Note: The reason I'm updating so much is that I stopped gaming while I wait for Shadow of the Erdtree to come out. Once the 22nd passes, expect less frequent updates again lol. Anyway, enjoy.

Earlier That Day

A great tundra of white. A road carved through the snow. A storm, creating a dense fog that stretched seemingly forever. Upon this road, three armored cars formed a caravan, pushing into the distance.

Their destination: an Atlasian maximum security prison.

Their cargo: a young woman.

The woman was stored within the middle vehicle, and two soldiers were in charge of driving it, each bundled heavily for the winter storm. They could only barely see the dark grey back of the truck ahead of them, following it wherever it turned. Their tires bumped over the loose snow, rocking the car up and down. It was probably hell for the captive, but neither man seemed to care.

"They couldn't really transfer her tomorrow?" asked Sargeant Hendrix from the passenger seat.

"The transport was scheduled for today, so we do it today," replied Sargeant First Class Blight, hands fixed to the steering wheel.

"Higher-ups are rigid. They can't even change plans due to the weather."

"That better not be a complaint, Sargeant."

"Are you going to tattle?"

"Just some advice from a superior."

"Heh. Superior."

Hendrix looked out the passenger mirror. Though the visor on his helmet was lifted, everything was a blur. The grey extended beyond his window and colored every distant visage. Not that there was much to see. They were in the middle of nowhere. It was just snow forever and ever, forming up the mighty Kingdom of Atlas. He repositioned the machine gun on his lap, and let out a disgruntled sigh.

"So… you heard the rumors about this lady, right?"

"You are fucking talkative today, aren't you? Let me focus on driving," Blight sighed.

"Come on. Chat with me. We got an hour to go."

"It's snowing."

"Did you hear the rumors or not?"

Sargeant Blight grunted. "Yeah, I heard the rumors."

"Freaky stuff. Between you and me, those Huntsmen scare the shit outta me."

"Well, she aint harming anyone now. That's why we got her tied up the way we do."

"Guess you're right. Still don't like that she's right behind us."

"You're scared."

"She can hear literally everything we're saying, can't she?"

"Who cares?"

"I care."

"Just let me focus on driving."

The dream of any soldier in Atlas was to achieve glory worthy of the Gods. Glory by triumphant combat, or more likely, glory by noble sacrifice. Peace had been hard on the soldier. Peace was the greatest enemy they could encounter. For these soldiers, especially the younger, they wondered if they were destined to die with their glory unfulfilled. Each day was spent with a new, meaningless task. Transport a prisoner from Vale. Put up the walls of a new base. Train for a war that would never come. There had always been rumors of Atlas's impending war with Vale, but they always turned out to be just that: rumors. Now, with the burgeoning alliance between their two Kingdoms, it seemed the enemy was more powerful than ever. For once, these soldiers wished to experience the joy of true, bloody war.

This day would not be that day.

Sargeant First Class Blight was caught off guard when the truck in front of him slammed on the brakes. He screamed in surprise as the grey box he had been following stopped and grew in his field of vision, and he was only narrowly able to avoid crashing into it. The same could not be said of the armored car behind him, and the moment after he recovered from the sudden stop, the truck lurched forward on impact, a violent thump registering in his bones. Sargeant Hendrix grunted in pain.

"Aggh… what the fuck was that? Why'd we stop?"

"I have no idea," Blight groaned. He grabbed onto the comms from the dashboard, pulling it to his lips. The storm continued to violently whip the caravan as he stretched his back, trying to mitigate the pain. "First unit, come in. Why have you stopped moving, over?"

The comm crackled, and the voice of the preceding car came through the static.

"Second Unit, we appear to have an obstruction on the road. Over."

"Sargeant, what do you mean an obstruction? Over?"

"Second Unit, it's… it's a truck. There seems to be a flipped truck on the road."

Hendrix was caught off guard. "A flipped truck?" He squinted out the front window, but not even the shadow of the supposed vehicle could be seen through the storm. "There's not supposed to be anyone on this road but us."

Blight ignored him. "First Unit, we do not have time to investigate. Can you plot a route around the obstruction? Over."

The comm clicked with empty static.

"First Unit, please respond. Over."

Hendrix tightened the grip on his machine gun. Something didn't feel right…

"Second Unit, come in. We think we see something moving in the storm."

Blight hesitated. "Repeat that, Sargeant."

"We think we see something… oh, gods…"

"Sargeant?"

"Look out—"

There was a terrible eruption of gunfire, both from over the comms and more clearly from the truck directly ahead of them. The two sergeants heard screaming, crashing glass, and gurgles of blood from over the intercom, and a deep panic set in. Sargeant Hendrix looked out ahead toward the truck in front of them, still seeing no movement, no sign of violence at all through the storm, while Sargeant First Class Blight just held the comm in shock.

Then, they saw it, if only briefly: a red, formless thing flying over the truck. They heard thumping on the roof, and Blight screamed.

"We're under att—"

The roof was suddenly punctured above his head. A scarlet claw broke seamlessly through the steel barricade and tore straight down into Blight's skull. He sat up straight, his body instantly going rigid. The claw retracted, and blood spurted into his helmet, pooling down the side of his face. He slumped over in his chair as Hendrix screamed in horror. He unbuckled his seatbelt as fast as he could, threw open the passenger side door, and stumbled out into the cold. He nearly fell face down into the snow but managed to spin around and point his weapon toward the roof. He saw nothing. The enemy was already behind him. He found out too late when he heard footsteps and spun around to receive a slash to his throat.

The young sergeant fell backward, his machine gun firing aimlessly at the ground as his finger reflexively pressed into the trigger. He fell back into the open passenger door, sliding to his ass as the blood spurt from his jugular like a fountain. As the life drained from him and the vision of great glory faded, he looked up at the monster who took his life away in the blink of an eye. It wasn't a monster, not on the outside; it was a young woman, maybe in her early twenties. Her face was dolled up and her straight, black hair flapped in the wind. She wore a fashionable, floofy red coat, and similarly puffy earmuffs. Her face was pulled back to an annoyed sneer. She looked like any fashionista who would walk through the high districts of Atlas, with two notable exceptions. The first: the blood-dripping claws strapped to her wrists, sticking out from beneath her coat. The second: the strange, stitched scar pattern on her neck—almost as if something had once sawed completely through.

She looked down at the man with contempt, and the last thing he heard before the light faded was her speaking to him over the storm.

"Loser."

Miltia Malachite looked to the top of the truck, where her twin sister was standing in a matching, white outfit. The older twin chastised her.

"Stop playing with your food, dummy."

Miltia rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

The rest of the caravan was cleared just as easily. The poor soldier boys never stood a chance. They tried their best to fire their little cannons, but the Malachite Twins were swift and ruthless. They cut through Atlas flesh like butter and left no soul alive. The drivers, their escorts, those in the back desperately waiting for action… soon they were all corpses, their blood painted over the canvas of snow, soon to be blown away with the wind. Melanie pulled her ankle blades out of some poor fool's neck and wiped it off on the snow. Miltia approached her, shivering.

"Fuck, it's freezing."

"Do you never stop complaining?"

"My lips are so dry."

"Uggggggh. I hate you."

Melanie strode toward the middle truck with confidence. Its back door was jammed shut by the front of the vehicle behind it, which had been dented from the crash. No matter: they'd find another way in. She and her younger twin casually strode to the side of the vehicle, then hopped up to the roof. They listened closely. According to their intel, standard Atlasian protocol required two soldiers to watch over any prisoners. It shouldn't have been a problem, though the two soldiers knew they were coming, and furthermore, they really didn't want to murder the prisoner they came all this way to get. So, Melanie came up with an obvious solution.

"Cut a hole open, and I'll shoot."

Miltia pouted. "Um, but then I'll get shot?"

"Yeah, and I'll fix you."

"I don't trust you."

"Ugh." Melanie didn't have time to argue. Though she didn't want to admit it, this storm was terrible, and she wanted to get out of it as soon as possible. She swung her heel, and the blade carved a long scar through the roof. As expected, the two soldiers inside tried to fire between the gaps. They were unable to hit a thing through such a narrow passageway. It did, however, reveal their position. It was child's play for the twins to leap off either side of the truck, locate the soldiers from the outside wall, and break through the steel. Their respective blades sliced cleanly into the soldiers' chests, and when they heard the screaming and the groaning stop, they knew it was safe to go inside. They returned to the roof, carved the hole larger, and dropped inward. The twins brushed off the snow that fell through the thin gap and looked around for their target. It wasn't hard to find her.

To be blunt, she looked like shit.

Where there was once a bob of green, there was now a shaven head. Her face was bruised and broken, her lip split and her cheeks cut. The rest of her, though covered in binds, was likely no better. What stood out were the coverings over her eyes: thick bandages wrapped tightly with medical tape, pressed so firmly that no light would ever pass through them. She sat still, the spirit beaten out of her by her captors. Yet, there was enough life in her to groan with dissatisfaction when she heard Melanie whisper in her ear.

"Hey, Emerald," the elder twin cooed. "Miss us?"

"What took you so long?" Emerald grunted.

"Sorry, kid. Got caught up in the family business. You know how it is. Plus," Melanie rolled her head around her neck, "I had to resurrect this little bitch."

"You couldn't live without me," Miltia stated. Emerald perked up, caught off-guard.

"Miltia? But I saw you—"

"Die? Yeah, and it succccccccccccccckked," Miltia groaned. "It's just pitch black nothing! Apparently, I get stuck in limbo until Mel croaks with me. It's soooooooo booooooooring there."

Melanie ignored her sister's whining and helped cut Emerald free from her bonds. She helped the struggling thief rise to her feet, but when she reached for the blindfold, Emerald stopped her.

"Wait. Don't touch that."

"Why? Gonna zap me with some visions?" Melanie asked.

"No. Just…" Emerald hissed in pain. "I need to see a doctor first. They… they took one of them."

Miltia gagged. "Ew. Gross."

"Quit whining and help me get her out of here."

"I'm coming, I'm coming."

Emerald wrapped arms around the twins' shoulders. Melanie cut a new hole through the side of the truck wall, accidentally carving some meat off one of the soldier's bodies. Whoops. With a path to the outside open, Emerald let them carefully guide her out into the freezing storm. After months of torment, to be finally free of that hellscape was a pleasure she couldn't describe. Yet, the experience was lessened by the stifling cold.

She shuddered, her fingertips already starting to turn blue. "You do have a ride, right?"

Emerald could not see the portal materializing in front of her, nor could she detect the third woman standing nearby, chaperoning the twins to ensure their safety. Melanie just grinned. "A ride? Nah, we shilled out the big bucks. This time, Emerald, we're traveling in style."

The Hydra of Atlas was a dead cloud floating in a pitch-black night. Ruby's eyes had not left the window since boarding the aircraft. Through their travel over the ocean, the snowy white fields of the Solitas countryside, and eventually, when the burdened territory of Mantle and the mountainous horn of Atlas itself were in view, she found her anxiety returning to her. The vacation had done well to relieve the tension, to make her forget about this bitter world, but it would always be a temporary reprieve. There was so much work to be done now, and as they rose up, up up into the sky, toward the impossible, imposing structure of Atlas Academy, so rose her drive. She felt Weiss gently squeeze her hand, and the rest of Team NYBF, which had been talkative throughout the flight, was growing deathly quiet.

When the airship landed, it was past midnight, and there were only thin, glowing strips to guide the shuttle into position. It landed smoothly, and the whirring engines slowly died down, going quiet like the rest of the school. The inner cabinet lights turned on, and the twelve students gathered up their belongings. Suitcases? Check. Backpacks? Check. Scrolls? Don't forget the Scrolls. The back of the aircraft opened up, allowing the familiar, stiff Atlas air to whip against their faces. It was a far cry from the beach, and Ruby held her breath. When the ramp lowered completely, they disembarked—and were met with a surprising presence. In addition to the soldiers and workers that guided the airship into position and kept them moving a lone woman stood on the tarmac, smirking at them. With streaky pink hair and a white fur coat, she gazed at the twelve with contempt.

The self-proclaimed King of the Huntsmen—Vivian Jupitarian.

"Welcome back, kids," she teased them. "Did you miss us?"

The reactions were varied. Team CFVY instantly went on edge, save for Velvet, who tucked herself behind Yatsu. Nora and Ren stepped forward, almost as if they were ready to come to blows. Jaune and Pyrrha did not make any quick movements, the latter's heart skipping a few beats. Team RWBY was unphased, mostly confused by the presence of the older Huntress.

"Vivian?" said Yang. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, just wanted to say hello," Vivian shrugged, her lanky frame buried beneath the bundle of white. "Ozzy wanted you all to have a welcoming party, and I guess the professors were too busy. Shame 'bout that."

"Oz sent you?" Coco asked bitterly. "What? Are you his lapdog now?"

Vivian smirked. "I do got a mean bark. But nah, I ain't serving no one I don't want to. I got free will like the rest of us." Her narrow gaze turned toward the weakest among them, hiding in the back and trying not to be seen. "Hey, Bunny Ears. You looking a little worse for wear."

Velvet shuddered, clinging tighter to her giant of a boyfriend. Coco growled and tried to approach, but Ruby, standing at the front of the pack, cut her off. She was well aware of the two-on-one duel between the three competing teams, as well as the speed and brutality of their slaughter. Vivian seemed to come alone, though Ruby couldn't discount the possibility that her lackeys lurked in the shadows. Would Ozpin really jump them once returning from vacation? She doubted it… though she didn't let her guard down.

"What do you want, Vivian?" asked the young team leader.

Vivian played coy. "I told you. I just wanted to welcome you back to Atlas Academy. Why's there got to be another game at play?"

"With Ozpin, there's always another game," Ruby reminded her. "We'll find out sooner or later."

The attempt at control was simply laughed off. Vivian slowly approached the group, and she enjoyed seeing them tense up. A few even raised their fists. Adorable. Ruby firmly stood her ground, ordering her alliance at bay. Vivian used the opportunity to walk right up to her and lean over the rebellious youth. Ruby was already smaller than most, but compared to the King of the Huntsmen, she looked like a child.

"Ruby Rose," Vivian said calmly. "You and I never really got properly introduced, have we?"

"We've spoken once," Ruby stated. "You interrupted our dinner and broke the elevator."

"Yeah. Good times. So… this is your crew, huh? Real collection of talent you scrounged up for yourself."

"They're not my lapdogs either."

"Oh, sure, sure. I'm sure it's all very democratic. You know, I'm a bit curious on the whole mechanistics of this thing. Ozpin told me all about this little alliance you got here, and I can't say I really understand it."

Ruby tried to hide her frustrations. Obviously, Ozpin would spill. It wasn't like Team NYBF was a secret, or would remain one for long, but having him tell the other students directly just fueled more division.

"What's there to understand? We're friends," Ruby said plainly.

"Well, friends with benefits," Vivian wondered aloud. "Not like that… heh, maybe like that. But I was thinking benefits more like… getting whisked away to an island vacation while the rest of us suffer through training. Getting your own private flights to the city. Them kinda benefits."

Ruby sneered. So, the rest of the school knew that as well. No matter. Let the rest of the student body be turned against them. They didn't need their support anyway.

"Is that jealousy I'm detecting?" Ruby asked sharply, trying to turn the tables. Vivian continued to laugh off her attempts.

"Nah. It's envy. They mean different things. Check the dictionary once in a while."

"If you wanted an invite, you could have asked."

"I don't ask for nothing. Surely the others told you about that. Nah, but what I really don't get, is when you were forming this little… partnership…" She flicked her wrist dismissively at the others. "You didn't think to ask the strongest team in Beacon history to have your back. That's just stupid. You clearly need the muscle. You need the brain. You need a hell of a lotta skill. But you went with the losers I beat with my hands tied behind my back. Did I offend you that badly you were willing to settle for scraps?"

Yang suddenly stepped forward, trying to force Vivian and her sister apart. "Why don't you quit insulting our friends?"

Vivian turned to her with a grimace. "Hey, I was having a chat here. Wait your turn, Tits."

"You don't come here and talk shit without getting away with it."

"Oooh, are those fighting words?" Vivian said excitedly. "We can do a Challenge by the Honors! Gotta warn you though, it don't usually turn out good for people…"

"You—"

Ruby grabbed Yang's arm and pulled her sister back before her temperament got the better of her. She was doing much better—the old Yang would have already thrown fists. But they were all groggy and irritated from a long flight, and Ruby didn't need them immediately getting into trouble.

"Don't," Ruby ordered. Yang reluctantly backed down, and Ruby turned around to repeat the order. She only then noticed that Blake and Weiss were equally ready to throw hands on her behalf. Yang had just beaten them to the punch. Vivian chuckled, taking a few steps back to relieve the tension.

"Nah," she moaned. "Why would I pick a fight now? Vytal is just around the corner, and I don't want to risk pulling a muscle. Plus, already beat two of ya. I don't like second chances."

Vivian spoke the truth. The Vytal Festival was set to begin May 2nd. The sixty-four-person, single-elimination tournament was a deadly game, and it was one most of them could not ignore. Though the tournament itself was fought one-on-one, Beacon traditionally selected the four teams from the top of each class to serve as representatives. The rankings were unlikely to change at this point in the year. With the exception of the junior years—the ever-brilliant Team URKA—all competing teams were represented on this tarmac. Team JNPR of the freshmen, Team CFVY of the sophomores, and of course, Team JJWL of the seniors. With Rosaline and the Infinite Chalice, Ruby found it hard to care about a pointless fighting tournament, but she recognized that for Vivian, it was her life's purpose to stand atop that mountain. Did she merely come here to scope out the competition? Not quite, Ruby suspected. She still needed to get to the bottom, Vytal or not.

"What do you want, Vivian?" Ruby asked again. Now, it was clear she was giving an order. Vivian admired the strength behind Ruby's words. It was ignorant, misplaced, and would get the girl slapped upside the head under different circumstances, but at least she had some swagger. She could see why the kids these days liked her so much.

"I told you. Ozpin wanted me to say hello… to all of you," Vivian stated. She looked over Team NYBF—not at them, over, into the empty cradle of the airship. Her smirk turned sour. "So, where is she?"

She was met with silence.

"Where's who?"

Vivian rolled her eyes. "The tin can."

The tin can. Wait, she couldn't mean…

"Penny?" Ruby said, confused. "Why would we know?"

"Because she's with you, that's why," Vivian said, annoyed by the feigned ignorance. "Ozzy wanted me to tell her that she wasn't being clever, and if she thought she could escape consequences, she's dead wrong. So, bring her out. Let's get this over with."

Vivian held up her hands, and electricity crackled between her knuckles. The sparks illuminated the scar on her cheek, and her intention was clear. Her bluster about not fighting was a lie, or at least, a stretch. Her joy was inconcealable. She was ready to drag Penny Polendina to her righteous punishment, whether the cyborg intended to go or not. There was just one problem.

"Vivian… Penny isn't with us," Ruby said, her bafflement shared amongst her allies.

"Uh, well, she ain't here!" Vivian taunted her pathetic attempt to hide the stowaway. "So, y'all can quit playing dumb, or I guess I'll just have to pick you off one at a—"

"Wait, wait, wait. Hold on," Blake said, interrupting everyone. "What in the fuck are you talking about? What do you mean Penny isn't here?"

Vivian seemed taken aback by the genuineness of Blake's outburst. "Wait… is she not with you guys?" The electricity faded, and she lowered her fists.

"Why would she be with us?" Weiss asked for the rest of them.

"Because," Vivian explained, "the tin can went missing three days ago."

The other shoe dropped, and the alliance went deathly, horrifying quiet.

Ruby stuttered. "W-What?"

"Yeah!" Vivian said, now equally confused as the rest of them. "She just up and vanished! Oz thought she flew off to rendezvous with you guys, and I thought, like, I mean… she's got fucking rocket legs. I don't know if you can fly across a whole ocean with that, but it seemed possible!"

Ruby tried to process it all. Penny?

"Penny's not with us," Blake said with one hundred percent certainty.

"You sure?"

"Pretty fucking sure."

Three days ago? She couldn't have stowed away with them like the last time. She was at Atlas Academy. They had seen her.

"Well, what the fuck then?" Vivian complained. "I come out all this way to drag her ass, and she's not even here? That's just fucking embarrassing, isn't it? Shit!"

This was Ozpin's game… but why drag Vivian into this then? Why play this fake reveal? Unless… he thought Penny was with them as well…

Did Ozpin not even know where she was?

"Are you really saying Penny up and vanished in the middle of the night?" Nora asked, outraged at the possibility. "How can that even happen?"

"Hey, don't ask me! She's your friend!"

"That doesn't…" Weiss muttered to herself. "Did they send her somewhere?"

"Why would they send her away?" asked Jaune.

"Vytal's in like three weeks. They'd never let her leave," reasoned Fox.

"Are we sure she didn't sneak aboard again?" Yang asked desperately.

"Where would she even have been this whole time?" Blake countered.

"Could she be hiding out in the city?"

"Did they kill her for disobeying?"

"They'd never do that."

"Would they?"

"That's so weird."

"Someone has to know where she is."

"This isn't funny anymore…"

Ruby stayed silent, a trillion possibilities running through her mind, none of them making sense. She had returned to Atlas Academy expecting to find routine, only to be thrust into more chaos. A student body possibly turned against them. A school barreling toward a tournament with one of its main competitors missing. And one simple question at its heart, revolving around a woman Ruby felt, somehow, someway, she had led down this dark path.

Where the hell was Penny Polendina?