King: I'm back~ Get ready for this madness and hope you enjoy.

Inspiration: Fullmetal Alchemist

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As the groups returned to their seats Cinder and Emerald hung back in the hall. Cinder pulled her lacky there to discuss their current circumstances. "Something is wrong here, Emerald."

"I agree ma'am. Mercury's ignoring us and Roman and his sidekick just abandoned us altogether."

"That's just it, Emerald. This shouldn't happen at all. There's something going on with this theater that messing with our minds."

"What should we do?"

"Play along for now. But keep your guard up and remember your place." Cinder walked back into the theater, leaving Emerald to follow.

Once everyone was gathered again, the screen popped to form and started the next round.

The first thing they saw was a grey sky. They heard a voice playing off screen, "These people don't deserve this…"

Sun raised an eyebrow, "Neptune? Okay. What's this going to be?"

"Congrats on the promotion, Jaune! Or should I call you Colonel~?"

"Colonel?" Ruby turned toward the military group, not realizing how high the rank is.

Winter felt her eye twitch, "It's one rank lower than the one star generals."

"Woah~!" Ruby turned back to the screen. "That's so awesome!"

"Come on~! Look how cute she is! My daughter's the cutest kid in the world!"

"There's something weird going on here…"

"Jaune…" As Neptune spoke, the camera fell onto a gravestone. "Be careful." The headstone read out [Lt. Col. Neptune Vasilias].

Neptune's body went stiff. "I'm dead?!"

The camera pulled back to show an older Jaune dressed in a black uniform coat. He had his military cap in hand as he looked down to the grave of his old friend. "Damn it, Neptune… What did you get yourself into?"

Someone walked up behind him. Ruby Rose, his second-in-command in a similar black coat. It was standard issue for military funerals. "Sir. We need to get back to the headquarters."

"Alright, Lieutenant." Jaune placed his hat on, obscuring his eyes from the camera. "This rain is too heavy to stay outside anyway."

"Sir? It's not raining."

The camera pulled to a lower angle to show tears flowing down Jaune's cheeks. "Yes, it is, Lieutenant."

Hearts sank for Jaune. Neptune had been his friend and was, presumably, murdered if his line at the beginning was anything to go off of.

The scene went white to show the two in their usual blue uniforms. Ruby had adopted to wear a white cloak over her usual attire. She had a bolt-action rifle on her back and several sidearms hidden under her cloak. Jaune was dressed in his blue officer's uniform, with his white gloves on as well.

Coco smirked, "Have to admit, Arc looks good in that uniform."

Velvet knew Coco was making a fashion-based compliment, but it still put her on edge that it might be more about Jaune.

More people were gathered around a large doorway, all on edge. One notable figure was Yang in a yellow coat with her hair tied back in a braid. Everyone was tense and looking toward a figure standing in an open doorway. It was Emerald Sustrai, dressed in a black crop top, shorts, and an odd set of footwear that only really covered her ankles.

Emerald, or rather the homunculus Envy, smirked, "Sorry, can't come in right now. Place is a mess."

Ruby tilted her head, "What's a homunculus?"

Oobleck adjusted his glasses ad frowned, "An old alchemical theory of an artificial human."

"Like a robot?"

"Not quite. This would be a human created by alchemy, rather than robotics. It would be flesh and blood but formed artificially."

"Okay… That's kind of weird."

"It's impossible in our world, Ms. Rose."

Yang glared. "Envy… If you're here, no doubt we're in the right place."

"Oh? Hey there. Fancy seeing you again. I'd suggest just leaving and going home."

Jaune glared toward Emerald. "So, you're one of the homunculi?"

Emerald turned toward Jaune and grinned, "I am."

"If you'd indulge me, I'd like to ask you a question."

"Go ahead."

"I want to know who killed Neptune Vasilias. And I want the truth, homunculus."

Emerald's grin fell away. "It was Nora Valkyrie. You should know that…"

Nora went stiff. "Wait! I what?!"

Emerald continued, "Isn't that why you burned her to death?"

Nora blanked, "He did what?!"

"Shut up." Jaune was losing patience. "I know that she didn't kill him."

Emerald's grin returned in full force, "Huh~? You mean to tell me you scorched an innocent girl to a pile of ashes?! Nicely done, you monster~"

Jaune thought back to the moment. He'd used deceptive work and planning to make it seem like Nora had been torched alive, but she was actually safe outside the country.

Nora sighed in relief and fell back in her chair. "Oh thank goodness!"

Ren released a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

Emerald laughed, "Must have been fun telling her family. Did you cry when you told them? Or did you just sit there quietly and endure their outrage?"

"Quit running your mouth, you idiot!"

Emerald's grin was gone again, and she raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sick you homunculi giving me the run around when I ask you this question. Tell me the truth or I'll burn it out of you!"

"Damn." Roman couldn't even smirk. "Kid's mad…"

Emerald grinned from ear to ear and started to laugh. After a moment, she placed a hand on her chest and the other out toward him, "Congratulations Colonel Arc. You've finally tracked down your culprit."

Jaune's eyes went wide for a moment before returning to normal. "You're saying you killed Neptune? I doubt a moron like you could pull that off."

Emerald was officially getting mad at this guy constantly calling her an idiot or a moron.

Mercury, on the other hand, grinned in satisfaction.

Emerald just laughed it off. "Moron?!" Her body surged with a strange red electricity. Her body morphed into a new form with light green hair turquoise eyes.

The student's recognized the face, but not to any significant degree. They'd seen her before as a transfer student but didn't know her name. It was that girl from Haven with the hoverboard… What was her name?

Emerald spoke through her disguise, "You tell me who the real moron is! Because I don't think it's me! I prefer to use that term for people who fall for a cheap trick like this!"

Jaune's eyes went wide, first in shock then realization. This was Neptune's killer.

Emerald laughed, "You should see your face! It's the same face he made before I shot him! The pure shock! Utter confusion! It was amazing! So many little emotions as his own wife shot him!" Emerald continued to laugh through her form.

"That's enough!" Jaune clenched his teeth, "You were stupid enough to confess. And even more stupid to boast." The camera fell on his glove, allowing them to see the pattern stitched onto the back. "Everything you've said is fuel on your funeral pyre." His hand rose up as he used the other to tighten his glove over his fingers. "And I think I'll begin… by burning out your tongue!" Simple anger did not paint his features. This was a man consumed by hate and fury, and it showed on his face.

Everyone shook in their seats. The look of Jaune's face was unnerving. His friends had never seen him truly hate someone. He didn't like Cardin, few did, but Jaune never hated anyone! To see him like this was jarring beyond measure.

Jaune walked forward, "Everyone! Stand down. I'll handle her myself."

Yang wanted to argue, but Ruby motioned for her to advance through the door. "Don't worry. We can handle this."

As they tried to move forward, Emerald created a massive monster-esc hand in place of her own to block them. "I don't remember giving you permission to leave."

Mercury gagged, "That just looks disgusting."

"I still owe you all for what you did to-" She was cut off by fingers snapping and a burst of fire igniting in her mouth.

This got everyone to jump.

Yang blinked, "What… just happened?"

Ozpin's eyes narrowed, "If artificially created humans are possible through alchemy, then it must have been a reaction by one of the viewers."

Qrow finished his gulp, "Bet I know which one."

The screen returned to Jaune with his hand raised back, "Keep your eyes on me, Envy. Our conversation is the only one that should concern you." As Emerald returned to her usual form, he continued, "It's interesting how quickly the tongue can be rendered into a bubbling grease."

Emerald placed a hand over her mouth, "Holy shit…"

"It's surprising how easy it burns, isn't it?"

Yang turned to Ruby but was just told to move on. "We can handle this. You have more important things to do."

Emerald had to watch as her mouth sparked with red lightning. She had to heal her tongue before she could speak again. "Damn it…" Yang and a few other annoyances got through, but she had bigger issues right now. "So… you've pretty persistent to find Neptune's killer. You were a true friend to the very end!" Emerald morphed into a giant monster. This was no illusion, she truly became this monstrous beast of many eyes and mouths.

Yang shuttered in her seat, "That just looks wrong."

"It was also a bad move." Tai's eyes narrowed toward the screen.

"In reverence to your tireless search, I'll give you the fight you're looking for. But I can't exactly tread lightly with this body. So you better give it all you-" A snap later and her eyes erupted in flame.

Jaune had his hand outstretched, ready for another attack. "What's it like having the fluid inside your eyes boil? I'd imagine it might sting a little."

Neptune winced at the moment. "I'm torn. On one hand, I at least know I had a good friend. But this is just… hard to watch."

Emerald was healing, but the pain was still very present. And, unlike with her tongue, she could still scream in agony. "Damn you!" Another snap and she engulfed in flames again.

"I can't believe you'd give me a bigger target. Did you think size would give you a better chance at winning? You idiot." As Emerald writhed in agony, Jaune felt nothing but his hatred. "Come on! Get up, monster! Go ahead and regenerate! You'll suffer a hundred deaths before I'm done with you!"

Emerald clenched her teeth. Damn it, that's right! He's the one that incinerated Lust! She used her monstrous tail to create a cover of rubble before reverting into her humanoid form and escaping into the doorway.

"Get back here you coward!"

Ruby called after him, "Colonel!"

"You wait here, Lieutenant! I'll deal with her myself!"

Ruby obeyed the order, but she didn't like it. She hated seeing what Jaune was becoming because of this. She clenched her teeth and made a choice. Time had passed, but she ran in after them.

Ironwood's eyes narrowed, "That was a bad idea…"

"How so?" Ruby turned to the general, not following his thought process.

Port nodded, "If this homunculus can change her form, and they are all aware of this, then it's possible Mr. Arc and Ms. Rose can be played against one another and forced into a situation where they end up coming to blows."

"Oh no…"

A blast of fire filled a hall as Emerald scrambled to escape the fires. She ducked behind a corner and had to take time to heal again. Jaune was nearby, waving away the smoke he created. "Show yourself, Envy!"

Emerald growled, "Damn it…" She snuck to the side and away from Jaune.

Jaune walked through the halls. "Show yourself! Or I'll burn your bone marrow!"

Yang leaned back in her chair, "You'd think he'd be in a hurry to find her…"

A pair of boots came into frame from the angle. The camera spun back over Jaune's shoulder to show Neptune standing behind him, "Hey Jaune…"

Neptune growled to himself, "Bitch… Using my face like that…"

Emerald moved to charge, but a snap cut her off as she ignited in flames. She tried to speak through her screams, "What is wrong with you?! You didn't even hesitate!"

"Neptune Vasilias is dead. Nothing will change that." Jaune's hate hit new levels, "And you would invoke his image? You must be a glutton for punishment!" Another snap and Emerald was alight all over again.

Emerald was forced into the wall, cracking the concrete. She peeled herself off and roared out, "I'll show you punishment!" Jaune snapped again and her eyes burst into flames once more. "AHH! MY EYES!"

Emerald cringed at the sight. She had no idea how much that would hurt, but it was clearly painful beyond all reason.

"Did you think if you could get close I wouldn't be able to use my flames? Didn't you know I could use pinpoint flames? To bad for you, because I can!" Another snap and Emerald was engulfed by flames.

Emerald cried out in pain but had to get away. She ran off and down an open pit to the lower levels. She hid herself away behind thick wiring to allow herself to heal her body. She looked out to see Ruby walking through. A grin covered face with that. She could use this.

Blake groaned, "Oh… That's not good…"

The next thing they saw was Jaune marching down one of the halls. The camera moved on the way to show Ruby crouched with gun in hand. Jaune's eyes darted toward the corner where she was hiding and held a hand out, ready to snap and burn the person on the other side. At the same time, Ruby pointed her gun toward Jaune.

A moment later, and Jaune lowered his hand. "I told you to stay behind Lieutenant."

Ruby moved her gun away from him as well, "I'm sorry, sir. But I couldn't just sit there."

Jaune placed his hands in his pockets and sighed.

Ruby stood up, "Where's Envy?"

"Bitch outran me. This place is like a labyrinth. Might as well help me kill him now that you're here. Stay close." The two started to walk further off into the hall.

As they walked, the camera moved to show Ruby behind Jaune with a grin on her face. She slowly moved her hand and leveled the barrel of her gun at the back of Jaune's head.

This whole shapeshifter thing was making it difficult if this was a good or bad thing.

Jaune groaned and raised his hands, "Lieutenant… You do realize who you're pointing your gun at, right?"

"I'm well aware. After all, the Colonel addresses me by my first name, Ruby, whenever we're alone."

Yang wanted to play the protective big sister, but… "Hey, Ruby~! Look at you! Something you're not telling us?"

"No! No there isn't!" Ruby huffed.

"You sure?"

Emerald growled and jumped off, her form shifting from Jaune back to her own, "I had no idea you two were that close…"

"I lied." Ruby shot Emerald in the head, "But it was still nice of you to fall for it, Envy."

Ruby grinned, "See?!"

Yang grinned in her usual, teasing way, "Protesting a little much, don't you think, sis? People might think you're trying to hide something."

"Yang!"

Ruby unloaded her gun into Emerald, "And now you an do me the favor of dying." Once that gun was empty, she pulled two more from twin holsters at the base of her back. She continued her assault until they were empty too. Once they were, she spun the bolt-action rifle over her shoulder and fired a few shots into Emerald, pushing her back into a crossing path. Emerald lashed out using an extending form and cut into Ruby's shoulder.

Emerald dropped to her hands and knees, "Damn it! You are really annoying with that thing!" She used her shifting form to dig under the tiles and wrapped the arm around Ruby, slamming her onto the ground. "I'll kill you and dump you at his feet like a rat!" As she yelled, flames erupted from the adjacent hall. The fire flew down the extended arm and stopped just before reaching Ruby.

Another snap and Emerald erupted again. Jaune walked slowly out of the shadows of the hall and glared down toward Emerald, "Just what do you think you're doing to my Lieutenant?"

Emerald had never known fear. She'd always seen humanity as beneath her. But this man… This man scared her. If she was the monster, he was the devil. Emerald became defiant, "You damn human! You think I'll…" Soon she was on fire again. Over and over, never ceasing to burn. She would heal only to be scorched again. Each snap designed to make Emerald's near immortal life a living hell. It was only a matter of time, to die and die again until she stayed dead.

Ruby was shaking. In all their years of service together, she'd never seen Jaune like this. Even during the war, he'd never been filled with hate like this. It stung even worse because… he promised…

Ruby was shaking in her chair. It was hard for everyone to see Jaune like that. For some (Pyrrha and Velvet), it stung all the more. But to Ruby, it was beyond painful. Jaune was the first friend she'd made at Beacon, her fellow leader, someone she could trust…

One last giant flame caused Emerald's body to begin to fade to ashes. A small green creature pulled itself out of her head. It was like a mini version of the giant monster from before, complete with four arms, four legs and a long tail. "Damn it… Not this again." This was Emerald's true, weakened form.

Mercury started to laugh seeing Emerald as that little thing.

Emerald groaned. Of course she hated seeing her body get burned, but this was just insult to injury.

A black military boot slammed down on top of Emerald, "So this is what you really look like." Jaune's voice was a growl as he spoke. "You are disgusting. Fitting, I suppose. Envy is synonymous with jealousy, and jealousy is an ugly emotion." He pushed more of his weight onto Emerald.

Emerald cried, begging for her life, "No! Please! I don't want to die!"

"I'm not giving you a choice." Magical energy surged around his fingers, "Now burn in hell!"

Eyes closed, not wanting to see what happened next.

The sound of a cocking gun pulled them back into the screen. Jaune looked to the side to see a distraught Ruby pointing a gun at him. "Lieutenant? What are you doing?"

Ruby took a breath to calm her nerves, "Keeping you from making a mistake. Colonel, when I gave you my father's research into flame alchemy, you made me a promise to use your skills for the good of others. That you wouldn't let hate and anger cloud your judgement. And when we met again in Ishval, you told me that if you ever became like the old generals, that I have permission to shoot you."

"What's Ishval?" Nora asked.

"If I had to guess," Weiss tapped her chair, "I'd say it's either a city or a country where they fought in some kind of war given how they talked about their generals."

"You expect me to just let her get away with killing Neptune?"

"No sir. Let me deal with her. I won't let you be consumed by hate like them! I won't let you become a monster!"

Jaune's body went stiff, an old memory flooding over his mind.

Jaune was standing in front of a superior officer, "Sir! This is insane!"

The old man was obscured but his uniform said general, "Major… I won't tell you again. This is war. If you don't want to be a soldier, then become a monster and kill them all because I told you to!"

As the memory faded, they heard Neptune speaking again, "You want to rule Amestrus? Heh… You've got my support, might even do some good."

Jaune was shaking, "Damn it… I found her… I finally tracked her down!"

"I know that sir!" Ruby kept her hand up, but her nerves caused her to shake slightly, "But this isn't going to help. Not you, not your country, and certainly not Neptune… This is pure hate. And I won't let it take you! You're better than this…"

The pressure on Emerald eased and allowed her to crawl out from under Jaune's heel. She tried to run, but a gunshot rang out and she stopped. Her eyes were blank, and her body started to dissipate. After a moment, there was only a gleaming red, polished gemstone with a bullet lodged into its form. The gem cracked completely and faded into nothingness. Envy died for the final time that day.

Yang took in a sharp breath. "Hopefully the next one isn't that emotional."

Blake turned to the blonde, "Can't we use the archive to pick one?"

King reappeared, "The archive allows us to view a world we've already seen. Until we see it, we can't revisit it."

Ruby looked up toward the fireball, "What about the world where Jaune was a super hero? When he was All Might!"

King was silent for a moment. "Alright. One heroic Arc, coming up…"