Author's note: I finished this chapter a bit over a month before uploading it, since I started another fanfiction along the way, which will be shorter, meaning I might upload it before you see this chapter.
Anyway, enjoy.
The few remaining Sabyr got back up, but Harriet rushed them with Super Speed and took them out, triggering Spectral Assault with every hit. After a quick skirmish, the Grimm were dealt with, and Ruby looked around. The Ace-Ops seemed to have the situation under control, so she decided to head back to Vale, and created two clones of herself to go and pick up her team.
"Oh, Ruby, there you are," Weiss said, "Sorry, this is somewhat bad timing. Winter and I need to deal with some Grimm first, and they're persistent. Plus, our summons aren't mobile enough to deal with them effectively."
"No worries," Ruby's clone said, and made her left hand burst into rose petals to grab another light-air-dust crystal. Once the crystal was back with her, she summoned a spectral wolf and sent it after the Grimm. The wolf reached its prey after a few minutes, killing a Scavenger and giving all of Weiss, Winter and Whitley's summons a speed boost, allowing them to kill the Grimm.
"Ruby, good to see you," Blake said, sitting on a chair in a military outpost, "I was just thinking of asking you for help with a little thing I got involved in." Ruby's clone looked around and saw countless cobweb bats made with Guardian's Gambit, as well as several soldiers and Hazel. Ethereal grass and flowers growing everywhere showed that Blake had also set up a Grassy Terrain.
"Sure, what is it?" Ruby's clone asked, and decided to set up a Healing Circle to ensure everyone's aura regeneration. Blake waved a woman to come over, and the soldier walked up to the duo.
"This is Nyx," Blake answered, "I'd like you to teach her how to imprint her semblance onto another person's soul."
"Hello, it is an honor to meet you," Nyx said, and bowed a tiny bit.
"Hello, Nyx," Ruby's clone said, "Anyway, if you want, I can teach you to imprint your semblance onto another person's soul. That way, you can let other people use your semblance."
"That would be fantastic, thank you," Nyx said, and Ruby's clone put her left hand on Nyx' right shoulder, then used Mentor to teach her the technique. With everything said and done, Ruby's clone and Blake went back to Vale. Later that day, when the group returned to Atlas, Nyx let some soldiers copy her semblance.
"Very well, let us depart," Yang said and put a lid on the fourth crate of earth-dust crystals.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Ruby's clone asked, already knowing what the issue was.
"But of course I am," Yang answered proudly, "Admittedly, I may have used Deathzone in excess, but I do not regret that decision, or the consequences it brought, in the slightest."
"Well, if you say so," Ruby's clone said, "But don't be surprised when others ask the same question. But now, let's go. And be sure to tell the military what you did, so they're not surprised later."
"Of course," Yang said, and Ruby's clone opened a portal to Vale. Before leaving, Yang sent a message to the military's support staff, informing them of her actions, and listing the specifications of the Deathzone effect she applied to the crystals.
~o~
Nora led a special task force of the Vale police down a road in Vale's commercial district, passing a series of large stores. She had Magnhild in its grenade launcher form, loaded with lightning-dust canisters, and the police had their pistols drawn and ready to shoot. A Beowolf jumped through a broken window and towards the group, and one of the officers shot it. The Grimm crashed into the road and got back up, but was shot by the officers before it could do anything.
"Looks like they're in there," Nora said and aimed her weapon upwards, and shot a canister into the window. The projectile landed, and then exploded in a surge of electricity, killing over two dozen Grimm in the office building.
"After you, Huntress," one of the officers said, and motioned towards the building's door while the rest of the group secured the area. Nora set up an Electric Terrain and placed a Combat Drone about two meters in front of the door, then headed inside.
"Alright, let's go," Nora said, and one by one, the officers followed her. The building was narrow and dimly lit, despite it being the middle of the day.
"I really don't like this," one of the officers said as the group made their way through the first floor, looking into the cubicles to see if there were any Grimm hiding somewhere.
"No one is making you be here," another officer said, "We all volunteered for this job."
"Could you two be quiet?" Nora asked and said, "We need to focus on what we're doing right now. Normally I'd have much less trouble with this, but since it's so cramped, I can't exactly do my usual stuff, which means that you all need to keep an eye out, too."
"R- right, sorry," the first officer said and resumed looking for any signs of movement.
"Me too," the second officer said and pointed her pistol with integrated flashlight into a corner, startling a raccoon sitting on the air conditioning unit. The officers jumped in surprise when the raccoon screamed and scampered into the air vents, but then calmed down again. A swarm of Ankle-biters came crawling out of a hole in the wall, covered in dust, webs and office supplies, and surrounded Nora and the officers.
"Leave them to me," Nora said and shot an Annihilation Field at one of the Grimm, augmented with lightning-dust. The attack hit all the enemies almost immediately, triggering Spectral Assault with every hit and creating electric cages around the officers. The Grimm died within a few seconds, and the group continued through the large building.
~o~
Qrow cut down an Ursa and blocked another one's claw swipe. A water pipe burst under the Grimm and drove a chunk of concrete into its head, distracting it and allowing Qrow to shoot the monster. Just as he was about to turn to the rest of the pack, a red portal opened next to him, and Ruby and Blake walked out.
"Hey Qrow," Ruby said and walked over to the water pipe before fixing it with Repair. The Ursai were hesitant to approach, unsure whether or not they could take Ruby if they attacked while she wasn't looking.
"Hey kid," Qrow said and asked, "And, how'd it go?"
"Pretty good, all things considered," Ruby answered, "By the way, please deal with those Grimm."
"On it," Blake said, drew Gambol Shroud and its sheath, and rushed the Grimm, delivering a series of strikes while using her semblance to stay on the move. Each hit she landed triggered Spectral Assault, creating an orb and dealing additional damage. Qrow tightened his grip on Harbinger, set up a Grimm Banner and Grimm Ward, and charged the Grimm as well, delivering more powerful blows than Blake. Once the Grimm were dead, the duo noticed that Ruby was done repairing the pipe, and had disappeared.
~o~
Ren sat perched on a decoration on the side of a building, observing a pack of Beowolves wandering the streets on the edges of Vale's residential district. He had crystal bullets loaded in his guns, and waited for the perfect time to strike. Just as the back of the pack passed him, he shot the blade of one of his weapons into a nearby decoration and swung by above the pack, firing into them as he passed. The bullets fragmented and harmed multiple Grimm, triggering Spectral Assault in the process, while Ambush increased the damage he dealt. When he landed on the road after killing the entire pack, a portal opened next to him and Ruby and Yang walked out of it.
"Hello, you two," Ren said, and the portal closed behind his friends.
"Hello," Ruby said.
"Greetings," Yang said, looked around and said, "I see you were doing good work. I think I will join you from here on."
"What happened in Atlas?" Ren asked, looking at Ruby.
"She used Deathzone," Ruby answered, "Good luck." Before Ren could respond, the clone bloated up and burst into red particles, before dissipating entirely, leaving Ren to deal with a Yang who acted more like Mithala. He sighed and resigned himself to his fate, and the duo got going, looking for more Grimm they could kill.
~o~
Jaune blocked a barrage of javelins from a small horde of red monsters made from Scavengers. When the attack ended, he lowered his shield and charged a regular energy disk, then shot it into the enemy horde. He focused and created three magic-looking circles on the ground, using Kin Summon to create three minions. They charged the enemy, and three more appeared once there was room for them. His minions engaged the monsters with their short swords, while deflecting attacks with their bucklers.
"Time for reinforcements," Jaune said to himself, before using Self-duplication and creating two clones of himself. While his clones immediately started using Kin Summon, he set up a Grassy Terrain first, before joining them.
"Alright, I think this will work," Jaune 2 said as the minions slowly pushed back the monsters.
"Absolutely," Jaune 3 said and summoned another trio of minions, just when the Scavenger monsters killed some of the ones already in combat.
"We'll need to be careful, though," Jaune 1 said, "Not only could we get careless if we win too easily, but using this semblance too much could backfire on us, too."
"True," Jaune 2 said, and Jaune 3 hummed in agreement.
"I guess I'll keep an eye out for trouble, then," Jaune 3 said, stopped using Kin Summon, and instead focused on Preflexes, increasing the effective radius of the semblance. The minions attacked the Scavenger monsters, thrusting or slashing with their short swords. The monsters blocked some attacks with their javelins, while other monsters thrust at the minions, who blocked the attacks with their bucklers as best they could.
"Hey, 3, get back here," Jaune 2 said when some of the Scavenger monsters pushed past the minions, and Jaune 3 resumed summoning minions.
"I think we need some more help," Jaune 1 said, and created two additional clones of himself, "Alright, 2, 3, you two keep summoning minions. 4, 5, you two wait until they need to rest, then take over. I'll make sure they can't get too close to us." He activated Retaliation and began creating spore clouds.
"I have a better idea," Jaune 4 said, and he and 5 stepped in front of 2 and 3 and activated Retaliation as well, covering a wider area in spore clouds. A handful Scavenger monsters rushed the five Jaunes, but the spore clouds homed in on them, dealing damage on contact.
"Alright, I'm spent," Jaune 2 said, let out a sigh and stopped summoning minions.
"Me too," Jaune 3 said, and stopped summoning minions and let out an exhausted sighed as well. Both raised their shields and began firing energy disks into the monsters, waiting for their auras to fully regenerate. Jaune 1 stopped using Retaliation and fell back to summon more minions, and 4 and 5 moved closer together to fill the gap in the group's defense.
"Hey, wait a minute," Jaune 2 said and activated Immortal Resistance, mimicking his great-aunt's Recover semblance to quickly replenish his aura, then started summoning minions again.
"Great idea," Jaune 3 said and followed 2's example. All three began to summon four minions at a time, slowly overwhelming the Scavenger monsters and pushing through them. Eventually, the monsters fled into the sewers, leaving the minions without enemy. Jaunes 1, 2 and 3 stopped summoning minions, and 4 and 5 deactivated Retaliation, and four of the clones disappeared, leaving only one Jaune. He collapsed his shield and sheathed his sword, and let out an exhausted sigh. He sat down on a nearby backless bench, which was coated in brown ethereal energy and resembled a log with fungi growing from it. Just as he wanted to retreat into his soul core, a red portal opened next to him and Ruby and Weiss walked out, before it closed behind them.
"Hey Jaune," Ruby said, although Jaune knew she was just a clone.
"Hello," Jaune said and asked, "And, where are the others?"
"Elsewhere," Ruby answered and asked, "How are you?"
"Fine," Jaune answered, "I just fought off a bunch of these monsters that are made from Grimm. I was actually just about to retreat into my soul core, since I used a bunch of semblances during the fight."
"I see," Ruby said, "Alright then, we'll keep you safe."
"Thanks," Jaune said and slumped over a little.
"It's nothing," Weiss said, and both started securing the area. While Ruby used the increased aura regeneration to send wolves made from leafy green mist after faraway Grimm, Weiss walked around and set up Landmines at the edges of the Grassy Terrain. After she was done, and the other two Ruby clones had disappeared, both sat down next to Jaune. Weiss entered her soul core first, and once Jaune came back, Ruby entered hers.
"So, what now?" Jaune asked, and Ruby came back from her soul core.
"I'd like to test a new fusion," Weiss answered, "All three of us."
"Are you sure?" Jaune asked.
"What if that fusion goes on a rampage?" Ruby asked.
"It'll be fine," Weiss answered, "After all, each of us has a fairly stable fusion with the other two individually, so I don't see why this would be an issue." Ruby and Jaune looked at each other for a moment, to see how the other thought about the idea, then looked back at Weiss when they confirmed the other's stance on the idea.
"Alright," Ruby said and got up, "But if anything happens, Jaune jumps out. Arkos is an incredibly powerful fusion in their own right, so we can count on them to keep us safe."
"Alright," Jaune said, and he and Weiss got up as well. The trio hugged, and their red, white and golden auras lit up before merging into a single strawberry gold one. The resulting fusion strongly resembled a woman, although with fairly male facial features, and wore a clean white pantsuit with golden accents. Her boots had pale red soles and black shoelaces, which ended in aglets adorned with small scepters resembling the cane in her left hand.
"Look at us," the fusion said, with Ruby's voice being most prominent, "Now to figure out a name." The fusion rested on her cane, which had a dust chamber resembling a dust crystal at the top, with six different dust types stored in it. It also had two small wing-like axe blades standing off from the dust chamber, and an energy disk launcher facing upwards.
"Let's go with Regina," the fusion suggested, with Jaune's voice being more prominent, much to the other two's surprise, "I know it's a girl's name, but we're two women and one man in here, and I really don't mind either way."
"Well, alright," Regina said, with Weiss' voice being most prominent, "Regina it is, then. Now to get a better look at us." Regina walked over to a nearby furniture store and went into the mirror section, only to find that they had all broken after over a year of neglect.
"I have an idea," Regina said, tossed her cane up a bit and caught it further down the handle, holding it like a one-handed axe. She swung it and opened a portal, while simultaneously using Prism Chain from her right hand. The chain wrapped around a Grand Sabyr's left leg, and Regina pulled it towards herself. As soon as the Grimm was in the store, the portal closed and the chain disappeared.
"And now, the grand finale," Regina said and activated her silver eyes, but held on to the power to overcharge her aura, and used it for Repair. A wave of green energy rolled over the entire section of the store, pulling mirror shards back into place, bending their frames back into shape, rebuilding the shelves, patching the torn and scraped carpet on the floor, as well as the decorative banners hanging on display.
"Alright, that is that," Regina said after the wave subsided, then promptly killed the Grand Sabyr with an axe strike to the head, surprising herself a little with her physical strength. While the Grimm evaporated, Regina looked into a mirror and saw that her shoulder-long hair shimmered in all the colors of the rainbow. As she looked around some more, her gaze fell upon other timelines, and she activated Quick Travel.
~o~
In another timeline, after stealing one of Penny's swords, the Ace-Ops, minus Clover, wanted to jump off the bridge leading to the central control room, but a series of Glyphs blocked the way. They immediately focused on Weiss, and Harriet attacked her. Blake created a Shadow Clone of both of them, causing Harriet to run into a wall, breaking her aura and leaving her dazed.
"I swear, I'm not doing this," Weiss exclaimed.
"Well, who else could it be?" Elm asked angrily, while Vine reached over to grab Harriet.
"Me," Regina answered, standing in the doorway, and everyone turned to look at her.
"Another one?" Elm asked, turned to Ruby and asked, "Where do you keep finding those people?" In response, Ruby shrugged.
"Let us go," Marrow said, trying to demand respect, but he sounded more pleading than he would like.
"No," Regina answered.
"Who are you?" Ruby asked.
"I am Regina, and I come from another timeline," Regina answered.
"Why are you keeping us here?" Vine asked.
"Because you started this fight, and now you try to run from it," Regina answered, "Finish what you started, and you will be allowed to leave."
"We're just following orders," Elm said, "Take it up with the General."
"Believe me, I will," Regina said, "But the fact remains that you four chose to come here, and assault a group of people whose only offense is disagreeing with you, and aiming to complete the evacuation your General started, but abandoned when it became too much of a hassle."
"Listen, we really don't want any trouble," Marrow started, but was cut off when Regina chuckled.
"I highly doubt that," Regina said, "Since the beginning, you have done nothing but go out of your way to mess with your allies, instead of focusing on the enemy. Ruby and her friends fought off Grimm, which was your duty, and you assaulted them. They wanted to evacuate civilians and get them out of a crisis you caused, and you aimed to kill them. Now they want to save even more people, and you are here to help Arthur, a man you know would destroy the entire world just to see James burn, install a virus on Penny so she opens the vault and self-destructs."
"Wait, you're doing what?!" Weiss asked and summoned a Queen Lancer, which used its tether to pull Marrow towards itself. Before the tether fully retracted, Blake made a fire-dust clone of herself and the summon, sending Marrow flying across the room and breaking his aura. Penny got up and engaged her maiden powers and attacked Elm and Vine with lightnings, while Ruby used Crescent Rose's rapid fire to keep them from countering.
"So, what now?" Blake asked.
"Keep them here," Ruby answered, "We'll put them in this room, put up the door, and then Penny freezes it in place. That should keep them out of our way for long enough." Weiss made her Queen Lancer disappear again and summoned an unarmed Arma Gigas to carry one of the large metal slabs, while Ruby, Blake and Penny brought Harriet, Elm, Vine and Marrow into the control room, but left their weapons outside. Finally, Penny used her maiden powers to create ice and hold the door in place.
Author's note: New fusion, yay. Regina's design is largely inspired by a character from the comic Cursed Princess Club over on Webtoons, which I honestly cannot recommend enough.
Her weapon is heavily inspired by the Millennium Rod from Yu-Gi-Oh!, though. Not really much of a fan, but that villains rap cypher goes hard.