Chapter 5
Menagerie was attacked by the Sith Lady Umbra. Sun Wukong was the most hurt of the Jedi. Oscar Pine has discovered that there is another voice inside his head calling himself Ozpin. Salem brought Umbra to the deepest part of the Sith castle to show her a hidden truth.
"My name is Ozpin, and I was the former headmaster of Beacon Academy. I was killed when Vale was attacked, and I was the latest in a long line of reincarnations. And now, I've returned. Into you." Ozpin told Oscar. Oscar looked in the mirror. He watched his reflection move by itself and change form part way through.
"Look, this is all new to me. Are you telling me you reincarnate?" Oscar asked. Ozpin shook his head with a smile.
"So that means that reincarnation is real. But that kind of goes against the order of life. Look, I may not have known about the force for that long, but I know it doesn't allow for reincarnation. Dead is dead. How is this possible?" Oscar asked.
"We have compatible souls Oscar." Ozpin said.
"What the hell does that mean?" Oscar asked.
"You do know what aura is, right?" Ozpin asked.
"Aunt Em said that Aura is the manifestation of the soul. She also said that there is a connection between the Force and Aura. She also unlocked my Aura a few days ago." Oscar said.
"Good. That's farther along than most new hosts. And what's better is your connection to the force." Ozpin said happily. "I've been a Jedi before, so I can help you along with your training."
"Hold on, this is too much." Oscar said.
"Sorry. I know this is incredibly stressful. I'll help you through it." Ozpin said.
"Help me through it? How?" Oscar said.
"I've been through this myself. These are the early stages of our souls combining." Ozpin said.
"Wait, our souls are… combining? Does that mean I won't exist anymore?" Oscar said.
"When our souls combine, you become part of me, and I become part of you…" Ozpin started.
"No, this isn't right!" Oscar said. "I couldn't consent to this."
"I'm sorry… but you don't have a choice in the issue. This is fate." Ozpin said.
"Fate." Oscar said quietly.
"Oscar, who are you talking to?" Aunt Em called out.
"You can tell her… but she probably wouldn't believe it." Ozpin said.
"She's a Jedi." Oscar said.
"Oscar!" Em yelled again.
"You may not believe it." Oscar said. Aunt Em got up to Oscar's room. She looked at him with a questioning look.
"Try me."
Oscar did his best to explain what was going on. Aunt Em got up and sat next to him. Shaking her head as he explained what was happening.
"Okay… that is difficult to believe." Em said. She looked at Oscar and put her hand on his forehead. She closed her eyes and Oscar felt her feeling inside of him. She let out a sigh and opened her eyes again.
"I can't find anything wrong." Em said.
"What, did you scan my body?" Oscar asked.
"Yes." Em said. She looked at Oscar. She stood up.
"I need more proof Ozpin is inside you." EM said. She held up five fingers.
"First question, who is the unlucky wonderer?" Em asked. Oscar had no idea what she was talking about. Then Ozpin told him the answer.
"Qrow Branwen." Oscar said.
"Good."
"Who is he?" Oscar asked.
"Oh, he's a handsome drunk. And a powerful warrior." Em turned and remembered the time she and Qrow spent together.
"Aunt Em?" Oscar asked.
"That's the first question. Second, who was the Jedi knight on team BLCK?" Em asked.
"Karel Allusis." Oscar said.
"Good. He and Bora came here to investigate a strange Grimm a year before your attack." Em said.
"Oh." Oscar said.
"Three, what class did Ozpin teach before becoming the headmaster?" Em asked.
"He says history." Oscar said.
"Yes. I missed him by a year. Everyone wanted him as a teacher because of how he taught history. They loved how he almost seemed to be retelling stories from his past." Em said.
"I was. Of course, I made a few changes." Ozpin said to Oscar.
"Four, what was Ozpin's favorite drink?" Em asked.
"Hot cocoa. With a peppermint stick in it already." Oscar said.
"You even got the peppermint stick." Em said. Most assumed he drank coffee. But his favorite students learned what it was.
"Final question, which maiden is underneath Beacon?" Em asked. Oscar felt Ozpin take a step back. He looked up with a questioning look.
"How the hell can you walk around in my mind?" Oscar asked. "Oh, and he says, it was the fall maiden, whatever that means."
"Shit. That is Ozpin." Em said. "That means…" Oscar's eyes changed, and so did his voice.
"Yes, I am Professor Ozpin." Oscar said. "I am in the body of your nephew, Oscar. It is good to see a familiar face, Em."
"Ozpin. You have a lot of explaining to do." Em said.
"We will have all the time we need. But Oscar needs you more now than ever. He needs to be trained to face whatever's coming next." Ozpin said.
"The darkness." Em said.
"Exactly."
Ruby meditated. It was all she could do to get her mind off Umbra. She felt the truth in her words when she talked about Maku. But he wouldn't have done anything to Rosa, right? Ruby started to meditate. She let out breaths but felt disturbed. Her mind wouldn't leave the idea of Maku abusing Rosa. Something about it felt so personal from Umbra.
Whomever Umbra was, she was a new dangerous Sith. She defeated everyone to some extent. Yang was mad at how totally she lost. Umbra's kick left a mark on her. Blake was checking over it.
"It looks a lot worse than it is." Blake said.
"I'm still pissed I got hit in the first place. It feels like she wasn't even trying to kill us." Yang said. Ruby told them she was going to meditate, but she couldn't help but overhear them. She was on the roof, trying to reach out with the force. But she kept thinking about what Umbra told them. Maku seemed to have a history with Umbra. She had Rosa's lightsaber. Something was wrong.
Ruby laid back against the roof, looking into the night sky. She looked at the stars, so many of them far-off worlds where trillions of beings were living life. And none of them knew about Remnant. She wondered what it was about this planet that made it so unknown. From what Ruby knew about the galaxy at large, the Sith have no presence there. Or had no presence. Even the brightest star in the night sky had that darkness.
She sighed. It was depressing to be thinking about that. She watched the skies. She needed to learn the truth. She needed to learn what happened to Rosa, and what Maku did to her.
"You're up here?" Weiss asked. She sat down next to Ruby.
"Sorry. I know I should be with Yang, but I need to think. What did Umbra know? Why did she attack? What are we going to do about her?" Ruby said.
"What can we do?" Weiss asked.
"We couldn't beat her yet. She's strong. We need to get stronger." Ruby said.
"I thought that was the goal all along." Weiss said.
"Yeah, but now we have a bar to rise to. We need to be able to take down Umbra." Ruby said.
"I guess having a goal that visible in mind will help." Weiss said.
"For Rosa." Ruby ended.
Oscar started training with his aunt the next day after their talk. She was training him with the lightsaber immediately. He was learning slowly.
Ruby and her team started training even harder. Even Pyrrha was training her best. She was training to use blasters with the clones. Sun was recovering from his injury, but he was overseeing the training. Everyone was training their best.
Days passed, then it was two weeks. Team RWBY and JNPR realized they needed more time on Menagerie. Another month was added to the plan. They needed to get stronger. They were practicing every day.
Oscar woke up, feeling his muscles burn. He felt them ache, but that meant he was getting stronger. He sat up, ignoring the pain, and looked out at the farm again. The practice saber was at his feet. Aunt Em had him have it with him at all times since she started training him in earnest. Oscar felt Ozpin stir in his head.
"I don't understand how you can sleep in my mind." Oscar said.
"It's rather comfortable in here." Ozpin said. "It even has a TV in here."
"Really?" Oscar asked.
"No, Oscar. I was joking." Ozpin said.
"What is it like to live in someone else's head?" Oscar asked.
"It's kind of strange. Imagine if you will, a library. In this library is a massive window, which is my way of seeing through your eyes. Now, in this library is a book that's being written. That book contains your memories. When I met the man before you, Orlando, it was a bit harder for me. I had no one to believe me, and for a few years, I was alone. Orlando was the only one to keep me company. I have his book next to mine. All these books are in order. They are the memories of each life. And each of them, except for yours, is finished. We have not always lived a good life, or a long life, and some of these books are filled with misery, but each of them is linked by a common goal." Ozpin said.
"Are you going to read my book?" Oscar asked.
"I do every night you're asleep. That's when I don't see your dreams. And you have a certain woman reappearing in those dreams." Ozpin said.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Oscar said.
"You're a young man Oscar, it's natural to have these…"
"Please, no! I don't need to be hearing this from the man in my head." Oscar said. He started getting dressed. Before he was about to take off his pants, he stopped and looked in the mirror.
"You don't watch me when I do this, right?" Oscar asked.
"I know when not to look." Ozpin said.
"This is embarrassing you know." Oscar said.
"Oscar, I have lived hundreds of lives. I doubt there is anything left in the world a boy your age can do that would embarrass me." Ozpin said.
"I don't even want to think…" Oscar started, then stopped. "You know what, no. I'm just going to pretend this conversation never happened." Oscar said as he finished getting changed. Oscar grabbed the practice saber and met Em in the field. She held out the family lightsaber to him. He used the force to grab it. Em had her own lightsaber that he had never seen.
"This lightsaber was built by my late husband. So don't worry about me being defenseless when you go. You need to let go of all worry. So today, instead of training with the practice saber, you will use the real thing." Em said. Oscar looked at the lightsaber. He turned it on and looked at Em.
"You know I'll be leaving at some point?" Oscar asked.
"I know the force will call you when you're ready. But that's not today. Today, we're going to work on your acrobatics." Em said.
Plo Koon was on this ship to Menagerie. He was going to oversee the padawans' next trial. He had an idea of who was going next. He had heard from them that they have been focusing on training while they finished their trials. He wanted them to go through the trial of skill. It was close to the outskirts and didn't involve a 'vision quest' as Yang put it. She was very different from Bultar Swan. Plo thought about his old apprentice. Bultar was as serious as Yang was not. Bultar and Yang both used their fists along with their lightsabers, but Yang was more… ready to kill. Bultar was known for not taking a life, at least until the Clone Wars. She was a strong young woman, and Plo wanted her to still be alive, but he had strong doubts about that.
He flew in a recovered Jedi starship. It wasn't the one he used. That one was damaged beyond repair in the crash of Mountain Glenn. The clone commandos were sent to multiple strategic locations where they were going to set up the communication relays. They needed to be able to communicate instantly. His comms got far stronger, and he realized he was close to Menagerie. He almost forgot how fast starships could go. After using the airbuses and airships, he forgot that these ships would be able to circumnavigate the world in only a few hours.
He started to slow down the ship. He had an idea. All of them were going to take the trial of skill. They needed to become knights quickly. But thanks to their practicing, they were already far greater than they were just a few weeks ago. All except Pyrrha. If they were at the temple, they might have found a way to heal her, but now that was impossible.
The Jedi temple would have had the technology to help her, but out here, even with all the medical equipment the venators have, it wasn't enough. The damage she sustained was too great. Maybe the healers wouldn't have been able to help her regrow bones. He sighed. He should have been there with her fighting the Sith. But he wasn't and she paid the price.
He landed his ship and quickly found where the padawans were staying. Ruby opened the door before he got to the top step. He sensed everyone else there as well.
"Hello padawans." Plo said.
"Master… We need to talk." Ruby said.
Plo was led to the council chamber where the eight Jedi were. He looked at them. Ruby started.
"A while ago, we were attacked by the Sith. Particularly one Sith lady. Her name is Umbra, and she has a connection to Rosa." Ruby said.
"I see. We've received word about this Umbra. She's an assassin who's been destroying outposts." Plo said.
"There's something else master." Ruby started.
"Sun was injured." Plo said.
"Yes, that's one thing, but not the one we need to talk about. The Sith, when she attacked us, she said she knew Rosa. Said she knew Maku…" Jaune started.
"Abused Rosa." Blake finished.
"And the masters knew about it." Yang said.
"I see. That was the nervousness I felt in you." Plo said.
"Is it true?" Weiss asked. Plo didn't say anything for a few moments.
"Years ago, we received a tip about what could be an abuse scandal. We looked into multiple masters to see if any of them had any validity. Unfortunately… some were." Plo said. Yang slammed her fist into the table and rose out of her seat.
"So, what the Sith said was true?!" Yang demanded.
"The council did everything we could to stop abuse. But we believed Maku after some time atoned for that…" Plo started.
"And you put him back with Rosa?" Nora asked.
"Eventually, Rosa demanded to be put back with her master." Plo said.
"Did Maku use that force ability on her?" Pyrrha asked.
"We were blind to this situation. This is the failure of the council. She still had her strong hidden connection to the dark side which Maku held back. Some of us kept them together because of that." Plo said.
Yang slammed her fists on the table, her eyes turning red.
"This all happened because you were afraid. How could you let her go through that?" Yang asked.
"There are no words to justify what happened." Plo said.
The other padawans got up. Plo looked at them.
"Are you going to stay with the Jedi knowing our mistakes?" Plo asked.
Yang looked back at Plo. She wanted to walk away, but she also wanted to sit back down. She looked at Plo and sighed. Blake looked at the others. Weiss felt as if her ears were on fire. Ruby showed no emotion on the outside. Jaune clenched his fist. Ren tried to balance himself.
Plo Koon knew they were struggling.
Weiss sat alone in the house, looking at a picture of team RRWBY. Why did the Jedi allow everything to happen to Rosa? She couldn't understand it. She wished she could. The Jedi were all she had left.
She felt tears falling down her face. She held onto the picture closer. The precious memories flowed through her mind. She wished she got Rosa to sit with them. Then this wouldn't have happened. This was all a mistake. One that she couldn't fix.
"You still care about her."
Weiss stood up. It was the voice of that Sith. She took out her lightsaber and turned it on.
"You don't need that here." Umbra stepped out of the shadow.
"How did you know about Rosa?" Weiss demanded. He held her lightsaber out at Umbra. The Sith didn't move.
"I already told you." Umbra said. "But you can still see her. All you need to do is join the dark side."
"The dark side is what took her!" Weiss said.
"It's what saved her. The Jedi should never have let him be a master. He had too much hate. I can't believe no one ever felt it." Umbra said. Umbra disappeared into the dark, and then Weiss felt a hand run along her hair. She spun around, to see Umbra behind her.
"The Jedi failed you. They failed her. They failed everyone." Umbra said.
"I know about the dark side. I know it's evil." Weiss said.
Umbra quickly brought her hand up, catching Weiss' hand. Umbra held them in the air, with the hum of the lightsaber being the only noise. Umbra brought a finger up to Weiss' scar.
"You do know evil. Your father was evil." Umbra said. Weiss tried to fight with Umbra, but she kept her grip.
"You will fall, eventually." Umbra let go of Weiss' hand. She took a step back and vanished into the darkness. Weiss waited, and no longer felt her presence.
Umbra watched as Yang started punching a tree. She could feel the hate and anger rolling off her. She would fall quickly. She just needed a push.
Yang punched the tree letting out her rage. How could they hide this? How could they let Rosa suffer for so long?
She stopped at took a few deep breaths.
"Let it all out of your system?" Umbra said. Yang spun around and let out a force push. Umbra easily avoided it. She landed next to Yang.
"What are you doing here?" Yang asked.
"I could sense the darkness radiating off of you for miles around." Umbra said. She started strolling around Yang. As soon as she touched a shadow, she teleported close by. Yang watched as she teleported, getting angrier.
"Did they ever find Maku's body? I doubt it." Umbra said. Yang used the force to bring her lightsaber to her.
"Do you still trust the Jedi?" Umbra asked.
"What do you care?" Yang asked.
"There is always another way. Join me." Umbra said. Yang turned on her lightsaber at that.
"So you choose to be difficult. Do you so soon forget the beating I gave you?" Umbra mocked.
"I'll never join you. We're going to save Rosa from you!" Yang yelled. She jumped forward, swiping at Umbra. Umbra took out her lightsaber and sidestepped. Her lightsaber lightly touched Yang's side. Yang fell to the ground holding the burn.
"The Rosa you knew is long dead." Umbra said. Yang rose her hand and fire came rushing out. She was creating fire with the force. It rushed Umbra. Umbra jumped in the air, avoiding the flame. She landed in a tree.
"You are almost ready to be a Sith." Umbra said. Yang widened her eyes and took a step back. She felt the power of the dark side. She turned off her lightsaber and collapsed on one knee. She took a deep breath when Umbra stood over her.
"Rosa is waiting for you all. Waiting for you to join her." Umbra knelt down, and gently touched Yang's face.
"She wants her family complete." Umbra jumped back, teleporting in the air.
Yang slammed her fist in the ground.
"Dammit"
Blake sat on the top of the roof, head on her knees. The Jedi failed them. Could… could she leave? She held her lightsaber and looked at it. It had become of who she was. Could she abandon this life too?
She was always good at running away.
"Dark thoughts there Blake." Umbra said. Blake turned around to see Umbra, and dropped, getting into an attack position.
"Why are you here?" Blake asked. Umbra walked alongside the roof and looked out at the island.
"You are what I want. All of you." Umbra said. Blake turned on her lightsaber. Umbra sighed.
"You all are too quick with that."
Blake pounced but Umbra blocked the attack. Umbra grabbed Blake by the throat.
"You should listen to me. I don't want to kill you." She let go of Blake.
"What did you do with Rosa? Where's Adam?" Blake asked.
"Questions you can get the answer to if you join me." Umbra said. "Now or later. Your choice."
"You monster." Blake said.
"Excuse me, but I never abused a girl for years and hid it from everyone. That's Maku. I know you're smart. You should know that it's impossible to beat me like you are now." Umbra said.
"You can't beat Plo Koon." Blake said.
"You're right, for now." Umbra said.
"You plan on killing him?" Blake asked.
"Not yet." Umbra said. Blake closed her eyes. Umbra turned off her lightsaber. She felt the tension building as Blake was gathering the force. She jumped, turning off her lightsaber, she started attacking hand to hand. Umbra was blocking the attacks. Blake continued her attack, just for Umbra to block each attack.
Umbra caught Blake's elbow that was going to her face and brought Blake to the ground. She leaned in close.
"Do you want to know more about Keiser?" Umbra said.
"Who?" Blake asked while struggling.
"Adam."
Blake brought her head up, smacking into Umbra's mask. Umbra let go of Blake as she turned around. Umbra opened the portal behind her and disappeared.
Ruby meditated still, not feeling the balance. She sighed as she exited her meditation. She looked around the room, sensing someone watching her.
She took out her lightsabers when she saw Umbra. The blades hummed in the dark room. Umbra walked out of the shadow.
"Ruby, team leader. The leader who failed to protect her friends." There was no venom in her voice, but the words still stung. Ruby held out her lightsabers.
"What did you do with Rosa?" Ruby asked.
"You know. She joined the Sith." Umbra said. She stepped forward. "Are you willing to die for the cause of the Jedi?" Umbra asked.
"I'm willing to die to destroy the darkness." Ruby said.
"Destroy the darkness? How's that possible?" Umbra asked. She reached up, and changed her face to Rosa's as she took off the mask.
"You left me with the Sith." Rosa said.
"How dare you?" Ruby said. Umbra put the mask back on.
"Think about it. What would have happened if you demanded to sit together. You may still have her with you."
Ruby stepped closer to Umbra.
"You failed to stop what happened to Pyrrha." The image of the lightsaber going through Pyrrha stayed in Ruby's mind. Umbra rushed forward, and kicked Ruby, sending her flying.
Ruby slammed into the wall. She fell. Umbra heard the sounds of troops coming to them. Umbra stood over Ruby and looked her in the eyes. She kneeled down.
"Your mother is alive." Umbra vanished.
Ruby looked up and had no words.
Umbra quietly opened the door to where team JNPR were staying. She looked at Phyrra at a desk tinkering with a blaster.
"Jaune? Is that you?" Pyrrha asked.
"No."
Pyrrha spun around to look at Umbra. She tried to reach for the blaster but it wasn't done yet. She couldn't reach for her lightsaber.
"Do you want to die?" Umbra asked.
Pyrrha glared at the Sith.
"Are you threatening me?" Pyrrha said. She hoped the message she sent though the force went to Jaune.
"I am asking since you can't fight anymore. Do you want to die?" Umbra said. Pyrrha didn't answer.
Umbra stepped forward and knelt down to look Pyrrha in the eyes.
"You lost everything important. All those years of training are gone. Do you want to die?"
"…" A tear formed in Pyrrha's eye. She was useless even here. Umbra caught the tear. Pyrrha grabbed Umbra's arm.
Umbra brought her hand up to the mask. Rosa's face met hers
"You should have died. She was being cruel in saving your life." Rosa said.
"I won't leave them." Pyrrha said.
"That's not the same as not wanting to die." Umbra said.
The door opened, and Jaune was there. He saw Umbra and grabbed his lightsaber. Umbra held her hand out. She sent Jaune flying against the wall. She turned back to Pyrrha.
"Vanus wants you to suffer." Umbra said. "There is one way to end it."
Jaune got back up and sent a force push at Umbra. She held her hand out, and made it dissipate. She turned on her lightsaber.
"Jaune, you should be killed." Umbra opened the portal and stepped through.
Umbra stepped back into her apartment to find Velum sitting on her couch. Umbra took off the mask and tossed it to a corner. She looked at Velum with her arms crossed.
"Spook them?" Velum asked.
"Yang is close to our side. Blake may fall, but only if we add pressure. Weiss will crack if we poke the right things. Ruby… well she'll be faced with doubts. They can all fall." Umbra said.
"What about JNPR?" Velum asked.
"Pyrrha is fighting to have a reason to live. Jaune is weak, but he has potential. I didn't bother with the other two. I can sense they would never join us." Umbra said.
Velum got up and stood at the balcony.
"I'm so glad it's you and not Cyan that we work with. He was such a pain. He thought he was a master strategist or something and spent so long getting to you." Velum said.
"He was weak and arrogant. Like Maku." Umbra said.
"And both dead at your hands." Velum said.
Umbra looked out at the city. "Plo Koon was there."
"Did he sense you?" Velum asked.
"No. I don't think so."
Umbra kept looking out at the city. Velum went next to Umbra and took out a cigarette and offered it to her. Umbra looked at her.
"Why would we smoke?"
"Just seeing." Velum said.
She turned around put the pack away.
"These cigarettes have something in them. Almost like breathing in the darkness. But we disguised them. They become almost little trackers. But the darkness in them is small enough that you can purge it so the darkness can't track you." Velum said. Umbra turned back at that.
"How's that possible?"
"Darkness is in everything here. Maybe it's the paper, or the plant used to make the cigarette, or maybe some of this." Velum tossed Umbra a vial of darkness.
"What is this?" Umbra asked. "This seems familiar."
"Yeah, you remember when you fell after coming back from Menagerie?"
"Oh yeah." Umbra said.
"We almost had you with this. It brought your natural darkness to the surface. This may just be enough to get Yang." Umbra looked at the vial. She smiled.
"Let's see."
Team RWBY and JNPR gathered with Plo Koon.
"The Sith from before was here." Ruby said.
"They are targeting you." Plo said.
"They want us to join the dark side." Yang said.
"We need to be vigilant. Your training must be completed soon." Plo said.
"Why are they coming here?" Weiss asked.
"If they told all you members of team RRWBY to join the dark side, they want you. They think that they can make you fall. This is why you need to be fully trained. Or else they will succeed."
"Do you think we stand a chance?" Weiss asked.
"Yes."
Days started to pass. The memory of Umbra still hang over the head of the padawans.
Yang was meditating in the training ground. She just finished her latest training session and was meditating. In the days they all passed the trial of insight.
Yang opened her eyes and saw Umbra sitting across from her.
"I wondered when you would finally notice." Umbra kept looking at Yang with a smile. Yang jumped up. Umbra stood before her.
"I have a question for you." Umbra said.
Yang brought her hands up ready to fight.
"Do you still care about Rosa?" Umbra asked.
"Of course!" Yang yelled.
"Then why are you here?" Umbra asked.
"To get stronger to bring her back." Yang said.
"I'm not sure that will be possible." Umbra started walking toward Yang, going to her side. Yang started walking the other way.
"You can't take out the light from her." Yang said. Umbra looked over at Yang.
"Do you know she killed Maku. She also killed Cyan." Umbra said. Yang stopped.
"How do you know?" Yang asked.
"I was there."
"What did Maku do?" Yang asked.
"He tried to kill everyone." Umbra said.
"Everyone?"
"Especially Rosa. That's why she fought back. That's what pushed her over the edge. Maku may have been able to save her if he wasn't consumed by the darkness himself. He tried to kill her over the other Sith." Umbra said.
"How could no one sense the darkness in him?" Yang asked.
"That is a good question. Speaking of darkness, how confident are you in feeling it?" Umbra asked.
"I've sensed it. I've… felt it." Yang admitted.
"Good, now we're being honest. I have to be honest too. I was once a Jedi." Umbra said. It would be pathetic if they couldn't figure it out. But they were blind to the dark.
"You were?" Yang asked.
"Yes, I was. But the Jedi failed me time after time." Umbra stood up and opened a portal.
"The Jedi are blind. You can't trust them. Your mother knew that."
"You know my mother?" Yang asked. Umbra slipped through the portal, and it closed.
Plo had left. Mace Windu had arrived. He looked at all the padawans and felt the struggle in them.
"I was wrong." Mace said. "Maku was my mistake. Rosa was my mistake. So much is my mistake."
Ruby looked at Windu and felt the shame radiating off him. They were in the conference room with everyone, and she was sure everyone else felt the pain. But she saw Yang pouncing her leg up and down.
"Do you have nightmares when you sleep?" Windu asked.
"What?" Nora asked.
"Yes." Pyrrha said. Weiss followed. Soon, everyone admitted to nightmares.
"I don't. In my dreams I've done it right. Always. I stopped the war on Genosis. I voted against Maku. I went after Rosa. Every time I do everything right. When I am awake, I live my nightmare. I have failed you all. There are no excuses, but it isn't too late to make things right. That is what I want to do now. I want to train you all to make this right."
Ruby nodded her head.
"I accept." Ruby said.
"As do I." Jaune said.
"We can still save Rosa. We can bring her back." Weiss said.
"I don't know if that is possible. The dark side is strong. Few can ever return." Mace said.
"We can do it." Pyrrha said.
"Alright. Perhaps you can do this." Mace said.
Then the training began in earnest.
Author's Notes: I am not dead. It has been about a year since I last uploaded anything. This last year has been a lot for me, and made me change a lot. When I started this story, I was in a dark place mentally. I felt I wasn't good enough or could ever measure up. This story took a back seat, and stayed there as I figured things out. I've gone back to college.
Another thing that kept me away was that I didn't like things I wrote in the story now that I have time to look back at it. I don't know if I handled everything the best way possible, and I don't think that many people enjoy what I write. I also fell out of love with RWBY. I love the bones of the series, but I don't think RWBY is a good show. That's why I had such a hard time coming back to this. I have to divorce the show from these works.
I still love star wars, and always will, despite the fact I hate a lot of Disney star wars. I've been expanding my knowledge of the older stories.
This chapter was half written a year ago. I don't know if I will finish this story. I hope I can, but it is dark. Perhaps part of my outlook on myself caused the story to turn in such a dark direction.
This chapter is mostly preparing the characters for the trials ahead. I think we may skip that every character will have to go through, and focus on important moment. This story almost got deleted, and almost got spilt.
I wrote more in the Jedi Hunter Series before my hiatus. I've got a few chapters in that universe. I still think about the cool moments I have for these stories. It's hard to continue doing this. My motivation dies easily. I focus on other things. I don't know if anyone will enjoy what I write here, but what I have written has made me a much better writer.
I finished the first edit on my first book, and have started writing books 2 and 3. They took a lot of my time. Two of my good friends on this website have retired. It's getting lonely here. I want to hear from people. Every comment will help me make my story better.
Thank you for staying with this story. Even when I don't.
May the Force be With You
-DragonZlayerx12