Author's note: Remember last chapter's last segment? We're kinda starting off with the results of that.
Nora was in her wolf form, and she and Zwei led a small team of police officers, almost all special forces, through Vale's agricultural district to see if there were any Grimm that needed to be taken care of. Suddenly, Nora stopped and smelled the air and ground, and Zwei followed suit.
"Hey Zwei, do you smell that?" Nora asked, and the police officers tensed up, since Zwei had extended his semblance to them, to let them understand Nora.
"I do, yes," Zwei answered. The officers were all protected by a Frost Shell, but had no idea of Nora's true identity, and simply assumed she was a regular wolf that Ruby had befriended.
"What is it?" Diamond asked, "Trouble?" She tightened the grip on her gun, and the new bayonet attachment glistened in the midday sun.
"Nope," Nora answered, "But still unusual. Follow me." She and Zwei walked ahead, but had to run slowly so the police could follow them. After a few turns, the group reached a large road, usually used for transporting large amounts of goods, which was completely covered in thick, leafy green spider webs.
"What is all this?" Zwei asked and looked around, using his small frame to pass through the webs without touching them. When he heard movement, he used Petal Burst to get back to the rest of the group, and they all looked up to see a spider faunus in the webs.
"This is our contribution," Trifa answered, "By the way, I'm Trifa. I'm with Sophie's swarm. In short, if anything other than a member of our swarm touches these webs, the webs will create brambles on that spot. Of course, the brambles themselves can also make that happen, so it will probably go really fast now. Watch." She effortlessly made her way to the ground, seemingly flying through the webs in one fluid motion, and a pack of Beowolves ran onto the street.
"I'd rather not," one of the officers said and aimed his gun at the Grimm, despite the webs making it hard to aim. The Grimm set their sights on the people and charged, jumping over the abandoned cars littering the streets. As soon as one of the Grimm touched one of the webs, it sprouted brambles, which wrapped around both the Grimm's leg, and the web itself, causing even more brambles to appear. The entire pack ran into the webs and got caught, and the more they struggled, the more damage they took, setting off Spectral Assault every time one of the thorns dug into their skin. Before long, the entire pack was killed, and the police stared in disbelief.
"Anyway, you're welcome," Trifa said, "I've covered this street because it's a big one that many Grimm, especially larger ones, can use. Other members of the swarm focused on other streets, but of course, they used different dust webs. Once the city is back under the council's control, we'll dissolve these webs."
"I see," Nora said and asked, "But, can you dissolve the lower portions of this web, or at least create a corridor to let pigs get through?"
"I definitely could," Trifa answered, "But then there would also be a corridor for Grimm to pass through, and that would be bad."
"Well, it's either that or they eat the plants," Nora said, "Your choice." Trifa gave it some thought, bouncing the idea off of the rest of the swarm, then turned around and made some part of her web disappear again.
"There, happy now?" Trifa asked.
"It's more about the pigs, but I'm sure they are," Nora answered.
"Why are you here, anyway?" Trifa asked.
"We're looking for Grimm to kill," Zwei answered.
"Good thinking," Trifa said, "I'm here to do the same. But I'll stay here, by my web, and take care of any Grimm that get caught in it. So, you go on ahead and look elsewhere." She climbed back into her web, maneuvering and navigating with inhuman skill, and all but disappeared in the webbing. After a brief moment, Nora and Zwei started listening for suspicious noises again and led the police officers to a nearby pack of Grimm for them to kill.
~o~
At night, Ilia led a small group of faunus soldiers through Vale's upper class district, capitalizing on the group's night vision and avoiding the hotter daytime. She sent a Shooting Star, augmented with ice-dust, to a spot her ambush sense told her, creating an ice spike that attracted nearby Grimm.
"Leave them to me," Papaya, an owl faunus, said when the group reached the spot and saw an entire pack of Beowolves, with some Alphas, gathered around the ice spike. She held her right hand upward, and a small green sphere appeared in her palm. The sphere floated up and began multiplying, until there were as many spheres as Grimm. She swung her arm downward, with her palm facing the Grimm. The spheres all flew towards the Grimm, damaging them on contact, and killing most of the pack. The ice spike shattered in the crossfire, and the Grimm set their sights on the faunus, who aimed their guns at them.
"Hold it," Ilia said and rushed the Grimm, then used Power Whip, augmented with ice-dust, to tag the remaining Grimm before the faunus opened fire. With every hit, another snowflake minion was created, and the pack died, leaving each faunus with at least one minion to follow them.
"Impressive," Nezumi, a mouse faunus, said and asked, "Where'd you learn to do that?"
"Oh, you know, here and there," Papaya answered, trying to avoid having to disclose her affiliation with the White Fang, and explained, "But despite being so useful, it can also backfire, because each of these orbs drains my aura, and upon activation, it creates more orbs the stronger the enemy is. Because of that, groups of weaker enemies are easier for me than fewer strong enemies. And also, if my aura breaks before all spheres are ready, they just disappear."
"I see," Nezumi said and asked, "So, what made you decide to enlist in the military?" Ilia checked her scroll to see everyone's aura levels, and decided to step in, both because they didn't have time, and because she knew that joining the military was a delicate subject for her friend.
"Sorry, but we have more pressing matters," Ilia answered, "Papaya, you're low on aura. Again. We'll need to do something about that before you run out, since your Bountiful Harvest our second best option for dealing with larger crowds, and I can't allow you to fall out of commission."
"Well, alright," Papaya said, and the group got moving again while Ilia sent another Shooting Star ahead, this time augmented with earth-dust. When the group reached the location, they saw a large mixed pack, including Alpha Beowolves, Ursai and Creeps on the ground, as well as Griffons and Giant Nevermore on the nearby rooftops. Luckily, all the Grimm were entranced by the boulder on the crossing, and completely ignored the faunus, even as some got within ten meters of the monsters and their snowflake minions attacked them. However, they quickly retreated.
"Papaya, stay behind," Ilia said and held up her right hand. An ice blue Combat Drone formed in front of her, and the large sphere moved towards the Grimm.
"That was kind of creepy," a badger faunus said as he and a few others came back from the crossing. Ilia gave them a stern look, knowing that while it was safe, they still took a huge risk and could have gotten hurt, had her semblance failed for some reason.
"I know, right?" Nezumi answered, "I guess I'll never get used to how potent that semblance is. Good thing Ilia's on our side, because I'm sure she could make anyone fight over anything if she wanted to." Hearing that, Papaya chuckled a little, thinking back at some past missions with Ilia, where she watched hardened military officers fight over an eraser, or pillow, or something else.
"You have no idea," Ilia said, "Anyway, it's starting. And remember, this is mostly to help Papaya, so let her go first when the Grimm are dead." Once the Combat Drone got close to the Grimm, it started rapidly shooting ice blue energy blasts at them, killing the Alpha Beowolves and Creeps in a single hit each and creating ice spikes on impact.
"Now what?" Nezumi asked when the Combat Drone disappeared, before it had even reached the boulder. Before Ilia could answer, a series of green crystal javelins came down and impaled the Grimm, killing them all and creating different boosters, then Penny landed in front of the group.
"Now Penny arrives and solves our problems, apparently," Ilia answered and asked, "Penny, what brings you here?" She waved Papaya to go, and Papaya hurried over to the ice to have her aura recharged, and pick up some of the boosters.
"Hello Ilia," Penny said and answered, "I noticed that one of the faunus in your group ran low on aura, and came to help."
"I see, thanks," Ilia said, "But we've got everything under control here, so you can continue your patrol now."
"Understood," Penny said and flew away into the night again. Once she disappeared behind the buildings, Ilia looked over to Papaya, whose aura was fully recharged, and the entire group went over to recover a bit, before heading deeper into the Grimm-infested territory. With the increased aura regeneration from the boosters, Ilia used Guardian's Gambit to create stone serpents when she could afford the temporary drop in aura. The snakes, no larger than a child, generally stuck to some building or another, protecting it from Grimm that might enter.
~o~
In the morning, Yang met with the police to accompany them on a standard patrol through the residential area, while some of the others launched another attempt to reclaim Beacon from the Grimm. When she arrived at the police station, however, she was met with an utterly horrifying sight, and immediately rushed in, fearing the worst.
"What's going on here?" Yang asked and pulled one of the police officers off of a car, making him drop both the wrench and car manual he was holding. The other officers stopped what they were doing and looked over to her.
"Oh, hey Yang," officer Crimson said and answered, "We're trying to reinforce some of our cars to get around more effectively, while also staying safe from Grimm."
"Hey Al," Yang said, "Great idea, but you really shouldn't mess with cars like that."
"Can you help us?" Alizarin asked, and Yang picked up the wrench.
"Sure," Yang answered, "I came here to help you guys anyway, so that works fine for me."
"So, any tips?" Alizarin asked, and Yang inspected the car next to her. The outside was reinforced with steel plates haphazardly screwed onto it, and the push bar had spikes attached to it in a similarly amateurish manner.
"Yeah, don't touch this one," Yang answered, "Get me one you haven't touched yet, and I'll show you how it's done."
"Sure, this way," Alizarin said and led Yang to the garage, where the police kept multiple vehicles for various purposes.
"Let's start with this one," Yang said and pointed at a police van, "Plenty of room, so you can get more people around. Now gather around, everyone, I'm going to need some help with this." As the officers filed into the garage, Yang began explaining what she had planned, and took notes of what they needed, then began working out a proper plan. In the afternoon, everything was ready and she could get started, with the officers helping where they could.
~o~
Sky entered Beacon's library and turned back into his human form, and created three turrets at the entrance. A red portal opened next to him, and Ruby, Weiss, Jaune, Glynda, Bartholomew, Peter and Sirena came out of it.
"Remember, Sirena will leave tomorrow," Ruby said, "Let's do our best and make this count."
"Do we know why she's leaving?" Bartholomew asked.
"I do," Sirena answered, "Anyway, let's get started. Glynda." She walked away, and Glynda followed her to the teacher's section to finish their work there.
"Weiss, set up ice-dust Landmines across the school," Ruby said, "Bartholomew, Sky, you two keep nearby Grimm at bay. The rest comes with me and help repair the library." She walked over to another section of the library, and after Jaune set up an Icy Terrain, he and Peter followed her, while Weiss summoned a Seer and sent a dozen tiny Queen Lancers into the school, regularly shooting bone spikes into the ground.
"And up," Peter said, and he and Jaune lifted a bookshelf that had fallen over, and put it back up. A horde of minions Ruby had summoned with Kin Summon went to pick up the books, and brought them to her and her nine clones, who used Loremaster to quickly scan the code on the back and find out where they belong, then put them back in their proper place.
"What do you think about Sirena?" Sky asked, catching Bartholomew by surprise.
"She is… complicated to put into words," Bartholomew answered, "Just when you think you understand her way of reasoning, she does something that flies in the face of that, yet acts like it was to be expected."
"So, no guess as to why she's leaving?" Sky asked.
"Not one, no," Bartholomew answered, "But I suppose if we had wanted to know, we could have found out. So, whatever her reason may be, it is something that she believes we wouldn't oppose."
"Is it me, or are these getting lighter?" Jaune asked after he and Peter lifted another bookshelf off the ground.
"I believe it is more that you are getting stronger," Peter answered, "That being said, this one needs some work again." He waved one Ruby clone over, and she fixed it with Repair, while Jaune amplified her aura so she wouldn't run out. While the broken wooden boards and jade ornaments bent themselves back into shape, Peter took a break and watched the spectacle unfold.
"There you go, as good as new," Ruby said and walked away again, while two other clones came to put the books in their proper places.
"Thanks," Jaune said, "Now, let's get back to work." He walked over to another book shelf, and just as Peter was about to get up and follow him, Jaune fused into Arkos, who created a clone of themselves, and both clones hoisted another bookshelf back into its upright position.
"Wait, something is weird," one Arkos said, and the clones turned to each other.
"Why didn't you do that sooner?" Peter asked, still in disbelief at how easy Jaune, or rather Arkos, finished the job.
"I honestly have no idea," the other answered, "I guess it just never occurred to Jaune before, and with you taking a break, he just defaulted to letting me handle this."
"Well then, I suppose I'll take a longer break," Peter said and sat down again.
"Dorms secured," Weiss said, let her summons disappear and let out an exhausted sigh, just before the Icy Terrain disappeared. Her aura was pretty low, so she created a Safezone and Healing Circle, the latter causing her aura to break temporarily, before the two effects replenished it. One of the Ruby clones walked over and sat down beside her, and used Aura Amp on one of the other clones when she used Loremaster, then switched whenever another clone needed aura.
~o~
Qrow and Dove, both in their bird forms, were on the way to the village Weiss had told them about. As they approached it, they saw that the surrounding area showed signs of combat, though no Grimm seemed to have gotten into the village proper. They landed in the nearby shrubs, transformed back, and approached the village along the road, as if they had just come by foot.
"Who's there?" Perun asked, and she and another guard looked down from their watchtower. Qrow and Dove stopped and looked up at them.
"Qrow Branwen and Dove Bronzewing," Qrow answered, "I'm a huntsman from Vale. We just have some questions for someone called Perun."
"That would be me," Perun said, "Alright, I'll come down." She gestured to her friend to wait, and walked down the stairs to meet with the two men at the gate.
"Sorry to bother you," Qrow said, and Dove walked away a bit to let him handle the talking.
"Yeah, yeah, don't sweat it," Perun said and asked, "It's about my semblance again, isn't it?"
"It is, yes," Qrow answered, "We're worried for our friend. She's also the daughter of two of my best friends, and I think of her as my niece, so I can't just ignore this."
"Yeah, I understand," Perun said and asked, "So, what do you want to know?"
"Did you ever see a girl with a red hood?" Qrow asked.
"It was more a light pink, but yes," Perun answered.
"What happened?" Qrow asked.
"She showed up out of nowhere, over there," Perun answered, and pointed at a nearby forest.
"Qrow, look what I found," Dove called out when he came out of the forest, dragging a petrified Beowolf behind him.
"And she used some weird light to do this," Perun answered, "Saved me from an entire pack of Grimm, and then just… popped. If those things weren't still there, I wouldn't believe it."
"Did you look into that light?" Qrow asked.
"Well, yes," Perun answered, "It was so sudden that I didn't have the time to look away."
"Well, that explains that," Qrow said and asked, "So, what's your semblance?"
"I don't see how that's related," Perun said.
"That light was Ruby's soul," Qrow explained, "When you looked into it, both your soul and hers collided, and left a mark on the other. Not only can you now use her semblance, but she can use yours."
"I- wait, what?" Perun asked, "Really?"
"Yes, really," Qrow answered, "So I need to know what your semblance does, in order to determine whether or not it's related to Ruby falling asleep and not waking up. But from what Weiss told us, it very likely is."
"Well, alright," Perun said, sighed and explained, "My semblance is called Sleepless. Basically, as long as my aura remains active, I don't need to sleep at all. I don't get tired, or confused, or anything like that."
"Yeah, that solves our riddle," Qrow said, "Thanks."
"You're welcome," Perun said and asked, "So, am I in trouble now?"
"Not really, no," Qrow answered, "But you gave us a lot of trouble. Still, this is Ruby we're talking about here, and she wouldn't want you to get hurt because of her, so we'll just overlook all of this."
"Thanks," Perun said and asked, "But, what about these Grimm?"
"They're safe, as far as I know," Qrow answered, "You can set them up around the area to keep Grimm away, in fact."
"Wait, really?" Perun asked.
"From what I heard, yeah," Qrow answered, "But I'm no expert on this, so don't count on that second part too much. Still, there's no chance they'll break free, or turn back to normal Grimm, or something like that."
"That's good to know," Perun said and asked, "Before you leave, can you help us move these?"
"Sure thing," Qrow answered and walked over to Dove, while Perun went to get some of the village's stronger people to help them. When they were done, and the entire area surrounding the village was littered with petrified Grimm of all shapes and sizes, Qrow and Dove left again. Once the village was out of sight, they transformed back into birds and flew back to Vale, though Qrow took a slight detour to visit someone who still owed him a favor, and asked that she help protect the village.
Author's note: Nora is going wolf for a bit. She's just silly like that.
Papaya's semblance is based on Cure Papaya's solo finisher from Tropical-Rouge! Precure. I just tweaked it a little, and removed the part where it neutralizes forces of evil, to make it more balanced.
Anyone remember officer Crimson? She talked to Argent in chapter 3. She's a thorny devil faunus, with a spiked tail. And yes, she and Yang have a history.
And we finally learn what the heck was wrong with Ruby. Yay.