Bart frowned as he read the latest message on his scroll.

  “The ice cream has been left out. Was it you?”

  If that’s what Ozpin considered a “coded message” these days, Bart had to wonder how the man had managed to keep so many secrets for so long. How had Bart been fooled for so long? Not to toot his own horn, as Peter was oft to do, but being academically minded he had thought himself able to pick up on such things… Perhaps it was a matter of obscurity in the subject matter? It’s not like anyone who was unaware that Salem existed in the first place would know what was meant by the constant references to a “queen”.

  Poorly coded or not though, the “ice cream” being “left out” was definitely concerning. Was there a way to tell if Neo had followed him? She had the advantage over Emerald in that her illusions were more physical, for lack of a better term, with the glass allowing her to dupe anyone who was looking. Being mute was a disadvantage, yes, but that wouldn’t give her up if she was disguised as someone or even something that wouldn’t be expected to. But perhaps…. Well, even under an illusion, it’s not like she herself underwent any sort of change, was it? She would still give off body heat, still breathe, still hold the same weight….

  “General, might I ask how Penny has been lately?”

  Winter raised a brow as she looked back at him. “Is now really the time for small talk about students?”

  Ironwood waved off her concern as they passed through yet another well guarded hall. “He’s a professor-” Bart bit his tongue at the now instinctual urge to correct that to Doctor, as this was one of the few times that he was being referred to as a professor as a position and not a title, “-it’s only natural for him to worry about students, even if Penny isn’t one of his own.” Then, he turned to look at Bart properly. “She’s doing rather well, I think, and her father agrees.”

  Bart should arrange a meeting with Penny’s “father” one day. A man so mechanically inclined could have interesting ideas on various subjects Bart was researching… but that was for later. “Would you mind if we had her meet with us? She seems to have a rather keen eye, and I would appreciate another set of eyes on things before we get too wrapped up in today’s activities.”

  They both gave him odd looks, but that only lasted for a moment, quickly schooling their features as they continued on through the next hall.

  “I don’t think that would be a problem at all, let me summon her,” Winter remarked as she pulled out her scroll.

  Bart smiled. It was nice to work with intelligent people after spending so long having to drag students to conclusions.

  “Where is she?”

  Team JNPR(S) shared a confused look.

  “I’m afraid you’ll need to clarify, Professor Goodwitch,” Ren requested diplomatically.

  They’d already been banned from “Operation Relic Retrieval” or whatever it was being called, so coming in with such an accusatory tone was not a good sign.

  “Neo Politan is supposedly missing, and certain members of this team have a history of being involved in her stupidity.”

  “That was one time! You can’t call that a history!” Second cried out.

  “Yeah!” Nora shouted, pumping a fist into the air, “You don’t get to do that until we’re involved with her stupidity for the fifth time!”

  Pyrrha quickly grabbed the ginger’s hand and brought it back down. “Now’s not the time!” She whisper-hissed.

  Ren only sighed.

  Goodwitch rolled her eyes. “Perhaps I might agree with you if it were something petty, but giving her the power of the Maiden is far from petty, and her sudden disappearance just so happens to have occured when we need the Maidens. I don’t think it too far-fetched to believe that there is some sort of conspiracy at play here.”

  “That’s….” Jaune frowned, but eventually slumped. “... not entirely unfair. But I don’t get what the angle would be? Aren’t we already getting exactly what we want out of this? What’s the point in having Neo cause chaos right now?”

  “If I already knew that much, there wouldn’t be much point in me asking you her whereabouts.”

  Second Thoughts hummed. “Do you know where Roman is?”

  “He waa the one who reported her missing to us.” Goodwitch explained, obviously wary.

  “Well then I doubt she’s gone far. Without Cinder ordering her around she doesn’t have much reason to leave Roman alone and vulnerable, she cares about him too much and trusts Beacon too little. Or, well, she probably knows you guys wouldn’t hurt him, but still… Maybe she’s venting some sadistic urges or something? She is a little monster, at least in that regard.”

  “So she’s torturing students!” Nora gasped. “Don’t worry Renny, I’ll protect you!”

  “Thank you, Nora.” The boy in question let out weakly as his partner squeezed him tightly.

  “Nora, I highly doubt she’s torturing random students,” Pyrrha reassured her.

  “Ehhhhh….” Second waved his hand in an “iffy” manner. “I’m not so sure about that, but she’d definitely go for people she thinks have wronged her first.”

  “I would prefer actual answers and not some crackpot theory that she’s out stabbing people or other such nonsense,” Goodwitch scoffed.

  “And we’re telling you that we don’t know!” Jaune protested.

  She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Very well, but if I later discover that any of you are deceiving me, you will regret it. Start helping to search for her on school grounds for now. Even if you don’t know where she is, more eyes on the lookout for her will assist the hunt greatly. I will be fetching team RWBY as well.”

  The professor left the room in a hurry.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  A beat. Then two.

  And JNPR turned on Second.

  “Do you really not know?” Jaune asked.

  “No!” Second protested. “Although… now that I’m thinking about Neo torturing people, does anyone know if Cinder is still being kept somewhere in Beacon?”

  A pause.

  “Do we have to stop her if that’s the case?” Nora asked.

  “We do,” Pyrrha nodded, “but… well, perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to check other areas first. Don’t want to miss her, right?”

  “Salutations Doctor Oobleck!” Penny greeted with a smile.

  And the Doctor smiled in return! Splendid!

  “It is good to see you, Miss Polendina. I hope you’ve been well since your departure from Beacon.”

  “Of course!” Penny agreed. “Atlas is at the forefront of technology and the academy leaves me well equipped to take on the grimm!” General Ironwood and Specialist Schnee looked proud at that remark. Father was right to instruct her to include that! “I do find myself missing my friends in Beacon, but Father tells me that this is perfectly normal!”

  Doctor Oobleck chuckled. “It is indeed, Miss Polendina. They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I find that to be true in my experience. But I am not here to bore you with small talk, I was actually hoping that you could assist us with something!”

  “Of course! I am combat ready!” She struck a salute, ready and willing to serve.

  Winter leaned in, whispering to the microphones in her right ear. “We are currently on a sensitive mission and have had trouble with illusion based semblances. Could you ensure that we’re not being followed or anything of the sort with your senses that we lack?”

  Interesting! It wasn’t often that a request like this was made of her. Normally her orders were to “learn about human culture” or “engage in combat”. The last time that she had used her thermal cameras was during a simple diagnostic test, but luckily as she pulled them up they seemed to be fully operational!

  She took a look around, not spotting anything out of the ordinary, before running through a few other sensory tests. With semblances, you could never be too careful!

  Penny saluted. “I am unable to detect anyone who should not be present or other such oddities!”

  General Ironwood smiled. “Excellent work, Penny. Would you come along with us? It wouldn’t do to get the all clear now just to have an ambush sprung on us once our guard is down.”

  “Would I?! I would be honored!”

  Friend Ruby had told her about spy movies, and if Penny’s recently downloaded database of them was any indication, this was shaping up to follow a similar plot line! The analytical “behind the scenes” character typically did not actively participate and would instead usually provide information through ear pieces, but being on the ground certainly made her role more exciting!

  Her friends would be so excited to hear of her spy exploits!

  Qrow knocked on the thin wooden door in front of him before leaning against the wall and resisting the urge to impatiently just barge in. It’s not like the door, which didn’t even fully cover the gap created by the doorway, would be able to stop him, but that would be rude and he needed to start on a good footing.

  He looked over his surroundings once more as he waited, idly sipping from his flask.

  A tight alleyway tucked away in this damn maze of a city. Sand drifted over the street, clinging to him. Though there were no shops visible, and no more than a few doorways that likely led to personal homes, the alley was busy, packed with people shouting and laughing.

  It was a stark contrast to his last visit, where even the main streets had been all but empty because of the grimm. He still hated being in Vacuo, but this was definitely an improvement.

  The door swung open after a moment.

  “You know, I could have sworn that I had only just recently kicked you out of here. Did you get lost on your way home or something?”

  Qrow rolled his eyes. “I’m not exactly pleased about the quick turnaround myself, but duty calls and all that junk.”

  Sam scoffed, but moved out of the doorway, gesturing for him to enter. “At least you don’t have those damn brats with you this time.”

  “They weren’t that bad,” Qrow argued as he walked inside. Sure, there was no escaping the fact that they were first year huntsmen, but he’d definitely seen worse. “I was much worse than them at that age, and look how I turned out.” He shot her a wink.

  “A drunkard that spends his days as an errand boy for a creepy old man?”

  He needed her. He did not need to get into a heated argument over that, as much as he might want to.

  “Speaking of errands….”

  She scowled. “Seriously? The bastard finds out I’m alive and the first thing he wants to do is have me running around risking my life for him again?”

  “No! No, look, just… hear me out before you go off like that, will ya? I’m not trying to drag you into anything, just need you for what I’m hoping will be a quick in and out sort of thing for you.”

  Sam rolled her eyes. “Of course, like I haven’t heard that one before. What’s he need, then?” She started walking further into the home, leading him past a simple kitchen into a modest living room, electronics noticeably lacking with the space taken up by locally made furniture with bright textiles. Vacuo had a certain vibe to it, and Sam had clearly taken to it well. “Go save this village of orphans from the grimm? Oh, wait, no, you can’t go save them because one of Salem’s agents was spotted nearby and they’d definitely hunt you down. The village of dying people might even be bait!”

  That was most definitely not how Oz had ever run things, but this wasn’t the moment to go poking holes in her little fantasy. Instead he decided to start bold, maybe shock her into just going along with it.

  “We want you to open the vault.”

  That gave her pause. She just stared at him silently for a moment. Then, she stuck a finger in her ear and swirled it around, as if she were trying to remove some earwax. She laughed. “Sorry, sorry, I just think I heard you wrong. It almost sounded like you’re trying to get access to the Relic of Destruction.”

  “I am.”

  Her disbelief started morphing into confusion. “What on Remnant could Oz possibly want the Relic of Destruction for? Is he going to tell us what it does? Has he finally snapped and decided to just wipe everything out to start from scratch?”

  That second one was actually a decent question. Did anyone other than Oz have any idea what the thing actually does? With a name like Destruction, maybe sending him had been a bad idea…

  “Do you really want to know?” He countered instead. “For someone who doesn’t want to be involved any more than she has to, I’d have thought that making hunting you down pointless would have been enough reason for you to go along with this.”

  She didn’t look impressed by that reasoning. “Is that all it took to get your sister on board?”

  “Well…”

  “You two really were always morons, weren’t you?”

  “Are you gonna help me out with this or just insult me?” He took another swig to help him get through this.

  “Are you going to tell me why you want this? Because I legitimately can’t think of a reason for wanting the Relic that doesn’t end in me kicking your ass and sending you flying back home.”

  That… was fair. In her eyes he wanted to utilize something they only vaguely understood as “destruction” which was kind of terrifying. He’d rather not get into the whole thing with how flighty she was, but… the short version could work.

  “We’re trying to end the curse on Salem. Put a stop to her once and for all.”

  “...and you think the Relic of Destruction can do that? Destroying her curse…. Honestly that doesn’t sound like an awful idea, but I can’t help thinking that Oz would have tried that a long time ago.”

  Right. Long explanation it was.

  “So we used another question from the Relic of Knowledge….”