Interlude Four: Menagerie

The deserts in Menagerie were somehow more alive than the deserts in Vacuo. Sun had been hiking through the wilds of Menagerie for several days now, and kept noticing differences. Where Vacuo seemed desolate and bare, the land having been brutalized by decades of abuse, Menagerie thrived. Everything here was just more vibrant. There was plenty of wildlife, and a variety of flowering cacti and shrubs dotted the landscape. And there were the grimm, of course.

His team, five strong now including him and their new addition, Nolan, had gotten into a scrap at least once a day since Sun had decided to try to find this Wild Woman that everyone in Kuo Kuana was talking about. They had won each one, easily, but still his team were starting to get restless. Neptune and Scarlet in particular were getting whiny. It was too hot, there's sand in my boots, yadda yadda yadda. Sun had sand in uncomfortable places too, but he wasn't whining about it. Well, out loud, at least. He had better find this lady, fast. He didn't want his team to mutiny on him like they almost had back in Vacuo, and he really didn't want to face down Ghira and Theodore if his hunch didn't pay off.

The search had started strong, with plenty of eyewitness accounts of a woman that had a crest of eagle feathers on her head, a staff in her hands, and who appeared like lightning out of a clear blue sky when there were grimm nearby. Sun hadn't been able to tell whether that last bit was hyperbole or not, but since Maidens could control the elements, he got excited regardless and took it as a sign that they were in the right place.

And so he had convinced Ilia to take over guard duty for the transport back to Vacuo, talked his team into following him into the desert, and started the search for the lost Maiden. At first, they had welcomed the Grimm attacks. All of the stories they had heard agreed that this woman was a grimmslayer. Even when they 'threw' a fight, pretending that they were in trouble, she still hadn't shown up. Sun was convinced it was his team's poor acting, and his team was convinced that Sun's 'throw a fight' idea was dumb.

Still, the battles had given them a good chance to really start to mesh and work together. Neptune was even starting to use his semblance, at the gentle encouragement of Scarlet and Nolan. The guy still freaked out when too much water got involved, but he had come in clutch, drawing up water from the sands for them to drink when the heat was becoming unbearable. Scarlet had made a fuss at first about not wanting to drink sandy groundwater, but then Sage had produced a filter and purification tablets that made it drinkable, and the complaints had subsided. Sun had pulled Sage aside and thanked him for his foresight, even though as the team leader he probably should have thought of it himself. But that's what his team was for though, right? To think of the things he overlooked?

They had visited two different villages so far, both small and badly defended. Most of the residents had fled to the safety of the capitol city, worried about the increase in grimm activity, but there had always been a handful of stubborn holdouts. The last village had been home to a slightly crazed old goat Faunus, who had proudly proclaimed he could survive on anything, including leather and his own urine, and who would be damned if got scared off by some measly grimm. He had also been convinced that Sun was the reincarnation of some old mythical figure and had taken to following him around and offering him food and drink. Sun, remembering the old man's first proclamation, had politely declined until he eventually fled with his team. Their leads, which had been promising at first, were starting to dry up.

Sun sighed and put his hands behind his head, lacing his fingers together as they hiked over the sandy ground. Neptune and Scarlet were bickering at the rear of the formation, Sage was next to Sun with his eyes resolutely on the horizon, and Nolan had their map open next to him.

Nolan, squinting at the hand drawn lines of the shabby map in the midday sun, said, "We should be coming up on the next town soon. If this map is accurate, anyway."

"This one better not be abandoned, like the last one was," Neptune said. "I need some shade and pretty girls to bring me cold drinks."

Scarlet eyed him, askance. "I'd settle for a chance to dump the sand out of my boots and put my feet up for a day."

"Hey, it wasn't completely abandoned, there was the weird old goat dude. And c'mon, guys! We're on an important mission here! Think of how huge it'll be when we find the Summer Maiden!" Sun exclaimed, trying to bolster his team's flagging reserves.

"Yeah, an old goat dude who was trying to get us to drink his 'hydration mix'. I'm pretty sure that wasn't lemonade, bro," Neptune said.

"And this is a mission that you talked all of us into, and that hasn't gotten us anything other than sunburned and blistered," Scarlet replied sourly.

"He brought us along this time, at least." Neptune said. "But yeah, man, this better get us somewhere soon or we're in trouble."

"It'll work out! Trust me! And think of all the team building we've been doing, fighting all these grimm. We're gonna get back to Vacuo stronger than ever!" Sun refused to let his team get him down. He'd worry about the repercussions later, if they didn't find the Maiden. But we'll find her, I know it.

Sage had steadfastly ignored his companions bickering and kept his eyes to the horizon. There was something there, but he couldn't quite make out what it was through the heat haze rising from the sand. He was debating whether it was the town they were trying to reach, or if it was something else, when a column of fire shot towards the sky.

Wordlessly, he unsheathed his sword as Sun and the others stopped talking and gaped.

"Dude…" Neptune breathed. "You think that's our girl?"

"I dunno. Remember that Cinder chick? She has a nasty fire semblance. And she's after the Maidens…" Sun trailed off. "Yo! We gotta get over there, now!" And he took off over the sand, not waiting to see if his team was following him. The rest all shared a look, and then ran off after their leader.

"Bro, what's the plan if it is Cinder? She took down Team RWBY without issue," Neptune worried as they ran towards the towering flame.

"We'll kick her ass, that's the plan. For revenge, if nothing else. You really gonna let her go after what she did to Weiss, man? Plus, you've been working on your semblance. You're like the perfect counter to someone who uses fire," Sun yelled as they ran.

"You know how much water I'd need to put out that fire? Where am I supposed to get it from?" Neptune asked.

"Pull it out of the ground or something again, I dunno," Sun helpfully replied.

"We believe in you, Neptune, you got this," Nolan said, much more encouragingly.

"We're doomed," Scarlet said, rolling his eyes.

"Focus!" Sage barked. "We need to be on top of our game."

As the Huntsmen got closer to the fire, the flames started to die down and black smoke poured into the sky. Sun could only see a shrouded figure with a deep, oversized hood on the other side of the flames, and the smoke made it hard to make out their face. There was a large bundle on the ground, the source of the flame and the smoke. The sand under the bundle was glassy, and the air smelled revoltingly of burning flesh. Sun's stomach turned, and he whipped out his staff.

There's something weird about that hood, Sun thought briefly before mentally shrugging and tossing the thought aside. "You're going down! We're gonna make you pay for everything you've done!" He yelled as he split into three with Via Sun, charging around the pyre.

The figure quick-stepped backward, looking at him and pulling out a long staff of their own. A set of rings jingled on the end of it as the person fended off one of Sun's clones. Sun himself twirled his staff and sent it hurtling towards the figures head. The person nimbly ducked the blow, slid to the side, and neatly looped one of the rings on their staff over Sun's head as he went past. The ring expanded, encircling Sun's shoulders, and then snapped tight, sending Sun face first into the ground.

"Owmf!" Sun yelped, voice muffled by the sand. His clones vanished as he lost concentration, disappearing with faint crackle.

Neptune leveled Tri-Hard at the figure and fired a shot that they gracefully dodged. "Sun! Hang on, buddy!" Neptune rushed forward, gun shifting into a trident as he did so, and jabbed at the figure. They flowed around the attack and caught Neptune with a second ring, neatly snaring him with the glimmering gold hoop.

"Wha- Hey!" Neptune exclaimed as he met a similar fate as his friend and toppled to the ground.

Sage, Scarlet, and Nolan all stayed back, eyeing the figure warily. Sun and Neptune wriggled on the ground, unable to free themselves from the golden rings. The cloaked and hooded figure stood easily, their staff jingly melodically as they stared down the last three members of Team SSSNN.

"Why have you attacked me?" the person asked. Their voice was a rich and smooth alto, exotically accented.

"Who did you set on fire?" Sage asked, keeping his sword between him and the woman.

"I set no living person on fire. This is a funeral pyre," the person replied.

"Wait, a funeral pyre? So that person was already dead?" Nolan asked.

"Yes. And you have interrupted the memorial I was holding, attacking me without reason. Again I ask, why?"

"Mrrmph!" Sun said, his mouth still full of sand, as he unsuccessfully tried to roll over.

"I think there has been an unfortunate misunderstanding," Scarlet said as he put away his weapons. "We thought you were someone else."

"And who is this person, that you would clumsily charge headfirst into battle with?" the woman asked. Her voice betrayed no emotion. She could have been furious or amused, for all Scarlet and the others could tell.

"She's a dangerous person, a killer, and when we saw the fire, we thought that well, you might be her, cuz she has a fire semblance, and stuff," Neptune said. He had managed to get himself into a sitting position, despite having his arms bound.

"I am no killer. And I would have apologies from all of you for interrupting me."

"We're very sorry for disrupting your memorial," Sage said, sheathing his sword and bowing his head towards the woman.

Nolan, Scarlet, and Neptune echoed the sentiment, and the woman rolled Sun over with her foot. He stared up at her, spitting sand and spluttering. "This thing is tight! Look, you could have been anyone, and in my defense, it looked like you had burned someone alive!"

The woman slammed the butt of her staff into the ground, and the golden ring that Sun was caught in lit up with electricity. "Ow! Ok, ok, sorry I attacked you. Now can you get this thing off of me?"

The woman relented and deftly hooked the ring from around Sun with her Khakkhara. Sun sat up, rubbing at his arms where the ring had shocked him.

"So, if you're not Cinder, who are you?" he asked the robed and hooded woman.

In response, she pulled the hood down and offered Sun a hand. He took it, drinking in her appearance as he did. She was beautiful.

The woman was slim and dark, with a pair of graceful, spiraling antelope prongs that swept back from her head. Her eyes were large and brown, and her head was shaved on the sides, with elaborate braids between her horns. Her hair was black with a hint of deep purple highlights. She was dressed in leather leggings and a khaki-colored tunic underneath her cloak. She had on sturdy, well-worn shoes, and an elegant silver necklace set with a large amethyst was her only embellishment. Her staff was the kind known as a khakkara, with six golden rings hanging from a single loop at the top.

"My name is Zambara. I would say it is a pleasure to meet you, but I do not know that that would be truthful, just yet," she told Sun.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry again for attacking you, that's totally my bad. Who were they?" Sun asked embarrassedly, gesturing to the smoldering body.

"My mentor. She taught me everything I know, and gave me her strength," Zambara said.

"How'd she die?" Neptune asked. Scarlet smacked him on the back of his head as he did. "Ow, what?"

"How insensitive are you, dude?" Scarlet replied.

"Sorry," Neptune mumbled.

"She was killed by a fearsome creature that we had never before seen. It was grimm in appearance, but had speech and could change its form. When I killed it, it turned into an emaciated person," Zambara said matter-of-factly, paying no mind to the interaction between the two men.

"Hey, we've heard of those. There was that thing in Atlas they called a hound. Did it look like a dog?" Sun asked.

"No. It was a winged creature, a dark parody of my master. It caught us unawares, after we had already been in a battle. If I had been more vigilant, maybe she would still be alive," Zambara said, emotion coloring her voice for the first time.

"Hey, it's not your fault," Nolan said gently. "I'm sure you did everything you could. And I think we might have an idea of what that thing was that attacked you."

"We do?" Neptune asked.

"Do you never read the reports that the Academy puts out? We know Salem can make human/grimm hybrids. And if she sent one after your master, Zambara, then she must have been an important person. What can you tell us about her?" Sage asked.

"How do you know of the eternal foe?" Zambara asked, frowning.

"Uh, Salem? Everyone knows about Salem. She's kinda trying to destroy the world. Making solid progress, too. You been getting anything from the CCT feeds? I know they've been spotty lately, but I'd think you'd have heard, even way out here," Sun said.

"My master and I try to stay out of the public's eye, precisely so Salem cannot find us. What do you mean about the world being destroyed?"

"Oh boy. Well, it's a long story. There somewhere we can get out of the heat so we can go over it?" Sun asked.

"How did you and your master know of Salem, if you've been out here in the desert this entire time?" Scarlet asked, eyes narrowing as he appraised Zambara.

Zambara mulled this over and came to a decision. "It seems that an exchanging of knowledge would be prudent. Follow me." And without another word, she set off over the sands, leaving her master's pyre behind.

"I knew it!" Sun was exclaiming. "I knew that we were on the right track!"

"So, you're telling us that the Summer Maiden has been in Menagerie for generations, the power getting passed from person to person? And you've known about Salem the entire time?" Neptune asked, sitting cross legged on a sandy mat on the floor of the large cave Zambara had brought them to.

"You all thought I was crazy, but who's laughing now?" Sun continued, overcome with glee.

"Sun, will you shut up for a second? We're trying to learn something here," Sage said.

"Right, right. But we did it! We found her! This is awesome!"

"Please excuse our friend," Scarlet said.

"He is certainly energetic," Zambara said, frowning at Sun. "And yes. I am the latest person to inherit the strength of the Maiden. I will need to find an apprentice after I've mastered the new powers I have."

"We might not have time for all of that," Sage said. "Salem is no longer operating solely from the shadows. Two of the kingdoms have fallen, a third is on the brink of falling, and a last stand is being prepared in Vacuo right now. We need, you, Zambara. Cinder, that woman that we thought you were, has Maiden powers as well, and has been hunting down the other Maidens. That creature that attacked you and your master was likely sent after you specifically to get the Maiden power."

"If she is trying to get the power, shouldn't I stay hidden?" Zambara asked. "It sounds like things are not going well for the people fighting against her."

"Salem has nearly unlimited resources. If she knows you're here, then the attacks won't stop. You'll be better off with the rest of the defense force," Scarlet said.

"You can't stay here!" Sun exclaimed, aghast. "I'm gonna get my ass kicked if I go back empty handed."

"Is that the only reason you want her to come back with us?" Scarlet asked Sun.

"No! Of course not! We could use your help fighting Salem, too, Zambara. We've already lost some good friends. I don't want to lose anyone else, and you can help us with that," Sun pleaded.

Zambara considered this for a moment. "I'll do it. I'll journey west with you. My master always talked about keeping our power away from Salem and using it to help our people. It sounds like the best way to help now is to actively confront her instead of hiding away."

"Just like that?" Neptune asked, incredulous.

Sun elbowed him. "Great! That's awesome! You'll love it in Vacuo! It has deserts a lot like Menagerie, Shade is an awesome Academy, Theodore is cool, you can meet the Winter Maiden, and I can't wait to see the look on Ghira's face when he finds out the Summer Maiden has been hiding out in Menagerie for decades!"

"Thank you, Zambara. I know it's a lot, to ask you to leave your land behind, especially right after the loss of your master. We're in your debt," Sage said, inclining his head to the woman. Nolan nodded in agreement.

"Defeating Salem is the ultimate goal of the Maidens, right? I was always told that a time would come when we needed to be ready, and it seems that time is now. It would be better if you had found us sooner, and then maybe Okhozi would still be alive. Her mastery over the elements was unparalleled. I'm a poor imitation of her," Zambara said.

"Yeah, sorry. You didn't make it easy on us though. You weren't very easy to find, believe me," Sun said.

Scarlet rolled his eyes with a pained expression on his face. "You and Neptune have zero tact, you know that right?"

"What? They weren't. I am sorry we didn't find you soon enough to meet Okhozi. She sounds like she was great," Sun said.

"She was. Fierce, independent, brave. The world is lesser without her in it." Zambara bowed her head in a moment of silence. Sun and his team followed suit.

"It sounds like there is no time to lose," Zambara eventually said. How will we get to Vacuo?"

"Easy, we just need to get back to Kuo Kuana and get on the next airship," Sun said. "We can head there whenever you're ready."

"Let's go, then," Zambara said. She stood and picked up her staff.

"You, uh, need to pack anything?" Neptune asked.

"No," she said simply. "I am used to living off the land. I will be fine."

"Alright, let's do this!" Sun exclaimed.

Together the five Huntsmen and the Summer Maiden started the journey back to Kuo Kuana. Sun, ever eager, had a bounce to his step. That was easy! I knew we were on the right track. Things are coming up Sun. I can't wait to see Ghira and Theodore and tell them I was right.

High, high above the five figures trekking across the sand, a winged creature circled, and watched, and waited. Now wasn't the time to strike. It could be patient, though, when it needed to be. There would be a time when the figures were less alert, and then it would make its move. Its partner had been too hasty and attacked before they had caught up to them. They had paid the price for this, but the surviving creature was the craftier of the two. It was confident that it would succeed where its partner had not. All it had to do was wait for the right opportunity, and then move in for the kill. Content, it kept circling, and watching, and waiting.

Author's Note

Hey everyone. This is the last of the interlude chapters, and my next update will be the first chapter of part two. That update also won't be out for a couple weeks, because I'll be on vacation! Summer is here, and with it comes T-ball and swimming lessons and everything else my kids have going on. I've been quite a bit busier these last few weeks than I have been in a while, but after our trip things will slow back down. When I started this project, I never meant to be on a weekly upload schedule, and so far I've been able to stick to it without issue. Rest assured, the chapters will start coming again in mid-July, with the first one being a look into everyone's goings on the night before they leave for Atlas. I look forward to sharing that one with you!

As always, thank you for reading! I appreciate all of you.

-Flair