Chapter Text
Chapter 1
Standing at the edge of the cliffs on Patch, the chill wind whipped Ruby’s hair around her face. The cold felt sharp, but good. She pulled her red cloak tighter around her shoulders, sighing happily as the fabric settled around her. It was nice to finally wear her red cloak again, after spending an entire week cooped up in the house, she was starting to feel like herself again.
Taiyang had forbidden Ruby and Yang from stepping a single foot outside for a full seven days. He claimed he’d missed his girls too much after their two-year apprenticeship under Qrow, though Ruby suspected he mostly just wanted an excuse to smother them.
"Hey, Mom," Ruby whispered, looking down at the worn stone of Summer's gravestone. "A week’s already passed since we got back. Things are moving so fast."
She took a quiet breath, watching the waves crash against the rocks far below.
"Ren and Nora started attending Signal this week," she continued, a small smile tugging at her lips. "They are friends we met back in Mistral. Nora’s already managed to blow up a classroom. Twice! Dad looked like he was going to have a heart attack, but I think it’s pretty impressive."
Her smile faded slightly as her thoughts shifted.
"Raven’s... well, she’s still avoiding Dad," Ruby admitted, tracing a finger along the edge of her cloak. "She’s functioning as our liaison to Miss Malachite now. We made an agreement to send her men in return for money to use in the gang wars back in Mistral. It’s actually a pretty good system, it gives our gear a real testing ground while remaining under Rose-Industries' ultimate supervision. And most importantly, they aren't razing innocent towns. They're working as gangsters with a code. Not optimal I know however I see it as an improvement over their previous occupation. At least until I have found a better use for their talents."
She paused, blinking as a sudden, happy thought popped into her head.
"Oh! That reminds me, we have this super cute corgi now! His name is Zwei, and he has these big, round, adorable eyes. Dad said because of his unlocked aura he needs to be trained. So he said he’s going to start training him at Signal. He’s super smart, and he escapes Dad all the time to come play with us. He also said you always wanted to get us a dog once we were big enough..."
"Traveling the world for those two years... Mom, it was amazing. I got so many incredible ideas for Rose-Industries while we were out there! Seeing how different kingdoms adapt their tech and weapons gave me so many new concepts to work on. I honestly can't wait to show everything to Pietro. He's going to go crazy when he sees my ideas!"
Her bright expression slowly withered away, replaced by a heavy silence that settled over the cliffs. The wind felt a little colder, a little sharper. Her eyes drifted past the gravestone toward the ocean, looking out toward the distant horizon.
"Mom... something terrible happened," Ruby whispered, her voice cracking as the words caught in her throat. "Paradiso... it’s gone. A horde of Grimm like nothing anyone’s ever seen... it just swallowed the entire city whole."
She buried her hands deep inside her cloak, her fingers clenching into tight, trembling fists.
"Millions of people, Mom. Millions... wiped out in a matter of days. And the ones who survived... they lost everything. Families lost, homes torn apart. They’re fleeing anywhere they can flooding into Vacuo, crowding onto overcrowded ships just to reach Vale. The city can barely hold them, but what else can they do? Nothing like this has ever happened before. Not even in the worst years of the Great War."
A heavy, suffocating silence settled over the cliffside. The wind suddenly felt bitter, biting at her face, but Ruby didn't move. She just stood there, staring at the cold stone, letting the sheer size of the tragedy crush down on her chest.
Slowly, she reached out, resting her knuckles gently against the gravestone as if trying to draw warmth from it.
Minutes stretched past in quiet stillness. The waves crashed against the rocks below, a relentless, never ending rhythm that seemed to echo around her. Ruby had her eyes closed, letting the cold air sting her cheeks as she held on to the memory of her mom’s presence, wishing more than anything that her mom was there to tell her how to fix a world that was falling apart.
Finally, she opened her eyes and drew a long, quiet breath, letting the sorrow settle into a quiet resolve.
"I have to go now, Mom," she murmured, her voice soft against the wind. "I have an appointment with Pietro. I haven't been able to check on Rose-Industries yet with everything going on, and... well, we have a lot of work to do."
Giving her mother's gravestone one last gentle smile, Ruby turned around to head back down the path.
The journey from Patch to the heart of Vale was swift for Ruby, as she didn’t have the patience for ordinary transit today. Leaving Patch behind, Ruby burst into a storm of crimson rose petals. She streaked across the coast and over the shining waters of the bay, a red blur cutting through the air until the soot-stained skyline of Vale materialized on the horizon.
When she materialized back into human form on the cobblestone streets of the city she was panting heavily, when the air hit her with a heavy, stifling weight.
Ruby froze. Two years ago, Vale had been bustling, clean, and vibrant. Now, the streets surrounding the Rose-Industries district were choked with despair. Rows upon rows of makeshift canvas tents lined the sidewalks, spilling into the alleys. Crowds of refugees, most of them Faunus with exhausted, hollow eyes huddled together in the chill wind. Children wrapped in thin blankets sat on milk crates while adults waited in motionless, silent lines near soup kitchens. The tragedy of Paradiso hadn't just been a distant shockwave; its bloody aftermath had washed up directly onto Vale's doorstep, straining a city that was already bursting at the seams.
Squeezing her eyes shut against the heartbreak, Ruby pulled her hood lower over her face and hurried toward the pristine, glass-and-steel buildings of Rose-Industries.
Stepping into the main lobby was like crossing into another world. She bypassed the empty reception desks and slipped straight into the elevator, punching the code for the deep underground research and development labs. The heavy doors slid shut, sealing out the noise of the city, and the elevator descended into the earth with a low, smooth hum.
When the heavy steel doors finally parted at the subterranean level, Ruby stepped out into the brightly lit corridor, only for the lights to instantly cut to a stark, flashing red.
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" The voice boomed through hidden speakers, harsh, metallic, and cold.
Ruby gasped, her heart leaping into her throat as she jumped a full foot off the ground. "Huh?! What?!"
"THIS IS A RESTRICTED AREA. IDENTIFY YOURSELF AT ONCE!"
In a terrifying sequence of heavy mechanical clicks, panels along the walls and ceiling flipped open. Half a dozen automated defense turrets dropped down, their heavy twin-barrels spinning to life with a high-pitched whine, all locking squarely onto Ruby's chest.
"I-I'm r-ruby!" she stammered, holding her hands up defensively, her voice squeaking in pure panic. "Ruby Rose!"
There was a half-second beat of dead silence. Then, the turrets abruptly spun down, retracting back into the ceiling as the red warning lights vanished, replaced by the bright lighting that was there before.
"Oh! My sincere apologies! You’re the one who helped my father!" The voice had completely shifted, now bright, cheerful, and impossibly bubbly.
Ruby blinked, lowering her hands slowly as her racing heart began to settle. "Huh? Your... father? Wait, are you P.E.N.N.Y.? Uhm... where are you, Penny?"
"Right here."
A large wall-mounted monitor right beside Ruby flickered to life. Projected against a light grey background was the digital avatar of a young girl. She had vibrant, fiery orange hair swept up in a neat bow, bright emerald-green eyes, and an innocent, wide-eyed smile. She was wearing a crisp, stylized black military-style uniform with red trimmings and featuring the Rose-Industries crest proudly on her chest, a burning red rose entwined in the body of a long, gold tinted yellow dragon with silver claws, its head turned to gaze into the heart of the burning rose.
"Hello, Ruby Rose!" the girl announced, giving an energetic, crisp salute. "I am Penny Polendina! Daughter of Pietro Polendina, and state-of-the-art smart A.I.!"
Before Penny could even lower her hand, a burst of red rose petals swirled in front of the screen. Ruby reappeared inches from the monitor, her eyes practically sparkling with awe.
"That is so cool!" Ruby squealed, pressing her hands against the glass. "You look amazing! A real, sentient A.I.?! Oh man, I have so many questions! Can you hear me through the speakers? Do you process thoughts like a human? Can you control the whole building at once? I am so excited to work with you!"
Penny’s digital eyes widened, her smile growing even brighter at Ruby's infectious enthusiasm. "I can process data at three million times the rate of a human brain, and yes, I control all facility systems! It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Friend Ruby!"
"Friend!" Ruby grinned, bouncing on her heels. "I like that! Hey, Penny, do you know where Pietro is right now? I have an appointment with him."
"Of course! Please follow the guidance indicators."
Bright green neon arrows lit up along the floor panels, pointing down a long hallway. Ruby eagerly sprinted after them, taking in the changes Pietro has made to the state-of-the-art facility. As she turned the corner into a massive, cavernous central bay, she stopped dead in her tracks, looking up at the central power core.
Where the old, glowing grade 7 dust reactor used to sit, there was now a sleek, heavily shielded sphere pulsing with a brilliant white light.
"Whoa," Ruby breathed, tilting her head. "Penny... what happened to the Dust reactor?"
Penny’s voice chimed pleasantly through the hallway speakers. "Father frequently complained about the volatility and output degradation of standard Dust reactors during heavy manufacturing cycles. Consequently, he removed it and replaced it with a much more stable, heavy-duty Fission reactor!"
"So cool!" Ruby gushed, leaning over the safety railing to admire the machinery.
"Indeed!" Penny added, her avatar popping up on a smaller diagnostic screen beside the railing. "While it occupies the exact same physical footprint as the previous Dust unit, its sustained energy output is approximately thirty times higher! Though... Father and I agree that efficiency could likely be optimized further. However, we prioritized our recent developmental cycles on figuring out how to shrink and modularize a Fission core as small as possible, just as you requested of Father!"
Ruby’s jaw practically hit the floor. "Wait, you guys actually managed to make a portable Fission reactor?!"
Instead of answering, Penny caused the glowing arrows on the floor to pulse brightly in sequence, coaxing Ruby to keep moving. Reluctantly tearing her gaze away from the hum of the reactor, Ruby pushed off the safety railing and followed the illuminated path down the catwalk, her mind still racing.
"Ah! You have arrived at the primary Fission development lab!" Penny interrupted cheerfully as the arrows led Ruby directly to a massive, reinforced blast door at the end of the walkway. "Father is currently inside!"
Ruby practically darted forward and grabbed the door handle, tugging on it only for a loud BEEP-BEEP to echo as the door remained firmly locked.
"Uhm, Penny?" Ruby called out, tugging again. "The door's locked."
"Yes!" Penny replied crisply. "And I will not unlock it until you observe proper safety protocols and follow the sign!"
"The sign?" Ruby blinked, stepping back to look around the doorframe. Mounted right at eye level was a large, bright yellow hazard sign with flashing orange lights: CAUTION: HIGH RADIATION ZONE BEYOND THIS POINT. SAFETY SUIT REQUIRED.
"Oh..." Ruby rubbed the back of her neck, offering a sheepishly embarrassed smile. "Right. Safety first."
"Fear not!" Penny chimed in. "Sensors confirm your Rose-Industries combat suit is currently at one hundred percent structural integrity. If you seal your helmet, safety compliance will be satisfied, and you will be allowed inside!"
"Got it!" Ruby reached down to her hip, taking her helmet from her belt. She slipped it over her head, and with a pneumatic hiss, the seal locked smoothly into place around her collar, air-tight and ready to go.
This time the door unlocked immediately, sliding open with a heavy hydraulic groan.
Ruby stepped into the sealed decontamination zone, the heavy door sliding shut behind her with a thud. High-pressure jets of mist and ionized air blasted from all directions, sweeping over her armor while UV lights flashed along the walls to scrub away outside contaminants. After a brief, rushing hum, a soft chime signaled the end of the cycle.
With a hiss, the inner blast door unsealed and slid open, letting Ruby step out into the darkened observation lab. The room was illuminated by violent flashing bursts of white and blue light pouring through a thick pane of leaded, darkened glass directly ahead.
Sitting in a specialized hover-chair behind a massive control console was Pietro. He was wearing a bulky, bright orange radiation suit, his hands flying across a keyboard as he monitored a bank of glowing telemetry screens. He was so completely absorbed in the dazzling display of high-energy light flashing beyond the glass that he hadn't even noticed the blast doors opening.
Ruby folded her arms and waited patiently nearby, letting him work. For a solid minute, the room crackled with energy until the brilliant bursts beyond the glass began to flicker, dimming down to a faint, dull hum.
Pietro let out a long, heavy sigh of disappointment, shoulders slumping as he tapped a final sequence to power down the experiment. He spun his hover-chair around to grab a stylus-only to freeze, blinking in surprise as he finally spotted Ruby standing there.
His face instantly brightened into a warm smile. "Ah! Ruby! Well, don't just stand there in the dark, my dear! Come on, let's head up to my office where we can actually hear ourselves think."
As they exited the lab Ruby unsealed her helmet, letting it depressurize with a quick burst of air and waited for Pietro to get out of his suit in the changing room. As he came out she fell into step alongside his hover-chair on the way to the lift. "Oh, I’ve missed this place so much, I have so many ideas to go over with you!" Ruby began excitedly.
"I can imagine!" Pietro chuckled, tapping a few keys on his console as they moved. "And we have plenty to talk about. Between our initial production and preparing to go public, we've made astounding progress."
Ruby eagerly stepped into his office. "Right! So, we already have a few products that have been intensively tested and are ready for sale to the military branches. Like our flashbang grenades, fragmentation grenades, and plasma grenades. We also have the expensive but powerful Mark 3 laser rifles, plus multiple heavy weapons that can be fitted onto a combat platform, like our railguns and laser lance cannons."
She paused, crossing her arms with a slight, mischievous smirk. "Furthermore, I’m going to be pitching a few things to Ozpin and a few of... well, his words, not mine: 'potentially interested parties.' But... I haven’t been able to get our crowning jewel, the Rose Gunship, to perfect status yet."
Ruby turned toward the screen Penny is on, her face lighting up with tech-geek energy. "Penny! Would you please show us blueprint RG-1?"
"Right away, Ma'am!" Penny’s voice chirped through the lab.
In the center of the room, a large circular projector hummed to life. Blue light flared upward, solidifying into a detailed, three-dimensional hologram.
The ship was breathtaking. It was styled in a darkish, matte red with black as secondary color, framed by sleek, sharp, angled armor plating with the Rose-Industries logo on the side and under armor plates. At the front sat a narrow, reinforced cockpit built for a single pilot. The hologram’s rear loading ramp slowly lowered, revealing an interior layout lined with passenger seats and dedicated racks for heavy weapons and ammunition.
"As you can see, she's lightly armored," Ruby explained, gesturing passionately at the glowing hull. "That's because she’ll rely on our proprietary mobile hardlight Dust generator for main shielding! Relying on energy shielding instead of heavy metal allowed me to cram in some ridiculously high-power combat options! It even has a fail-safe Dust generator that can output enough power to keep the ship airborne for two hours in emergencies."
Pietro leaned forward, his eyes glued to the schematic. "Fascinating... go on!"
"It features three main-battery 120mm laser lance cannons mounted on the front," Ruby continued, her hands animatedly mapping out the angles on the hologram. "They have a firing arc of forty degrees sideways and seventy degrees downward perfect for taking care of bigger Grimm or area bombardment! Plus, two automated minigun turrets are mounted on the sides, each with a full 360-degree firing arc. To compensate for rough terrain landings, it’s got heavy-duty extendable landing gear and a ramp that can deploy at literally any angle. The whole ship uses an auto-targeting feature, though it still requires final authorization from the pilot to engage."
Pietro rubbed his chin, leaning so close to the floating image that his nose almost touched the light. "Very impressive! I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite like it. Hmmm... let me have a look..."
He zoomed in on the power routing lines running along the gunship's spine, his brow furrowing slightly. "Ah. I see one glaring issue with those three massive laser lance cannons, Ruby. In this current configuration, the core won't have the immediate energy output to fire all three cannons at full capacity simultaneously. Which... could be solved by removing two of the cannons, but..."
"...But that would defeat the point of the ship's fire support role!" Ruby finished, groaning slightly as she stared at the glowing power draw warning on the screen.
"Precisely," Pietro nodded.
Ruby's eyes suddenly snapped bright. "Wait! What if we solve that by adding high-density battery banks in between the reactor and the weapon systems? It would allow the ship to draw stored energy and fire all three cannons at maximum capacity in intervals for a sustained duration!”
Pietro’s face lit up with a brilliant, wide smile. "Oh, brilliant! I agree! Penny, please show us the most efficient configuration where it's able to fire all three cannons every... let's say, ten seconds as long as 3 hours. That gives us a staggered fire rate of three point three seconds while maintaining maximum system usage."
"Yes, Father!" Penny answered brightly.
The hologram rapidly shifted. Glowing wireframes moved inside the troop bay; multiple passenger seats vanished, and compact, stacked battery modules filled the freed-up corners.
Ruby stared at the revised internal layout, resting her chin in her hand with a slight frown. "Hmmm. So instead of twelve seats, its maximum troop capacity drops to eight. That could be a problem for part of our customer base... Huntsman operations usually rely on dropping multiple full four-person teams into hot zones at once. And that reduced carry capacity doesn't leave much room for extra cargo."
"Ah, but you're forgetting how conventional dropships operate!" Pietro pointed out with a reassuring wave of his hand. "Normally, authorities use standard Bullheads just to drop teams off and return to base, or to haul back heavy wreckage. You shouldn’t look at the Rose Gunship as an airbus, Ruby, It is designed for long-range, extended combat missions! It's meant to be flown by a dedicated combat pilot to provide devastating, continuous close air support. This also means it can be effective without the support of a huntsmen team."
"That's true..." Ruby admitted, a soft laugh escaping her lips as she looked back at the deadly little ship. "Well, currently we can only build one physical prototype at a time anyway. We should probably take a few of these alternate configurations including the heavy railgun variant and present them to Ozpin and the interested parties to see what fits their operational needs best."
"That sounds like a grand idea!" Penny declared warmly. "I will compile and transmit all discussed configurations directly to your Scroll, Friend Ruby!" Penny added cheerfully on a nearby monitor.
"Thank you, Penny!" Ruby beamed. She paused, tapping her chin as another thought crossed her mind. "Oh! Before I forget we are going to start selling the cheaper Mark 2 laser rifles to the general public as soon as Yang finishes figuring out the logistics with Junior. So we should probably kick off production on those right away."
"Production lines have already been initialized!" Penny reported instantly. "However, we are currently severely understaffed, and overall manufacturing efficiency is hovering at only six percent."
Ruby winced, letting out a heavy sigh. "Yeah... I know. Yang's working on getting us more hands for the assembly lines, too. Well, I should probably head out and go meet these 'potentially interested parties'."
Pietro looked up at her, his expression softening with genuine concern. "Alright. Will you be fine on your own, or would you like me to come along to handle the technical pitch?"
"No, no, I’ll be fine!" Ruby waved her hands dismissively, though a sheepish, reluctant look washed over her face. "It's just... I really hate talking to people I don't know. But I should definitely handle this myself. Besides, I don't think it’s a good idea for you to start showing your face around our public operations just yet... Brrr! It gives me chills just thinking about Atlas's fury if they found out you are working for us. No, thank you!"
Pietro chuckled softly, though a solemn look crossed his eyes. "Fair point, my dear. Be careful out there in the city."
"Always am!" Ruby smiled, giving Pietro and Penny a quick wave before turning back toward the doors.
The streets of Vale leading up to the airbus terminal were usually a lively backdrop two years ago. however now there was a simmering tension that made Ruby worry about the Grimm.
As she hurried along the pavement, her eyes kept darting to the alleyways. There were so many people huddled against the brick walls, faunus and humans alike, wrapped in thin blankets, resting on cardboard. It felt like every block had groups of homeless people sitting on the street.
Then came the roar.
As Ruby turned the corner near the city square, the noise hit her. A massive crowd had assembled in front of the Council Building. It was a chaotic, divided sea of angry faces and waving placards.
On one side, a group composed mostly of humans was shouting over one another. She caught glimpses of their signs as they waved them wildly in the air: “VALE FOR CITIZENS,” “SEND THEM BACK,” and worse “NO PLACE FOR ANIMALS.”
On the other side, a mix of displaced migrants and local faunus were shouting back, their signs demanding basic survival: “HOMES, SAFETY, FOOD,” and “RIGHT TO WORK.”
"Do something!" a man near the front screamed toward the silent council windows, his voice hoarse.
Ruby shrank back slightly, her hands instinctively coming up to clutch the straps of her Nova-7’s at her side. She tried to skirt around the edge of the square, but the crowd surged, trapping her against a wall of angry bodies. Arguments were breaking out everywhere. People were shoving, pointing fingers, their voices rising into an overwhelming din.
She didn't want to be here for this. She needed to get to Beacon.
Taking a deep breath, Ruby focused. A swirl of rose petals burst into existence she darted through the gaps in the crowd, zipping past startled protesters and over barricades before re-forming at the base of the airbus station, breathing a sigh of relief.
She made it just in time. The doors to the airbus were open, and she hurried aboard, sinking into a window seat near the front. She leaned her head back against the glass, trying to shake off the unpleasant buzz of the crowd.
Above the drone of the airship's engines, a familiar voice drifted down from the overhead monitor. Lisa Lavender’s sharp, poised voice cut through the cabin as the news broadcast played.
"...and as of this morning, the Council has still not issued a formal response to the demonstrations outside the municipal building," Lisa Lavender reported, her image crisp against the newsroom backdrop. "What began four days ago as a small gathering has rapidly spiraled into a daily standoff."
Footage of the square flashed across the screen, the very crowd Ruby had just escaped.
"The protest remains sharply divided into two main camps," Lavender continued. "Human groups continue to demand the immediate removal of recent migrants from the city, citing economic strain, while faunus organizers demand council intervention for housing and employment opportunities."
The broadcast cut to footage of Vale police officers standing between the two groups, riot shields raised.
"Local law enforcement has managed to keep the opposing sides separated to prevent major escalation. While a handful of minor scuffles have been reported, officials confirm there have been no serious injuries so far. Still, with racial tension at an all-time high, citizens are increasingly looking to the Council for solutions, though leadership has remained silent."
Lavender paused for a moment. "In other news, Grimm sightings near the perimeter walls have risen sharply over the past forty-eight hours…"
Deciding that the news was too depressing, Ruby looked away from the monitor, desperately seeking anything else to draw her attention.
That was when her eyes caught them.
Over toward the middle of the cabin stood a fully equipped, four-person huntsmen team. But what really stopped Ruby in her tracks what made her jaw drop in instant awe, was the weapon slung across the back of a tall woman facing away from her.
Is... is that an ōdachi?!
Before her brain could even register that her legs were moving, Ruby was already across the aisle. She found herself standing right behind the woman, completely hypnotized, her eyes tracing every detail of the long, curved sheath, the exquisite folds, and the gleaming edge of the exposed metal.
"Hey, Kim," a man standing opposite the woman chuckled, catching sight of the sudden intruder. "You’ve got an admirer!"
The woman, Kim, turned around with a bright, friendly smile. "Hey, kid-"
"Eeeeep!"
Ruby squeaked, jumping half a foot into the air as she realized she'd been caught. Mortified, she grabbed the hood of her cloak and pulled it down over her face. The sight elicited a collective burst of chuckles from the entire team.
"S-Sorry!" Ruby stammered, her voice muffled from beneath the crimson hood.
She flipped her hood back, her eyes practically shining like silver stars. "B-But your ōdachi is just so cool! I mean, just look at those Dust lanes carved straight into the blade! And look at how pure the steel is, it’s been folded fifteen times to make over thirty-two thousand layers!"
Kim’s eyebrows shot up in surprise at the sudden change in attitude.
"Oh, and don’t even get me started on how ridiculously well you take care of it," Ruby rambled on, taking a fast step forward, her hands gesturing wildly. "I can’t find a single nick or scratch! Wait, what kind of Dust are you using? I don't see a chamber anywhere, so it has to be pre-loaded! Wait, don't tell me."
"Mmm... there are no scorch marks anywhere along the guard, and I don't see any warping from extreme temperature exposure, so it can't be Fire, Ice, or Lightning Dust. If you used Water Dust, no matter how meticulously you oiled it, micro-rust would eventually accumulate along the dust lanes. Earth Dust would just turn a beautiful edge like this into a heavy club, so that’s completely out. Steam or Plant Dust would both be totally useless for a blade, and I haven't seen anyone miniaturize a mobile Hard-Light projector into a crossguard without a bulkier hilt…"
By this point, all four Hunters were staring at her. Their eyebrows had practically vanished into their hairlines, complete disbelief painted across their faces.
Ruby, lost in her own mental plane of existence, kept going without paying their reations any mind.
"So that only leaves Gravity and Wind Dust! And while Gravity is definitely possible, a weight-altering field would work way better with a thicker, ten-fold blade sitting around a thousand layers to absorb the force. So... no! I think you use Wind Dust! That's why the blade needed to be folded to absolute perfection, so the Dust could flow cleanly across the edge and throw out ultra-sharp wind blades without friction! Right?"
Silence descended over the airship.
All four senior students stood frozen, their jaws practically glued to the floor, staring at the teenage girl in front of them as if she had just casually solved the mysteries of the universe.
Suddenly self-conscious, the rush of adrenaline dumped Ruby right back into reality. She shrank back on her heels, nervously poking her index fingers together, her cheeks burning bright red. "U-Um... right?"
A second passed. Then two.
Suddenly, one of the guys on the team burst out laughing, clapping a hand over his chest while trying, and failing to keep a straight face. "HA! Kim, you just got completely unmasked by a kid!" He doubled over, wheezing into his elbow.
Kim looked at him, then to Ruby then back at him, looking entirely thrown for a loop, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to process what had just happened.
"B-But... how?!" Kim stammered, running a hand through her hair in utter disbelief. "I’ve gone three whole years at Beacon with no one figuring out how my wind blades are so sharp!"
Seeing that everyone’s attention was fixed on each other and that nobody was actually looking at her, Ruby realized this was her golden window.
Outside the cabin windows, the airbus gave a soft hum as it finally settled onto the Beacon landing pads. Perfect timing.
Before anyone could say another word. A whirlwind of crimson rose petals exploded into the air where Ruby had been standing just a split second before, swirling lazily down to the metal floorboards in her wake.
As she zipped out the open doors of the airship at top speed, she barely caught the bewildered shouts of the team echoing behind her.
"Wait-where’d she go?!"
"Did she just turn into flowers?!"
Ruby giggled to herself as she re-formed on the paved courtyard, not stopping her momentum for a single second. She kept running, past clusters of upperclassmen, around grand stone pillars, through arched doorways, and down a labyrinth of high-ceilinged corridors.
She ran and ran, fueled by excitement and lingering embarrassment, until her lungs finally demanded a breath.
Stopping in the middle of a grand hall, Ruby rested her hands on her knees, panting softly. She straightened up, looked to her left, then to her right... and her excitement instantly evaporated into a hollow oh no.
Every hallway looked identical. Long, imposing corridors framed by high arched windows, polished stone floors, and identical wooden doors stretching on forever.
"Okay..." Ruby muttered to herself, turning in a slow circle. "Which way was Ozpin’s office again?"
Deciding that she would have more success in finding it if she moved in one direction opposed to just standing there. She took a tentative step forward, when a harsh sound suddenly cut through the silence of the hall.
bang!
Ruby flinched.
Bang!
Clang!
It sounded like heavy metal striking solid surfaces, echoing faintly from somewhere further down the winding corridor. Curiosity immediately replacing her panic, Ruby perked up and began following the noise, her boots tapping softly against the stone as she ventured deeper into the unknown halls of Beacon.
The echoing clangs led Ruby to a pair of massive double doors, propped wide open. Stepping through, she found herself standing on the threshold of a cavernous, high-ceilinged forge.
The room was completely empty, save for a single figure standing before an anvil and a roaring forge.
She was a woman with vibrant peach-colored hair and a look of absolute, unwavering focus pinned on the glowing orange metal in front of her. Ruby stepped closer on instinct, her eyes glued to the half-formed blade resting on the anvil. Even in its unfinished state, the razor-sharp precision and master-tier craftsmanship were undeniable.
Slowly, the rest of the world began to fade away.
The ambient warmth of the forge, the high stone walls, even the woman wielding the hammer, everything blurred at the edges. Ruby’s vision narrowed until all that existed in the universe was the radiant, glowing steel.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
The hammer strikes rang out in crystal-clear cadence, echoing not just through the hall, but stirring something deep within Ruby’s very soul. With every strike, she felt a resonant hum vibrating through her Aura, as if the blade itself were singing its creation song to the room. She could see the metal settling, locking together flawlessly. Ruby knew, with absolute certainty, that this blade was being forged with such profound care that it would never lose its edge, no matter how many foes it struck down.
ose…
Miss Rose!
"MISS ROSE!!"
The spell shattered like glass.
Ruby gasped, her vision snapping back into focus as the mesmerizing glow of the forge vanished. She spun around, her heart nearly leaping straight out of her chest, only to lock eyes with a terrifyingly stern-looking woman standing right in front of her.
The woman had sharp blonde hair tied into a bun, thin-framed glasses resting on her nose, a crisp white blouse, and a long black skirt. A half-length purple cape draped elegantly over her shoulder, and in one hand, she held a small tablet. The look in her eyes silently dared Ruby to make her day even one second more complicated than it already was.
"My name is Glynda Goodwitch," the woman said, her voice dry enough to turn sand to dust. "Please follow me, Miss Rose. The Headmaster is waiting for you."
Caught off guard, Ruby’s brain froze. "U-Um..." She could only nod dumbly, gulping back her nervousness as she scrambled to fall into step behind the formidable Huntress.