9
Jaune stepped through the swirling red portal with Vernal close behind, his arm still smarting from where Vernal had kicked him awake, spitting vitriol in the middle of the night, like it was his fault he was sleeping at three a.m. For a moment he'd thought he was being attacked, so though his arm still smarted she was sporting a black eye.
That would teach her to startle a sleeping huntsman.
He was hit with much warmer air, stepping through into a very dim room. Calling it a room, however, was an understatement. A massive vaulted ceiling stretched into the darkness with an ornate, wooden balustrade led down some stairs to what, he now recognized, was a grand atrium. Of course he knew which atrium it was as it had been a part of their plan. The atrium of Haven Academy in Mistral.
Raven really had pulled the lottery.
She was a maiden, had a powerful semblance, and could turn into a bird. Used correctly she was virtually untouchable. Seriously, she was broken and she wasn't humble about it either. She was quick to remind him his own semblance wasn't anything to snuff at, however. On it's own it wasn't that special but depending on who he teamed it up with, it could be used to devastating effect.
For example, during their planning stages, they had tested out how his semblance interacted with hers. The results were interesting. Jaune's semblance could transfer his own aura to another and enhance their semblance. With Raven it extended her range, as in the range away from somebody that she could generate a portal.
They continued to explore their options for getting to the Vault of the Spring Maiden, he remembered where it was, and, more specifically, where the entrance was. Their biggest problem was they didn't know what the key was and even if they did they would have had to get it from Leonardo, not exactly an easy prospect. Surprisingly enough it was Vernal who made the suggestion and it had floored the both of them.
As Raven explained it her semblance forms bonds with individuals which makes her able to sense their general state and surrounding, this let her open portals without it being in the middle of a wall or into a tree. This also meant she could choose how far away to put the portal in relation to the target. She'd also never tried to open one while standing next to her target but in conjunction with his semblance it turned out she could create a portal next to herself and then one further away with Vernal as the center.
"Shouldn't this be harder?" Jaune whispered causing Raven to stare at him before rolling her eyes.
"Why on Remnant would I want this to be harder?" She shook her head, "The Vaults rely on secrecy. Most don't know it's there and even if they did they would have to find out where the entrance was and then how to open it. After all of that they would then have to get the key from Leonardo, an accomplished huntsman and headmaster of the academy. I doubt Ozpin accounted for my semblance when he made the vault."
"I suppose. I'm just uneasy." Jaune walked down the stairs, staring at the large statue, a sense of deja vu pervading.
"Well get over it." Raven joined him at the base of Jinn's statue, her hand held out and he grasped it. Without a word he focused his semblance to her and he could feel it slowly slipping into her, like a slight pulling sensation from their point of contact. She slashed her sword and her portal coalesced into life just a few feet away. As one they both stepped through because if he stopped his semblance her extended portal would snap out of existence, "Vernal, stay here."
The bandit nodded just before they vanished and suddenly he was falling, the portal disappearing behind them as she let go of his hand. Raven fell down the center of the shaft as he drifted to the side, his hand coming out and touching the smooth, stone wall. Channeling his semblance to his digits, the whole hand glowing a bright white as he gripped onto the wall, slowing his descent until finally they reached the bottom. Jumping away from the wall Jaune switched his semblance to his legs, enforcing them and landing with a heavy thud. With the flapping of wings Raven landed gracefully, transforming at the last second with a flourish and a smirk at him to which he responded with a roll of the eyes.
The vault itself took his breath away. It was beautiful in a way that he hadn't expected as Raven forced the gilded gate doors open. A platform extended out over a yawning chasm made of grey stone and darkened blue circles connected by a lined connecting from the entrance to the actual vault. The stonework was laid like flowers and small bushes lined the side. The centerpiece, and the part that had stunned him, was the tree at the end. It stood, easily a hundred feet tall with roots interwoven with the large boulders it sat upon and had hundreds of luminescent flowers blooming in a gentle orange. All around the pair drifted petals that scattered when they touched stone.
It was ethereal and so clearly magical.
Raven stepped forward and as her foot touched what looked like smooth crystal inlaid on the path to the vault a sound like a deep bell rang out and the path lit up with a clear blue, responding to the presence of the Spring Maiden. The stopped in front of the massive, golden door inset into the face of the boulders at the base of the tree, it too glowed with magic and made of what looked like massive fans.
With a slight hesitation she would surely deny Raven touched her hand to the door and blue light sprung from the point of contact in the shape of vines, scrolling up the door. Slowly with a mechanical whirring the fans folded into themselves and the door, revealing their true destination that lay there. If the tree had been magical, what lay beyond was otherworldly. It defied explanation and made him nauseous to look at as what looked like bits and pieces of the landscape infinitely floated away..
On the other side lay a vast, infinite desert with some stone leading a short distance away and atop a pedestal lay the object they had come for. A blue orb set in a golden lamp, simple in design and yet also ornate. There was no heat as they stepped through, boot thumping onto the stone path that led to the Relic of Knowledge.
Seeing it filled him with nostalgia for memories he didn't really have.
"It's your turn Jaune. You said you knew how it worked." Raven crossed her arms in front of her impatiently.
"Yeah. All you need to say," Jaune reached out and touched the lamp, his fingers brushing across the cool metal, "is Jinn,"
From the vents in the top blue mist started pouring out, coalescing into a blue skinned woman, identical to the statue up top, adorned in golden chains. Inscrutable eyes observed them as she stretched, floating in the air. Jinn smiled as she put cheek in hand, leaning on nothing, before she spoke.
"I am Jinn, the spirit of Knowledge." she introduced, "I am able to answer three questions once and era. Two remain in this one."
Raven stood silent a moment before nudging Jaune and startling him into action, "Jinn. You know what it is I wish to ask."
The spirit nodded, "You do not pose questions in my presence. How shrewd. Yes, it is within my power to answer the question that you wish to ask."
"Then tell me. Tell me everything I cannot remember."
Jinn's smile grew.
Jaune blinked and everything turned white, when he looked around neither Jinn nor Raven were to be seen. As if echoing through his head he heard a feminine voice ring out.
"There once was a young boy, who dreamt of being a hero."
-SY-
"I don't believe it!" The door to Carmine's office slammed open as one of her student's barged in, brandishing a scroll like a deadly weapon, "Have you seen the news?!"
The professor sat in her small office, twirling a pen deftly in her right hand, her eye patch discarded on her desk leaving her injured eye open to the air. Time and aura had gone a long way for the desiccated organ, the only obvious remainder the angry red scarring running in a line down her brow. The wound had been a clean, if deep, cut.
Blake wildly held the scroll before the her leader from the future, on it a title headed in bold:
Torchwick Escapes Custody! Valean Police Incompetant?
Carmine stared at it for a moment before replying, "That was fast. Impressive."
Apparently it wasn't what Blake wanted to hear, "It's not impressive!" Her hands slammed down on the desk, almost knocking over the mug of coffee she had been nursing as she worked over lesson plans, "He's gotten away and he's working for the White Fang! Doesn't that concern you?!"
"Of course it does!" the professor snapped, shooting the faunus a small glare, "But it doesn't concern you. There's not much to be done by now anyways. He's no doubt long gone."
"It does concern me! The White Fang are plotting something, you should know that!" Blake continued.
"Of course I know that, Blake, but I'm telling you to butt out of it. We have the situation under control."
"Really? Could have fooled me." Blake's eyes were as sharp as Carmine's own eye.
"Close the door and sit down." Her tone made it clear she wasn't asking. With indignation Blake closed the door and sat down in one of the two available seats across from Carmine, arms crossed and her chin jutted out in defiance.
"Blake. You need to let this go." When the girl looked like she was going to protest, Carmine held a finger up to forestall her, "No. Don't even start with me about this. Yes. I know about your history and what the White Fang are capable of but you are no longer a part of that. You are no longer responsible for what they do."
"I know that!" Blake exclaimed, teeth gritted, " But I can't just sit by when I know that they are planning something!" Her eyes closed as she turned her head away and continued in a softer voice, "How could I live with myself if something happened and I could have done something to prevent it."
Carmine's expression softened. How many times had she failed to save those she cared about? How many times had she been in a position to prevent something terrible from happening.
Too many times. Yang, Blake, Weiss, Nora, Ren, Qrow, her father, Pyrrha. So much death, so much by one she'd found fewer and fewer allies by her side until she had faced Salem with just Jaune stood at her shoulder. Now even he and Oscar were gone, in a way.
The people she knew were gone, the experiences of that last decade for her erased from existence. Oscar was on his farm in Anima and Jaune was in JNPR's dorm even now, oblivious to Pyrrha's crush.
"I get it. But you don't have to let your guilt guide you. Ozpin and I have this in hand."
"I can help. I know how the White Fang works, I can- "
"That's enough Blake. I know you want to help, and I appreciate it, but leave this to us. I know exactly what the White Fang is up to. They won't get away with it." Blake's eyes got steely, the defiance returning and Carmine let out a small sigh at the stubborn girl, had she always been this hard to deal with?
"Look, I don't want you guys involved because I don't want you getting hurt. I've seen what happens when the Fang puts a target on your back."
Blake flinched at that, no doubt thinking of Weiss.
To be fair, so had she.
"I don't want team RWBY to be targets. Not again."
The faunus seemed to struggle with it for a moment, closing her eyes and biting her lip before nodding and standing up, moving to the door, her hand resting on the knob, "I really could help you know."
Carmine smiled to herself, "I know. I don't doubt that. I'm just thinking of your safety." Before Blake could disappear fully through the door she called out to the girl, making her pause halfway in the doorway, "I almost forgot to tell you, I'll be taking over team RWBY's training personally from now on. We'll start this coming weekend."
The professor enjoyed the way the girl paled and scrambled to close the door. Finally alone Carmine checked her scroll, the notification having come in during their conversation. A time, an address, signed R.T. Hardly subtle but effective enough.
It looked like she had a date on Friday.
-SY-
Blake stopped outside of her team's dorm, the conversation weighing down upon her. Carmine's warning echoed in her mind and the impending, ominous, White Fang plot hung over her. She didn't know what they were planning, but could piece together some small details from what Carmine had let slip.
I watched them loose live Grimm into a coliseum of innocents, cut down hundreds, and even assassinate my partner.
A coliseum. The only thing she could think of was Amity and it brought horrific context to the White Fang's actions but also even more questions. Whatever was happening was bigger than she imagined, it could even mean the fall of Vale, and Blake felt a cold spike of fear drive through her. How many would die? The tourists coming for the Festival would put the population of Vale at an all time high. If they launched a successful attack during the Vytal tournament and actually got Grimm onto the stadium?
She felt nauseous and her head started to spin enough that her hand had to reach out to stabilize herself on the wall. An attack like that could potentially kill thousands, could she really sit back, knowing this?
She couldn't. The answer came to her. Knowing the White Fang like she did, knowing that she had been complicit in the rise of the organization as it was?
Blake had realized long ago that sitting by and doing nothing was the same as committing the act herself. Racism had been in the bystanders watching and doing nothing as much as the ones beating innocent faunus. Blake couldn't, wouldn't, become a bystander.
Taking a deep breath and a silent apology to Carmine she opened the door to their room. Ruby was hard at work in her bed, already in pajamas and studying, Yang flipping through a magazine and Weiss being her diligent self. Only Yang looked up when her partner entered but something must have shown on her face because the girl put her reading material down with a concerned look.
"I… have a favor to ask you all." Blake started but hesitated. Doing this would not only go against what Carmine had all but ordered but also paint a target on their backs. By this time Weiss had stopped and even Ruby was being attentive, "The White Fang needs to be stopped. They're planning something and I'm not sure exactly what it is but I know it's bad. I need your help. I can't stand by and do nothing."
Weiss looked surprised and a little pleased, sharing a look and nod with the other two members of team RWBY.
"We're all a team, Blake. Of course we'll help you." Ruby reassured her.
Blake felt the pressure lessen, more resolute than before at her team's solidarity, "Okay. I should probably fill you in, then."
She launched into her conversation with Carmine and some of what she'd said at the docks the other night, being careful to leave out mention of Weiss' fate.
"You think they're going to launch an attack on Amity during the Vytal festival?" Yang looked sick at the thought, "Why? What's the purpose?!"
"I don't know. They gain nothing. In fact it hurts them more than anything." Blake answered and it didn't satisfy any of them, "But that's why I think we should investigate."
"I agree. We are huntresses, it is our sworn duty to intervene and protect the innocent." Weiss threw in. It looked like the team was of the same opinion, "We'll need a plan, then. We can't just rush into it like you did at the docks."
Blake flushed at the reminder but nodded anyways. Carmine would investigate from her end but she would add in their help and catch the White Fang from both ends.
A/N: So yeah someone mentioned I made the mistake about Carmine's eye, and referred to her eyes. Yeah, that was a typo. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to get out of the habit of typing eyes. Trust me it's not like I forgot she was missing an eye, just a slip up. But in other news it's the return of Jaune and we can only imagine what's about to unfold there as both Raven and he are stealing the two questions. What's Raven gonna ask, you ask? Well you'll have to find out in the next chapter. I decided to skip the fairytale because I didn't wanna do a massive expo dump, I prefer to try and do more storytelling through action and behavior. Conversation and showing rather than "here's what happened" I mean yeah that could happen, but it would be boring. I like to imagine you all have a more interesting time piecing together what happened from the slip ups and off handed mentions the future characters give out.
So yeah, Carmine will start training the team because they need to be ready for their mission to Menagerie but you can guess why she's keeping it on the down low for now. Blake would freak. Not to mention it's blatant favoritism from the staff by giving them a special mission and not letting them pick their own like every other team. Not to mention the one on one training. They have to at least keep up appearances for the moment and while Oz could have Qrow, an on the surface unaffiliated huntsman come in to hand the training who better than the future team leader who knows all their styles? Talk about a cheat sheet, though I imagine it won't just be that easy. Sure you can tell Weiss, "Yeah you're capable of summoning." But that doesn't mean she can just go "Oh yeah, I can do that." and just have her start summoning all over the place.
Speaking of I'm pretty salty that ever since Weiss became able to summon that's practically all she ever does. What happened to time dilation or her platforms and stuff? She has the most versatile semblance out of everyone save maybe Glynda. With a bit of imagination she could be incredibly broken.
But I digress. I'll stop rambling here and like always I enjoy your commentary.