Hiking through the woods alongside Team RWBY on a weekday, looking for signs of anything related to Dr. Merlot's Mutant Deathstalker, wasn't exactly what I'd expected to be doing on my first mission with the team.
It was unfortunate, but there wasn't anything I could do about it right now. As much as I'd like to call for reinforcements, namely Pyrrha and Winter, the time it'd take for them to get here could mean all the difference between catching Merlot or letting him escape.
From the brief conversation I'd had with Ozpin, he'd seemed extremely interested in capturing Merlot... Something that I could understand. Outside of Salem, Dr. Merlot was the only one to successfully modify Grimm.
The largest and most dangerous Grimm he'd been able to mutate was the Deathstalker we'd just killed... Which, admittedly, wasn't that big of a threat, but if Merlot was given time to perfect his research, he might be able to do the same to far more problematic Grimm, maybe even Leviathan class Grimm.
"I think I see something," Ruby announced from her spot high up in one of the trees, "It's tall and it's made of metal… I think it's a crane… Yeah, definitely a crane."
That was quick.
"Which direction?" I called out.
Humming, she pointed into the forest. "That way."
It seemed to be in the same direction we'd been heading… Maybe a little to the side of the Deathstalkers tracks, but the Grimm could have been wandering around before locking on to Ruby after she used her eyes.
Hopping down from the tree tops, Ruby landed a little awkwardly. Shaking her arms to regain her balance, she took a step to steady herself and struck a small pose. "I'm ready to go," She announced only for her sister to let out a soft snort. "Yang, don't ruin my moment."
"Sorry," Yang grinned. "Go on."
Crossing her arms, Ruby let out a small huff. "No, you ruined it."
Right…
Stepping into the forest, I cut through a few of the lower hanging branches while keeping an eye out for the Grimm. It was a little odd though. Outside of a few stragglers, there just weren't that many Grimm here.
Outside of Merlot abducting a few Grimm for his experiments, the only thing I could think of that might have thinned the horde was the Mutant Deathstalker. It was a little more intelligent than the other Grimm, so it wasn't entirely out of the question.
Spotting the crane Ruby mentioned, we took a few more steps before we were greeted to a loading dock that appeared to be built into one of the various ruins that littered the Forests of Vale.
There was also a small cargo ship, but it was split in half with part of it having crashed into the bay, destroying several large cargo containers while the other half was partially submerged in the river below with the back end being completely submerged.
"Damn," Maria whistled. "Something sure did a number on this place."
"Yeah," I muttered.
It really didn't make sense though. This place was supposed to be up and running… Merlot's Deathstalker was supposed to be on his Island, not here. Something was going on… Whatever it was… It was putting me on edge.
"Wait, is that the Schnee Dust Company logo," Weiss said, noticing the cargo containers. "They look pretty old… Why would they be here?"
Narrowing her eyes, Blake glanced between her teammates before settling on Weiss. "It's not uncommon for less reputable sources to… Acquire things that the Schnee Dust Company has no further use for."
"You mean stolen," Weiss replied. "These containers have been stolen from my family's company."
"As your family has stolen from others," Blake muttered under her breath, going unheard by her teammates.
Coughing lightly, I stepped forward. "Yes, well, we should probably go see if there's anything we can pull from the cargo ship. It was transporting those containers somewhere. If we can find out where, we'll find the one responsible for all of this."
"Heh, not a bad plan," Maria noted. "But if I could make a suggestion. Why don't we split up? I'll search the containers with Ruby and Yang while you take the other two."
"The other two?" Weiss muttered, sounding a little insulted.
Well… Even though she was retired, Maria was still more than capable of fending off anything that headed our way… And we would be able to cover more ground this way.
"What do you four think?" I asked. "Would you mind splitting up?"
"Um… I think…" Ruby began, glancing between her teammates.
"Hey, I'm down with whatever," Yang shrugged.
Turning her gaze towards Weiss, the Schnee heiress sighed and nodded. "Sure, why not."
"Whatever gets us out of this forest quicker," Blake added.
"Then it's settled," Maria announced, clapping her hands. "Come along Ruby, Yang. We've got some containers to crack open. Who knows, we might even get to crack some heads while we're at it."
"Now you're speaking my language," Yang grinned, eagerly following after Maria while Ruby trailed behind a little more hesitantly.
I guess that left me with the cargo ship.
"I don't suppose either of you know how to hack a terminal?" I asked, glancing between the duo.
"Maybe," Weiss replied. "It depends on what kind of equipment we're dealing with."
At least there was a chance, I turned towards Blake who stared back at me with a deadpan. Right… I guess that was a no on her part.
"Let's get going then."
Heading towards the ship, I sighed, palming my face when I saw the back end of the ship… The place where the terminal would likely be located, was flooded with the murky river water. Maria had specifically chosen to search the containers in order to avoid this.
"This is going to be fun," I muttered sarcastically.
Climbing onto the outer deck, I squared my shoulders and began to make my way down with Weiss and Blake following a little further behind.
"We don't have to make our way into the water… Do we?" Weiss asked.
"If that's where the terminal is, then… Yeah," I replied. Glancing back, it seemed that neither of them wanted to be here… Not that I could fault them. "The water doesn't seem too deep. If you want, I could carry one of you while the other waits out here."
"That would be me," Blake said, giving the barest hint of a smile. "I'll stand guard out here while you go on ahead."
"What, but… Fine," Weiss relented. "Just… Please don't tell anyone about this."
"You, Yang and Ruby are literally the only people I talk to back in Beacon," Blake deadpanned.
"…Okay then," Weiss replied. "Let's just get this over with."
Nodding, I helped Weiss onto my back, before stepping into the murky water that flooded the passageway. Taking several more steps, I was almost waist deep in the water, just barely keeping Weiss out of it.
Traveling down one of the flooded hallways, Weiss used her Scroll to light the way. In a way, it reminded me of how we'd gotten trapped in that underground cave, except this time there was a whole lot more water and Raven wasn't going to randomly show up.
"I think that's it," Weiss announced, gesturing towards one of the rooms.
"If you're sure," I hummed.
Stepping into the room, I waded my way through the water, before coming to a stop in front of what appeared to be a control panel. The majority of the thing was under water, but, judging by how it lit up, it was still active.
Leaning over my shoulder, Weiss' eyes lit up with interest as she took in the machinery. "I know this. Just give me a few minutes and I'll be able to copy everything to my Scroll."
"You're the expert here," I shrugged.
Leaning in closer so Weiss could work, a few moments passed by as she wirelessly connected her Scroll to the terminal. Tapping a few buttons on her Scroll, she hummed, satisfied with herself.
"There, once this is finished downloading, we'll know exactly where this ship came from," Weiss announced.
That was nice, but there was one small problem with all of that. Something slimy had wrapped itself around my ankles and was tugging on them experimentally.
"Hey Weiss, I need you to do me a favor," I said. "Shine your Scroll's light downward… Oh, and whatever you do, don't freak out."
"Why would I fre–" Weiss froze as she shone the light down.
Although the water was extremely murky, we were both able to see a pair of long hooked tendrils under the water, wrapped around both of my legs. While it was a little creepy, it was nowhere near as bad as what I'd been imagining.
"Oh, so that's what that was," I idly commented. "How far is the download?"
"A little over half way," Weiss replied. Shifting awkwardly, she attempted to reach for her weapon, stopping when she nearly dropped her Scroll. "Aren't you going to do something?"
I nodded. "Once the download is done."
With the awkward position I'd been put in, there was a very good chance that once I freed myself from the Grimm, it'd attack and while I could evade it, it might damage the terminal.
Waiting for a few tense moments, Weiss' Scroll pinged, letting her know it was done.
Wasting no time, I summed several swords and had them go to work. Two sliced through the water, cutting the Grimms tendrils while the rest fired off into the room, stabbing through all the obvious spots the Grimm could be hiding.
Hearing a drowned hiss, the water began to splash about violently.
"Time to leave," I muttered softly.
Tensing my legs, I launched myself through the room in one single leap. Darting out of the hatch, I bounded through the hallway, kicking off the walls in an attempt to avoid as much water as physically possible.
Landing on the dry deck only a few feet from Blake, I set Weiss down and turned towards the flooded passageway.
"What's going on?" Blake asked cautiously, her hand on her blade.
"Grimm–" Weiss began.
"Fishing," I responded.
Summoning a handful of blades, I waited until I saw a black, bulbous Grimm float down the passageway. Pointing towards it, the blades shot off one after the other, tearing through the Grimms body.
Watching its body dissolve, I recognized it as one of the weaker aquatic Grimm that were often found in lakes and rivers. They didn't really have any ability to attack. No. What they did do was tire their Prey out by wrapping them in their hooked tendrils and letting them try to escape
They weren't a threat to anyone with Aura, but to the average person, they would be able to tear into them quite viciously.
"…Did you get what you were looking for?" Blake asked, choosing to ignore what she just saw.
"We did," Weiss replied. Holding her Scroll up. "And all that without a single drop of wate–"
"Heads up!" Yang called out as she bounded off the side of the ship.
Turning towards her teammate, a wave of mud splattered across Weiss as a spinning Boarbatusk slammed into the hull.
"What?!" Weiss shrieked.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you," Blake hummed. "It turns out that those containers are filled with Grimm. Ruby, Yang and Maria have been taking turns killing them."
"But… But the mud?!"
"We are on a river bank, it's bound to get muddy out there," Blake replied.
Angrily splashing the mud off her, Weiss looked down at her dress mournfully. "Why always me? This is never going to come out."
Sighing, I opened my inventory and began to look for clothes. While I doubt I had anything in Weiss' style, I had to have something she could wear in the meanwhile.
…Breathe…
Traveling towards the last known coordinates from the cargo ship barely took an hour. From the log that Weiss managed to download, the trip would have taken several more if we'd gone by ship.
Upon nearing the Island, it was painfully clear that something had happened here. If I didn't know any better, I would have said that it was hit by a natural disaster… Something like a hurricane or an earthquake.
Unfortunately that didn't seem to be the case here. The only thing that appeared to be damaged were man made objects, specifically the radio towers that were stationed around the island alongside dozens of Androids that had been torn apart.
"I'm getting the distinct feeling that we weren't the first to arrive here," Maria commented. Flipping a few switches on the Airship, she brought it down lower so that we could get a closer look. "Whoever they were, they certainly did a number on this place."
"Yeah," I muttered, glancing at the trail of scrapped Androids. "Let's see where it goes."
"As if you needed to ask," Maria smirked.
Increasing the speed of the Airship, she followed the trail of destruction. Taking us over the island, we passed over what appeared to be an industrial area that contained large, inactive pumps that were connected to large pits filled with a glowing green fluid.
In a strange sort of way, it kind of resembled a Grimm spawning pool.
The facility felt eerily abandoned… Even by the Grimm. There was quite literally nothing moving on the island. Only a strange sense of emptiness remained. I almost wanted to suggest turning back, but decided against it. We'd come too far to stop now… And, I needed to know what happened to Merlot.
"Well, that's where the path ends," Maria commented. "It's not a bad place to land either. What do you say?"
"May as well," I shrugged.
Smirking, Maria brought the Airship into a nosedive, drawing a startled shriek from the passengers cabin. Pulling back on the wheel, she hit a few switches, stalling the Airship only a few feet off the ground.
"Heh, still got it," Maria muttered proudly.
"Sure," I hummed, rolling my eyes in amusement.
Heading into the passenger cabin, I was greeted to the sight of a disgruntled Team RWBY… Well, mostly disgruntled. Yang seemed to enjoy Maria's sudden descent. Ruby didn't look too bothered by it either.
Weiss on the other hand looked downright angry, but seeing as she was currently drowning in one of my white hoodies, it didn't look all that intimidating.
Blake on the other hand…
"Was that completely necessary?" Blake asked, appearing disgruntled.
"Just making sure you four were awake," Maria grinned. "Trust me, I've had far worse wakeup calls than a little bit of turbulence."
"That's…" Blake began, growing visibly frustrated before sighing. "Never mind."
"Right, well, let's get going," I announced, opening the hatch. "There's something seriously off about this Island, so stick together and be on the lookout for anything suspicious."
"Off how?" Yang asked, appearing a little concerned. "Like a bottle of milk left in the sun for too long or a rotten egg that just popped?"
That… I wasn't exactly sure what to say to that. "Probably something in between," I replied, scratching the back of my head.
"So a five on a scale of ten," Yang nodded, smirking.
"…Sure," I answered. "Just… Watch each other's backs out there and everything will be fine."
"We'll do our best," Ruby said, cocking her gun.
"Okay," I hummed.
Stepping off the Airship, I was immediately greeted by a potent chemical smell that burned my nose. Taking a slow breath, I walked through a large set of broken mechanical doors.
Heading into a long set of hallways, I was relieved to find the chemical smell growing progressively weaker.
"Is anyone else getting horror movie vibes?" Yang asked, glancing around the abandoned facility.
"Pshaw," Ruby answered confidently, only to let out a startled eep when she accidentally kicked a stray piece of metal. "This… This is nothing."
"Right," Yang drawled. "Guess it's just me then."
"There is something vaguely unsettling about this place," Weiss commented.
They weren't wrong to feel a little unsettled. There was just something about this place that put me on edge. "We should probably look for a control room," I said, looking at one of the few camera's that hadn't been ripped from the wall.
"Like back on the cargo ship," Weiss nodded.
"Yeah, well, I hate to break it to you, but this place is a lot larger than that ship," Maria commented. "I'd suggest splitting up like we did back at the loading dock, but that might be a bad idea. Who knows what might be in here with us."
I nodded slowly. "Then I guess we're just going to have to keep following the trail of broken Androids until we find what we're looking for."
With that said, we descended further into the lab. It didn't take long before we came across an elevator that took us deeper into the lab.
Coming to a stop, I stepped off the elevator and was immediately hit with several different scents… The smell of blood being the one that stood out the most.
Following it as best as I could, I gestured for everyone to stick close. Walking down several more hallways, I finally came across a mostly dry pool of blood that led off into what appeared to be a dead end. However, one with a blood stained control panel built into the wall on the side.
"What're you thinking?" Maria asked, standing by my side.
"I'm thinking that there's a room behind this wall," I replied.
Grabbing my sword, I took a hissed breath and slashed through the wall several times. Pulling back to deliver the final cut, Yang sped past me, delivering a heavy punch that shook the surrounding area and shattered the wall.
Turning around, Yang grinned boisterously. "What? I thought you wanted to bring the wall down?"
Chuckling softly as I shook my head, I suddenly froze when a new scent hit me. One of decay.
"Ugh, what's that smell?" Weiss complained, blocking her nose.
"Death," Blake muttered.
"You four might want to avoid this next part," I said.
Patting Yang on the shoulder, I stepped past her, into the hidden room. Looking around, it didn't take long at all to discover the source of the smell.
Sitting in a chair positioned in front of several monitors was Merlot's body… Well, everything save for an arm. He also appeared to have a substantial wound just below his ribcage, but it didn't look immediately fatal.
"What happened to him?" Ruby asked softly.
"That's what I'm hoping to find out," I replied.
Wheeling Merlot's chair to the side, I approached the terminal and began paging through it. Finding the video feed, I jumped to an earlier one where Merlot was still alive and fast forwarded my way through it.
For the most part, everything seemed to be going smoothly. Merlot went about his day experimenting on Grimm, killing most of them in the process… At least until a week ago when he was visited by two extremely familiar men… Hazel Rainart and Arthur Watts.
"Son of a bitch," I muttered under my breath.
That wasn't good… Although, on the bright side, Merlot didn't join Salem, so there was that.
The rest of the video was fairly straight forward. Merlot sent wave after wave of his Grimm and Androids to kill Salem's agents, only to have them effortlessly torn apart. The duo continued into his lab where Watts began hacking into his servers.
Merlot on the other hand… He left the safety of this room and unlocked one of his labs. The next time we saw Merlot, he was making his way back here, clutching his chest with his remaining hand.
From there, the video feed began to cut out with camera after camera was destroyed by something that was just out of sight. The final video was of Hazel, amped up on dust escaping while carrying Watts' wounded form.
"Well that's not good," I said once the final screen faded to black.
"Oh, you think?" Maria asked sarcastically. "Whatever that was that he let out could still be down here and, unless you're planning on hunting the thing, we should leave immediately."
"…But before that," I began, drawing a groan from Maria. "We should copy Merlot's research. It shouldn't be too difficult from here, right?"
I mean, this was his main control room… I think.
Giving me a pointed look, Maria sighed. "Fine, go ahead."
"Great," I hummed. "Weiss, could I ask you to help me out with this?"
"…Alright," She muttered, shooting a wary look towards Merlot's corpse. "The sooner it can get us out of this place, the better."
Connecting her Scroll to the terminal, the screens lit up for a moment, showing that it'd been accepted, only to suddenly turn black.
"What, did we blow a fuse?" Yang asked, only for the screens to light up once more.
"Greetings Arthur… Hazel," Merlot announced, his wounded image appearing on the screens. "I feel the need to congratulate you… Making it this far. Fighting off the Grimm I unleashed is no easy task… Especially with the modifications I've made to it. I'd applaud you, but unfortunately… I find myself incapable of doing so at this moment."
"This has to be about the weirdest dying message I've ever seen," Maria idly commented.
"It is a pity that it's come to this," Merlot grimaced. "I would have liked to linger on a while longer, but I only have a handful of minutes left at best. I do hope that I've taken down one of you… That'd prove a point to that vindictive little brat. The Grimm are not solely Salems. Why should I have to bow my head to her if I want to experiment on them?"
Falling into a coughing fit, he spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Wow, this guy really knows how to draw out his death," Yang said.
"I imagine that you're wondering what the point of all this is," Merlot noted. "But trust me, there is one. For you see, the naturally occurring chemicals on this island are fairly volatile… Especially when unrefined. As it so happens, I've found a Grimm pool on this island… Not too far off from a major deposit of these chemicals."
Shit!
"Forget the message, we're leaving now!" I announced, stepping out into the hallway.
"The moment you activated this message is the moment in which you've sealed your fate!" Merlot laughed maniacally as the bunker began to rumble.
Rushing through the hallways, we made it to the elevator and began making our ascent. Reaching the first floor, we left Merlot's laboratory behind and boarded the Airship.
"Let's get this thing in the air," I said to Maria. "I'll keep an eye out for the–"
Hearing a feral shriek come from inside the Airship, an extremely dense body smashed into mine, tackling me out the back door.
-100AP
Landing on the ground outside, I rolled to my feet and drew my blade just in time to block the Grimm's slash.
Taking a brief moment to examine the Grimm's features, I raised an eyebrow. It wasn't exactly what I'd expected it to be.
Possessing an almost humanoid body, The Grimm had two of its limbs replaced by blades. It's head… If you could call it that, it was more of an extended mouth than anything else. It did appear to have a few eyes, but they appeared to be switched out with cybernetic implants.
It kind of resembled a praying mantis… Minus the bottom half.
Separating from the modified Grimm, I lashed out with a kick, sending it tumbling backwards. "Go… Get the Airship started… I'll follow once you're in the air," I called out, not taking my eyes off the Grimm.
"You better not take too long. We don't exactly have a lot of time," Maria called out.
Almost as if to prove her point, the ground began to rumble as a large slope of land cracked in half.
"I'll be right with you," I replied. Taking a hissed breath, I launched myself forward and slammed my sword against the Grimms bladed arms. "This shouldn't take too long."
It was a pity too. I really would have liked to take my time with this Grimm. It wasn't too often that I faced one that was able to block my attacks.
Breathing easily, I gripped my blade and pressed forward, forcing the Grimm to take a step backwards. Breaking free from the lock, I swung my sword down with enough force to completely overwhelm the Grimm, cracking its blades.
"Sun Breathing: Sun Halo Dragon Head Dance"
-800 AP
Stepping past it, my blade cut through its body, spraying a mist of cyan blood out onto the ground below.
Flicking my blade clean of the chemical, I sheathed it and glanced at the Grimm's crumbling body one last time. "Sorry, I really would have liked to take my time, but I do need to leave."
Turning towards the Airship, I kicked off the ground and landed in the passenger cabin alongside Team RWBY who'd been waiting.
Maria, seeing that we were all on board, took off, causing the Airship to shudder violently.
"You know, you could have let us take a crack at that thing first," Yang commented.
Yeah, that wasn't going to happen. Pyrrha or Winter could have handled that thing on their own, but Team RWBY just wasn't ready for a Grimm of that nature. Especially not when we were escaping.
"We just didn't have ti–"
A massive explosion rocked the island with the shockwave smashing into the back of the Airship, threatening to knock it out of the sky.
Steadying myself, I looked out of a broken window only to see that a portion of the island was now missing.
"You know what, I take it back," Yang chuckled weakly. Looking at the damage, she whistled. "This is gonna make for one hell of a story though. You think the other teams back at Beacon will be impressed?"
Sighing, I slapped my palm to my face. "Yeah… Probably."
At least the island was uninhabited. If this went down in Patch, there'd be hell to pay.
Sitting up in a panicked jolt, Raven groaned and fell back into the tangled mess of blankets and pillows. Grabbing a stray pillow, she covered her eyes, hiding from the afternoon sun.
Life in Beacon had been... Well, she wouldn't say that it was bad. Her basic needs were met. Under Ozpin's protection, she'd been given a place to stay, unspoiled food, clean water and access to a bathroom, something that she rarely had back with her tribe.
It was comfortable... It was everything she'd sought to do away with. She was a survivor... Someone who had taken the worst the world had to offer and through sheer grit, managed to make it out in one piece.
Surviving until tomorrow was all that mattered. She didn't care if she drank from a crystal chalice or a muddied puddle. The only important thing was that she survived.
Luxuries would only make a person soft. It was the struggle of a hard life that made her strong... That made her worthy of the power that she wielded... At least, that's what she believed... Used to believe.
With everything that's happened to her in the past year, she wasn't exactly sure what to believe in anymore.
In the span of one night, her entire life had been turned upside down... And, as much as she'd rather blame someone else, it'd been entirely her fault.
She'd grown arrogant... Thinking that so long as she had the Spring Maiden's powers, nothing, excluding Salem and Ozpin of course, could touch her. Oh, how wrong she'd been.
She woke a monster, one that appeared to enjoy toying with her. During their first encounter, he'd beaten her with a kiss that had done a significant amount of damage to her. It'd taken her a week to recover.
During her second encounter... Well, she'd tried to use her abilities as a Maiden, but that was next to useless.
Groaning, she turned over in her bed. Hearing a clink of glass on glass, she reached for the bottle she'd placed next to her bed before passing out in a stupor, only to end up knocking it off her bedside table, spilling its contents on the floor.
Sighing, she gave up and turned over, opting to ignore it. It wasn't the end of the world, she could always steal another bottle from one of the teams here in Beacon.
Heh, who would have guessed that she'd be a positive influence on the kids here... Preventing them from drinking by stealing their alcohol for herself. Qrow would probably find it funny... Hell, if he knew what she was doing, he'd probably help out.
It wouldn't be the first time either. Back before they graduated Beacon, they'd often stolen from the other teams in their year... Rarely ever being caught. Those were happier times.
Turning over fitfully, Raven groaned as a stray beam of light hit her face. She wasn't going to get anymore sleep, that much was painfully obvious. That, however, didn't mean that she wasn't going to give it her best shot.
Hearing the sound of glass clinking again, Raven tried to ignore it, only to suddenly realize two things. It wasn't coming from her room and that she lived alone.
Ignoring her throbbing head and the sense of nausea, she opened her eyes and scanned her room. Finding that she was alone, she slunk out of bed, stepping over a pile of laundry and grabbed her sword... Doing her best to ignore how her hands shook as she did.
Stepping over a floorboard that she knew creaked, she made her way towards her door. Taking a calming breath, she kicked her bedroom door off its hinges and rushed into her lounge, ready to attack whoever it was that'd snuck in only to suddenly freeze.
There, sitting on her couch, stacking an assortment of bottles on top of each other as if it was a house of cards was a person she'd never expected to see ever again.
"Taiyang?" She murmured, dropping her sword.
"Raven," Taiyang jumped, accidentally knocking over his house of glass, shattering it on the floor. "This... Isn't what it looks like."
Of all the... Raven nursed her throbbing head. Trust Taiyang to show up in her home and create even more of a mess. "Look, I might have hit rock bottom, but that doesn't mean I'm interested in hooking up with you."
Taiyang blinked. "You think..." He trailed off, stifling his laughter. "Hah, no. That ship sailed a long time ago, Raven. No, I'm here for another reason... Well, reasons."
"And those are?" She asked, heading over to her kitchenette to grab some pain killers.
"Qrow mentioned you were having a crap time and I wanted to check in on you."
"To mock me?" Raven idly asked, plopping two fizzy pills in a glass of water.
"You'd think, but no," Taiyang replied. Falling into Raven's chair, he winced and pulled out a shard of glass that he'd just sat on. "Believe it or not, but I've been exactly where you are right now. After Summer died, I just... Gave up. I stopped looking after myself and worse... I stopped looking after my girls."
Watching as the two pills slowly dissolved, Raven gave Taiyang a dull look. "Is there a point to this story or should I just kick you out now and be done with it?"
Taiyang met her look with a smirk. "There is a point. You see, I was content to wallow in my misery, not caring how it affected those around me and it almost cost me the two people I love most in this world. The thing is... Back then, I was so self absorbed that I didn't even know they were missing. Qrow was the one that realized they weren't there... He was also the one that saved them."
Exhaling slowly, Taiyang stared at the glass shard in his hand, before clenching his fist around it, crumbling it into powder.
"But that's all the past. Qrow gave me the mother of all beatings and I realized how much of an idiot I'd been," He continued. "I also realized that it wasn't just about me, it's about them... Ruby and Yang... If Summer saw how I'd been acting, she would have been disgusted."
"So what? I'm just supposed to live my life in a way that'd appease some dead woman?" Raven snapped. "What happens if I refuse? Will you and Qrow try to make me?" Her eyes briefly sparked with the Maiden's power.
"Nope. It's your life. You get to make your own decisions and you get to live with the consequences," Taiyang shrugged. "Besides, as you are now, I doubt Qrow and I could make you do anything. It's just a shame that you'd choose to live like this. If your teenage self could see you now, she'd kick your ass."
Calming down, Raven swirled the liquid in her cup, reminding herself of how it was just another luxury item that she never really had access to back in her camp... But... She wasn't back at her camp.
"Yeah, well... She'd died," Raven muttered. Downing the fluid in one gulp, she placed the cup on the ever growing pile of dishes in her sink. "And I'm all that's left."
"If she was dead, you'd be too," Taiyang hummed. "It might just be the nostalgia of being back here, but I can't help but think about the day that we became a team... Team STRQ. We didn't get on at all. You and Qrow kept to yourselves and I hit on everything with a pulse. You remember what happened when I tried to flirt with you?"
"I broke your nose," Raven deadpanned.
"And Summer stepped in and kicked the crap out of you," Taiyang nodded, smiling fondly at the memory. "She even beat up Qrow when he tried to help you out. For a pair of bandit wannabes, you weren't exactly a challenge for her."
Feeling her headache begin to fade, Raven relaxed a little and leaned against the nearby wall, crossing her arms. "We were sent to Beacon in order to learn how to kill a Huntsman. Of course we wouldn't know how to fight someone like Summer who'd been training to become one."
"I know," Taiyang replied. "But that didn't stop you from fighting. Regardless of what the odds were, you never backed down and that was something I used to admire about you. Even after that fight with Summer, you were beaten and bruised, but, instead of giving up, you got up, spat out a tooth and were ready for more."
It was funny. Even after all these years, she was still able to recall that fight with almost perfect clarity. It'd been the first time she ever fought someone that was training to be a Huntress and it'd been completely one sided. She'd lost.
Back then, it'd only fuelled her will to grow stronger. The strong survived and the weak died... And she refused to allow herself to stay weak. If it killed her, it killed her, she needed to constantly exceed.
But, as she'd learnt over the years, some things were beyond strength. The Spring Maiden's powers were supposed to bridge that gap, but all they'd done was make her a bigger target in a game that was being played between immortals.
Clenching her hand shut, Raven took a moment to calm herself. "That's all in the past now," She muttered... Whether it was to herself or to Taiyang, even she didn't know. "You said that you were here for two reasons. What's the other one?"
"Right. I wanted to ask you about Ruby and Yang's mentor. I heard from Qrow that you've encountered him a few times. Coal Calavera," Taiyang explained. "I got an interesting message from Yang. Something about a mad scientist and how they accidentally blew up an unexplored island..."
"Calavera..." Raven said stiffly. "Yes, I... Know of him."
"Good, then can you tell me a little bit about him?" Taiyang asked. "I'm already checking on Ruby and Yang, so I thought I'd meet their so-called mentor."
"That... Isn't something I would recommend," Raven answered cautiously. "He's... Not like everyone else. He might put on a friendly face, but deep down, he's just like Salem and Ozpin."
"...Okay, but what can you tell me about him?" Taiyang repeated his earlier question.
Sighing, Raven slapped a palm to her face. "I just told you. You're best off avoiding him. If pushed, he can and will kill you."
Taiyang smirked confidently. "You obviously don't understand. It doesn't matter if he's just like Salem or if he was one of the brothers. Those are my daughters he's training and I am their father. So long as there's breath left in my lungs, I'll continue to care for them and do my best to ensure that they're okay."
"You always were an idealistic idiot," Raven muttered. "Outside of the fact that he was able to beat me in a fight while I was using the Spring Maiden's powers, I don't know much about him. You're better off asking Ozpin... Or that redheaded girl he likes to keep by his side."
"Eh, that seems like too much work," Taiyang said, stretching as he stood up. "Instead, I think I'll just go straight to the source."
"Don't say that I didn't warn you," Raven replied.
"Yeah, yeah. Big scary unbeatable Huntsman," Taiyang waved her off as he stepped towards her door. "See you some other time, Raven. Think about what I said, alright?"
"Goodbye, Taiyang," Raven answered, gesturing towards the door.
Nodding, he left and Raven was alone once more.
In a strange sort of way, she'd almost have preferred it if he'd been more like Qrow and had pointed out her many failings. Instead, he'd actually tried to help her... Leaving her feeling conflicted.
Part of her wanted to mope around and drown her problems with a bottle, while another... Lesser heard part was demanding that she get off her ass and stop feeling sorry for herself. Worse yet, it seemed to be winning.
Picking up her discarded blade, Raven's hands shook, her heart beat faster and her breathing became erratic, but she refused to drop it.
"Stop shaking!"
…Breathe…
Sitting in the Amphitheatre, I watched as Pyrrha sparred with the entirety of Team RWBY. She was good... Easily capable of simply overwhelming the team if she wanted to, but, since this was a training exercise and not actual combat, she held back.
It certainly helped Team RWBY train. Fighting a superior opponent did that. Pyrrha also got a little practice in as well... Even together, they weren't really a match for her, but Yang seemed to have really taken to her new speed as she sped around the arena, helping block some of Pyrrha's heavier blows.
"They're doing fairly well, all things considered," Winter commented. "They've certainly grown stronger... Especially Yang. I'm not quite certain that I recognize that technique she uses to move as fast as she does."
"It's just a simple technique I taught her before we left Argus," I replied. "It's a method of building up a large amount of momentum before releasing it in an instant."
"I see," Winter nodded stiffly before softening. "Is... Everything alright? You seem a little distracted."
"I'm fine, it's just... There's a lot on my mind," I admitted. "Merlot... Salem... The Vytal festival... Mentoring Team RWBY. I'm not really sure what I should focus on."
Humming to herself, Winter glanced towards Pyrrha before looking back. Nodding to herself, she shifted a little further away from me, but not before grabbing my shoulder.
"Winter..."
"You need to lean into it," Winter explained, pulling me down. "This is something that my... That Willow used to do when I was younger and I always found it relaxing."
Resting my head on her lap, she slowly began to rake her fingers through my hair. I had to give it to her... This was certainly relaxing.
"Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I think back to when I was still in training to become a Specialist... It was something General Ironwood said to me. 'We're all in this together. Each and everyone here is working to make a better tomorrow,'" Winter continued. "I found it to be a comforting thought... That no matter what threat is out there, we're all in this together, taking it one step at a time."
One step at a time, eh? I could get behind that.
Taking a deep breath, I exhaled slowly, feeling a little lighter for it.
"Thanks... That helped," I hummed.
"You're welcome." Winter smiled.
Falling into a comfortable silence, I continued to watch Team RWBY fight Pyrrha.
Weiss... Almost as if she was able to feel my gaze, turned to look in our direction. Locking eyes with the younger Schnee, her mouth fell open and she unintentionally hit the trigger on her blade, sending a wave of ice towards Ruby and Blake... Neither of them had expected to be attacked by their teammate.
"Hey, what the heck?!" Ruby squawked.
"Weiss," Blake snapped.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to. I wasn't looking," Weiss apologized. "I'll get you out in just a sec–Gah!"
Thrown across the arena with the wind knocked out of her, Weiss clutched the offending object that slammed into her waist... Pyrrha's shield... Only for it to jerk out of her grip and return to the red headed warrior.
"Never allow yourself to become distracted, especially when in a fight," Pyrrha chirped. "Even during a spar. You really don't want to develop a bad habit like that."
"Um, uh," Ruby hummed, trying to pull herself free from the ice as Pyrrha approached. "Weiss... No, she's out. Yang, a little help here, please!"
Darting around the arena at a speed comparable to Ruby's Semblance, Yang reared her fist back, ready to shatter the ice that trapped her sister and teammate, only to come to a dead halt as she collided with Pyrrha's spear.
"You might be fast, but you're not really experienced with that speed," Pyrrha noted. "You should have tried to distract me first before attempting to free your teammates."
"Don't... Need to," Yang grimaced. Grabbing Pyrrha's spear, she swung it to the side and stepped into her guard, only to be bashed by her shield. Grabbing onto it to keep herself from stumbling backwards, she shot Pyrrha a vicious grin. "I've been... Saving up... Throughout this... Entire fight."
Watching as Yang's eyes turned red and her hair lit up as if it was on fire, Pyrrha jumped back in an attempt to put some distance between them, only for Yang to follow her step for step.
Using her Semblance to help reposition herself, Pyrrha raised her shield, blocking Yang's fist just moments before it impacted her.
A thunderous crack sounded through the area as the energy from Yang's punch exploded outward, throwing her and Pyrrha in opposite directions
Hitting the ground, Yang slowly rolled to a stop. Breathing heavily and with sweat dripping down her face, she pushed herself up and turned towards Pyrrha, feeling a sense of worry that she might have accidentally hurt her friend, only to find that her worry was misplaced.
Standing tall with her spear gripped in one hand, Pyrrha held her shield in front of her... Its body glowing a dull red and radiated a good amount of heat. Lowering it, she revealed an excited smile that quickly faded when she took in Yang's exhausted form.
"Are you okay?" She asked, taking a step towards Yang.
"That's just insane," Yang muttered to herself. "That was literally everything I had and you took it like it was nothing."
"I wouldn't say nothing," Pyrrha hummed. "I did have to get serious there for a moment. If your punch landed, it would have drained a substantial amount of my Aura."
But not enough to beat her. It was actually a little terrifying how tough Pyrrha was. Even though she'd been holding back, she was still able to beat their entire team, all of whom had been using Total Concentration Breathing.
It was insane.
It was awesome.
"You–"
"Ambush!" Ruby roared as she appeared in a flurry of rose petals, only to be swiped to the side by Pyrrha's spear.
Stepping to the side, Pyrrha avoided a sword, attached to a black ribbon. Stabbing her spear into the ground, she grabbed a hold of the ribbon and gave a harsh tug, dragging Blake towards her.
Darting forward far faster than Blake could follow, Pyrrha circled the Faunus, wrapping her in her own ribbon.
"You should probably surrender," Pyrrha advised the team. "You're not going to win this one."
Raising her shield, she blocked several sniper rounds. Shifting her spear into its rifle form, she took several shots of her own, only to pause when she saw that both Weiss and Yang were standing by Ruby's side, ready to continue fighting regardless of their own exhaustion.
"We're not done yet," Ruby yelled back.
Gripping her rifle tightly, Pyrrha smiled brightly.
...Breathe...
"Well," I said, examining Yang's arm. "It's not broken, but you have damaged the bone. It'll heal once your Aura kicks in, but you might want to ice your arm after we're done here."
"And the rest of my body," Yang groaned. "Seriously, I'm pretty much one giant bruise right now."
"I'm sorry," Pyrrha apologized, blushing lightly. "I... Might have gotten a bit carried away."
"Don't worry about it," Yang said. Attempting to wave her off, she froze in pain. "It... Was still an awesome fight."
"Speak for yourself," Weiss muttered, holding her gut. "I think I might have internal bleeding."
"That's where the blood's supposed to be," Yang grinned.
"You... I... Gah."
Seeing Winter's alarmed look, I glanced over Weiss and shook my head, easing her worries. She didn't have internal bleeding... She did however have a bruised ribcage which was bound to cause her some pain for the rest of the day.
I... Might need to escort them to the on campus med bay. A few painkillers and a night's rest would go a long way to fixing them up. Aura was handy like that.
As for Blake and Ruby, they got off a lot easier. Sure they were still a little beat up, but it wasn't anywhere near as Weiss or Yang.
Pyrrha on the other hand... Aside from a little sweat, she was completely fine. The only thing that might have been able to hurt her was Yang's punch and she'd weathered that pretty well. She'd easily be able to go another few rounds without any issues.
"So, what else have you got for us?" Yang asked. "It's not some other breathing exercise, is it? If so, could we do it tomorrow because all I want to do now is get a hot shower and climb into bed."
"No, it's not another breathing exercise," I chuckled, drawing a relieved sigh from Yang. "But it is something I need to discuss with you four," I said, glancing over at the four Huntresses in training.
"We… Didn't do anything wrong, did we?" Ruby asked.
"Nope," I hummed. "With how far you four have advanced, I thought that it was about time we kicked your training up a notch. You'll still need to focus on Total Concentration Breathing, but, outside of that, you'll also be learning how to use your Breathing Styles."
"Hell yeah!" Yang cheered. Jumping up in excitement, her expression soon morphed into one of pain as she fell forward. "Catch me, catch me, catch me!"
Reaching out, Pyrrha caught Yang under her arms while I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her waist, keeping her from falling over.
"Thanks," Yang breathed a sigh of relief, before smirking. "I always wanted to know what it would feel like to be the stuffing in a sandwich… And now I do."
"…Right," I chuckled softly while helping Yang sit down.
"Um… When will we start learning our Breathing Styles?" Ruby asked, raising her hand. "I mean, I'm down for whenever, but I do have a ton of homework for tomorrow… But I could blow it off if we're starting tonight."
"Actually, that is something I needed to talk to you four about," I noted. "Before we begin, you four are going to need to… Upgrade your weapons."
"Wait, so… That special metal?" Ruby asked.
"Yep," I nodded.
If I taught them their Breathing Styles now, they'd just run into the same problem as Pyrrha and Winter… And this time, Ruby wouldn't be able to help out. I mean, I could always ask Ozpin for help, but I'd rather just avoid the problem entirely by holding off on their Breathing Styles for a week.
"Special metal?" Weiss asked before turning towards her teammate for an explanation. "Ruby?"
"That's a surprise for later," I said, stepping in. "Trust me, the wait will be worth it."
"Sweet, so since Ruby seems to know what to do, we'll just get the details from her tomorrow," Yang added a little impatiently. "I can go get showered now, right?"
"Well… I suppose so," I replied.
I had wanted to explain a few things to Blake and Weiss. Since they'd helped out a little with Merlot's lab, I thought that now might be the right time to tell them about Salem, but I suppose I could delay it… At the very least, it'd give me some time to figure out how to explain Salem's existence to them.
That was odd… Someone just entered the Amphitheatre. Maybe I was right to hold off on Salem. I didn't want some random student knowing about her.
"Yes," Yang cheered from her seat. "Now does anyone think they could help me into the showers… Anyone at all?" She asked, looking between her teammates. "Do I hear any takers? If no one speaks up, I'm just gonna have to ask Coal. Is that what you want? For him to see me naked?"
"Who's going to see you naked?"
"…Dad?!" Both Ruby and Yang squawked.
"Hey girls, how's it going," Taiyang smiled. "Yang, I got your text… Something about blowing up an island."
Eyes widening, Yang seemed to fold in on herself. "I meant to send that to Nora," She breathed.
Well that kind of explained why he was here.
"Yes, well… I think it's time that your mentor and I had a little chat," Taiyang said. "Tell me mister Calavera… What exactly are your intentions towards my daughters?"
"Dad, no."
"Gah, parental embarrassment… Why?" Ruby moaned, pulling her hood over her face.
And suddenly his arrival made a whole lot more sense. Sure, I'd taken them on a dangerous mission, but that was expected of Huntresses. Dating, however…
"I'm just… training them so they'll be ready if anything chooses to come for them," I explained.
Giving me a hard look, Taiyang sighed. "So you're not trying to start something with one of my daughters?"
"Dad!" Yang yelled while Ruby retreated further into her hood.
"…No. I'm kind of already in a relationship," I said, nodding towards Pyrrha and Winter.
"Oh… OH… oh," Taiyang hummed, going through various emotions. "Damn, good work, kid. I'd give you a high five, but… Wait. What's wrong with my daughters? They not good enough for you?!"
I slapped a palm to my face. Maybe I should see if Maria was busy… I could call her over and have her mess with Taiyang a little.