Chapter 25
Landing Bay, Beacon Academy
As Weiss ran ahead, Ruby could only pant in exhaustion as she followed close behind. She had never seen Weiss so excited before, and next thing she knew, she had found herself chasing her partner down the courtyard.
"Weiss! What's the big deal? Who is it?! Who is she?!"
Weiss looked ahead with a beaming smile, towards the large ship docking at the bay, its doors opening to reveal someone stepping out.
"Winter."
"Wait…" Ruby muttered.
"Your sister?"
The woman named Winter Schnee soon made herself visible as she stepped down from her ship, accompanied by a pair of AK-200 robots. The young woman shared much features with her little sister, including their pearly skin tone, snow-white hair, and cold ice-blue eyes. However, Winter frequently wore a white military coat over a blue suit that opened to expose her shoulders, with a rapier sheathed at her waist. She also possessed more developed curves than her sister, and her hair was styled in a fringe that covered her right eye and all tied up with a bun on the back of her scalp.
"Winter!" Weiss called out rather loudly.
This caught Winter's attention as she turned to face her sister, her ice-cold glare unshifting as the pair of Ruby and Weiss ran up to her.
"Winter! I'm so happy to see you!" Weiss began with giddy excitement, but quickly composed herself, lest she be subjected to yet another lecture about 'ladylike manners'.
"Oh! -um…. I mean… Your presence honors us." She quickly corrected herself, adding a curtsy for good measure.
Winter paced slowly towards the two of them, her hands held behind her waist as she observed the surrounding campus. "Beacon. It's been a long time. The air feels… different."
"Well, I mean it is fall… so it's probably colder…" Ruby added awkwardly, prompting Weiss to ball her hand into a fist and slam it down onto Ruby's head, causing the little girl to drop to the ground with a face lined with agony.
"So! What're you doing here?" Weiss asked her sister excitedly.
"Classified." The young woman replied icily.
"Oh… and how long are you staying?" she asked a second time.
"Classified." Winter repeated.
"Of course."
After this, an awkward silence befell the three of them, with Ruby speaking up to break the silence. "Well… this is nice… I think?"
"You're going to love it here! I know you travel a lot, but so much of Beacon is different from Atlas! Vale too… The government and school are completely separate! Can you believe it?! I-" Weiss started to spout off before being abruptly cut off by Winter.
"I'm more than familiar with how this kingdom handles its… bureaucracy. But that is not why I came." Winter stated.
"Right. I'm sorry." Weiss quickly replied.
"Nor did I come to witness my own blood fail so miserably in battle. But it appears I have no choice in the matter." Winter added coldly.
"But… we won!" Weiss retaliated meekly.
"Only a novice would refer to that as a victory. I counted at least three strikes missed." Winter replied with a icy monotonous tone, causing Weiss to shrink in on herself.
But with this, the elder Schnee sighed. "Leave us." She said out loud, waving off the two robots behind her, and causing them to walk back into the ship.
"How have you been?" Winter asked her sister, managing a small smile.
With that, Weiss' confidence returned as a haughty grin crept up her face. "Oh, splendid! Thank you for asking. I'm actually the very top ranked in our sparring class! I'm al-"
But before she could continue, a gloved palm struck Weiss over the head, causing a rather prominent bump to appear.
"Silence, you boob! I don't recall asking about your ranking! I've asked how you've been. Are you eating properly? Have you taken up any hobbies? Are you making new friends?" Winter asked Weiss, now soundingmore like an overbearing mother.
"Well, there's Ruby…" Weiss replied, gesturing to the little girl next to her, beaming her endless smile and pushing Weiss's bump back into her head.
"Heh. Boob…" Ruby said
Winter turned to observe Ruby, her eyes furrowing in slight disappointment. "I see. So this is the 'leader' you wrote of. How appropriately… underwhelming."
Not quite catching on to Winter's drift, Ruby only replied awkwardly. "Uhh… thank you…"
"Greetings, Ruby Rose. I wish to thank you for taking an interest in my sister." Winter said to Ruby, triggering a confused reaction.
"Oh, uh… of course! The honor is in my… court!" Ruby replied, attempting to curtsy with her skirt, only to end up losing her balance and flailing her arms wildly in an attempt to regain her footing.
"I have business with the general and your headmaster. But seeing as I'm early, why don't you take me to your quarters?" Winter suggested to Weiss, whose smile beamed brighter.
"Really?" Weiss asked joyfully.
"Yes. I wish to inspect them to make sure they are up to my personal standards." Winter said as she walked with Weiss, robots following behind with firearms ready.
"Of course. Just so you know, the bunk beds only look unstable."
"Bunk… beds?..."
"I'll catch u-" Ruby began before stopping herself.
"I mean… I will… reconvene with you both… at a later… juncture!" Ruby reworded herself, not even knowing what the hell she was saying.
"At a juncture, yeah!"
Courtyard
On most days, the courtyard of Beacon Academy was quiet, with the occasional student or two walking down the walkway or sitting under the rosy red shade of the trees.
But during the Vytal Festival, this place was far more crowded and busy, with students and people from all over the world walking the campus grounds, with robots walking up and down the walkway.
Narrowing his eyes, he had found his target, strutting around like she owned the damn place in a way that made his blood boil. All he needed to take care of were these… stupid… machines.
Hearing the sound of electricity sparking, wires snapping and metal clanking, Winter turned around to see him.
He wore a gray and black suit decorated with a tattered red cape behind him, unbuttoned to reveal his upper chest, which he decorated with a necklace bearing a sideways cross, complementing his thin and lanky frame. His face was hardened and sharp, with a definitive scruff lining his pointed chin.
His eyes were a muted, yet deep red and his ivory black hair slicked back and falling messily in locks over his forehead.
"HEY! Yeah… I'm talkin' to you, Ice Queeeeen…" his gruff and dusty voice called out.
In his hands, he held a robot, its head torn clean from its neck, and another lying in pieces at his feet.
"Halt!" Winter ordered loudly, cueing the rest of her escort to stop in their tracks and aim their guns at the man.
"Excuse me!" Weiss exclaimed while strutting up to the grizzled man.
"Do you have any idea who you're referring to?!" Weiss asked him in outrage, jabbing a finger at his chest.
"SSHhhshsHSHSHhshhsh…" The man woozily droned under his alcohol-scented breath, while slapping a finger to his lips and his palm on her face.
"Not you…" He said, pushing Weiss aside to exchange a death glare at the elder woman ahead down the path, mirroring his own intensity.
"You."
"Saw that gaudy ship of yours in town. Guess you're here too." He mumbled, but loudly enough for Winter to hear and reply.
"I'm standing right before you."
The man squinted, unoiled gears grinding in his numbed brain before he smirked mischievously. "So it would seem."
"You do realize you've just destroyed Atlas military property?" Winter said with her icy, commanding tone.
Turning to the remains of the robots he tore apart, he raised his hands defensively. "Oooh, I'm sorry… See, I mistook this for some sort of 'sentient garbage'."
"I don't have time for your immature games, Qrow!" Winter yelled at the dusty man.
"Wait… you two know each other?" Weiss asked her sister, but before she could get an answer, Qrow began to run his mouth more.
"Sheesh… you Atlas specialists think you're soooo special…" He drunkedly threw at Winter.
"It's in the title." Winter snarkily replied.
"But y'know whatcha really are? A buncha sellouts! Just like your boss." He threw back.
"I don't know what you think you're implying, but I've heard enough!" Winter angrily threatened.
"Oh, I heard too! I heard ol' Ironwood finally turned his back on Ozpin!" Qrow said.
"Ozpin?" Weiss asked. What did their headmaster have to do with this?
"Weiss, it's time for you to leave." Winter told her sister, pushing her aside, knowing this was going to take a violent turn.
"Listen to big sister, Weiss! She'll protect ya. Just like Atlas is gonna protect all of us, huh?" Qrow replied, causing a vein on Winter's head to pop.
"If you won't hold your tongue, then I will gladly remove it for you!" Winter declared with killing intent in her voice, unsheathing her sword and aiming the tip at Qrow's neck.
"Well…" Qrow chuckled to himself playfully, running his tongue through his fingers.
"Come take it." Qrow called out, slicking his hair back with a shit-eating grin.
After this, only dead silence followed, as several students had gathered around once they had noticed the commotion. Nobody made a sound or a stray movement, and the air was so tense one could hear the shrieks of a hawk in the far distance.
Suddenly, Weiss felt a rush of wind blow past her face, and turned to see her sister gone from her side and directly in front of Qrow.
Winter attacked with her sword, attempting multiple slashes and thrusts at Qrow's face, only for him to stand in place, casually leaning left and right to dodge her swings.
Gritting her teeth in anger, Winter picked up speed and swung for his neck, only for him to bow evading her strike . Seeing this, Winter flipped her grip on her sword in order to stab down on his back.
However, she only felt her blade strike metal as Qrow reached for the weapon slung to the back of his waist. Maneuvering Winter's rapier off of him, he twirled his weapon in his hand and brought it out in full view. In Qrow's hand was a massive broadsword, its length almost matching his own height. The segmented blade extended over the red hilt, connected by a series of small gears interlocking.
Examining the weapon, Winter assumed a stance as Qrow nicked the blade with hers, as a way of testing. Soon, Qrow advanced himself, his blade swiping left and right, trailing red arcs of energy with each swing. Winter flipped backwards in an attempt to dodge, before rising up again with her sword, blocking Qrow's next strike.
Eventually, an entire crowd had gathered to see the fight, forming a circle where the two fighters were locked in what could only be described as a dance of blades.
Ruby then arrived to see what was happening, finding Weiss amidst the crowd.
"What's going on?" She asked.
"Some crazy guy just started attacking my sister!" Weiss exclaimed, gesturing to the fight down the courtyard.
"Oh no! Who would do such a th-AT IS MY UNCLE!" Ruby exclaimed excitedly once she realized who Winter was fighting.
"What?"
"KICK HER BUTT, UNCLE QROW!" Ruby yelled, cheering on her uncle.
"Uhh… TEACH HIM RESPECT, WINTER!" Weiss joined in, rooting for her sister.
Meanwhile in the crowd, Mercury noticed the fight and moved in to get a better view. Upon seeing who it was he quickly left to inform his team.
Winter advanced with two slashes, which Qrow only evaded before retaliating with a rising attack, continuing with a downwards swing, which Winter blocked without a problem, staggering under the blade's weight.
Taking advantage of this opening, Winter coiled her sword arm back and rushed the veteran huntsman with a thrust, but Qrow only pushed the blade up with his sword and swung for Winter's head, but hit her rapier instead.
Pushing both fighters back, the two of them sprung toward each other, blades clashing, but Qrow quickly recovered and attempted to swing for Winter's neck, but the military specialist narrowly ducked and swiftly returned a hit, slamming her rapier's hilt across the side of Qrow's head.
While this dazed him, a split second later, Qrow rose back up with a grin and a glint in his eye, raising his sword as high as he could.
Knowing what was to come, Winter cast a glyph under her feet and ejected off of the ground just as it was obliterated by an aura-infused slam from Qrow.
Looking above him, Qrow saw Winter smirking at him as she made her descent, falling down into the grassier fields of the courtyard.
Gritting his teeth, Qrow pursued her. Leaping at her, he slashed, cutting down a lamppost with his attack.
Winter jumped at Qrow, flipping above him and slashing with her spins, trying to hit him, but Qrow managed to block her attack with his broadsword. However, Winter wasn't finished, as she rose into the air again before Qrow could hit her with a horizontal slash.
Landing on top of Qrow's blade, her feet rested softly onto the flat of the broadsword, much to Qrow's confusion. Next thing he knew, Winter's high heels were digging into his face as she flipped out of range and onto the ground.s
Leaping behind her, she barely dodged Qrow as he threw his broadsword at her feet. Landing atop a lamppost, Winter jumped even higher as Qrow fired a shotgun shell at her.
The elder Schnee came up on one of the tall-standing arcs lining the courtyard, halting her descent by digging her rapier into the stone. Looking behind her, Winter could see Qrow running to pursue her. Using her glyphs, she proceeded to run up the wall and along the arc, dodging gunfire from Qrow's shotgun.
Running down the pathway, Qrow aimed his shotgun's barrel at the young woman, missing his shots every time. He then leapt up onto the arc opposite Winter's running along the edge in an attempt to get closer.
But all of a sudden, Winter disappeared, a large cloud of white mist obscuring her from sight. Reverting his gun, Qrow stared curiously at the cloud, waiting for her next move.
And suddenly, it came as Winter leapt from the mist, yelling a loud battle cry. Qrow grinned as he brought his blade in front of him, ready to strike back.
"Enough!" Ironwood's voice rang, causing both fighters to stop.
"G-General Ironwood!" Winter gulped before composing herself
"What in the world do you think you're doing?" Ironwood asked sternly
"HEY! We aren't done YET, ICE QUEEEEeeeeeen" Qrow suddenly yelled, becoming slightly sober
"He started the altercation, sir!" The young woman pointed at the drunk man accusingly.
"Hey, you swung first." Qrow piped up from behind her.
"Is this true?" Ironwood asked sternly.
Winter opened her mouth to answer, but found no words as she slumped her head in defeat.
"And you…" Ironwood turned to the Qrow.
"What are you doing here?"
"I could be asking you the same thing." The aged man replied in his distinctive accent.
Before Ironwood could respond, Ozpin arrived on the scene alongside Goodwitch, who used her semblance to repair the damage on the courtyard.
"Now everyone, there is a sanctioned fight just around the corner that I can assure you has better seats… and popcorn!" Ozpin addressed the crowd, clutching his favorite mug in his hand.
"Break it up, everyone! We will take care of this mess." Goodwitch sternly added, causing the crowd to disperse.
"Let's go." Ironwood said, cueing Winter to follow him, with the rest of the Knights to follow them.
Just then, Ruby arrived on the scene, just catching glimpse of the robots walking toward the campus, with Penny trailing closely behind. Spotting Ruby, Penny gave a cheerful wave, which was returned by her friend.
Ruby looked around for her uncle, who hadn't noticed her yet.
"Qrow!"
Said huntsman flinched from his trance and turned abruptly toward Ozpin.
"A word, if you will?"
Narrowing his eyes at the headmaster, he sighed reluctantly
"Sure. Will do."
Headmaster's Office
Winter paced back and forth in the office, her mind racing in several directions at once after receiving quite the talk from her general.
Said general stood beside Ozpin's vacant desk, his arms crossed and in deep thought, with his right hand standing at attention beside him with his arms crossed behind his back.
Soon, the ding of the elevator sounded to announce the arrival of more visitors, the doors parting to reveal Ozpin, Goodwitch and Qrow, the latter of which seemed slightly displeased to be here at the moment.
"Qrow, what were you thinking?!" Winter almost yelled out loudly.
"If you were one of my men, I would have you shot!" Ironwood added.
"If I was one of your men, I'd shoot myself." Qrow spat back with a blend of venom and sarcasm.
"Well, while I wouldn't condone his behavior, retaliating like you did certainly didn't help the situation." Goodwitch scolded Winter with an exasperated voice.
"He was drunk!" Winter argued.
"He's always drunk!" Goodwitch, threw back immediately, before everybody turned their heads towards the man of the hour, chugging gulps of whiskey from a flask.
Sighing, Ozpin got down to business. "Qrow, why are you here?"
"Qrow, you've been out of contact for weeks! You can't just go dark like that in the field!" Iroonwood exclaimed in a loud voice.
"I ain't one of your special operatives, Jimmy!" Qrow threw back. "I came back for the same reason you did. I've been watching our enemy for a while now, and I'm telling you, our enemy is already here."
"We know." Ironwood replied.
"Oh really, now?! Qrow spat
"We had reason to assume you had been compromised." Winter replied sternly.
"And we have reason to assume you don't need to be here! Seriously, who invited her?!" Qrow snarkily responded, pointing a finger at Winter.
With this, Iroonwood only sighed. "Schnee, we can discuss this later on the ship."
"B-but, sir…" Winter stammered, confused.
"Winter… leave." Iroonwood cut her off with a commanding tone.
"Yes sir." Reluctantly submitting, Winter gave a salute and took her leave, entering the elevator and pressing a button down.
Once Winter was gone from sight, all eyes turned to Qrow.
"Go on…" Ironwood goaded the dusty man.
"Your little 'infiltrator' ain't just another pawn." Qrow began, unscrewing the cap on his flask for another chug.
"What do you mean?" Ironwood asked.
"They're responsible for Amber." Qrow explained with a grim tone.
"What?" Goodwitch exclaimed in surprise.
Pulling his lips away from his flask, Qrow turned to address his colleagues. "Despite what the world thinks, we aren't just teachers or generals. We're the ones keeping the world safe from dangers nobody even knows about! That's why we meet behind closed doors, why we work in the shadows. So you tell me James, when you brought your army to Vale, did you think you were being discreet, or did you just not give a flying fuck?! You might as well invite the Lin Kuei!"
With Qrow's face in his, Ironwood's stoic expression didn't budge in the slightest. "Discreet wasn't working."
Placing his scroll on Ozpin's desk, the glass flickered to life as it scanned the miniscule device. With responding beeps, a holographic display was projected in front of the group. It was a reconstruction of Beacon Academy, with the Amity Coliseum hovering overhead, encircled by the ever-present Atlesian fleet.
"I'm here because this is what was necessary." Ironwood stated.
"You're here because Ozpin wanted you here. He made you a part of his inner circle and opened your eyes to the real threat that's in front of us." Qrow objected.
"And for that, I am grateful." Ironwood replied.
"Yeah? Well, you got a real funny way of showing it!" Qrow threw back.
"The people of Vale needed someone to protect them, someone who would act! When they look to the sky and see my fleet, they feel safe, and our enemies will feel our strength." Ironwood declared proudly.
However, Qrow only began to laugh bitterly. "Do you honestly think your little ships can scare them? Her? I've been out there, and I've seen what she's made, and trust me when I say, she is fear. And that's not even adding the fucking Black Dragons"
"And fear will bring the Grimm." Ozpin added.
"A guardian is a symbol of hope, but an army is a symbol of conflict. There's an energy in the air now, the question on the back of everyone's minds; "If this is the size of our defenses, what is it we're expecting to fight?" Ozpin continued.
Ironwood looked around the room, and it became clear from the stern expressions on their faces that they were on Ozpin's side.
Ironwood turned to Goodwitch, who only sighed and shook her head, making it clear that the general was alone in his ideals.
Sighing to himself in defeat, Ironwood moved to pick up his scroll, failing to notice the black queen symbol glitching on the screen.
"So, what would you suggest we do?" Ironwood asked his fellow headmaster.
Linking his fingers under his chin, the old man only stared ahead and spoke with a clear voice. "I suggest we find our guardian."
"And our 'infiltrators'?" Qrow asked.
"I can count a few exceptionally trained students that I can trust to find them." Ozpin answered, much to Ironwood's shock.
"You can't seriously believe they can find them?" Ironwood asked.
"They haven't failed yet." Ozpin replied
Meanwhile
"You're sure?"
Cinder paced back and forth, her hands held behind her hip, as she listened to Mercury.
"Positive. Bad hair, reeked of booze, and used a broadsword. I know it was him." Mercury replied irately.
Cinder frowned. Having to blend in was difficult enough, and now the very man who came that close to stopping them was here. What rotten luck.
"What do we do, then?" Emerald asked worriedly.
Cinder stopped and only turned to Emerald with a confident smirk. "Nothing. We stay the course. They have absolutely no clue who we are, so we have no reason to worry."
"Okay." Emerald said
"Ah, speaking of which… it appears we have a new access point." Cinder said with a sinister grin. On the screen, a picture of Ironwood's scroll popped up, allowing Cinder to tap on the display and giving her access to the countless files stored in his data.
"Anything good?" Emerald asked.
"You could say that."
Swiping on her scroll, Cinder tapped the Coliseum icon and opened up the randomizer roulette, grinning in anticipation.
Amity Coliseum ,
The crowd watched in anticipation and sheer ecstasy as the roulette began to spin above them, lining up the remaining teams with each other for the doubles rounds.
As the last of the fighters were paired, the crowd cheered wildly as the first fighters entered the arena.
"The randomization process is complete! Ladies and gentlemen, your doubles tournament line-up!" Oobleck enthusiastically announced over the microphone as the crowd's roars and applause resounded through the amphitheater.
On one side of the arena, Team RWBY and Team JKHL joined in waiting in sheer anticipation, Team JNPR and TSKK doing the same from the other side.
Qrow sat at a bar at the festival grounds, his hand clutching shot glasses, but his eyes glued to the screen as they waited eagerly for the match to begin.
But in one corner of the terraces, Cinder sat comfortably with Kabal seated next to her. Neither of them cheered, and only gave a slow clap as they Cinder grinned, knowing exactly how this was going down.