135

Chapter 135:

Kyo looked up as he sensed a familiar presence approaching his door. He'd been doing some light reading for bed, and hadn't been expecting visitors, and certainly not the one who came to his door. Getting up, he moved to open the door just as his guest began to knock, revealing Amber standing out in the hall.

"Amber...?" Kyo regarded her in confusion, noting that Amber was wearing her nightgown, which clung to her body, showing some, suggesting the rest, in a manner that was quite enticing to him. At the same time, there was a certain vulnerability to her, as she averted her eyes, and rubbed her right upper-arm with her left hand. It was a look that made him want to take her in his arms.

So he did.

Wordlessly, Kyo stepped aside to allow her to enter, before closing the door behind her. Then, he immediately wrapped his arms around her, pulling her up against him, allowing Amber to lean her head into his shoulder.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

"I...am...I guess..." said Amber hesitantly.

"What happened?" asked Kyo. "I assumed you were training with Ozpin-dono and Natsu-chan."

"I was..." Amber shuddered against him, prompting Kyo to tighten his hold on her. "Ozpin just said something...something that brought up unpleasant memories."

"Would you like to talk about them?" asked Kyo, guiding her to the small couch in the sitting room of his suite, settling her next to him so that he could keep his arms around her.

"He was talking about the Maidens, about Cinder, and all of a sudden..." Amber shuddered yet again.

"You remembered Cinder-san's attack," said Kyo, raising his hand to gently brush his fingers along the lines of the webbed scar that ran over Amber's face.

Amber nodded wordlessly.

"It's understandable," said Kyo softly. "Cinder-san and her...associates...they rendered you powerless, placed you at their mercy, then Cinder-san took what she desired from you, in a manner that enforced just how utterly out of control your fate was."

Amber shivered.

"If you look at it from a certain perspective, what they did to you was a kind of rape," said Kyo sadly.

Amber jolted, pulling away enough that she could stare at Kyo with wide eyes. "B-but they didn't..."

"Rape isn't necessarily about sex," said Kyo. "It's about exercising power over one's victim. Doing so in a sexual manner is especially intimate, and therefore inflicts a more severe pain. Cinder-san completely took away your agency, then made you experience the act of her rending your soul asunder to take what she wanted from you. In some ways, that is a far more intimate pain to inflict than forcing sexual intercourse."

Amber shivered again, but calmed when Kyo transitioned from stroking her scar to cupping her cheek. Then he leaned in, kissing her gently on the lips. "You're not weak for being so affected by that. You are not broken or sullied by what she did. You were injured, yes. But you have healed...and that is the most important thing, that you are here...now."

Amber smiled, tears spilling from her eyes. She leaned in, pressing her face into the fabric of Kyo's robe, Kyo holding her.

"Can...can I..." Amber struggled to finish her request.

"What is it?" prodded Kyo.

"Can I stay here tonight?" asked Amber.

"By stay here, you mean...?" asked Kyo, his eyes widening.

"Can I...May I sh-share your bed?" asked Amber.

Kyo's face flushed furiously. A second later, the calm, confident young man that Amber had fallen for was gone, replaced by the gawky, awkward, uncertain boy she'd first met...and also fallen for. "Um...W-well...that is...uh...What about Goodwitch-dono? I fear she might...object."

Amber giggled, remembering the first few days of her interactions with Kyo. "I got her permission first," she said.

"Y-you did...?" If anything, that only seemed to make Kyo's awkwardness intensify. "A-are you sure...I mean...we only did just officially..."

Amber couldn't help but giggle. "I don't want sex yet," she confided. "I just...I want to be held. I want to keep the nightmares at bay...for one night at least."

Kyo relaxed a little, then took a deep breath, relaxing considerably more. "I see," he said. He hugged her tight against him again. "Then I am prepared to keep the nightmares at bay for as many nights as you wish."

"I might just take you up on that," said Amber, already relaxing in his hold.

A few minutes later, they were settling into the bed, Kyo pulling the covers over them, before taking Amber into his arms again. They stared at one another for a moment, both of them blushing now. Even if there was no intention to take things further than this, this level of intimacy was still very new to them.

"Is there anything you would like me to do?" asked Kyo.

"Can you tell me more?" asked Amber. "Tell me about the places you've been, the people you've met, I want to hear more about them. Until you can take me to see them with my own eyes, I want to hear about them."

"Gladly," said Kyo.

Amber relaxed, allowing herself to be lulled to sleep by Kyo's voice, as he told her stories of his travels.

"I would like to congratulate you on your spectacular match, yesterday," said Sasame, beaming across at Penny, who sat stiffly in the chair across from her.

"Thank you, Ms. Sasame," said Penny.

"Just Sasame is fine," said Sasame with a giggle. "Though...I would not object to you calling me Sasame-nee, like Ruby-chan and her friends do. I find I'm getting quite enamored with collecting little sisters."

A throaty chuckle, accompanied by the clicking of mechanical appendages signaled the arrival of Pietro, smiling widely as he carried a tray into the room from the kitchenette attached to his quarters. Like Kyo, Pietro had been granted a suite in the faculty wing of the school for the duration of his stay at Beacon, which he was planning to maintain until the end of the festival.

"I always did consider Penny to be my beloved miracle-girl," said Pietro proudly. "The only thing that would sadden me about that is that I cannot grant her any sisters of the same nature as herself. It would be a balm to my old heart to have someone accept her as a sister."

"Um...I...I kinda like that," said Penny.

"I'm glad to hear that, Penny-chan," said Sasame. "I'm glad to get this chance to talk with you...you as well, Pietro-dono. I've been wishing for the opportunity to express my admiration for what you've done, ever since I set eyes on Penny-chan."

"You could tell?" asked Penny, staring at Sasame with wide eyes.

Sasame tittered. "Of course I could. I am a healer, after all. I've honed my skills to such a degree that I can diagnose a person at twenty paces. It was child's play for me to see that you were an android."

"Oh..." said Penny, not knowing what to make of that.

Sasame regarded Pietro, who was setting the tray, with two cups of coffee on the table at the center of the sitting area, his mechanical walking apparatus proving surprisingly adaptable to the task. "Truth be told, I would like to take the opportunity to invite you to visit the Mibu as well, Pietro-dono. I would very much like to introduce you to Murasame-sama. I think he would be both amazed and thrilled to meet someone who has completely surpassed him as a craftsman."

"That is quite the thing to say," said Pietro, "though I would rather you didn't imply that I made Penny like some kind of a tool."

"I meant nothing of the kind," said Sasame plainly. "To a true artisan, the act of creation is a labor of love, is it not, regardless of how mundane or extraordinary the creation may be? Murasame-sama himself considers the blades he forges to be his children, just as you have created this wonderful child. The creation of such a magnificent and vibrant soul is something to be celebrated. It could not have been accomplished without a deep and affirming love."

"Th-thank you," said Pietro, coughing. The sound brought a sharp jolt from Penny, who looked at him worriedly.

Sasame's expression frowned. "I see...so that is the 'miracle' you spoke of. Your health is weakened, because you used a portion of your own Aura in the creation of Penny-chan, did you not?"

"H-how...?" gasped Pietro.

"It is not so hard to see," said Sasame, frowning. "Penny-chan's Aura shows its roots in your own, in a sense being the equivalent of you being her blood-relation. I see...so that's how you managed to create a truly independent person from a machine."

"I don't understand," said Penny, blinking in confusion.

Sasame sighed. "Amongst the Mibu, craftsmen imparting their Aura into the objects they create to enkindle life is an old and revered practice. However, an object will never truly possess a life beyond its status as an object. For example, Ruby-chan's sword will never stand up and start speaking. It lives purely as a sword."

Her eyes narrowed, fixating on Pietro. "However, you went deeper. More than just pouring your Aura into Penny-chan's creation, you imparted some of your root, the very essence of your life itself. That is both incredible...and dangerous."

"It wasn't my intention, at first," said Pietro, pulling out a picture and looking over it. It showed an arrangement of himself and fellow scientists. The photo's age showed, not only in the relative youth of the people within its frame, but also in the fact that Pietro was shown standing upright on his own legs.

"When we first started, we were merely researching the potential of Aura," explained Pietro. "In a sense, I suppose you could say we were doing what you Mibu had been. What we sought was to use it to empower our machines, to create androids that could truly fight on the level of Huntsmen, without needing to put actual lives at risk. In a sense, we viewed Aura as another source of energy, a power that we could put into batteries and use as necessary.

"In many ways, the way that led to Penny's creation was a series of accidents. We could impart Aura into objects, but it wouldn't last. It would peter out, almost like an unused battery gradually losing its charge over time. Looking for a solution, I went deeper, and wound up cutting out an actual portion of my base Aura to put into an android. And the result was Penny."

"And suffered the consequences, I see," said Sasame, glancing at Pietro's apparatus.

"What consequences?" asked Penny. "I mean, I know Father can't walk on his own now, but…"

Sasame sighed. "Pietro-dono could have potentially permanently reduced his lifespan with such a maneuver." Her words drew a startled gasp from Penny. "Fortunately, I have the knowledge to mitigate the effects."

"You do?" asked Pietro, his eyes widening. Penny's also widened hopefully at the prospect.

"I do," said Sasame, smirking. "Such methods are not unknown to the Mibu. There are Manifestation techniques that rely on similar drastic methods. They are incredibly powerful, yet also frighteningly dangerous. They are mostly forbidden, and only the highest level masters of a given school are entrusted with the knowledge of such techniques."

The Mumyo Homusubi Ryu that Natsuki studied, for example, possessed a more advanced version of the Chikewai technique that she had used in her match against Team CFVY. Called Honno Chikewai, it was a technique to fed on a person's own lifeforce to give them a tremendous boost in power, gradually burning them up from within. For practitioners of the Mumyo Saigyo Ryu, there were the Blood Dragon techniques, created by mingling their blood with the water conjured from their Auras. The result was a powerful acid that was capable of melting nearly any substance within seconds. However, in addition to the drain from their lifeforce, the user also ran the risk of bleeding themselves dry with over-reliance on such techniques. And those were merely two examples of the frightening extent that some of the forbidden arts, only known to the greatest practitioners within the clan, could go to trade their users' own lives for power.

Sasame continued. "However, knowing that techniques with such drawbacks exist is, naturally, motivation for coming up with techniques to likewise mitigate those drawbacks. I am schooled in such methods, so I will be able to help your father."

"If you would, that would be greatly appreciated," said Penny, bowing politely.

"I would be glad to," said Sasame, getting to her feet. "It would pain me to see such an excellent craftsman expire, before Murasame-sama had a chance to offer his appreciation. However, I will need a substantial amount of Aura in order to make this work."

"Can you use mine?" asked Penny.

"That will not be necessary, Penny-chan," said Sasame, her expression taking on a strangely mischievous quality. "After all, I have a new apprentice, who fits the bill quite nicely."

Jaune sat up straight, a shiver running down his spine.

"Is something the matter?" asked Miyu, who was sitting next to him.

"I just got a premonition that I'm going to be wrung out like a dishrag later," said Jaune uneasily.

"Ah, that must be Sasame-sensei then," said Miyu nonchalantly. "You had best be prepared for it then."

"You've been through this before, haven't you?" asked Jaune, regarding her warily.

"More often than I would like to admit," said Miyu with a sigh. "Still, it will undoubtedly be a good experience for you, so I advise that you cooperate to the best of your ability. Still, you have my prayers for your wellbeing."

"Thanks," deadpanned Jaune.

"But enough of that," said Miyu. "We're still working on your knowledge of the limbic system. Keep hitting those books."

"Yes, Ma'am," said Jaune dryly. He felt like he should protest more, but kept it in check. After all, Miyu was giving up on her time with Setsuna to tutor him, while Sasame was off doing...whatever it was she was doing. At the moment, it was best to simply do as she said.

The large, black form of a raven swooped low over the roofs of Beacon Academy. Banking around one of the school's many spires, it aimed for a copse of trees in one of the courtyards, trees that happened to overlook the student dormitories, one dorm in particular. The raven flew above a large branch extending out from the trunk of one of those trees...and a pair of human feet landed on the branch, making it flex slightly, though it held.

Raven Branwen's eyes narrowed as she stared at the window in question. It was still lit, despite the late hour. Of course, that was hardly unusual. In fact, most of the windows around it were lit too. This being the Vytal Festival, curfew was more of a suggestion than a rule. It was essentially a three week vacation for all the students present, meaning that they were free to stay up, and then sleep in as late as they wished, assuming they didn't have a match to worry about. Staring at the window, Raven was able to make out the people moving within the room, one girl in particular, her black and red hair and silver eyes making her stand out.

The girl was currently locked in an animated conversation with one of her friends, the white-haired girl Raven recognized as the youngest Schnee daughter. Whatever they were talking about, they appeared to be enjoying themselves.

Raven's lips curled back, baring her teeth in a soundless snarl. The fingers of her left hand, which she'd planted against the trunk of the tree, curled inward, her nails digging furrows through the bark. No matter how often Raven looked, she always hated that smile, so full of innocence and happiness, even though this girl and her family had been responsible for the death of Raven's own family.

For so long now, Raven had been looking for her chance at vengeance. Her daughter, her own flesh and blood, had rejected her. Her brother had abandoned her, and his tribe. The one chance she'd seen to allow Ruby Rose to finally suffer the fate she deserved had failed to pan out, with the Councilman plotting her death being defeated easily.

There has to be some way, thought Raven furiously. I'd do it myself, if I got the chance. But...

But this girl had killed Cinder Fall. Yes, Cinder had only been a partial Maiden. But she'd been dangerous enough to defeat one of the current Maidens, however inexperienced, and had the backup of a pair of dangerous disciples. Yet, all three of them working together had failed, and Ruby had only grown stronger in the process.

Just looking at Ruby made Raven bitter. The way she looked and acted, it was just like her mother. Just looking at her, Raven was reminded of Summer, sanctimonious to a fault, always talking about the duty they owed to the weak. The mere thought of that woman made Raven sick to her stomach.

She was always prattling on about protecting others. But there's no worth to protecting those who can't protect themselves. This world needs only the strong. This is proof. I'm here, alive, and more powerful than ever...and she's dead. That means I was right.

For some reason, Raven felt as though she needed to convince herself of that. The mere thought made her anger bubble up again, red flames beginning to flare at the corners of her eyes.

"She's gonna notice you, if ya keep blastin' out that murderous intent, like there's no tomorrow."

Raven whirled about, her hand going to Omen's handle, ready to draw at a second's notice. Her eyes narrowed as she saw the shadowy figure of a man, dressed like some kind of jester, complete with a fool's cap, decked out with bells, leaning against the trunk of another tree, arms folded casually across his chest. Because of the late hour, the pervasive darkness made the mask over his eyes stand out all the more starkly, as did his white teeth, when he flashed her a grin.

"Who are you?" demanded Raven.

"Just a clown, really," said the man, pushing away from the trunk to stand easily on the branch, still keeping his arms folded casually across his chest. "You can call me Jester."

"And what does a mere clown want with me?" asked Raven, her eyes narrowing.

"Calling me a 'mere' clown hurts a little, ya know," said Jester with a chuckle. "A jester is supposed to have the ear of the powerful people in a way that no one else does, you know."

"And yet, I don't see what that has to do with me," said Raven.

"Well...one of those ears I have happens to belong to a certain lady," said Jester, "one whom you fear above all else."

Raven's hands began to tremble, and Omen's blade began to rattle in it sheath. "Salem..." she whispered.

"Well now...no posturin', no pretendin' to be strong? I'm a bit surprised," said Jester, chuckling again. "Well, I guess that's only natural, considerin' what ya've been through." He unfolded his arms, holding his empty hands out in a placating gesture. "But, be at ease, Raven Branwen: Maiden of Spring, I mean you no harm."

"A-and why should I believe you?" asked Raven, a faint stammer finding its way into her voice, despite her best efforts. After all, the man had instantly pegged her as a Maiden, her deepest, most fearsome secret, the last thing she wanted any follower of Salem to know. "It's practically a given that any agent of Her has a forked tongue."

"Well...you're not wrong," admitted Jester. "I've told quite a few whoppers in my time too. The main issue is...you don't have a choice but to at least listen to what I have to say."

"And why is that?" asked Raven, her right hand closing about her sword's handle.

"Because you don't have a choice," repeated Jester, resting a hand on Raven's shoulder.

Raven's eyes widened, her body freezing in place. When did he...? Jester had been several meters away at least. But now, he was standing on the same branch as her, casually resting a hand on her shoulder, as though he'd been there the whole time. It wasn't a matter of speed. It was as though he hadn't moved at all.

"'Course, the first thing to do is take this somewhere else," said Jester cheerfully. "I think that the last thing either of us wants is for someone from Beacon to see us holding a nice chat in the middle of their property."

Before Raven could even respond, the world around her shifted, colors, all varying shades of dark, running together, like paint being washed out by water. They swirled around her for less than a second, just long enough to make her dizzy. Then everything snapped into focus again, and they were somewhere else entirely.

They weren't standing in a tree anymore, but on stony ground. Turning her gaze about in shock, Raven saw that they were atop a mountain, the wooded slopes stretching away to the illuminated skyline of Vale itself in the distance. Looking the other way, she gazed downslope to see crumbling buildings rising up amid cracked and pitted streets.

"Mount Glenn..." she whispered.

"Nice place for a chat, don't ya think?" asked Jester.

Raven thought to pull away from his hand, but found she couldn't move. Her entire body was locked in place, some kind of force holding her fast. She felt as though she was frozen in time. Yet time outside her seemed to flow normally, allowing Jester to speak as he pleased.

"Sorry, can't have ya darting off on me just yet, not before I've had my say," he said. "I told ya that I ain't gonna harm ya. Well...like you pointed out, that doesn't make it the truth. But...you don't have any other choice. So let's have you understand that first, then we can start talking business."

Raven felt as though she could speak again, so she did. "And what business does Salem have with me?" As though she didn't know.

"Well, I bet you can guess at least part of it," said Jester. "You're the Spring Maiden, after all. The Relic of Knowledge, in Haven, that's the first of it."

"But not the last of it," guessed Raven, a cold sweat breaking out across her body. Of course it wouldn't be. Salem wasn't the sort of "person" to let someone go that easily, not just because they performed a single service for her, however important said service might be.

"Well, there's where it gets a little complicated," said Jester. Then, to Raven's surprise, he released her shoulder.

Her body was her own once more. She could, if she so wished, flee at once, transform and take wing. However, even if she knew she could run, her instincts screamed at her, telling her escape was impossible. This man, who had carried them all the way to Mount Glenn from Beacon in an instant, was not someone she could run from.

Teleportation wasn't so completely strange. Raven's own Semblance, Kindred Link, was a similar power. True, she created her portals through bonds forged with people over time. However, it shouldn't have been so strange that there was someone who possessed a more dramatic and flexible version of that ability. And yet...she could somehow tell that it wasn't that simple. The way Jester had moved them with such casual ease spoke of this being a fragment of an even greater power, power that Raven had no hope of escaping.

The strong live, and the weak die. That had been the mantra Raven had been raised upon from her earliest days. She had believed in it from the bottom of her heart. Qrow had ultimately come to reject it. Raven had also once considered rejecting it. However, she had wound up embracing it instead.

But here...she was one of the weak. This man before her was infinitely stronger, and could end her in a flash, her instincts told her. Trying to defy or escape him was out of the question, no matter how benign his actions had been so far.

"I've heard of that little motto of yours, Raven Branwen," said Jester, hopping back to plant his behind atop a large boulder, one of several that made up the mountain's peak. "Mighty fine philosophy. Still...for someone who believes that, don't ya think ya've been spinning your wheels a bit?"

"What?" grunted Raven, her eyes going wide, anger bubbling up from beneath the fear that held her in place.

"Well, look at it this way, it's been-What?-a couple 'o years since your tribe got wiped out by that girl and her sibs?" asked Jester teasingly. "From the look 'o things, while you've been makin' all kinds 'o moves behind the scenes, ya ain't actually done much about yer own weakness."

Raven growled. "What do you mean?"

"Well...ya still don't seem so keen on facin' down Kyo, or the little fox-girl, now do ya?"

Raven grunted.

"Heck! Just a minute ago, you were balkin' at the idea of facing down little Ruby. That girl was good enough to end your second-in-command, when she was only thirteen no less, and she's grown by leaps and bounds since that day. Even the Spring Maiden seems to have doubts about whether or not she could take her."

Raven's jaw clenched, the muscles in her neck tightening painfully at the feeling of frustration welling up within her. Her reflexive response was to deny, to declare that Ruby was weak, that she could end the brat's life at any time of her choosing. After all, Ruby Rose was a sentimental fool, like her mother, who clung to the idea of protecting those weaker than her, those she should have either ignored or trampled underfoot. There was no way that someone with such pathetic ideals could be stronger than someone who had the will to do what was necessary to survive, first and foremost.

Yet...that defiance died before she could even give voice to it. If that was true, why hadn't she done anything herself? She'd approached Yang, tried to turn her against Ruby. She'd blocked Qrow from going to Ruby's aid, when she was being delivered to that corrupt Councilman. And, just before now, she had been standing outside the girl's window, fuming with hatred, but not making a single move.

"Bein' strong is important," said Jester, nodding to himself. "But it's not some kind 'o thing ya can just 'be' and call it a day. Ya get strong, and ya have to keep gettin' stronger. You have the look of someone who got caught restin' on her laurels, and paid the piper fer it."

Raven glanced down, unable to find the wherewithal to disagree. It was that kind of overconfidence that had resulted in her leading her tribe against Demon Eyes Kyo, and had gotten them all but wiped out.

"But...fortunately, now that ya understand that, it's somethin' we can do somethin' about," said Jester, his tone becoming cheerful, that grin full of too-white teeth returning, flashing menacingly in the darkness.

"What do you mean?" asked Raven.

"Ya seem to have Salem pegged a bit wrong," said Jester. He calmly approached her, nothing threatening in his manner. But Raven stiffened nervously all the same. "Fear is all well and good, but relyin' on that alone ain't gonna get much done. 'Cause 'o that, Salem ain't all about the stick. She knows a thing or two about the carrot too."

"What are you getting at?"

"Remember when you asked about what else she would want, besides havin' ya get the Relic at Haven?" asked Jester. At Raven's nod, his grin widened. "Well, the complicated bit is that, aside from that one, she'd like fer ya to get the others too."

"How?" asked Raven. "I'm just the Spring Maiden. The chamber at Haven is the only one I can open."

"Ah, but here's where the carrot comes in," said Jester. "What if I said you could get access to the other Relics...along with everything that comes with that?"

Raven went still again, her eyes widening. This time, it wasn't fear or shock that immobilized her, but something else, a strange tickling sensation in her stomach, rising up to mesh with the eager beating of her heart against her ribs...desire. Jester's vague offer was stirring her sense of excitement, enticing her.

"What was divided can be made whole again," said Jester, stepping closer. "Originally, that plan was for Cinder, but...well...I don't have to tell ya what happened to her, do I?"

Raven shook her head slowly.

"'Course, that means we're a little short on candidates," continued Jester. "Little Emerald might've worked in a pinch, but she got snapped up by the other side when Cinder went down. Shame that...On top of that, when it comes to materials to work with, she falls a fair bit short of Cinder. But now...we've got someone who could easily hold her own."

Raven fought hard, forcing her skepticism against the craving for power that was raging through her. It was a marvelous offer. But... "That shouldn't be possible," she said. "I'm too old to inherit another Maiden's power."

"A minor hurdle for dear Salem," said Jester with a chuckle. Holding out his right hand, Raven suddenly saw that it was no longer empty. Instead, a pair of white gloves, long enough to reach up past her elbow, should she don them, were draped over his upturned palm.

"When little Cinder stole the Fall Maiden's power, she was usin' one 'o these," explained Jester. "Now then, a quick quiz for ya…Should that have really been necessary?"

Raven frowned. "No..." she said.

"Right," agreed Jester. "Cinder checked off all 'o the boxes to make herself eligible to get that power in the usual way. She was young enough, a girl; and, the way things were arranged; was definitely poised to be the last one in the Fall Maiden's thoughts when she died. Now, with all that goin' for her, why use one of these little doodads to forcefully drain the magic from the Maiden into herself?"

"I...I don't know," admitted Raven. It seemed confusing to her.

"Well, mainly, you could say it was insurance," said Jester. "Even with Cinder stackin' all those things in her favor, something could still go wrong. Instead, if we wanted to be sure, it was better to just make sure she could take the magic directly, rather than worrying about makin' everything line up just right. But...the big benefit...is that...with these...you don't have to worry about the usual rules."

"You mean...?" Raven's eyes widened as she stared down at the gloves.

"That's right," said Jester. "With this, ya don't have to worry about yer age. This is magic made for the taking of magic. So, regardless of the normal rules, with one of these, you could take that power for yourself...even if you should be too old for it."

"So then...what you're saying is that, in exchange for the powers of the other three Maidens, I am to access the Relic chambers for Salem," guessed Raven.

"That's it exactly," said Jester. "Pretty nice deal, don't ya think? On top 'o that, I've got another offer that's sure to make you want to jump on this."

"And what's that?"

"You and yours...will survive," said Jester, his words making Raven straighten, her entire body tensing once more. "Ya see, Salem doesn't just doom...She can save as well. It's true, what's left 'o yer tribe is strugglin', but it doesn't have to stay like that.

"A new world's a'comin', and you and yer tribe can have a place in it, if you serve Salem well. Imagine that, not havin' to live in fear 'o her, imagine having everything you need or desire, without having to scrabble and scrape for it. Imagine not having to worry about living on the edge of extinction...and it all starts with imagining what it would be like to wield the power of the Wizard himself, right here..."

Jester held the gloves out a little more, closer to Raven, almost to the point where she could reach out and take them herself.

Raven stared down at the gloves, her mind racing. Unconsciously, she found herself licking her lips, the subtle betrayal of her covetous nature making Jester smirk. However, she forced herself to calm down, clenching her right hand tightly, digging her fingernails into her palms, until she felt them bite through the skin and draw her blood.

The servants of Salem all have forked tongues, she reminded herself forcefully.

"And why should I believe you?" she asked. "This is so generous...too generous. I can't believe that Salem would offer this kind of boon to a former enemy."

"Well...you might say there's a bit 'o desperation in it," said Jester.

Raven flinched back from him, eyes widening again.

Jester cackled. "Well, the sad truth 'o things is that we're in a mighty tricky spot, right now. Poor Cinder was our only viable Maiden candidate, and now she's gone. Now then...we've still got plans on the move, but...well...without that critical piece, it all becomes one big bunch of half-measures. We have the means to bring Vale and Beacon crashing down. We've got the plan, the power, everything you need...except what we need for what comes after that...which is the most important piece of all.

"At this point, we could still go through with it, but we won't get the magic or the Relic that it accesses, which means we'll just be sittin' on a chunk of useless real estate, until Salem can train up another candidate, and hunt down the current Maidens all over again...including yourself."

Raven shivered.

"And well...that'll just give the other Kingdoms time to harden their defenses, band together, and become all that much tougher nuts to crack. Vale's just to get the ball rolling, after all. But, if we can't follow all the way through, then...well it's a better option to just throw in the towel for now. If that's the case, well, it'll be a few decades, at least, before Salem's ready for another go."

Raven found herself leaning forward hopefully at that.

"Now," said Jester, seeing her excitement, "before you go and let that info decide for you, think about what that would mean for you. In the end, all it would be is a reset of the status quo. You'd still be the Spring Maiden, leading the scant handful of what's left of your tribe, struggling to scratch out a life for yourselves. And, on top of that, you have no idea of when Salem will come knockin' on yer door again. And next time...well...there'll be no carrot...just the stick."

Raven leaned away, her eyes going wide. "But still...why make this offer to me...now?"

Jester's grin widened. "'Cause, this is a big opportunity for us too. Strike while the iron's hot, as they say. And it don't get much hotter than this. Now...how many gloves am I holdin' out to ya?"

"Two," said Raven, her eyes narrowing. "Wait...so you're saying...?"

"Exactly," said Jester, cackling cheerfully. "Right now, right here, in Vale, not including yourself, there's not just one, but two other Maidens, ripe for the picking. If you take us up on this-Boom!-you'll have the power of three of the four Maidens, just like that."

Raven's mouth worked soundlessly, her heart thundering against her ribs. Her rational mind's attempt to overpower her desire, reminding her that Salem's minions were liars by nature, was being drowned out.

I could have that power, she thought. I could be stronger than anyone else...strong enough to kill Summer's brat, and avenge my people...

"With one word, you can do so many things," said Jester. "You can save your tribe, you can avenge your fallen, you could even become the most powerful mage in the world, second to Her Ladyship herself, of course. And...once we lock down the location of the Winter Maiden, she'll be yours too. And all ya have to do in return...is open a few doors for us.

"But this offer is limited-time only. The plan starts soon, and...well...once the ball is rollin', you're either with us or against us. You can either be the hunter...or the hunted. Which is it gonna be."

Raven stared intently at the gloves, her right hand twitching.

Jester held them out a little closer. "The strong live, the weak die...which will you be...living or dead?"

Raven stared down at the gloves. Jester had laid it out starkly, both carrot and stick.

In the end, it wasn't a choice at all. Raven knew she couldn't un-become the Spring Maiden. She was stuck with this power for the rest of her life, however long or short that might be. And, if she refused, Salem would hunt her, and the remainder of her life might well end up becoming very short indeed. Even if she took the power of the other two Maidens, then reneged, that would only make things worse. Salem would hunt her down all the more ferociously.

Once...long ago...back when she had still been one of Ozpin's pawns, Raven had entertained the fantastical notion of finding the power to bring Salem down. But learning the truth swiftly ground those ambitions into dust. No amount of power would enable her, or anyone else, to defeat Salem. Salem was an existence beyond that. In the end, Raven had decided that her only viable move was to leave it all behind.

Except that even that was no longer an option now. Jester had made that clear in stark terms. They knew who she was, what she was. The rash decision, that foolish "mercy" granted so many years ago, had now placed a target on her back that she could never remove. Now...if she wanted to stay alive, wanted to survive, this was the only way left to her.

Slowly, Raven reached out, her grip closing on the gloves in Jester's outstretched hand. He let her take them, grinning as she pulled them back and examined them. They seemed ordinary, to the naked eye, but she could feel the faint, disquieting power within them, the power that held the promise that she could take the power from the two other Maidens currently in Vale.

"We have a deal," said Jester.

"So we do," said Raven. "Now what...?"

"Now...we wait," said Jester. "The time is coming. And, when it does, you'll have the way laid open for you. Bring down the other two Maidens, take their magic from them, and then open the doors for us."

"You mean I'll have to subdue them myself?" asked Raven.

"Well, we're a bit shorthanded," said Jester with a shrug. "But, that's fine. I'm sure that someone strong, like you, will be more than a match for a couple of naive girls. Both of 'em are young and new, so you'll have no trouble, I'm sure."

Raven winced, a jolt of fear running down her spine. He got me!

The followers of Salem had forked tongues.

Now, in exchange for the promise of this power, Raven wouldn't just be helping herself to the magic of the other Maidens, she was expected to act as one of Salem's soldiers in the coming battle, to bring down those Maidens herself. She should have known better.

But still...there wasn't really any better option. She had no choice now...had had no choice before now.

Staring down at the gloves clutched in her hand, Raven swallowed. I will survive...no matter what. I'll become stronger...and survive.

Jester grinned, folding his arms behind his head. "Don't you worry none. I'm lookin' out for ya, after all."

"What do you mean?" asked Raven.

"You're an important person, after all," said Jester, chuckling darkly. "Well...to me at least..." Reaching up, he pulled his mask free from his face.

Her view unobstructed, Raven found her mouth dangling limply, her eyes going wide. "Wha-what...what is this?"

"Just showin' you the truth," said Jester, returning his mask to its proper place. "I'm here to help ya, Raven. After all, we're bound by blood, you and I."

Emerald grunted, forcing one foot in front of the other, even as her arms strained against the bars to keep her upright. No matter how necessary it might have been, she hated this exercise. Of course, it was the only hope she had of reaching the point where her atrophied legs could hold her weight again.

She'd only been paralyzed for a scant few weeks, so it wasn't all that bad. Already, her legs were up to bearing most of her weight. But that didn't make repeatedly walking back and forth along the parallel bars any less of a tedious and painful trial. Even once her legs were up to normal walking again, she'd still have to keep exercising, if she wanted to build her strength and stamina up to where they'd previously been.

She managed to reach the end of the lane, before finally collapsing, sinking down to her knees, panting for breath. Her body was covered by sweat, especially her face, with it dripping down, stinging her eyes. What is this even for?

Cinder was gone. Even if Salem was still out there, Emerald no longer had any reason to serve her. She had never cared about serving Salem, only Cinder, however much she might have feared the former. Emerald never held any loyalty towards that witch. Without Cinder, the only thing that might have drawn her back to Salem's side was the fear of retribution for abandonment. Yet, Emerald was fairly certain that attempting to go back now would only draw retribution for failure. She was under no illusions that any of Salem's other lackeys cared about her any more than she cared about them.

So then, there was no point in going back to Salem's fold, but the other side held no promise for her either. Why was she bothering with this therapy, if, at the end of it, the only thing that awaited her was the inside of a cell...if not execution. She had no doubt that there were those amongst Ozpin's fold who would gladly see her quietly disposed of, if only to ensure that she was removed from the board entirely. At the end of the day, her Semblance still made her a threat, as the collar around her neck evinced.

Having her Aura suppressed was no fun at all, especially since it ensured that she couldn't reap the rapid benefits of her therapy that would normally be expected of someone with an unlocked Aura. When she'd still been partially paralyzed, they hadn't bothered to use the collar. If she'd tried to use her Semblance to torment her caretakers, she would only be making things harder for herself, in the end. But, now that she was healed, and gradually regaining her strength, precautions had been taken.

Not that Emerald could find it in herself to look for the opportunity to escape. Now that Cinder was gone...what did she have left?

"... try to genuinely consider what a life after Cinder-san might be like."

Sasame's words rattled around in her skull, but Emerald couldn't find anything in that suggestion. There was no life after Cinder. That was the only conclusion she could come to. What did that little witch expect from her...atonement? Was she hoping that Emerald would magically realize the error of her ways, and come over to the side of angels, fight for the greater good, protect the weak...and all that other bullshit?

It was ridiculous to even ponder such a possibility. As far as Emerald was concerned, she hadn't done anything wrong. She'd done what it took to live on the streets of Vacuo, as a parentless child.

Ideals and principles were for spoiled brats, like Sasame and Ruby Rose, people who'd had everything in life handed to them on a silver platter, who knew nothing about what it meant to scrounge for what few scraps they could find to just keep going for another day, people who knew nothing of what it was like to be kicked and spat on for just doing her hardest to keep existing. There was no atonement, no redemption...nothing...

Emerald's train of thought was come off when she saw a white cloth, a simple hand-towel, hovering below her face.

"Here."

The voice was strangely familiar, but Emerald couldn't quite place it. It was a young woman, someone she'd met before. But, whoever it was had to be someone she'd only met briefly, hardly exchanged words with, if at all. Looking up, Emerald saw herself staring into a power light-brown eyes, set amidst a face of dark-skin, dominated by a weblike scar that mostly covered the left side of it.

A sharp gasp escaped Emerald's lips. Before she could even think about what she was doing, she was falling back, scrambling and scooting as best her aching legs could manage, pushing herself back down the lane between the parallel bars, her entire body seized by utter fear at the sight of her.

Amber, the Fall Maiden, the one that Emerald had helped Cinder to subdue, looked down at the green-haired girl with a dark frown.