Chapter 17
Ruby and her group fought and survived Darth Ira, a member of Salem's inner council. The same could not be said for Raven's forces. After leveling the remains of Kuroyuri, the group made it back to Higanbana and met with Mace Windu, who brought them back to Mistral.
Umbra was in class, listening to the teacher drown on and on about the history of Mistral and the conquest of the local war bands during the creation of the kingdom. She scanned the room looking for any hidden Jedi symbols. That was her job after all. Salem reinforced that during their last check-up. The students were mostly normal. She found a bully like Cardin every so often. She found a Faunus or two. Some of them were part of a peaceful protest group. The White Fang fucked them over recently though. But no new Jedi were found since Ravik found one. A female faunus was using the force to power her strength. She tried to play it off as her semblance…
"You better be paying attention." Kaelor said, poking her with a pencil. Rosa glanced over at him.
"Why?" Rosa asked.
"In case you get asked a question." Kaelor whispered.
"If you don't bring attention to us, the teacher won't ask any questions." Rosa said.
"Fine." Kaelor leaned back in his seat. Kaelor leaned over to the girl next to him and Rosa shook her head as she started giggling. She couldn't believe some girls liked that style of man. Kaelor played the flirt. She felt the jealousy some girls had for her because she was on his team. She would gladly give them a chance at him. Too bad they'd probably end up dead.
Rosa sighed and focused her attention back on the lecture. He changed from one slide to another. She took surface-level notes about the events, but she could barely focus. She didn't care about this at all. The teacher talked about the different clans.
"This may be why warrior clans like the Branwen's have survived to this day. The culture of Mistral has always created small individual group dynamics that rise to counter the large main groups like the kingdom." The professor said. Rosa recognized the name. It was the clan that Ruby's uncle and Yang's mother came from. Rosa raised her hand.
"Yes, Miss Ray?" The professor asked.
"Is that Branwen clan still active today?" Rosa asked.
"Yes, unfortunately. They are a dangerous group that we have been trying for years to squash, but unfortunately, they are nothing if not hardy. They are a secretive clan who have killed more than a few hunters, including people I knew. Do not go after them, students." The professor said. Ravik raised his hand.
"Mister Onyx?" The professor said.
"Do we know anything about who their leader is?" Ravik asked.
"It's reported that the leader is a woman in red. Most who have seen her never made it back. Some have called her a witch. There have been whispers about her. We believe her name to be Raven Branwen. But once again, do not go looking for them. We don't need to add any of your names to the death toll." He said.
The lesson continued on. Yang didn't like talking about Raven. Rosa only heard her talk about Raven when she was talking with Qrow. She knew Raven used the dark side but refused to be a Sith. She knew that Raven had killed many Sith Lords. Salem believed she had the Spring Maiden with her, so she was a target. She had no idea what a maiden was, or why the Sith cared -which really annoyed her- but she knew she would be told when they thought she needed to know.
After the class was over Rosa took out her scroll. Emerald stepped next to her almost from the shadows.
"You're up. Ready to fight?" Emerald asked.
"It should let out some steam." Rosa said. Their next class was a combat class. Her daggers were sitting on her side.
"Last class for today." Kaelor said, walking behind Rosa. She sighed. As much as the other girls loved his 'radiant ball of optimism and sunshine' routine, she couldn't stand it. She felt the absolute hatred Kaelor had for these people. She knew he would just as soon kill any of his groupies as glance in their general direction. But those dumb bitches were so caught up, they couldn't see it.
She felt Ravik behind Kaelor. He was listening to music if you could call it that. They called it Synth or something. She didn't understand.
"You ready?" Kaelor asked.
"Of course, I am." Rosa said. She almost heard Ravik preparing a biting remark. She glanced back and saw a smile on his face.
"I don't want to hear anything from you." Rosa said.
"Come on, you're so harsh." Ravik said. Rosa rolled her eyes.
Rosa was on the stage for her fight. She held out a dagger and a pistol. She was in a comfortable stance waiting for her opponent. He stepped onto the stage. He was a tall man with a somewhat muscular build. He had a serious aura to him. He took out a staff. The tip of the staff opened up and created electric volts like an electrostaff the MagnaGuard. She wondered if it could deflect bullets.
Her opponent, Desmond Duke, was a danger. He was fast enough that he liked to get in close with his opponent. He could take a few hits, so he wasn't a glass cannon.
"I've been wondering about your team." Desmond said.
"Don't worry about them. I'm your opponent." Rosa said.
"Once I beat you, I think I'll take on the rest of them." Desmond said. Rosa glared at him. The teacher stepped back and began the fight. Rosa raised her pistol and fired at Desmond. He brought his electrostaff up and blocked the first two strikes. She rushed in. She needed to keep him occupied. He realized it too. He stepped back and she jumped in the air. He pressed a button on his electrostaff and the bottom folded in. The electrostaff quickly became a mace. The electric charge changed to fire.
Rosa was behind Desmond as he spun around. She ducked under the first strike. She rushed in and slashed him with the dagger. She tried to move away, but he was faster than she thought. She was hit by the mace and flung a few feet away. She got back to her feet.
"Dust." Rosa said. She knew now that each type of weapon used a different kind of dust. He probably had a few other types of weapons. He would try to be a Jedi battlemaster if he was a Jedi. He tossed his mace in the air and caught it. It was an axe now. It had a massive spike of rock on the bottom and behind the axe head.
He rushed forward. Rosa jumped in the air as he swung at her. She brought her legs down on his head, causing him to slam into the floor. She rolled and held onto her pistol. He spun and got up. She fired at him. A large chunk of rock dust appeared and blocked the attack. He pushed the dust block forward. Rosa dodged the attack. It slammed into the shield around the arena.
"Try to keep it clean up there." The teacher said.
Desmond rolled and was holding a new weapon. Rosa widened her eyes as the weapon had become a rocket launcher. A massive ball of water came out. Rosa tried to get out of the way ball. She dodged the attack and saw the water slam into the shield.
"Did you listen to the teacher?" Rosa asked. Another ball came rushing at her. Rosa reached for her belt and quickly pulled out a shard of fire dust. She activated it and tossed it at the ball.
Steam filled the arena. Rosa closed her eyes. She knew exactly where he was. She rushed forward. She changed her mask to the teacher but did not change her presence. She jumped toward Desmond. A sword of ice came out of the mist and blocked the dagger.
Rosa smiled. Desmond looked at Rosa and was confused.
"Why do you look like the professor?" Desmond asked.
Rosa fired twice, hitting Desmond. She was on him. She put away her weapons and grabbed his hand. She brought her knee into his hand, subtly using the force to enhance her attacks. He grunted as he dropped his weapon. She let go and spun around, kicking him in the face. She took out a dagger and slashed him twice. She jumped back and quickly took off the mask. The steam was fading now. She rushed forward and slashed at his arm. He dropped his weapon again. She jumped up, kicking him twice in the face. He flew backward. The buzzer rang.
Desmond did use the force. He also had a small Jedi symbol tattooed on his wrist. Desmond was a Jedi. The steam was gone.
"That was an interesting fight. Excellent work." The teacher said.
After the class was over, Emerald stood next to her.
"So…" Emerald asked.
"He's one of them." Rosa explained why she thought so.
"Good. That makes two other Jedi we discovered." Emerald said.
They went back to the dorm room. Rosa called Kaiser.
"What is it?" Kaiser said.
"Are you free?" Rosa asked.
"Are you looking for more time with it?" Kaiser asked.
"I am." Rosa said. She was learning from the Holocron that Ira gave them two weeks ago. She had started to learn Sith sorcery and Alchemy. She wasn't good at it right now, but she had been asking Valum to help her. Valum wondered why she was so interested all of a sudden, but she had showed her the basics.
"You know where to go." Kaiser said.
She opened a portal and saw Kaiser in the former whore house that Kaiser took over. He ended that business and made it a weapons depot. Ironically much of the old clientele came back, as many of them traded in weapons.
"Thanks." Umbra said.
"You should look for a Holocron yourself." Kaiser said.
"Because those are just lying about everywhere." Umbra said. Kaiser shook his head. Umbra opened the Holocron and began learning. Kaiser was there as well, learning some of the secrets of the dark side. He used this Holocron shortly after his fight with Ruby and her team to figure out why his force drain didn't work on them. He wasted too much energy at the start, which was a major factor in his loss.
They learned that people could resist the force drain if they had a strong will or if they started developing skills to counter it. That was the first lesson Kaiser sat in on. Since then, he had stayed in for many more.
Umbra spent an hour attempting to create some Sith magic. She held her hands together and started to gather dark side energy into a ball. She was struggling to keep the energy in such a small form.
"O, dark powers, gather together to the form I desire you to become." Umbra said. It was a simple chant that helped focus the attack. Once she was stronger with this ability she wouldn't need a chant. But she got it to form.
"A weak version, but it is a first step." Darth Ertias said. The keeper of the Holocron, a Sith Lord, lived seven hundred years ago, and was once a member of Salem's inner council. He was a Faunus Sith, part Owl.
Umbra let the dark spell sizzle out. Kaiser watched her as she created the spell.
"What about the other types of sorcery?" Kaiser asked.
"The other spells. This is the most basic spell. You need to master this spell to be able to branch off into the other types." Ertias said.
"Is it channeling the darkness into a form?" Kaiser asked.
"That skill is the basis of sorcery, yes." Ertias said.
"Is it supposed to be this hard?" Umbra asked.
"For those unused to the more arcane ways of the force." Ertias said.
"I think that is enough for today." Vanus's voice came out. Umbra and Kaiser turned around. Vanus stood there with her arms folded.
"This is what you've been doing in secret my apprentice?" Vanus said the last word with some venom.
"Master, I…" Umbra started.
"Silence." Vanus said. She raised her hand. In the blink of an eye, she created the ball of darkness. She let the darkness touch a pistol that was sitting out. The gun started to shift into Spider Grimm.
"What are you doing here?" Kaiser asked.
"I came to check on my apprentice. That Holocron was from your master, was it not?" Vanus asked.
"It was." Kaiser said.
"I thought so. Umbra, have you not considered why he gave it to you? Why he gave you a Holocron that used to belong to his hated Rival?" Vanus said.
"He didn't tell us that." Umbra said.
"Umbra, we don't give knowledge for free." Vanus closed the Holocron. "If you wanted to learn sorcery you could have asked someone who isn't dead or a cannibal."
"Isn't knowledge our power?" Umbra asked.
"Yes, Umbra. But you were always expected to learn sorcery." Vanus said, more annoyed than anything.
"I'm sorry master." Umbra said.
"Ira gave you that so you could learn the tactics of the woman he already counters. He wanted you to waste time doing things that don't work. That is what you should expect from Sith. Kaiser, you should also get a new Holocron. Ira is always looking for new things to add to his fighting style. You need some secrets as well." Vanus said.
"Didn't you just say we shouldn't trust other Sith?" Kaiser said.
"I hate Ira. Anything that hurts him helps me. Including helping his students prepare to overthrow him if he ever shows himself weak." Vanus said. Kaiser understood.
"I see." Kaiser said.
"Now, Umbra, Salem would like to have a word with you." Vanus said.
"But…"
"You aren't getting punished." Vanus said. She opened the portal and pushed Umbra through.
Umbra was in Salem's throne room. Vanus walked in right behind her. Vanus took a seat. Umbra went to one knee.
"Welcome back Umbra. I hear you discovered a Jedi today. I want to congratulate you." Salem said.
"Thank you, Lady Salem." Umbra said.
"Now the real reason I called you here. In three days, I want you to return to Beacon. It will be a simple reconnaissance mission. Check to see how things are going. We need to keep an eye on Vale, as it is out of our reach for now. But we are putting strain on it." Salem said.
"Oh." Umbra said.
"Yes?" Salem asked.
"Just Recon?" Umbra asked.
"Yes." Salem said. It would be simple enough.
"Is there anything you want me to be looking out for?" Rosa asked.
"Jedi for one. I want to see how the city is handling the aftermath of the Vytal festival." Salem said.
"I can do that." Umbra said.
"Do not engage any Jedi Masters." Salem said.
"Understood." Umbra said.
Umbra returned to Haven. She had three days to prepare. Emerald knocked on her door and opened it.
"What did Salem want to talk about?" Emerald asked.
"She gave me a simple mission. I'll be going back to Vale for a short while." Rosa said.
"Oh." Emerald said.
"Recon." Rosa explained.
"I wonder why she's sending you there. She's sending Kaelor and Ravik to Atlas and Vacuo briefly. I'm staying here, probably to keep an eye on the Jedi." Emerald said.
Emerald was about to leave when Rosa stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
"What is it?" Emerald asked.
"I just… Why did you become a Sith?" Rosa asked. Emerald just looked at her. She knew that Rosa had been struggling recently.
"Do you have time?" Emerald asked. Rosa shook her head. Emerald stepped back in and closed the door. Emerald sat down next to Rosa and let out a sigh.
"When I was little, I was on the streets. As far as I can tell, whoever gave birth to me abandoned me. I have no idea who my parents were. And frankly, I don't care anymore. Whoever they were means nothing to me. It was difficult on the streets. I learned how to fend for myself. I had a friend or two here and there. Eventually one of us would leave and never come back." Emerald started.
"Where were you born?" Rosa asked.
"Here. In Mistral. In the lower levels." Emerald said. She wondered if Ravik and Kaelor were from Atlas and Vacuo now.
"I was seven when I first killed someone. It was a police officer, I think. He was hitting me with a baton. I was hurt. He was going to kill me and something snapped. I let all the anger out that had been building in me for years." Emerald said. She remembered the sight.
"I used the force to snap his neck." Emerald explained.
"Is that when the Sith found you?" Rosa asked.
"No. That was six months later. I carved my own little section of Mistral. What I didn't know was that I had killed someone Vanus was over. She came by and almost killed me. She showed me how weak I was. She just used the force. Once I learned I wasn't the only one with that power, I knew that I needed someone to train me. I convinced Vanus that I could be trained. It also helped when I showed her my semblance. It was then she took me in." Emerald said.
"So, you joined just for power?" Rosa asked.
"It was that power that brought me in, but if I was so shallow that power was all I wanted, I wouldn't be here today. No, once I saw how much I lacked, I knew I had to do better. Vanus had a few other students. They were all born into the Sith. Mercury was one of them. They were brutal with me. But so was I to them. As I gained power, I learned that I had gifts that others didn't." Emerald said.
"Sith sorcery?" Rosa asked.
"Yes. I learned about the Jedi here too. I learned that they had power like the Sith did. They used it to help people, or so they claimed. You know as well as I do that we can slip through. But to see so many people slip through, to see Mistral's lower class slip through? There could be no excuse. The Jedi have power, but they never use it to help those who need help." Emerald said.
"Is that why you are a Sith?" Rosa asked.
"No. I don't hold to that thought anymore. I see it as a hypocrisy of the Jedi, but not of the Sith. The Jedi pretend to care about the weak, but they don't. We don't care about the weak at all. We know where the weak belong. Once I realized that, I began to see the weakness in the Jedi way everywhere. They disgust me because they refuse to allow themselves to be what they should be. Everything that happens because they refuse to take responsibility. No, they let their morals stop them from doing what is needed. We don't. I don't." Emerald said.
"I see." Rosa said.
"If you have power, and you care about the plight of the common man, as the Jedi claim they do, how can they let things get this bad? The Sith have done nothing except fuel what was already there. If the Jedi actually cared, they would have stopped Mistral long ago from becoming the cesspool it is now. It wouldn't have taken many Jedi." Emerald said.
"Haven't we been hunting them down though?" Rosa asked.
"There have been points where we have been. But there were many times were we couldn't. Like the last twenty years. What has allowed us to take hold of the city was here for those last twenty years, but the Jedi failed." Emerald said.
"What happened twenty years ago?" Rosa asked.
"Twenty years ago, we had twelve Sith in a council with Salem. Six of those Sith decided that they no longer wanted to follow Salem, so they started a civil war. Memores was the only one of the council members from before the civil war. Vox, Vanus, and Ira came out of the war. Our numbers were more than halved. The war itself lasted ten years. We've been recovering for the last ten years." Emerald explained.
"How could there have been those who rejected Salem?" Umbra asked.
"They believed Salem was too passive. They didn't have her vision. They at one point assaulted the throne room. Salem herself killed four of the leaders, along with over a hundred other Sith that day personally. The rumors of what she did have been used to inspire fear into the hearts of children." Emerald said.
"How strong were those Sith?" Rosa asked.
"Some were as strong as Darth Magis. Most were as strong as us." Emerald said. Rosa shook her head.
"Thank you." Rosa said. Emerald got up and left the room. Rosa was sitting on her bed thinking of what all that meant. Could she escape? Salem herself seemed not to feel her want to escape. She didn't see the civil war that happened. Could Salem be blindsided?
What about this Raven Branwen? She has yet to be discovered by Salem. Salem is looking for her actively but has yet to find her. And she's without the Jedi. Rosa would need to find Yang and ask about her.
Rosa went into Mistral itself to go to a boba tea place she had heard about. She knew what Boba tea was but hadn't had it yet. She finally saw it and went in. It was a small shop with a few other things besides the boba teas. But she was determined. She got her drink, but when she turned around, she saw Kaelor there. He had a smile on his face and waved her over.
Rosa took a seat across from Kaelor. She folded her arms and stared at him.
"Are you stalking me?" Rosa asked.
"This is complete happenstance." Kaelor said as he sipped his drink. Her drink came along.
"You really want me to believe that?" Rosa said.
"I don't care what you think." Kaelor said. Rosa took a sip and liked the drink.
"Why are you, you know, one of us?" Rosa asked. Kaelor put his drink down. He leaned back in his chair and looked around.
"We're good to say that word here." Kaelor said.
"Are you going to start?" Rosa asked.
"I hate the Jedi. I want the Jedi to stop existing." Kaelor said.
"There has to be a reason. You aren't just a Sith because you want to be. There has to be some foundational aspect to your ideology." Rosa said.
"If you really want to know, fine. I was born into the Sith. My parents were killed by a Jedi who attacked the dark lands when I was little. She was a silver-eyed warrior. She killed many Sith that night, including three council members." Kaelor said.
"Just a single Jedi?" Rosa asked.
"Yes. A single Jedi. She was a blur. She wiped out hordes of Grimm with her eyes. She killed so many Sith that night. I don't know why she attacked, or how she got in. But she changed everything. We were winning the Civil War. But after her attack, we were so weakened that those other Sith were able to attack." Kaelor said. He had a distant look to him. "I had to learn quickly. Our entire year did. It was brutal. Less than half of us made it to the next stage of training. I advanced quickly. Before the War ended, they bombed the schools. I lost everything again. Salem herself came down to the school and looked for survivors. She found me."
"So, you gave your loyalty to her?" Rosa asked.
"Yes. She was the only reason I lived. If you saw my back, you'd see a massive burn scar. She didn't let me die." Kaelor said.
"Do you have any philosophical reasons to hate the Jedi?" Rosa asked.
"They killed my parents, which allowed the enemy to bomb me. My opinion of the Jedi isn't the highest, but that's not it. I hate how self-righteous they are. I hate how they have kept this endless war going. I hate how they think they can move in the shadows and affect the history of our world. If they just came out in the open long ago, we could have seen who the force truly champions, but no. They have wasted hundreds of years and countless generations fighting this war." Kaelor said.
"The Jedi are out in the open now." Rosa said.
"For how long?" Kaelor said.
They finished their drinks.
"Tell me Umbra, what is the galaxy at large like?" Kaelor said.
"Violent, corrupt, and degenerate." Umbra said.
"What a lovely way to talk about your old home." Kaelor said.
"That's what I remember. Maku sent me to shitholes, so that's what I experienced." Umbra said.
"Fair enough." Kaelor said.
Rosa was on the roof of the school. She was looking up into the sky. Night had fallen.
"What are you doing up here?" Ravik asked. Rosa looked at him. He was getting impatient.
"Were you looking for me?" Rosa asked.
"You're the last one not in the dorm." Ravik said.
"Do you need me?" Rosa asked.
"We're making sure you didn't go out with those Jedi friends of yours." Ravik said.
"Fuck you." Rosa said.
"Touched a nerve?" Ravik said.
"You know just what to say to get me pissed off." Rosa said. Ravik looked up at the night sky.
"This world… I just too small." Ravik said.
"What do you mean?" Rosa asked.
"I want to leave this place behind. I know you've been asking people why they became Sith, so I'll just tell you the reason. I don't care about the Jedi or the Sith. But the Sith are the ones who will allow me to escape this world." Ravik said.
"How do you figure?" Rosa asked.
"This world has an effect where you can't leave. Like a mass shadow. Some power is keeping us here, but that doesn't need to be the case. Salem wants to leave this world and has the power to do it. I never want to put eyes on Remnant again when we leave. The Jedi can keep it for all I care." Ravik said.
"Nothing deeper than that then." Rosa said.
"Not everyone needs to have a philosophy degree to justify themselves." Ravik bit back. "But maybe if I did have some sort of 'deep philosophy' you'd listen to me like you did Cyan."
"I killed him if you remember." Umbra said.
"How'd it feel to kill him? Was it satisfying?" Ravik asked.
"Yes…" Umbra said.
"There's something else there that you're not saying." Ravik said.
"It wasn't as satisfying as I thought it was going to be." Umbra admitted.
"There we are." Ravik said.
"Why do you have to be so annoying?" Rosa asked. Ravik turned around and left.
Rosa put on her Sith robes and everything she would need to complete her mission. She opened a portal and stepped through. She was on the rooftops of the dorms. Her dorm building. It was nighttime in Vale right now. She took off a bag she had and emptied the contents.
Electro binoculars, rope, a med kit, a ration pack, a map of the city, a commlink, and a scroll. She grabbed the scroll and turned it on. A small headphone came out from the back of the scroll. She put it in.
"Umbra, do you copy?" A voice rang out.
"Who is this?" Umbra asked.
"Darth Magis." She said. Umbra shook her head. Her voice was somewhat distorted.
"I hear you." Umbra whispered.
"We need you to check in on the school itself first. There should be a small camera inside the bag. Can you see it?" Magis asked. Umbra looked through the bag and found a pin.
"Is this it?" Umbra asked.
"Yes. We can see you now. Attach it to you and keep this scroll near you. That's how we'll stay in contact." Magis said.
"Understood." Umbra said.
"We need you to descend through the building. We need to see the security level on the inside." Magis said. Umbra quickly put everything back in the bag and saw the door. There was a keypad, but Umbra still remembered the old code. She went in. She moved silently down the stairs. She felt the different students still sleeping. She quickly moved down the hallway, surprised to see that things hadn't really changed. She found a communal area and quickly poked her head out. There were two people there. One of them had a lightsaber.
"That's useful information." Umbra didn't recognize who the Jedi was. She used the force to conceal herself and moved along the hallway. As she was moving, she turned and saw two more people in the hall: another Jedi, and another hunter.
"I wonder if Glynda was wise to implement the new patrols." One of the people said.
"It's safer these days to do it." The first Jedi said.
Umbra moved further along. She went to the next floor. She felt people on patrol.
"They're on the move down here." Umbra said.
"Be careful. You aren't allowed to kill anyone." Magis said.
"I understand." Umbra said. Two Jedi, and two hunters. She was seeing a pattern. They were scared if they had this much protection for the students. But that was understandable. Vytal was only a few months ago.
Umbra ducked a couch to avoid one of the hunters. He stopped and spun his head around.
"Anyone there? Remember kids, you aren't allowed to wonder after midnight." He said. Umbra stayed still. He was on edge too. She didn't even allow herself to breathe. But then she heard him moving along.
"This is frying my nerves." He said. Rosa continued along.
"Interesting. They have a curfew." Magis said. Rosa got to a set of doors she would never forget.
"Why did you stop?" Magis asked.
"This was my room." Rosa said.
"You don't have time to waste here." Magis said.
"I just need to check something." Rosa said. There was no one in the room. She quickly opened the door using her Beacon ID.
"What are you doing?" Magis demanded.
"We have intel. Four on each floor. Two Jedi and two hunters." Rosa said. She slipped into the room and quickly closed the door. She stood up. The room was left exactly the same. She looked over and saw her bed. The lone bed. Away from the others. She looked back at the four hanging in the room.
She went to a drawer and opened it. She found a set of dice. The dice she used during that last night in that last game of Sabacc. The best night of her life. Rosa put them in her pocket and searched the room. She found a roll of Blake's ribbon, a spare purple bandana Yang used, Weiss's blue necklace she sometimes wore, and one of the crosses Ruby used to pin her cape back. She put the items in her bag.
"You need to get out of there. You using your ID has alerted the system." Magis said. "I hope this nostalgia trip was worth it." Umbra opened the window and started to climb down. Before she was all the way down, she used the force to close the window.
"They're in the room." Magis said. "Activating one of Mercury's bug's now."
"No one's in here. Could it have been a malfunction?" Someone said.
"Odd that it came up with Rosa Reidan. Maybe it was that algorithm that was used during the Vytal festival." The second voice said.
"You are lucky." Magis said.
"I know." Umbra said. Umbra finished climbing down the rest of the way. She landed and looked toward the school.
"They still haven't finished rebuilding the tower." Umbra reported.
"We assumed they wouldn't." Magis said. Umbra moved away from the dorms.
"Stop. Look up at the watchtowers." Magis ordered. Umbra got to a safe corner of the building and took out the electro binoculars. She zoomed into the watchtowers and saw clone snipers on the lookout.
"I see four in the nearest tower to me, but there may be more clones." Umbra reported. She spun her binoculars to the next tower.
"Six there. Probably two in my blind spot on the first tower." Umbra said.
"Can you see any in the building itself?" Magis asked. Umbra looked at windows and saw some of them were open. She zoomed in more and saw the tips of snipers poking out.
"I see a few all along the school." Umbra said.
"Keep moving. Avoid moonlight and don't go faster than needed." Magis instructed. Umbra moved further along. She got to the gates of Beacon and was ordered to stop once more.
"We're going to need you to turn around. Get as good a look as you can." Magis ordered. Umbra turned around and saw the courtyard had a few hunters patrolling the grounds. She moved the camera so it would get as good a look at Beacon as possible.
"We're collecting information now. We need you to get to Vale." Magis said.
"Should I use a portal now?" Umbra asked.
"No. You have to go on foot. A portal will bring the Jedi down on you." Magis said.
"Okay, so do you have a vehicle ready for me?" Umbra asked.
"You have to find one." Magis said. Umbra imagined her with a massive smile.
"Are you serious?" Rosa asked.
"Very." Rosa sighed as she had to stealthily get past the security patrolling the grounds and get to a parking lot. She looked at the cars parked. She didn't know which one to take.
"Go steal a car!" Magis yelled.
"That may take too long." Rosa said. She stopped when she found a motorcycle. She smiled. 'Yang would definitely approve.' She thought. She went to the bike and remembered the lessons that Maku taught her on how to hotwire speeders. The builds were similar enough. She finished hotwiring it and got on it.
"I can't believe you." Magis said. The light turned on. Her heart dropped.
"Shit." Rosa said. She quickly got the Motorcycle moving. Right before she left Beacon, there was a shot fired at her. It glanced her shoulder.
"You couldn't have kept the light off?" Magis asked.
"I thought I got it. I guess I was wrong." Rosa said.
"We have a report of a Motorcycle theft at Beacon." Rosa heard come in.
"Fuck." Rosa muttered. She sped out of the Beacon parking lot and was on the main road leaving Beacon.
"You have to get out of there quickly." Magis said.
"Working on it." Rosa said. She was still getting shot at. She would have been impressed by the range of the blasters if they were aimed anywhere else.
"You alerted them. Lucky for you they still think you're just a car thief." Magis said.
"I see the main gate. It's down. Can I use my lightsaber to take it out?" Rosa asked. She grabbed her Jedi lightsaber and waited for the clearance.
"We need you to get out of there. Go for it." Magis said. She turned on her green blade and threw it ahead of her. It slammed into the control station at the gates. She used the force to quickly grab it. The gates started to open. A ramp started to rise.
"What?" Rosa said.
"Hold on." Magis said. The ramp was meant to stop cars from entering the facility. But now, it just gave her a jump. She was in the air for a few seconds, momentarily leaving her seat until the bike slammed into the ground. Her body slammed into the seat. She let out a groan.
"I'm going to feel that later." Rosa said.
"You have police coming after you." Magis said.
"How much time do I have?" Rosa asked.
"About two minutes before they come in sight." Magis said.
"When the hell did they get so fast?!" Rosa yelled.
"After Vytal." Magis said. Rosa heard a crunching noise from Magis's side.
"Are you seriously fucking eating right now?" Rosa asked.
"That's just your imagination." Magis said mockingly. Rosa grunted as she drove toward Vale.
"Any destination I should be moving toward?" Rosa asked.
"We have people at the docks. If you can make it there, you'll be good." Magis said.
"Wasn't I supposed to get the rest of Vale?" Umbra asked.
"You were, but that bike messed it all up." Magis said. Umbra saw the police now. They got behind her.
"Pull over!" One of them announced.
"No likely." Umbra mumbled. "How could everything go this wrong so quickly?"
"You had to get a bike." Magis said.
"I have an idea. Oh, this is so fucking stupid." Umbra said.
"What is it?"
"You know how there's that massive hill leading to Vale?" Umbra asked.
"Yes." Magis said.
"If I go fast enough, I can get to the top of the buildings at the intersection." Umbra said.
"You're right. You are stupid." Magis said.
"Best chance of getting away. I see it." Umbra turned the bike and pushed it as hard as she could. She felt the wheels leave the ground. She still held onto the bike as it started moving toward one of the buildings. She saw that it started to go down. She let go of the bike and was in the air for a few seconds. She used the force to push her forward. She felt the air rushing past her as the building's hard roof came closer.
"This is so stupid." Magis said. Umbra braced herself and raised a force shield. Her body slammed into the roof, rolling along it. She slammed into the outer wall of the roof. The bike slammed into a light pole. Umbra got up. She felt cuts all over her.
"Still alive." Umbra said.
"Get out of there." Magis said. Umbra gathered the force and jumped from one roof to another. She was running when she collapsed.
"What's wrong now?" Magis yelled. Umbra brought her hand to her leg and saw blood once she brought it back.
"I hope that isn't too deep." Rosa said.
"What's going on? The camera's broken!" Magis yelled.
"I'm bleeding." Rosa said.
"Power through it." Magis said.
"Can't I just use a portal?" Rosa asked.
"No. The Jedi don't know it's us yet." Magis said. Umbra gritted her teeth as she jumped to another rooftop. She reached into the med kit and pulled out a bacta gel. She stopped on a roof and quickly applied the paste and wrapped her leg with the gauze that she had. She looked through her backpack and saw the rope. She tied it to an AC unit on the building. She needed to get off the rooftops. She gritted her teeth as she repelled the building. She felt more blood over her. She grabbed the sleeves of her robes and quickly ripped them off. She tore them up and wrapped them around the wounds she could see. She was glad it was still night, but she knew that dawn was coming sooner than they thought it would. She left the alley and walked down the streets. No one was there yet. She heard the sounds of police all around.
"All this because of a stupid wire." Rosa said. She walked into another alley and stopped behind a dumpster. She looked at her arms and saw they were covered in cuts. She used the rest of the tube of paste to cover the wounds.
"You need to get moving." Magis said.
"I know that!" Umbra shouted.
She moved toward the docks. She wished she still had the bike with her. She used the force to go run. The sounds of the police were fading away.
"The police are still looking for you around where you crashed. They haven't found anything yet." Magis said. Rosa was able to see the docks now. She stopped to catch her breath. She used the force for a while. She looked at the candy shop she once stopped at. Images of her with Team RRWBY walking to the docks flooded her mind. That was before she learned the Sith were here. That was before the masters revealed they were here. That was before Cya beat her.
It was in those early days. She smiled. She took the headphone out of her ear. She took off the button camera. She tossed it. She ripped open her rations packet. She chewed the nutrition cube in the pack and grabbed the water. She drank everything down. She hurt everywhere.
"All over a bike. What would Yang say?" Rosa asked. She saw her team talking and arguing with each other. She smiled at that image. If only those days could have lasted. The smile faded. Those days couldn't last. It was doomed to failure. It was doomed because there was no trust. Maku made sure of that. She put the headphone back in.
"What was that?" Magis asked.
"Just needed a quick break. My body couldn't do everything all at once. Rosa said.
"You are right there. Just get to the docks." Magis ordered. Rosa got up, feeling pain everywhere. She saw the first rays of the sun shining over the horizon.
"You took too long." Magis said. "This is why you should listen to your superiors. Stupid mistakes like this don't have to happen. But you just had to find a motorcycle."
Rosa slowly walked toward the docks. She was starting to feel better. She could feel her aura activating and the bacta past working. She was healing. She didn't even need to limp. She grabbed what used to be her sleeves and ripped them off. She checked the cut on her leg, and it had stopped bleeding.
She saw a White Fang troop standing close by the ship. He waved her over and she shook her head. She continued to walk down the city street. She got to the docks and saw the ship, right before a giant ball of water ripped through it, causing the ship to explode. Rosa was knocked back. She shook her head as she got back up.
"Rosa Reidan. You are under arrest." Kit Fisto said.
"Fuck." Umbra said. She took out her green lightsaber and turned it on.
"Stand down." Kit said.
"Can I use a portal now?" Rosa asked.
"No. You are on your own. Don't worry. I'm sure Vanus will understand." Magis said. Rosa realized she was just betrayed. It was too light out now for her to create a portal.
"You bitch!" Rosa grabbed the headphone and slammed it into the ground, breaking it.
"Come with me." Kit said. Umbra held her lightsaber out.
"I'd rather die." Umbra said.
"I don't want to kill you. Please, don't make me do this." Kit begged. The look of sadness on his face angered her.
"You are responsible for Maku. You had the power to save me. But you put me with him." Rosa took out her second lightsaber.
"You know this won't end well for you." Kit said. Rosa rushed forward. She brought her lightsabers down in an overhead strike. Kit brought his lightsabers up and used the force to send her flying. She slammed into a bench. She flipped over the bench. She landed on the other side and spat out blood. She opened her eyes wide.
"I have to get out of here." She said. She got up and saw Kit coming toward her.
"Get away from me!" Rosa shouted, fear in her eyes.
"Let me help you! Your friends want you back with them." Kit said.
"You would NEVER let that happen!" Rosa got back up. She saw an alley and made a run for it. She had to avoid the water. Get away from the water at all costs! She jumped up, using the force, and got to the fire exit. She turned around and saw Kit there. She brought her lightsabers back in an X. He blocked them.
"Leave the Sith." Kit said.
"I can't!" Rosa said.
She felt her arm give way and dropped it. Kit's lightsaber dropped with her lightsaber. She spun and hit Kit in the face with the pommel of her lightsaber. Kit stumbled back. She jumped to the next building. She had to get away. She was still too weak to face off against Kit.
Kit landed in front of her.
"Rosa, listen to me. We didn't know how bad Maku was. I'm sorry about what he did to you. But you can't start victimizing others." Kit said. She knew he was holding back. He just wanted her knocked out. She knew after all the damage she took that she wouldn't last long against him. She just needed to find a place with enough darkness.
"Are you blaming me for what happened?" Rosa asked.
"No. It never should have happened. It never should have gotten past us. Maku should have been expelled. But he wasn't and you were a victim. But you can't keep doing what you're doing. You are making victims." Kit said.
"She'll never let me go." Rosa said. Rosa blocked a strike from Kit and almost lost her lightsaber. She turned off Maku's lightsaber.
"You still use his lightsaber. You turned his lightsaber into the weapon of a Sith." Kit said.
"You didn't see him at the end. He was more Sith than most." Rosa said.
"You know what you're doing is wrong. That's why you kept going to your friends." Kit said. Rosa said nothing. She attacked Kit again. He easily blocked it. She knew he struggled when it came to one-on-one fights, but even knew she was doing nothing to him. She could feel the pity coming off of him. Her weak attacks weren't going to do anything except delay the inevitable.
She still went on the offensive. She felt some clones and even a few Jedi arrive. Kit held them back. Rosa finished a chain of worthless attacks.
"Why did I have to suffer? What did I do to deserve this?" Rosa asked. The question saddened Kit.
"You don't have to suffer. But you are right now because of the dark side." Kit said. He blocked a strike from her. He held it with one hand and looked at her. She was looking at the ground.
"She marked me. She taught me evil things. She's still doing it! You can't save someone like me." Rosa said, tears falling down.
"You were never a Sith." Kit said. He meant it. "I'm not excusing the things you've done as a Sith. You know they are wrong. This right here is not what a heartless monster Sith would be acting."
"I've killed innocent people." Rosa said.
"And you will need to pay for your crimes." Kit said.
Rosa brought her head up at Kit. She dropped her lightsaber down. It still hummed, but she didn't move. Kit smiled.
"We'll help you, Rosa. The Sith won't be able to take you again." Kit said. She wanted to believe him. It was so tempting, but she knew that promise failed last time. They failed to protect her.
Rosa made a swipe at him. Kit easily knocked it aside. Rosa dropped to her knees and felt a push. She was flung away. She flew into the ocean. She didn't comprehend what was happening. She opened her eyes and realized where she was. She saw Kit diving into the water.
"Please Rosa, this has gone on for long enough." Kit said. Rosa tried to swim to the surface, but she was hit by a small ball of light. She was hit in the stomach and let out more air. She looked at Kit. She reached for her lightsaber and turned it on. Kit himself was the reason she was able to do this. She tried to open a portal behind her, but there was still too much light.
She tried to swim to the surface. Kit threw more small balls of water at her. She sliced them as they came. She breached the surface and took a deep breath. A clone fired a stun round at her. She blocked the stun round and dived back underwater. She saw Kit quickly swimming toward her. She opened her eyes wide, until an underwater Grimm slammed into Kit. Kit was wrapped by the Grimm. She turned off her lightsaber and began to swim away. She saw two Nevermore Grimm drop down and start fighting the Jedi and clones.
"Rosa! Wait!" Kit shouted, he flexed and cut the Grimm in half. Two more arrived. Rosa was able to surface farther away from the Jedi. She dragged herself onto the street. She ran into an alley. She knew Kit would be close behind. The two Nevermore were already dead.
"Rosa! Don't go." Quinlan Vos found her.
"Why couldn't you have been my master?" Rosa turned around, before opening a portal.
"I wish I was. Please let me help you." Quinlan said. Quinlan ran toward her as she stepped through the portal. It closed before Quinlan could reach her.
She was back in Mistral. She collapsed on the floor. She barely survived that, and it was only because they didn't want to kill her. She was still weak. Vanus appeared with Kaiser in her room a moment later.
"Get changed quickly." Vanus said.
Magis was walking down in the lower levels of Mistral late at night. She was heading to one of the hideouts she had. It used to be a bar, but it closed down long ago. She opened the door and sat down, smiling at a job well done. Vanus was going to die soon. Just like Umbra. She wished she could see the look on Umbra's face, but knowing she was dead would have to suffice. She never would have made it as a Sith. She was still too attached to her old life. If Magis was her master, maybe that would have changed. But she was given to Vanus, the vain Dark Lord.
"Serves her right." Magis said. She took out a glass and poured herself a clear Vodka. She drank the first shot and put down the cup.
"One for now." Magis said. She walked to what used to be the back office. She stopped smiling when she saw Vanus standing there with… Umbra.
"You've got a wonderful place here Magis. Not the best selection, but I've seen worse." Vanus said.
"What are you two doing here?" Magis asked.
"You set my apprentice up for failure. You sabotaged her. That was such a good trick you made. I checked your records." Vanus put a datapad on the desk. Magis tried to step out of the office, but Kaiser stood there.
"Did you think no one would miss me?" Umbra asked.
"Not really." Magis admitted.
"You thought wrong." Kaiser said. He had taken out his lightsaber.
"Since when did betraying someone on a mission get such a negative reaction?" Magis said.
"When it directly affects Salem's plans. When it involves one of Salem's inner council. When it involves simple Darth thinking she could challenge my position." Vanus said.
"How did you live Umbra?" Magis asked.
"The Jedi tried to convert me. But Salem figured out your trap." Umbra said.
"So, she was watching the entire time." Magis said.
"Not until everything started going wrong." Vanus said. Magis looked at Kaiser. She reached for her lightsaber. Kaiser and Umbra started using their force drain abilities on her. She stopped. Vanus stood up from the chair. She used the force to grab her lightsaber.
"Not even combat?" Magis said.
"Dead is dead." Vanus said. Umbra grabbed her lightsaber and stabbed Magis in the heart. Magis let out a gasp. Kaiser stopped. Umbra brought her lightsaber out of Magis. Her body collapsed to the floor.
"Congratulations Umbra, you just killed a Darth." Vanus said.
"What are we going to do about Haven?" Umbra asked.
"I'll deal with that." Vanus said.
The next day, Rosa was walking the streets of Mistral. She needed to think about who she really was. Was she Rosa, or was she Umbra? Was she Jedi, or was she Sith? She'd fought for, and killed for, both. Was she either? She was at the Boba Tea shop again. She decided to take her drink outside.
She liked the drink. She liked it a lot. She was looking out at the view the shop had when someone took the chair next to her. Rosa turned and almost choked on the drink. Ruby was sitting there.
"Calm down Rosa." Ruby said. Rosa put the drink down and started to cough. Ruby gave her an apologetic look. Rosa finished coughing and looked back at Ruby.
"You couldn't have waited until I finished my sip?" Rosa asked.
"Sorry about that. Please don't run away." Ruby said.
"I guess you have the others around. I don't think I could even if I wanted to." Rosa said. Ruby smiled.
"They're on the lookout." Ruby said.
"I don't know how many more Sith there are here. But there is one less than before." Rosa said.
"Are you saying…?" Ruby started.
"I killed Darth Magis yesterday." Rosa said. Ruby's smile deflated.
"You're still not sold on coming back?" Ruby asked. Rosa looked out.
"I still need time to think. I… I don't really see myself as either right now." Rosa said.
"Well, you have our numbers. When you're ready, you know you can call us, and we'll come running." Ruby said. Rosa felt a tear run down her face.
"Ruby, the best day of my life was the night before the finals. When we were all together and weren't thinking about the Jedi or Sith. I… I wish I never had the force. I hate how much it has torn us apart. I hate how it had such a strong influence on us." Rosa said.
"If you didn't have it, you wouldn't be you. You can't get rid of it." Ruby said.
"If I didn't have it, if it didn't interact with us, billions wouldn't have died in endless wars." Rosa said. Ruby was silent for a moment.
"You have it. There's not much you can do to about it, except figure out how you are going to use it." Ruby said. They sat there in silence for a few more moments. Then Ruby remembered something.
"I got you something." Ruby said. She grabbed the tiny jar of honey and placed in next to Rosa. She saw it and smiled. She continued to laugh and felt another wave of Nostalgia roll over her. She laughed and cried. Her laughter died out into tears. Her head touched her knees as tears fell down her face. Ruby put a hand on her back.
"When you're ready." Ruby said. "We do have to go though."
Ruby wrapped Rosa in a hug as she continued to cry.
"I wish I never became this." Rosa said in a whisper. Ruby ended the hug and left. Rosa didn't know how long she was like that. She grabbed the jar of honey and turned around. They were gone. But she knew they were there. She wiped the tears away. She knew she was going to have to decide soon.
Author's Notes: Chapter down. I thought I was going to have to split this one up, but I condensed the Kit Fisto fight since she was so hurt, it wasn't going to end well for her either way.
I wanted to show Rosa seeing both sides of the issue in this chapter and wanted to expand on the members of Team REKR. I wanted to show how Beacon and Vale had changed but changed the plans on showing Vale. We're probably going to go back at some point.
Umbra got another notch on her kills with a massive asterisk belt. She can't even claim she killed Maku without an asterisk. I was switching between Umbra and Rosa on purpose in case anyone was confused.
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May the Force be With You
-DragonZlayerx12