround her target. She wasn't entirely sure what the girl had done here, so she decided to test it. She ever so slightly poked into the storm with one of her swords and saw the petals slash against her blade, sending up small showers of sparks. She pulled the blade back and sheathed the weapon before opening up a pouch on her belt. From it, she pulled out a decently-sized,cracked Lightning Dust crystal. She tossed it in her hand a few times before she threw it past Summer's storm like a grenade. It shattered at Summer's feet and released a large pulse of electricity.
Tai jumped away from the rush of spikes and swapped one gauntlet to Earth Dust, the other to fire. He slammed his fists together before throwing several punches in Morton's directions. The earthen and flaming shots mixed together midair to form projectiles of magma. Morton simply swung his sword to the side, commanding the stone of the garden to rise up in a wall to defend him. He then thrust his blade forward and sent the wall rushing at STRQ's brawler. With his earth gauntlet, Tai easily managed to punch apart the wall. Morton came rushing at him through the dust the rubble brought with it, slashing at him repeatedly. Tai's gauntlet served as a good shield, giving him some openings to try and attack Morton with some well placed fire shots.
"Alright, ren faire! Talk! What do you want with us? We didn't break any of your shit on accident, did we?!" Tai yelled.
"No...not yet, anyway," Morton replied, another swing missing Tai as he ducked under it.
"Not yet?! The hell are you talking about?!"
"Shame I can't really explain it...maybe you'd understand. Well...unless he got to ya first."
"WHO THE HELL IS HE?!" Tai yelled, as he lashed out- a strong blow to the face made a notable dent in Morton's helmet.
The knight staggered back from the hit, almost losing his grip on his sword. His hand tightened around it at just the right moment before the blade clattered to the floor. Morton moved a hand up to where Tai's fist dented the helmet and chuckled.
"Doubt you'd know him by the name we use. Your friends probably don't either...but unlike you, they might die without an answer. The Twins don't talk much."
Summer saw the Dust crystal flying towards and used the wind Dust in her weapon to launch herself backwards, the petal storm stopping as she raced out of the range of the electric surge. She shifted Silver Bloom into its scythe mode just in time to block another mad flurry from Emzara's dual blades. Summer used the staff of the weapon to shove the Blood Knight away, staggering the armored attacker a bit before going on the offensive. Even with her skills, Emzara couldn't keep up with the now-Wind imbued scythe strikes coming her way.
Summer's petals fluttered out over the area, forming a dome like shape, before stopping in midair. All of them were pointed towards Emzara, something she noticed quickly.
"The hell is this?"
"Welcome to the Death Blossom Cage," Summer said, a glint of mischief in her eye. "Escape's impossible from here- every corner and every way has something sharp for you~"
"Now you're starting to meet that mental image I had of you...Summer," Emzara smirked under her mask, "If the Infinite Man found you...you'd probably be the easiest person he's ever swayed to his side."
"The Infinite who now?" Summer asked, a bit confused. "What, that like some code name?"
"It's just what we call the bastard who keeps this war going!" Emzara yelled before she rushed back in at Summer, blades now held in a reverse grip. She slashed out at STRQ's leader, the blades sparking against the metal staff of her weapon. Summer shifted the blade back into its polearm formation and swung back, the knight simply dodging under the strike. When she rose back to her full height, Summer spun in place and landed a solid kick into the Blood Knight, kicking her into the sharp petals of the cage. The armor held strong, even as the array of edges dug into it.
Summer didn't even know what war she was talking about- the Great War ended years ago, even before she was born. Summer began to produce more and more petals, laying them out for a counter attack of sorts.
The Blood Knight could see that her words were getting to her. Confusion was starting to set in, if the look on her face was any indication. Good.
"You, Qrow, Raven and Tai? Necessary sacrifices if we're to win," Emzara said, "And I fully intend to; I'm not letting that one have his way with the world..."
"Uh, alright! I get it! You're in a cult or whatever!" Summer said, as she quickly jumped up and bashed Ezmara in the face. "Yeesh..."
"Daughter of a-!" Emzara yelled, a hand shooting up to her face on instinct. The Blood Knight growled as she quickly recovered.
"And we're not a cult, we're the only ones protecting the world from ones like you."
"Ok, but that really sounds like a cult!" Summer shot back.
"Ugh, fine! Call us whatever you want! Won't matter when you're buried!"
Emzara figured that, by now, the Twins had already started their attack on the Branwen siblings. At least, if they followed the plan.
Ezmara heard something crash through a window behind her- she turned around, and grinned. Qrow was looking very, VERY dazed and confused right now.
"What the..." Qrow mumbled. He was having such a good nap earlier, letting Raven do most of the research. When he got thrown from his chair, he assumed it was because of her. Imagine his surprise when it was someone else entirely.
A bronze mask peaked out of the shattered window, looking down at Qrow with an eternal grin. The Smiling Twin tilted their head to the side and hopped out after the Branwen brother. Clutched in the Comedy Knight's hand was a monk's spade, held in such a way that the crescent blade at the edge lined up perfectly with the grin of his mask. The armor clanked and rattled with each step as they prepared to thrust the polearm down.
"Shit!" Qrow yelled, rolling out of the way right before the monk's spade came down and jabbed into the ground. He quickly shot up to his feet as the Comedy Knight freed the spade from the dirt. Qrow looked out at the fights Summer and Tai were engaged in before his gaze darted back to the twin.
"WHO THE FUCK ARE THESE GUYS?!" the Branwen brother yelled.
"Creepy ren faire cultists are my best guess!" Summer answered.
"We're not a CULT, damn it!" Morton yelled out, sidestepping another punch from Tai.
"Everything your boss over there said has screamed cult so far!" Tai shot back.
The Smiling Twin swung his polearm at Qrow, who quickly evaded the attacks with ease. Qrow's backflips and somersaults were far more youthful than his present day self, but, even at this time, it was difficult to dodge all the fast-paced assault.
"Wow...Uncle Qrow was really spry for his age, huh?" Ruby said.
"Where's Raven?" Summer yelled, dodging another strike from Emzara before bringing her knee into the Blood Knight's gut. She winced a little from hitting the armor, but it did its job and staggered her opponent, leaving her open for a good kick to the head.
"Hell if I know! She took off after that-!" Qrow suddenly heard the loud clash of a blade against another. He turned around- coming out of a familiar red portal was Raven...and pressing against her blade was the kunai of the Knight of Tragedy.
"Here I am..." Raven growled.
"And now the whole gang's here," Morton chuckled, "we can bury you all next to each other!" The brute roared as he went back on the offensive, swinging his blade in a side-arc, aiming to cleave Tai in half. STRQ's brawler jumped back, swapping his other gauntlet to fire and unleashing a jet of flame from both fists. Morton didn't have time to bring up a rock wall or dodge out of the way, so he simply tanked two strong gouts of flame. Tai stopped after a while...and Morton was fine, even if his armor was smoking and slightly burning him on the inside.
The Knight of Tragedy leaned in towards Raven's race, getting uncomfortably close before they shoved Raven back and dropping down, sweeping Raven's legs out from under her with a kick. They would've followed up with a stab before Raven pulled both her legs up to her chest and kicked out, knocking the knight flat on his back. She leapt up to her feet and sheathed her blade, spinning the chamber and changing the blade type. She re-drew the blade, this time yellow in color with small electric arcs crackling along its edges.
The Knight of Tragedy was suddenly swept away by a solid edge of electricity- it passed through the body, almost electrocuting every nerve in its body. The Knight gave out an ear piercing shriek- that quickly turned to laughter. Tears were running down its face, leaking from underneath the mask.
"...what the fuck?" Raven asked herself.
The Frowning Twin quickly recovered, grabbing more kunai off its belt and began throwing them at Raven. The Branwen sister deflected the various projectiles, but time seemed to slow down when she saw the last one bounce off her blade. Her eyes darted up and caught her mistake just in time. There was a glowing red Dust crystal inlaid in the kunai's blade.
"Ohhh god dam-!" Raven was cut off by the small explosion that sent her flying.
"Raven!" Qrow shouted out, his attention quickly getting snapped back to his opponent. The Knight of Comedy rushed in, bringing down the crescent-blade end of the polearm only to be met with Harbinger's massive blade. Qrow forced the weapon to the side, giving him an opening as he slashed at the knight's exposed side. Just like its frowning counterpart, it let out a loud shriek of pain before turning back to face Qrow.
"The fuck is up with these guys?!" Qrow asked, as he jumped back. Qrow swung his weapon downward, firing a crescent-shaped wave of blue energy at the opponent- it was like his Aura was being launched. The attack hit the smiling knight in the chest, as Qrow rushed in- a frenzy of heavy slashes with Qrow's incredible agility had the night stumbling around...
But still laughing.
Emzara smirked, hearing the twins laugh as she went back on the attack. More and more strikes managed to get through Summer's defense and hit her Aura. But for just as many hits that landed on her, STRQ's leader managed to hit back with just as many of her own attacks. Emzara's armor was certainly becoming worn, blade marks appearing all over her suit.
Morton thrust his sword forward, trying to stab Tai in the gut, but STRQ's brawler simply deflected the strike and landed a flaming punch to the brute knight's chest. The area smoked and burned from the impact, forcing Morton back again and, before he could fully recover, he was pelted with a hail of rocks from the Earth Dust Tai had switched to.
The Smiling Twin sidestepped the last strike Qrow lashed out with, swinging his polearm in an arc and slamming the spade-end of the weapon into Qrow's side, taking a large chunk out of his Aura. He cried out as he slammed into a pillar before rolling under another swing that cratered the ornate stone. The still laughing knight wrenched the weapon free violently, a hand shooting to cover their mask as they continued laughing. Ruby and Ben couldn't help but imagine Tyrian behind that armor and, if it weren't for those inhuman shrieks, he would've been a good fit.
Raven recovered from the blast quickly, gasping and bring up her blade to block another kunai slash from the crying knight. She noticed something about the tears that were streaming down the bronze cheeks of the knight's mask but...was she seeing things? She had to be. She shook her head and refocused on the fight, shoving the knight back, switching blades again and slashing at the Knight of Tragedy with a light blue blade. Each hit against the crying knight's armor or kunai covered it in a layer of frost that was quickly shaken off as they reacted and either struck back or moved out of the way of another attack.
Summer frowned- her range was pretty mediocre with her semblance, and it looked like Qrow needed the most help out of anyone right now. Her eyes darted back over to Emzara, as she gave a sly grin. Summer clenched her fist- a storm of rose petals suddenly went into her armor.
"G-gah!" Ezmara yelled. "How dare you-"
Ezmara began to feel the rose petals cut at her skin.
She tried to just will herself through the pain, but considering just how many petals were slicing their way across her skin, it was almost impossible. She couldn't stop herself from screaming out in pain, her hands still tightly gripping the dual blades.
"Every armor has a weak spot. Guess I found yours," Summer said with a smirk.
Morton was distracted by the sudden cry of pain that Emzara let out. Taking the chance, Tai slammed both of his fists into the ground, the shockwave forcing the ground under Morton to jut out with the force of a hydraulic piston and launch the brute knight skyward.
Summer watched the knight go flying, before it crashed through the roof of one of the dorms. "Wow, new record." Summer said, before rushing over to help Qrow. The semblance- what the hell was it? Was it deriving strength from pain?
"I feel bad for whoever's room that guy landed in," Ben chuckled as he watched Morton crash into the building.
"For them? Don't. Feel bad for Morton. He landed in Glynda's dorm," Paradox said.
"...oh no." Ben could already hear Glynda's screams of absolute terror.
...or, maybe that was Morton.
"Well we know how he died," Ruby said, certain that Glynda would be the end for the knight.
"...actually he survived this," Paradox admitted.
"Ok, I call bull."
"And yet, it's the truth. Now, back to the fight."
Summer activated the Wind Dust in her weapon and launched herself towards the knight, planting a double kick into they're face and sending them skidding away from Qrow.
"Thanks," Qrow panted, shifting his weapon into its shotgun mode.
With Morton out of the picture and Emzara still suffering from the petals slicing at her under her armor, Tai raced over to help Raven. The Branwen sister and the Knight of Tragedy were trading strikes once again, but Tai interrupted the knight's next strike by pummeling him in the face with his stone-covered gauntlet.
Tai grabbed the smiling Knight by the collar before pulling them in close.
"Let's see how durable that mask is, buddy." Tai began repeatedly punching them in the face- his fists were so fast and nearly invisible. Ben watched in awe, as Ruby cheered.
"GET HIS ASS, DAD!" Ruby yelled. Tai ended the pain by slamming the knight into the ground so hard they bounced off it from the sheer force and momentum. The mask was slowly coming apart, cracking and crumbling...
The knight's laughter never ceased during the beatdown, even as they slammed to the ground. But...then it came to an abrupt stop, getting the attention of the two STRQ members. The Frowning Twin shakily got back up to their feet and dusted themselves off like nothing happened. The Knight of Tragedy turned to Raven and Tai and their jaws dropped when they saw the face behind the frowning mask.
Ben and Ruby couldn't believe it either.
Behind the still remaining pieces of bronze that covered its face, a single yellow and red eye peered out at them, black smoke rising up from the head.
"A...a GEIST?!" Raven yelled.
"W-what the fuck?!" Taiyang said, backing away. "How are they-?!"
"Under my control?" Emzara smiled. "Simple…"
Summer and Qrow were distracted by the revelation as well, turning to look at the exposed knight as its grinning counterpart recovered.
"I-is this your Semblance?" Summer asked.
"Bestowed onto me by the good queen herself- the Forever Queen gave me the gift to control the monsters she's been trying to purify..." Ezmara said.
"Whoever your 'Forever Queen' is, she's fucking nuts! Grimm can't be 'purified' or given a second chance! You're just as bad if you actually believe that!' Qrow yelled, taking aim at Emzara.
"Hm. That's where you're wrong...they can be. Despite their brutish and ugly nature, there is still good in these beasts..." Ezmara said.
"And you keep saying you aren't a cult?!" Raven asked.
"YES! Because unlike all of you...narrow-minded traditionalists...we see things a little differently. I thought the same way about them once. That they were just monsters...but now? The two you see here are as obedient as dogs thanks to her gift..."
"Yeah..." Summer frowned, "You sure have them under your control...but now you've given me MORE incentive to kick your face in."
"You're welcome to try," Emzara said, looking over to the building. In honesty, she was half-expecting the whole academy to be up in arms now after Morton crashed into the dorms. A retreat might be in order. Four on four was an even fight, something she could handle. The entire academy though?
"I'm sure everyone would love a good shot." Summer smiled- she tilted her head as some pieces of paper flew past her head. Emzara's eyes widened, as she quickly blocked them with her gauntlets.
Even the Knights of Comedy and Tragedy had paper flying towards them, blocking the pieces with their own gauntlets and racing back to Emzara's side.
"And here I was hoping you three wouldn't cause trouble today." A younger, less stressed Anna said, walking towards the group. "Nice work with launching the big guy into Glynda's room."
"My handiwork," Taiyang grinned.
"And with that...I think that's our cue to leave. Where there's one of you..." Emzara seethed, quickly grabbing another Dust crystal from the pouch on her belt.
Suddenly, something round smashed into the back of her armor, leaving a notable dent in the back.
"When fire spreads, sometimes it doesn't all go out when you extinguish one area." A younger Oobleck said. Ruby noted that it looked like he just came from a baseball field...or, his clothes were just naturally dirty. All the time.
The Knight of Comedy saw Oobleck and readied its weapon, about to rush in and strike at the future professor, only for the monk's spade to suddenly be wrenched free from its grasp. It looked at its empty hands in shock before Morton was thrown into the knight.
"Why...am I not surprised you were involved with this?" a younger Glynda said, ready to kill the knights. She was having such a good dream too and then an idiot wearing a massive chunk of iron crashed through the roof!
"Come on, you sleep like every 3 days. A small wake up won't kill you," Anna said.
"I prefer to enjoy my sleep when I can, thank you."
The Knight of Comedy shoved Morton off of it before it got back to its feet, the brute of a knight soon following.
"I don't mean to sound like a coward..." Morton began.
"I know," Emzara said, two crystals of Dust clutched in her hand. She cracked the two crystals before throwing them and when they landed, they shattered and exploded into a massive cloud of steam, giving them the cover they needed.
"They're getting away!" Summer yelled, as she and Anna deployed their flying arrays of paper and petals- they quickly fanned the area, but it was too late. The knights had escaped into thin air.
"What are you guys all talking about?"
A younger, more familiar place stepped up- the man had white, unkempt hair, rounded-square glasses, a green turtleneck and black trousers. "Is that-?" Ben asked.
"Ozpin! There you are! Where on Earth were you!?" Glynda said.
"...uh, I went to get a cocoa." Ozpin said, holding up a cup of cocoa.
"...yeah that checks out," Anna said. Knowing Ozpin, that fit all too well.
"So you didn't hear or see any of that...because you were getting a drink," Glynda deadpanned.
"...I mean, I was in town, so..." Ozpin said.
"...how are you simultaneously a prodigy and a dumbass?" Glynda huffed, storming off.
"Maybe Oz could explain it, then," Qrow suggested.
"Maybe, yeah," Summer agreed before turning to Ozpin, who had begun to take a sip of his drink.
"Have you ever heard of a legend of the 'Infinite Man' before?" STRQ's leader asked.
Ozpin hummed for a few moments. "The Infinite Man...it's basically an old story about a man with the power of reincarnation, as he revisits a tribe of people devoted to his power."
"Ok...and did he...have a rival, an enemy? Someone you'd describe as a queen?"
"At most, there was a nonbeliever in their midst, but...no, no mention of a queen." Ozpin said.
"Okay...so then who..." Summer hummed in thought.
"...maybe we can check the library, see if we can connect some dots?" Raven suggested.
"Best lead we got. Speaking of...please tell me you found out about the, uh, 'side project' we're looking into?" Tai asked.
"Nothing about optic blasts that can freeze Grimm. At all." Qrow frowned. "Which is bogus- there's no way Summer is the first person who can do that."
"...hey...you don't think this is...connected, do you?" Summer asked, going out on a limb.
"What? You think they knew about...us because we were looking?" Raven said.
"I mean...maybe? They lured us here saying that you guys had something."
"Who knows..." Taiyang said, shaking his head. "I don't like this one bit, you guys...I think the rest of this year is gonna be more confusing than the last..."
"Our leader's got eyes that can literally freeze a Grimm-" Qrow started.
"Still no idea how I even did that!" Summer chimed in.
"-and now we've got a crazy knight cult after us that can...control Grimm...somehow."
"...yeah, this is gonna suck." Qrow said.
Ruby and Ben shared a look. "Mind giving us the cliffnotes of what happened?" Ben asked.
"If you're referring to Emzara's 'trick', it was a gift. Salem's power was granted to her through a...little 'experiment' she developed. Emzara says it's her 'Semblance' but...that was a lie. It was just the kind of thing the self-proclaimed 'Blood Knight' needed to hear. Her Aura had been unlocked for a while...but she never could unlock her Semblance. So what better way to lock in her loyalty than to give her one?" Paradox explained.
"So, if it's not her Semblance, then..." Ben began.
"I hope you're not queasy, but it's you we're talking about so...there's a Grimm inside of her. A beetle so small that it can fit in the palm of your hand...or at the base of your neck."
Ruby felt the back of her neck. "...Jesus." She whispered, horrified. Having a Grimm near you was one thing- it being inside you was a hundred times more horrifying. Especially since Salem could "detonate" it at any given point.
"It's not a pleasant feeling, honestly..." Paradox said. "You'll see that soon."
Paradox gave three turns on the dial of his pocket watch, jumping the trio back to the interior of the old castle. Morton staggered into the round table room, followed by the twin knights. They didn't seem winded or wounded...but then again, they were Grimm in possession of armor, they probably didn't feel anything. Emzara was the last one in, mentally cursing at her failure. The building anger got the attention of both her twin Geists...and the Seer that lazily sat on the table. Its tentacles moved a little bit in reaction when it felt the small surge of emotion.
The Blood Knight had barely sat down before she heard Salem's voice speak up, the tone calm as usual...but the words had some concealed malice behind them. As if she was silently threatening, "you better have succeeded."
"So...how did it go?" Salem asked.
"...they were able to get a drop on us." Ezmara said. "The girl is much more clever than we gave her credit for. Her semblance threatened to mince me inside my own armor."
"...so, you failed." Salem sounded very displeased.
"Yes...we...we failed. We were quickly outnumbered when someone was sent flying into the dorms and woke the whole school up," Emzara seethed, her eyes locking onto Morton when the word "someone" left her lips.
The bulky knight was too tired to care, honestly. The beating he got from Tai and Glynda was something he'd rather recover from first before even trying to start something with his "superior."
"...I see." Salem said, taking a deep breath.
Ruby noted the tension in the air was palpable. She got that nervous feeling in her stomach, like when she knew a jumpscare was coming in a horror movie or game.
The Blood Knight was about to relax in her seat before she just...froze up. Morton took notice of her sudden lack of movement.
"Um...Emzar-" Morton asked before the Seer jabbed another barb into the table.
"You had everything you needed: a 'Semblance' I gifted to you, warriors loyal only to you and me, warriors who know neither fear nor hesitation, the time you needed to create a plan...and you squandered it," Salem said.
For Emzara, it felt like there was a searing needle at the base of her neck, slowly piercing her skin. And the burning sensation of that needle just got worse and worse with each word that echoed out from the Seer.
Ben had to look away, but Ruby was just so silently horrified- her eyes were starting to glow.
"You failed me. And I don't take nicely to failures of any sort, child. So, I want you to always remember this failure, and use it to motivate yourself in future affairs." Salem hissed.
"I...I under...stand..." Emzara barely managed to say. It was all she could do to distract herself from that burning sensation, that pain so overwhelming that Emzara's willpower was all focused on keeping herself from screaming out in pain.
Black ooze leaked from the back of her neck, as it crawled up and around her head- even if she did scream, it'd be muffled by the black ooze itself. Ezmara's black mask started to become demonic, Grimm like, with red eyes that would've welled up with tears, had they been given tears ducts.
But right as the pain reached its worse, the sensation stopped. Emzara's body was freed from whatever invisible force held it and she almost collapsed from the pain. She was barely able to catch herself, grabbing ahold of the table to support herself. The transformation of her mask reversed, and the black ooze dissipated, letting Salem's follower cough.
"Good...then this," Salem said, no doubt gesturing to the Blood Knight's current condition, "won't happen again..."
"I...I understand, my lord." Ezmara said, bowing immediately. "I...apologize for my failure...sincerely..."
"You now know your opponent's strengths...use that against them." Salem frowned.
"Of...of course...Your Grace."
With that, the Seer went silent again.
"The bloody hell was that?!" Morton asked, genuinely horrified.
"That's what happens...each time...we fail..." Emzara said between coughs.
Morton shuddered. "Then I sure as hell don't want to fail anymore!" Morton stormed off, reinvigorated to do some more training.
The Twin Knights, undisturbed by the events that happened, both had their eyes fixed on Emzara.
"I would ask if there's something you want to say," the Blood Knight growled, trying to compose herself.
The Knight of Comedy simply tilted its head, while Tragedy suddenly shook its head and left the table, seemingly with the intent of fixing its mask.
"...Jesus." Ruby said, quiet and horrified.
"So, wait- I get this is her backstory, but...what about why Salem took Summer hostage?" Ben asked. "There's gotta be more..."
"That...that is...complicated," Paradox said, "Remember, this is to give closure...not convince Miss Rose to rush headlong into Salem's fortress. Besides...that would be..."
"...spoilers...right..." Ben sighed.
Ruby shuddered. "If she can do that to one of her minions...then, I have to wonder what she's done to Cinder, Cass and the others. Maybe they get it worse than we think...just because they're not on our side, doesn't mean they 'live large' or something..."
"Cinder and Cass...those two," Paradox sighed, "Maybe one day you'll learn. As for the others, simply remember how Salem's using these knights. Manipulations, promises, turning ambition to her favor."
"And...if I try and go fight her head on, then...she'll manipulate me using Summer, won't she?" Ruby asked.
"Most likely. Say what you will about Salem, call her a monster, a villain...incompetent she never was. If you believe that, you may as well be handing her a victory before firing a shot."
Ruby took a deep breath. "Good moral, honestly..."
"Indeed...but her perceived lack of humanity is not as much of a strength as people would believe. Some would, and some have, even gone as far as to suggest becoming like Salem, abandon the principles that 'hold them back.' Doing that hands Salem her victory, as well."
"...who on Earth would wanna throw away their humanity? It's the only leverage they have against Salem sometimes..." Ben said.
"That's the biggest spoiler-y question you could ask, Benjamin." Paradox said.
With that, Paradox jumped them forwards again. This time a mere few weeks from the attack. Suffice to say, security had been boosted around the academy, thanks to some new Dust technology from Atlas. But, that wasn't the oddest thing about today for Team STRQ. They weren't entirely used to the new security measures but they weren't surprised by them anymore.
What was surprising to them all was the fact that they had been called to the Headmaster's office atop Beacon Tower.
"What the heck do you think the Headmaster wants from us this time?" Taiyang said. "We didn't break anything."
"Or break any rules..." Raven said.
"Hell, we've been saints these past few weeks. Think he's gonna see if we're imposters?" Qrow asked.
"Glynda certainly seems to think so," Summer joked, trying to ease the tension a bit.
"Hey, she's teamed with a guy who believes the Earth is flat. Maybe his craziness rubbed off on her." Qrow said.
"Oobleck was a flat earther?" Ruby asked.
"He outgrew it later on. He cringes whenever he thinks about it." Paradox said.
(Somewhere back in Vale, Oobleck suddenly cringed. Someone was talking about his "flat-Earther" phase and he hated that.)
"Maybe...but...just in case it's not that..." Summer said, walking into the tower's main floor. She and her team walked up to the elevator and pressed the call button. Luckily, an elevator was already on the main floor, almost like it was waiting for them. The doors opened and the four students walked in, Summer pressing the button so that the tense elevator ride up could begin.
The four of them remained quiet on the ride up. Ruby noted that the same tense aura from her replay of Salem was also hanging in the air like last time. It was eerie.
Soon, the ding of the elevator signaled that they had arrived. The doors opened to that familiar clockwork-themed office at the top of the tower that Ruby and Ben were familiar with. The chair behind the headmaster's desk was turned so that the back was facing the elevators, the occupant looking out the high window and enjoying the view.
"You…wanted to see us, Headmaster-" Summer began, but the chair spun around.
"…Ozpin?" Taiyang asked. "The hell are you doing here?"
"...never took you as one to pull something like this," Qrow chuckled, thinking this was maybe some elaborate prank, "If Glynda ever finds out-"
"This...isn't a prank, Qrow. Trust me, I wish this was as lighthearted as that." Ozpin said.
"What's with your voice? You sound kinda…different." Summer noted.
"You sound like a kid giving a presentation." Raven joked.
"...honestly that's a good way to think of this," Ozpin chuckled a little, his voice returning to normal for a moment, "Helps ease the tension. But...ok where do I start..."
"I've...gained a host, in my body. Someone from far before Beacon existed. Before America existed. When the world was still known as 'Pangaea'." Ozpin explained, going right back to that official tone that was just so unlike him.
Ruby and Ben noted that the transition between his host's words and Ozma's was seamless, completely unlike Ozpin's current reincarnation. Maybe it was just the passage of time or maybe it was because it was such a relatively short time between his return.
"...are you high?" Qrow asked flatly.
"Qrow...listen to my voice. Do the words sound slurred or off in any way?" Ozpin asked.
"Not...real-"
"And have you ever known me to even try something that would get me high?"
"Er...no..."
"Then there's your answer. If this was all a hallucination...maybe that's a mercy," Ozpin sighed, leaning back in the chair.
"Alright, if you're really possessed by this ancient entity...what's the truth?" Taiyang asked. "Did the chicken or the egg come fi-"
Summer slapped him upside the head.
"Ow! What, it's a legitimate question!" Tai said.
"God, if only the jokes made this easier. Eases the tension a little but..." Ozpin chuckled before sighing, "The point is...that entity...has been fighting a war behind the scenes. Apparently even...even the Great War itself was a cover for his actions...and her's..."
"...her?" Summer asked. She felt a sense of discomfort when she heard that ominous name drop.
"A secret war, beyond our knowledge?" Raven said. "Impossible."
"And yet...you fought in one of its latest battles. On this very campus...out in the gardens," Ozpin corrected.
"...the Ren-faire?" Qrow asked. "No, bullshit. They were just some hit team, right?"
"Right and wrong at the same time, Qrow." Ozpin said.
"So I was right," Summer said, connecting the dots. She remembered what happened that night, the words the knights' leader said to her, "This is about me and...whoever the Infinite Man is."
"Yes. Though...from what I understand...he prefers Ozma," Ozpin said.
"...the Infinite Man...is inside you?" Qrow said. "No fuckin' way..."
"I'm just as shocked as you are. Never have I been in such an...awkward body." Ozpin joked, looking down at himself. "Nor a body with such an awful eyesight...these are some strong prescription glasses."
"The way they talked about him, though, sounded like he was the villain," Raven huffed, crossing her arms, "Guessing you're about to tell us otherwise."
"I am. Because I'm sure you've been asking...'how did that woman control two Geists?'" Ozpin guessed.
"...yeah that's...one of the big questions," Summer answered.
"What she said was true. Someone gave her that power...someone who doesn't need a gift to control the monsters lurking at the edge of our kingdoms...because they consider her one of their own."
"A woman that can control and create Grimm does sound a bit far fetched, but hey, the Infinite Man is apparently real; what, is the Chill gonna come for us next?" Qrow said.
"...I'm not going to answer that and just keep us on track," Ozpin said, trying to change the subject.
"Oh, bull, that is not rea-"
"Anyway," the future Headmaster interrupted, "The second big question you have is..."
"Did they come after me because of what we've been looking into," Summer finished.
"…yes and no." Ozpin said, "There's a bigger, more complex story here…"
"A story...you're going to tell us," Raven said. Not really a question, more a demand. She hated not being informed like this, especially when it came to people like the knights.
"...Yes," Ozpin said simply, "and I take it...you want the long version. No details left out."
"It'd be nice."
"...we're gonna skip past this." Paradox said, making a time rift. "You should know the history..."
It was a quick jump, time resuming at normal speed as Ben and Ruby saw the shocked looks on the faces of Team STRQ.
"And...and that's all real..." Summer said, as if reassuring herself, "...holy shit."
"Indeed...I think I covered all the details, but..." Ozpin sighed. "That's the true story of the Infinite Man."
"And...you, now...huh?" Tai asked.
"In a way, I suppose so."
"Always joked about you being the 'light of our team' Sum," Qrow said, "Guess that's...guess that's literal now, huh?"
"Yeah...I guess it is," Summer answered, still in shock.
"...so, we're gonna need to fight like hell." Summer said, shocking her team a bit.
"You're not...freaked out?" Ozpin asked.
"Of course I am. I'd be crazy if I wasn't. You just told us a story about gods and curses, and that your...his...Ozma's...past lover is part Grimm and wants to destroy all life on the planet. But that's not gonna stop me from doing what a Huntress always does. Odds are against us? When has that ever stopped a team of Huntsmen and Huntresses before?"
Ruby quietly shed a tear.
"She's right," Tai said, overcoming his shock.
"Not like this is our first mission with bad odds, right? I mean, how many hunts have we gone on with the resident bad luck charm?" Qrow joked a little.
"...well, I suppose if the room is going with it..." Raven said, taking a deep breath.
Ozpin's face lightened a bit, "Thank you. I know this is hard for you all to hear, but..."
"We know, Oz," Summer smiled, "Besides, we got a long way to go before we fight the big bad, herself. Speaking of, your...um...roommate? He doesn't happen to have any info on the knights, does he?"
"Sadly not. They're as fresh to me as they are to you," Ozpin said, "We'll have to wait it out."
"And I'll wait for however long it takes," Summer said.
"Considering who they're working for...you may not have to wait long."
"Yeah...and when they try it," Qrow said with a smirk, "they'll have to deal with a Team STRQ who's ready for 'em."
Ben and Ruby stared at the group for a bit, taking in the rather familiar sight. The resolve, the unwavering conviction…it was a bit of deja vu for the duo.
"They really were just like us..." Ben said, looking back at Paradox,"So...this battle we're in. While it has no set ending, there's always a chance that good can triumph, right?"
"I'm more showing you that...you're in a loop. Every generation is. And...given the bonds you all share, there's a chance that you can break this cycle," Paradox said, "Didn't this all seem familiar to you?"
"Yeah," Ruby finally said after a few moments, "Yeah, it did. Just...replace Summer, Qrow, Raven and Tai with...me, Weiss, Blake, Yang, hell everyone...age up Ozpin some and..."
"Like looking in a mirror," Paradox said.
"Do you really think we can break the cycle?" Ben asked. "We're so far away, yet so close..."
"It'll be a bit of a strange path to get there...but...that's spoilers." Paradox said.
"...is it weird that every time you say that, I hear Matt Smith?" Ruby finally asked.
"...who do you think I got the line from, Miss Rose?" Paradox chuckled, "Though if I had to say, I'm more of a Pete Davison Doctor."
"I more pegged you for Paul McGann," Ben said, "Still though, it's… kinda comforting to know that people before us went through that...weird, strange feeling..."
"Very comforting, I should hope. All your life there's a curtain up and you have no idea what's behind it. Then one day someone tells you, 'would you like to see what's there?' and they pull it back. Everything you know changes in an instant. Harder to process if you're the first one to look back there. Far easier when there are people who know that feeling and can...help you through the motions."
"If not for this, I don't think we'd ever succeed. I'm so used to turning to grownups for answers that I didn't realize they were just like us. We believe they know everything." Ruby said, walking over to her mom. The two of them looked so alike. Ruby never knew she had her mother's determined smile.
"I'll save you." Ruby said.
Paradox couldn't help but smile at Ruby's resolve.
"One more trip down Team STRQ's past should do it, I think," the time traveler said after mulling it over.
"Where are we going?" Ruby asked the Professor.
"To a conclusion," Paradox simply replied.
With one final series of turns on the pocket watch, Paradox jumped forwards in time again. This time though, Ben and Ruby caught glimpses of other events in Team STRQ's timeline. Battles against Grimm from all over the world like Deathstalkers, Nevermores, Imps, even ones that neither of them had seen before like a praying mantis, a massive viper fish-like monstrosity, even an ant-eater Grimm the size of a horse that slashed through the wall of house in Vacuo to get at Qrow and Tai.
Of course, it wasn't just Grimm Team STRQ fought against in these quick scenes of time. The Forever Knights appeared several more times to battle the group, either as a full team, individually, or even in duos. Summer and Emzara clashed in many of the scenes displayed. Sometimes Emzara got the upper hand and beat Summer, but Ruby's future mother managed to escape, and other times Summer trounced Emzara handily.
A stand out from the montage of battle was the moment when Qrow and Raven were gifted their shapeshifting abilities. They seemed to be a bit older, maybe halfway through their third year by now, and Ozpin was starting to resemble his "headmaster" self that Ruby and Ben were more familiar with. The trio seemed to be somewhere out in Forever Fall, but before they could get all the details the time jump stopped. The time-walking trio were now right outside the old castle that the Knights had been using as their base.
Packs of Grimm had once patrolled the perimeter, but now most were nothing but ash on the wind. Team STRQ stood before the gates of the old castle, one of the last reminders of the Great War. In truth, this is always how Ruby imagined the redundantly named Fort Castle in her head.
"This is it..." Summer said, taking a breath as the four of them readied to breach the gates. All these fights, all these ambushes, fighting their own secret war against the Knights...it all led to this. The final fight between Summer Rose and Emzara.
"What if I maybe don't wanna see this?" Ruby asked Paradox. "I know Emzara isn't probably the best person around, but...there's a part of me that worries that whatever way my mom takes down Emzara is gonna be some spoilers or something? For my future?"
"For you? No, no, no, I don't think so. I calculated every stop on this little temporal road trip, weighed the risk of spoilers for you. This moment? Not one of the ones that was crossed off," Paradox explained.
"Well, still...with all the parallels..." Ben said, "We could see something spoilery."
"Parallels are not spoilers in and of themselves. If that was the case, I wouldn't have shown you STRQ learning the truth, now would I?" Paradox asked.
"That's fair," Ben said, as he and Ruby followed behind the team. They'd matured- Ben noted Qrow had started to grow his signature stubble, and that Raven was wearing her Nevermore mask. Taiyang was also showing hints of a beard, while Summer...
She had some scars on her face. They didn't look permanent, but they were there.
The team easily brought down the gate with some blasts from their combined firepower, giving them total access to the old fortress. It wasn't an easy walk through, of course. This was the heart of their enemy. Grimm appeared to harry them at almost every corner, almost every room. Raven and Qrow even had to split off from the rest of the group when the Twin Knights appeared to bar their way. Then, Tai was separated from her when Morton tackled him through several rooms.
Only Ruby's future mother found her way to the round table room, at Tai's insistence. She wanted to help him, but he told her that he had this. After everything they'd been through, Summer trusted him. And so she was going to face Emzara alone.
Ruby and Ben followed the former's mother to the double doors that led to the roundtable room of the castle. Emzara stood at the opposite side of the room, watching Summer throw the doors open. She smirked behind her mask, one hand firmly gripping the hilt of a blade.
Emzara silently locked eyes with Summer, her grip tightening on her weapon.
"Not feeling chatty, today huh?" Summer asked, "Not gonna throw some classic villain remark my way? Or did your 'Queen' not give you anything about this?"
The Blood Knight didn't respond and began to move around the table like a predator circling its next kill. Summer began moving the opposite, waiting for the right moment to strike. Emzara stopped circling, before drawing her blades and leapt into action. In a surprise twist, the lead knight seemed to teleport over the table in a puff of black smoke. Summer's eyes widened as she blocked the incoming slashes with the shaft of Silver Bloom.
"She stole Kylie's thing," Ruby gasped.
"Looks like she's got a lawsuit against Salem," Ben joked, the two continuing to follow the fight.
Blade clashed against blade as the two rivals fought what seemed to be their final battle. Summer was on the offensive for a while, before she found an opening in the Blood Knight's barrage. With a well placed strike with the pommel of the polearm, Emzara staggered back and Ruby's future mother took an offensive stance. Silver Bloom swung around in impressive arcs and was thrust forward in quick stabs, each attack pushing the Blood Knight back. Soon, to add even more power to her attack, Summer activated her Semblance, letting a small storm of petals surround her. The fighting duo reached a staircase, with Summer pushing Emzara further up, as is fitting of a climatic clash. Ben and Ruby watched the fight with great interest, seeing Summer's petals fly around and stab through the knight's steel armor like it was nothing. Her powers had evolved substantially over the years.
"I didn't know my petals could do that," Ruby said.
"Keep that in mind..." Ben said, as they sped up their walk, following the fight.
Of course, Emzara's new power wasn't anything to scoff at either. It wasn't just a mobility enhancement; it allowed her to phase through some of Summer's bigger slashes as a cloud of black smoke.
"Kylie is definitely suing," Ruby quipped.
The most striking thing was just how dead silent Emzara was here. Every other encounter with her, Summer couldn't get this woman to shut up. The Blood Knight, maybe entirely focused on the fight, continued her silence and retaliated by forcing Silver Bloom down and repositioned behind Summer thanks to her smoke. Now, Summer was being pushed up the stairs with a powerful flurry of strikes from the lead knight's shortswords. Emzara swung one sword, firing off a shockwave of black energy at the opponent. Summer quickly evaded it, and the projectile sliced through the curving castle walls.
Emzara grinned- her distraction had worked. Faster than the eye can track, the Blood Knight slashed her swords and left behind a vortex of slashes that all struck Summer at once.
Ruby's future mother screamed as the slashes cut through her Aura, making the white energy flare around her body. She still had some, but it wouldn't last long with the type of punishment her rival was dishing out. She tightened her grip on Silver Bloom and first, shifted the blade to scythe mode, followed by activating her Wind Dust. She slashed and slashed at Emzara, testing the limits of the knight's new power.
Unlike Kylie, it looked like Emzara could only maintain the gaseous form in short bursts, a few seconds at most. This didn't go unnoticed by Summer and with her Wind-enhanced strikes being faster than the Blood Knight's reaction time, scratches and slash marks began to cross the armor of Summer's now silent rival.
The white reaper frowned- it was time to end this, once and for all. No more nightmares. No more losses. No more pain. She disappeared, like she'd flash stepped out of view. Emzara looked around her for a few seconds, before Summer reappeared behind the knight in a flurry of rose petals, and slashed into her side.
The attack connected and that meant Summer could do it; she could finally put an end to Emzara's threat once and for all. She drop-kicked her opponent into the air before rushing in close behind, using her Semblance to propel herself after the knight.
"...that's..." Ruby said, a bit shocked. It was just like her own Semblance.
Summer began hitting them with a near-invisible flurry of slashes, from all directions- her petals, her blades, anywhere. Emzara's armor and aura was about to shatter like GLASS.
Emzara screamed, the first sound that escaped her lips the whole fight, as the slashes tore through her armor, her Aura shattering and her armor being chipped away in fragments. She thudded to the ground, pieces of metal scattering across the floor.
Including the knight's mask.
"And like that," Summer panted, "You're...done."
Summer was right, though she didn't know the true extent of that phrase. Emzara had been done for a long time; too many failures had ruined her. Obviously her warnings from Salem weren't effective enough, because they just kept piling up and up. On the other hand, her knight's lessened effectiveness could also be due to the fact that Salem was, essentially, commanding a corpse.
"What?" Summer muttered when she saw Emzara's exposed face. It really was a corpse, given all appearances. Summer really had to wonder now; was she fighting what little remained of the Blood Knight or was the Grimm Beetle just puppetting her actions?
"Kill. Me," Emzara's voice was haunting. Her eyes were lifeless, and her skin was dehydrated.
"What...happened to you..." Summer asked. No one deserved this, enemy or not.
"...she...did. Y-you did..." Emzara rasped.
"It was all her, Emzara. Not me," Summer said quietly.
"She...punished me...because you. Kept. Winning," the Blood Knight shot back.
"…did she ever tell you the truth?" Summer asked, "Or were you still trying to be at odds with me?"
"At...first...it was...just...a mission. After...the third time...it...was personal," the ruined knight weakly sputtered, her breathing quick and shallow.
"We had to fight like that because…Salem was lying to you. Brainwashing you into her dogma. No woman would treat a person like this…"
"She was...harsh...because she needed to be. She...she lost...people to...the Infinite Man...before..." Emzara wheezed, "She...s-she..."
"And so did the Infinite Man. We could've…we could've fought together. You could've been an upperclassman at my school, someone I could've looked up to…"
"...you're not...the first...to say that..." the knight scoffed.
"I know," Summer said.
"How much…do you even know...about me?" Emzara hissed.
"I know you're fighting for what you think is right, like me…but…god…I would give everything to go back in time and help you."
"But...you...can't...can you?" Emzara sneered, "So just...finish it..."
Summer winced.
"Goodbye, Emzara. You…were a true rival to me." Summer said, taking a deep breath.
Emzara closed her eyes and took her last breath. She'd been dead for a while now, in all honesty. Time to make it official. Summer lifted Silver Bloom above Emzara's neck, blade pointed down...before she drove the blade into its target. The breaths the Blood Knight took went from shallow but steady to gurgled and rough.
Summer had some regret in her eyes for what she'd done. Ruby felt like crying, seeing her mother looking so defeated after what should have been a moment of triumph a few seconds ago.
Summer looked around, hoping that the other members of her team had finished their fights as well, so she could at least vent this regret to someone. Either they were on their way or they were still fighting. With either option, Summer moved back, retracing her steps back into the roundtable room. She'd noticed the odd, orb-like creature that sat on the table when she first entered. She expected it to still be sitting there.
Seeing it now floating right in her path made her stop dead in her tracks.
"You," Salem spoke. On sight, Summer activated her silver eyes, and immediately destroyed the beast.
Ruby's future mother took off when the light faded, the ashes of the Seer simply scattering away in the air behind her. First, she needed to try and help Tai.
"...woah." Ruby said, a bit shocked at what she just saw. "That was..."
"Intense, yes," Paradox sighed, "Salem has a tendency to be...harsh to the people she needs the most."
"Like Cinder," Ben said.
"Like Cinder and Cass. Emzara wasn't even a Maiden and look what became of her..."
"And...those two are some of her most significant followers...so...it'd be much worse for them," Ruby concluded, "You...transported us to the past. You showed us what happened...can't we CHANGE anything?"
Paradox's chipper face turned sad. "Time travel not dedicated to time travel only works when you take the 'Closed Loop' method. That you can't change the past, anything you did in the past already happened, and all you'd be doing is ensuring what happened happens."
"B-but, you've broken fate before, right?" Ben said.
Paradox took a deep sigh, might as well explain this now.
"Mr. Tennyson, Miss Rose…as you will know and as you may have guessed, my abilities and mastery over time is not natural. When I was but a mere mortal, not too dissimilar to some scientists you will come to know, I worked on a government project that was meant to harness those very same abilities. It went…terribly wrong. I was sucked into a time vortex, destined to fall through it for all eternity. The fact I'm standing here before you lends credence to the idea that I have broken fate before. However…in a weird way, I'm still falling, Mr. Tennyson," Paradox explained,"I sometimes close my eyes...and I can still feel that weightlessness overcome my body..."
Ben and Ruby shared a concerned look.
"There's another reason I can't allow you to mess with the timeline," the timewalker continued, "Your...motto."
"Our motto?" Ruby asked.
"Yes, yes, a very simple statement, very powerful and surprisingly moving." Paradox smiled, "Keep moving forward, children. There is nothing to be found in moving backwards."
"But...you're..." Ben said.
"As your cousin learned once before, Ben-" Paradox began.
"Gwen!?" Ben yelled in surprise.
"Oh, right, alternate timeline..." Paradox chuckled to himself, "Your cousin once interfered with an event that managed to destroy her future, taking an already bright future and managing to ruin it, replacing it within dominated by a regime led by Charmcaster and a lack of...a future for herself, actually."
"A Gwen did...all that?" Ruby asked in confusion.
"Indeed, it shows how dangerous and fickle a mistress the timeline really is. But that's besides the point. You children...oh, you and your friends, you all share one thing: living with the consequences of your actions, the fallout of your decisions, the ripple effects–both positive and negative–that they have on others, the inability to undo mistakes and thus the need to think, to reach out to others, the need to do the right thing even when it's hard, the need to learn and grow and be better this time," Paradox rambled, "Ceres, or Aelita, is still haunted by her past. Kylie still has to deal with her trauma from the Seamstress. Kevin can never get rid of that AntiTrix on his wrist. Blake cannot just up and forget her past. Yang cannot forget her disability and so on, and so forth. But does that stop them; has it stopped them? No. They take those issues and push through that grief, getting stronger with each step. If we just erased their trauma, had them succeed where they failed...what would they learn?"
"B...but that's my mom..." Ruby sputtered, "We can't..."
Paradox quietly took Ruby's hand.
"A word of advice, Miss Rose," Paradox said, "Everything ends."
"...that doesn't help."
"Everything ends eventually," the timewalker continued, "Every story ever told ends in death if you tell it long enough. It's a mere fact of life. I've most certainly acquainted myself with the concept...people will always be familiar with the idea of loss. Losing family, friends, planets even..."
Ruby felt a bit more uneasy at that oddly specific last detail.
"But the best part?" Paradox smiled, "Knowing that there is always someone who survives. There will always be those who go through the worst. When you look at what's been thrown at them, for how much they lose, they keep moving forward. To bear that burden, to remember them..."
Paradox sounded a bit choked up.
"But...everything ends eventually."
"...I think I get it." Ruby finally said, after being silent for several minutes.
"I believe so, as well Miss Rose," Paradox said, clearing his throat to try and regain his composure, "Shall we head back to the present then?"
"...yeah." Ruby said, taking one last look at her mother as she descended the steps to meet up with her teammates.
"...one day." Ben smiled.
"One day," Ruby smiled back. The timewalking trio went back down the stairs to the double doors that lead out of the roundtable chamber, just closing thanks to Summer's own departure. Paradox opened one of the doors again, showing the familiar gleaming hallways of an Atlesian building, the exact same place they started actually.
Paradox stopped there, and sighed, "I never tire of Atlas' style. Shame about it, really."
"Shame about what?"
"Oh, you'll get there soon."
"...o...kay. A little ominous there," Ben said.
"Too much?" Paradox asked.
"Maybe, maybe," Ben said, "We'll burn that bridge when we get there."
"I...no, not going to comment on that," Paradox said, simply ushering the two through the doorway, "I look forward to seeing you two again."
He gave a small salute before the door. He turned, but not before pausing.
"Oh, one more thing, Benjamin."
Ben perked up. "Yeah?"
"X."
"...huh?"
"Beware the X." Paradox said, and the portal closed behind Ben and Ruby.
"...so." Ben said. "What's next?"
"...simple. We...just keep moving forward." Ruby said.
"Keep moving forward," Ben repeated and smirked, "He's right. It is a good motto."
And so, with a renewed sense of pride, Ben and Ruby walked down the hall, to talk to the others about it all.
A few days later, after everyone had somewhat calmed down from the revelation, Albedo and, surprisingly, Cammie were putting the finishing touches for a project that Ironwood had assigned the former. Cammie decided to help out where she could, especially since there was no real ill will between them.
"Encryption's damn impressive, gotta admit," Cammie said as she cut away at the security protocols.
"An Atlesian base for sure, but so heavily changed that only those skilled enough would recognize that," Albedo said, typing away at the keyboard. Some of the coding was familiar to him, the handiwork of a certain disgraced doctor, but there were other segments that were different. For lack of a better term, the digital signature of the second coder was completely unknown to Galvan raised a brow at that; he thought Salem's I.T department consisted solely of himself, Viktor, and Watts. He supposed the Forever Knight also technically counted, but it was never something official. Outside of the main three, though, there was never even a hint at a fourth.
"You didn't trust me, entirely, did you…?" Albedo muttered.
"What was that?" Cammie asked, having overhard it and moved back in her chair.
"Hm? Oh, nothing," the Galvan lied as he kept chipping away at the security.
"Password locks? Oh please, who do you think we ar-" Cammie began, but she was too cocky. Her first attempt at breaking the locks failed before she could even fully use her first decryption method.
"The fuck?" the Atlesian hacker raised a brow, "Uh…ok. Maybe this one?"
Decryption failed.
"Fucking…ok, maybe one mo-" Cammie began.
"I wouldn't do that," Albedo interrupted, "Some of the coding techniques used here? Alien. Including a Cerebrocrustacean failsafe that would wipe every single bit of data. In a way, it's good that Ironwood's other coders didn't get this far. They would've triggered it and we'd be back at square one."
"And…I'm guessing' you can do a better job?"
"Pride was never an obvious trait of mine. But in this case? I can crack this inferior security in a few minutes," Albedo smirked. Small side note, Galvan and Cerebrocrustaceans have something of a rivalry and, while it may be mostly one-sided, there are occasions where Galvan will happily one-up the hyper-intelligent shellfish species.
And Albedo's promise was not idle boasting. Within several minutes, full of keyboard strokes and code-breaking, Albedo was able to disable the failsafe and then break through the locks. The first was the easiest, with the password of "CONSORTIUM," a word that held no real significance to either of the coders. The second took a bit more work, but proved to be no match for Albedo's intellect in the end, unlocked with a phrase that was run through a Bacon Cipher. Translating the massive string of "aaaab ababa aaaaa aaaba abaab aaabb aaaaa baaaa abaab baaab baabb abbaa " got the much simpler phrase of "DARK SUN."
"Well that's a l'il ominous isn't it?" Cammie quipped.
"Quite…" the Galvan agreed, having a feeling he knew what it was referencing, before coming to the third lock. This one was the most challenging piece of the puzzle, by far. The password was hidden behind a cipher, but, upon closer inspection Albedo couldn't help but scoff. The key was a cipher in and of itself.
"Someone's compensating I think," Cammie shook her head, "Double cipher an' all."
"That or they are paranoid," Albedo added, "But with that…I think…"
The last lock opened when the phrase "Thyjolsl3lu1o14v1ov2zhukhukzp5" was entered. Putting that through a Caesar Cipher revealed a series of numbers: 3112006. Several files opened before the two coders, filling the screen with multiple different tabs.
"And this is why it pays to have a super smart alien on your team!" Cammie cheered. Her smile almost immediately faded when she actually took a closer look at the files. Albedo's eyes were scanning through the documents as quickly as possible, picking up on a few key notes. Mentions of the CCT tower, the Black Hand cultists, specific explosives to be picked up from black market sources.
"...we need to tell Ironwood. NOW," Albedo said, bolting up from his seat and rushing out of the room, Cammie close behind. She quickly closed the door to their computer lab behind and raced down the halls.
Halfway around the world, a large pair of oaken double doors opened as a very finely dressed man walked into an office. Bookshelves lined the walls, with some volumes taken out, and a small meeting spot set up to the side with several comfortable couches and a coffee table in the middle. Situated on the table was a grey tea set, the cups decorated with green trimmings. Plastered on the side of the kettle was a very familiar logo, that of two cogs, a smaller one resting within a larger cog.
The well dressed man took a seat as, across from him, an older gentleman began pouring cups of tea for the two of them.
"Certainly know how to make one feel welcome, I'll give you that," Watts said. His contact handed him the full teacup and the disgraced doctor took a sip.
"Salem did always you were quite hospitable," the disgraced Atlesian smirked.
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