//------------------------------// // The First Step // Story: The Multiverse in a Nutshell // by Pennington Inkwell //------------------------------// Unfortunately, the morning's preparations flew by too fast for Sunset to even realize what was happening around her. All she could think about was what was coming. Before she knew it, they had all assembled at the top of a cliff overlooking a large forest. Soon after that, she was airborne, high enough to see the entire forest, right up to her goal: a ruined temple several miles from the school. Of course, for the moment, her current goal was simply to survive her landing. Her stomach, heart, and several other various organs rose up to her throat as she descended, watching the treetops rush up to meet her. "For your safety, please cover your face as you enter the canopy." It took all of Sunset's self-control to understand and respond to Isis, but she raised her arms up in front of her head just in time to keep out a flurry of leaves and branches that whipped past her. Immediately after, she felt several sets of hands under her, and her fall came to a gentle stop. When she lowered her arms, she found herself looking as Missy's piano-key wings wrapping around from behind her. A quick glance revealed Ghostrick Lantern's and Ghostrick Witch each riding on their own magical broomstick and holding on to one of her legs. "Gotcha! See? Told you we'd be right here!" Missy cheered. "Isis, your calculations were spot-on!" "Th-thanks, guys..." Sunset stammered as they lowered her to the ground. There wasn't any strength left in her knees, causing her to drop to the forest floor. "Nice job, girls! You're a braver woman than I am, Sunset, I can't STAND heights!" Penn added in her ear. "Well, I mean, I'd be a less brave MAN, but you get what I was going for." "After this experience, I think you're on to something with not liking heights..." Sunset muttered, still trying to collect herself. Lantern and Witch both gave a short salute to Missy, then waved goodbye as they evaporated away. After almost a full minute, she had gathered up enough strength to stand again. "So... the mission." "The relics the headmaster asked you to retrieve are approximately three miles to your eleven o'clock." Sunset oriented herself according to Isis's instructions and began walking. To her surprise, Missy didn't appear beside her, and after a moment of searching she realized that the duel spirit had vanished. "Missy? Where-" To her surprise, Missy's voice came through the earpiece instead of speaking to her directly. "Ozpin's got cameras all over this forest to monitor the students! If he sees me, the best case scenario is that he'll think you cheated by getting outside help!" "And the worst case would be that he figures out you're not exactly from around here." Penn added. "The LAST thing we want is Oz-pinhead getting involved with our interdimensional time-bending antics." "He didn't seem that bad to me..." Sunset replied, keeping her voice lower now that she knew she was being watched. "He's a Dumbledore-type manipulator, training kids to do his dirty work with blind loyalty, even sending them to their deaths while withholding any information that might compromise their perfect view of him." Penn said, making no effort to disguise the disdain in his voice. "Trust me, Sunset, he's one you want to avoid." "Didn't you say you stopped watching this series three seasons in? Are you sure you have all the info about this guy? those are some pretty heavy accusations." "I caught up last night. Re-watched everything from the beginning. Surprisingly, people were right: it started improving again somewhere between seasons five and six. Never as good as it was, though. Still a six out of ten at best." Sunset paused for a second. "Wait, you watched six seasons of a show in one night?" "I... was hiding under the car for a LONG time." "Affirmative. He slept under there, as well." "It's definitely one way to wake up bright and OILY in the morning." "UGH, Penn! That was awful!" Missy groaned. Sunset snickered to herself, as terrible as the pun was, it was good to have Penn back. There was one thing bothering her, though. Their mission in the forest was two-fold: to retrieve a relic from the temple on the other side of the forest, and form 4-person teams that would be training together for the rest of their time at Beacon Academy. Specifically, the headmaster had said that the first person they made eye contact with would be their partner for the next four years. "Well, I wrote it down on paper, and when I looked at it I knew it was TEAR-ABLE..." "UUUGH!" "Hey, guys, can we focus for a sec? What about the whole 'partners and teams' thing?" Sunset rolled her eyes. "I mean, I know that I'm enrolled, but I'm not going to be here FOUR YEARS." "That... is a very good question. Unfortunately, if we let the chips fall where they may, you're probably going to wind up in a position where you can't do much. I asked Isis to keep you on a path away from where other students are projected to have landed, but we need to come up with a plan fast." "I already made a few friends, if that helps!" Sunset began counting on her fingers. "Ruby, Jaune, Blake, and Pyrrha! I wouldn't mind being partnered with any of them!" "...okay, you see... what you've done there is befriend half of the main cast, and if you wind up partnered with any of them, you'll be splitting up the main characters' teams, so that's a solid N.O." "Oh... Okay." Sunset couldn't help feeling slightly crestfallen. She had actually been hoping to wind up with at least ONE of them, especially Pyrrha. "Listen Sunset... This isn't going to be easy, and things aren't going to go your way all the time. You're not going to be on a team with the main characters. This is a COMBAT school, it's not going to be like CHS." "Penn, I know what I'm signing up for-" "I don't think you DO, Sunset! You're on maybe the fourth or fifth episode of the first season right now. Beacon didn't fall until the end of season THREE. None of the major players arrived there until season TWO. If you do this, you're signing up for at least a full SEMESTER of classes here, if not two or three. That's MONTHS out of our search for your friends! If something goes wrong, the area around Beacon is going to be CRAWLING with Grimm from then on, we might not even be able to make it BACK to my world! Are you really prepared to do that? To make that commitment?" THAT was enough to make Sunset stop in her tracks. "If we leave, let this world play out the way it should, then yes, there will be tragedy, but SCRIPTED tragedy. I know it sounds callous to say, but all the right people will survive to keep this story going intact. They'll keep moving towards their happily ever after, even if it's a long and winding road. If we stay, then we introduce variables that we'll have to take responsibility for, throw EVERYTHING off. I want you to understand what you're truly offering this world. It's not just your life you're risking, it's the lives of everyone you've met so far AND our whole MISSION to reunite the Rainbooms." Sunset looked down at her hands. She wondered just how much responsibility they could carry. "I'm telling you this because you're about to cross the point of no return. If you finish initiation, you'll- WE'LL- be a part of this, no going back." Sunset felt another one-ton weight fall on her shoulders as she remembered that Penn wasn't just guiding her from some easy place of safety where he could just binge-watch TV all day. She wasn't about to repeat her mistake of failing to take him into account. "What about you? I mean, if I stay, what are you going to do?" "Stay here, of course! I'm in a forest, maybe Isis and I will build a log cabin together, it'll be romantic@ It'll need a garage, of course, I'm not going to leave Sylvia expos- "Penn, quit joking. Seriously, what will you do? You can't just camp out in the forest for months while I'm at this school!" "Says who? This universe has some of the coolest weapons tech in the multiverse, I'm sure Isis and I could get something together under the radar I could use to protect myself! Look, we're traveling buddies, I'm not going to walk away. What I'm going to do doesn't matter, you need to make this decision for yourself, and this time I'm going to be behind you one hundred percent." Sunset took a long, shuddering breath. Penn was right, she really didn't know what she was signing up for until now. "You know... if you'd told me that before yesterday, I might have seen your point. I might have agreed that we can't afford to waste this time on a small chance of making things better." She closed her hands into fists. "But I met Pyrrha. I met Blake and Ruby and Jaune and saw how amazing this world IS... And if this is a world where people like them have to suffer and die, then..." She looked up and redoubled her pace, setting herself back on the path to the ruins. "Then I'm going to CHANGE destiny, even if that means putting my own search on hold! My friends can take care of themselves, and any one of them would do the exact same thing in my position. How could I look them in the eyes when I find them if I just let these awful things happen?" On the other end of the communicator, Sunset heard Penn chuckle to himself. "Of course you will. Because you're a superhero. You know, between the pastel ponies and the friendship rainbows, I keep forgetting that." "Did you forget who saved the world from an alien invasion, saved me in Aperture Science, AND defeated an Egyptian god? We're BOTH superheroes!" "We'll leave that up for debate, but thanks." Before Sunset could argue with him, there was the sound of an explosion in the distance, followed by a plume of black smoke. Sunset didn't hesitate, taking off at a run in the direction of the trouble. Whatever happens or whoever I wind up with, I'm still going to do this! It didn't take long for Sunset to close in on the source of the noise. "Ruby and... Weiss?" The two girls were standing back to back, surrounded by monsters Sunset could only assume were the "Grimm" creatures Penn had mentioned. They were terrifying, unlike anything she had ever seen. Pitch-black bodies covered in pale plates and spikes of bone and glowing red eyes. They were hulking brutes that looked like they would tear the girls to shreds in a heartbeat. "There's so many of those monsters..." "Oh, this is that time Weiss set the forest on fire!" Missy chuckled. "This is where she and Ruby become partners!" Penn added. "They get caught by a pack of beowolves and wind up having to run to escape the fire. They'll be fine, Sunset." On cue, Weiss grabbed Ruby by the arm and the two of them began running for an opening in the wolves' ranks. Sunset's blood ran cold, however, as they were cut off by a new creature. Ruby took up a defensive stance against the new monster while Weiss fought the wolves single-handedly. Weiss looked to be using some kind of magic to great effect, throwing the monsters around and blasting them with elemental shocks, but Ruby couldn't seem to break out of the defensive stance she'd been forced into. "What about the jellyfish monster?" "What? Sunset, there's no-" "It's a flying jellyfish with a black bell and barbed red tenta-" "SUNSET, GET IN THERE NOW!" Sunset didn't need to be told twice, the fear in Penn's voice was enough to set her at a dead sprint towards the two girls. With a flick of her thumb, the lightsaber was out and humming as it tore through the air. The wolf creatures didn't even get a chance to notice her presence before Sunset had torn a path through them from behind. The saber was surprisingly easy to wield, even if she did feel a little clumsy as she swung it from side to side to cut down the monsters. The blade itself was weightless, and the bodies of the monsters gave almost no resistance as she sliced through them. If she weren't seeing the results with her own eyes, she could have believed she was just imagining the weapon in her hands. In a matter of seconds, she had reached the two. "Get out of the way! What are YOU doing here?" Weiss asked, barely missing Sunset with another icy blast. Sunset resisted the urge to fire back a sarcastic comment and lunged straight past her to join Ruby's side. She tried to make the most of the element of surprise and swung directly at the orb-shaped head of the creature, but one of the tentacles was faster. It looped around her wrist and jerked her hand upwards, causing her to harmlessly miss. As her arm followed through on the motion, she pulled back just before decapitating Ruby by accident. A second later, a flash of metal flew by and Sunset found her arm freed. With a hard yank, Ruby pulled her back and away from the monster. The blade of her scythe was moving constantly to bat away the tentacles, but unable to reach the main body. Thankfully, the blade of the weapon was wide enough to cover both of them safely. "WOAH! Sunset? What are you-" "Looked like you needed some backup! What IS that thing?" "I don't know! It just came out of nowhere- WAH!" Her head jolted to the side as she dodged a barbed tendril that had poked through her defense. "I can't keep this up forever! Think you can take it out?" Sunset looked down at her saber and realized an important fact: she had no ranged options. And Ruby said her weapon is a sniper rifle, which means she needs MORE distance! Our only mid-ranged fighter is- "WIESS! Tag out!" "WHAT?" Sunset rolled her eyes and reached behind her, grabbing Weiss by the shoulder and pulling her away from her fight with the beowolves. In an instant, the two of them had swapped positions, and Sunset was staring down eight of the bulkier monsters. When the first one jumped at her, Sunset didn't hesitate to counter with a swipe of her blade that cut its head neatly in half. "Now THIS is a little more my speed..." The monsters came at her in waves, first two, then three, then two again, but every time Sunset's lightsaber ripped them apart as if they were made of tissue paper. Soon, she was staring down the last of them. Framed against the light of the burning forest behind it, she noticed that it was bigger than the rest, with long, bloodstained claws. It stared at her with hungry eyes, but it didn't rush in like the rest had. For a moment, the two of them locked eyes, two foes regarding each other and sizing up their opponent. Must be the alpha... Sunset smiled and raised an eyebrow. Those claws looked fearsome, but this thing was clearly outgunned. This time, SHE took the initiative. She began to jog, then to run, then to sprint. The beowolf did the same, settling into a four-legged run. The two of them kept locked on one another. When the distance between them was nearly gone, the alpha leapt into the air, pouncing on her claws-first. Exactly the way Sunset had expected. She dropped to the ground, letting her momentum slide her knees-first through the grass. She gripped her saber with both hands, swinging it directly over her head. To the monster's credit, it was the first time she'd actually felt any resistance while cutting through one of these things. A second later, two even halves of the creature landed behind her, split cleanly down the center. Sunset knew the fight wasn't over, though. As soon as it was dead, she jumped back to her feet. She dug her sneakers into the soil and began sprinting back to Ruby and Weiss. Thankfully, it seemed that the two of them had it well in hand. Each of the creature's tentacles was being held fast by a black, snowflake-shaped glyph, and Ruby had the top of her scythe placed against the back dome. "I've never seen a Grimm like this before, have you?" Weiss asked. Ruby simply shook her head. "That's because it SHOULDN'T be here!" Penn's voice hissed through the earpiece. "There's no way, no REASON for a Seer Grimm to be at Beacon! "Well, I guess we're lucky Sunset showed up when she did, huh?" "LUCKY? She nearly tore my arm out of its socket!" Sunset rolled her eyes and patted Weiss on the shoulder. "You're welcome. Now let's get rid of this thing, huh?" That was when Sunset felt it: a deep unrest. A knot in the pit of her stomach that left her unsettled. The distinct feeling that she was staring into a crystal ball, and something powerful and malevolent was staring right back at her. I have a bad feeling about this- Her hand moved without thinking, grabbing her saber and flicking it on. At the same time, she spotted a flicker of motion from behind the smoky orb. She swung the blade upwards, slicing the last tentacle as it whipped at Ruby's head. The white barb at the tip went whizzing by like a bullet, narrowly missing Ruby's left eye. All three of the girls jumped with surprise, and a second later the monster's body exploded as Ruby fired her rifle point-blank. As the remains of the creature dissolved away into ashes, Ruby gave her a thankful look. "Wow. You have REALLY good reflexes. That could have been the end of my eyes! I owe you one." "Okay, I'll admit... that was impressive." Weiss conceded. "If you wanted to stay with us, I wouldn't be ENTIRELY against it." Sunset felt like the praise was misplaced, that had NOT been reflex. It had been something like a premonition. Both actions had happened at the EXACT same time, like she'd known about it just a few milliseconds before it was going to happen. It's like what happened when I first used the saber, back when I saved Penn on the dalek ship! "D-don't worry about it! That's what friends are for, right?" "Sunset, I don't know what's going on, but you should stay with them." "First of all, Sunset, that was the coolest thing I've ever seen. Second, Penn, could you repeat that?" Missy whispered in fearful tones. "I said that I don't know what's going on, so Sunset should-" "You DON'T know what's going on?" "That is what he said, yes." "Sunset?" "H-huh?" Sunset snapped back to the present, where Ruby and Weiss were staring at her. "I said we should get moving before this fire finishes what the Grimm started!" Ruby pointed behind her, where the fire was continuing to spread. Sunset blinked, then nodded. "Good idea. Lead the way, Ruby..." In her ear, however, Sunset heard Missy continuing to whisper. "Guys... did we just commit to this and then IMMEDIATELY lose our tactical edge?" ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Black Queen sat upon her throne, staring into the swirling mist of the Seer she'd been watching through before she'd been so rudely cut off. She pondered the last image she had seen: three girls standing where two should have been, one a complete stranger wielding a sword of light. Her hopes to remove the largest obstacle to her plans subtly were dashed now. "Well, it looks as if new players have entered the game..." she hummed to herself. "This could be... frustrating." "Would you like for me to deal with her, my Queen?" a voice snickered, dripping with anticipation. Sending him would be like swatting a fly with a firecracker: noisy, messy, out of control, and a clear announcement of their presence. "If we rush our movements any more than we already have, then there will surely be an error made someplace down the line by some fool. For now, it is our opponent's turn. A few unaccounted-for variables do not mean the end of our plans. We can be flexible." She smiled and dismissed the Seer with a wave of her hand before turning back to her followers. "For now, we wait for this 'Sunset' girl to show exactly whose pawn she is." She and Ozpin had been playing chess for centuries. Any other opponent would be like an infant stumbling across the board and kicking pieces haphazardly into places they didn't belong. She wasn't worried. But she was intrigued. Someone out there knew enough to enter the game, but didn't know enough to realize they never should have done so.