Gamer4 in. I seem to have fallen asleep on my keyboard at some point last episode- apologies for any strangeness that may have caused. Don't worry, I'm sure this episode will be completely by the book. Let's get started. Oh- sidenote- since a review asked if I'd be doing the DLC for the numbered Blade games, I figured I'd take this chance to say that yes, I will be covering Future Connected, Future Redeemed, and Torna the Golden Country. (I mean, Future Connected isn't technically DLC, but you know what I mean.) I have immediate plans for all three except Redeemed- not sure exactly how I'm gonna fit that in, but I will, dangit! Okay, now for real.
Episode XVIII
The Road to Shambhala
Jailbreak
Vanessa tore through the building towards a door that closed just as she arrived. She futilely slammed her shoulder against it in a rabid rage. "JACK!" she cried at the top of her voice. "JACK, SHE'S GETTING AWAY! JACK, GET THE DOOR- PLEASE!"
Jack rushed up, observed her slamming against the door a couple times, chuckled, and reached out to gently pull the door open.
Vanessa flushed briefly. "Thanks." Immediately, the fire returned to her eyes as she charged in. "LAAAAAANAAAAAAA!"
Jack watched for a second, scratching at the back of his head. "I guess I should probably... go take care of the guests..." he decided, turning around and setting off back to the living room.
Upon re-entering, he found the four new arrivals settling in on the couch with the other students. "Oh, sweet- you get everything explained, then?"
"Yeah, we're all caught up," Sun grinned, reclining his head into his hands. "Watchin' other worlds focusing on my fellow blond, huh?"
"I never understand how you can be this casual about things like this," Neptune sighed.
"Hey, it's like my man Ren says, you gotta roll with the punches!"
"Funny- you didn't strike me as someone who'd get along with Ren," Weiss commented.
"I mean, our approach is different- him with all the stoic stuff, and all- but it's really the same philosophy, isn't it? He's a cool guy- I even gave him an f-word pass!"
Blake choked on the tea she'd been drinking. "You did not."
Ren sighed, reaching into a pocket of his robe and producing a small slip of paper, passing it around. "My greatest treasure," he said sarcastically, with a roll of his eyes.
Sure enough, written on the paper were the following words:
By the authority vested in the faunus
Sun Wukong
This certificate verifies that the human
Lie Ren
May use the word 'furry' at his/her discretion
"Why are you like this?!" Blake wailed, pressing her face into her hands.
"It's... a little funny," Velvet giggled nervously. "I mean... Ren's never pulled my ears or anything."
"Furry?" Penny tilted her head. "Isn't that what your pet dog is, Ruby?"
"Yes, Penny, but..." Ruby shifted uncomfortably. "It... it means something else sometimes..."
"And what might that be?" Penny pressed.
"How ignorant," Adam snorted. "Truly, only the basest human could fail to realize-"
"I'll explain it later, Penny," Winter sighed, ignoring him. "For now, shouldn't we get back to watching these worlds, and returning home afterwards?"
"Sure- I'm cool with it!" Sun waved a hand.
"I... guess I am, too," Neptune rubbed at his forehead.
"Erm... you said these star Jaune?" Velvet asked nervously.
"Well, not all of them," Ozpin denied. "Though, to my understanding... two thirds of them. There's also one each for Ruby and Ren."
"Well... I suppose there are worse things I could be doing." Velvet shifted, her face reddening a little, earning her a piercing gaze from Pyrrha.
"I am happy to simply spend time with my friend!" Penny declared cheerily, pulling Ruby into a vice-tight hug.
"I thought... Yang was rough..." Ruby choked out.
"Well, it doesn't look like V's gonna be back for a bit," Jack glanced behind him. "But I guess we can go ahe- crap, the curry!"
He dashed into the kitchen, leaving the others to shrug between themselves and turn back towards the screen.
The world picked up with Jaune, Pyrrha, Ozpin, and Ruby sitting around the latter's kitchen table, clearly shocked at what they'd heard. "Blake and Sun, executed? It doesn't bear thinking about!" Pyrrha fretted.
"I should have known that would be a Schnee's answer," Adam crossed his arms.
"But... Weiss... Weiss wouldn't!" Ruby stammered out. "I'm sure she wouldn't!"
"Sounds like she is," Yang unwittingly mimicked Adam's pose.
"I... Blake, I'm sorry," Weiss apologized.
"...Other world," Blake muttered half-heartedly.
"Puttin' my neck on the line, too, huh?" Sun rubbed at the neck in question. "Yeesh..."
"But it sounds as though they are being kept aboard that Atlesian warship," Ozpin pointed out. "Any prospective rescue mission will be no mean feat. Not impossible... but certainly improbable."
"Port under heavy guard," Ruby nodded, wide-eyed.
"That is Ruby?!" Penny broke into a grin. "She is so adorable- I wish to hold her tight and snuggle and cuddle and-"
"Penny! Penny! Choking!" Ruby cried. Penny looked to see she was, in fact, choking her friend, and released her.
"Apologies again, Ruby. I will... attempt to restrain myself."
Neptune leaned towards Sun. "Is it just me, or is there something... strange about that girl?"
"What? No!" Ruby quickly moved into damage control. "She's a normal person, just like you and me!"
"Correct," Penny hiccuped with a sheepish grin. "I am a normal meat person, just like you!" Another hiccup.
"Can we continue, please?" Winter attempted to make it seem as though she was speaking from irritation rather than nerves, and thought she pulled it off splendidly.
On the table in front of them was a rough sketch of the town, drawn by Ruby. Built at the edge of a cliff, it had several levels winding down the cliffside.
Jaune curled his hand into a fist. "I think it's time for an all-out attack!"
"No!" Pyrrha denied quickly. "That will put everyone in danger!"
"Right- sorry," Jaune conceded just as swiftly.
"Yeah, one human, a blade, a nopon, and whatever Oz is against an Atlesian warship? Wouldn't bet on those odds on my drunkest days," Qrow chuckled grimly.
They returned their attention to the sketch- Pyrrha leaned in closely, carefully taking in every detail. Finally, she snapped her fingers. "There! The big tree at the edge of town!"
"Friend means Grandarbor?" Ruby raised her wing.
"Yes- look at its roots! If this is accurate, they go under the town- right towards the ship's hull! I believe I recall seeing a cargo entrance- perhaps we could sneak in that way?"
"Security light around cargo entrance," Ruby confirmed. "At night, not even workers!"
"Didn't that ship just get there that afternoon?" Whitley pointed out.
"Yeah, but if she's been livin' there for a while, that's probably not the first Atlesian ship to dock there," Sun guessed.
"It's not a foolproof plan, but it seems like our only option," Ozpin admitted.
"Then it's a plan!" Jaune slammed a fist into his palm.
Ruby looked away... and chuckled. "Meheheheh..."
"I might have found that menacing if she wasn't so adorable," Nora cooed.
"Yes, Ruby?" Jaune asked, turning towards her.
"Ruby have special weapon to show you!" She led them to a curtain at the edge of the room and eagerly pulled it aside to reveal... a young, red-haired woman wearing a pink pinafore and red bow, her eyes closed and head inclined towards the ground... and made of metal.
"Oh! It seems I have appeared in this narrative!" Penny's eyes glistened. "This is intriguing!"
"And you're appearing as... a robot. Again," Weiss noted.
"Oh?" Penny gulped slightly, and attempted to evade. "I... I appeared in another world as well?"
"Yeah, but... you were pretty different there," Ruby recalled.
"I'm... almost afraid to ask, but... have I been in any of these... Xeno worlds?" Velvet swallowed nervously.
"Two," Blake answered, flipping through her notebook. "Well... kind of. In the Voyage Home, Cardin hallucinated seeing you, though we have no context as to why."
"Oh... that's... something," Velvet shifted uncomfortably.
"Your only firm appearance was in Chariots of Fire, where..." Blake cut herself off, but the look on her face seemed to be enough for Velvet.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "...How?"
"Pushing me out of the way of a collapsing building," Jaune recalled.
"Oh." Strangely, a small smile crossed the rabbit faunus's face. "Well... there are certainly worse ways it could have happened."
"Gag me," Raven grunted.
"You know that thing you do, sis, where you just shut up and let everyone else have a good time? Might wanna try doin' that again," Qrow narrowed his eyes at her.
"Er... what am I looking at?" Jaune asked uncertainly.
"Ruby's greatest secret!" Ruby whispered. "Nobody outside family ever see before! An artificial blade!"
"An... artificial blade?" Ruby tilted her head.
"Hmm... a mechanical blade to transfer ether through her weapon, as opposed to a natural one born from a core crystal, if I was to hazard a guess." Ozpin took a drink from his mug. "Even in this other world, Ms. Rose, you seem destined to forge your own weapon."
"But... but I wouldn't just see her as a weapon!" Ruby said quickly.
"Wouldn't you?" Adam scoffed.
"She most certainly would not!" Penny agreed. "If anyone were to be my driver, I would be honored for it to be Ruby!"
Ruby flushed, while Winter quickly began taking mental notes.
"Quite amazing!" commented Ozpin.
"Ruby always wish to be driver!" Ruby turned back towards them, her eyes shining. They suddenly dulled, and she tapped the tips of her wings together. "But... no nopon in family have potential..."
"Well, how do you know that?" Jaune asked bracingly. "Surely, you just have to try, and... and..." he tapered off as Ruby's wing-tapping picked up its pace. "Oh... you did, didn't you?"
"Ruby... did. One year ago, Ruby apply to recruitment man. It... not go well."
"What happened?!" Yang asked urgently. "Brain hemmorhage? Broken bones?! Heart attack?! RUFFIANS?! THUGS?! POISON IVY?! QUICKSAND?! CANNIBALS?! SNAKES?! THE PLAGUE?!"
"Calm down, Yang," Blake rolled her eyes. "Clearly, she's still alive now-"
"BUT WHAT IF SHE WASN'T?!"
Pyrrha seemed to be thinking along similar lines. "Were you..."
"It bad," Ruby recalled. "Ruby have nosebleed for three whole days!"
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Yang cried.
"I knew it," Ruby rubbed her eyes with her wrists. "She'd have reacted the same if I'd stubbed my toe."
"People DIE from blood loss!" Yang wailed.
"But... from a nosebleed?" Ren raised an eyebrow.
Jaune seemed caught off guard as well. "Oh... I mean... after what we saw earlier..."
"Ruby just telling what happened," Ruby scratched at the back of her head. "Anyways, this culmination of three Rose generations! When complete, even no-potential nopon can be a driver!"
"It is remarkable," Ozpin repeated, leaning as close as his position in Jaune's helmet allowed. "Was she built from scratch?"
"She based on prototype built by Grampypon and Mamapon," Ruby explained. Her eyes dulled and she looked at the ground. "Grampypon dead now, and Mamapon... Ruby not know."
"Wait... Mom might not be dead here?" Ruby looked up.
"Try not to get too excited, kid," Qrow advised solemnly. "Reality... tends to be disappointing."
Ruby perked up. "So, Ruby finish blade myself and become legendary driver! When Mamapon hear legends, she surely come back to see Ruby, yes?!"
In the face of her wide, hopeful eyes, none of Ruby's guests had the heart to give voice to their doubts.
"I'm... sure you'll find her, Ruby," Velvet offered a small smile.
"Thanks... Velvet," Ruby replied with a soft smile of her own.
"If I may... interject," Ozpin spoke up, "you talk of finishing her, but... at a cursory glance, she seems quite complete. What else is there to be done?"
"There... scant few missing parts." Ruby was tapping the tips of her wings together again, a bad sign. "All Ruby need is to... go buy! Only problem... Ruby have no money."
"Oh, I see where this is going," Neo giggled. "Roman, prepare to watch a lady thief in action."
"Beat still, my heart," Torchwick chuckled.
"No... money?" Jaune repeated.
"None at all."
"None at all?"
"None whatever. Ruby... completely broke."
"I see... so you're asking for a loan?"
Ruby giggled nervously. "Less... less loan, and more... very generous... investment! Ruby certain artifiical blade pay great dividends!"
"Oh, here we go," Qrow chuckled wryly. "I swear Tai spoiled that girl."
"Just like when Nep needs something from me," Sun rolled his eyes.
"That hasn't even happened in, like, a month!" Neptune objected.
"I do not believe you're helping your case," Whitley groaned.
"Never have I met a nopon that wasn't shrewd when it came to lien," Ozpin chuckled quietly.
"Well... I guess she's right about the blade, though," Jaune sighed. "Alright, how much do you need?"
"Ruby sure costs cap at... sixty thousand lien?"
Jaune looked like he was having a stroke. "Sixty thousand? Oh, sure, which of my kidneys do you want while I'm at it?!"
"Didn't you just make two hundred thousand?" Nora recalled.
"Well, more appropriately, he got a hundred thousand lien in an advance on the Pyrrha job," Weiss recalled, "most of which he either sent home or spent on equipment. The second hundred thousand was meant to be paid on return, which... never happened."
"Give it in, kid, you're gonna end up doin' it one way or another," Qrow grunted through another swig of whiskey.
"Well, I certainly hope she doesn't ask for one of those," Pyrrha giggled. "I think I have a better idea than selling your organs."
"Nothing... illegal, I hop-" Ozpin started, only to receive a smack to the back of the head from Jaune.
"Don't even joke about that."
"Not cool, Oz... not cool," Qrow shook his head.
"He was merely acknowledging the possibility," Ozpin attempted to answer as cooly as if he hadn't done a spit take a second ago.
"I... I would never!" Pyrrha flushed incredibly bright.
"Stop thinking about it, Nep," Sun instructed without even looking.
"I... I wasn't!" Neptune objected unconvicingly.
"Er... what wouldn't she do?" Jaune asked.
He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to see Ren looking him in the eye. "...We'll tell you when you're older."
If Pyrrha understood the implication, she didn't show it- she was busy taking off one of her earrings. "This is a natural crystal- it should be worth enough."
"No- no way." If anything, Jaune seemed just as upset at this idea. "We can't let you sell something that important to you!"
"But-"
"No, it wouldn't be right!" Jaune put his foot down. "Listen... what are the parts you need? If we're lucky, maybe I can salvage them."
"Oh, right, he is a salvager, by trade!" Pyrrha remembered with a smile. "That would certainly cut out the middle man!"
Ruby went to a nearby workbench and scribbled down a list before bringing it back to Jaune, whose eyes brightened as he took it in. "Great- this should all be somewhere around Menagerie this time of year! Just a second..."
He pulled Ozpin out of his helmet and placed him on the table they'd previously been eating on before flipping the helmet back onto his head. He grabbed a hook from a unit on his right arm and attached it to a nearby post before unwinding a long cord. He then turned and ran towards the gap in Ruby's floor that emptied out onto the Cloud Sea, leaping into it without a second thought.
For a moment, Pyrrha, Ozpin and Ruby glanced at each other. "What... what do now?" Ruby asked.
Pyrrha shrugged. "I guess... we wait."
"Eh, at least he's got an honest livin'," Qrow shrugged with another drink.
"He's just as much a thief as I am," Raven wrinkled her nose.
"No, he's a salvager- COMPLETELY different," Yang snarled, not eager to hear any of her friends lumped in with her... mother.
"The only difference between salvaging and graverobbing is time."
"Yeah, sure. Enough trying to prove that everyone's as ugly as you, if you please," Qrow shot her a nasty look. She crossed her arms, but did indeed fall silent.
It took quite some time for Jaune to return. More than once, Pyrrha expressed her concern. "Should he really be gone this long? What if something happened?"
"Oh, he's been beneath the clouds for much longer than this before," Ozpin assured her. "I believe his record is twelve straight hours, though he required some extensive rest after that. He knows to pace himself, don't you worry."
"Twelve hours?! In an ocean?!" Neptune's eyes widened- he looked on the verge of having a seizure.
"Hmm, I certainly hope he does know what he's doing," Ren agreed, to a certain extent.
Time continued on, and the sun began to set... but Jaune hadn't come back. Looking outside, the trio saw a storm beginning to roll in- there wasn't much in the way of wind, but there was a flash of light, and a few seconds later, a roll of thunder. Pyrrha was just biting her lip, considering asking again when the cord tied to the poll tautened. There was a distant splash, and a moment later, Jaune reappeared, hopping up onto the ledge with a large sack over his shoulder. He flipped the helmet back. "Sorry to keep you waiting!"
"See, Pyrrha? No need to worry about the Fearless Leader- he's got everything under control!" Nora preened.
"I never doubted him for a second!" Pyrrha grinned.
"You find parts?" Ruby asked eagerly.
"Everything you asked for!" Jaune declared proudly, handing the sack over. Ruby looked in, her eyes lit up, and she began to dance.
"Hooray! Hooray! Jaune-Jaune most generous!"
"It was nothing," Jaune grinned, scratching sheepishly behind his head nevertheless. "So, about that blade-"
"Ruby complete it now!"
She dashed behind the curtain, sliding it shut behind her. It was almost a repeat of the time they'd spent waiting for Jaune, except they could hear the sound of Ruby working on the machine behind the curtain- whenever there wasn't thunder rolling overhead, at any rate. Fortunately, it wasn't nearly as long before the curtain slid back open, and Ruby emerged, looking a little breathless. "Okay, okay! Everything should be in place!"
"You're sure?" Jaune asked. "She's really finished?"
"Yep-yep!" Ruby nodded cheerfully. "Only need charge of energy to awaken! Very fortunate it storm tonight!"
"And what, pray tell, were you planning to do if a thunderstorm didn't roll in at the opportune moment?" Whitley crossed his arms.
"Ah, I'm sure she had some plan that would have worked, and this is just easier!" Nora waved aside. "The important thing is, the storm did roll in! Live with wonder for a change!"
"There's no point arguing with her," Ren sighed, pre-empting Whitley's attempts at argument. "It goes over her like a sheet of ions."
"We're not here to talk about cows, Ren!"
"...You see?"
"We must be swift, Ruby," Ozpin reminded her. "Ms. Belladonna's execution draws nigh!"
"I know, I know!" Ruby nodded. "Now, artificial blade..."
"Oh, Ruby," Pyrrha interjected. "You can't do that..."
"Can't do what?" Ruby asked, turning and tilting her head in confusion.
"You can't just keep calling her 'artificial blade' like that!" Pyrrha clarified. "You're her creator- isn't it your job to give her a name?"
"Oh!" Ruby blinked, and started tapping her wings again. "Well... Ruby does have name in mind..."
"Gee, I wonder what it is," Yang chuckled.
Ruby nodded, turning back to the lever that would bring the artificial blade to life. "Oooohhhh... wakey- wakey! Ruby's own blade... Penny!"
A flash of light, and she threw the switch. The small chamber's lights all flickered, electricity crackling through the wires- Jaune, Pyrrha, and Ozpin watched the show in awe as Penny's lids seemed to twitch, then to flutter...
Then she struck a cutesy pose. "How may I be of service, master?"
"What-" Yang began.
"The-" Jaune agreed.
"Fuck?" Torchwick was happy to finish with the proper profanity.
Jaune, Pyrrha, and Ozpin were just as thunderstruck, their eyes wide and blank.
Ruby began flapping her arms, clearly flustered. "Wait, wait, wait a minute!" She threw the switch again, and Penny shut back down. "Ruby forget to... change settings... urm..."
"I have several questions," Winter growled, grabbing one arm with her opposite hand. "None of them pleasant."
"Set- settings?" Jaune stammered as Ruby rushed to the bed Penny was laying against and began flicking switches and pressing buttons.
Ruby ignored him, hit one last switch, and turned sheepishly to her audience. "This time... should be okay!"
She threw the switch once again, and after a brief repetition of the light show, Penny opened her eyes again. She looked down towards Ruby and spoke. "Greetings... Masterpon."
"Sickening," Adam growled.
"Would you like me to call you master, Ruby?" Penny tilted her head.
"NO!" Ruby flapped her arms in desperation. "Nononononono! Let's just... stick to friends, okay, Penny?"
"As you wish, friend Ruby!"
"Yeah, there's definitely something weird with this girl," Neptune whispered.
Ruby's eyes sparkled. "She's... ALIVE!" She began dancing around the room excitedly, moving at a speed the others struggled to keep up with. "SHE'S ALIVE, SHE'S ALIVE, SHE'S ALIVE! OH, IN NAME OF ARCHITECT, NOW RUBY KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE ARCHITECT!"
"Okay, Rubes, calm down, geez!" Yang chuckled. "We agree, you did a cool thing, no need to start calling yourself God all of a sudden!"
"Maybe we should slip her some sleeping medicine again," Blake suggested.
"Sleeping medicine?" Ruby's eyes widened. "You told me that was a new type of milk!"
"Summer's girl, alright," Raven sighed to herself.
At long last, she seemed to wind down, returning to Penny's side. "Ruby presents masterpiece- world's first artificial blade, Penny!"
"Magnificent!" Pyrrha's eyes widened in wonder.
"This is quite the achievement," Ozpin nodded his agreement.
"Yeah," Jaune agreed himself, "though... it kinda caught me off guard, before..."
Ruby seemed to sweat a little. "Forget about that- Ruby have nothing to do with that- that all Grampypon! Yes... yes! Absolutely Grampypon!"
"Can't speak to the Pipsqueak's old man, but I can see Tai's pops doin' that," Qrow readily admitted.
As Ruby flapped around, Penny was stepping away from the slanted bed, looking towards a nearby closet... where a maid outfit was hanging out slightly.
"Are you... quite sure, Ruby?" Pyrrha asked, doign her best impression of Ren's piercing gaze.
"Er... yes?" Ruby was tapping her wings together so quickly they appeared to blur.
"Good thing it wasn't Ren himself," Sun chuckled. "She's probably explode!"
"Your gaze is a dangerous weapon, Renny!" Nora proudly declared.
"So I've been told..."
Pyrrha straightened up and turned her face into a smile. "Well, we don't have time to think about that anyways. Come on- we have to go save Blake and Sun!"
"We've got no time to lose," Jaune agreed. "Are you two ready?"
"Yes!" Ruby nodded, grabbing a shield from the desk nearby- a gold thread immediately appeared between it and Penny. "Penny?"
"Penny will work hard to make Masterpon proud!" Penny nodded immediately.
"Sickening. That's all she can think of," Adam hissed again.
"Well, she was born less than a minute ago," Velvet pointed out gently. "I'm sure she'll start developing once she has the time."
"So we can hope..." Winter agreed, pinching the bridge of her nose.
To everyone's surprise, the world suddenly cut back to Torchwick's office, where the man in question was fuming. "Damn woman thinks she can step in and take over this investigation because she's the Emperor's sister... think you can keep me from taking the Grail and returning home in triumph?! Damn you, she's my ticket out of this Architect-forsaken berg!"
Leaning against the wall on the other end of the office was none other than Neo... a core crystal shining on her chest. "So, what are you going to do?" she asked, her lips pulled into a sort of cheshire-cat grin.
"So I can talk in this world?" Neo blinked.
"It's not a common thread across the worlds, but it does happen sometimes," Jack nodded.
"And it looks like she's... my blade?" Torchwick pulled out an unlit cigar- it just felt right in his hands.
"That's... a bit of a long story," Jack looked away evasively.
"I'll tell you what I'm gonna do," Torchwick growled, turning on one of the odd communication devices that existed in this world. "Captain Dudley! Double the guards- pull up anyone you can find! Bring me the Grail before that damn inquisitor gets her!"
"Sir, yes sir!"
None of the three noticed Winter just outside, carefully listening to everything they said.
"Well, I certainly imagine I wouldn't stand by after hearing that!" Winter narrowed her eyes.
"Surprised you didn't rush right in and rip 'em both up," Qrow agreed with a drink of whiskey.
"Hey, why does he get to indulge his vice?" Torchwick demanded, somewhat petulantly.
"Because the rest of us don't have to smell it," Jack shrugged.
Jaune led his troupe back onto the streets of Menagerie- Pyrrha had once again donned her cloak. The second they turned onto the main street, they could see the Atlesian warship at its dock. "That magnificent titan..." Ruby said, clearly awestruck.
"Yes... Would that it was not being readied for potential war with Vacuo," Ozpin noted solemnly.
"Of course, humans will turn everything towards their dark designs," Adam growled.
"Come on, let's find that root," Jaune instructed. They were quickly able to find a path that zigzagged down the side of the cliff, finally ending on the roots of the largest tree in Menagerie, which led just beneath the ship. The door, however...
"That's... higher than I expected," Jaune commented, craning his neck. "Hmm, give me a second..."
He raised his arm and fired the same grappling hook he'd used for salvaging back at Ruby's house. It seemed to find purchase, as it grew taut. A brief moment later, the cord started winding again, quickly carrying him all the way up to the dock. From there, he turned around and fired it back towards the root. "Alright, everyone up! Pyrrha, you first!"
The hook offered a couple of small footholds- Pyrrha slowly reached out, took hold of the wire, and placed her feet on the hook.
Up above, Jaune took a sharp breath as he staggered forward, digging his feet against the doorframe to keep from falling. "Whoa!" He wrapped both hands around the cord, struggling to lift. "So... heavy!"
"Oh... oh, my!" Pyrrha flushed, burying her face into her hands.
"What a... thing to szay!" Velvet was hiding behind her own ears.
"Not cool, man... not cool," Sun crossed his arms and shook his head.
"Um... sorry?" Jaune scratched his head sheepishly.
Pyrrha's other wasn't doing much better- she was so shocked she stepped off the hook, instantly causing Jaune to fall backwards and land on his butt with an "Oof!"
"What did you say?"
"Oh, Jaune-Jaune a little tactless..." Ruby winced sympathetically- for who, it was difficult to say.
"Now, Jaune," Ozpin fluttered down and landed on Jaune's chest, "you can't just go and call a lady heavy. It's quite ill-mannered."
"I'm sorry..." Pyrrha had pressed her own face into her hands. "I was just... surprised..."
"Well, any human heavier than nopon," Ruby pointed out. "All fur! But Pyrrha quite impressive height!"
"I know you want to help, Ruby, but... you're not helping," Weiss sighed, with a pinch to the bridge of her nose.
Before she could put her tiny foot any further into her mouth, Penny surprised them all by turning her feet into rockets and flying up to where Jaune stood. She reached out and took hold of the cord herself. "Penny pull Pyrrha up! Pyrrha grab again!"
"Man, it would be handy if you had those in real life, wouldn't it, Penny?" Sun grinned at her.
"Oh... yes, I suppose it would be!" Penny put on a grin that was far too wide.
Pyrrha returned to her position on the hook, and Penny began pulling her up, bit by bit. "Huh... nice going, Penny!" Jaune patted her on the back.
"Penny is artificial blade- this is noooo problem!" Penny nonetheless beamed at the praise. Pyrrha, meanwhile, remained flushed as Ruby grabbed onto her back. Soon enough, the two stepped off onto the cargo port alongside them.
"They have an uncanny ability to waste time," Raven sneered. "If they somehow get to the end of this venture alive, it's a sure sign that there's no justice in this world."
"Cool story, but... I can't remember asking," Jack shut her down, to everyone else's surprise.
The camera cut ahead to the team rushing down the ship's steel corridors, until Penny perked up. "Masterpon, Penny senses a blade in near vicinity! Ether reading leave no doubt!"
"Ether reading?" Ruby tilted her head.
"It difficult to explain," Penny shook her head. "Penny feel ether like waves in air."
"Not sure I understand," Jaune admitted, "but... that must mean Sun's nearby!"
Pyrrha glanced at the doors. "I think I can force these open, if we can pinpoint the right one..."
"Yeah, doors made of metal ain't nuthin' to Pyrrha!" Nora cheered.
Ren cleared his throat, glancing meaningfully at the villains in the room. "Because of her fire, right?"
"Oh, yeah- she melts through that stuff like butter!" Nora thankfully picked up on the course correction immediately.
Sun's cell was of decent size, with nothing in it but a bed. He was currently leaning back in it, playing a song on a harmonica, looking remarkably unconcerned for someone with an upcoming execution appointment.
"How cliche," Whitley scoffed.
"Sun does like to own his cliches," Neptune sighed heavily.
He paused when he heard a thunk outside his door. Looking to it, he saw a small point of red appear on the otherwise grey steel. Slowly, the point spread, the metal it touched warping... until there was a blast of flame, and the door fired to the other side of the chamber, a foot or so from Sun's head.
"Yeesh, are you saving him or killing him early?" Qrow chuckled.
Through the molten hole that had once been the door, Pyrrha peered. "I didn't hurt anyone, did I?"
"May have singed my eyebrow a bit," Sun laughed, leaping to his feet. "This a rescue operation, Jaune? Pyrrha? And..." He trailed off as he looked over the two new arrivals.
"Penny and her Masterpon!" Penny curtseyed.
"Ruby!" Ruby raised a wing.
"We can introduce ourselves later," Jaune interjected. "Right now, we have to hurry- Sun, do you know where Blake is?"
"Of course I do," Sun nodded. "We're connected, driver to blade- I can take you right to her!" He patted Jaune's shoulder as he climbed through the searing hole, carefully wrapping his tail around his waist like a belt. On the other side, he theatrically put a finger in his mouth then raised it to the air as if testing for wind. Steadily, he pointed down the corridor to the right. "This way!" He took off at a run, the others close behind.
"How... sweet..." Adam growled, gritting his teeth.
"Oh, what are you complaining about now? They're off to save her!" Torchwick rolled her eyes.
"Yeah... them, not him," Neo smirked.
"If you enjoy your new-found voice, you'll use it wisely," Adam growled- a threat that probably would have meant more if he weren't wheezing it out through lungs being crushed by the giant cat on his chest.
Blake had been shut in a room identical to Sun's. Being the driver, they had placed a bit more security around her- a pair of guards stood right outside her door. Unlike him, she was curled up on her bed, her arms around her knees. This wasn't the first time she'd been in this exact situation.
She vividly recalled sitting in a cell on Mistral, separated from Sun just as she was now. Curled up on the bed on offer, waiting for a knock on the door that would lead her to her execution.
"What did they catch her on that time?" Yang growled, narrowing her eyes.
"Hard to say- I think all we can do is wait for more information," Jaune shrugged helplessly.
It had been there, trapped in her despair, that Adam had appeared- his great sword slicing the door as easily as though it were made of paper. He had stepped over the threshold, the light behind him forming almost a halo as he reached down to her. "Come with me if you want to live."
Blake bit her tongue- the imprisonment aside, this was exactly how she had initially seen Adam. She looked over towards him, and even through his mask, she could see that he had become somewhat melancholy, perhaps also reminiscing on better days. But he's the one who changed...
Brief though her time in the Children of Zemuria had been, she had never suspected the darkness that lay beneath- never had she suspected Adam would stab an innocent child in the back. She remembered his face the night before they'd arrived in Argentum... the soft, gentle eyes beneath the bony mask...
She had entered the Maelstrom's lounge to find it dark, except for the crackling fireplace. Adam sat alone at the table in the center, his shadow cast long against the opposite wall. Cardin had been there, leaning against the wall, as had two of the other three Children- Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai.
"Real roster of winners you got there," Yang rolled her eyes, but Weiss raised a hand.
"Quiet... he's singing."
Adam was gazing forlornly at the table- no, through the table, into long years past. In his hands was a small knife he was twisting absently on its point, not with any intent, just a way to occupy his hands. And, indeed, he was humming. Slowly, he began a low, sad song, all the others silent as they watched.
"Far over Morytha Mountain cold...
To dungeons deep and caverns old...
We must away,
Ere break of day,
To seek the long-forgotten
gold..."
"Gold? What gold?" Yang asked distractedly.
"It sounds... symbolic," Ozpin guessed. "Assuming we can actually take this song as a statement of intent."
"If we listen... maybe we'll come to understand him more..." Blake suggested softly.
"The blades of yore made mighty spells
As hammers fell like ringing bells...
In places deep,
Where dark things sleep,
In hollow halls beneath the fells.
For ancient kings, and human lords,
Came the gleaming golden sword,
A shape Oum wrought,
And light he caught,
To fight against the blackened hordes.
Far over Morytha Mountain cold,
To dungeons deep and caverns old,
We must away,
Ere break of day,
To seek the red enchanted gold."
"I... still don't get it," Yang admitted, scratching her head. "How can gold be red?"
"Definitely doesn't sound like he's talking about actual gold," Torchwick snorted. "Which loses my interest right away."
"It sounds like he's talking about... an ancient, lost land," Velvet speculated through somewhat misty eyes.
"He spoke of Oum..." Ren realized. "We've heard of him already. A very esteemed figure- certainly, if Adam remembers a human in any way fondly."
For once, Adam did not object- he, too, was lost in his other's song.
If Velvet was right, and the first verses had been describing an ancient lost kingdom, that time had ended now- his voice, if possible, became sadder as he continued his crooning.
"The pines were roaring on the heights,
The winds were moaning in the night...
The fire was red,
It flaming spread...
The trees, like torches, blazed with light...
The wind was on the withered heath,
But in the forest stirred no leaf...
There, shadows lay
In night or day,
And dark things, silent, crept beneath...
The bells were ringing in the dale.
The men looked up with faces pale.
That serpent's ire,
More fierce than fire,
Laid low their towers and houses frail.
The mountain smoked beneath the moon,
The people heard the tramp of doom.
They fled their hall,
To dying fall,
Beneath her feet, beneath the moon."
Then, to everyone's surprise, a teary-eyed Mercury joined in for the final verse, none of his usual smugness on his face.
"And now, we call to hearth and hall!
Though wind may blow, and rain may fall,
We must away,
Ere break of day,
Far over woods and mountains tall.
We must away,
We must away...
We ride before the break of
Day..."
Pyrrha's eyes were tearing. "That... song... I don't understand exactly what it means, but the emotions get through just the same."
"Hey, don't be forgetting that this is the guy who stabbed Fearless Leader in the back!" Nora objected.
"Of course, I can't forgive that!" Pyrrha agreed quickly. "But still..."
No matter how hard she tried to connect it, Blake could hardly reconcile the Adam with the genlte eyes, singing that sad song with the furious Adam who had stabbed an innocent child in the back without a second of hesitation. A moment of madness, perhaps? It seemed unlikely she'd get the chance while she sat in this cell...
She looked up, snapping out of her memories and daydreams when she heard a scuffle on the other side- it was so short she hesitated to call it a fight. A moment later, the handle was opening, and for a brief moment, she was certain of who it would be- "Adam?"
But it was not Adam- on the other side of the portal stood a tall blond boy, his eyes filled with concern. "Are you okay, Blake?"
"Jaune?" She blinked in surprise.
Adam was growling, but refrained from commenting.
Right behind Jaune was Sun, who knelt down and offered his hand. "Kept ya waitin', huh?"
A small smile crossed Blake's face, and she accepted his hand. "Well, I didn't think anyone was coming, so this is a step in the right direction either way."
"What, you thought we'd leave you behind?" Jaune objected. "I'm insulted! 'Always help those who help you'- Rule 63 of the Salvager's Code!"
"And the Hand's favorite rule," Jack sniggered.
"What does that mean?" Ruby asked curiously.
"Another foolish inside joke, no doubt," Weiss rolled her eyes.
"That rule, huh? You think you know a guy," Yang mused.
"Yeah... that sounds like something you'd say, alright," Blake laughed softly.
"Jaune-Jaune!" came a cry from the hallway- Ruby quickly looked around the doorway's edge.
"A nopon?" Blake blinked again in surprise.
"We made some friends," Jaune smiled as Pyrrha, Penny, and Ozpin all peeked around over her in a stack.
"What is this, a damn cartoon?" Raven groaned.
"Hmm... it is lighter in tone than the other worlds," Pyrrha observed. "For the most part, at least."
"I do believe we've overstayed our welcome," Ozpin assessed. "We ought to get moving."
"Right!" Blake nodded. Ruby turned and led the way down more steel corridors until they arrived in a large hangar, a massive door already opened to the outside.
"This seems... a little too simple," Velvet noticed nervously.
"I'm sorry, were you going somewhere?" came a snide voice, as Torchwick and Neo appeared, he twirling his cane, she a parasol.
"Because it is too simple..." Neptune groaned.
"Trying to take a Zemurian terrorist right from under my nose and make me look a fool, are you?" Torchwick asked. "'Fraid I can't let you do that, runts. 'Sides, if I'm not mistaken, Blondie there knows where the Grail is- that Schnee woman's sharp, much as I hate to admit it."
"Another person after the Grail?" Jaune groaned. "What do you want with her, you dirtbag?"
"Heh, don't you know anything, kid?" Torchwick laughed. "The most powerful blade in existence, with enough strength to threaten Remnant itself? How is anyone supposed to resist?"
"Threaten... Remnant?" Pyrrha repeated, caught off guard.
"I'm sure he's just exaggerating," Neptune brushed aside. "Just trying to get across just how strong she is."
"No... I don't think he is," Neo shook her head, leaning forward. "I've been with him a long time- I can tell when he's exaggerating and when he's being serious. She definitely can do what he's saying- or at least, he thinks she can."
"It would take a fool to pass on the chance to claim that kind of power, and I am no fool! I will have her! It's simple logic."
"Error detected in final step of logic," Penny stated flatly.
"Maybe she's weird!" Sun barked out a laugh. "But she's fine by me!"
"I am very grateful," Penny bowed with a smile.
"Sorry, pal, but you've done all the capturing you're gonna do today," Blake stepped forward with narrowed eyes.
"Big words from a dirty terrorist," Torchwick fired back. "Neo? If you would."
Blake yelled as she rushed forward- but Neo moved with remarkable swiftness, deflecting a blow with her umbrella and knocking Blake to the ground, placing a heeled boot on her chest and aiming the parasol's razor-sharp tip at her face, prompting the others to hold back, eyes wide.
"Just as annoying as I remember," Yang growled.
"But you do remember me!" Neo directed her smirk. Yang snarled back- it took the combined might of the rest of her team to keep her from rising to her feet.
"Coward!" Jaune yelled. "You're just gonna hide behind your blade?!"
"I wouldn't call it 'hiding,' so much as a basic decision of tactics," Torchwick retorted. "Blades can regenerate from any injury, but if I die, it's all over."
"You hear that?" Blake growled, looking up at Neo. "He said it himself- he just thinks of you as a living shield."
"Oh, it's not all that bad," Neo waved aside. "I happened to take a liking to him, is all. I could leave anytime I wanted."
"Anytime-" Blake's eyes widened. "You're one of them? But then, why him?"
"Er... what are they talking about?" Ruby raised her hand.
"I'm sure we'll receive answers eventually," Winter guessed. "In the meantime, let's just see them get out of this situation."
Neo laughed. "Are you trying to get me to talk about myself? Because I'm happy to!" Then, quite out of nowhere, she began to sing.
"Well, little Neo hasn't always been this glam-
I was a drab little blade once!
Now I know I can be happy as a clam,
Because I'm beautiful, baby!"
"Hmm, she's got some good pipes on her," Torchwick mused.
"Never really thought about what my singing voice would sound like," Neo blinked.
"You idiots, you've got them dead to rights, what are you doing?!" Raven groaned.
"This... is the last thing I wanted to see today," Yang muttered.
"But it's my time in the limelight, so zip it!" Neo ordered.
"Did your granny say 'Listen to your heart,
Be who you are on the inside?'
I need three words to tear her argument apart-"
(Here, she knelt down into Blake's face)
"Your granny LIED!
"I'd rather be
SHINY!
Like a treasure from a sunken pirate wreck!"
She dug her heel into Blake's chest and dragged her around.
"Scrub the deck,
And make it look
SHINY!
I will sparkle like a wealthy woman's neck!"
(As she flashed off the pearls she wore.)
"Just a sec.
Don't you know,
Humans are dumb, dumb, dumb,
They chase everything that glitters!
Heh, beginners.
Then they come, come, come
to the brightest thing that glitters!
Then, a nice dinner.
I just love free food,
And you look like sea food..."
"Well, I certainly hope she's being metaphorical." Qrow looked disgusted as he downed the rest of his flask and handed it off to Jack for a refill.
"Eh, the way she's licking her lips, it's hard to tell," Velvet shuddered.
"I don't know, I think this scene has potential," Neptune raised a hand to his chin.
"No, Nep, no it doesn't," Sun immediately objected.
"Yes... none at all..." Blake fiercely agreed as she scribbled down the scene, though with Yang in her own place.
"NEO!"
Neo paused in her song, looking up to see Pyrrha, ripping off her cloak.
"Am I supposed to know you?" Neo asked, tilting her head.
Pyrrha wordlessly pointed to a tattoo on her waist, of a flaming heart. Neo's eyes immediately widened.
"Wait, that's my emblem!" Yang realized. "What's she doing with my emblem?"
"I... honestly couldn't begin to imagine!" Pyrrha shook her head sincerely.
"Jaune!"
Jaune nodded, and threw Pyrrha her sword as she leapt through the air, bringing her sword down on Neo...
Only for the blow to be easily deflected by her opened umbrella.
"Huh... that's a little disappointing," Nora observed.
"I'll admit, even I didn't think I was that strong," Neo agreed.
Even Neo's other seemed surprised- though the look of shock quickly gave way to a grin. She casually flipped the umbrella and grabbed Pyrrha by the throat with the hook.
"Well, well, well...
Seems the Grail's having trouble with her look.
You little semi-demi-mini-god!
Ouch, what a terrible performance, get the hook!
Get it?"
"Well, congratulations, Long," Weiss sighed. "We've finally found someone who makes worse puns than yours."
"I object!" Yang roared. "My puns are never that bad!"
"Forgive me for not being versed in the lowest form of humor," Neo snorted.
"You don't swing it like you used to, girl!
Still, I have to give you credit for the start,
And your tattoos on the outside!
Just like you, I've made myself a work of art-
I'll never hide!
I can't! I'm too
SHINY!"
As she continued, she began a dance, beating up Pyrrha as she did.
"Watch me dazzle like a diamond in the rough-
Strut my stuff!
My stuff is so
SHINY!
Send your armies, but they'll never be enough!
I'm just too tough, Grail Girl!
You can try, try, try"
(Each word punctuating a stab from her umbrella)
"But you can't expect a demi-god
To beat a flesh eater, give it up!
You will die, die, die,
Now it's time for me to take apart
Your aching heart!"
Jaune grunted in pain as he seemed to feel every blow that landed on Pyrrha- he watched in horror as Pyrrha attempted to crawl away. Neo allowed it for the moment, a slasher smile crossing her features as she began to slowly pursue, her song slowing along with her pace.
"Far from the ones who
Abandoned you, chasing
The love of these humans
Who made you feel wanted,
You tried to be tough!
But your armor's just not hard enough!
Let's do this my way!
Now it's time to kick your heiney!
Ever seen someone so
SHINY?!
Soak this in, 'cause it's the last you'll ever see!
C'est la vie, mon Ami,
I'm so
SHINY!
Now I'll take you, so prepare your final plea,
Just for me!
You'll never be quite as
shiny,
You wish you were half as
SHINYYYYYYY!"
"Brrr, she might be the scariest villain we've seen yet!" Ruby shuddered.
"Even I'm a little creeped out," Torchwick admitted. "Neo?"
Neo was in the kitchen. "Getting a snack! I'll be back in a bit!"
"Heh, heart of a lion, that one," Torchwick chuckled. "Can't stand scary movies."
"Putting that on my blackmail list..." Yang mused to herself.
Neo was raising her blade to deliver the final blow when a call came from nearby- from Penny.
"Penny quite shiny herself!" the artificial blade called. "And Penny not want to see friends harmed!" She activated her rockets again, and streaked across the ground, knocking Neo off of Pyrrha and into a nearby wall. Sun, just after helping Blake to her feet, rushed to Pyrrha's side and extended his hands, summoning a glow that surrounded Pyrrha and began healing her wounds.
"C'mon, man, you gonna let your blade take a beating like this?" Sun challenged. "Not very cool, bro!"
Jaune looked up, fire reigniting in his eyes. "You're right... Pyrrha, can you stand?"
"I think so..."
She accepted his hand and he pulled her to her feet- with no trouble, this time.
Neo was attempting to get to them- but Ruby's shield, backed up by ether from Penny, was proving a valuable deterrent.
"You can come back now, it's a normal fight again," Torchwick called back lazily.
"What a coincidence, I just found some cashews." Neo reappeared with a bowl of nuts in hand and returned to her seat.
"Keep her there, Rubes!" Jaune called, taking in everything, searching for a path to victory. "Blake, Sun, can you help Rubes pin her down?"
"Gladly," Blake nodded, raising her katana. "Sun, let's show them a classic Driver technique."
"Gotcha," Sun's eyes glistened. "Look close, bud, you'll know when to strike!"
As one, the two rushed forward, just as Ruby managed to deflect a blow from Neo's parasol. "Her stance is broken!" Sun called.
"Time to topple," Blake gave one of her catlike smirks, ducking low and sliding, knocking Neo's legs out from under her- but before she hit the ground, Sun leapt in with an uppercut.
"And a launch!" he called as their opponent was sent up into the air. "Now, Jaune!"
He needn't have bothered- as he'd suspected, both Jaune and Pyrrha had been reading their movements as if in slow motion. No sooner had Sun made his attack than Jaune and Pyrrha dashed forward to get their revenge, a hand from each wrapping around the Grail sword as they cried, "BURNING SWORD!"
They brought it down with a blaze of fire that sent Neo flying in the opposite direction- landing right on top of Torchwick, who slammed to the ground, smacking his head against solid steel.
"That's gonna be an 'oof' from me!" Nora grinned.
"Yeah, yeah," Torchwick muttered. "Turnabout bullshit..."
"Urgh... damn kids..." Torchwick groaned, before passing out on the floor.
"That's what you get for trying to execute Blake," Jaune nodded his satisfaction.
Blake's ears pricked upright. "Hold on, hold on, who said anything about executing me? That wasn't the plan- that Schnee woman was going to extradite me to Atlas for an official... trial..."
"But the captain said she was gonna be executed!" Jaune pointed out.
"Said it... because Weiss told him to," Whitley crossed his arms. "In a very public space, where Arc was certain to hear it."
"Wait!" Ruby came to the same dawning realization. "You mean... you mean..."
"IT'S A TRAP!" Jaune and Blake cried at the same time.
"Then we must go, friends- must escape!" Ruby hopped up and down.
"Masterpon quite right!" Penny agreed. "If this trap, chance of reinforcements is high!"
"We can't stop at leaving the ship," Ozpin advised. "We'll have to leave town- make our way to the forest."
"Right!" Jaune nodded, taking off with everyone else hot on his heels. None of them paid any mind to Neo stirring a little.
"Did you at least like the song...?" she mumbled dazedly before passing out as well.
"It was kinda catchy," Sun shrugged.
"Already uploading it to DustTunes," Velvet grinned, tapping away on her scroll.
"I wonder if I can claim copyright in a situation like this?" Neo pondered.
The group charged out of the ship into a military courtyard- they were halfway across when the opposite exit was blocked off by a wall of flame.
"This fire..." Pyrrha stared.
"Which means Winter's back," Jaune concluded.
Sure enough, Winter was there, striding through the flames as if they were absent- and at her side was another woman, shorter but somehow even more austere. This time around, she was carrying both the swords.
"Damn... she brought her driver with her," Blake observed nervously.
"Um... it was dumb luck that we escaped the first time... and that was Winter alone," Jaune recalled nervously. "I don't think adding Weiss to the equation is gonna make this any easier."
"Little sneaks," Adam growled.
"That would be Weiss Schnee, Chief Inquisitor of Atlas," Sun identified. "The Empire's best driver, alongside its best blade. Heh, might wanna start running up the white flag." He said this, but had very clearly dropped into a combative stance.
"We were hardly going to escape their trap that easily," Ozpin drummed what accounted for his fingers on the edge of Jaune's helmet, the only sign of his nerves.
"I was hoping Torchwick would at least slow you down," Weiss sighed as she approached. She had her swords ready, but wasn't showing any signs of using them quite yet.
"So, you're the one who spread the rumor I was going to be executed," Blake surmised.
"I had to pull the Grail and her driver out of hiding somehow," Weiss admitted readily. "Not that you don't have your own crimes to answer for. But yes, my main goal was to gain an audience with... Jaune and Pyrrha, I believe?" She turned her gaze towards the two she'd just named.
"An audience?" Jaune picked up. "So, we might be able to just talk things out?"
Qrow almost snorted whiskey through his nose. "Don't go putting your sword away yet, kid– it's all about talking with Atlas, until you don't give 'em what they want."
"Hold your tongue," Winter ordered icily. "I'm certain there are perfectly valid reasons for this audience."
Weiss turned her gaze to Pyrrha- more specifically, the halved core crystal on her chest. "An emerald core crystal... even its shape matches the legends. And if you truly are the Grail, there is something I must do."
"And... what's that?" Pyrrha asked, raising a self-conscious hand to her crystal.
"The Grail... the blade with the power to destroy Remnant..." Weiss unknowingly repeated Torchwick's words. "I cannot let it happen again."
"So, it's not just something Torchwick cooked up, huh?" Qrow observed. "There must be somethin' else to it if she knows about it too."
"You don't think I... I..." Pyrrha's eyes widened.
"We don't know anything yet, Pyr," Jaune assured her.
"Pyrrha? Destroy Remnant? Pull the other one," Jaune almost laughed.
"That portion of the legend passed you by, did it?" Weiss arched a brow. "It happened five hundred years ago, during the Grail War. She slew three titans, their corpses commended to the Cloud Sea below."
"Three titans... destroyed?" Jaune's eyes widened.
"And others irreparably damaged," Weiss confirmed. "It is historical fact, recorded in any book."
Jaune looked towards Pyrrha, as if hoping she'd deny the allegations- but her eyes were shimmering with tears, looking at the ground, her hands clenching and unclenching.
"You mean... it's true!" Pyrrha was taken aback. "I... I was... I killed..."
"You didn't!" Jaune stood firm. "She did- and from what it looks like, by accident, taking down a bigger threat!"
"But... but...!"
"No," Jaune crossed his arms. "If I'm not allowed to feel bad about what happened in Ansel in Last Contact, you're not allowed to feel bad about this!"
"We are quite aware you'd never do any such thing, Pyrrha," Ren assured her with a gentle squeeze of her opposite hand. "If anything, I'm more worried about Nora."
"You're never gonna let me forget that time with the salamander, are ya?" Nora rolled her eyes. Pyrrha could tell they were exaggerating for her benefit, but let out a watery giggle just the same.
Jaune turned back towards Weiss. "So that's it, huh? Harness her power, use her as your own personal superweapon?"
"Far from it," Weiss shook her head. "That is the scenario I mean to prevent."
"No, you tilted your hand," Jaune shook his head. "We won't let you take her in."
Weiss raised her blades and flicked them- they unfurled into whips, each several feet long, and maintaining their flames. "Then I suppose I must take you in by force."
"Like I said," Qrow rolled his eyes.
"I don't know... I get why Jaune's suspicious, but I just can't believe Weiss has bad intentions here," Ruby chewed on her finger.
"It's like Arc said, she already tilted her hand- what, you think she's going to admit to the devestation she means to bring?" Adam sneered.
"I... don't really know who I want to win this fight," Weiss admitted, looking between the two sides.
"Well, it's not as if we have a choice in the matter," Whitley raised his arms and shook his head. "All we can do is watch it play out to completion."
"Let me make this clear," Jaune glared back at her, not a trace of doubt or fear in his eyes as he readied his sword. "You. Will. Never. HAVE HER!"
A wonderous smile crossed Pyrrha's face, before turning to a look of determination. Blake had her sword out already, and Ruby readied her shield- at the press of a button, a large drill unfolded from the front.
"Well, then, let's see if you have the conviction to back up those words, boy!" Weiss called back. The familiar golden thread formed between her and Winter, and with a swipe of each blade, two colossal shockwaves tore through the courtyard, knocking the entire group from their feet.
"Huh, not much of a fight at all, it turns out," Raven rolled her eyes.
"What, you think it's over?" Nora fired back. "Not everyone's as much of a quitter as you are!"
Jaune had just managed to pull himself to his feet when Weiss leapt over the flames on the ground, bringing her blades down on him- he barely managed to deflect in time.
"Urgh..." Pyrrha muttered from the ground.
"Pyrrha, are you-" Jaune attempted to call, but was distracted as he was once more forced to deflect a strike from Weiss. She was moving remarkably fast- he only barely had time to block each strike, leaving no time to think about anything else. Even so, she was breaking through his defenses- he felt a searing pain on his forearm as one of the flamewhips left a glancing blow.
Behind him, he heard Pyrrha yelp in pain- unbeknownst to him, a matching cut had just opened on her forearm.
"There's... no way that's good," Neptune gulped.
"It's time to give up, you stubborn child," Weiss almost instructed- with another swing, a cut opened up on his shoulder- and a matching wound appeared on Pyrrha.
"Wait, when did Fearless Leader turn into a voodoo doll?" Nora wondered.
"I don't believe that's what's happening here, Nora," Ren shook his head. "If I were to hazard a guess, this more likely has something to do with her sharing her life-force with him. They have merged- two halves of one coin."
"I... oh..." Pyrrha blushed furiously.
"Which means... if I get hurt, she does too?" Jaune's eyes widened.
"Well, that's one way to get you to take care of yourself," Ren rolled his eyes. "As the good Dr. Peterson says, Jaune, treat yourself like someone you're responsible for caring for."
"I... I know, I just..." Jaune trailed off.
Jaune fell to the ground, and Weiss stepped back. He took several deep breaths before forcing himself back to his feet and charging at her- she deflected his strikes with apparent ease, before casually stepping out of range.
"Well, she's at least not going for a deathblow," Velvet observed. "That's... something."
"You'll... never have Pyrrha!" Jaune declared with as much force as he could summon when he was barely able to stand up straight. "She's more than 'the Grail,' or some weapon- she's a living being!"
He took several steps backwards, never taking his eyes off Weiss even as he extended a hand to Pyrrha. She looked up, her eyes wide as she accepted his hand and allowed him to pull her back to her feet.
"Pyrrha has somewhere she needs to go," Jaune continued. "And I'm gonna take her there! Nobody will stand in our way!"
He raised the sword into the air and brought it down, sending a wave of scarlet flames towards Weiss- she deflected them, sending them into a wall of the courtyard, which was swiftly crushed to rubble.
"How tiresome," she sighed. "The power of the Grail is formidable, but betrayed by a subpar driver."
"Don't become complacent, Weiss," Winter warned. "You must have noticed it yourself- there is untapped power within our foe."
"I have," Weiss agreed. "As things stand, your flames burn far brighter than hers... but hers also hide something deeper."
"You mean, she's holding back?" Jaune asked.
"Well, it was a little strange that a normal blade was able to defeat her as easily as Neo seemed to- at least, initially," Ozpin pointed out.
"Even she said it," Sun recalled. "Something about her having trouble... it's like the last time they met... however that happened, Pyrrha was a lot stronger."
"Well, I mean, she did just wake up from a five hundred year nap," Nora pointed out. "I mean, it takes Renny like, an hour to warm up after sleeping for one night! Maybe it'll be an entire year before she's back up to normal!"
"Well, I'd certainly hope not, if every step of our journey is going to be this perilous!" Pyrrha's eyes widened.
"What's... everyone's... status?" Jaune asked.
"Hanging in there..." Blake groaned as she helped Sun to his feet.
"Masterpon will not be harmed under Penny's watch!" Penny proudly declared as she placed Ruby back on her feet.
"But these two... very strong..." Ruby gasped.
"Yeah... hate to say it, but there's no beating them in a straight fight," Jaune admitted. "But... if we tip the scales... somehow..."
A vision flashed through his mind of Winter's fire being doused by a ruptured pipe.
"Water... we need to find..."
He looked desperately around- and there, just at the edge of the courtyard, was a water tower.
"That may save you this time, but you really mustn't rely on luck and coincidences to carry you throughout this journey," Winter scolded. "Eventually, you will have to learn to fight properly."
"Well, in my defense, we haven't really had much time to train since this whole things started," Jaune pointed out sheepishly.
Jaune glanced back at his companions. "Everybody, be ready to run... on my mark... now!"
He plunged his blade into the ground, summoning his own wall of fire- in her rush to make it disappear, Weiss abandoned her own, leaving the exit clear. They made a mad dash for it, but it didn't take long for Weiss to realize what had happened. "You really think it will be that easy?"
Jaune didn't- even as they left the courtyard, he was issuing directions. "Pyrrha, do you have enough in you for a full-powered blast?"
"Just one... maybe two!"
"That's all we need."
On the other side of the gate was a vast farmland, where the three split up, each preparing for their part.
"Uh-oh, Fearless Leader's got a plan!" Nora grinned wickedly. "When Jaune-Jaune has a plan, evil trembles!"
As Weiss and Winter followed, Jaune raised his sword, taking all the ether energy Pyrrha could provide. "Take this!" he yelled, sending a blast towards Weiss, who deflected it just as easily as ever.
"You're getting predictable, boy," she taunted with a straight face as the flames made their mark on the metal beams reaching up behind her.
Jaune, however, smirked. "Look who's talking! PENNY!"
He fired his grappling hook at the beams supporting the water tower- at a twist of his wrist, the cord wrapped around one of them. Penny was already at his side, helping him to pull.
"I am always happy to be of service!" Penny saluted with a giggle.
Weiss followed the cord, and saw what it was wrapped around, and Jaune's plan was swiftly made clear to her. The tower was already buckling from the blast of flames.
"Winter, evasive action!"
"Right-"
"Going somewhere?" Sun laughed as he summoned more clones of light, surrounding them.
"You think to take us on alone?" Weiss asked, readying her blades.
"Beat you on my own? No. Hold you off? Yes," Sun offered his classic winning grin.
Weiss took a swing- one of the clones dodged, leaving room for Blake to attack with her sword.
"On three, Penny!" Jaune called. "One... two... three!"
With one last mighty pull, the water tower's legs collapsed, and it fell to the earth as if in slow motion. Sun and Blake were able to retreat in time. Weiss and Winter were not- Winter cried out as her flames were extinguished for the second time that day. Weiss looked around, certain this wasn't the end... and she was right, as Jaune and Pyrrha once again appeared, delivering the old cry: "BURNING SWORD!"
With no Winter to back her up, all she could do was raise her swords in an attempt to deflect and mitigate the damage- but she was still receiving an explosion of steam directly to the face.
By the time the steam had cleared, and she'd regained her bearings, the entire group had disappeared.
"Hmmm... never doubt Jaune's ability to seize victory from the jaws of defeat," Ren surmised. If one didn't know better, one might think there was a note of smugness in his voice.
"This time," Qrow pointed out. "Hate to agree with the Ice Queen on anything, but she's right about this, kid- you can't rely on dumb luck all the time."
"Still, he had to have the tactical knowledge to use that luck," Pyrrha countered. "This was a fine victory, Jaune."
"I'll take it... even if it wasn't technically mine," Jaune laughed.
As Winter pulled herself to her feet, Weiss let out a wry laugh of her own. "I feel... slighted."
"How so?" Winter asked as the fires on her upper body struggled to reignite.
"They actually... held back!" Another wry laugh.
"Did they?"
"The boy... he didn't hit me directly with that attack, though he most certainly had the opportunity. It wasn't lack of skill- he deliberately averted his aim."
"Hmm... his instincts are nothing to scoff at."
Weiss raised a hand to her chin. She recalled Jaune's words. I'm gonna take her there- nobody will stand in our way!
"Shouldn't we launch a search?" Winter suggested.
"Hmm... let's hold on that, at least for now," Weiss decided.
"Ohh, did he get through to her?" Ruby asked hopefully.
"Are you certain?" Winter tilted her head slightly.
"As sure as the sun rises, we will meet him again. And then... we'll see."
"It seems likely they will end up fighting again," Penny noted sadly.
"But hey, you're off the hook for now, bro!" Sun grinned, thumping Jaune on the back. "Nice job!"
The group ran and ran and didn't stop until they had arrived near their campsite from the previous night, not far from where Ozpin had crashed, what seemed a lifetime ago.
"Okay... I don't think they'll find us here. Maybe we should set up camp," Pyrrha suggested.
"Yeah... we should... get some rest... I can't go... any further..." Jaune panted, before falling to the ground.
"Maybe we should do some cardio," Pyrrha pondered.
"And practice some breathing techniques- breathe properly, and you'll never want for oxygen," Ren put in.
"A chill just went up my spine..." Jaune shuddered.
"Ruby pooped as well," Ruby agreed, hopping up and landing flat on her back.
"Right... well, see you later," Blake waved, turning and making to leave the clearing.
"Wait, what?" Jaune asked, looking shocked.
Sun shot him a grin. "Don't get her wrong, we're grateful... we just gotta go our own way, and all that. Good luck with... whatever you're doing."
"Is it really time to say goodbye already?" Velvet pouted.
"Aw, I was hoping they'd stick together after everything," Ruby agreed.
Jaune stepped forward. "We're going to reach Shambhala!"
Blake paused, slowly turning to face him again. "...Pardon?"
"I know you're not a believer," Jaune recalled. "But I promised to take Pyrrha to Shambhala. I mean, she gave half of her life to save mine... I can't let that debt go unpaid!" He fingered the X-shaped crystal now embedded into his chest.
"Oh, Jaune..." Pyrrha smiled, a little goofily.
"But now... it seems like half of Remnant is out for her," Jaune continued. "Titans dying off... resources running dry... living space running out... that's gonna start wars. And wars need weapons. So they'll come for her. But if we can reach Shambhala... prove that it exists... maybe we can stop those wars from happening!"
"Simple childish naivety," Raven scoffed. "People will always find a reason to fight over something."
"Maybe so... but it doesn't hurt to remove as many reasons as possible," Jaune stood by his other.
"Fighting Weiss and Winter taught me something," Jaune pressed. "I'm not strong enough to do this on my own. And you... you're a driver, a healer. We could use that kind of help... if you'll come."
"Shambhala... you're putting a lot of faith in an old fairy tale, kid," Blake pointed out.
"Well, that's where Pyrrha was born," Jaune countered. "Here she is."
"Where she says she was born," Blake rebutted. "Look, maybe you're stupid, or maybe you're just too nice for your own good... what if she's lying? What if she's got her own plans, and whenever you get to where she wants to go, she turns around and stabs you in the back?"
"She won't," Jaune stated firmly.
"Of course I wouldn't!" Pyrrha agreed. "...I don't have a knife."
There was a resounding slapping sound as almost the entire audience facepalmed. "Truly, those two are made for each other," Weiss groaned.
Blake's frown turned upwards- she started to snigger, then to laugh out loud. "So... so serious!"
Finally, she wound down, looking at the crystal the two shared. "Emerald core crystal... sign of the Grail... Well, I guess it's not like I have anything better to do."
"Really?" Jaune asked hopefully.
"You sure about this, Blakey?" Sun asked.
"Well, if Shambhala does exist, I'd sure feel like an idiot for passing up a chance to see it," Blake smiled to herself. "An endless field of green among the clouds... I could go for a place like that. Come on, Sun, let's get some wood."
"So, that's Jaune, Pyrrha, Blake, Sun, Rubes, and Penny," Yang ticked off on her fingers. "Hold on, where am I at?"
"Hmm, Ruby hasn't mentioned a sister," Weiss observed. "Perhaps you just don't exist in this world?"
"Or you've yet to be introduced," Ren submitted fairly. "I suspect the same of Nora and myself."
"Aw, I wanna come along and see Shambhala too!" Nora pouted.
When Blake and Sun returned, it was with a surprise. "Looks like someone lost a guitar out here," Blake mused, plopping it down on the ground in the circle they were forming.
"Oh- that's mine!" Jaune's eyes lit up. "Must have landed when Gramps crashed! Heh, looks like it'll still play!"
"Oh god," Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose tightly.
"That bad?" Qrow asked.
"Worse."
"Well, to be fair, he can play very well when he's not... well..." Pyrrha didn't like to remind herself of Jaune's attempts to seduce Weiss.
"You can play?" Blake asked, surprised, as Pyrrha took the wood and lit it up.
"Let's see..." Jaune tested the strings, twisting and tuning every now and again. "Well, I don't know if it'll be up to your standards, but we have one song from Ansel I think you might like..."
"Ruby want to hear Jaune-Jaune sing!" Ruby bounced up and down eagerly.
"I'd certainly like to hear as well!" Pyrrha agreed hopefully.
"Alright, let's see if I can remember the words..." Jaune cleared his throat, and began to play a simple riff.
"Already better than his seduct-" Yang started with a grin, but Nora slapped a hand over her mouth.
"Zip it! Fearless Leader is playing!"
After strumming the riff a couple of times, Jaune added words:
"Like the pine trees lining the winding road,
I've got a name, I've got a name.
Like the singing bird and the croaking toad,
I've got a name, I've got a name!
And I carry it with me,
Like my daddy did,
And I'm living the dream
That he kept hid...
Movin' me down the highway,
Rollin' me down the highway,
Movin' ahead so life won't
Pass me by..."
"It's nice," Pyrrha smiled.
"Very lovely," Velvet agreed dreamily.
Ruby was smiling hazily as she drifted to sleep on a makeshift pillow, Penny at her side. Blake had settled in Sun's lap, as was their custom, and even she couldn't fight a smile against the gentle, hopeful song.
"Like the north wind whistling down the sky,
I've got a song, I've got a song.
Like the whippoorwill and the baby's cry,
I've got a song, I've got a song!
And I carry it with me,
And I sing it loud!
If it gets me nowhere,
I'll go there proud!
Movin' me down the highway,
Rollin' me down the highway,
Movin' ahead so life won't
Pass me by!"
Such a different figure, Blake thought to herself. I wonder what Adam... would have been like... if he could smile like that...
"Uh-oh," Pyrrha felt a chill down her spine.
"Uh-oh," Ruby agreed, her eyes widening.
Velvet bit her lip. This doesn't... strike me as a good sign.
Blake felt her lids drooping as the sandman came to claim her in the final verse.
"And I'm gonna go there free...
Like the fool that I am, and I'll always be,
I've got a dream, I've got a dream.
They can change their minds, but they can't change me!
I've got a dream, I've got a dream!
And I can share it,
If you want me to!
If you're going my way,
I'll go with you-
Movin me down the highway,
Rollin' me down the highway,
Movin' ahead so life won't
Pass me by!
Movin' me down the highway!
Rollin' me down the highway!
Movin' ahead so life won't...
Pass me by!"
He placed his guitar on the ground. "So, what do you... think..."
Pyrrha was the only one still awake. Even Ozpin seemed to have fallen asleep in the bowl that was his helmet.
"It was wonderful, Jaune," Pyrrha giggled. "We've all just had a... long day."
"I get it," Jaune admitted.
"Here," Pyrrha moved closer, producing some bandages. "Let me look at those wounds."
"So, what do you think, Ice Princess?" Yang asked smugly. "Think you could go for someone who sang like that?"
"Oh... quiet, you!" Weiss looked away.
"Why is Weiss's face turning red?" Penny asked.
"I'll... explain later, Penny," Ruby squirmed.
Pyrrha attempted to wrap the bandages as gently as possible, but Jaune gasped and pulled away.
"I'm sorry!" came her catchphrase. "Did I... wrap it too tightly?"
"No, no, I'm fine, I'm fine!" Jaune quickly objected. "See? I can swing it around and it won't even-"
He attempted to fully rotate his shoulder, but stopped with a grimace of pain halfway through.
"Treat yourself..." Ren began.
"Like someone I'm supposed to take care of, I know, I know," Jaune finished with a sigh.
"I knew it," Pyrrha giggled.
"Seriously, though, I do feel much better now," Jaune said softly.
Jaune looked up and noticed Pyrrha's wounds- though not, perhaps, their exact placement. "Oh- you're hurt, too. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine- it's just a scratch," Pyrrha deflected.
"What I said to him applies to you as well," Ren crossed his arms.
"I'm sorry..."
"Well, let me help," Jaune ordered, wrapping her wounds in turn, as gently as he could. Pyrrha smiled under his care.
"Thank you, Jaune."
"No problem," he smiled. "Feeling better?"
Pyrrha examined the bandages. "Looks good!" Looking back at him, she seemed to realize something. "Huh- they're the same!"
"And you'd better realize what that means soon, unless you want this to be a very short journey," Qrow muttered.
Jaune, however, was too busy blushing to realize the deeper implications. "Oh, yeah, I guess they are."
A gust of wind blew through the clearing, taking a few sparkling embers up into the air.
"It's... beautiful," Pyrrha smiled.
"It should be... you made it," Jaune whispered.
"Huh?" Pyrrha asked, turning to him.
"Huh? What- oh, no, I- I didn't mean it like that!"
"As much as I love watching two stupid teenagers dance around their hormones," Raven commented drily, "perhaps we should move on to something of more consequence?"
"I'm with her!" Ruby squeaked. "Something of more convikence!"
"I don't even want to know what you think you were saying," Weiss facepalmed.
"We're almost to a good stopping point," Jack assured Ruby.
"You're just... really good at making fires, is all!"
Pyrrha giggled one last time. "That... is what I do." She snapped her fingers, summoning a flame to their tips. With a gentle blow, she sent it scattering into the breeze, joining the embers among the distant starlight.
"And that's it!" Jack clapped his hands. "I think it's time to check in with another world. Any preferences?"
"Well... it's gonna sound weird, remembering how things were going there," Jaune scratched nervously at the back of his head, "but... I'd like to go back to Last Contact."
"The one where you accidentally destroyed your hometown?" Torchwick clarified tactlessly.
"Well... yes. There was something going on there... Ren and Pyrrha talking while they thought I was asleep, but I was actually awake and heard the whole thing. Vanessa said it wasn't gonna go into one of those petty fights, but... I wanna make sure."
"Last Contact it is!" Jack agreed with a smile. "...Just as soon as I get that curry I had to restart."
XXXX
A very normal episode, all things considered. Indeed, I intend to go back to Last Contact/ Xenogears next. It's in the top tier of importance for now, and it'll be a shorter endeavor after this goliath of an episode. Up front, I expect to spend about three episodes there before moving on to another world- likely either Blade 1 or Saga. In the meantime, feel free to drop a review! I'll run a raffle with the reviews, and the winner gets... a picture of my cat! I think that's a worthy prize, don't you? So go ahead and drop a review, and in the meantime, don't you dare go hollow- Gamer4 out.