Author's note: A slow chapter this week, since Salem can't do much of anything right now. There is also a bit of info about Sirena coming, so be ready.
Sirena stood in a classroom in Atlas Academy, with Ruby's Group, the Ace-Ops, Winter and General Ironwood sitting on the benches. Everyone looked around confused, not sure what was about to happen.
"Now, I know you wonder why I called you here," Sirena said, "Simply put, my duties on the surface are soon to be over. Therefore, I have decided to have Ruby take over my position, effective immediately."
"What does that mean, exactly?" Ruby asked.
"It means you take over my functions in this alliance," Sirena answered, "I fully trust your judgment going forward."
"What functions?" Harriet asked and said, "You didn't do all that much before."
"Except she did," Ruby said and rushed to the front of the room, stopping in front of Sirena.
"I didn't notice much," Harriet said.
"Exactly," Ruby said, "But Sirena had a plan. She got Marrow to let her train him so the rest of you would feel irrelevant and come to her for help, so as to not get replaced by faunus once General Ironwood sees what a well-trained faunus can do. That way, she could talk you into copying those semblances from her people, and make you into a better team."
"But we already are a great team," Elm said.
"No, you were a group," Ruby said, "Remember when we brought up luck semblances during game night? One small disagreement, and you were throwing punches."
"So, how does copying semblances help us?" Harriet asked.
"Before I answer that, please go to your soul core," Ruby said, "All of you." The Ace-Ops slumped over in their seats for a moment, then sat right up again.
"Ok, now how does this help?" Harriet asked.
"Because using another person's semblance is difficult," Ruby answered, "You're not just using my semblance, for example. You're making your aura behave like mine to get the same effects. And that has an effect on your soul, and your personality. My semblance represents my desire to protect others, so I can move around any obstacle that would get in the way. If you use my semblance too much, that same wish will manifest in your soul."
"Wait, what?" Harriet asked, angrily standing up from her seat, "So you just decided that we weren't good enough? That we should be more like you?"
"I decided that, yes," Sirena said, "It was also my decision to keep this from you. But with Ruby now in charge, that decision is up to her, and I will respect it."
"Do we need to know anything else?" Harriet asked, and the rest of the Ace-Ops got upset as well.
"The lamp still has one question left," Ruby answered, "And Salem can't be killed." A shocked silence fell over the room, and the Ace-Ops and Winter looked over to General Ironwood, who didn't seem too concerned.
"I see," General Ironwood said, "Then we will focus on slowing her down as much as possible."
"How do we do that?" Harriet asked and said, "I mean, we can't just keep on fighting her forever. One day we'll lose."
"Not if we have the right army," Ruby said.
"What kind of army can defeat someone immortal?" Harriet asked, and Ruby sensed her losing hope.
"An army that counters her biggest strength," Ruby answered, "In the past, Salem won by dividing us. What Ironwood did didn't help us, but we can make it work for our cause. You see, if you use a silver-eyed warrior's semblance often enough, the light of that semblance will become strong enough to be passed on to the next generation."
"And then?" Elm asked, "It's not like the silver eyes alone can stop Salem."
"That may be true," Sirena said, "However, those born with silver eyes cannot be corrupted by the darkness."
"What, you think we'd fall for her tricks?" Clover asked.
"Yes," Sirena answered, "The virus she used in Vale, the image the General saw that night, was a message. She wanted him to close the borders and withdraw his military, leaving the other kingdoms with less protection. It wasn't a threat, it wasn't gloating, it was an order. And like a good soldier, he followed." The Ace-Ops and Winter were silent, not knowing what to do with this information.
"What now?" Harriet asked after a while, "Do we just… go back to not being ourselves? I mean, what else can we do to not fall for Salem's tricks?"
"Don't worry," Ruby answered, "We can help you become stronger, and resist her attempts at manipulation."
"How do you plan to do that?" Harriet asked.
"We'll think of something," Ruby answered, "But for now, you can all go about your normal days again."
"One more thing," Clover said and asked, "Did you know that the military had been infiltrated?" Everyone but Ruby, Sirena and Maria gasped, and turned to Ruby and Sirena.
"Yes, I knew," Sirena answered, "Sophie's swarm has taken up numerous influential positions within the military, as well as other groups. But now, we have to get back to other tasks." She left the room, and one by one, the others left as well, returning to going on missions, training, or doing something else.
~o~
Sirena walked up to Elm, who was on the way to a training room so she could work on getting stronger. She stopped when she noticed Sirena following her, and turned around.
"Hello," Elm said and asked, "What do you want?"
"I want to help you," Sirena answered, "If we fuse, I can share our fusion's semblance with you."
"Didn't we just talk about that?" Elm asked.
"Yes, we did," Sirena answered, "However, since our fusion would be part you, using her semblance would have less of an effect on your personality."
"Did Jaune set you up to this?" Elm asked.
"No," Sirena answered, "I'm just here to help, as usual."
"You haven't done much helping, though," Elm said.
"And that's where you're wrong," Sirena said, "I kept you from retrieving Amity, thus preventing Salem from destroying cyberspace with her cyber-Grimm. I've also secured materials to rebuild the wall, and helped mend relations between Atlas and Mantle. If General Ironwood really wants to unite the world, he has to start with this kingdom, or noone will want to follow him. I trained Marrow, and had planned for you all to get stronger as well."
"I don't buy it," Elm said, "You always act like everything good that happens to us was your plan all along, and when something bad happens, suddenly things are outside your control. Harriet… she could've died that day!"
"You don't have to believe me," Sirena said, "But I truly am sorry for what happened to her. And before you direct any more of your anger towards me, consider that it was General Ironwood who did not inform her of Nora's semblance. As the head of that operation, everything that happened due to mistakes during the planning stage is entirely his fault. That is, in part, why I made the pact with him."
"What pact?" Elm asked, tilting her head slightly, and her anger was replaced with curiosity.
"I swore to reconsider my stance on protecting his kingdom," Sirena answered, "If he in turn pledged to protect it and its people to the best of his abilities. It was unrelated to me bringing my healer here, and I would have done that even if he refused the pact. But since that day, he has been unable to take any action that would endanger a citizen of this kingdom, or stay inactive when people are threatened."
"So that's why he was acting so strange," Elm said and asked, "But, why?"
"Mostly to save his life," Sirena answered, "He endured my pain, a part of it, and it almost made him end his life to be free of it. I offered him this pact so he would be unable to do that."
"Wait, really?" Elm asked, "So, you don't hate him?"
"I did not say that," Sirena answered, "I do despise him for his decision not to aid my people, and the pain it caused us. However, I also recognize that he is a respected leader, and with proper guidance, can become a serious threat to Salem and her forces. I mostly overplay my disdain for him, so that his pride will drive him to seek my approval, and allow him to grow into the man I know he can be." Elm's scroll rang, and she got a message from General Ironwood.
"Elm, follow along with Sirena's plan," the message read, "That is an order. And do not hesitate to use your fusion's semblance in combat."
"Is this still the pact?" Elm asked, looking up from the message.
"Yes," Sirena answered, "It is weakening, but still in full control of his actions." She held out her right hand, Elm took it with hers, and Sirena initiated their fusion into Manchineel.
~o~
Team RWBY sat in their dorm room, planning their next steps. Weiss and Yang were sitting on their beds, while Ruby and Blake were sitting on chairs, and all four had their scrolls connected to each other, with a list of steps showing.
"So, this is the plan?" Weiss asked.
"Yeah," Ruby answered, "I know it's risky, but we'll prepare for it. Maria is already out there doing some work."
"Ruby, listen," Yang said, sighed and asked, "Is this really okay?"
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked.
"I mean all of this," Yang answered, "You're using Mantle to attract Grimm. You left the heating grid on half power so people would be more upset. How can we do this?"
"The people are safe," Ruby answered, "There's sniper turrets with over two hundred meters range and ice-dust bullets that create barbed spikes on impact shooting at any airborne Grimm, anti-armor turrets in case anything bigger gets too close, and the combat drones."
"But this," Yang said, highlighting the image of a Grimm, "I don't know. It was sealed for a reason."
"We'll be fine," Ruby said, "I've run the numbers through a couple simulations, and there aren't enough Grimm to really put a strain on the defenses until we're ready. And this time, we got three maidens, Sirena's enchantments for both of your powers, and if anything goes wrong, we still have Bumblebee. And with me combining Tranquility, Ambush, and Exploding Projectiles, as well as Weiss using Guardian's Gambit on the ice, there is no reason we won't make it."
"The four of us against that thing," Weiss said, "It seems… risky. And not the good kind."
"It's not just the four of us," Ruby said, "Jaune, Ren, Nora, Penny, and the entire Atlas military, will be on our side as well. Plus, Sirena is already working on training them."
"That reveal was planned, wasn't it?" Blake asked, and Ruby nervously rubbed the back of her head.
"Well, yes, it totally was," Ruby answered with a chuckle, then said, "But it was good that you all reacted so shocked when Clover mentioned that the military had been infiltrated, because that bit wasn't planned."
"Why didn't you fill us in beforehand?" Yang asked.
"To be honest, I was distracted by going over my lines," Ruby answered, "Sorry."
"At least that didn't change," Weiss said with a smile.
"Yeah," Ruby said and asked, "Remember my presentation on scythes?"
"That was a mess," Blake answered with a laugh.
"I'd call it a disaster," Yang said with a friendly smile.
"But not as bad as that book report," Ruby said, looking at Blake. They all stopped for a moment, remembering that painfully awkward half hour, then burst out laughing.
~o~
Maria was wandering through the tundra, enjoying the Cold Immunity semblance she recently copied from a tundra bear, and the protection it offered her against the weather. A pack of Sabyr approached her, and she stopped in her tracks. She drew her weapons and got ready to fight.
"Who wants to go first?" Maria asked. One of the Sabyr jumped at her, and she cut its head off with one of her weapons. The other Grimm attacked her as well, and she quickly made short work of them.
~o~
Ruby walked up to Harriet, who was busy training with a punching bag that had a Sabyr's face on it. She landed a series of quick blows and knocked the bag out of its anchor point, sending it across the gym.
"Hey Harriet," Ruby said.
"Hey," Harriet said and asked, "What do you want?"
"I just want to help you," Ruby answered, "You know, as a friend."
"Maybe we have different ideas here," Harriet said, "But where I'm from, friends don't trick you into changing your personality into what they think is better."
"I'm sorry, ok," Ruby said, "It was Sirena's idea, and she told me that you guys would figure it out yourselves eventually. I thought it was fine, but I didn't realize that you didn't know each other well enough to notice a change. Besides, the first thing I did when I was in charge was tell you guys about it."
"But you're not in charge," Harriet said, "General Ironwood is. He gives the orders, we follow."
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't slavery illegal?" Ruby asked.
"It is, yes," Harriet answered, "But I don't see how this is relevant. We're not his slaves. We're soldiers."
"So basically," Ruby said and asked, "We're supposed to blindly follow his orders, not question his decisions ever, and expect punishments for not following orders, right?"
"Well, yes," Harriet answered.
"And he is in charge of how we live, right?" Ruby asked.
"Yes," Harriet answered and asked, "What are you getting at?"
"Nothing," Ruby answered, "Just seeing if you can tell that I wasn't talking about being a soldier." Harriet paused for a moment, and Ruby gasped under her breath when she picked up something new.
"What?" Harriet asked, confused why Ruby looked at her so different now.
"You're… hurting," Ruby answered.
"What are you talking about now?" Harriet asked.
"You're hiding a lot of pain," Ruby answered, "I… had no idea."
"Look, you're not making a lot of sense, so I'll leave," Harriet said, turned around and wanted to speed off.
"What good is super speed when you've built walls all around yourself?" Ruby asked, and Harriet paused for a moment.
"I don't need your metaphors," Harriet said, starting to get angry.
"No, you don't," Ruby said, "You need help. You've been hurt, and you haven't been allowed to heal. The longer this wound lasts, the more it will hurt. Eventually, it will get infected, poison you, and destroy you."
"I said shut up!" Harriet shouted, whirled around and tried to punch Ruby with her super speed. Ruby dodged, grabbed Harriet's arm and used her momentum to throw her into the wall.
"You won't be able to keep going like this forever," Ruby said, "And if you keep going like this, you will lose the ones closest to you."
"You don't understand anything!" Harriet shouted and charged Ruby again, tears forming in her eyes. Ruby burst into a cluster of rose petals and dodged Harriet, who slammed into another wall.
"I understand your pain," Ruby said, "It is the pain of losing a loved one. Your hatred for the world is born from the love for those taken by that same world. Just let it all out." Harriet calmed down again, let her arms hang in defeat and leaned against the wall.
"I just… I want Tortuga back," Harriet said, "But I know I can't. And Ironwood expects me to act like nothing's wrong. Like Marrow could just fill that spot."
"Like you're mindless drones?" Ruby asked and said, "That's how Salem wins. You know, on our way to Argus, my friends and I asked the lamp a question. And we discovered that Salem was once a normal human, and in love with Ozpin's first life, Ozma. Then he died, and Salem fell into despair. She felt the same way you feel now. She didn't get help, and it destroyed not only her, but caused the extinction of humanity as a whole."
"Salem having feelings?" Harriet asked, "Are you pulling my leg?"
"Nope," Ruby answered, "But I find it a bit poetic, in a way. Even though I was never the best at that sort of thing."
"What do you mean?" Harriet asked, and looked up at her.
"The anger you feel now is what makes Salem stronger," Ruby answered, "But it is born from your love for Tortuga. And it is that love that can make you stronger."
"But how?" Harriet asked and said, "I just want to go back to when Tortuga was still there, to when things were good for us."
"I know," Ruby said, "But we can't go back in time, nor bring back the dead. We just have to keep their memories alive, act how they would want us to act, and be the best version of ourselves."
"How?" Harriet asked and said, "I've… never dealt with this kind of thing before. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do." She let her head hang and started sobbing.
"It's complicated," Ruby answered, "And it's a different process for everyone. But I know that you can find a solution. Some people get away from everything related to the painful memory for a bit, so maybe focus on your other interests for a while. Or look why this hurts so much. Sometimes, we blame ourselves for not being strong enough to save those we care about."
"I… I wasn't fast enough," Harriet said in a monotone voice and looked up at Ruby, tears streaming down her face.
"Would you want me to ask Sirena for help?" Ruby asked and said, "She's the best mentor I know, and she has a few tricks up her sleeve that will let her help you improve. Though, you might not like her approach."
"As long as she helps me get better at using my semblance, I'm fine," Harriet said.
"Alright," Ruby said, "I'll go ask her." She walked away, and when she was out of sight, Harriet sunk to the floor and cried for some time, letting out all the pain she had been holding in.
~o~
Ruby's Group, the Ace-Ops and Sirena were visiting a museum on their day off, and went to see an exhibit on the Great War. When they reached a miniature of an old warship, Sirena stopped to look at it.
"Gar-class interceptors," Ruby said, "The best combination of offense, defense and speed, still unmatched today. Impressive, right?"
"I… know this ship," Sirena said, as if she was lost in thought.
"Yeah, they're pretty famous," Harriet said, "Atlesian craftsmanship at its finest."
"Not like that," Sirena said, "I remember one such ship falling on me. I only survived because of a hole in the hull, though I was trapped inside."
"You mean it sunk and fell on you?" Clover asked, "But that line of ship hasn't been produced since the Great War, how can this be?"
"Maybe it's the silver eyes," Weiss suggested, "As far as we know, they're a force of creation, so maybe they slow down the aging process or something." Everyone was quiet for a moment, not sure how to respond to such an absurd suggestion, while Ruby was having a minor crisis over the idea that she would look like she was in her forties when her friends were old and wrinkly.
"Not quite," Sirena said, laughing a little, "The light from our eyes is the same as the light leading to the afterlife, and souls often mistake the two. When my grandmother died, my mother's eyes triggered, and she captured her soul. When my mother had me, that soul was used again. When I was a young girl, I sometimes had dreams of my previous life. I remember it from those dreams. It took a third grade combat mage two hits to cut through the hull and free me back then."
"You mean to free your grandmother, right?" Ruby asked.
"Hold on, one of your mages got through this thing?" Elm asked, "With just two hits?"
"My people view time differently," Sirena answered, "Our souls stay in this world for as long as the world has need for us, so it is natural for us to consider how our actions affect our grandchildren."
"Wait, your people really plan two whole generations ahead?" Harriet asked in disbelief.
"That is the norm, yes," Sirena answered, "However, as queen, I am expected to be better at planning than the rest."
"So, exactly how good are you?" Ruby asked.
"It would not matter to you," Sirena answered, "You could not interfere with my plans in a way that mattered, and by the time most of it comes into play, all of us will have been forgotten already anyway."
"Couldn't you use your Mentor semblance?" Ruby asked, "You know, to let me understand how your people understand time."
"No," Sirena answered, "We would be here all day, and it would be pointless. Now let's go, I want to see the gift shop." She walked over to the next exhibit, and the others followed her reluctantly. Ruby walked past her, taking the lead, and Sirena fell back to walk with the others.
~o~
A few days later, Harriet was following Ruby's advice and taking her mind off of things, sitting in a park and trying not to think of work. She fell backwards into the grass, and her mind was empty. Realizing that this wasn't all that exciting, she sat back up and sighed.
"Mind if I'm bored with you?" Sirena asked with a chuckle and sat down next to Harriet.
"I'm not bored," Harriet defended herself.
"You know, Atlas may just be the least efficient society I know," Sirena said.
"Yeah, right," Harriet said, "We have a lot of protocols to make sure everything goes smoothly. We practically invented efficiency."
"No, you invented workaholics," Sirena said, "You work all the time, but don't get rest. You act like you can just keep going indefinitely, but that's not the case. Look at aura, for example."
"What do you mean?" Harriet asked.
"Having an aura makes us stronger," Sirena answered, "It allows us to use our bodies' full potential without fear of damaging them. But even this is not infinite. Enough stress can break an aura, and if it does not have the time to recharge, it will break again easily. You are not used to conflict that would push your limits, and that is why you're weak."
"What does that mean?" Harriet asked, "I'm a member of the Ace Operatives. The best of the best. I'm the kind of person who only goes to dangerous situations."
"Along with a teammate who can stop enemies in their tracks, and one who manipulates probability to the team's benefit. Sounds very dangerous."
"The team was put together to optimize efficiency," Harriet said.
"That is exactly the problem," Sirena explained, "Team RWBY, for example, has to learn to work together to overcome problems. They were randomly put together, and had to adapt and develop, both as individuals, and as a team, to survive. Choosing the composition of a team to cover each other's drawbacks only works until they're separated. Then the strategy easily turns fatal."
"What else were we supposed to do?" Harriet asked.
"Allow random elements in the team," Sirena answered, "Learn to incorporate them into your teamwork, rather than deny them. If you allow yourself to not fit in perfectly, you will realize that you will be much stronger once you find a place where you fit."
"What about your team?" Harriet asked.
"Yes, we are a strange bunch," Sirena answered with a chuckle, "Our leader had the highest body count of anyone in the school most of the time, Niob's semblance is the worst, Talia is a trouble maker like no other, and I was quite the piece of work to deal with. But we made it work regardless, and as a result, we are feared by our enemies, and respected by our allies."
"What about all those tricks I heard about?" Harriet asked, "I mean, can you really walk on water?"
"It is simple aura manipulation," Sirena answered, "I cannot exactly walk on water, but I can increase my body's water friction so as to only sink in to my ankles. As a stonefish faunus, my aura is naturally predisposed to interact with water, as well as handle high velocity impacts that would circumvent normal auras."
"Wait, what was that last part?" Harriet asked in surprise, "You mean you can just ignore people's auras if you're fast enough?"
"Yes, I can," Sirena answered, "And you can, too. With training. I focused on my animal instincts to get those abilities, and since Ruby is in charge now, I will help you unlock your full potential as well." She used her Knowledge Exchange semblance, and since Harriet now knew how Sirena unlocked her full potential, Sirena learned the same about Harriet, and put together a training plan for her.
~o~
General Ironwood was making his way to the red orb of light, fighting against wind and plants to get to it. He didn't know what it was, but something was trying to keep him away from it, so it had to be important. He reached out to grab it, but just before his hand was about to make contact, he lost his footing and was flung backwards. He got back up and thought back at his past failures.
"No matter the opposition, I never stopped fighting," James thought, "I always kept going, stayed strong, relied on noone but myself. So, why did I lose? Unless…" The more he realized his mistakes, the more the wind died down, and when he finally accepted the cause of his problems, it stopped. He walked over to the orb, tore away the vines, and grabbed it with both hands. The massive tree in the middle of the forest suddenly grew a hundred times its size, breaking through the surrounding stone and transforming the barren wasteland into a lush forest. When James looked up, he saw that the sky was now a warm and welcoming red, rather than the cold, unfeeling blue of before.
~o~
Team RWBY, Jaune, Ren, Nora and Penny were walking back to Atlas Academy late at night, after watching a movie together as friends, without any huntsman responsibilities for once. Safe for their clothes, they felt like normal people.
"You know, I feel kind of bad," Penny said, and just now did her friends realize that they went to a movie where a robot was the villain.
"Why's that?" Ruby asked.
"Because of how the movie ended," Penny answered, "It was pretty sad."
"But the AI tried to wipe out humanity," Ruby said.
"That's what it was supposed to do," Penny said and explained, "I analyzed the code in the beginning, and while I didn't catch all of it, it lacked the necessary protocols and exceptions to keep the AI from going rouge."
"And you have those?" Weiss asked and said, "Just making sure."
"Of course I do," Penny answered, "I have auditory and visual analysis that helps me recognize other people's emotions, I'm bound by the three laws of robotics, and I have numerous protocols in place to make sure my understanding of those laws can't change to a point where my interpretation of them would break their original intention."
"What three laws?" Nora asked.
"For one, I can't hurt people, or let people get hurt by doing nothing," Penny answered, "I also have to follow orders given by authorized personnel, unless that would violate the first rule, and preserve my own structural integrity at all costs, unless that would violate the other two rules. It's a simple yet complex system of rules, but there are a lot of loop holes."
"Such as?" Blake asked.
"If my definition of people changes," Penny answered, "As we saw in the movie, the AI decided that everyone loved it when it kept making friends. Therefore, it decided that people who didn't love it weren't people, and thus exempt from the first rule. Changing the definition of terms is a very easy way to get out of those rules. For example, General Ironwood acts like a machine, at least most of the time. Machines aren't protected under those rules, so if he were to act too inhuman, I would be free to terminate him, were it not for those additional protocols." Penny realized that her friends had stopped walking, and were just looking at her.
"But you're fine, right?" Yang asked and said, "Just making sure."
"Of course I am," Penny answered, "Now let's go, my thermal sensors tell me you should get inside." She turned around again and walked towards the academy, with her friends following her. They unanimously agreed that they were probably just tired and a bit paranoid from the movie, and that Penny would never do anything drastic that could endanger the people.
Author's note: Character development for Ironwood. Yay.
Manchineel is named after a tree that is so full of poison, it's unreal. You cannot even seek shelter under it when it rains, because the leaves give off enough poison to the rain running over them to make you regret that decision in minutes. Even burning it won't help, because then you have poisonous smoke.
And yes, I only skipped over it because I was too lazy to design the fusion. Her semblance is Poisonous Roots, and allows her to grow roots along any surface from where she stands. It doesn't anchor her to the ground, but it lets her cover a wide area. She can also emit particles from those roots, which harm her enemies on contact.
Penny explains how her programming works. She has easily ten times the amount of code that any movie AI has, with most of it just making sure she doesn't turn into a movie AI.