Chapter 13: Into the Starry Night

Kingdom of Vale

Another week was gone and at this point, the "Evolved" for lack of a better term, had pushed Vale's defenders all the way back to Beacon Academy. Other than the huntsmen academy and the various safe zones throughout the city, there were no guarantees of safety for anyone. Anyone out on the streets could only fend for themselves and more likely than not, they would not survive to see the next day.

All efforts to contain this new threat had been met with failure every time. These creatures were just hard to fight let alone defeat. It wasn't just that they were as savage as their predecessors. Their intelligence changed the game entirely. Just like a normal person, they could outmaneuver, strategize, counter, just about anything a normal person could do.

The other unnerving part is that these beasts looked lifelike. There were no hollow red eyes that glowed like a lightbulb. Instead, all appropriate species had eyes that would appear on a normal animal. For some, this appearance made it slightly harder to kill them. The possibility that they were killing not a monster but a thinking beast caused just a little bit of hesitancy, not enough to stop years of training and experience, but it was still there.

Regardless of these facts, a general order across the entire city and the kingdom sounded. With so many dead or wounded, further casualties could not be tolerated. All huntsmen were being pulled back into viable defensive positions and told to not venture out unless it was for vital supply runs or rescuing of civilians that could be reached. Risks couldn't be taken for fear of losing more able bodies.

The Council of Vale had finally received some calls from the other three kingdoms. None of the other kingdoms were under siege or even being attacked, so they could afford to send aid. Atlas had been the first to send help in the form of air superiority along with a cadre of military huntsmen. Mistral followed next with supply relief via airdrops, which was plentiful given that it was summer time. Vacuo couldn't provide anything physical, but it did offer knowledge on how to organize safe zones so that they would have a better chance of holding steady.

At this point, anything that would help was being taken. With survival being a top priority, every little detail made a difference.

All of this and a few other things dominated the thoughts of Ozpin. He wouldn't dare to show it in public, but he was exhausted. Not since the Great War had he seen destruction and loss of life on this scale. It was a reminder of a time that he wished to forget, but even that paled in comparison to the situation right now.

He was no fool. He knew that this was an intentional attack. It was far too coordinated, too disciplined. While frenzy in the streets were quite common, he could clearly tell that this entire battle was being orchestrated. The real question was who was leading this attack.

It wasn't Salem. Open warfare was not how she worked.

"Ozpin." That was Glynda's voice. "Is this a good time?"

To her credit, the deputy headmistress did her best not to show any concern in her features, but it was clear that she was monitoring him at every turn. She had worked with him for numerous years and knew him very well down to the smallest details. Although he had never lied to her, he had a feeling that doing so would be futile.

"What is it, Glynda?" Ozpin reciprocated her demeanor. "Good news or bad news?"

"Both." Glynda pushed her glasses up the ridge of her nose. "Do you have a preference as to which one I report first?"

"I think you know that already." Ozpin said with a pointed look.

"Fair enough." Glynda nodded. "The bad news is this: the entirety of the Kingdom of Vale is under siege. It looks like no matter where we go, these Evolved Grimm have effectively cut us off. From the air, from the ground, from the sea, even from underground."

"Is there any way to break through?" Ozpin asked.

"Yes, but only huntsmen and huntresses specialized in stealth and concealment can bypass the enemy." Glynda's frown deepened. "And to make matters even more complicated, scouts estimate that we're looking at an army's worth."

"Gods above." Ozpin murmured, rubbing his face. "We haven't seen conflict like this since the Great War. Are there any other alternatives as to breaking the siege?"

"None as of right now besides team infiltration." Glynda shook her head in exasperation. "We will continue to probe for more possibilities."

"Please do so." Ozpin clasped his hands together. "How are the students?"

"Most of the freshmen are pulling back to the academy. The sophomores and juniors are occupying safe zones with two to three teams per zone. The seniors are currently leading various guerilla-style attacks to find ways to counter the Evolved Grimm" Glynda regarded her scroll with a hardened look. "As of 0000 today, we're currently standing at thirty-one dead, seventy-nine injured, twenty of those injuries critical, and another fifty unaccounted for."

Such young souls, now gone, never to be given a chance to ever take a meaningful role in the fight to come. Although he did well to keep his composure, he was mentally screaming out at the unfairness of the deaths.

The wounded were likely lamenting their inability to do anything. It would probably be worse for those who had received wounds and injuries that would become crippling to their physique. In a way, a fate like that was far worse than death. Many of these students had spent most of their lives training to become Grimm killers. For some of them, the idea that all of that time and effort was ultimately for nothing would be soul-crushing.

"And what of the council's deployment of military units?" Ozpin stowed his feelings away and proceeded to hear out the rest.

"Currently, most of the army is focused on securing the cities." Glynda had a detailed map of the kingdom. "Most of the navy has been ordered to return to their bases and begin threat assessment. Marines are currently entrenched on the beachheads, ready to repel invaders from the ocean. The Air Force is on standby."

A rather crude summary, but it would have to do for now. There were some concerns as to the effectiveness of the military in a time of crisis like this one. While Vale was no slouch when it came to its armed forces, they were not at the level of Atlas training, discipline, and technology.

"Was there any more bad news?" Ozpin questioned.

"No." Glynda's reply came swiftly. "Good news: the safe zones have been coordinating supplies and other necessary items. Thanks to some huntsmen acting as runners, supplies have been managing to get to where they're needed."

Ozpin a little bit about the supply situation, but not too much. "What are the most in-demand items?"

"Currently, dust ammunition is being circulated the most. Particularly, wind and water dust." Glynda replied. "There are some scattered reports making a claim that the combination makes for an effective dislodging tactic. More information is needed."

"Medical supplies?" Ozpin inquired.

"For now, there's enough to go around, but the concern is the influx of wounded and not enough medical staff, both civilian and military." Glynda took a breath. "For now, there are no major shortages, although that could change within two weeks if the fighting keeps up."

Despite this being somewhat pleasant news, it didn't take a genius to realize that all the enemy would have to do was keep doing exactly what they were doing now. Keep up the ferocity, wear down all those capable of offensive or defensive action, and wait for resources to dwindle. Unless something unexpected or miraculous came up, then they would all be doomed.

"No matter what we do, we can't win unless we break the siege." Ozpin relayed his thoughts. "Or discern the objective of this force."

"Is it her, sir?" Glynda now asked her own question.

"No, the objective of all this isn't clear to me." Ozpin looked out the window. "So far, there has been no hostile contact on Beacon Academy grounds. It seems that the relic isn't the objective so far as I can see."

Glynda blinked. "Then what are they after?"

"...I don't know." Ozpin managed.

And that was his worst fear. Not knowing anything about what he was facing had him effectively spinning his wheels in the mud, trying in vain to find a way out, but all of his sources couldn't even provide him with a single hint.

Then a thought occurred to him. His eyes caught sight of a particular note that was lying flat on his desk nearby. He had nearly forgotten about the death of the Fall Maiden. With everything going on, even a maiden's passing seemed trivial.

Could there be a connection?

Fate/Stay Night - - - RWBY

Weiss Schnee expected many things in her time at Beacon Academy. She expected to be in classrooms often. She expected to learn from professional huntsmen and huntresses about the tools and tricks of the trade. She expected to advance her own skills in dust theory and application. She expected to further increase her abilities with Myrtenaster, her personal weapon. Basically, she imagined that she would learn a lot.

After graduating she had goals and aspirations already in mind. With an official license as a huntress, she intended to remind people that the Schnee Dust Company was founded on several core tenets: quality, affordability, and trust, attributes that many had forgotten as the SDC became more known for its booming business and moral grey areas that came with rising profits. She admired and respected her grandfather. As for her father, she had conflicting opinions about him, some reasonable, others not so much.

Regardless, the heiress had her work cut out for her when it came to what she wished to achieve in her own life.

But currently, what she wanted to do seemed so distant and ultimately unimportant.

Out of all the things Weiss expected to experience in her life, the one thing she never thought she would be involved in was a warzone. Of course it was no secret that the path she was going down involved fighting, mostly against Grimm and sometimes against persons of disgusting character. That was simply the nature of the path she was going down.

But war?

Being as eager as they were, the members of Team RWBY naturally volunteered for frontline duty. At the time, it had seemed like a golden opportunity to prove their worth and character to faculty at Beacon Academy as well as put out their name to the general public. All four girls probably had their own reasons for going out there, but they were all determined to go out there and do their best.

So why wasn't their best enough?

The rapier-wielding girl had seen so many horrors that she wished she could take back. Bodies lying in the streets, mutilated remains scattered all around, blood smeared everywhere like paint. Death was not exactly a stranger to her; threats to the Schnee Dust Company were hardly new. She had even lost people she cared about to the White Fang, but all of that felt so insignificant compared to what was around her.

In particular, Weiss was replaying a very specific incident in her mind. The other day, she was trying to rescue a little boy from the wreckage of a building. The child had been caught between two pieces of building debris. When she saw the frail thing curled up, she had prepared herself to do whatever it took to save his life. When she reached out to touch him, the only she got in return was his body slumping over, his jaw all but destroyed, his eyes wide open, but unresponsive.

The boy had been long dead before she even got to him.

For as long as she lived, she would never forget that image. She was sure that it would haunt her wherever she went, the idea that she could've saved him had she come sooner.

It was only by sheer willpower that she managed to pull it together and keep going.

The reason that the heiress recalled that memory particularly in this moment was because she was currently in one of the safe zones doing whatever she could to help out and she happened to find herself working to provide relief to the wounded.

"It's okay." Weiss assured a fellow student. "You're going to be fine."

"You're Weiss Schnee." The student was a first-year, faunus, and she sported a new scar across her face as well as a severed right arm. "Right?"
"Yes, I am." Weiss laid a reassuring hand on her current patient. "Just stay conscious until the professionals can see you. What's your name?"

Although aura helped to make sure bleeding stopped, it wasn't a substitute for replacing lost blood.

"Potter. Cole Potter." His wolf ears moved slightly. "At your service."

"Alright, Cole. Listen to me." Weiss grabbed a bandage from her nearby med kit. "This should stop any infections."

The heiress was no combat medic, not by a long shot. She could only perform basic first aid techniques, which might be enough to save this girl's life if she did an exceptional job. She would certainly try.

"Hehe." Cole chuckled, even though it appeared painful for him. "I'll be fine. I'm a faunus. We're used to this kind of abuse. I just picked the wrong day to get up."

The fact that he could somehow find humor in his situation, past or present, was sort of amazing. From what he said, it could be inferred that he had faced serious racial prejudice, but it sounded like he didn't hold a grudge against those who wronged him.

"Where's the rest of your team?" Weiss decided to change the subject. "Shouldn't they be here with you?"

"Helping with logistics and support." Another small laugh from Cole's mouth sounded. "This shit-hole could use it."

While she wasn't one to use vulgar language, the sentiment that she felt was very similar. The safe zones were not exactly boasting five-star ratings in any category whatsoever, but these days, with life and death being decided with a flip of the coin, people were hardly complaining about the accommodations.

"Okay, that should tie you over for now." Weiss finished up what she was doing. "I'm sorry that I can't do more."

"It's fine." Cole shrugged off her lack of ability to do more. "I got my battle scar, so that means I've earned my badass badge or something like that. I just wish that I had gotten it much later in life."

There was a tint of hurt behind his words, yet he was doing a fine job of coping with what was going to be an injury that could no doubt ruin any chance he had of becoming a huntsman. All of his goals and aspirations were all for naught thanks to his lost arm.

How could she not feel bad about it when she still had all her parts?

"Do you have your scroll on you?" Weiss asked.

"Huh? Um, it's probably in my pocket." Cole looked to his side. "I'd get it, but I'm an arm down and it kind of hurts to move too much."

Weiss bit her lips for a moment. "Do you mind?"

"Go ahead." Cole offered.

Gingerly, she retrieved his scroll, and used her nimble fingers to type his number into her scroll and her number into his scroll. It took all of thirty seconds and once she did, she returned his property.

"I'll be in contact with you as you recover." Weiss assured him. "You can expect to hear from me."

"This isn't how I imagined getting a girl's number." Cole again continued to joke despite his physical condition. "I guess battle scars are considered to be hot."

Despite what she said, she couldn't help but smile at his determination to not let despair get the better of him.

It was then that some medics came to his side and began their preparations to treat him properly. Of course, he wouldn't be okay until he was seen to a real doctor, but he was in much better hands now.

"We appreciate your support, Miss Schnee." One of the medics gave his gratitude. "We'll take it from here."

"I was just… doing my job." Weiss said the only thing that made sense for her to say. "Just make sure he recovers as best he can."

"That's our job, ma'am." The medic affirmed before looking at his new patient. "Hey, buddy, can you hear me?"

The heiress walked away from the scene, wondering what she had done back there. She usually never offered her contact information to anyone. The number of people that she considered trustworthy was very small to begin with and now, she had just offered it to someone that she barely even knew.

But why?

I want to help him, but I don't know how I'll do that. Weiss realized. I just did something without thinking.

Well, whatever the case, she couldn't take back what she had just done. If she intended to change the image of her family name, then it had to start with the small promises that she made, even to someone that she barely knew.

The other thing that she was only now considering was that she had just helped a faunus. She had registered this fact upon seeing him for the first time, but in the moment, she never gave it any further thought. How strange to think that in a time of crisis, she had somehow managed to put aside her distrust of the sister species to humans.

She didn't regret helping Cole; he was a student just like she was. He was just the unlucky one in this case and she had the ability to at least give him some peace of mind for whatever that was worth.

Weiss noticed someone calling her and answered her scroll.

RWBY - - - Fate/Stay Night

Nora Valkyrie was no stranger to hostile environments. For most of her life, she had grown up in them in one way or another. Before befriending Lie Ren, she had been an orphan with no one to call family. Those had been the worst years of her life. Recalling any of that time period was liable to make her miserable, so she tried her very best not to think about those times if she could help it.

Unfortunately, being involved in what she was now, there was no avoiding the horrible memories. While the events of present events were not the same as in the past, there were similarities to be found. People were dying, all around it seemed like nothing but chaos and mass panic. Nothing seemed to make any sense as people scrambled around like a chicken with its head cut off.

Frankly speaking, none of them had a clue what they were doing. These Evolved, as people were beginning to refer to the monsters they were fighting, were a breed that outstripped the Grimm so much that it wasn't even a joke. Too many were dead or wounded and it wasn't on account of being under-equipped or undermanned. They had plenty of those two; what they were lacking were proper counterring methods.

Nora had personally been working out her own ways of using her brute force. For instance, this morning she had used lightning dust to increase her strength in order to see what sort of strength was necessary to bring down even one of these things. As it turned out, a massive amount of raw power was needed to one-shot any of them. While the amount needed varied depending upon species, the bottom line was probably equivalent to the endurance of any Grimm Alphas.

Naturally, Jaune took note of everything that worked and everything that didn't. He was nothing if not meticulous about these details. This, alongside his leadership and strategic and tactical planning were his good points. His combat was severely lacking and he was having to rely upon Team JNPR to help him get up to speed, but none of them minded.

As for today, they were working on an escort mission to bring a small but critical stash of food and medical supplies to one of the safe zones more towards the east There were far less frequent attacks the more one moved to the mountain ranges protecting the Kingdom of Vale, but because this was a far less attacked area, the people there also received much less. Now they were getting a little too close to running out of supplies. One could only hope and pray to the Gods that this entire mission would just have them pick up their stuff, drop it off, and then leave without a hassle.

But that would be too easy.

Nora ducked behind some debris as the sound of gunfire sounded on both sides of her. Ren was nearby firing his weapons. He did this for a few moments before ducking. A projectile flew above their heads a moment later.

"This looks like an enemy patrol." Ren deduced to Jaune, who was to the right. "We need to deal with this fast before they send in reinforcements."

"Yeah, I got it." Jaune grimaced. "Pyrrha, take Nora with you. Ren and I will be the diversionary duo. Maintain contact and only engage when you know you can get a kill."

"I understand." Pyrrha nodded. "Nora, are you ready?"
"You got it!" Nora did her best to remain cheerful. "Ready to rock and roll!"

Everyone knew this was a calculated risk. Playing defense against these things only worked so long as teamwork was at its best. Their teamwork was good, no doubting that. Whether it was good enough for this, they would see. They weren't likely to be getting backup as the mission parameters stated that much.

The spartan began moving to around some wreckage to remain undetected and the bomber followed suit. They listened to the sounds of animalistic roars and growls with the occasional shots being fired and slashes of blades. That was a good sign that the two boys were still in the fight.

"This way." Pyrrha maneuvered her way between two caved-in buildings. "Watch your step."

"Okie-dokie." Nora hopped between the structures.

They traversed at least a hundred meters more before stopping to take stock of their current tactical situation. They seemed to have found themselves facing the enemies' five o'clock, not quite directly behind them, but it would have to do.

"How many grenades do you have?" Pyrrha asked.

"Sixteen." Nora did a quick count. "How many out there?"

"Seven." Pyrrha breathed quietly. "We'll need to take out as many as we can as fast as possible."

"Any openings?" Nora peered out with her fellow huntress in training.

"If we time it right, maybe." Pyrrha frowned in contemplation. "Jaune mentioned that they're vulnerable to particular types of dust. Water and wind in particular, I hear, are very effective."

"I'm not sure that'll work with my grenades." Nora replied with her own reservations. "I'm all about things going boom boom."

"Not to worry. I have wind and water dust." Pyrrha patted the pouches on her belt. "I think I could manage two headshots, maybe three if I'm lucky enough."

"We're too low to get even one." Nora pointed out. "Shouldn't we get up higher?"

"Good point." Pyrrha took the ginger-haired girl's advice. "Let's get going."

The dangers of moving to a higher position meant traversing buildings that were more open up top, not to mention structural instability that could be present due to these things having been through considerable abuse during the first week of the invasion. It was better that they made their move quickly before their luck decided to turn itself around.

The redhead shouldered her weapon, which was now in carbine form, taking careful aim. Her body stilled and her breathing slowed to a controlled rhythm. For a few moments, nothing happened.

Then the four-time Mistral Tournament Champion fired. Her first shot was a direct hit to the neck while her second shot succeeded in entering the skull of another one through the jaw.

"Nora." Pyrrha called. "Go!"

"On it." Nora sprung into action.

With two hostels down for the count, that left five for her. Despite her misgivings about engaging in close combat, she did find a bit of excitement to go along with the impending danger to her person.

The girl with carrot-colored hair brought out Magnhild. She first narrowly evaded a swipe made to slice at her abdomen by bending herself backwards to the point of most of her body being parallel with the ground, using momentum to slide out of the way. She then swung her weapon about 270 degrees. While her enemy moved to block with an arm, the force was enough to render the limb broken.

Nora followed up by transforming her hammer into its alternate form and fired two grenades, one striking the back while the other hit home right on the nose. It was only after the enemy was dead did she realize that she had been fighting a sort of tiger Evolved, a lazy name for these things.

It didn't matter to her what these things were called. They were all going down just the same: with broken legs.

She felt an impact against her back, her aura taking the brunt of the damage, but she still felt her back momentarily scream in pain. This didn't stop her front turning around barreling down on the weird monkey-shaped thing in front of her. Was that a gorilla? A chimpanzee? She couldn't tell the difference between primate species.

Ah, who cared? It was about to die!

Nora used the staff of her hammer to avoid another strike before cracking a lighting crystal held in her left hand into dust. The dust began to spark electricity all around, which her semblance took full advantage of. It didn't take long for her strength to increase to astronomical proportions. Then she overpowered her primate enemy with lots of muscle.

She could hear rifle shots sounding out, probably Pyrrha just picking up the mess and providing cover fire wherever possible, but for now, the bubbly bomber was focused only on the thing beneath her feet.

The ginger-haired girl raised Magnhild over her head and brought it down with all the strength currently at her disposal. The resulting collision of hammer to skull was devastating. The face merely caved in, but she wasn't done there.

Another time.

Three times.

Four.

"DIE! DIE! DIE!" Nora hadn't realized that the thing was already dead. "DIE! DIE! DIE!"

Too many bad memories were fueling her right now. All of this was just her way of attempting to vent it into something productive, albeit with gruesome results.

But there were no broken legs on this one.

Fate/Stay Night - - - RWBY

Neopolitan had a hard time believing just how easy it had been to come and go through Beacon Academy. Even before this whole invasion of Vale SNAFU, she had managed to sneak past students of all ages without so much as breaking a sweat. Either she was better than she knew or these kids were horribly incompetent. Either way, the diminutive combatant wasn't complaining. It made her job easier.

And now she was about to finish up her job and get her idiot boss out of a deal he made with the devil. That boy might be extremely hot, but there was no mistaking a demon in human skin. It was even worse than looking at Cinder. At least she had traces of weakness somewhere. Gilgamesh was another ball park entirely.

The only thing different about her visit this time was that she was brining along a little kid that would somehow unlock the door that she had found which led to this supposed Relic of Choice, whatever that meant. The door was located in a vault deep below the surface and even then, it had taken a considerable amount of time finding that damn doorway and not leaving traces of a search.

But now was the perfect time to snatch a precious item from Ozpin's grasp. This kind of thrill was enough to inflate Neo's ego. It wasn't everyday that she got to steal something important from the headmaster of Beacon Academy. It was a victory knowing that she had stolen from arguably the most powerful man in the Kingdom of Vale.

Well, at least she had played a part in it, but unfortunately she couldn't claim any stake in this prize. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Leading the faunus girl with green hair to the doorway was easy, but watching the little squirt just wave around her magic hand and then having the thing open in the most awkward way that a door could was just weird. Then they both stepped into another world that was far different than what was outside.

For as far as the two of them could see, it was nothing but grasslands. The grass was the greenest that the two of them had ever seen. Nothing else could be seen. The sky above was a clear blue with not a spec of cloud anywhere. There was no wind to speak of, just a calm and peaceful atmosphere. There was not a soul around other than themselves.

The only unique landmark was a simple stone pathway starting at the doorway they had just come from leading maybe fifteen meters away. At the opposite end, there was a simple but symmetrical stone pedestal.

And hovering on that pedestal was a golden crown.

Fit for a king. Neo let a smile grace her features.

THIS IS A GENERAL REMINDER TO ALL OF MY READERS. I WILL BE LEAVING FOR BASIC COMBAT TRAINING ON AUGUST 4TH. JULY, THIS MONTH, WILL BE THE LAST MONTH THAT I POST CHAPTERS FOR ANY OF MY STORIES. UPDATES WILL RESUME IF AND WHEN I AM ABLE. UNTIL THAT DAY COMES, EXPECT NO FURTHER UPDATES FROM THIS STORY.

ALSO, WHILE I'M GONE, I'LL PROBABLY DEVELOP SOME NEW IDEAS ABOUT STORIES, NEW AND EXISTING. I'VE GOT SOME IDEAS CURRENTLY ON MY PROFILE PAGE. IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN ANY OF THEM, MAKE THAT INTEREST KNOWN BY VOTING ON THE POLE WHICH IS ALSO ON MY PROFILE PAGE.

Now we return to the author's notes.

Things are moving along and an objective has been accomplished, but did anyone expect anything less from Gilgamesh.

One thing that I want to point out is that these perspectives that I'm giving for the characters of RWBY aren't just for the purpose of moving the plot along. They also showcase how each of them is coping with the current environment. Characters that are active within a story need to be clearly shown not just in how they act but also in how they think when applicable.

Thoughts? Reviews and feedback are greatly appreciated.

Thanks for reading and I'll hopefully see you all in the future.

-Ktyou