Gamer4 in. Time for my bi-monthly Batman craze. What does this mean for a story that has nothing to do with Batman? ...Also nothing. I just needed something to say to shamelessly pad out the opening notes. Notes padded... let's get down to business.
Episode XXVIII
Chariots of Fire
Forging a Bond
The screen paused as Vanessa's phone went off again. She glanced at the caller and sighed. "Lana..." She ran her finger over it and began speaking into it. "What now? Oh, really? Who? Okay... sure... of course. Yeah, I'll let 'em know."
"Has she chosen the four remaining viewers?" Ozpin asked as Vanessa returned the phone to her pocket.
"Three of them," Vanessa answered. "She's got an eye on two of Blondie's sisters-" She jerked a thumb at Jaune- "and Coco Adele."
"Oh, Coco!" Velvet's eyes lit up. "That would be nice!"
"For the fourth slot, she's currently torn between Cardin and Cinder."
"That sounds... less lovely," Pyrrha bit her lip.
"Bring Cinder in," Yang instructed.
"You really hate Cardin more than Cinder?" Ruby was caught off guard.
"Oh, no, it's the opposite- she's the one I want to deck the most," Yang corrected.
"We've had some bad experiences with the Cinders of previous worlds," Ren answered the adults' unasked question.
"I'll pass on the request, but don't count on her listening," Vanessa warned. "Hell, knowing her, she'll change her mind and pick up someone else altogether. Maybe not even someone from your world, who knows?"
"Enough of the lame comedy routine already," Raven rubbed at her eyes. "Can we hurry and get this overwith?"
"Your wish is my command," Vanessa rolled her eyes, turning the screen back on again.
The world picked up in the dark of the night, with a strange woman watching the 8-man band from a distance. The camera didn't draw close enough to reveal any identifying features before she turned and walked away.
"Uh-oh, somebody's following us," Ruby gulped.
"Well, they haven't attacked us yet," Jaune pointed out. "Really, I'll take any W's I can get at this point."
When Yang awoke the next day, she found Ren holding a small object in his hands. Upon approaching, she saw that it was a small metal triangle, etched with writing. "That woman's tags?" she guessed as she sat next to him.
"Her... tags?" Ruby tilted her head.
"It's common practice in the army for soldiers to wear tags so they can be identified in the event of their death," Ironwood explained.
"The Qrow on the Serenity had some too, remember?" Weiss reminded her.
"Oh, that's what that was all about," Ruby bopped herself lightly on the head.
Ren nodded, wiping off a bit of dirt. "Maria... Xiao Long... n/ Calavera."
"Think she had enough names?" Yang gave a halfhearted snort.
"Wait, Xiao Long?!" Yang gasped.
"Grandma?" Ruby guessed.
"My mom's name wasn't Maria," Tai denied. "Haven't seen her, but what you described doesn't sound like her, either."
"Sounds like it's different worlds bein' weird again," Qrow shrugged and downed another glass of whiskey.
"But why don't I recognize that name?!" Yang emphasized.
"Well... this setup doesn't seem to leave much room for families," Blake noticed. "Maybe they only have one name. She's not 'Yang Xiao Long,' just 'Yang.' Even fits in with what she said- they don't know about surnames, let alone maiden names."
"No families... at all?" It had been right in front of them from the outset, but Nora's look of pained shock made it clear that it was just now dawning on her- and others- just how messed up this world was.
"Still... glad to know 'em," Yang almost whispered. "Hated not really knowing who she was."
"I see," Ren nodded his agreement as Jaune and Qrow approached. "Yes... let's remember her as the one who gave us a goal besides fighting... a choice."
"A choice... yeah, that suddenly doesn't sound so bad," Yang nodded her agreement.
"Yang seem unusually somber today," noted Qrow as he and Jaune approached.
"I was about to say," Blake nodded her agreement.
"She does seem a little more... Blake-y than usual," Sun agreed, stonewalling the glare this earned him.
"I was... dreaming last night," Yang explained as she pulled herself back to her feet. "Remembering... the day we met the Silvercoat."
"The Silvercoat?" Ruby squeaked- the Nohrians had awoken as well. "Brrr, glad she wasn't there last night, we'd be dead for sure!"
"A particularly deadly warrior, then?" Ironwood assessed.
"Fighting on the side of the Hoshidans," Ren agreed with his assessment, scribbling the information down in his notebook.
"You've met her, then?" Nora asked, at Ruby's side as ever.
"Yeah... just the once," Yang nodded. "About five terms ago-"
"I'm sure this is a pleasant story, and all," Whitley interrupted. "However, it would, perhaps, best be told as we move. Need I remind you that we are being hunted?"
"Smarmy little punk," Yang growled.
"But he's right," Qrow pointed out. "Like it or not, you're wanted right now- and not in the fun way." Ignoring Winter's groan of exasperation, he continued. "You got something that needs sayin', say it on the run."
Yang looked affronted, and Jaune even moreso, but Ren nodded his agreement. "He's quite right. Come on- we should get back on the road."
It only took a minute or two to take apart their spartan camp, and they were back on the move.
"So... you met the Silvercoat?" Ruby asked, falling into step alongside Yang, looking up at her with wide, wondrous eyes.
"It's... a bit of a story," Yang admitted.
"Ooooh, I love stories!" Ruby beamed. Yang blinked, and found herself smiling indulgently down at her.
"Alright, I'll tell you..."
"HA!" Yang whooped. "Sisters are sisters, lunatic other-world or no!"
"Glad to see it," Ruby gave a sigh of relief.
The world flickered to a dark night on a narrow road between tall buildings. At this very moment, it was all being ripped apart by Nohrian levnises. A younger Ren, Yang, Jaune, and Velvet were currently crouching behind a pile of debris, attempting to make their way by without notice. Qrow was at the opposite edge, beckoning silently with his wing. They immediately followed, breaking into a sprint.
As they ran, tears began to leak from Jaune's eyes.
"Crying won't solve anything!" Ren chastized as well as he could in full sprint. "Focus on running!"
"I think this is the first time we're seeing this version of him crying," Pyrrha bit her lip.
"Must have been a surprise attack," Qrow surmised. "Caught even the more seasoned soldiers off guard."
"You don't think I was involved in this one, do you?" Nora asked nervously.
"Going by context, I don't believe so," Ren shook his head.
"Of course, that doesn't mean you didn't do the same to plenty of other spots," Torchwick couldn't help butting in.
Nora winced, wanting to yell back at him, but knowing he was likely correct.
Yang turned and ducked into an alley between two of the taller buildings. "Ren, down here! They can't follow us through here!"
"Right!" Ren moved to lead the others down the alley after her- only to find another levnis glaring at them from the other end.
"Spark!" Jaune swore, more tears coming- this time of fury. "We were almost out!"
The levnis moved faster than any of them could react to- only to collapse inches before making contact. Something had impacted it from above, crushing it and causing what remained to explode. It took a moment for the flames to die down enough for the soldiers to look upon their savior- a young woman with white hair pulled into a straight pony-tail, a pair of rapiers at her side.
"Weiss!" Ruby beamed.
"No... no, that's not me," Weiss shook her head, eyes wide. "That's Winter!"
"You mean to say that I'm a participant in this war as well?" Winter seemed a little taken aback.
"Whew," Sun let out a whistle. "I wonder how young Weiss must have been at this point."
"No... I don't think that's it," Weiss admitted reluctantly. "We have reason to believe that the queens of Hoshido and Nohr are... well, Blake and me."
"Oh, dear," Kali raised a hand to her cheek. "I can only imagine what our dear Blake must have endured to drive her to such madness!"
"I promise, I'm wondering the same," Blake mumbled.
For a moment, the camera lingered on the team's awed reactions, before cutting ahead to later that night, when they had gathered around a fire. Around them were several more fires, circled by other refugees from the massacre they'd just survived. Each of them was wrapped in a blanket, looking into the crackling flames, then occasionally to their friends' faces. Each wanted to speak, to break the oppressive silence, but none had any idea what to say.
A set of footsteps approached, and they looked up to see the same young woman from before, her arms crossed as she, too gazed into the flames. After another moment or two, she finally broke the spell. "I'm sorry."
"For what?" Ren asked, clearly baffled. "You saved us!"
"I could have saved many more, had I come sooner."
"If I know anything about you, you got there as swiftly as you could!" Weiss immediately stuck up for her.
"Yeah... I'll give her that much," Qrow reluctantly admitted.
"I would... like to think so," Winter acknowledged quietly.
Ren glanced around- nobody else seemed up to speaking. "If I may ask... who are you?"
"My name is Winter- I'm from Colony 4."
This, at last, caused Yang to perk up, as demonstrated by the straightening of her wings. "You mean, you're Silvercoat Winter?! The soldier who pushed her colony all the way to Silver Rank in just her third term?!"
Winter slowly nodded. "That's a name that some have given me."
"Of course, a prodigy even in other worlds," Whitley scoffed.
"We are going to have to have a three-way talk at some point," Winter considered.
"Per... perhaps..." Weiss squirmed a little.
"However, a soldier's worth goes far deeper than the color of their colony," Winter continued. "It lies here." She placed a hand over her heart.
"I doubt there are any worlds here exempt from these platitudes," Raven heaved a great sigh.
"And I doubt I'll ever be free from your constant bitching, but I guess we're both disappointed, huh?" Yang shot back.
Ren blinked slowly as he gazed at her- but her gaze was directed instead at his weapons, the twin knives. "That's a fine blade you've got."
And that was the last she had to say, turning around and stepping off to examine the others in the camp.
"There's something special about Renny's blade?" Nora wondered. "Other than being Renny's blade, that is?"
"I mean, most of the other worlds have someone usin' a special weapon," Sun casually pointed out. "No reason to think this one would be any different."
"Though this world, at least, seems to be keeping its hand closer to its chest in that regard," Ozpin sipped from his mug.
The world finally returned to the eight travellers- Ruby was staring starry-eyed up at Yang as she concluded her story.
"A woman of few words, hmm?" Whitley commented. "I know some commanders on our side that could stand to learn from her."
"Why was she so interested in your blade?" Nora asked of Ren, who simply shrugged in response.
"That's the only time we've seen her- never had the chance to ask."
As they continued their march, the camera pulled steadily back, until it revealed... a screen.
"Wait, we're watching them on a screen, that's... on another screen?" Neptune's eyes were spinning.
"Screenception!" Nora gasped.
"BWOOOOOM!" Ruby intoned.
The screen was constantly flickering, suddenly jumping back in time to replay Renora's struggle against the beast. It continued to flicker, leaping from one clip of black and white armies tearing each other apart to another.
"Waaaaaiiiiiit... Is this the Truman Show?" Tai asked. "This suddenly feels like the Truman Show."
"You mean, we're all just actors here?" Ruby followed up. "That... wouldn't be too-"
"No, their emotions have been far too real to be acting," Blake shook her head. "I don't know what all this is about, but I'm sure that what we're seeing is real."
"Are we watching somebody else watching this world? Just like we are?" Nora suggested.
"Hmm... we'll just have to see," Ren shrugged.
"It is incredible that made sense to you," Whitley stared.
Abruptly, the screen cut to black, and in the dark room it left behind, the beast appeared, cackling. "What a wild ride, this passage of fate! Take a good look, lads, we've got an awakening on our hands!"
A spotlight activated- standing in it was a woman in scarlet armor, only her eyes visible through her helmet. On the chest was a Zohar-shaped emblem. "And to think, you were all talk when you left here. What do you have to show for it?"
"Wait, these guys in red armor... they were at the homecoming ceremony Ren witnessed!" Blake realized.
"They're also the ones the beast sent the signal to," Ren quietly reminded them. "With this, I think we can confidently say there's a link."
"We've got our bad guys!" Yang growled, cracking her knuckles.
"Spare me the scorn, P," the beast beseeched. "I did everything I was meant to." A spiralling light circled around it, and when it cleared, the beast was gone, replaced by two more red-armored figures- one masculine, one feminine.
"Just like when Ren and Nora fused together!" Jaune realized.
"It did say that their powers are related somehow..." Pyrrha recalled.
The woman spoke again, though it didn't seem to be to either of the figures who'd comprised the beast. "So, who won that super important bet of yours?"
Another spotlight clicked on, highlighting a fourth armored figure in a helmet resembling an owl. He scoffed in disgust. "Draw. And with two colonies on the field, no less!"
"I certainly don't think highly of those gambling on the outcome of such ruthless battles," Ironwood glared.
"Might as well have gone in ourselves, gotten this all taken care of in one fell swoop."
Another spotlight, another figure. "Well, blame V for that- she's the one who insisted on handling this job."
"In which case," said yet another masked woman, stepping out from behind the last, "it's my turn next."
"Your turn?" the previous figure in question objected. "H, your turn was wiping out Colony 8! If anything, it's my turn!"
"Their... their 'kicks?'" Velvet was turning from shock to fury. "We're talking about life, here!"
"I wonder why they're only calling each other by letters?" Sun pondered aloud. "I'm guessin' it's the first letter of their names, but what's the point? Do even they not know who the others are?"
"Hmm... we would have to learn more about what this organization is to determine such things," Ozpin decided.
A dark chuckle came from the darkened center of the room, and another voice spoke- a remarkably deep voice that seemed to cause the air itself to rumble. "No need to get so worked up. You're making more noise than the rabble at a feast."
All the figures jumped as they turned towards the shadows. Though they couldn't see it, a grin seemed to cross some of their faces. "Oh, hey, if it ain't the boss-man!"
Vanessa did a spit-take. "Hold on, the Hand didn't tell me about this!"
"What's up with you?" Qrow asked the closest thing he currently had to a drinking partner.
"...Nothing," Vanessa seemed to catch herself.
"Sounds like a lot of bullshit to me," commented Torchwick, narrowing his eyes. "You know who that 'Boss-man' is, don't you?"
Vanessa folded her arms. "I... need to think about some things. Just keep watching for now."
This earned her quite a few narrowed eyes, but she wouldn't speak any further, leaving them nothing to do but to continue watching.
"No matter how much you fight the flow, cracks will form, and it will burst through. That, my friends... is fate."
"I believe I've already told you all as much," spoke one of two figures standing only close enough to the light to cast a sillhouette.
"All these douchebags really have a flair for the dramatic, don't they?" Neptune pointed out.
"Ah, the gang's all here!" laughed the first figure- the man who'd been part of the beast.
"Well... I think we can all agree something needs to be done," the 'Boss-man' offered one of his deep chuckles. "As for who should go... I'll allow you to decide, R."
One of the shadowed figures raised a hand to his chin. "Let's see... K. You will go."
'K' turned out to be another figure who'd been standing in the shadows until a spotlight fell on him. "If you say so, let it be so," he offered a slight bow.
"Okay, at least that one's funny," Nora giggled. When everyone stared at her, she raised her hands. "What, his helmet's an upside-down fishbowl!"
"Huh- she is not wrong," Penny considered, tilting her head and squinting a bit.
"Then it is decided," 'R' declared. "Moebius is."
The figures all raised their arms in salute. "Moebius is!" One by one, they all disappeared, their spotlights flickering out, until only 'Boss-Man' was left.
He offered one last chuckle. "That time again already? Fine by me. Let's seehow far the flow carries you this time..."
"What is he on about?" Torchwick asked, scratching at his cheek in frustration. "Can't any of these shadow douches speak clearly?"
"I think it goes against their contract," Neo giggled.
The other audience members glanced towards Vanessa- they could tell her skin was crawling at the sound of 'Boss-Man's' voice, but she was remaining stubbornly silent.
The sun had reached its peak when the eight travelers decided to pause and take a break for lunch. Jaune and Ruby devoured their food with remarkable speed, before getting up and approaching each other. Ren watched nervously, afraid he was about to witness a battle that had been brewing right under his nose, but instead of drawing their bladed, the two began to... dance. They performed an odd sort of dance towards each other that ended in them bending towards each other and touching the tips of their index fingers.
"Oh, what ridiculous idea have they gotten into their heads now?" Raven pinched the bridge of her nose.
For a moment, they stood there, looking more than a little silly. Finally, Ruby said, "Again! More passion!"
They stepped apart, and repeated the dance, this time while screaming their heads off.
Still, nothing happened. "More energy!" Jaune declared.
And so, they repeated their dance. Again. And again. And again.
"More passion!"
"More passion!"
"More energy!"
Finally, Whitley interjected. "What... are you two doing?"
"Admittedly, I was wondering the same thing myself," Kali nodded.
Suddenly, Yang threw back her head and laughed. "Oh, that's it!"
"What's it?" Tai asked.
"Rubes, doesn't that dance they're doing look familiar? Like... something from Dragoncube, for instance?"
"What do you- oh!" Ruby flushed violently for myriad reasons. "Oooohhhhhh."
"Um, I'm not up to date on my Shounen manga, what are they talking about?" Pyrrha asked.
"You'll... um, you'll see," Jaune gulped, having reached the same realization.
"Oh, you weren't supposed to see this," Ruby blushed. "Not until we got it down."
"You're within sight of us," Whitley pointed out, his lids halfway down. "And that noise you're making? I'm surprised you haven't alerted all of Aionios by now."
A tic was going in Weiss's eye. "They were... trying to hide it? With no cover whatsoever?!"
"Um..." Ruby was tapping her index fingers together.
Weiss took a deep breath. "No, no... not mad. Just... disappointed."
"So, what is it?" Whitley pressed.
"Oh, this?" Jaune asked as he straightened up from the duo's latest effort. "We're trying to do that thing Ren and Nora did."
"That... Ouroboros... transformation thing?" Whitley clarified.
"Yeah, that was totally badass!" Ruby cheered.
"I mean... they were all there when the stone did... whatever it did, I don't see why they wouldn't be able to," Pyrrha agreed.
"Ruby and Jauney-boy, trying to... fuse," Yang waggled her eyebrows.
"Don't even joke about things like that!" Tai cried, a hand over his heart.
"We figured us pulling that off would really boost our chances of surviving!" Ruby beamed.
"And you think it's as simple as this... dance?" Whitley still seemed to struggle in comprehending their thought process.
"Well, I mean..." Ruby started rubbing her shoulder.
Whitley sighed. "Not to burst your bubble or anything, but I find it quite feasible that that power is relegated entirely to them."
"Then again, it's not like that power should exist in the first place," Velvet couldn't help pointing out.
"I mean, the thought crossed our mind, but that Moebius monster sounded like he was talkin' to all of us," Ruby countered.
"Hmm..." Whitley bowed his head in thought for a moment. "Assuming, for the sake of argument, that you are correct, what made you think you two would form a matching pair? Compared to Jaune and me, for instance?"
"Well, considering you two were trying to tear each others' throats out not long ago, I think keeping you apart was the right call," Sun chuckled.
"Too, bad, though," Yang considered. "It would have been nice if Yang and I could- wait a minute..." A look of dawning horror crossed her face.
"Well... just a feeling," Ruby shrugged.
"What she said- just a hunch," Jaune agreed.
"Heheh," Nora sniggered. "Jaune says, 'I don't want a Nohrian!' The team: Gets a Nohrian anyway. Jaune and the Nohrian:"
"A tad rich coming from the girl who spent the entire first introduction to this world insisting she despised the Nohrians, but... I see where you're going," Ren smirked.
"There something wrong with that?" Jaune asked.
"Not as such," Whitley sighed again. "Though, if your... logic holds, I suppose that would leave me with..."
His eyes strayed towards where Yang was wrapping up her own lunch, paying no mind to the conversation at hand.
"That's what I was afraid of..." Yang admitted hoarsely.
"It hardly sounds like a picnic to me either," Whitley threw back.
"Yes... not at all..." Blake was scribbling furiously away in her fanfiction notebook, much to the chagrin of her partner.
"...I truly envy you," Whitley muttered.
"Oh, what are you on about now?" Jaune rolled his eyes heavily.
"Nothing worth bickering over right now," Whitley decided. "Not now that we... happy few have finally come to a shared destiny."
"Are you sure?" Ruby crossed her arms. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to work us up!"
"Think what you will," Whitley waved aside.
"Nine years of prejudice aren't liable to disappear overnight," Ozpin sighed heavily. "Though it is nice that Jaune and Ruby, at least, have come to an understanding. I always thought victory would come through in more... simple souls."
"Aw, thanks!" Ruby blushed and giggled sheepishly.
"I'm... not quite certain that was meant as a compliment," Ghira stroked his beard.
"It is," Ozpin affirmed. "...From a certain point of view."
"Actually, I think they might be right!" came Nora's voice- she and Ren had entered the conversation.
"She's right- we were all there, in the same situation," Ren agreed, as Yang and the nopon moved in as well. "As for why only we transformed... difficult to say. All I know is, I was bent on protecting Nora... and all of you. The next thing I knew..."
"So you're saying the secret is... will?" Whitley crossed his arms.
"A load of crock," Adam scoffed.
"Never underestimate the power of will," Vanessa shook her head. "In fact, to my understanding, that's a recurring theme in these worlds."
"Just like how act 1 of Voyage Home is The Will to-" Weiss started, but found herself interrupted by Nora.
"TEN PERCENT LUCK, TWENTY PERCENT SKILL, FIFTEEN PERCENT CONCENTRATED POWER OF WILL, FIVE PERCENT PLEASURE, FIFTY PERCENT PAIN, AND A HUNDRED PERCENT REASON TO REMEMBER THE NAME!"
"...Yes, thanks for pointing that out, Nora," Ren dismissed her after removing his earplugs.
"So it would seem," Ren nodded.
"Will... a strong desire or emotion..." Whitley mused.
"A bit too much to ask of Mr. Grumpy Gills over here, huh?" Yang smirked.
Whitley agitatedly tapped his shoulder. "And you're so different?"
"What, you think I'm gonna join with you?" Yang scoffed.
"Yang..." Ren groaned.
"Come on, Ren!" Yang turned on him.
"Well, it's not like it's something you're gonna do overnight," Nora interjected. "Especially if we're at each other's throats like this, but... hey, nice to have something to look forward to, huh?"
Whitley gave one last sigh. "I suppose there's some logic in that."
"No, there really isn't," Raven rolled her eyes.
"Well, if we're all done, let's get moving again," Ren suggested. "It's going to be a while crossing the Millick Meadows."
The others nodded, and off they went, finally leaving the trees and entering a sprawling grassland, where large animals grazed alongside little rivers.
"Oh, even in a dying world, there's so much pretty!" Ruby gushed.
"Pay no mind to the craters," Whitley couldn't help pointing out.
As they continued their march, Ren cleared his throat. "There's something I ought to tell you, while we're feeling a little talkative."
"This about din-din duties?" Summer asked eagerly.
"Oh, pipsqueak..." Qrow gave a watery smile. Neither Tai nor Raven said anything- Qrow seemed to have said all they could. Ruby and Yang leaned into each other.
"No, not that," Ren denied. "While we're on this journey, I want to avoid as much combat as possible. If we absolutely must fight Hoshido or Nohr, we don't kill. Understand?"
"Not saying I wanna go around killing our old allies, but... why?" Yang asked.
"Did she not just answer her own question?" Penny asked curiously.
"People are strange, complicated creatures," Winter shrugged.
"Then, what do we do? Just knock 'em out?" Ruby added a query of her own.
"If it comes to that," Ren agreed. "If we can convince them to surrender, all the better."
"As if that will always be feasible," Adam scoffed. "Those with reservations never change the world."
"And how has your campaign been going lately?" Kali asked, meeting him with a gaze almost worthy of Ren himself- close enough to make Adam look away, at any rate.
"How very kind of you," Whitley commented. "I'm certain all the people we've killed already will appreciate it."
"Do you have to bring that up?" Ruby asked.
"Hate to say it, but he's not wrong," Qrow admitted.
Jaune reacted more angrily. "You little-"
"Jaune," Ren cut him off gently. He then turned towards Whitley. "We can't change the past. But we can refrain from taking any more lives. Knowing what we do now... there's no point."
Whitley drummed his fingers against his opposite shoulder- his silence seemed to communicate his acceptance of Ren's words.
Ren pressed his advantage. "We met for a reason. I truly believe that."
"You do?" Nora asked.
"I can't believe it's pure coincidence that we were brought together back in that clearing... leading to where we are now."
"Being chased by both nations?" Yang couldn't help pointing out.
"We get chased, we run," Ren answered. "Simple and clean."
"At least he's admitting his cowardice," Raven sneered.
"Quite the opposite," Ozpin disagreed. "To kill anyone who stands in one's way is easy. Sparing their lives and pressing on anyways... not so much."
Ren turned and looked up towards the great sword that pierced the land, drawing the rest of the group's gaze up to it. "We run... we keep on running, and don't stop until we reach that sword."
He took off in that direction, and the rest fell into step behind him. After the words exchanged there, nobody saw fit to speak until the sun had fallen and they'd set up camp. Jaune took a seat next to the fire, and Ruby sat at his side. "You alright?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he muttered. "It's just... talk about bad blood, huh?"
"Let's just give it some time," Ruby suggested. "It's only been two days."
"I guess that's true," Jaune acknowledged, almost off-handedly.
Ruby glanced at the metal ridges on Jaune's arm. "I've been meanin' ta ask... what's that pattern on your arm?"
"Iunno," Jaune shrugged. "I could ask the same about those lines on you, and that little doodad on your chest."
Ruby glanced down at the crystal embedded in her chest, just below her neck.
"A... core crystal?" Ruby realized. "This Ruby really is a blade, then! But then... who's her driver?"
"We haven't seen her bonding with anyone," Jaune thought back. "Maybe... blades work differently in Aionios than around Yggdrasil?"
"That is quite the odd detail," Blake agreed, scribbling furiously in her 'trying-to-figure-this-all-out' journal.
After a moment, she shrugged as well. "Iunno, I've just... always had these. Everyone in Nohr has the crystals."
"Hmm..." Jaune sat his chin down on his folded hands. "I'd never thought of myself as 'strange' before. Looking around now... maybe that's kinda strange itself."
"If nothing else can be said for this world of eternal war, they never had the time to notice racial differences- on the battlefield, all are equal," Ghira noted in a tone of melancholy.
"Nah, there's gotta be a better way," Sun shook his head.
"Yes... I'm quite certain that there is," Velvet nodded slowly.
The two looked up as Nora entered the conversation. "There's a lot of stuff we take for granted, huh? All these differences, worlds apart."
"Hmm..." Whitley's head was bowed in thought.
"Oh, good, time for the Schnee to-" Adam started.
"I think 'worlds apart' may be pushing things a little."
"Eh?" The students seemed just as caught off guard as Adam.
"If anything, we should be questioning every assumption we've previously made about our world," he continued. "What are differences but a matter of perspective?"
Yang chuckled. "Is he always like this?"
"I am," Whitley answered on his own behalf. "It's simply... my nature."
"Huh... we kinda started on the wrong foot, but I think I could learn to like this guy!" Nora grinned.
"Hmm... thank you, I suppose?" Whitley more asked than accepted.
"Personally, it's easier to take things at face value," Yang shrugged.
"Ah, wouldn't that be nice?" Whitley rolled his eyes.
Yang abruptly fixed her gaze on him. "Um, excuse me? What was that? Are you making fun of me?"
"I don't recall doing any such thing," Whitley denied. "I only said 'it would be nice.'"
"Oh, boy," Ruby winced.
"You've started up a fight you can't finish, kid," Tai chuckled.
"Oh, no you don't!" Yang objected, getting right in his face. "I know when someone's calling me an airhead, mudder!"
Whitley sighed. "How long do you intend to drag this out?"
"As long as it sparking takes for you to come clean!"
"Someone shoot me," Whitley groaned.
"Be careful what you say around an angry Yang," Weiss advised. "Say the wrong thing, and she absolutely will."
"Er... noted?" Whitley shifted uncomfortably.
Before any such consequences could take place, the world shifted again, to the inside of a Hoshidan ferronis, where they seemed to be struggling to repair some levnises. "No, no, more to the right!" called a soldier on the ground as one operating a crane attempted to maneuver the levnis's top half into position. "Okay, good! Start lowering!"
The soldier raised a thumbs-up when the pieces seemed to clunk into place. "Alright, make sure it's airtight! The sand around here is finer than ruska flour!"
"Is it finer than lightning sand?" Neptune couldn't help asking.
"I certainly hope not!" Velvet shuddered.
Another soldier raised his hand. "I can do a triple weld!"
"Make it so, as long as the output remains stable!"
"Yessir!"
On the other end of the area, two other soldiers were discussing ammunition. "What's up with the K rounds? We're two caches short. You'd best not have snuffed up the order!"
"That's not my field- you have a problem, take it up with logistics!"
"What, you think the Castle gives a crap? We're just a dirt-rank colony, low as they come!"
"Then why are we following them?" Neo asked snidely.
"Maybe if you shut up, we'll find out?" Yang growled. Neo stuck her tongue out right back.
"Queen's Wings, this pisses me off- we get better scores than any other sparking colony out here!"
"You know, I heard Tin-rank field rations include ardun meat."
"Um... ardun?" Jaune asked.
"This world's equivalent of cows," Vanessa answered off-handedly. "Ardun are male, armus are female."
"So tin-ranks get borgars?" Ruby brightened up.
"I rue the day you heard that word pronounced in that fashion," Weiss groaned.
"And us mudders?"
"...You don't want to know. I wish Audrey hadn't told me, but she did, and now I'm telling you, you don't want to know."
The soldier groaned. "I miss the good ol' silver days..."
"Silver? That sounds... significantly higher than dirt," Ironwood commented.
"Silver is second from the top," Vanessa confirmed. "Only higher rank is gold."
"Then how did they get from the top of the world to the bottom of the heap?" Qrow wondered.
"No need to rely on rations- we had cooks serving us right there on the front lines. I'm talking about armu sirloin."
"Erm... behind you."
"Behind me- ah!"
The soldier turned to see a woman in a white longcoat standing there, with matching white hair pulled up into a bun, a rapier in a sheath at her side. Both soldiers leapt to attention immediately.
"Winter! This is Winter's colony!" Weiss realized.
"Now I'm truly befuddled," Ironwood admitted. "I don't envision Winter ever doing something that required such drastic discipline."
"That... truly is strange," Winter inclined her head in agreement.
Despite their panic, Winter seemed anything but angry. If anything, her voice was rather apologetic. "I am aware of the difficulties caused by my... indiscretion. Please, accept my apologies."
"You mean, she disobeyed orders?" Qrow raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, that doesn't sound like her at all!"
"No, of course not, we would- we would never- Commander Winter!" one soldier stumbled over his own words.
"That... that was all just banter!" the other agreed.
Winter raised a hand, and they both fell silent. "I... quite miss the armu sirloin myself. That is why I have determined we will have it again. To this end, I ask you to lend me your strength."
The shame left the soldiers' faces, replaced by steely determination. "Ma'am, yes, ma'am!"
"That was quite a nice way to defuse the situation," Kali smiled. "I see how she earned her place as commander."
"Restoring their morale instead of simply chastising them, and working further on their bond... Yes, she certainly has qualities I would look for in a leader," Ozpin agreed.
"...Thanks," Winter looked away pointedly.
At Winter's side was her deputy. "Never had a problem with volff, myself," he chuckled.
A very small smirk crossed Winter's lips. "Well, we've always known you lacked a sense of taste. Something to be envious of, at this moment."
"Happy to trade taste buds any time, ma'am!"
Winter pretended to consider it for a moment before shaking her head. "No, we had better not. My mouth would turn as foul as yours."
"I feel I wouldn't engage in such pointless dialogue, however," Winter put in.
"Oh, never discount the importance of banter," Ghira advised. "Can't be entirely straight-backed all day, every day."
Her deputy chuckled as they stepped out of the ferronis and scanned the land around them- vast wasteland, as far as the eye could see. "At least we're cleaning up fast," he commented.
"Indeed. From what I've heard, the attending consul is rather punctual."
"Another stickler for the rules?" the deputy groaned.
"We'll see. He won't be long now."
"Yeah- maybe about five- ah!" Winter followed her deputy's gaze towards an approaching figure in scarlet armor and cloak.
"Wait- the consuls leading the colonies are those Moebius people?!" Velvet realized with an unpleasant jolt.
"Looks like it," Blake narrowed her eyes.
"It makes an unfortunate amount of sense," Ren admitted. "It certainly explains why they were presiding over the homecoming ritual."
"Well, well, well!" the deputy greeted. "Your reputation certainly precedes you!"
The figure had stepped out of a large VTOL, and was now moving towards them- coughing as he did so. "Sparks' sake, why is it so dusty out here? Dirt rank indeed."
"It's fish-bowl head!" Nora recognized.
"Which means... whatever he's up to, it's to attack Ren and the others!" Ruby slapped a fist into her palm.
"The rainy season will be coming soon," Winter assured him. "I ask your patience, if only for a while."
"Is that so?" scoffed the Nora-named Fishbowl-Head. "Very well, setting cleanliness aside, what is with all this fog?"
There was, indeed, a great deal of black fog covering parts of the wasteland, causing an even drearier appearance. "I don't take kindly to my vision being obscured."
"That stuff... can't be good," Neptune shuddered.
"I've seen all types of fog, but I sure haven't seen any like that," Sun concurred.
The consul shook his head. "Well, forget it. Where are my quarters?"
"I'll lead you right to them." Winter bowed slightly before turning back towards the ferronis. She guided him towards a dark room with a small chair behind a desk.
"What a filthy room," the consul scoffed. "How the dirt rank has fallen."
"Well, you're welcomed to piss off any time you like," Qrow narrowed his eyes.
"Eh, something to take up with the Castle," he seemed to decide, before turning to Winter and her deputy.
"I quite understand your disapproval," Winter agreed apologetically. "Our ferronis is an old model. However, I must ask that you do not escalate this."
"Is that... defiance I detect?" the consul asked scathingly.
"Of course not, that wasn't my-" Winter started, but the consul interrupted.
"Relax, girl, I jest."
"He does not strike me as a pleasant person," Penny squirmed a bit.
"No... no, he's not," Winter agreed, glaring.
"Now, enough pleasantries- let's get down to business."
"That's what he calls 'pleasantries?'" Tai quirked a brow.
"I'd like you to eradicate some... vermin for me."
"Vermin? By your leave, sir, we've detected no Nohrian movement in this area."
"Not Nohrian vermin," the consul corrected. "Not entirely, at least. It would seem a band has formed of deserters from both sides."
"Hoshido... and Nohr? Both?" Winter looked befuddled.
"Hmm, this must truly be the first instance of something like this in quite some time," Ozpin commented. "She can't even fathom how such a thing could happen."
"Perhaps it's something best seen for yourself," the consul suggested. "Know that this is the express desire of the Queen. Don't mess this up."
"Mess this up, you sunnuva-" Qrow started, but was interrupted by a chiming phone.
"Oh, that's me," Tom raised a hand. "Just a sec- it's Lana. She's got three of her choices gathered up- two of Jaune's sisters and Coco. She'll be coming in-"
Knock knock knock knock!*
"...Right now, apparently!" Tom smiled.
Velvet leapt to her feet. "Oh, Coco!"
The door opened, and Velvet moved towards the stairs, eager to see her friend. "Coco, it's- AAAAAHHHH!"
She reatreated back into the room, and in a moment, the others knew why.
Three more people entered the room- as promised, one of them was Jaune's sister, Saphron. One was Coco Adele.
And the third was Salem.
XXXX
I should probably just cut the reactors here. There's enough, no need to bring in just one more. We are back, and we're gonna go ahead and progress like we never dropped it in the first place! Seriously. It never happened. Never. Not sure what we'll be going into next, might take me another few months to decide. Hopefully not. Until then, though, don't you dare go hollow- Gamer4 out!