RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and created by the late and great Monty Oum.
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RWBY: Destiny of Remnant
Chapter 5: Isolation
The sun rose over Mistral and the door of Claudandus' cabin opened.
Blake stood in the sunlight ready to embark on her journey again. She knew her mission would be difficult, some would even say it was impossible and a suicide mission; she was going to find Adam and assassinate him.
She had decided that if Adam was gone someone else would take control of the Fang and maybe it could take steps to recover. Blake knew just openly attacking the White Fang would be a stupid mistake and it would be hard to track him down given how the Fang had been hiding since the attack on Beacon. She was always the most stealthy member of any team she was on, so a small and subtle slice across his throat with the Gambol Shroud in the night was the best way to solve this problem.
"Blake, don't go." Said the wise old voice of Claudandus. "Stay until you are fully rested and then you should go back to Vale and explain what happened to your teammates. From what you have told me of them I am sure they will forgive you." She had spent most of yesterday telling Claudandus about her time in Beacon and about her friends and how she came to be in his care.
"Ruby probably will, but after all that's happened I'm not so sure about Yang and Weiss." Blake said doubtfully.
"You're going to try and kill Adam aren't you?" Claudandus asked. Blake sighed and said "Yes."
Claudandus shook his head and said to the young Faunus "I believe that is a poor decision Blake."
Blake breathed in. "Maybe, but it's mine to make." She said.
"I have heard rumors of a White Fang operations base not too far from here, about twenty some miles and some distance west of the village. Maybe there you will discover his whereabouts. Good luck Blake." Claudandus said.
Blake turned around, looked at her old mentor with sad yellow eyes. She walked back to him and hugged him one last time.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything I've done." "You have nothing to be sorry for Blake. This is a journey you must take and you alone will decide how it ends."
Blake parted from the old man and walked away into the white forest. Claudandus sighed and said "We have lost our innocence Blake, as the humans have lost theirs."
He went back into the cabin, unaware of two far off pairs of eyes watching them.
Adam sat on an old wooden chair, looking over a table covered with maps and battle plans as well as positions of White Fang bases and troops. Cinder had decided to lay low in Haven City and she didn't want her partners to be too far away so she ordered Adam and his finest troops to stay hidden at the base of the mountain near Mistral's Circle Sea. While they were a few hundred miles away from Cinder's location they could get there easily thanks to the airships she had supplied them.
White Fang bases were scattered all over Remnant; most were in Mistral and Vacuo and there were a few dozen or so platoons left in Vale to cause trouble for the resistance against the Grimm, but there were only a scant few in Atlas due to the heavy military presence.
Adam hadn't had a good night; over half of the White Fang forces in Haven had been taken down and captured by what they were told was Team SSSN. Adam grimaced, remembering reading about the leader of said team, Sun Wukong. He had heard he was friends with Blake, possibly even a lover. If this boy's relationship with Blake was as intimate as the reports suggested then he would have to punish him to make an example to Blake.
Adam growled at the mere thought of his former lover Blake. She had abandoned him because she was too weak, too scared, not willing to do what needed to be done.
Adam pitied Faunus like Blake. They thought equality was enough, that those miserable human saying 'sorry' was enough to wash away the sins of the past.
It wasn't.
They needed to be punished.
Nothing could ever make up for what the human race had done to the Faunus. Adam had lost his family, so many friends because of the racists out there and Blake had too. Why was she so willing to forgive them?
She had joined up with them, befriended them, and became a Huntress of all things!
She needed to be punished too.
Stabbing her in the gut wasn't enough, cutting off her friend's arm wasn't enough... maybe killing this monkey would. Maybe if he killed someone she had romantic feelings for she would understand the pain she had caused him.
Some had called him a hypocrite; preaching against humans, saying how they could never be trusted and needed to be punished and yet they were working with humans to further their goals!
It was true that they had to work with humans such as Cinder Fall and it made Adam sick to his stomach. Working with her and her cronies like Emerald, Mercury, and especially the late Roman Torchwick... oh how Adam wished he had been there to witness Torchwick's death.
Adam knew that it made him appear hypocritical and he didn't like it any more than his followers did, but working for Cinder was a necessary humiliation for now. The moment he didn't need her help anymore he wouldn't hesitate to stick his blade through Cinder's chest and end her.
In the end the White Fang would prevail and all who stood against them, be they human or Faunus, would be killed without pity or mercy.
"Sir! Our scouts have news I think you'll be very interested in." said the voice of the grizzly bear Faunus Lieutenant known as Hui who appeared in the doorway to Adam's quarters.
"What is it?" Adam asked. "Our scouts have found him sir, they've found Claudandus and he wasn't alone." Hui reported.
"Someone else was with him? Who?" Adam asked. "Someone you are very familiar with sir, it's the traitor." Hui revealed.
Adam got up and exited the room and ran to the communications room.
"Report!" Adam commanded when he got to the medium sized room that served as the hub for all communications for the scattered White Fang. Several Faunus communications officers looked up to him, noticing the edge in his voice. "It's Jake and Selena sir, they've spotted Blake Belladonna and they have overheard her say she intends to assassinate you." The lead communications officer said.
"Put them on." Adam ordered.
Two new voices were heard over the radio. "Adam, sir! We've found him. He was hiding in a cabin in the woods all this time! Can you believe it?" asked the voice of Jake, a mouse Faunus.
"All too easily, it makes sense the old fool would try to live out his life like that. What of Blake?" Adam asked. "She just left, apparently she's been staying with him the past couple of days." Said Selena, a raccoon Faunus
"She always did look up to him. She was even the one who convinced me to let him go. Where is she going?" Adam asked again.
"The old guy just told her about one of our nearby bases, the one we're staying at sir. She plans to find you and assassinate you. We're in range to intercept and we have the element of surprise. Permission to take her out?" asked Selena.
"No. Let her go." Adam ordered, getting weird looks from everyone else.
"Are you sure?" Jake asked.
"Oh yes." Adam confirmed.
"But why?" Hui asked.
Adam smirked and said "Because... if Blake honestly thinks she can take me on alone after our last encounter then I welcome it. She will try to kill me and she will fail. Contact your base and have them be on their guard, I want her captured and brought to me alive. Reports say that Team SSSN has left Haven City, since Blake's new lover is their leader they're probably coming after me too. Once we have all of them together I will force Blake to watch us murder her friends one by one. Only then will she understand the pain she inflicted on me when she left. Only then will she realize the consequences of her betrayal. When all of her beloved friends are dead, I will grant her the mercy of death. This is the way of the White Fang!" Adam ranted.
There was silence from everyone else in the room as well as the two scouts, everyone had grown to both fear and respect Adam but at times like this it was mostly fear.
"And what of Claudandus?" asked Selena.
Adam thought it over for a minute and said "Once Blake is far enough away, attack. Bring him to me and burn his home to the ground. He is a figure of the past and I am the way of the future. The new must vanquish the old after all."
It had not been easy to convince their father to allow this. He had been adamant in forbidding Weiss to so much as go a mile away from the mansion, but after hours of arguments Willow Schnee had relented and had agreed to let Weiss consult for the Atlas Military.
Weiss sat besides Winter on the airship that was taking them to the Headquarters of the Atlas Military, feeling a bit nervous around the soldiers. It had been months since she had been around any real action; the closest she had gotten to it was her training sessions.
She had to admit; she missed the feeling of being in danger be it from the Grimm or the White Fang.
Ruby's influence was toxic.
Weiss had in her lap a case that contained her rapier the Myrtenaster. She knew she would most likely not need it, but she brought it anyway to help her appear professional and capable among the likes of the military.
Winter could sense her sister's anxiety and spoke to her. "Relax. Nothing will happen. I will speak to General Ironwood about it first; he's been under a lot of stress lately. He will be willing to take any and all help he can get, even if it is from a child."
"I hope so. Have you made any progress in finding Cinder?" Weiss asked. "Nothing. All we have to show for all our looking is rumors and false sightings. The most consistent of these is Haven, but they've seen her everywhere; Vacuo, Mistral swamps and mountains, obscure villages, old temples, the ruins of Beacon..." Winter elaborated.
Weiss bit her tongue so she wouldn't say anything about Ruby being in Haven so decided to speak about the last rumor. "Ruby's uncle is indeed a drunkard, but even he'd notice if she was in Vale." Weiss said. "I know, but Cinder is talented at hiding. Qrow was there when the previous Fall Maiden, Amber, was attacked. It was his intervention that prevented the assailant, who we now know was Cinder Fall, from fully getting the Maiden's powers." Winter explained.
This information made Weiss a little upset. As in very upset.
"What?! Then why didn't he recognize her at the tournament? And if she had gotten the powers then and there hundreds of people would still be alive!" Weiss pointed out.
Winter sighed, knowing her younger sister had a point. Qrow's intervention and saving of Amber did indeed bring about Cinder's bloody revenge at the Vytal Festival. Hundreds of innocent civilians, students, soldiers, and two girls Weiss was acquainted with had been killed because of it.
All the damage because of Qrow's intervention made Winter wonder if maybe it would have been better if he didn't stop her.
"Qrow says her face, as well as the faces of her accomplices, were hidden and blurred by an illusionist. We now know that Emerald Sustrai was most likely responsible for this as well as the illusion that made us believe your teammate Yang had viciously attacked Mercury." Winter explained.
"Too little, too late." Weiss said bitterly.
There was a silence between the two before Weiss added "Next time I see that Qrow I will, and pardon my language but I need to use one of Yang's phrases, kick his butt."
Winter stifled a small laugh before she added "I'll hold him for you."
Soon enough the airship arrived to the landing platform of the Atlesian Military Headquarters. The ship's ramp descended and the two sisters walked out of the ship, greeted by Chamberlain.
"Hello Winter, how was your... is that your sister?" Chamberlain asked as he noticed the younger Schnee girl.
"Yes Jackson, how perceptive of you. Is General Ironwood seeing anyone at the moment?" Winter asked. "Not to my knowledge." Chamberlain answered.
"Then take me to him. I have come up with an idea that may help us apprehend Cinder Fall." Winter said as she marched down the landing pad, followed by Weiss, Chamberlain, and several guards.
"And that would be..." Chamberlain prodded.
"Of the ones who have had experience with Cinder Fall and her accomplices, my sister is the only one available to us. I admit that it may be a stretch but she knows how they operate. Desperate times call for desperate measures Jackson." Winter said.
Jackson couldn't really argue with the woman, he knew that they would need every advantage over Cinder Fall they could get.
Weiss looked around at the impressive base. A large five story building served as the main building and it was surrounded by six or seven other buildings that all served different purposes such as a technology department, a finance department, living quarters, and other such things and all of the buildings were marked by Atlas' emblem.
Weiss could see many squads of soldiers marching around to patrol the area, airships taking off or landing on the platforms, people in armor or plain business suits going about their business, seemingly oblivious to anything around them except for their own tasks. Weiss was surprised to even see the occasional person her age walking around.
Winter led her sister to the main building where the doors automatically opened for her. "Greetings Specialist Schnee." Said a thirty-something woman in a suit. "Hello Amelia." Winter said as she walked past the woman.
Amelia saw Weiss and asked "Umm... Specialist Schnee, isn't that your sister?"
"Everyone's very good at that observation." Winter said dryly. "She's had experience with Cinder Fall, that's enough for me." Chamberlain said to the woman as she stayed behind.
Winter, Weiss, and Chamberlain made their way to General Ironwood's office, occasionally saluted by guards who did not question Weiss' presence. Weiss noticed security cameras everywhere and there were way more guards than she had expected there to be, but she understood the need for security.
They soon arrived at the office door and Winter knocked on it. "Enter." Said Ironwood's voice from inside. Winter opened the door and she saw Ironwood speaking with Ulysses Cy.
"Welcome back Specialist Schnee, how was your day... that's your sister." Ironwood stated. "Amazing, even you have fallen victim to the 'that's your sister' plague of stating the obvious that seems to have claimed everyone else." Winter said snarkily.
"What is she doing here?" Ironwood asked as calmly as he could, hiding his slight irritation.
"I'm sure you can recall General that my sister and her team have had numerous encounters with the forces of the priority target Cinder Fall. After Fall showed her true colors she made a mistake, these children are familiar enough with how she operates and moves that we can use them to find her and maybe even predict her next move." Winter explained.
Ironwood sighed and said "She is but one of them. The whereabouts of Rose and Belladonna are still unknown and Xiao Long is still on Patch Island. What makes you think your sister can make that much of a difference?"
"Because she is a Schnee sir and for good or ill we have been making a difference in Remnant for centuries. She may be just a teenage girl sir, but I believe that she is the best chance we have in finding Cinder Fall." Winter said.
Ironwood looked at Weiss and said "Miss Schnee, would you kindly wait outside? Your sister and I must talk this over."
Weiss nodded and exited the room, allowing the adults to be left alone.
Weiss sat in a chair a few meters away from the door; she noticed that Ironwood's room must have been soundproofed since she could hear nothing coming from inside. She wondered if General Ironwood would go for it, he desperately wanted to stop Cinder Fall, that much was obvious, but was he desperate enough to accept help from a teenage girl?
She was so caught up in her thoughts she didn't hear footsteps approaching her.
Weiss soon realized that someone was standing over her and looking at her. She looked up and gasped at what, or more accurately who, she saw.
"Salutations!" said the cheery voice of a somehow alive Penny Polendina.
Weiss jumped up in surprise. "Penny?!" she exclaimed in shock.
Penny's eyes noticeably were dampened by confusion. "Oh... I am sorry, have we met before? I do not recognize you..." she said.
"It's me; Weiss! Weiss Schnee!" "Oh! You must be related to Specialist Schnee! I like her; she is very kind to me." Penny said.
"How are you here?! Did they rebuild you?" Weiss asked.
"What?! R-r-rebuild me?! I... I don't know what you mean..." Penny said, sounding rather nervous before she let out a hiccup.
"We all saw you get torn apart by Pyrrha at the tournament! Cinder tricked us all, she knew what would happen! How are you back?!" Weiss demanded.
"I... I don't fully understand what you are talking about." Penny admitted, not hiccuping that time.
"Wait a minute... do you remember Ruby?" Weiss asked hopefully.
"I am afraid I have no knowledge of this Ruby person." Penny said, again, not hiccuping.
"She called you her friend and just like that you were practically following her around like a lost puppy!" Weiss said, trying to get her to remember.
"That doesn't sound like something I would do." Penny denied. She did hiccup that time.
"Penny, we found out you weren't a real girl after what happened at the tournament, that you were a robot created by the Atlas Military. Please tell me this is true!" Weiss pleaded as she reached for her scroll, ready to call Ruby and tell her.
"It... is..." Penny was about to say more before... "She went down here! Come on!" said the voice of a guard.
"Oh no! I must go; it was nice to meet you Weiss!" Penny said before she ran off into another hallway.
Before Weiss could say another word a small squad of guards ran past her. "You! Did you see a girl about your age go by here? Red hair, pink bow, green eyes?" a Lieutenant in blue armor asked.
Weiss shook her head.
"Very well, come on team we have to find her and get her back to the lab." Said the man in blue armor as he led his team down the hallway.
Weiss didn't fully understand what was going on, but she was determined to find out.
Just then the door to Ironwood's office opened up. "Weiss, you may enter." Winter said.
Jaune stood in the center of the warehouse, surrounded by Ruby, Ren, and Nora; all of whom were ready to attack. Ashe stood on one of the rafters above, overlooking all of them.
"I know you're probably more interested in the Ultimate Attack of the emotion Semblance..." Ashe began before Jaune interrupted him.
"Yeah, I've been wondering about that, I know you think it's too early to show me how to do it but can you at least tell me what it is?" the blonde asked.
Ashe shook his head but answered Jaune anyway "The Ultimate Attack is a dangerous one for both you and your enemy. It can drain your aura as well as your Semblance and leave you exhausted for a few days. The attack requires you to put your hands on your opponent's head and think about your pain. You think about everything bad that's ever happened to you, every time you were bullied, every humiliating incident you ever suffered through, every one you've ever lost, channel all that pain into them. It is a powerful move but one that is also very risky. Depending on how bad your life has been you can just stun your enemy, or you could put them into a coma, or you could outright kill them." He finished explaining.
Jaune looked up, now more mortified than curious.
"What happens if it's reversed? Like you think of happy things and good memories instead?" Ruby asked.
Ashe considered it and thought back to the times when he was studying the Semblance himself.
"I've read that it can be done that way. It can be used to resurface old memories, to rekindle friendships and love, to make them see the error of their ways. Honestly I've never seen it done before and I don't know if it even can be done, this Semblance is rare and those who have it tend to have crappy lives." Ashe said.
"Well that's encouraging." Jaune muttered.
Ashe chuckled and said "Okay, today we're going to be testing out your endurance! We're going to be going up against some tough customers kid and you'll need to be able to withstand some heavy stuff."
"Well because of my huge Aura reserves I have a better healing factor than most, let's get on with it." Jaune said confidently.
"Okay. Ruby, Nora, Ren, and I will all try to attack you. You are going to create an Aura shield and try to withstand everything we throw at you okay? Once your shield breaks we'll be coming in hard and fast so get ready, use your Aura to withstand our attacks, your body can hold off our physical blows but you'll need your Semblance to protect you from weaponry. Ready?" Ashe asked
"Wait, weaponry? I thought we were just..." before Jaune could finish that sentence Ashe yelled out "Now!"
Jaune knelt down and used his Semblance to create a shield of Aura to protect himself from Ruby attacking with Crescent Rose's blade, Nora was attempting to break his shield with some mighty hits with Manghild aided by her electric Semblance, and Ren was simply blasting away with his StormFlowers.
Jaune looked up and saw Ashe looking down on them, smiling at bit before he jumped down.
"Very good. You need to imagine that we are minions of Cinder, that we are all that stand between you and justice for Pyrrha. No matter what we throw at you you can't give in!" Ashe said firmly, not noticing the looks from Ruby, Nora, and Ren.
"I know the drill by now, imagining that I'm about to defeat Cinder, will this really work?!" Jaune asked.
"Similar ways of training worked for me." Ashe said as he drew out his sword.
Jaune would be lying if he said he was okay with how things were going.
"Nora and Ruby I want you two to hit Jaune with your Semblances. We need to test how much his Aura shield can take." Ashe said.
"You got it." Nora said, hiding the hesitance in her voice rather well. She ran towards Jaune's shield and began to punch it with electric powered fists, creating spider-web cracks in the shield of Aura.
Ruby aided her by using her Semblance to strafe Jaune's shield with Crescent Rose's sharp blade, adding to the stress on Jaune's Aura. It went on and on like this for about three minutes but Jaune was able to keep his shield up.
"Good! Keep it up! Jaune, you can do it, you can hold them back! Just a little more..." Ashe encouraged as he began to approach the shield with his sword.
Jaune concentrated, channeling additional Aura to the areas where Nora and Ruby were doing damage, enforcing the shield as much as he could.
He was so preoccupied that he didn't even notice Ashe was now right in front of him.
"You have to pay attention to your surroundings!" Ashe yelled as he gave a mighty, Aura and Semblance powered swing of his sword and shattered Jaune's Aura shield.
Jaune cried out in surprise as he staggered back and landed on his butt.
Ashe looked down at his student as he put away his blade. Ruby and Nora stopped what they were doing to hear what Ashe would say.
"Very good, your shield could use some practice but you seem to have it down pretty good and it can endure a hell of a lot of punishment. Now let's test your physical endurance!" Ashe said as he kicked Jaune in the stomach.
Jaune let out a yelp of surprise, but it hadn't really hurt him at all, he had just been surprised by how out of nowhere it was than anything.
Ruby ran forward and got between Jaune and Ashe. "Stop it!" she yelled.
Ashe sighed and said "Ruby, I told you this wouldn't be easy. It's harsh, I admit that, but he will need to know how much he can take if he..."
"Wants to avenge Pyrrha? That's what you were going to say, wasn't it?" Jaune asked.
Ashe nodded as Jaune glared at him.
"This isn't just about Pyrrha!" Jaune yelled, "This is about all those people that are dead because of Cinder! All those people killed by the Grimm and the White Fang, and Ruby's friend Penny. I won't lie; I want to avenge Pyrrha, I want justice for what happened to her more than anything! She was my best friend, she saw me for something other than a goofy idiot trying and failing to be hero, and in the end I loved her as much as she loved me... but that won't bring her back, nothing can. I can't bring her back but I can sure as hell make Cinder pay for what she's done. Just stop throwing Pyrrha in my face Ashe. You never knew her so you have no right to abuse her memory like that." Jaune finished.
Ashe was silent.
"Great. Now I feel like a real dick." He admitted.
"Only feel like one?" Ren said sarcastically.
Ashe chuckled bitterly as he saw Jaune make his way to the main entrance. "Where are you going?" Ashe asked as he saw Jaune grab Crocea Mors.
"Out, after this I need to take a walk." Jaune said as the shield transformed into its sheath form and he put the blade away as he made his way to the door.
"Jaune... I'm sorry." Ashe admitted.
Jaune did not respond, he simply walked out the door.
Ashe stood, feeling ashamed of himself, feeling terrible that he had forced Jaune to think about such things. He had been so used to forcing himself to consider the 'what could have been' and the things that could come to pass should he fail that he never took Jaune's feelings into account.
Ruby glared at Ashe before she went after Jaune, pulling her hood over her head so she wouldn't be recognized. She transformed Crescent Rose into its concealed form and slung it across her back as she ran after Jaune.
Ashe looked at Ren and Nora, both of whom glared at him.
"How about we just go out and cool down. I'll try and look for the factory Cinder's hiding in. I think I should just stay out of Jaune's way for a bit." He said as he grabbed his weapons and his robe.
"I think that would be the best thing to do right now." Ren agreed.
"Jerk." Nora muttered as she stuck her tongue out at Ashe.
Ashe sighed and left the warehouse. He looked up and saw Jaune and Ruby running across the rooftops so he decided it would be better to just walk. "I can't do anything right." Ashe muttered as he walked into the city alone.
On the roofs Ruby ran to keep up with Jaune as he jumped across the rooftops with ease.
"Jaune! Wait, slow down! Can't believe I'm saying that to you of all people..." she muttered as she caught up with him.
Jaune had stopped on a catwalk in front of an old billboard as Ruby walked across it.
Ruby put a comforting hand on Jaune's shoulder and said "I know Ashe can be a jerk, but he wants to help you."
Jaune didn't answer, his hood hiding his face.
"Ruby... how did Pyrrha die?" Jaune asked.
Ruby's eyes widened and she said "Jaune... I don't think..."
"Tell me Ruby. Please. I deserve to know why there was no body to bury." Jaune said calmly.
Ruby sighed and forced herself to think back to that horrible night.
"Weiss used her Glyphs to send me up the tower but by the time I got there it was too late. Pyrrha was on her knees and Cinder was aiming her arrow at her. She fired and I watched... I saw it as it went through her chest and out her back. I saw a red glow on her chest and I... I was so horrified by what I saw I couldn't even move... I heard Pyrrha gasp out... she sounded like she was in so much pain" by this point tears were flowing openly from Ruby's eyes and Jaune's fist was clenched so tight his palm had started to bleed "Cinder walked up to her, touched her circlet and there was a flash. She turned Pyrrha into golden... stardust I guess." Ruby finished.
Jaune began to weep openly. He now knew why there was no body. He knew that Cinder Fall was so sadistic and merciless that she wouldn't even give Pyrrha's loved ones a proper chance to say goodbye.
He let out a roar and punched the billboard so hard his fist exploded through it and Aura surged through the metal and wood and the board collapsed and fell into the alleyway behind it.
Jaune fell to his knees and let out an ear-piercing scream of anger. Ruby knelt down and hugged her friend to her. "Let it all out Jaune. Let it all..." Ruby couldn't continue as she began to weep too.
They sat in each other's arms for a good half-hour, crying it out and Jaune could have sworn that he heard a third voice crying with them, one with as much regret and self-loathing as they felt right now.
"Ruby?"
"Yeah Jaune?"
"I'm going to make her pay. Will you help me?" Jaune asked.
"Do you even need to ask?" Ruby said with a sad smile.
"Ruby, I always wanted to be a big brother but mom said she'd never give birth again after eight kids so ever since I met you you've felt like the little sister I never had." Jaune said.
"And you're like the dorky big brother I never had." Ruby said, repeating what she had told Ashe last night.
"Ruby, Ashe is right. We need to be better, harder, tougher if we're gonna take Cinder down. Ashe may be a jerk but he means well. He wants to help us and honestly I think we're the closest thing he's had to friends in a long time." Jaune said.
Ruby nodded "But that doesn't give him the right to use your feelings for Pyrrha..." "Ruby, I failed Pyrrha so much. I chased after Weiss when I should have been chasing after her, I unintentionally hurt her so much, and if I hadn't been distracted Cinder would never have gotten the Maiden powers to begin with." Jaune said.
"Jaune, Cinder would have crushed you. She would have crushed any of us, Maiden powers or not. Pyrrha was the only one who stood a chance against her, even if it was a slim one." Ruby said.
Jaune nodded and looked out to the massive city. Ruby looked up to the Seras Kalifa building and said "Want to go up there?" "Me? I don't do too good with heights, remember?" Jaune reminded Ruby.
Ruby laughed as she remembered the first time she saw Jaune, he was just the nervous and nameless kid who threw up on the bullhead to Beacon.
"Let's go up there Jaune, we'll be on top of the world for a change instead of being crushed by it." Ruby said as she helped Jaune up. Jaune nodded, he may not have liked heights, but he'd climb it to cheer his friend up.
Damien got out of his car and walked to the four figures that awaited him outside of the factory; Cinder, Emerald, Mercury, and Dr. West.
"Have you made any progress on the hunt for the Rose girl and the Arc boy?" Cinder asked with an impatient look in her eye.
"Nothing, a few rumors but nothing that would lead to 'em. Word says that Team SSSN split town and took out a bulk of the White Fang forces that were hiding in the outskirts. I know you're probably broken up about that." Damien reported.
"It does deprive me of some manpower, but it is not that big of a loss." Cinder said, "Your men have begun searching the city, correct?" she asked.
"Yeah, about a day ago and so far nothing. Although I think it makes it harder for the kids to get around the city and that will make it easier to catch 'em when they're out in the open." Damien said.
West nodded in agreement, "That is a reasonable strategy, but it may take some time." He said.
"Damien, I want those two captured and brought to me as soon as possible. Take your enforcers and Dr. West here, take the airships I have supplied you and use them to search for the children by air. You will spot them soon enough." Cinder assured him.
"Lady Cinder I must protest! I have work to do! Dr. Giger..." West objected before Cinder stopped him with a gentle, yet intimidating finger to his lips.
"The good doctors can do without you for the day. I need you to go with Ante and make sure that Rose and Arc are unharmed and kept alive, your healing Semblance is perfect for this mission." Cinder said to the man.
West decided not to argue with the Fall Maiden, least he entice her wrath, so he simply nodded.
"Very good. Ante, Dr. West here will be joining you. Say hello to your tenth enforcer." Cinder said.
West walked up to Damien and shook his hand. "If it makes you feel any better take comfort in the fact that I will enjoy this no more than you will." West said.
"Oh, I think this is gonna be fun..." Damien said with a twisted smirk as he got back in his car and West got into the passenger seat.
As the car drove off Emerald spoke to Cinder. "Why does Mistress Salem want those two anyway? I mean, Ruby's silver eyes can't be that important can they? And what about Arc? He has never struck me as a threat to us... like at all." She said.
"I have looked into the legend of the Silver-Eyed warriors since we arrived here and if even half of it is true then my Master is right to want Ruby Rose under our control. As for Arc... the Arc family once produced many a great hero for Vale, there was even a statue of Jaune's great-grandfather in Beacon's courtyard. I don't fully know why my master wants him, but I assume it will be the same as Fotia, Ziz, Ruby, and the others; to turn a figure of the light into a figure of the dark and considering how attached he must have been to Pyrrha Nikos, it will be quite easy for him to fall to the darkness." Cinder said as her yellow eyes began to glow.
Back at the Atlas Military HQ, Weiss and Winter finally stepped out of General Ironwood's office after an hour of him questioning Weiss and grilling her for answers to questions that were meant to test her, to see if she was ready to be a consultant for the Atlas Military. He had decided she was worthy and that they could use the help from someone somewhat familiar with Cinder's tactics.
Weiss had been somewhat distracted during the session due to her encounter with Penny beforehand but she had managed to pass Ironwood's questions easily enough. However her distracted behavior had not gone unnoticed by Winter.
"Weiss, what's wrong? You've been rather distant ever since the General's session began." Winter said.
"Winter, before you took me inside I saw Penny. I demand to know what is going on." Weiss said firmly.
"I...I don't know what you are..." Winter tried to say before Weiss stopped her. "She told me she knew you! She said you were 'nice to her' so I know you know what I'm talking about! So spill it!" Weiss demanded of her older sister in a tone she had never taken with Winter before.
Winter was speechless for a bit before she shook her head, gave Weiss a defeated look and said "There's no fooling you. We keep telling her not to stray too far from the lab but she's too curious. Very well, come with me."
Winter led her sister further into the Headquarters, deciding that her sibling had a right to know the truth about Penny.
In the factory's training room Fotia Drakos' legs were currently curled around a chin up bar as she pulled herself up.
"Fifty-seven... fifty-eight...fifty-nine..." Fotia said to herself as her legs lifted her upper body up. She would have done normal chin-ups but in addition to her chest pains she was also suffering through slight back pains. Dr. Giger and Ziz had assured her that these pains were merely a side-effect of the Grimm essence transfer process.
She had seen a scar on her back in the mirror, slightly below her neck but it was mostly hidden by a tattoo that marked her, similar to the one Lady Cinder wore. Fotia assumed the tattoos were a mark of rank as she had also seen similar markings on Ziz and Steppenwolffe so she didn't ask what they were.
As she continued with her knee pull-ups she heard the voice of Cinder's illusionist.
"Hey Fotia, how've you been?" Emerald asked.
"Oh, hello Emerald. I have been fine today, what brings you here?" Fotia asked as she hung upside down.
"Nothing, just wandering around the base, looking for something to do. Nothing much to do until Ante finds Ruby Rose and Jaune Arc." Emerald explained.
"Jaune... Arc? Ruby Rose... those names sound familiar, I think Lady Cinder mentioned them before." Fotia said as she jumped down from the bar.
"She did. Mistress Salem needs them for her plans apparently." Emerald explained. "Then why are they not here?" Fotia asked innocently.
"Because they're our enemies Drakos, they're trying to stop us and they don't know how stupid that is." Emerald explained. Fotia may have been around Emerald's age but she was like a child when it came to understanding certain things.
"Oh... well when they are brought here we'll have to teach them a lesson, won't we?" Fotia said.
Before Emerald could reply they were interrupted by... "Yes, we will." Said Mercury as he entered the training room with his usual smirk.
"How does it feel to be among the best?" Mercury asked. "Oh it feels wonderful! I am so happy that Mistress Salem gave me a second chance at life as she and Lady Cinder did with you." Fotia said, remembering what she had heard the duo's own past.
"Mercury, what are you doing down here?" Emerald asked with an annoyed look.
"Looking for the cute mute, haven't seen her since last night." Mercury said.
"Come to think of it neither have I..." Emerald said as she realized the absence of their silent ally.
"Oh, Neopolitan? She's up there." Fotia said, gesturing up above.
Emerald and Mercury looked up and sure enough Neo was standing on a catwalk above, twirling her umbrella around.
"We really oughta put a bell on her." Mercury remarked.
"She isn't mute however." Fotia said as she walked over to some heavy lifts and began to slowly lift them up.
"What do you mean she isn't mute? She never talks!" Emerald pointed out.
"She talks to me. I think Neo only talks to people she trusts, like myself and her late friend Roman Torchwick. She speaks of him quite often; I don't think she merely worked for him, I think he was a genuine friend to her like you are to me." Fotia said.
Emerald looked away, looking uncomfortable, while Mercury tried not to laugh.
Yang stood proud and silent, feeling both of her hands ready to fight. She felt her right hand there, could feel her fingers flex, her hand turn into a fist.
Across from her in a snowy forest stood a woman clad in red and black and a steely mask with red markings, drawing out her crimson sword as she stood in a battle ready stance.
"You left me. You left dad. Why didn't you help me at Beacon?! Where were you?! If you had helped us my friends would still be here! It's your fault I lost my arm!" Yang yelled as she saw her arm begin to fade away.
Her mother did not respond to her.
"Well?! What do you have to say for yourself?!" Yang demanded.
Raven remained silent.
"Talk to me damn you!" Yang yelled.
Still silence.
"Nothing to say? Just want to stay quiet and run away like always? Typical!"
"The only one to blame for your situation is the White Fang and yourself. Not Blake, not me, not anyone else. Just you and he." Said Raven.
Yang felt a sharp pain in her arm, she fell over as she cried out in pain and she saw a golden metal bursting out of her stump.
Yang's eyes snapped open and her body shot up and she fell out of the bed, dragging her blankets down with her as she landed with a 'thud' on the floor.
Yang groaned in annoyance and frustration as she used her remaining arm to grab the nightstand and pull herself up.
She felt the comforting feeling of Zwei licking her shins, trying to cheer her up. Yang gave the dog one of her now rare smiles and she sat herself back down on the floor and let her pet jump up into her lap. Zwei leaned up against Yang's torso and licked her face. Yang giggled as she lovingly pet the dog.
"I wish I could be like you Zwei, just so happy no matter what."
As Yang allowed the dog to lick her she thought about her dream. It had not been the first time she had dreamed about her missing mother Raven Branwen. She had been having dreams about her mother since she abandoned her but lately the dreams had been more confrontational.
She remembered the first of these dreams, after the breach, after the figure she knew to be her mother had saved her from Torchwick's henchgirl but this made her wonder why she hadn't helped out at the Vytal Festival? If her mother had been bothered to help Pyrrha might still be alive, Team RWBY might still be together, Cinder might have been defeated, everything would have been fine if her mother had bothered to lift a damn finger and help out...
Zwei whined a bit, shaking Yang out of her thoughts. Yang smiled and pet her dog and said "You're right Zwei. Everyone was right. This isn't me. I gotta snap out of it!"
She let Zwei get off of her and she got up and walked over to her closet and opened a case she hadn't opened in months. The case contained the left Ember Ceilia.
"I may be armless, but I'm not harmless." Yang joked to herself as she put on her remaining Gauntlet, ignoring the doubt that was trying to creep into her mind. She would not allow her isolation to rule over her anymore.
Ashe wandered through one of Haven's many slums, trying to think of a way he could make up for what he had been doing to Jaune.
"Stupid kids, they got me going soft. Why is it that every single time I let someone into my life they get to me like this? Everyone makes me second guess myself and then some big bad asshole rips 'em away." Ashe muttered to himself as he walked on.
He remembered Mila; that wonderful girl with those shining sapphire eyes, raven hair, wonderful singing voice, her intelligence and her dry sense of humor, beautiful body and...
Ashe stopped himself. He couldn't reflect on the past like that. Thinking about her clouded his Semblance and in a place like a slum letting your guard down could cost you.
He walked up a metal staircase to a pedestrian bridge that hung over the road, seemingly pointless due to the lack of vehicles. Ashe made his way to the top of the bridge and looked out to the slums.
He took his mother's whistle and sighed, remembering his dream about the prophecy. He wondered why he had dreamed about it, since he hadn't even thought about it in years and had forgotten it.
It made him recall a few more old prophecies such as:
'What was sundered and undone
Shall behold the two warriors made one
By Guardian hand or else by none
The wound will be closed and love will shine as the sun.'
He laughed bitterly to himself and said "Prophets, what do they know? If they were so smart they would have seen a hell of a lot of stuff coming and know how to stop it... and why do those old prophecies always have to rhyme? They sound like children's tales."
In the end that's all they were, mere stories. Hundreds of prophecies had been foretold and most all have them failed to come true and the few that did were minor and unimportant at best. He also recalled something from years ago, a word... no, a name... a name that his parents had mentioned when they thought he wasn't listening; 'Salem'.
He blew into his mother's whistle and a small but loud enough peep was heard as it echoed throughout the slums.
He looked out into the city and said "You're out there somewhere sis... I hope you aren't doing anything crazy or stupid."
He walked along the bridge until he decided to disembark it and he walked down a new staircase and walked into another part of the slums. As he continued on his way on level ground he heard the revving of a motorcycle engine.
Ashe turned around just in time to see a man on a motorcycle speeding towards him with a baseball bat, ready to hit Ashe in the head.
Ashe quickly ducked down just as the man was about to hit him; he then grabbed the man on the cycle and pulled him off, slamming him into the ground. "Bad idea." Ashe said to the downed man as he took up the bat and slammed it down on the man's head.
Ashe looked up and saw eight other street punks approaching him. "That looks like him boys! Just like the big guy described him, take him down and we'll be livin' the high life!" said their leader.
"Let's not make a mess in the street." Ashe said before he ran into an alleyway. "After him!" the punk leader yelled as the gang chased after Ashe.
They ran into the alleyway that Ashe had ran into only to find it empty.
"The hell did he go?" asked one of the thugs. "Be careful, if the rumors are true than this is one tricky asshole." The leader said.
"Then they're true!" said the voice of Ashe.
Before another word could be said the leader and two other thugs were left alone after a series of gunshots had decimated the five others. Ashe had jumped up on top of a lamp post and had stayed hidden until the right moment, using his pistols to take out a majority of the threat. Ashe jumped down with a grin on his face and he said "Come and get it!"
The bigger of the two thugs charged at Ashe only to be floored by a mighty punch and finished off with a gun shot to the chest.
The other thug took out a dagger and yelled as he charged Ashe. Ashe sighed and took out his sword and ended the thug with a simple slash across the waist.
The leader of the gang was now the only one left and he was shaking like a leaf. "D-don't come any closer man!" he said as he took out his gun and aimed it at Ashe.
Ashe calmly began to move towards the leader so the scared criminal fired his weapon twice and Ashe dodged it both times. Ashe ran forwards and jumped up, kicking the leader in the chest and knocking him to the pavement.
"Oh man... don't hurt me! I..." the leader tried to say as Ashe grabbed him and slammed him into the wall.
"Who sent you?!" Ashe demanded, "You mentioned a 'big guy', who is he?! Tell me and you get to walk away."
"D-D-Damien Ante! He said you and some kids got the drop on him a couple nights ago so he wants payback! He put a twenty-five thousand lien bounty on your head!" the leader confessed.
"What about the kids? What did Ante say about them? Tell me!" Ashe ordered.
"Okay... the kids called Nora and Ren and some local team are dead or alive, he don't care either way... with five thousand each for them, but the real big catch was the kids called Ruby and uh... Arc or something like that, yeah, two million each for those two and he wants them alive!" the gang leader fessed up.
"Oh crap, I gotta warn them... Thanks for the help; your reward is that I don't kill you." Ashe said, before he knocked the leader out with his fist.
Ashe dropped the leader and ran out of the alleyway and took out his scroll and dialed up Ren. The kids had all given Ashe their scroll numbers for the sake of safety and staying in touch if they were to get separated.
"Hello?" said the voice of Ren.
"Ren! Are you and Nora still at the warehouse? Do you know where Ruby and Jaune are?"
"Ashe, calm down, Nora and I decided to go out and look for the factory, we're inside one of the abandoned ones right now and there's nothing here but rats." Ren said, "And ghosts!" Nora chimed in, "Nora there are no ghosts. Now Ashe, tell me what's wrong" Ren said.
"I just found out that Ante put a bounty out on all of us; twenty-five grand for me, five grand for you two and Sun's team dead or alive, and two million for Ruby and Jaune each! They want those two Ren and they want them alive, Cinder's behind this, she has to be!" Ashe cried.
"Alright, we're leaving now and going back to the warehouse, call Ruby and Jaune and have them get back there." Ren said, staying as calm as he could.
"I will, see you later Ren." Ashe said, then he hung up and dialed Jaune's number.
"Come on kid, come on, pick up the freaking scroll!"
No answer.
"Damn it!" Ashe muttered, of all the times for him to rub someone the wrong way...
Ashe saw the dead thug's motorcycle now lying in the road. Ashe hauled it up and said "Been a while since I rode one of these, hope I can still do it."
He got on it and started it up.
Ruby and Jaune rode in the elevator to the top of the Seras Kalifa building. They stood in silence and the only other person in the small elevator was the operator.
"I gotta admit, it's unusual for folks as young as you to come without parents. Hell, I usually only get four or five people a week who want to go to the top. You two..." the older man asked before Jaune stopped him. "No, we're not in a relationship. I'm her brother." He lied.
Ruby nodded as she heard Jaune's scroll start to ring. Jaune took out the scroll and saw who it was. "It's Ashe; I'm not in the mood to talk to him right now." Jaune said as he let the scroll ring.
Soon they came to the top floor of the building and the old operator said "Careful now, people can easily get vertigo, even those who claim they ain't afraid of heights."
Jaune stood away from the edge hesitantly, not wanting to live up to Yang's old nickname for him, but Ruby went ahead to look over the edge.
Ruby grabbed the safety railing firmly and looked over the edge and her jaw dropped at the view. Everything was below her and she was on top of the world. She could see everything from up here; buildings, cars, trains, airships, people, everything!
A view like this put things into perspective a bit for Ruby. If everyone were to die a view like this would still be possible, the world wasn't just ground and water and air, people were what made it what it was. All of those wars that had been fought years ago and the battles she faced now? Win or lose Remnant itself would still stand. Battle weren't fought to literally save the world, merely to save the people and societies that resided in the world.
Ruby knew that she would have to be one of those who fought for the people, to stop monsters like Cinder and the Grimm and save others be they human or Faunus.
She let out a loud cry of excitement that echoed high above the city.
"Jaune, you have to see this! It's amazing!" she beckoned.
"No way!" Jaune said with a laugh, but even he was tempted to take a look at the massive city from this high.
Ruby looked back out, with her silver eyes sparkling and she said "I'm gonna save each and every one of you down there. Cinder, I know you're out there and if you're afraid of me... good. Be afraid, because we're going to take you down."
Not too far away, a thousand feet (give or take) below, an airship hovered over the city looking for a few specific targets.
"Ante, we've been flying through the city like this for the last hour, I doubt we'll find them like this." West said to the crime lord. West, Damien, and Lao sat in one row of seats while Trooper, Tom-Tom, and Little Steve sat across from them. Merrick and Fireball sat on the floor looking out the open doors trying to spot any of their targets while Douglas and Zhan operated the ship.
Ante sighed in annoyance and said "Lao, explain the plan to this know-nothing who pretends to know-it-all."
Lao nodded and spoke to the scientist. "With all our thugs and street punks searching for them down there it will force them to use the roofs to get around the city, which is why we're searching for them like this."
"But we've had no luck so far! They could be underground for all we know!"
Just then Merrick shouted out "I spotted something, I can't tell from here but I think we got something."
"What is it?" Damien asked the marksman.
"Let me adjust the scope, I see something on top of the Seras Kalifa... I... oh... it's her! I see the Rose girl! Wait a minute, the Arc kid's up there too!" Merrick said as he saw them in his cross hairs.
Damien grinned evilly and said "Okay, Douglas! Take us down to that landing platform! Lao, take Trooper and Tom-Tom inside and cut them off when they try to run. The rest of us will go back up and try to get 'em up top. Okay, let's make the Fall Maiden proud boys!"
Weiss stood next to Winter in an elevator as it descended down to the hidden depths of the Atlas Military Headquarters. The two were silent and the only sound was the grinding gears of the elevator as it was lowered down.
It soon stopped and the doors split open and Winter stepped out, signaling Weiss to follow her. Weiss looked around at the dimly lit, curved tunnel that seemed to be leading to a vault of some kind.
"Winter, what is this place?" Weiss asked.
"Sister, there have been hundreds of wars before you or I were born and there will be hundreds more after both of us are dead. Sometimes to win wars the people in charge must do things they are not proud of, things that they will regret, things that are meant to be hidden. This vault was once the birthplace of great weapons but for the last five years it has been used as the lab of Dr. Joseph Polendina ,a genius in the field of robotics." Winter explained.
"This man created Penny?" Weiss guessed. "Correct." Winter confirmed as they arrived at a heavy door. Winter typed a code on a keypad and then she leaned down and let a security device scan her eye.
"Identity Confirmed As: Winter Schnee. Access Granted." Said an artificial voice. The door opened by sliding up and Weiss followed her sister inside to a large, gray workshop.
"Joseph! It's me." Winter called. An old, rather portly man with a wild mane and beard of snow-white hair and tanned skin appeared from behind a table littered with spare parts.
"Ah Miss Schnee, I knew I'd get a visit from you or the General after the guards brought back Penny... wait a minute, I know her... what is she doing here?" the old man asked as he noticed Weiss.
"This is my sister..." "I know who she is; I saw her and her old team in the first Penny's memories." The old man said as Weiss' eyes widened.
"The first one? So this isn't the..." "No, Penny mentioned to me that she met you during her expedition upstairs. The Penny you encountered today is Penny 2, or just Penny as I call her." Joseph said.
"I spoke to her; she didn't remember me or Ruby! Why doesn't she remember anything?" Weiss asked.
"Heh... Ruby, the original spoke of her quite often... but to answer your question; I couldn't risk the old memories damaging her. I dare not ask myself the question of what a robot, especially one as alive and human as Penny, would do if it could remember its own death so I did not restore her original memory chip." Joseph elaborated.
"She has a right to know her past! Can't you just edit out the last day of her life or something like that?" Weiss asked.
"Its not that easy Weiss, it could be done but the new Penny would have two sets of memories and that could damage her mind." Winter explained.
Weiss was silent for a moment before she asked "May I see her?"
"Of course, she's in shut down mode, right over there." Joseph said as he pointed Weiss to Penny's direction.
As Weiss walked towards Penny the older Schnee noticed an angry and distressed look in the old man's eye.
"What's wrong?" Winter asked.
"It's Ironwood, while you were gone Ironwood came up with a plan to try and stop that Cinder Fall woman. He wants Penny to go into the city that Fall has been spotted in the most, Haven, and use Penny to lure her out, make her wonder how Penny came back, get them to capture Penny and then, once she's close enough to that witch..." the old man couldn't continue but Winter understood what he was about to say.
Ironwood wanted to turn Penny into a suicide bomber.
I hope you enjoy this one as it will take a while for the next chapter to be released since Chapters 6 and 7 together are two parts. I don't want to have chapter 6 be out alone for too long as I think it will be too obvious what will happen in chapter 7 so the two will be released fairly close to one another. It's main purpose was to be a calm before the storm, reintroduce Penny, and get the characters isolated.
And yes, that certain redhead was Penny who is back... sort of... and Adam is up to no good and neither is Cinder or Damien. And Ironwood seems to have something bad in store for Penny.
Fotia is a tool for evil basically but she is 100% fooled into thinking that she is among the good guys and that the world at large is evil because of how she was treated growing up. As for Neo's speaking ability I like to think that she can speak (as evidenced by her gasp in 'Heroes and Monsters') but she only talks to people she feels comfortable with and only does it when she feels it's the right time.
The scene where Ruby and Jaune talk about and mourn Pyrrha has been in my head ever since 'End of the Beginning'. I have accepted the fact that Pyrrha is gone and is most likely never coming back in the show (although I think that there is still some hope) but I'm not happy about it. This was mostly a way for me to express my sorrow and frustration with how the character was just tossed aside like that. My life hasn't been awesome lately; my sister is out of control and nearly killed herself, I was sick with a terrible cold for two weeks, and worst of all my beloved cat Ester, one that I had for fourteen years, died on my birthday, so I think Pyrrha's death was just too far and added to my depression and like I said in the first chapter; fan fiction has become therapy for me and I needed to get that rant about Pyrrha's death off my chest.
So once again; read, review, and tell me what you liked and what I can improve.