So it's been a while, but I finally have the next chapter. Writers block has been a serious problem here, and if I'm not having fun staring at a blank page I won't work on it. We are finally here though, and I'm excited to see how everyone feels about some of the things revealed here!

Beta read by Maldevinine from AO3. Seriously ya'll need to check them out.

XxxxxxxxxxxxX

Something was off, Pyrrha figured that out shortly after the dream started. Don't get her wrong, walking through clouds of dust and darkened skies wasn't a bad sensation. However she couldn't help but find this overall wrongness similar to another dream she had, and it was the one Jaune accidentally sucked them into. She didn't see him anywhere though, and so far it was just her floating among an expanse of dust and twinkling stars.

"Hello?" She called out. "Jaune? is this that dream thing again?" Still no answer, which was all the more concerning.

A massive object shot across her vision, something bright and blinding to look at. She needed to block her eyes to protect them from burning, but what she could make out was a massive humanoid form with six wings wrapped around it like a protective barrier. Everything dimmed a bit as the creature moved further away, giving Pyrrha the chance to peek an eye open. There were several of those things zipping through the Sky, and wherever they paused an explosion of dust would result in the formation of a new star. The sparsely filled blackness was quickly becoming brighter and brighter, shimmering lights speckling the huge expanse above her. The mysterious creatures twirled and danced around each other as if celebrating their creations, something Pyrrha couldn't help but smile at.

A heat wave was enough to take her attention momentarily. Below was a massive ball of molten rock, and from behind it peaked an even brighter source of light then before. She turned away as the sun completely encased everything in its warm light.

Then it was gone.

She blinked carefully, finding her surroundings had been replaced by a realm of clouds and bright blue skies. Again she was alone, or so she thought anyway.

"Come Lucifer, see what the humans have made in our honour." The voice echoed in Pyrrha's head, as if multiple voices were talking over one another in a variety of languages. English came out as the dominant one in her mind, allowing her to understand what was being said. A form of light began to take shape in front of her, along with three other glowing orbs farther away.

"If you insist." Another voice answered closer to her ear. The light began to form a few feet away from her, walking towards the group. As it moved, it's figure shifted and changed into that of a man. He was tall, familiar in appearance to the Jaune she knew, only this one had long cascading blonde hair stopping at his mid back. His eyes were shining a translucent yellow, and his face looked older and more angular. He had a set of large white wings on his back, plus a secondary pair below them, one covering his chest and the other wrapped around his hips and leg. A third pair sprouted from light above them, gently framing his upper body more like flowing fabric or wide ribbons then wings. Long tufts of feathers took the place of his ears. He held them high and erect, nearly touching the bright halo floating directly above them. His voice held a familiar curiosity, and he seemed genuinely intrigued by their summons.

"J-Jaune?"

"What do you suppose they have, Master?" A male voice questioned. Another form passed right through her catching up to Jaune and following close. He had long black hair, and only two wings instead of six. His appearance was jaringly mundane compared to Jaune's.

"Don't know. Perhaps another stone circle or temple? You never know with those creatures."

"Indeed." The smaller laughed at Jaune's answer and rushed over to the others. Jaune himself just shook his head with a small smirk, the sight almost reminiscent of Ren and Nora's interactions.

They were clearly very close.

The more distant lights came into focus now as Jaune's assistant neared, the light shifting into a muscular dark haired male before settling into the body of a woman. She had six wings just like Jaune had, along with a familiar, sultry expression.

"Cinder…" Pyrrha stepped back. She didn't take any notice of Pyrrha, instead looking at Jaune teasingly.

The secondary light turned into another six winged angel, this one taller and more muscular than Jaune with curly white hair. His face wasn't well defined at all compared to Cinder and Jaune's. The third orb morphed into a woman, this one only sported two wings and looked far closer to human then the others did.

It was one of the twins, with hooded eyes and that unmistakable jet black hair. She knew they were Angels, she just couldn't tell the two apart. It perplexed her why she and the Angel following Jaune looked so different from the others, but they themselves didn't seem to mind.

The group parted to show images in a rippling pool of silver fluid. In this case mosaics and paintings on a mud brick wall.

"The humans are starting to make artistic depictions of us in their churches. It's quite amusing." Cinder grinned.

"Be nice Uriel." The white haired Angel stated. "It really isn't that bad Lucifer."

"What isn't that bad?" Lucifer questioned, only for his face to turn sour. It was a mosaic of a nude, monstrous grey creature with horns, a massive mouth, and snakes coming out of each ear. They were currently devouring several humans trapped in a pit of fire. Meanwhile other mosaics around the church depicted beautiful humans with bird wings and yellow balls around their heads. "And that 'thing' is supposed to be me?" He growled, the others looking away trying to hide their snickering. The Angel following Jaune actually shuddered at his tone and backed up a bit.

"Master?" Jaune's assistant asked carefully. His question went ignored, Jaune too focused on the images before him.

"Cheer up Lucifer, it could always be worse." The twin tried. He just looked between her and the artwork again, turning around and storming off somewhere.

"Beelzebub." He simply ordered. The dark haired Angel swiftly followed behind not wanting to upset him further.

"Hold on." The one with white hair blocked their path. "You're a lot grouchier than usual. What has gotten your wings in a twist?"

"A-Archangel Michael." Beelzebub stuttered nervously. "Perhaps this can wait-"

"SILENCE." The order was said in a booming tone. Jaune was quick to shield his underling, a scowl crossing his features.

"If you want to annoy me that's fine, but my Angels are off limits."

"Fine fine." He rolled his eyes but continued. "That didn't answer my question though."

"You mean the fact that despite all the work I do to punish the wickedness of humans and act as a deterrent to sin, they choose to paint me as a scapegoat for their own failings and make a mockery of my image. Or perhaps it was Father's recent announcement about his reincarnation plans. I'll let you decide for yourself." He went to fly in the other direction but Michael grabbed his shoulder so he couldn't leave. Jaune spun around with his eyes blazing like angry flames.

"Oh boy, here we go again." Cinder rolled her eyes. "The peace was nice while it lasted."

"It's your fault for upsetting him." The twin winced. "This won't end well." They spoke as if this intense argument was just a common spat among siblings.

"Let go. I'm in a very foul mood." A weapon started to take form in his hand, a black sword with orange and yellow runes dancing along the blade. Michael didn't like that answer, summoning a white flaming sword of his own.

"Archangel M-Michael! L-let's do this another time please!" Beelzebub begged. His hands were hovering between the two not sure how to stop it from escalating. "Father won't be pleased with another fight-"

"Shut your servant up before I do it for you." Michael growled.

"When it's said to children like you I have no quirels. I commend him if nothing else."

"You're the one acting childish! I simply wanted to talk and all you are doing is making this difficult!"

Pyrrha could feel the tension between them growing as the argument intensified. Both parties were getting more and more upset, while Beelzebub looked even more scared and unsure. The other Angels just grimaced and looked away. She got the feeling fights like this weren't uncommon between these two, which only made the intense pressure radiating from them all the more terrifying.

"Maybe if you spent less time in that pit of yours we'd actually get something done together! Using it as a hiding spot to shirk on duties is pathetic if nothing else!" Michael snarled.

"Do not assume to know what it's like to govern Hell!" Jaune belted back raising his sword to the other's neck. Michael did the same, the cloud cover around them growing ever more dark and dangerous. In a desperate move Beelzebub grabbed both blades with his hands despite the burns they caused. He pulled them back and tried pushing Jaune away from the fray.

"Please stop! If this continues Father will-"

"I SAID SILENCE!" Michael brought his sword down with a thunderous boom, and all Pyrrha could see was an explosion of fiery light and raining feathers. She screamed, not noticing how the scene changed until all sound completely vanished.

The next time she opened her eyes she was greeted by a night sky filled to the brim with stars. She never knew so many stars existed, but she could now see them in clusters of thousands, and even a long strip of a particular cluttered bunch of them. No light pollution to block the view, or cloud cover drifting above. It was unreal.

"This is incredible…" Pyrrha whispered. A tap on the shoulder made her spin around quickly. No one was there, except for the massive blue and green orb dominating their view.

"I-is that Remnant?" She gasped. No, the geography was completely wrong. She didn't recognize any land mass. So if this wasn't Remnant… then it was Jaune's home? No, his home dimension.

She finally glanced down to the soil at her feet, or rather dried dirt. It was completely gray, rocky and devoid of all life, save for the familiar winged form standing twenty yards away from her. He was staring at the orb tiredly, a dark black halo hanging around his waist, though distinctly unique from his own glowing one. He was alone, and radiated a deep loneliness reserved for the loss of loved ones.

He was mourning.

"Jaune…" She held her hand out only for it to pass right through him. Right, this was a dream, or perhaps a memory would be more accurate, and she had a feeling it wasn't coming from Jaune. Whoever was showing her this was keeping themselves hidden.

"Brother." Michael materialized, now sporting two golden shackles around his wrist. Jaune stiffened at his voice, a cold fury simmering behind his eyes. She hadn't noticed during the first fight she witnessed, but the air between them had completely changed. Now there was nothing but hostility.

"Michael." He growled.

"Listen… I-" Michael paused before adopting a colder tone. "Are you done sulking yet? The demons are getting restless with your lack of leadership."

"You've been doing a fine job of guarding the entrance without me. You could handle it for several more centuries I'm sure." Jaune turned back towards the planet despite Michael's disapproval.

"Look, Father needs you back-"

"If he needs me that badly he can summon me himself." Jaune didn't face Michael again, immediately shutting down the conversation. The Archangel growled at his attitude but left, Jaune hiding his face in his hand as soon as the other was gone.

The ground beneath Pyrrha began to bubble, visions of humans stealing, stuffing their mouths like glutinous pigs, the wealthy being wasteful while the poor starved to death in the streets and people simply stepped over their corpses. All of that sorrowfully energy and ravenous feelings seemed to bubble through a black goop forming around her feet giving no room for her to escape. Her legs were stuck in the tar like substance and sinking fast. Before she submerged entirely a spindly black hand shot out of the sludge and latched onto the halo around Jaune's waist.

She gasped when the scenery changed back to that divine cloudy landscape again. Jaune stepped through a tear in the air emerging

from a realm of fire and screaming. His eyes were a cool yellow color and his face set in a neutral mask. He walked forward, approaching Uriel and Michael as they watched more humans in their silver pool.

"Uriel, we need to talk." He stated and tried pulling her away from Michael. She yanked back.

"I'm not catering to your stupid feud any longer. Either figure it out with Michael or handle things yourself." Jaune growled at her answer, but Michael was quick to step in. Ultimately he breathed and turned to face him.

"Has there been any word regarding my request?" Michael clearly didn't like the subject, puffing his wings in annoyance. He still wore those golden shackles, though Pyrrha wasn't sure why.

"You know the Lord won't allow for it so there isn't any point. I honestly don't know why you care so much for those soulless beings anyway."

Soulless beings? Where did this come from?

"I'm sorry, I thought you enjoyed human creation. Sadly for you demons fall under that category." Jaune's eyes flickered dangerously. She could feel the pressure between the two rising, and it was making her legs feel like jello.

"Is this about Beelzebub? I already apologized for-"

"He prefers 'Beelzebul' now." Jaune growled. That clearly struck a nerve. "And if you really wish to argue about this I'll go higher up the chain." He turned around and his figure vanished into smoke. The white haired one shook his head and went back to the others.

"I don't know why you bother Michael." Cinder chuckled. "He's completely lost his mind. There is no way he'll see reason."

"I just worry about the outcome." Michael sighed. "What if he manages to make a case for them and Father listens? Everything would be completely upended."

"Do you honestly think God will yield to such silliness?" Cinder chuckled. The two faded and the scene around her started to change.

They were outside of a very, very hot region, Pyrrha having to close her eyes against the blazing heat making her sweat. There was a stone gateway leading farther into the pit with a sign in an odd language, two Angels having a screaming match. On one side was the Archangel Michael, standing against a winged, horned beast that was guarding the gate. It only took a moment for her to recognise him as Jaune. He had altered his appearance to resemble the monster in the mosaic from that earlier memory. A few more Angels were observing the feud, all of them far too scared to intervene. Even Cinder was hanging back completely lost on how to proceed.

"Do you think this is a game?!" Michael shouted. "You just went up to our Lord and requested a sanctuary for those hellspawn, and he granted it to you! Are you mad?!"

"You're the mad one for coming down here!" Jaune shouted back. He summoned a black sword, swirling with the same energy his trident did. Behind him was a one winged dragon like monster, a massive tar covered fly at least ten feet long, and several smaller monsters cowering behind the gate for safety. They looked nothing like Grimm, but still appeared horrendous and disgusting. The two larger demons weren't backing down, both equally ready to jump in and help Jaune if needed.

"This domain is mine, and these creatures are under MY protection! Now LEAVE!" Michael summoned his white flaming sword and aimed it towards Jaune. It was like looking at two mirrored beings staring each other down, one visibly appearing to be a bring of true evil and the other good.

Only Pyrrha knew now it was far more complicated.

Slowly the two took deep breaths trying to dissipate their ire for the other. They still didn't want a full out war, but the two were ready to fight as soon as the other one lunged. Thankfully Michael dissipated his sword with a light chuckle before a real brawl ensued.

"If you wish to make enemies with the rest of Heaven, by all means go ahead. Know the next time we cross paths, it will be as enemies instead of brothers."

Something big and strong wrapped itself around Pyrrha's legs stopping her from escaping. She screamed and tried to fight back, but the massive horned snake was already wrapped up to her neck, it looked at her mockingly with burning yellow eyes, coming down on her with its open fanged mouth. The scene went black as soon as the snake made contact, the gray rocky landscape from earlier appearing with the massive green and blue marble hanging above her. At first she wasn't sure what this place was, but upon her second viewing the location was too clear to ignore.

She was on the moon of this alternate world.

Jaune was there too, holding the black sword in his hands from earlier, looking down at it thoughtfully. His horns crowned a head of long black hair now, and his features were more monstrous than ever.

He levitated the sword in the air, spinning in a fast motion creating a wall of flames. She jumped back as he continued his warm ups, summoning several spectral swords around his main ones and firing them into the surface. An explosion of dust followed with a massive crater being left over.

"I thought I'd find you here." One of the twins materialized and stepped closer to Jaune. Pyrrha approached too, wanting a better glimpse at what was happening.

"Raguel."Are you here to laugh like some of the others? Or pick a fight?" Jaune asked, his voice completely flat.

"I'm here to get your side of the story. I wouldn't be a good Angel of Justice otherwise."

"You already know my side."

"But we've never talked, just the two of us. Please." Raguel watched him carefully. Jaune huffed at her answer, stabbing his sword tip deep in the rocks so it would stay upright. "Would you like to stargaze while we're at it? Plenty of room to spread our wings." She sat down and waited. Jaune just gave her a funny look, slowly taking a seat but staying guarded.

"There isn't much left to say." He stated. "I think demons deserve to be treated with the respect other human creations are given. Everyone else disagrees." He couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "The only other one to take mercy on them was Father, yet everyone seems to have forgotten that."

"But why demons? They are mindless creatures of grief and anger that cause nothing but pain to humanity." Raguel stopped for a moment rolling over the words she just spoke. "Never mind. I can see why you like them."

Jaune just chuckled at her statement. "It's more than that. Though I appreciate the grief they cause humans, demons are born from human sin and negativity. They are a byproduct of human free will, and if the positive things birthed from that are accepted then why can't the negative be?"

"Maybe because they are soulless beings of evil and chaos."

"You say that because you've never spent time with them." He shook his head. "Once you get past that, there is a lot more to find, especially considering the waste that produces them."

"Look, I know Beelzebub came back as one but that doesn't mean-"

"D o n ' t." He growled warningly. Raguel started to speak again but fell silent, her eyes falling on the holy weapon impaling the dirt.

"What were you doing up here anyway?"

"Thinking. Mainly about that." He gestured to his weapon. "I'm thinking about changing it."

"Why? I thought you liked having a sword?"

"Humans reserve swords for the divine apparently." He flexed his white feathered wings in agitation. "Since they somehow got the idea that I'm a rebellious monster cast out of Heaven, I've noticed a clear shift towards depicting me with pitchforks of all things."

"You don't do much to correct that assumption." Raguel hummed.

"Is there a point? My position among other Angels may be high, but to mortals I'll remain the scapegoat for their failures." They both looked up to the large blue and green orb above them. While whisps of clouds were constantly traveling along the surface, ever changing as the world spun underneath them.

"Tread carefully brother. You worry me."

"... I know."

Pyrrha couldn't stop herself from reaching out for her partner, only for her hand to pass right through the scene like ink dissipating in water. Next thing she knew she was falling, falling towards the planet at high speeds. Pulling her limbs close to herself she tried to brace, only for images to flash before her. Mass murder, armies fighting, protests, genocide. It was a horrible slide show of human pain and suffering, all accumulating with a final, loud boom.

The world was burning.

Everything was burning.

Massive smoke mushrooms were forming all around her, followed by explosions and waves of heat and light that traveled from them. The humans before her evaporated as soon as the wave hit them, and every building around her was blown to pieces. She couldn't hear her own screams over the roar of the destruction. When the smoke cleared she noticed hundreds of Angels flying above her.

Jaune was on one side, levitating with a familiar trishul in his hand and an odd black armour on his head, chest, forearms and legs. The black metal danced with yellow runes around the edges, matching the angry glow on his weapon. His eyes were illuminated a bright yellow, lightning striking around him and spouts of fire shooting from the earth. Michael and Uriel were on the other side, looking more sure of themselves though clearly mad. They were both adorned in white gleaming armour matching the army of Angels behind them. Jaune was the lone Angel on his side, only accompanied by that massive fly and one winged dragon from earlier, as well as an army of other monsters. They looked up to Jaune like they worshiped the ground he stepped on, but the Angel wasn't interested in them. All anger was directed at the opposing army.

Their mouths moved, Michael and Lucifer screaming back and forth but she only caught snippets of what was said.

"It's over now! Take the saved humans back to Heaven and leave! I'll remain to watch the damned as promised!"

"Is this the hill you choose to die on?" Uriel summoned a glowing bow swimming with orange ruins, an arrow taking form as she drew the string back. Michael had his sword drawn and seemed all too amused by this.

"Only if you continue to push the issue! I know I'm not the only Angel that thinks this way, though I'm the only one brave enough to act!" Jaune boomed, his voice echoing across the wasteland like he was on a loudspeaker. "Father said he would stay out of this, so it's up to us to choose! Either leave this wasteland or we settle this now!"

"W-wait, what's happening-" Pyrrha's question was cut off by a malicious dust storm whipping up around her. She could barely see past the solid dirt particles cutting her skin, but what looked like a monstrous spectral breast ran right past her. She struggled to describe the feeling she experienced, but it exuded a cold, deathly energy. It was strong, vile, and gone almost as soon as it appeared.

She collapsed to her knees finally able to breath again, shakily looking up to see the battlefield had changed. Nearly a third of Michael's army had flown over to join Jaune on his side, some looking off shamefully while others prepared to fight. Michael was livid. Through his enraged breaths he shouted for his army to charge, Jaune's doing the same clashing in the middle of the field. Each time their weapons met the earth trembled from the sheer force of the impact.

Cinder offered support with her bow, Jaune managing to hold his own despite world shattering attacks coming at him from all angles. Demons were dying, Angels were falling out of the sky exploding into crystal on impact, and the blazing earth around her was growing hotter and hotter as the battle progressed. In a last effort Jaune transformer into a massive horned dragon, spouting fire and charging with one final battle cry.

A spectral arrow slipping through his defences. Before he could recover Michael brought his flaming sword down.

Jaune couldn't dodge.

A massive bolt of lightning threw her back as soon as the sword made impact.

"JAUNE!" Pyrrha screamed but was only met with more wings and blinding fires. "PLEASE STOP THIS! I'VE SEEN ENOUGH-"

Another bolt of lightning struck her directly, everything turning white.

XxxxxxxxxX

Pyrrha shot up with a loud gasp. Her sheet soaked in a cold sweat and sunlight peeping through the curtains.

It really was a dream, but definitely not a normal one. She was quick to notice the state her teammates were in. Ren was sitting on Nora's bed and hugging her tightly, the smaller rubbing comforting circles on his back while staying oddly quiet herself.

"D-did you two-"

"Yes." Ren stated tensely already knowing what she would ask.

It happened again. They all shared the same dream with each other, but this time it wasn't Jaune's doing. The next question was a difficult one to ask given the fact that their room was covered in Jaune's blood seals. He said no other Angels would be able to touch them while the seals held strong, so the likely solution was that either the seals had broken, or Jaune lied about it.

Shakily standing Pyrrha pulled the curtains back from the windows examining the blood streaks around it. She could tell they were thicker from the last time she looked at them, and it seemed like a newer layer of blood had been spread over the first.

She shuddered thinking on the implications, wondering if Jaune had renewed the seals or another Angel somehow snuck in to tamper with them.

The approach of a white blur snapped her from any current thoughts. A white pigeon landed on a branch right outside their window to bask in the morning sun. For a moment Pyrrha thought she saw a soft purple glint in its eye before pulling the curtains closed again.

She quickly went into the bathroom and jumped under a cold stream of water.

They just needed to hold out until tonight.

XxxxxxxxxX

"This is nice." Ruby commented absently.

"I don't think I would use that word to describe… this place." Pyrrha tried putting it lightly. The four teens walked down the darkening streets, all following behind Ruby. She was the only one who had been to this area before, so they were rather reliant on her directions.

"Not the place, I mean the quiet. I love my teammates, but they've been acting weird recently." Ruby crossed her arms uncomfortably.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Nora asked, moving in closer.

"It's just…" She pauses for a moment before huffing like an upset child. "Yang has been super clingy recently! Then Blake is more… Blakey then usual. Don't even get me started on Weiss." She sighed. "I mean, I'm glad she'll see her sister again when the festival rolls around, but she's been talking about it nonstop for the last few days." Ruby rubbed her shoulder feeling guilty.

"Wow, I never thought Ruby Rose of all people would find something her partner does annoying. Did Vacuo freeze over or something?" Nora said teasingly, hoping to cheer her up. Ruby stuck her tongue out and Nora just did it right back, the two chuckling lightly.

"Sorry to interrupt your conversation, but are you sure this is the right way Ruby?" Pyrrha questioned. "This area seems rather… rough." The reaper nodded in response as they passed a homeless man sleeping on a bench.

"Yeah, I'm positive. If I remember right this is the one Yang was banned from."

"How did she manage that?" Ren questioned.

"She beat up ninety-five percent of the staff and trashed the place."

"And she didn't invite me?!" Nora exclaimed, sounding both upset and betrayed.

"This was a week before the entrance exam. I'm sure she'll invite you to the next bar brawl she has." Ruby shrugged.

"This is a normal occurrence?" Pyrrha blinked.

"Welllll… oh hey that's the place right there!" She pointed to a darker building with several bright lights on the outside. They could already hear the bass from the music inside, and a massive line had formed to the front door.

"That line is massive." Nora pouted.

"This is going to be really tiring." Ren mumbled, already inserting some earplugs and bracing himself for the crowds ahead.

"It's a good thing you didn't come for the party then." Another voice giggled. Everyone swivelled around with their weapons drawn, only to see Melanie standing there with an amused smirk. Ren and Pyrrha automatically put their guns down leaving Nora and Ruby rather confused.

"This is the one that sent the invitations." Ren explained.

"Oh!" Nora exclaimed, holstering her hammer. "Uhhh… Melanie right?"

"That's correct." She confirmed. "But let's not stand out in the cold. You four came for more than just small talk." She motioned with her hand for them to follow. They did so carefully, looking at the line of people as they walked around it. She took them to a back entrance, the three members of team JNPR automatically glancing at any potential corners that could harbor threats. They didn't see any enemy Angels, but they did find a few well hidden blood seals. The entire club was surrounded by them making it impenetrable for unwanted celestial guest.

The guards outside the back door nodded in greeting as the group entered, quickly returning to their stone faced personas as the metal door closed behind them. Inside was a darker hallway with a few club workers standing around on break. The music was much louder now, but Melanie wasn't taking them to the dance floor. She ushered them into a private VIP room with its own minibar, cushioned seats and soft lighting along the darkly painted walls. She shut the door as the group entered, all the loud music suddenly disappearing behind the soundproofed walls.

"Which one is it?" Another voice asked, sounding both weak and annoyed. Miltia was sprawled out on one of the couches in the corner looking pale and sickly.

"All four of them." Melanie answered.

"Is… is she okay?" Ruby asked timidly. Miltia just waved her off.

"Don't worry about it, humans. This is Lucifer's fault anyway."

"I was the one that asked you to do it." Melanie sighed.

"And I still blame him! He's the crazy bastard that cut his off in the first place! It feels like absolute Hell!" She flipped over to sulk some more, revealing two long scars on her back that resembled Jaune's far too much. Melanie simply rolled her eyes and showed them to the comfortable, scarlet red seats.

"Don't mind her, I just asked for her help in a small research study." Melanie opened a cupboard on the minibar revealing rows and rows of expensive alcohols. "Would you like anything to drink? We have wine, whisky, sake?"

"I'm pretty sure I'm too young to drink alcohol." Ruby piped in clearly uncomfortable. Melanie blinked a bit confused, but reached farther back to pull out a crystal clear bottle.

"If you prefer we have spring water-"

"I think we would all like to get started." Ren interrupted.

"Very well." Melanie stated, putting the bottle on the counter and closing her eyes. She took a seat across from the group and looked at them calmly. "Tell me everything that has happened since the four of you discovering Lucifer's true identity. I need to know everything he's told you about Angels. Even the most menial things, I want to hear."

"Wait, weren't you supposed to explain things to us? You can't push our questions aside!" Nora growled. "Especially after last night! We all had the same freaky dream with Jaune in it!"

"You guys had it too?" Ruby blinked surprised. "It thought it was just something I ate."

"Not at all. That was entirely my doing." Melanie giggled. "Sorry for not warning you, but I figured seeing me pop in and speaking normally would be a bit too jarring."

"You underestimate the amount of bull we can handle." Ren grumbled. Everyone was taken aback by his choice of wording, but he didn't seem to care. "Start talking."

"I actually need you to talk first. I can't read minds even if I can enter them, so I'm not entirely sure what you have and haven't discovered. Otherwise I'd be starting with the basics of Angel anatomy, and no one likes to hear repeated information." The four looked at each other, but Pyrrha was the first to start. If no one else was going to speak they wouldn't make it very far in this discussion.

"Okay, this is what happened the day we found out…"

XxxxxxxxxX

The flying metal death trap finally landed after that extra long journey. He eagerly climbed off the bullhead taking in a massive breath of fresh air despite the stairs from other passengers. That was a tense ride to say the least. He still couldn't stand riding in those human contraptions. When he was the one flying everything was fine, but something about the shaking of the metal under his feet and meeting unexpected turbulence made him nauseous.

Trying his best to shake off the queasiness, Jaune quickly walked towards the old shipping district where he had initially contacted Beelzebul, and the same area where his teammates first entered the subway tunnels. It was hard to believe how much celestial activity had happened in one little area of the city within a few day period, but then again it was away from prying eyes and poorly patrolled by law officials. It really was the perfect place for criminals and thugs to hunker down.

As the houses became more run down and storage facilities more common he couldn't help but notice an increase in the number of robots in the area. They were Atlesian technology, probably deployed by Ironwood after the White Fang's transportation system had been uncovered. Sure enough he spotted a couple of them standing at the same entrance his teammates had used. Well, at least the humans were getting smarter about security.

He carefully continued onward, searching for areas of dark energy. Demons didn't have souls in the traditional sense, making them far harder to track down than humans and other Angels. Even at full strength finding them was a challenge, which often meant they could hide out in all sorts of places. A well hidden demon was a demon unlikely to be exorcised or destroyed, which was a skill the most dangerous ones were quick to master. Sadly it also made his job very difficult and he had to do a second patrol around the docks when his first sweep yielded nothing.

Jaune eventually paused at a small alleyway, feeling an extra sense of despair and anger radiating from it. That could be him, or it could be a place where a violent murder happened in the past. Either way it was a good place to start.

Guard up and weapon ready to draw, Jaune walked between the tight walls looking around the decrepit brickwork, waiting for that familiar dark energy to approach. Sure enough it did, but this time it had a real form.

"Master." Beelzebul stepped out of the shadows trying his best to hide any excitement under a polite greeting. His human form was tall, a bit taller than Jaune even. The demon's black hair was tied into a long braid and his eyes flashed a bright yellow color. A long scorpion tail untangled itself from around his waist as he stepped into a low bow.

"It's good to see you too, old friend." Jaune grinned. Beelzebul squealed excitedly, shuffling around in place unable to contain his glee any longer. Jaune just rolled his eyes and held his arms out, letting the demon pull him into a tight hug.

"It's been so long! We are actually standing side by side again! I never thought the day would come!" The demon cried, actually swinging him off the ground. Jaune just patted his underling on the back. He couldn't bring himself to be formal at the moment, having genuinely missed working with this demon.

Being this close to each other after so long was oddly relieving. It was a different feeling then he had when around other Angels or his humans. He and the demons had formed a kinship with one another over the millennia. When his fellow Angels would refuse to speak with him simply for his title or beliefs the monsters he ruled were there instead.

Not only that, but he finally had someone that would be straight with him, and not beat around the issue like Uriel and Raphael do. Though most people would see demons as liars and tricksters, which was pretty much true, it was nearly impossible for demons to lie to him. He was the ultimate deceiver after all, and though humans may be tougher to read, Jaune knew his demons like the back of his hand.

He could finally come up with a game plan that might save both himself and his humans.

"As great as it is to see you, we still have business to handle." Jaune stated as he pulled away.

"Of course Master! I haven't forgotten." Beelzebul hoped back, still clearly giddy. "How may I serve you?"

"Well first of all I'm still missing a lot of information that none of the Angels want to share." He got a cliff notes version in a dream Raguel showed him, but something told him some of those visions were very biased. Though the stuff from her version and his actual memories matched closely, he wasn't sure about the things he couldn't remember.

"So they are being as bad as you are about sharing?" Jaune gave him a death glare, making Beelzebul shrink back. Ultimately he shook his head with a tired sigh, knowing it was true.

He was a liar and hypocrite, but unfortunately for him old habits die hard. He was Satan after all.

"I'm at least trying to be more honest with others. I can't help it if people are too stubborn to listen. It's not like I have all the answers myself." Beelzebul nearly let a loud laugh slip out, having to put his hands over his mouth to try suppressing it. "Anyway, don't you have another job to do?"

"Oh yes! So it started when that vile, sniveling Michael-"

"Try to stay unbiased." Jaune ordered. "That type of ass kissing isn't helping me."

"Of course Master! My apologies." He bowed apologetically. The approach of mechanical footsteps signaled the arrival of those robots on patrol. They would have to take this elsewhere.

"I know! I'll tell you everything you wish to know on the way. Will that work?"

"Yes, that would be wonderful. Let's get going." He held his hand out, allowing Beelzebul to latch onto it tightly and absorb them both in his dark magic. The shadow form easily slipped past the robot guards at the entrance, traveling along the subway walls at a breakneck pace.

They were off to Mountain Glenn.

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If you wanna see what I've been up to, check out the story Underdog on ChrisRainicorn's page. We've been collating on this RWBY story and I must say I'm quite proud of it.

Comments are always appreciated!