Behind the Curtain (Rewritten)
Behind the Curtain
Sunset and Pyrrha held one another’s gaze for a moment, before they both answered their scrolls together.
Immediately, the stern face of Professor Goodwitch appeared on both of their screens, glowering out at them from two different directions as if she had somehow managed to split herself into two people to achieve even greater quantities of restrained disapproval.
“Miss Shimmer,” she said in a tone that was brisk and businesslike. “I see from the view that you have found your way back to your dorm room. Although you don’t yet seem to have found your way to a change of clothes.”
Sunset was still wearing her dress from last night’s dance. “Not quite yet, Professor, although I was just about to find my way to the shower.”
“That would probably be for the best,” Professor Goodwitch said dryly. “I’ll inform Professor Ozpin that you’ll be somewhat delayed.”
Sunset’s eyebrows rose. “No offence, Professor Goodwitch, but why would the headmaster be interested in my ablutions?”
“Professor Ozpin would like to see both you and Miss Nikos in his office,” Professor Goodwitch said. “Ideally, you would come at once, but I think it would be best if you were to wash and change first, so I’ll tell him that you’ll be here in twenty minutes.”
Sunset leaned forwards a little. “Why does the headmaster want to see us?”
“I suggest you come to his office and find out for yourself, Miss Shimmer,” Professor Goodwitch replied with just a touch of tartness in her voice.
“We’ll be there, Professor,” Pyrrha said.
“Thank you, Miss Nikos,” Professor Goodwitch said. “We’ll be expecting you. Please try not to keep the headmaster waiting any longer than necessary.”
She hung up without saying goodbye.
Sunset folded her scroll away as the screen went black. “That sounds… interesting.”
What was most intriguing to her was the fact that the invitation had been extended to Pyrrha and herself. If the headmaster had just called Sunset in to see him, then she would have assumed that it was some routine bit of team leader business, a mission assignment or something that she would be supposed to brief out to her teammates later. If she and Ruby had been called in, then she might have thought it was something to do with last night’s events. But Sunset and Pyrrha? Why would Professor Ozpin want to see the two of them but not Jaune and Ruby? Why call in half the team and not the other half?
“Maybe he just wants to talk to you about Cinder?” Jaune asked. “About when we met her in Mistral?”
“Then why aren’t you being invited?” Sunset asked, as she got off the bed.
“The rest of us have already spoken to the Professor about that,” Pyrrha informed her. “While you were… away.”
“Fair enough,” Sunset said. “But then why ask you back to talk about the same thing again?”
“Ultimately, speculation is less fruitful than just going to his office to find out what the professor wants,” Blake pointed out.
Sunset snorted. “Yeah, good point. Pyrrha, I’ll be in and out as quick as I can.”
She showered swiftly, barely taking any time to feel the warm water work the knots out of her shoulders or to properly lather up her hair with shampoo and conditioner the way that she would have liked to do. Maybe she’d have another shower after she was done with whatever Professor Ozpin wanted.
Whatever he wanted. Sunset frowned as the water washed down her back and the little shampoo she had used washed out of her hair. What did Professor Ozpin want with her and Pyrrha?
Sunset couldn’t have said exactly why she didn’t trust the headmaster. Cinder hated him for reasons that Sunset couldn’t properly discern, even if Cinder understood them herself; Ruby looked up to him as the model of a huntsman; but Sunset… Sunset couldn’t quite bring herself to trust him, even if she couldn’t have explained everything about why. Maybe it was just the lingering memories of Princess Celestia and the way that she had kept Sunset in the dark for so long, but was that really a good reason to look askance at Ozpin? After all, Celestia had acted with the best intentions, and Sunset had forgiven her for what she had done, so why should she look at another man, a different person, with suspicion?
Perhaps I just don’t like being kept in the dark.
And perhaps I have good reason to feel that way. Not all secrets were harmless, after all. In a world like this, secrets could get people killed, and Professor Ozpin had secrets by the handful. Just from Summer Rose’s journal alone, it was clear that he knew about silver eyes and about the prophets and their magic, and he was keeping this information to himself, doling out small morsels of knowledge to those he trusted in proportion to his trust. Was that what this was about? Was he about to ladle out a small spoonful of information to Pyrrha and Sunset in exchange for… what?
That went back to the old problem: why not bring in the whole of SAPR, as he had apparently brought in the whole of STRQ?
Sunset sighed. Blake was right; the only way to find the answers was to actually go to his office and see what he wanted. So she finished showering and changed into her habitual outfit plus a spare pair of Pyrrha’s brown opera gloves to prevent any unwanted activations of her semblance; they didn’t fit her too well – Pyrrha’s arms were more muscular than Sunset’s – but since she strapped her vambraces on over the gloves, she was able to stop them falling off completely, and although they might be slipping down past her elbows, that was all hidden under her jacket, so nobody could see it anyway.
Sunset might have taken her weapons, but as Pyrrha was waiting for her without them, there wasn’t really any way to avoid following the lead of her teammate and going without.
“Are you ready?” Pyrrha asked.
Sunset nodded. “Yeah, I guess I am. I mean, I’d prefer it if we knew a little more going in, but since we don’t… might as well go and see for ourselves.
Pyrrha frowned. “I don’t understand why you have this attitude towards the headmaster.”
“Besides the fact that he’s keeping secrets, you mean?”
“While that would appear to be true,” Pyrrha said, “I’m sure that he has a good reason for it.”
“I’m sure… I’m sure that Professor Ozpin himself thinks so,” Sunset allowed.
“He’s a hero,” Blake pointed out.
Sunset looked at her, and folded her arms. “And how do a lot of faunus see Adam Taurus?”
Blake was silent for a moment. “Point, I suppose.”
“I don’t get it,” Jaune said. “You’re not seriously suggesting that Professor Ozpin is-“
“A murderer? No, of course not,” Sunset said. “I’m just saying that just because a lot of people think you’re a hero doesn’t make you a good man. It just makes you a great warrior with a cause people can get behind.” She sighed. “I don’t know really; maybe I’m just paranoid, I just…”
She didn’t finish, because she’s said it all before and there was no sense repeating it now. It was easier to just let it lie. After all, nothing had happened yet. When it happened – if it happened – then that would be the time to deal with it.
Professor Ozpin might have secrets, but for now, he had also been quite obliging. If he started to make more use of them as he seemed to have once used Team STRQ, then that would be the moment to start worrying, to demand answers, and to make a serious effort to get her more trusting teammates to open their eyes.
But that time had not come yet, and so Sunset and Pyrrha left Jaune, Ruby, and Blake behind and set off from the dorm room towards the tower. A raven croaked at them from somewhere in the trees as they made their way across the courtyard.
“I don’t know what Professor Ozpin wants to talk to us about,” Pyrrha said softly as they walked, “but I’m sure that whatever it is, it’s nothing to be concerned about.”
Sunset smiled. There are times when I wish that I could share your certainty, but more times when I’m glad that I’m no longer so naïve. “You’re probably right,” she said, without much conviction in her soul, no matter how much she was able to put into her voice.
More Atlesian troops guarded the Emerald Tower, and for the moment at least, it wasn’t just regular soldiers either; they had huntsmen with them, not students, but Specialists in crisp white uniforms. The tower was still closed, but once Sunset and Pyrrha identified themselves, they were waved through by the guards and were able to get into the elevator without any more difficulty.
The lift rose slowly, crawling upwards with a grinding sound. Pyrrha and Sunset waited in silence, neither saying anything.
For all that she talked about there being nothing to be concerned about, Sunset would have been surprised if Pyrrha wasn’t every bit as curious about what was waiting for them up there as Sunset herself. Pyrrha might be more trusting of authority, but she was still human, after all; she had to wonder.
So Sunset let her wonder, and she wondered herself, pondering over why they had been summoned and for what purpose and wouldn’t this elevator just hurry up already so that they could find out?
“I can’t exactly say why,” Sunset murmured, as the elevator climbed, “but I’m reminded of the time my… Princess Celestia first invited me for a private conference. It was a long walk down the corridor to get to her study, and by the time I got there… I had no idea what she wanted to see me about; she’d just invited me to come to see her alone, in private, and so I couldn’t help but imagine all the things that might be about to happen to me. Was I about to get kicked out? By the time I walked through the door, my knees were shaking.”
Pyrrha chuckled. “Somehow, I’m having a hard time imagining that.”
Sunset grinned. “I was only young at the time. But she… she was so good about it; so polite, so kind, so gentle. She knew exactly how to put me at my ease.”
“Then there was nothing to worry about.”
“The contrary, in fact,” Sunset said. “She wanted to make me her personal student, her… her apprentice, if you like.” She smiled sadly. “I could have followed in her footsteps if I had been a better person.”
Pyrrha was silent for a moment. “You’re a better person now.”
“That’s kind of you to say.”
“I meant…” Pyrrha hesitated. “Sunset, have you ever thought about going home?”
Sunset looked at her. “I… no, I can’t say I really have.”
Pyrrha shrugged. “You’re still young. Maybe there’s still time. If you went back, then-”
“Ah, I see what you mean,” Sunset said, interrupting her before you could finish. “And… you’re probably half right. I could go home, if the time was right. Princess Celestia would take me back, I’m sure. But it’s too late for… for all the other stuff. She found a new student while I was away, a better m-” She stopped herself before she could say ‘mare.’ “Someone better than me. That destiny belongs to another now. I have no claim on it, nor can I have any share in it.”
“I’m… sorry to hear that.”
“Besides,” Sunset said, with a grin that was not entirely forced, “what would you guys do without me? Or are you just desperate to get rid of me?”
“N-no, I don’t-”
“I know,” Sunset said.
Pyrrha nodded. When she spoke again, her voice acquired a playful edge. “Who knows, perhaps Professor Ozpin is going to make us his personal students?”
Sunset snorted. “Yeah, maybe he is.” The elevator shuddered to a stop. “I guess now we’ll find out, won’t we?”
The lift door slid open, and Sunset and Pyrrha stepped out into the office. The gears of the clock ground by inexorably overhead and cast their shadows on the floor beneath.
The spacious office was far from empty. Professor Ozpin sat enthroned in his ornate chair, flanked by Professor Goodwitch and General Ironwood who stood on either side and just behind him, like courtiers waiting to whisper counsel – or poison – into the monarch’s ear. Before the desk, standing a little to the right-hand side of the room, stood Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle; where Sunset and Pyrrha had come in their field garb, the two Atlesians were wearing the white and grey uniform of Atlas Academy. Rainbow Dash, standing at ease with her hands clasped behind her back, nodded to the two Beacon students while Twilight, standing more informally, offered a slightly hesitant wave.
Sunset might have said something to greet them both, but – as she and Pyrrha advanced into the room and reached a point roughly level with the two Atlesians – Professor Ozpin spoke before she could get a word out. “Miss Shimmer, Miss Nikos, thank you for coming at such short notice,” he said. “Miss Dash, Miss Sparkle, I apologise for keeping you waiting, but now that all four of you have arrived, we can begin.”
“Twilight,” General Ironwood said, taking a step forward so that he now stood level with, rather than behind, Professor Ozpin. “What have you found so far going through the CCT servers?”
“A worm, sir,” Twilight said. “And a sophisticated one, from what I could tell. It was dormant, waiting for some kind of trigger or activation signal to wake it up. I decided to prioritise elimination over analysis, but I think if it had been left in place, then they – whoever set it, that is – could have gotten into all our systems that are linked to the CCT network.”
“Which is most of them,” Ironwood finished for her. “Force deployments, logistical data, the IFF on our automated systems; we’d have been completely exposed. Is it dealt with?”
“I think so, sir,” Twilight murmured. “I’ll need to run another full diagnostic to make sure it’s completely cleared.”
Ironwood nodded. “Do it.” He smiled in an avuncular manner, like a fond or favourite uncle. “Good work, Twilight.”
“Thank you, General,” Twilight said. She hesitated. “But, with respect, I don’t think you called Rainbow, Sunset, and Pyrrha up here so that they could hear my report on the situation with the computers.”
“No,” Ironwood admitted. “You’ve all been gathered here for another reason.”
“Before we get down to business,” Professor Ozpin said, leaning forwards and resting his elbows on his desk, “I want you all to understand that the information I am about to share with you is of the most confidential nature. I am taking a great risk in telling you any of this, and I want your assurances that you will be most discreet in how you handle what you are about to learn once you leave this office.”
Rainbow looked not to Professor Ozpin, but to General Ironwood. “You don’t trust us, sir?”
“I trust you,” Ironwood said, with a certain emphasis upon his own self that suggested that perhaps Professor Ozpin was not so trusting. “You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t both enjoy my absolute confidence. But this goes beyond classified, beyond state secrets; not even Councillor Cadenza knows what we’re about to tell you, and she cannot know. No one can.”
“But, General,” Twilight spoke in a voice that was soft and small, faintly bewildered as though the world no longer made as much sense to her as it had done a moment ago. “Why are you keeping secrets from the Council?”
“Because he is a servant with two masters,” Sunset muttered, without judgement in her voice. Her eyes flickered to Ozpin. The way he sat, the way they stood… courtiers beside the throne of the king, of course that was how it was. “Isn’t that right, Professor? Or should I call you something else? ‘My lord’? Or would you prefer ‘Your Majesty’?”
“Sunset?” Pyrrha asked quietly. “What are you talking about?”
Professor Ozpin smiled. “Very perceptive, Miss Shimmer; but Professor will do just fine.”
Rainbow frowned, her brow crinkling. “What’s she talking about, sir, what’s going on? What is this?”
It was to the general that she had spoken, but it was Ozpin who answered. “Tell me, Miss Dash, why do you fight?”
Rainbow’s magenta eyes flickered to Professor Ozpin. “I fight for the three Fs.”
Professor Ozpin’s eyebrows rose. “The three Fs, Miss Dash?”
“Flag. Fleet. Friends,” Rainbow declared.
“Ah. I see. Very concisely put, Miss Dash.” Professor Ozpin said, nodding his head in acceptance if not agreement. “And who or what are you fighting against?”
“The creatures of grimm.”
“Is that all?”
“The White Fang,” Rainbow growled.
“And what of Cinder Fall?” Professor Ozpin asked.
“I fought her too,” Rainbow said.
“But why?”
“Because she tried to kill Twilight!”
Professor Ozpin waved away that response. “You misunderstand, Miss Dash. The question more rightly applies to Miss Fall: not a faunus, not a grimm, but an enemy nonetheless. But why an enemy? In what cause? The same question might be asked of her human accomplices, Miss Sustral and Mister Black, or of Roman Torchwick who currently languishes in silence aboard an Atlesian warship.”
“Roman Torchwick is a criminal,” Pyrrha said.
“A criminal working with the White Fang, who are themselves working with or possibly even under the command of a human, probably Miss Fall herself,” Ozpin said. “Does that not seem strange?”
“Yes,” Sunset admitted. “But it probably isn’t to you, is it, Professor? That’s why we’re here: because you’re the man with all the answers, and you’ve decided to share a few of them with us.”
Silence reigned in the office for a few moments. Professor Ozpin’s face was still, set like a plaster cast. Or a death mask like the ones on the walls of the Nikos mansion. Silently, he got up from his chair and walked to the emerald-tinted windows, looking across the grounds of Beacon and the city of Vale that lay beyond and far below. His cane tapped on the floor.
“Is that true?” Rainbow asked. “You know who Cinder is?”
“We don’t know the specifics of her background,” Professor Goodwitch said, prompting Pyrrha to glance briefly at Sunset – who did know, of course, but wasn’t ready to reveal it in this company; she was grateful to Pyrrha for not forcing her to do so. Professor Goodwitch continued, “But we understand the cause in which she acted.”
“And I guess she wasn’t just a Mistralian agent then?” Rainbow asked.
“No,” Ironwood said. “This war goes far beyond Mistral, Atlas, or Vale.”
“'War'?” Pyrrha said. “What war?”
“The war of light against darkness, Miss Nikos,” Professor Ozpin said, without looking round. “The war of life against death. The true war. The only war that really matters.”
“The fight against the grimm,” Pyrrha murmured.
Professor Ozpin sighed. “I am afraid this goes far beyond the creatures of grimm, Miss Nikos.” He turned around, sweeping his gaze across the four of them in turn. “Tell me, are any of you girls religious? Do you believe in any god or gods? Do you have faith?”
There was another momentary silence before Twilight raised a tentative hand. “I, uh, I believe in… in the paranormal? Does that count?”
Professor Ozpin smiled. “Do you mean that you believe in magic, Miss Sparkle?”
Twilight bowed her head. “Yes, Professor.”
Ozpin seemed to find that terribly amusing. “Fascinating. But do you believe in a higher power? Or rather, do you believe in a higher being, greater than mankind? Do any of you?”
“I… I would not describe myself as religious,” Pyrrha answered tremulously. “At least, no more than culturally so; I observe the practices because it is expected, but… I have stood in the Temple of Victory, and I have felt something there, though I am not sure I would call it a god.”
“Nevertheless, that is more than many would say upon the subject,” Professor Ozpin declared. “In one time, a time long past, the world crawled with cults and faiths; they seemed to spring out of the ground, more of them each day… but the advancement of science made them obsolete – or seemed to – and as the world has become more libertarian in attitudes, so have people come to resent any restriction placed upon the practice of their lifestyle. Nowadays, only a handful of faiths remain, clinging to life with ever-diminished numbers of believers.”
“Perhaps it wasn’t science or social attitudes that hurt them most,” Sunset said. “Perhaps it was when all of their prophets disappeared.” Disappeared or turned into Red Queens; now what might you know about that, Professor?
Professor Ozpin looked at her for a moment, his face inscrutable. Neither Professor Goodwitch nor General Ironwood gave anything away on that front either.
Which didn’t mean that there was nothing to get out of them, just that it wasn’t going to be so easy as making them blanch with a well-placed word or phrase.
“There have been many religions,” Professor Goodwitch said, apparently deciding that the best response to Sunset’s remark was to pay it no heed. “And dozens of gods and goddesses. But, while many of those faiths had some basis in fact, the truth – as we understand it – is that there have only been two true gods in Remnant.”
“Two brothers,” Professor Ozpin said. “The God of Light, and the God of Darkness, who ruled over this world in the days long gone.”
“Two brothers,” Pyrrha murmured. “As in the Tale of the Two Brothers?”
“Exactly, Miss Nikos,” Professor Ozpin said. “There is more truth in fairy tales than many people recognise.”
“You’re talking about real truth, aren’t you, Professor?” Sunset asked. “Not metaphorical truth, not emotional or spiritual truth, but real facts about things that really happened-“
“To real people who were just like that,” Professor Ozpin finished, a slight smile playing upon his face. “Indeed, Miss Shimmer, that is precisely what I mean. The Two Brothers the tale speaks of are as real as I am.”
Sunset’s tail twitched. And how many other tales are true, Professor? The Infinite Man? The Shallow Sea? Poppy and Oak?
Professor Ozpin went on. “The God of Light, the elder brother, gloried in creation: he brought forth much that was green and growing and beautiful upon the surface of the earth and saw that it was good, but the God of Darkness, the younger brother, looked upon light and life with horror and with loathing; he desired only to return the world to lifelessness, and he worked tirelessly to consume all that his brother had made and turn all life to death and dust. But he never succeeded. The light was too bright, his brother too powerful, and while much that the elder brother wrought in the light was destroyed or corrupted in the darkness, always, the light would return once again and drive away the darkness, just as life would drive away the stench of death and decay. The elder brother even wrought a mirror in the sky, the moon, that the light might shine on Remnant even in the deepest darkness, and with that light, he might continue to work even in the dominion of his younger brother.
“Filled with resentment, the younger brother saw that this was not a battle he could win alone, and so he set aside for a moment the power of destruction and turned instead to the power that he had always scorned as the domain of his hated elder brother: the power of creation. But into that creation, the God of Darkness poured all of his malice, all of his hatred of life and light, and all of his desire to snuff out both completely.”
If Cinder is serving the God of Darkness, then they are well matched, it seems.
“The grimm,” Pyrrha murmured. “That’s what you mean, isn’t it, Professor? The God of Darkness brought forth the creatures of grimm.”
“But grimm don’t prey on all life,” Rainbow protested. “They only attack humans; everyone knows that.”
“Now, yes,” Professor Ozpin conceded. “But it was not always so. Once, the creatures of grimm were ravenous; they would devour any and all living creatures: beasts, birds, they would even consume plants and trees, anything that grew upon the surface of Remnant. No lion, wolf, or bear could compete with them; no horse or deer could outrun them; their numbers were legion and their appetites insatiable. They would have swallowed the world.
“The elder brother perceived that the destruction of all that he had wrought was imminent, and so, just as his younger brother had embraced the power of creation, so too did the elder embrace the power of destruction to defend the works of his mind and his hands.
“We do not know how long they fought – or exactly how, but considering the combatants, the struggle must have been long and brutal – but when the fighting was over, the elder brother stood victorious, and in his victory, he offered his younger brother a truce. He proposed that they should cease their struggle and work together on one final creation: a perfect being, empowered both to create and to destroy, gifted with knowledge and blessed with the ability to choose to what end he would put his knowledge and his skill. And that creation was, as I’m sure that you’ve guessed by now, mankind.”
“That… that’s a cool story and all, Professor,” Rainbow said. “But I don’t get why it has to be kept a secret, and I don’t get why you wanted to tell it to us, and I really don’t get what it has to do with Cinder and the White Fang.”
“Because we have the power to choose,” Pyrrha said. “To choose light or darkness, life or death, creation or destruction. Cinder has chosen darkness and destruction.”
“Indeed, Miss Nikos,” Professor Ozpin said, sounding almost proud of her. “Miss Fall has made her choice, and we have asked you here to offer you the… the opportunity to make yours.”
“Then… then it is the God of Darkness that Cinder serves?” Twilight asked quietly.
“No, thank goodness, things are not quite so dire as that,” Professor Ozpin murmured. “Having created mankind, the two gods departed Remnant many ages ago, content to watch from a distance and see what choices men would make without gods to guide or to control them. But they left behind them certain artefacts, containing what we might call remnants of their power. Relics, if you will, of the four aspects of divinity once passed to man: creation, destruction, knowledge… and choice, the most precious and powerful gift of all.”
“Is that where the stories of magical objects come from?” Twilight asked. “Caliburn, the sword that could never be defeated; the staff of Diomed that enabled him to grant boons to his subjects out of nothing; the crown of King Paul of Vale that gave him his wisdom?”
“And many others, Miss Sparkle,” Professor Ozpin agreed. “Yes. For some time, the relics roamed free in the world, and although their true origin was unknown, their powers were well understood and appreciated.”
“Then what changed?” Sunset asked. Why has everything wondrous disappeared out of the world? Why has everything been hidden?
“The relics were too powerful,” Ozpin said. “It was better that the temptation for men to use them against their enemies was removed. And besides, although the God of Darkness has departed from the world, there is another who has proven more than willing to take up his mantle.”
“What do you mean?” Pyrrha asked.
“Her name is Salem,” General Ironwood said. “We don’t know exactly who she is or where she comes from; we don’t even know if she was ever human or if she has always been… something else. But we do know that she dwells on the continent of Drachyra.”
Twilight gasped. “The signal relay.”
General Ironwood nodded. “Precisely.”
“And Cinder,” Sunset said. “She… she serves this Salem?”
“Salem is at the root of all our troubles,” Ozpin declared. “The mistress of the grimm, the inheritor of the powers of darkness, the indefatigable enemy of light, of life… and of mankind. Ageless, cunning, and filled with malice, she sends out her grimm to prey upon men wherever they are unprotected and longs for the opportunity to launch a full assault upon these, the four kingdoms and the havens of humanity. And all the while, she gathers to her side all those who are discontented, the outcast and the unclean, those who have – rightly or wrongly – been rejected by the civilised world, and she moulds them into weapons to send against us. Weapons like Miss Fall.”
“And we let her get away with this?” Rainbow demanded. “We know that she’s the one sending the grimm, we know where she lives? And we just… what? We let this happen? We stand here and talk about gods and fairytales while the bad guys are out there sharpening their knives for us?”
“It isn’t that simple, Miss Dash,” Professor Goodwitch said.
“The hell it isn’t!” Rainbow snapped. “General, sir, you… you know what we’ve lost. You know what’s been taken from us, from all of us.” Rainbow looked at General Ironwood, and in Rainbow’s eyes, Sunset could see a desperate desire for him to offer her an explanation that would enable her to keep believing in him, to tell her that he wasn’t just a monster sending good soldiers and huntsmen to their deaths while he had the power to end the war but would not use it.
Sunset could sympathise; although she hadn’t lost any friends to the grimm – or even to the White Fang, who Salem was also standing behind through the intermediary of Cinder Fall, if what she was hearing was correct – the thought that she might preyed upon her mind like a grimm in its own right. She had told Luna that she might be content if she could combine the safety of Equestria with her friends of Remnant, and if that world was within their grasp, if all they had to do was to defeat Salem, then… then why hadn’t they done it yet? This was Pyrrha’s dream, the one that they had shared on the rooftop after their fight: the grimm defeated, mankind triumphant and free to spread to every corner of the world. At the time, Sunset had thought it a fantasy, but if it wasn’t… if the grimm could be defeated through the defeat of Salem, then why hadn’t anybody beaten Salem?
Sunset was no great fan of Professor Ozpin, she didn’t hold him up as a paragon, he didn’t command her uncritical admiration and respect, but in this moment, even she wanted him to offer some kind of explanation, some answer to the big question that now hung over everything that he had just told them or might tell them. This was a war between light and darkness, Ozpin said, a war between life and death; Sunset wanted to know he wasn’t actually indifferent to the merits of the two sides.
It was General Ironwood who spoke, his words falling from his mouth with the weight of lead. “I’m aware of our losses, Dash.”
“Then why, sir?” Rainbow demanded, “If we know who she is and where she is, then let’s bring the big hammer down on her and show her how Atlas takes care of business! Let’s end this.”
General Ironwood looked physically pained as he said, “We can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because we’d lose,” General Ironwood said. He didn’t shout, he didn’t snap or snarl, but he might as well have done, because both Rainbow and Twilight reacted as though he had. They both recoiled from him, looking as though he’d struck them or threatened to do so.
“Believe me, I asked exactly the same questions when I was first read into this,” Ironwood continued. “I wanted to know why we couldn’t strike back, finish this, finish her. But we can’t. She’s too powerful; she surrounds herself with too many grimm. We can’t even get close to her, and if we could…”
Rainbow shook her head. “I never thought I’d hear you underestimate us, sir.”
“This isn’t a fight you can win if you just have enough guts, Dash!” Ironwood snapped.
“Maybe not, sir, but we’ve got guts and weapons, so I think we’re in with a shot.”
“I understand your frustrations, Miss Dash-”
“Do you?” Rainbow snapped. “Do you really?”
“Yes,” Professor Ozpin replied, his voice as calm as ever it sounded, utterly failing to rise to the bait of Rainbow’s anger. There was no blood in it, no blood at all. The only tone in the headmaster’s voice was weariness. “If Salem could be so easily defeated, then I would do it. Even if it were not easy, I would do it anyway, no matter the cost. But it is no use. Salem… cannot be destroyed. She has existed since time immemorial, and she will go on existing long after our bones are dust. All the weapons in the arsenal of Atlas could rain down upon her head, and it would trouble her no more than an April shower. I thought that there might be a way to… to contain her with a particular power wielded by one very gifted student, but… but it affected her not at all.”
Sunset’s eyes narrowed. “You’re talking about Summer Rose, aren’t you, Professor?”
Professor Ozpin looked at her, his face yielding nothing. “An interesting speculation, Miss Shimmer.”
“I know what makes Ruby so special, Professor,” Sunset declared. “I know that it made her mother special too; we all know.” She was willing to give up this particular nugget of information in exchange for something resembling a straight answer out of him.
If he really wants me to know the truth for whatever reason, he’s hardly likely to kick me out over the diary.
It had to be said, however, that Professor Goodwitch didn’t appear to feel the same way. She scowled. “And how did you come by this information, Miss Shimmer?”
“That hardly seems relevant now, Glynda,” Professor Ozpin murmured. “You are correct, Miss Shimmer, in all but one respect.”
Sunset’s tail curled upwards. “And what’s that, Professor?”
“What makes Miss Rose special is her valour,” Professor Ozpin said. “Her courage in the face of danger, her commitment to defending life, the ways in which she models the behaviour of a huntress so perfectly. It is spirit, more than any advantages of her birth, which make her extraordinary.” He looked down at his desk. “Nevertheless, you are right that her mother made a gallant attempt to… contain Salem. She failed, as I should have known she would, which is to say that I failed her first through my arrogance. Salem cannot be vanquished in the field… but she can be withstood.”
“How?” Pyrrha asked. “If she is so powerful, if none of our weapons or techniques are sufficient to harm her, if she could just walk into Beacon and kill us all and we wouldn’t be able to do a thing to stop her, then… then why doesn’t she? Why hasn’t she?”
“Because she is…” Sunset licked her lips, her tail swishing back and forth behind her. “She is a princess,” she said in the end, because it was the word that was buried in her mind, the only word that she could think of, the word that made the most sense to use, even as it felt like a betrayal to give it voice. “She does not go forth to fight in her own cause, but sends out…” But sends out her faithful students to do her work. “But sends out others to act on her behalf.”
“Quite so, Miss Shimmer,” Professor Ozpin agreed. “And therein lies our hope, for while Salem herself may be immortal and invincible, those who work in her name and for her purposes are not. That is why, many generations ago, our predecessors founded a secret order to resist Salem and to keep the sacred relics out of her hands. For if she were ever to obtain the relics and combine them, the power that she would wield would be sufficient to change the world as we know it.”
“The group they founded has existed down to the present,” Professor Goodwitch said. “We, along with the headmasters of Haven and Vacuo academies and… one or two other individuals, make up the current membership.”
“And we’re telling you this because we believe that you are the right people to carry our sacred charge into the future,” Ironwood said.
“But… why?” Rainbow asked. “Why me, sir? I mean, Twi, sure I get that, but… I mean… I’m just a girl who punches things.”
“Remnant needs wisdom and intelligence, true,” Ironwood said. “But it also needs a brave defender, and I can’t think of anyone braver than you.”
“But why is any of this necessary?” Pyrrha asked, sounding as though her voice was on the verge of breaking. “Why not tell people about this? Why keep it a secret?”
“Because if people knew the relics existed, they would be tempted to use them for their own power and prestige,” Professor Ozpin said, and as he said that, he looked at Sunset, who felt an uncomfortable shiver down her spine as though the headmaster – or whatever he really was – was looking right into her soul. “Because if people knew that the grimm were more than mindless beasts, if they knew the scale of the threat we truly face, then there would be mass panic of the sort that would attract the grimm for certain; because people deserve the chance to live their lives free from the threat of Salem hanging over their every waking moment. I ask you again, Miss Dash, why do you fight?”
Rainbow shifted uncomfortably. “I fight so that my friends don’t have to fight.”
“You take that burden on yourself, that they may be spared the weight of it,” Professor Ozpin said. “Just as we take this great burden upon ourselves that the rest of the world may be spared it.”
You make it sound so noble, don’t you? Sunset thought. And maybe it was noble, every bit as noble as he was making it sound… or maybe he wanted it to sound like that to cover up how convenient it was that this state of affairs left him with all of the knowledge, including knowledge of four incredibly powerful objects that he was keeping to himself – for the good of the world, obviously. Maybe Sunset was being too hard on him; she wasn’t entirely sure what she thought about all of this yet; so much information dropped on her head at once was leaving her feeling a little stunned as thoughts whirled about her mind this way and that. But here was what she knew: Professor Ozpin had recruited Summer Rose and her team the same way that he was recruiting the four of them now, and Summer Rose had died. Yes, the life of a huntress was an inherently hazardous one, and yes, correlation doesn’t necessarily equal causation, but sometimes it does, and in this case… Sunset looked to her left, where Pyrrha stood looking shocked at all that she had learnt; Rainbow and Twilight looked equally amazed. Sunset didn’t know about them, but she was under no illusions that they were going to be equal partners in this secret order if they decided to join it – if they were being given a choice, one might argue that they knew too much to turn back now. On the one side, the headmaster, his right hand and the commander of the Atlesian forces; on the other side, four students. One side was going to be given the orders, and the other side was going to be taking them, and it didn’t take a genius to work out which was which. Professor Ozpin would use them as he had used Team STRQ; at least, he would use Sunset and Pyrrha; perhaps General Ironwood would take some care of Rainbow and Twilight – he seemed fond of them, although it was hard to tell how much of that was an act. But Sunset and Pyrrha, he would use for certain: they would run his errands and fight his battles and fend off Salem’s strokes while he sat in this tower as remote from where the metal met as any king… as remote as Princess Celestia in Canterlot, sending Twilight Sparkle and the Elements of Harmony to save the world while she sipped tea in her shining tower.
That was probably very unfair to Princess Celestia; whatever might be said about her, her ways, her secrecy, or her plans, it couldn’t be denied that she had shared much knowledge with Sunset, taught her a great deal of magic and presumably had done the same for Twilight. And she was kind and generous, and she won the loyalty that she demanded of her students through love that Sunset, for one, had found maternal. She had no doubt that if she were to write to Twilight and ask why that she did all that she did, ran all the risks on Celestia’s behalf, the answer would include – perhaps amidst a lot of noble sentiments – the fact that Twilight loved Celestia and would do anything the princess asked of her.
What did Professor Ozpin offer in exchange for the loyalty he demanded of his secret servants: the honour of duty done and the glory of integrity of principle? Perhaps he would say it was for the good of mankind as he sent them out to fight, and perhaps, one day, when they were older, Pyrrha and Sunset would be admitted into the decision-making circle… if they lived that long. If they didn’t end up as dead as Summer Rose.
I won’t let that happen. Sunset’s loyalty was not to Professor Ozpin, his society, or his cause; her loyalty was not to the Kingdom of Vale, nor to humanity at large; Sunset’s loyalty was to Team SAPR, to Blake, to RSPT as well a bit. Pyrrha seemed to feel a little differently about Professor Ozpin than she had before she had found all of this out, but ultimately, she was still Pyrrha Nikos and just the kind of person to throw herself into harm’s way if she thought it was the right thing to do. Ruby was just the same, and even Jaune too.
I won’t let that happen. She would keep them safe, all of them, from Salem and from Professor Ozpin if she had to.
And, as much as she appreciated knowing who they were really up against, Sunset couldn’t help but notice that Professor Ozpin hadn’t mentioned magic at all during this, even when Sunset had offered him the opportunity to do so.
Just as I thought; you ladle out truth according to your own measure, and I reckon there’s still some stew left in that particular pot.
It might have been harsh, it might have been personal, but Sunset couldn’t bring herself to trust Professor Ozpin.
It was for that reason that – if there was any choice being offered to them in the matter at all – she meant to take him up on his offer.
It wasn’t just that he was offering her a share – however menial it might be at first – of power and influence; although Sunset couldn’t deny that if he’d told her this a little sooner, she would have been filled with desire for the relics of the gods. She could still feel the alluring desire to be a part of something bigger than herself, to influence the world, to leave her mark on Remnant in some way. She would win no glory from it, being a secret and all, but a few people at least would know and recognise her worth, and perhaps she could be content with that; perhaps that was her destiny, to be a Celestia unsung, to wield the power without the crown, to be a princess in the shadows of the world. Not what she had expected when she set out… but at the same time, it was far from nothing.
More importantly, if she refused Professor Ozpin’s offer – if she was even allowed or afforded the opportunity to refuse – then she would be shut out for good and lose all chance not only to influence the things this organisation did, but also to protect her friends from the inside. The fact that she couldn’t bring herself to trust Professor Ozpin made it more, not less, imperative that she know all that he knew and know as much as she could know what he was thinking, what he was planning to do with Pyrrha, Jaune, Ruby, Blake.
She would work with him, for him… the better to work against him if she had to.
“You need not decide right away what you will do next, now that you have seen what so few others have seen and know what so few others know,” Professor Ozpin said. “Take some time. Consider what you have learned and the great odds that are against us. I freely confess that it was General Ironwood’s idea to tell you this, but at the same time, I must also admit that I could use your help.”
“Only our help?” Sunset asked. “Professor, how discreet do you expect us to be with this? Are we supposed to keep this from Ruby and Jaune?”
Professor Ozpin, at last, resumed his seat. “You must do what you think best, Miss Shimmer, but I must remind you all that what you have heard today is highly confidential.”
“Of course, Professor,” Sunset said, with a smile which she hoped was convincing.
Although judging by the way that Professor Ozpin was looking at her, Sunset had her doubts.
“Pyrrha Nikos, Sunset Shimmer,” he said. “Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle; you have been chosen because we believe that you possess the courage, wisdom, loyalty, and compassion that elevate humanity above the run of mere beasts: the qualities, one might say, of the divine. But be under no illusions: the survival of our kingdoms, of our very race, hangs by a thread. Our decisions, our actions or inactions, determine the difference between survival and peace for millions… or the death and destruction of all that we hold dear. One day, if you choose to accept some part of this heavy burden that we bear, the fate of Remnant may lie in your hands. I urge you… I beg you to think long and hard about what that means and make your decision with the greatest care.” He was silent for a moment. “That will be all.”
“Dismissed,” Ironwood said.
Rainbow saluted, as much on reflex as anything else, before she turned to go. Twilight cast one last look at the general before she too turned to follow in Rainbow’s footsteps. Pyrrha’s feet dragged a little as she started towards the elevator. Sunset remained in place, still, unmoving. She stared at Professor Ozpin. He stared back at her.
“Thank you, Professor,” she said.
Professor Ozpin blinked. “For what, Miss Shimmer.”
“For being so honest with us,” Sunset said.
Professor Ozpin smiled. “Of course, Miss Shimmer, although perhaps you should not be quite so swift to thank me. I think we both know that some secrets are best left untold.”
Sunset’s eyebrows rose. And what is it that you think you know about me? Was it possible that he… how could he know that, how could he know anything about Equestria? Had the knowledge been passed down to him by his predecessors in this secret organisation?
He certainly knows something – or he thinks he does – and he’s letting me know it too. To be honest, Sunset was left rather disappointed. Did he really think that she would throw her team to the beowolves in response to a little crude blackmail? Please. Sunset Shimmer had her faults, but she was better than that.
“Maybe, Professor,” she said. “But equally, some secrets really are best out in the open, where people can make up their own minds.”
She turned away, joining Pyrrha, Rainbow, and Twilight in waiting for the elevator.
Ozpin watched silently as the door to the lift slid shut, enclosing the four students within it before beginning its descent.
“They didn’t take that too well,” Glynda said.
“Neither did you, when you first found out the truth,” Ozpin reminded her with a trace of amusement in his voice. “I… may have taken a little convincing, but now that the moment has arrived, I’m confident they’ll all make the right choice.”
“You didn’t tell them about the Maidens,” James said.
“No, I didn’t.”
“Why not?” James pressed.
“Because, as much as I think you disagree nowadays, James, I’m not a cruel or heartless man,” Ozpin said, a quick glance at James confirmed that he had hit the mark. “They don’t need to know everything at once, and we don’t need to force that choice upon Miss Nikos just yet. Let them live, for just a little while longer.”
Glynda said, “Do you really believe that they will keep this a secret from their teammates?”
“I’d be disappointed if they did,” Ozpin replied, allowing a touch of wry amusement to enter his voice. But the ease – or otherwise – with which they disobeyed his instructions would tell him something about their attitude and what he could expect from them going forward. Just as Miss Shimmer’s reaction to his threatening to reveal her secret was intended not as a leash around her neck, but to gauge how she would react to the idea that he was attempting to muzzle her.
As Ozpin pulled out his scroll and turned on the security camera footage in the elevator, he thought that his decision to see only half of each team might well be justified by what he was about to witness.
They rode the elevator down in silence for a moment, each girl lost in their own contemplations, with only the sound of the lift grinding downwards to accompany their thoughts.
And what they had to think about. Even leaving aside any questions of Professor Ozpin’s motives, good or bad, Sunset would still have had whirling thoughts. The grimm had a leader, a queen or something in that line. An enemy, a face to put to the constant menace that threatened to submerge the kingdoms beneath its malice. An enemy who wasn’t content with her hordes of grimm but who constantly gathered hopeless, wounded people like Cinder to her cause and sent them out to fight against their fellow men.
I suppose that whatever I might think about Professor Ozpin, he at least sends other people out to die for a good cause.
Salem. The name didn’t conjure up anything in Sunset’s mind; all the talk of gods of darkness beforehand meant that she was kind of imagining an evil alicorn with a colour palette of blacks and blues. That wasn’t right, obviously, but it was the best her imagination could do without anything concrete to go on.
It ought to have made things easier. One person pulling the strings of the grimm and the White Fang alike, one person behind everything. Cinder standing behind Torchwick and the Fang, Salem standing behind Cinder, and the grimm all taking her commands as well. One enemy to whom they could take the fight.
Except they couldn’t. They couldn’t fight her. The silver eyes of Summer Rose couldn’t stand against her; the strength of Atlas and its army couldn’t bring her down; all that they could do was hold her off, hold the line and pass the torch onto the next generation when all was said and done.
Sunset wasn’t sure how to feel about that. It felt bleak, it felt really bleak, but… she couldn’t have really said why. After all, from a purely logical perspective, it was no bleaker than the situation had been yesterday when – Pyrrha’s quixotic ambitions aside – there had seemed no real hope of defeating the grimm and bringing their menace to an end; all that they could hope to do was – you guessed it – hold the line and pass the torch to the next generation. But it felt different now. Learning that the grimm were not mindless beasts who could be driven off but were controlled by some diabolical entity seemed to render even the victories that they could win against them less meaningful; all the glory that Sunset could achieve here, all the fame that might be hers… it all paled in insignificance when faced with the reality of an immortal godlike figure who had all the time in the world to recover from any setback as she plotted the destruction of mankind, a destruction that she was likely to achieve with or without possession of the relics.
And that was without the question of why the relics weren’t being used against the grimm if they were all that. Professor Ozpin’s group had really shackled themselves with their insistence on keeping everything a secret.
Rainbow punched her right fist into her left palm. “This sucks. This really… gah! One thing I hate worse than getting screwed with is when I have to bend over and take it! At least when Cinder was the worst thing we had to worry about, I could tell myself I’d kick her ass next time! But this… we’re fighting someone we can’t even beat!”
“It seems that way,” Sunset said.
“'It seems that way'?” Rainbow repeated. “It seems that way because it is that way!”
“Like I said,” Sunset said. “It seems that way. But how do we know that this Salem can’t be beaten?”
“Because General Ironwood told us,” Twilight murmured.
“And Professor Ozpin told him that, I’m sure,” Sunset said. “But Professor Ozpin didn’t tell us everything, which means that there’s at least some chance he didn’t tell Ironwood everything either, which means that there could be something he left out, something he isn’t saying. Some way that this can be ended.”
“Why?” Pyrrha asked. “Why would Professor Ozpin lie about something like that?”
Sunset hesitated. “I… I don’t know, honestly. I admit it doesn’t make perfect sense. I don’t know, maybe I just want it to be true because I’d like a way to win this.”
“I’d like that too,” Rainbow said. “I just don’t know if I can see it.”
“I’m not certain I can either,” Sunset admitted, although she was curious as to what would happen to Salem if she were to run into Equestrian magic. “Maybe I just want to hope, but… there’s something that I have to do, someone that I want to talk to, before we meet up with the others to tell them all this.”
“We weren’t supposed to tell the others,” Pyrrha reminded her.
Sunset twisted around to look at her teammate where she stood behind her. “Maybe not, but we’re going to, right? You don’t actually want to keep this a secret from Jaune or Ruby?”
Pyrrha looked down at the elevator floor. “I… maybe they’re better off not knowing.”
“I don’t believe that,” Sunset said. “And I don’t believe that you believe that.”
“We just found out that everything we thought we knew about the creatures of grimm, about the world, about why we’re fighting, is a lie!” Pyrrha cried, her eyes wide. “We just found out that there is no victory, not even the possibility of it, ever! How can we put that burden on Ruby or Jaune?” She closed her eyes and scowled. “I thought that maybe we could win. I knew that it wasn’t a great possibility, but I thought that maybe, if we all worked together and fought with everything we had, then maybe… but we can’t.” She opened her eyes, and though those emerald eyes were filled with resolution, they were also devoid of hope in a way that frightened Sunset a little. “If all that we can do is fight, then I’m ready to fight. If some of us must die to protect humanity, then I’m prepared to die. But Jaune… and Ruby… Jaune wanted to be a hero like his family, Ruby wants to protect the world… how can we tell them the truth about all of this? Shouldn’t we take this burden on ourselves to spare them the weight?”
Sunset stared at her for a moment, before she glanced at the other occupants of the elevator car.
With a short, sharp gesture, she slammed one fist into the emergency stop button, bringing the lift to a halt. The lights dimmed in the car.
“I hope no one’s claustrophobic,” Sunset muttered.
“What are you doing?” Twilight said.
“I’m not Ruby, so this inspirational speech is probably going to be a bit awkward, but here goes: I’m not ready to give up just yet,” Sunset said. “And you shouldn’t be willing to give up either, any of you.
“Sure, we’ve just learned a lot of new stuff. Some of what we’ve learned is a little depressing if it’s true. If it’s true. But I’m not taking that for granted yet, and you know why? Because people have been telling me that I couldn’t do things for my whole life and I have made it my business to always, always prove them wrong. I never let it stop me before, and I certainly don’t intend to start now. So we are going to tell Ruby, and Jaune, and Blake-”
“And Ciel,” Rainbow said.
“Yeah, and Penny too if you like, and we are going to work this out and find a way to beat this, because that’s who we are!” Sunset said. “We go beyond our limits, and we dare defiance of anyone who would set them on us. We’re going to screw the rules and reach for the destiny that is waiting for us. Who’s with me?”
“Absolutely,” Rainbow said.
Sunset nodded. “Pyrrha?”
Pyrrha hesitated. “And what… what if you’re wrong?” she asked. “What if Professor Ozpin and the others are right. What if there is no beating Salem?”
“Then we’ll set her plans back over a hundred years trying,” Sunset said. “And I’d rather burn brightly in futile glorious effort than spend my whole life sputtering like a candle in the wind.” Her face and tone became a little more serious. “Listen, even if you don’t think that there’s anything we can do to change this situation… if we accept Professor Ozpin’s offer – and I for one intend to – then we’re going to be sent out on missions, and Jaune and Ruby will be going with us. Don’t you think they should know what they’re in for and have a chance to tell us no if they want no part in this?”
Pyrrha considered it. “I… you’re right. It wouldn’t be fair to keep this from them.”
“So,” Rainbow said. “You’re gonna tell the professor that you’re in?”
“I’d rather be on the inside than pressing my face against the glass,” Sunset said. “You?”
Rainbow hesitated. “I still can’t believe General Ironwood’s involved in this… but maybe, since he’s involved in this, it’s better than it seems.” She ran one hand through her multi-coloured hair. “Hey, Twi, what do you think Rarity’s doing right now?”
Twilight checked the time on her scroll. “Today’s Wednesday, so… I’m guessing that she’ll be at work right now.”
“And Pinkie will be taking the morning bake out of the oven,” Rainbow mused, with a fond smile on her face. “Scootaloo will be in school, with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.”
“Rainbow Dash?” Twilight asked.
“I told the professor that I fought for my friends,” Rainbow said. “And I meant it. Whoever she is, whatever she is, if Salem wants to kill my friends – if she wants Atlas – then she’s gonna have to go through me first. I’m in.” She looked at Twilight. “Twi… if you don’t want to have anything to do with this… nobody’s going to hold it against you.”
Twilight looked down. She pushed her spectacles up the bridge of her nose. “When I heard that Cadance didn’t know… keeping secrets from the Council, is that even legal? But that doesn’t really matter, does it? If General Ironwood’s right, then all of Remnant’s in jeopardy, and we… we can do something about it.
“I don’t know what you think Professor Ozpin isn’t saying, but I still trust General Ironwood. I still remember all the times he came round to our house when I was little. When he put me on this team, he made sure that you were my team leader so that I’d have a friendly face to make me feel comfortable. If he says that it’s so, and that it has to be so, then I believe him. Maybe Sunset’s right, and there is a way to beat Salem, but until then… I know that I’m not a fighter, but if I can help Remnant by being an egghead, then I’ll be the very best egghead that Remnant has ever seen. I’m in.”
Rainbow clapped her on the shoulder. “Glad to have you, Twi.”
Sunset hit the emergency button again, and the elevator resumed its descent. “The library is probably a little too open for this, so why don’t we meet at the SAPR garage in…two hours, with our teams and Blake, and we can share everything we found out and see what we all think about… all of this?”
“Two hours?” Rainbow said. “Why wait so long?”
“Like I said, there’s somebody I need to talk to first,” Sunset said. “Someone who’s advice I need.”
What is Celestia going to have to say about all this?
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I look forward to the day when Sunset finally calls Ozpin out on his BS. Great chapter.
wow asking Celestia for advice nice make sure you name drop him i think they know each other very well
9473230
Agreed. He is way too focused on his secrets and mind games. A little trust and honesty goes a long way.
I just made a connection that I'm not sure was intentional or not. It seems like General Ironwood is to Remnant Twilight as Princess Celestia is to Princess Twilight. Both are authority figures that have known them since they were kids, they both know and respect a Shining Armor and a Cadance, they both are admired and respected by their Twilight, and both have done what they can to make sure their Twilight is happy/safe.
9473277
Tell me about it.
9473300
It's kind of intentional; I was actually thinking about the difference between Ozpin and Celestia, and the way that you could never say that Ozpin ever acts as a father figure to any of the girls in the way that Celestia is a mother figure to Twilight (& Sunset in the way I've written it here); and that got me thinking about Ironwood and his relationship with Twilight. I wouldn't say that he's a father figure, but more of a sort of uncle type.
It also gets to another point I wanted to make about the difference between Ozpin and Ironwood: Ozpin, as part of the nature of his immortality, is quite remote from the world that he defends: he doesn't have any friends (he has colleagues in his job running Beacon and associates in his job defend the world, but none of them are particularly close to him and he is more respected than he is liked), he's a remote figure, lofty and isolated in his tower. What I wanted to show was that Ironwood, who only has one life to live, is a man in his society if that makes sense: he has a social circle that he moves in, he goes to dinner with friends, he has a life outside of his job(s).
So when is Sunset ‘keeping secrets is wrong’ Shimmer going to inform the governments and general public of Remnant that she is an alien, magic is real and that there is a portal to another world sitting in Atlas?
It is a rather novel approach to the ‘Dark Lord
DumbledoreOzpin’ genera to have all the evidence of darkness be in the protagonist’s head rather than actually happening. Not sure it works all that well but points for originality.Also amusing that Sunset seems to thing Ozpin, to her knowledge a normal human, has always been the centre of the conspiracy as if he was an immortal alicorn.
On a side note I really, really wish these idiots would remember that tech advances. A hundred years ago they didn’t have giant airships with giant laser cannons. A decade ago they didn’t have aura-using robot girls. Just because Salem is unasalable now doesn’t mean she always will be.
I feel a large part of Ozpin’s problem is that he has been playing chess for far too long. He has dedicated so much of his lives and willpower to thwarting Salem that he has lost sight of what really matters.
Another excellent chapter! And now Sunset and the others have been told a little of the secrets. Really looking forward to what Celestia has to say!
*After Sunset told Celestia everything she discovered*
Sunset: “So, what do you think?”
Celestia on the inside: “What an amateur. At least I share warmth and kindness before I send Twilight and her friends into the fray, it is all about motivation!”
Honestly, I think people are too harsh on Ozpin. It's easy to say that the best thing to do is just tell the truth but Ozpin has been doing this a long time, he's seen all the ways telling the truth can blow up in his face. I mean just look at what happened with Raven, she wound up being so consumed with fear that she abandoned everyone she ever cared for just to save herself. I can't fault Ozpin for taking things slow so he doesn't have a repeat of past failures.
Maybe he could be a little nicer about it but again he's immortal so it's understandable that he's become closed off from others even Celestia was like that before Twilight came into her life and Luna returned to her.
9473520
They do. In the episode Sun first appears, a couple of cops are discussing a string of recent Dust Store robberies.
Finally, Sunset and the others know of the greater battle around them. It was smart of Ozpin and the others to wait before telling them of the Maidens. You must first understand the battle before knowing what is asked of you. They have to choose for themselves, rather than out of a guilt trip. The same goes for hoping they will tell the rest of their teams, just as Ozpin said after the rescue from the White Fang.
Once again, I can only imagine the burden that Ozma is forced to live through. It's no wonder that he plays things close to his chest. It's human nature. More than just the monumental task he is set with, how many friends has he lost over so many generations, vanished before his eyes? Whether at Salem's claws or from old age, he always loses his friends. That's why it's so hard for him to open up to others. He's lived through that pain too many times, which is why he encourages others to savor the joys of youth and friendship that he no longer can. It's also why he feels such immense guilt, that he will always live while others do not, which is why he was especially affected by Qrow's words in Volume 6. Not only does he share this in common with Celestia and Luna, I know that a certain 'Doctor Whooves' in Equestria goes through the same thing. Always living on while carrying unspeakable burdens and secrets that cannot be shared so easily.
And once again, I truly hope that Ozpin and Celestia will become good friends. It isn't the first time we have seen an MLP character helped up by one who has gone through the same trials and pain. Celestia only has Luna who lives through the same trials. Both Celestia and Ozpin understand the burdens of magic, leadership, immortality and so much more. Neither of them will pass on like every(pony) else, and so such immense burdens and worries can be shared. And just like Ozpin, Celestia understands the terrible pain of seeing the one they loved transformed into such a creature of darkness and destruction. Ozpin can finally have someone else that truly understands.
Finally, it's good to see Sunset and the others willing to sign up for something greater than themselves. Because honestly, what else does this change from when we first signed up for Beacon? Our mission still remains the same: to protect the innocent. Even if you can't solve evil, you can still step up when you see it! And now Sunset and the others have a very special chance to help more than anybody else! You don't have to save the world, you just have to make a difference with the opportunities you are given! That is why we fight with Ozpin: To protect those who can't protect themselves, to foil the plans of evil and to buy time for others to end the war. That is why they look not only for protectors but also brilliant minds like Twilight; to keep the Four Kingdoms safe until they can one day grow powerful enough that the Grimm can be ignored.
And after that, who knows what we can achieve together?
Somehow I don't think Ozpin is talking about Team STRQ here. I get the feeling he is talking about the original Maidens.
Not sure if I've said this before, but this is my favorite story that has consistent postings at the moment. Keep it up!
Also, I'm waiting for the moment Qrow starts that fight with Winter and Ruby's reaction from the show. XD
"What's going on?"
"Some crazy person just started attacking my sister!"
"What? But who would do such a th-aaAAAAHH THATS MY UNCLE!!!" :D
"What?"
"Kick her butt Uncle Qrow!!!"
I wonder what Sunset will think about Ruby's uncle?
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And like Sunset said even if she can't be defeated they can at least set her plans back.
Huh... Kinda refreshing portrayal of Ironwood. Russian RWBY fandom tend ro see (and write) him as incompetent idiot.
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I really love every time I'm reminded of how many people fall for Blake.
Great chapter. Can't wait for where things keep going.
I am glad that RSPT is finally going to be read in on the magical side of things, though I am curious to know how Sunset will explain how she knows of it or who this mysterious advisor might be.
We all have our choices to make, and the world is not always so kind as to allow to choose between right and wrong. Just as a great king once said, "Sometimes I must be a hero, and other times I must be a king." Those choices always weigh heavily upon us, especially when either choice is a mistake. And Celestia is one of the very few who lives long enough to make all of them, and thus to learn from them. That's why I look forward to the next chapter, to see what she thinks once Sunset tells her of the threat to Remnant.
Just as she had threatened, Luna stood her ground and refused to lower the moon. Faced with the collapse of the delicate order they had worked so hard to build, Celestia was forced to do the unthinkable. Unable to fully utilize the Elements of Harmony by herself, she used a fraction of their power to imprison her sister in the moon, saving the world, but at a terrible cost. What had she done? Surely she should have seen the signs? She thinks over and over of the things she might have said and done differently. But despite her own sadness, she also longs to reach out and comfort Luna, and in this mix of bitterness, tenderness, and very distant hope, she looks to the moon and begins to sing.
Me thinks that raven is Raven.
Oh, Hi Raven
Nice of you to drop by
Raven, you B@*&$! I've never caught that before. Or if I did catch it I never made the connection or thought it noteworthy? Pretty sure my thoughts just skimmed right past it. (And no, I didn't look at the two preceding comments.)
An early taste of things to come, dang.
I know there's no descriptors saying so, but no matter how many times I read this, I can't imagine anything other than Sunset saying this with a degree of coyness.
Absolutely, completely off topic, but every time I read this I think of a specific map in World of Warships that is prominently known for the ships that try to rush through the middle channel, rather than sail more appropriately around the sides.
Most medical professional recommend making at least eight choices per day.
I wonder, how much of Sunset's calm drive for answers is her having done her homework and anticipating a meeting like this, or if she is less prone to awe at this having been born a magical unicorn from another dimension, thus already used to this level of weirdness to some degree. Probably a mix of both.
Going to take this line in particular to talk about the greater purpose of this chapter. This is a big exposition dump. Maybe some of it was known to us, the readers, but there is still information here being, if not revealed, then confirmed to the main heroes. Exposition dumps can be hard to get right, but the cover for the exposition is the reaction to the information which makes this a great read, and a great reread. It turns a discussion about the plot, into a reading into the characters that is much stronger at keeping the interest of a reader. (This might be basic praise, but again, it can be easy to get it wrong).
If we get into nit and grit picking, I could make a case that the two sentences could, or perhaps should, have been combined in this instance, as the phrasing may stretch a bit. However, I also like the emphasis on how Ironwood said this line, and helps to hit home how much the shock plays into their reaction.
This is probably what sets Sunset apart from the other students the most. Well, really, it's three things: the fact that she knows he isn't telling the full truth, the fact that she has an establishment of knowledge she herself knows to confirm the former, and the mind to actually think about motives and means where others are more accepting of things at face value. Her moral compass, as it is right now, probably counts as a fourth, which she muses on herself here incidentally.
Ah yes, the Triforces of Loyalty and Compassion. Wait, no, wrong franchise.
When you manipulate so hard you manipulate the manipulator. A good choice for characterizing Ozpin, leaving the initial taste in your mouth that he's playing at
blakemailblackmail, only to reveal he's gauging her instead. Cut from the same cloth, in some ways.Also, Sunset being motivational in the elevator. I think that's a first for her with a rallying speech, but I'm not 100% sure (getting sleepy). It was definitely a good read, and of course the hanger at the end is some good excitement for the next chapter.
I feel at some point, team YRBN needs to get involved too, as for Weiss and her team... that's hard to say unless Weiss doesn't play a major role in this story other than her being the Schnee heiress.
Ozpin: My Ex wife
Sunset: Pardon?
Ozpin: My really evil Ex wife.
And only humans. Faunus, on the other
hoofhand, are completely safe from the Grimm!10963271
To paraphrase Princess Twilight from a much earlier chapter:
Personally these exposition chapters are especially fun to me, which is off since I know most of it.
But seeing the choices made, by what information the characters will parse out, to how the receiving characters take it, it’s always fascinating.
Honestly with Equestria connected to Remnant there is a possible way to beat Salem with the elements of harmony. They are probably stronger than anything in remnant and definitely stronger than Salem. Even if for some reason they can’t they could either turn her to stone or banish her. Granted that depends if Celestia wants to risk the elements going to remnant in the first place.