Author's note: Today, we'll be taking another small look at Alpha Academy, but nothing major.
Jaune and Pyrrha were deep in the former's soul, analyzing the different Terrain semblances to figure out what part of them corresponded with the dust types, so that they could get to work on Douse. As they compared the different semblances, and took notes on any shared aspects between them, they slowly narrowed it down.
"I think this is it," Jaune said and pointed at his notes, "All the semblances have this one structure in their focal points. This has to be it."
"You might be right," Pyrrha said, "But it's getting late, so go get some rest. I'll try and figure this out a bit more, and let you know if I find anything."
"Got it," Jaune said and returned to the waking world, where it was just getting dark and everyone came back to the train station.
"And, everything taken care of?" Glynda asked during dinner, "Can we resume reclaiming Beacon tomorrow?"
"No, we can't, sorry," Ruby answered and explained, "We still don't know what the enemy is planning, so until we make them make a move and figure it out, it's too risky."
"I see," Glynda said, turned to Oscar and asked, "How is the food situation coming along?"
"Fox and I were able to repair an indoor farm," Oscar answered, "It's pretty much operational now. We just need some seeds to get started."
"How do you plan to make the enemy make a move?" Qrow asked, "And what do we do when they do?"
"We'll undo all their work before they know what hit them," Ruby answered, "Yang, Jaune, Sky and I have already secured the industrial district, so once the enemy does whatever they're planning, we'll be able to quickly recover and turn the tide on them. That being said, I will be busy tonight, to prepare for that a bit, so I won't be able to do guard duty."
"Well, alright," Glynda said, "Weiss, Blake, Jaune, Ren, I would like you four to do this tonight."
"I'll help," Qrow said, and the four younger huntsmen nodded in agreement. After dinner, Jaune used Douse on Ren, while Blake set up a Grassy Terrain outside. Weiss summoned a Seer and five Queen Lancers, and had the latter fly around shooting bone shards into the ground, then placed plant-dust Landmines through them, while Ren set up water-dust Landmines in other areas, most notably near sewer entrances.
~o~
Ruby stood in her workshop, with Emerald and Sapphire flanking her. Penny had set up a new Safezone for her, which would help her fight off any Grimm that might appear, though she had no intention of making that kind of dust tonight. Emerald activated Natural Sanctuary, and Ruby started.
"Here's the first," Ruby said, and Sapphire walked over when the crystal appeared. She picked it up and put it away, and the process repeated.
"Was it always this stuffy in here?" Sapphire asked after the fifth crystal, and Ruby analyzed the air, just to be safe.
"No, but I think I messed up," Ruby answered, "Hold on, I've got this. Sapphire, I need some help." Sapphire came back to Ruby and activated Natural Sanctuary, and Ruby changed her focus. She strained a bit, and after a minute, a small diamond appeared in the air. It grew a little bit, formed by Ruby's mind, and a perfectly cut gemstone, free of any impurities, fell onto the small table.
"That has got to be the best diamond I've ever seen," Emerald said, looking at the gemstone in awe.
"I know," Sapphire said, "If we sold this, we wouldn't have to worry about a thing for decades."
"Yeah, we're not doing that," Ruby said, pocketed the diamond and explained, "If things went too easy, we'd get lazy. And also, Salem would increase her efforts even more than she already has. We can't allow either of those to happen. Now back to work." Sapphire deactivated Natural Sanctuary again, and Ruby continued making air-dust crystals. However, she fixed any future carbon dioxide buildup in the air by turning it into coal instead.
~o~
Sirena walked through Alpha Academy to see what the different students were up to, and found some of them practicing their semblances. Omer summoned different types of pistols in her hands, making the previous one disappear every time she summoned a new one, and making them in all kinds of shapes. Sakura did the same with swords, and Viridi checked their aura levels.
"What are you doing?" Sirena asked inquisitively, and the students all turned to her as she stepped into the doorway properly. Omer summoned one last pistol, a simple flintlock, and her aura broke.
"Hello Professor Blue," the students said in unison.
"We're practicing our semblances," Omer answered, "Since they allow us to summon our own weapons, we figured we should be able to summon different weapons on the fly, without it affecting our aura reserves too much."
"Sherry didn't want to come, though," Sakura said, and pouted a little.
"Sherry can't summon a weapon," Sirena explained.
"I know, but she can at least join us for training," Sakura said.
"You shouldn't force her to train if she doesn't want to," Sirena said, "That can lead to serious problems down the line if you're not careful with how you do it, and then nobody wins."
"Are you speaking from experience?" Viridi asked.
"A little bit," Sirena said and turned away, then composed herself again and looked back to the students, "In any case, you're doing great, keep going."
"Alright," the students said, and Sirena kept walking.
"Alright Viridi, break's over," Omer said, "My turn to watch you guys' aura levels." She pulled out her scroll and turned on the aura monitor function, and Viridi began summoning different types of bows. As Sirena kept walking, she remembered the first time she tried to get someone else to practice a skill, and how badly it had ended. She put her hands together and used Ex Machina, creating a rhomboid card between her hands.
~o~
When Ruby came back to the train station in the morning, she saw that the area covered by Power Root had increased again, and the small ethereal sprouts closest to the train station had grown into shrubs. Additionally, almost every street was blocked off with wooden spikes sticking out of the ground, facing away from the train station.
"Good morning, everyone," Ruby said as she entered the train station, and the others slowly woke up, "The air-dust is ready to go, by the way." She started making breakfast while the others still woke up.
"That's good to hear," Jaune said, "But Pyrrha and I also finished the semblance you asked for. Pyrrha finished it, and decided to call Zenith Skin." One by one, the others sat down, and everyone had breakfast.
"I knew you two could do it," Ruby said and asked, "Can you do the other dust types, too?"
"Of course," Jaune answered, "Now that we know which part of the semblance determines the type, we can work faster, too."
"Great," Ruby said, turned to Glynda and asked, "So, what happened last night? Did I miss anything?"
"Everything is fine," Glynda answered, "According to Cardin, most of the industrial district is completely surrounded by an almost waist-high wall of light-ice, and Penny confirmed that temperatures in that area are lower than the surrounding districts. Airflow has also stopped almost completely, since the sewers are blocked off."
"I sure hope you know what you're doing," Qrow said.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Ruby said, "If I'm correct, our enemy should launch their attack any day now. Once that happens, and they proceed to the next phase, we'll make our move to undo their first step, pulling the rug from under them. And while they're scrambling to process what happened, we'll make more headway in Beacon."
"Nora, is there anything you want to say?" Ren asked, drawing all attention to his girlfriend, who was awkwardly shifting in her seat.
"Well, yes, kind of," Nora answered, "You see, last night, I went out on a walk again, and I saw some Knights fight off a pack of Grimm. So I decided to help, and when I did, Chain Lightning evolved."
"That's great," Ruby said and asked, "What does it do?"
"It looks like it helps my allies," Nora answered, "After killing those Grimm, the lightnings jumped over to the nearest Knight. At first I was worried that the Knights were my enemies, but then they were surrounded by some sort of electric cage for five seconds."
"That sounds pretty useful," Ruby said, "We'll definitely have to train that, and increase the duration. I'll give you some light-thunder-dust later too, to see if the effect carries over."
"Alright," Nora said and asked, "Also, can we fuse later?"
"Sure," Ruby answered and asked, "Any reason, or just because?"
"No, no reason," Nora answered, "Just curious, that's all."
"Got it," Ruby said, "By the way, Jaune, Ren, we still need to find out what your Trump Cards do. I'll be busy later, so Glynda will help you with that, if that's okay with her." She gave the headmistress a questioning look, and Glynda nodded.
"Of course, I'm more than happy to help," Glynda said, "But I do have a question. About Sirena. And I think you could answer that."
"Thanks," Ruby said and asked, "What is it?"
"Do you know why she wouldn't fuse with me?" Glynda asked and explained, "When we tried to reclaim Beacon, I asked her to fuse with me, but she refused. She said something I don't understand, and it almost felt like she had seen the future, or something."
"Well, Sirena is complicated," Ruby answered and asked, "Do you remember what she said?"
"She mentioned that people view us both in certain ways," Glynda answered, and the younger boys in the room looked away, though it was barely noticeable.
"Well, she did talk about alternate universes a little," Weiss said, "According to her, the fusions of two powerful magic-users, such as maidens or silver-eyed warriors, can peer beyond reality, and into other worlds. Maybe that has something to do with it."
"So, there really is no explanation for it?" Glynda asked.
"I'm sure there is," Qrow answered, "However, Sirena does a lot of messed-up stuff, so if she turns down the chance to help someone, it's probably not a good idea to find out what exactly made her do that."
"So wait," Cardin said and asked, "You guys can see into other worlds? The kind where guys in our world are girls, girls are guys, and so on?"
"Yes," Ruby answered, "But there's much weirder things out there than just the occasional gender reversal. However, unless you actually go to those worlds, you'll forget about them shortly after the fusion splits up again, because mortal minds were never meant to see that sort of thing. That being said, Sirena can't forget anything, so she still remembers what she saw."
"I see," Glynda said and asked, "When you and Nora fuse, could your fusion peer into other worlds, too?"
"Well, yes," Ruby answered, "Nora is a maiden, and I'm a silver-eyed warrior."
"Can you tell me what made Sirena not want to fuse with me?" Glynda asked. Ruby looked over to Nora, who gave a small nod.
"We could, but I don't think that it would be a good idea," Ruby answered, "For starters, it might be too shocking for you. But it could also be really embarrassing, and then you'd have to live with that mental image."
"I'll be fine, don't worry," Glynda said, "Not knowing something is honestly much worse than knowing something I'd rather not know."
"Well, alright then," Ruby said, "Once I've made the light-thunder-dust, and we tested the evolution of Chain Lightning, we'll get started." The group finished breakfast and cleaned up, then most were assigned different patrol routes and went on their way. Yatsuhashi contemplated offering to use his semblance if Glynda wanted.
~o~
Jaune, Ren, Glynda and several police officers stood in Vale's residential district, with the police securing the area and serving as additional firepower if Grimm were to attack in large numbers. Glynda pulled out her scroll and gave the guys the go sign, and Jaune nodded to let Ren go first. When Ren activated his Trump Card, his eyes turned solid purple, and he saw shades float above everyone's heads resembling a human upper torso in their aura color.
"I sure could go for some beer right now," the shade above one police officer said, and Ren looked around a bit more.
"I hope this works," Glynda's shade said.
"Looks good," Glynda said.
"How are you feeling?" Jaune and his shade asked in unison. When he looked around, he saw different shades, including one that scared him a little, but before he could investigate, his aura broke.
"Five seconds," Glynda said and stopped the timer, then asked, "What does it do?"
"I'm fine," Ren answered and explained, "I saw those⦠shades above people's heads. I think they talked about the person's inner thoughts, or their true feelings. But, one was different." He looked at one of the police officers, and everyone focused on the man.
"Officer Mora Mulberry," Glynda said and asked, "Do you know what he could mean by that?"
"Who, me?" Mora asked and answered, "No, not a clue." He looked around, but seemed more confused and surprised than scared. Still, Ren couldn't forget or ignore what he saw.
"What did you see, anyway?" Jaune asked.
"The shade above his head was chained," Ren answered, "There were shackles around the neck and wrists, connected by chains. All of them seemed to be made from shiny red metal."
"Could it be our enemies?" Glynda asked, and the officers got nervous.
"Possibly," Jaune answered, "I mean, we already know they can take people's semblances and give them new ones, and that this somehow allows them to control those people. But we don't know for sure that this is what happened here, so it's best not to jump to conclusions."
"True," Glynda said, turned to Mora and asked, "Did anyone come to you and offer to replace your semblance with another one?"
"Not that I'd know, no," Mora answered and said, "I don't even have my aura unlocked, as far as I'm aware."
"Well, alright then," Glynda said, "In that case, we'll just forget about this, for now at least. Now Jaune, your turn."
"Alright, here goes," Jaune said, closed his eyes and focused. He took a deep breath, and when he exhaled, he released a wave of golden energy that washed over everyone in a twenty meter radius, and Glynda started the countdown on her scroll. Ren, Glynda and the police officers were covered in a golden shimmer, with white sparkles glittering throughout.
"Well, this is interesting," Glynda said, and Ren pulled out his scroll. He opened the aura monitor and saw that his aura was regenerating as if Jaune was using Aura Amp on him. While the officers looked at their hands, amazed by the glow, Glynda kept her eyes on the clock until Jaune's aura broke and the effect wore off.
"My aura is almost full again," Ren said, "And it looks like the effect wouldn't be diminished if multiple people benefited from it."
"Ten seconds," Glynda said, "Pretty good, we'll keep that in mind." She and Ren put their scrolls away again, and the trio returned to the train station, while the police continued their patrol through the area. On the way back, Jaune tried to forcibly recharge his aura, but only had little success.
~o~
Khione led a group of police officers through Vale's commercial district to help eradicate Grimm in the area. Every officer had a Frost Shell protecting them, even though they already had their aura unlocked. After taking down a small pack of Beowolves, the group rested for a bit and allowed the ice from Khione's crossbow bolts to recharge everyone's aura as much as needed. Just when they wanted to keep going, a red portal opened next to Khione, and Ruby and Nora walked out.
"Hey Ruby," Khione said and asked, "Are you ready?"
"Yep," Ruby answered, put her scythe away and asked, "And, did you tell them what we're planning today?"
"Of course," Khione answered.
"Good, then let's go," Ruby said and turned to the police officers, "I'll need some of you to get close to the Grimm before Nora kills them, to see her new ability in action. But don't worry, I'll make sure you're safe, and step in if things get too dangerous."
"Alright then," one of the officers said, although Ruby could tell that they were hesitant to trust her. She used Tranquility to help them calm down, and to mask their presence from Grimm, and started leading them to a nearby pack of Beowolves hiding in a car dealership. When they entered the building, they saw numerous Grimm all over the floor, and some on cars, but they didn't notice the people.
"Alright, here goes," Nora said and held out her left hand, holding the light-thunder-dust crystal in her right. One by one, the officers approached the largest group of Grimm, and Nora launched an Annihilation Field at the biggest one, which was close to an Alpha Beowolf. The attack hit and electrocuted the Grimm, and the lightning jumped over to all the others in the pack, killing them all and surrounding the officers in an electric cage.
"Now let's see how they react," Ruby said to herself, and Khione noticed that her tone had shifted back to how she talked on Patch, and before her friends arrived. At first, the Grimm didn't show any response, but a few seconds later, they all fled from the building, jumping through the large glass windows, or holes in the wall. Before they could get away, however, they were killed by Ilia's ice-dust Shooting Stars, which would attract even more Grimm.
"Looks like it worked," Nora said, "I didn't know you asked Ilia to come here, though." The officers looked around, and one touched the cage, only for her hand to pass through without issue.
"Looks like it's safe," the woman said. A few seconds later, the cages disappeared again.
"Yeah, that's a given with protective semblances," Ruby explained, "They won't do anything to the one they're protecting, and stay out of your way if you want to attack an enemy. They'll only react when you're in danger."
"Was that all you needed?" Ilia asked and entered the building.
"Yes, thanks," Ruby answered, turned to Nora and said, "If you want to, we can fuse now. The ice may attract Grimm, but Ilia has Ice Trap, so they'll just run into their own deaths."
"Well, alright then," Nora said, "Here goes." She hugged Ruby, and both of their auras lit up and merged into a raspberry-colored one. When the aura faded, it revealed a large woman with silver eyes and shoulder-long, dark orange hair, which had a single red streak extending down to her waist.
"Raspberry, ready for action," Raspberry said and looked at her reflection in a broken window. She wore black combat boots with pink soles and laces, and torn brown mesh tights. She also wore a short pleated red skirt with a light brown belt around her waist, and a pink long-sleeve blouse under a black lace-up corset. When she looked at her hands, she saw that she wore almost elbow-long fingerless black gloves, with heart-shaped cutouts on the back of her hands.
"How do you feel?" Ilia asked, and Raspberry looked at herself one last time. Her red cape was lined with wolf fur, and she still wore Ruby's shark tooth necklace on her neck. The police officers were amazed by the sight, even though some had already seen a fusion in action.
"Fairly decent, I would say," Raspberry answered, then looked at the dust crystal in her hand.
"Any idea what your semblance might be?" Ilia asked.
"No, but I hope it's nothing with lightning," Raspberry answered, with Nora's voice coming through more. She focused on nearby Grimm, and grimaced a bit when Nora experienced what that felt like for Ruby. When Raspberry regained her composure, she used Wolfpack and sent a dozen wolves made from electricity to hunt down nearby Grimm.
"Why's that?" Ilia asked after the wolves were out of sight and their distant electric crackling slowly faded as they got too far away to hear it. Raspberry pulled out Ruby's scroll and sent a message to Velvet, who was closest to the Grimm, asking her to go and see what happened when the Grimm were hit.
"Because I'm supposed to share it with Nora," Raspberry answered and put Ruby's scroll away again, "But if it's something with electricity, Nora won't want it, since that's all she can do, and she wants to get something else as well."
"I see," Ilia said, looked at Raspberry's lower back and asked, "By the way, what is that?" Raspberry looked at her lower back and took the weapon, which was collapsed into a short cylinder. At the press of a button, it extended into a battle axe with a spike on the back, and a short gun barrel at the tip.
"It's pretty well balanced," Raspberry said while inspecting the weapon, "But the ranged form won't be very accurate over long distances." Suddenly, Ruby's scroll rang. Raspberry put her weapon away again and pulled out the scroll, and saw that she had gotten a text from Velvet.
"Nothing out of the ordinary," Velvet wrote, "Grimm are dead, though." Raspberry sighed, both happy that her semblance wasn't something else with electricity, and sad that nothing special happened.
"Thanks, Velvet," Raspberry responded and put Ruby's scroll away again. A small pack of Beowolves came running towards the car dealership, but as soon as they got close to the ice chunks, part of the ice exploded into ice blue energy blasts, killing the Grimm. Raspberry and some of the officers put some of the furniture back where it belonged, and then everyone went back to their respective base of operations, with the fusion deciding to try and discover her semblance the normal way.
Author's note: Jaune and Ren test their respective Trump Card. No idea why I didn't do that sooner.
Also, Raspberry was a real piece of work, because the only semblances I could come up with were lightning-based, or absurdly broken. I also had a really good idea a few days before writing this chapter, but I forgot it.
Anyway, one idea was that it lets her summon rings which would allow the wearer to don power armor based on the Elekleid from Symphogear. But since the Elekleid are supposed to compete with the Symphogear system, introducing that kind of power would just completely neutralize any sense of tension.
Another idea was that the semblance works similar to Fire Power, except that it charges nearby allies' attacks with electricity for some time, allowing them to land electric hits without needing dust.
I also thought of making it so that lightning-dust attacks create sparks when they connect, which paralyze nearby enemies if they get too close. But Nora would've been able to use that as signal boost for her electroreception, which would've allowed her to track enemies almost as far as Ruby can.
