The following is a fan-based story, all plots, concepts, themes, and characters are owned by their respective creators. I acknowledge that without the series; RWBY, Fairy Tail and Dragon Ball my story would not exist. Please support the creators of these shows by watching any or all of the original series.
Pyrrha sat in the chair on the other side of Ozpin's desk. Ozpin himself, had called her to his office. Qrow leaned against a pillar behind them
Ozpin: well, it comes as no surprise that they've chosen you to move on to the final round of the tournament. Your performance has been exemplary
Pyrrha: thank you, Professor Ozpin, but I would never have made it this far without my teammates
Qrow: personally, I think it's the other way around
Pyrrha looked over her shoulder to look at Qrow. Pyrrha then stood up from her chair
Pyrrha: I'm sorry, but I don't believe we've been introduced
Qrow: name's Qrow
Ozpin: Qrow is a trusted colleague of mine
Pyrrha: professor, if you don't mind me asking, why have you called me here?
Ozpin: please, take a seat
Pyrrha did as requested and took a seat again
Ozpin: what is your favourite fairy tale?
Pyrrha: I'm sorry?
Ozpin: I don't mean the guild, I mean stories from your childhood. Surely you must remember some of them
Pyrrha thought for a moment
Pyrrha: well, there's the Tale of the Two Brothers; The Shallow Sea; The Girl in the Tower-
Ozpin: what about the story of the seasons?
Pyrrha: oh, of course! A callous old man who refuses to leave his home is visited by four travelling sisters. The first understands his reclusive nature and urges him to use his time in solitude to reflect and meditate. The second brings him fruit and flowers, tending to his crops and revitalising his garden. The third warms the man's heart, convincing him to step outside and embrace the world around him. And the fourth and final sister begs him to look at all he has and be thankful. In return for their kindness, the man grants the maidens incredible powers, so that they may continue to help others all over the world. They graciously accept, and promise to share their gifts with the people of Remnant until the end of days. Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. The Four Maidens. My mother loves that story
Ozpin: would you believe me if I told you that one's been around since I was a boy?
Pyrrha: you're not that old, Professor
Ozpin: well, would you believe me if I told you it was true?
Pyrrha looked at Professor Ozpin in shock
Pyrrha: I beg your pardon?
Ozpin: what if I were to tell you that there were four maidens existing in this world that could wield such tremendous power, without Dust?
Pyrrha: you mean like a Semblance?
Ozpin: like magic
Pyrrha: you mean like Dragon Slayer magic?
Ozpin: similar, but the magic I'm referring to is something even more powerful and not like the magic in Fiore, but more like the magic in some fairy tales
Pyrrha: I-
Qrow: yeah, first time hearing it's pretty crazy
Pyrrha: you're serious?
Ozpin: do I look like I'm joking?
Pyrrha: ...no
There was a moment of silence before Pyrrha began again
Pyrrha: why-why are you telling me this?
Ozpin looked at Qrow and he nodded. Ozpin then took a deep breath and answered Pyrrha's question
Ozpin: we're telling you, Pyrrha Nikos, because we believe that you are next in line to receive the Fall Maiden's powers
Pyrrha was now even more shocked than before
Pyrrha: we?
The elevator door opens to reveal Professor Goodwitch, Guild master Makarov, and General Ironwood. Pyrrha looks over her shoulder to see them
Ironwood: sorry we're late
Pyrrha: wait, what is this? Who are you?
Glynda: you know who we are. We're still the same teachers and headmasters you met when you arrived at Beacon
Qrow: 'cept we've got a little part time job
Ironwood: we are the protectors of this world
Ozpin: and we need your help
Makarov: the world of Remnant is in grave danger. We believe you might be able to save it
Pyrrha: how can I help?
Ozpin stood up from his chair
Ozpin: follow us, we need to show you something
Pyrrha did as she was told and followed Professor Ozpin and the others down the elevator. Pyrrha kept a worried look on her face as they awaited to reach their location
Pyrrha: where are we going?
Ozpin: the vault, under the school
Pyrrha: is there something of importance there?
Makarov: the vault contains things of such importance that the general public shouldn't know about
Glynda: it'll be easier to explain things if you see it for yourself
The elevator continued until it reached its destination. The elevator door opens and everyone, but Pyrrha, walked out. Pyrrha stood there in complete awe, she eventually steps out and the door closes behind her. As everyone continued walking, Glynda stopped and looked back at Pyrrha who was constantly looking around her
Glynda: I'm sure you must have questions
Pyrrha: maybe one or two
Pyrrha and Glynda began walking again so they could keep up with the others
Pyrrha: I still don't understand. You said I was next in line to receive the Maiden's powers. What do you mean by that?
Glynda: the Maidens have existed for thousands of years. But, much like in nature, the seasons change. No two summers are alike. When a Maiden dies, her power leaves her body and seeks out a new host, ensuring that the seasons are never lost and that no individual can hold onto the power forever
Pyrrha: so how does the power choose?
Qrow: through a series of stupid and convoluted rules
Glynda: Qrow!
Qrow: hey, don't get mad cause I'm right
Makarov: I disagree, the rules are in place so that the wrong person won't receive the powers. Or at least manipulate them to have the lowest chance of it happening
Glynda: at first, the only thing that was certain was that the powers were specifically passed onto young women. But as time went on, it was discovered that the selection process was much more... intimate
Pyrrha: intimate?
Glynda: as we understand it now, when a Maiden dies, the one who was in her final thoughts is the first candidate to inherit her power
Qrow: unless it's a dude or some old hag. Then the power goes to someone random, and our jobs get a lot harder
Pyrrha: why tell me all of this now? Why not wait until I've graduated
Qrow: honestly, we've run out of time. I don't know if you've noticed, but things are getting a lot scarier out in the world. Tensions are high. Grimm are growing stronger, more prevalent, and it's not gonna much longer before this peace we've all been enjoying so much goes out the window
Makarov: I honestly was hoping to get at least a bit of a break before things went downhill again
Pyrrha: you're not talking about war? Like the one Fiore had against Alvarez?
Ironwood: not a war between nations
Qrow: we can fill you in on the details once we know you're with us. For now all you need to know is that one of the Maidens was attacked, and for the first time in history, part of her power was stolen
The group then stopped talking and all looked ahead towards what looked like a machine. The machine had three screens and a two large pod like capsules. The left pod was raised and held a girl inside of it
Pyrrha: is that...
Ozpin sighs
Ozpin: the current Fall Maiden. Amber
While in the pod, Amber looked as though she was sleeping. She had medium length brown hair that went down to her shoulders. Across the left side of her face, was a large scar
Pyrrha: she's... still alive
Ironwood: for now. We're using state of the art Atlas technology to keep her stable. But there is a lot about this situation which is... unprecedented
Pyrrha: what do you mean?
Ironwood sighed
Ironwood: well, we don't know what will happen if- when she passes
Pyrrha: won't her power just transfer to the next host?
Qrow: look who's been listening. She is smart
Ironwood: under normal circumstances, yes. But this is a delicate situation. It's not uncommon for the last thoughts of the slain to be that of their attacker. And to make it worse, no one's ever seen the power split like this before
Makarov: it's easily possible and most likely that it will seek out its other half
Pyrrha: her assailant...
Ozpin: and that would not abode well for any of us
Pyrrha looked down and thought for a moment. She then raised her head and walked over to Amber's pod. Pyrrha then placed her left hand on the glass of Amber's pod
Pyrrha: if all of this is true, why keep it secret? If this girl is so important, if-if we're truly on the brink of war, why not tell everyone?
Everyone but Pyrrha looked to each other, then back to Pyrrha
Glynda: from what we understand, it used to be common knowledge
Pyrrha: excuse me?
Qrow: how do you think legends and fairy tales get started? Even the craziest ones come from somewhere
Makarov: the knowledge of Dragon Slayers, for example, was once forgotten for a short period of time. The only reason people remembered was because of their current existence
Glynda: our group was founded in order to protect both mankind and the Maidens. Those hungry for power hunted them with the hope of inheriting their strength
Qrow: and, as you can imagine, the ones that succeeded weren't exactly the kind of people you'd want to have unimaginable power
Ironwood: and so this brotherhood chose to remove the Maidens from the public eye, allowing their existence to fade away into legend
Glynda: the thing we're telling you goes against hundreds of years of human history, religion
Ironwood: no one would want to believe us. It'd cause an uproar
Ozpin: it would cause panic. And we all know what that would bring clawing to our kingdoms' walls. Which is why we would like to-
Pyrrha: I'll do it. If you believe this will help humanity, then I will become your Fall Maiden
Ironwood, Glynda, Ozpin, Qrow and Makarov all looked to each other
Pyrrha: that's what you wanted, isn't it?
Ozpin: it is, but I'm afraid it's not that simple. Given Amber's condition, you won't be able to inherit her power naturally. However, General Ironwood believes he has a solution
Ironwood: for the past few years, Atlas has been studying aura from a more scientific standpoint. How it works; what it's made of; how it can be used. We've made significant strides. And we believe we've found a way to capture it
Qrow: capture it and cram it into something else. Or, in your case...
Pyrrha caught on to what was being said
Pyrrha: that's-
Ironwood: classified
Pyrrha: -wrong!
Glynda: the feeling is mutual
Makarov: I tend to agree, something like this shouldn't be toyed with. And if this kind of technology gets into the wrong hands, it would be used for great evil
Ozpin: which is why, we will destroy all evidence of its existence when we're done
Pyrrha: and you're still going to do this anyway?
Glynda: desperate times call for desperate measures
Ironwood: and these are indeed desperate times. We can't transfer Amber's powers to you, but we can give you what those powers are bound to
Pyrrha: her aura
Ozpin: her life will become intertwined with yours. The question is...
Qrow: what's that gonna do to you?
Pyrrha's eyes widened at the thought, she the looked down and began thinking it over. Ozpin took a deep breath
Ozpin: you have an important decision before you, Miss Nikos. There's no guarantee this transfer will work, and there's no telling if you will be the same person if it does. I advise you to take time to think on this matter. But understand that before the Vytal Festival is over, we will need your answer
Pyrrha looked down, then looked back to Amber. The reflection of her face matched the position of Amber's
Ozpin: the assailant that attacked the Fall Maiden has made their first move, and there's no telling when their next move will be
Pyrrha walked back to the elevator and the others followed. Once the elevator reached the top, Pyrrha walked out and instead of following the others, Makarov followed her. He then called to gain her attention, Pyrrha stopped and turned around to face Makarov
Pyrrha: yes, Mister...?
Makarov: my name is Makarov, the guild master of Fairy Tail
Pyrrha: it's a pleasure to meet you
Makarov: the pleasure is all mine, each one of my children has spoken highly of you as a friend. I must thank you for everything you've helped them with
Pyrrha: of course, they have helped me and my team much as well, I was simply returning the favour
Makarov: modest, aren't we? Now I know you've had much to consider and take in lately, and I'm sorry to lay more on you. But I need you to answer this question for me
Pyrrha: very well then
Makarov: since having the Fall Maiden's powers will paint a target on your back, I was considering filling in Wendy and the others. Their strength may be useful to you
Pyrrha: I appreciate your concern, but if everything you all said was true, then it's best if I remain the only one you tell
Makarov: I see, if you ever change your mind in the matter, let any of us know. We will offer our assistance in any way possible
Pyrrha: thank you, Guild Master Makarov
Makarov: oh please, there's no need to be formal. Just call be Makarov
Pyrrha nodded and Makarov turned to leave
________________________________________________________________________________
Cinder sat confidently in the Amity Colosseum stands. The crowd around her cheered and applauded. Several minutes ago, Atiass had one his last match with ease and they confirmed that Dakkon was chosen to move forward into the singles round. Likewise, Yang was also chosen to represent team RWBY. Things were simply falling into place for Cinder. All she needed to do now, was pair them up with the right opponent
Port (over intercom): now, for the moment you've all been waiting for, the one-on-one finals!
The crowd continued to cheer and applaud. Down on the arena, each fighter stood in a line. Yang, who was on the far left, placed a hand on her hip in confidence. Sun who was also in the line, placed a hand on either side of his open shirt and smiled to the crowd. Penny was also in the line, however she simply stood there with a dead pan face
Dakkon, who was next to her, fixed around the cloth on his wrists, pumped for his next fight. Mercury, who was standing next to him, didn't care much. Atiass stood with eyes closed and arms crossed, he too didn't care much for the fight. Pyrrha who was at the end, nervously rubbed her arm, concerned about her difficult choice
Port: Barty, why don't you explain the rules?
Oobleck: uhh, it's quite simple Peter. Instead of bracket system, each round of the finals will be randomly determined immediately before the match takes place
Port: much like any good hunt, there will be zero time to prepare
Oobleck: ahh, yes, yes. Now let's see who our first match will be!
The large hologram screen showed two images of students next to each other. The images began constantly spinning like the randomisation process for the habitats. Students, families and even teachers everywhere waited until the process was complete. In the stands, Cinder smirked will confidence as she already knew who would fight
The images stopped on Mercury Black and Yang Xiao Long. The first match up was decided
Port (over intercom): Yang Xiao Long and Mercury Black!
In the stands, teams RWBY, JNPR, WNGD, and SSSN all sat next to each other. The four teams all sat on the edge of their seats, waiting for the match to start
Ruby: break a leg, sis!
Across the other side of the colosseum, Cinder got up from her seat and walked away as the crowd around her continued to cheer
Port: would all other combatants please leave the stage
Everyone but Yang and Mercury left as they were told. As Dakkon passes Yang, he pats her shoulder
Dakkon: try not to hurt him too much
Yang: I won't, and if I see you down the line, you won't beat me
Dakkon: I'll be looking forward to a good fight
Dakkon continued to walk off and Yang turned to face Mercury with a confident smile on her face. Both Yang and Mercury walked towards each other, as the arena around them opened up. However, instead of habitats rising up, a large circular beam system that housed lights flew up. The lights turned on one by one and the centre circle of the arena rose slightly higher than the rest of the arena
Yang: you better not go easy on me
Mercury: heh, you wish
Mercury and Yang both turn to face the same direction. They then pivot their feet and the top half of their bodies to assume the same stance against each other. They both then slowly move towards each other as the countdown starts
Port (over intercom): three! Two! One!
By the time Port reached one, Yang and Mercury's leading hands were almost touching each other
Port: fight!
Yang took no time to think and instantly threw a powerful right-hand punch. Mercury retaliated by jumping and kicking with his right leg. The attacks collided and both of them stumbled back. Mercury then charged in again and tried to jump kick Yang. She simply jumped over his attack and fired a round from Ember Celica as she landed
Mercury dodged it and the two begin a close hand to hand combat sequence. Both blocked and avoided each other's attacks until Mercury lands a kick and Yang lands a punch at the same time. Since they both shot their weapons at the moment of impact, both of them were sent back. Yang was a bit more prepared and slowed herself quicker than Mercury
However, Mercury still managed to recover quite quickly. Now that there was a considerable amount of distance between them, Yang fired Ember Celica over and over again. Mercury avoided every shot and jumped at Yang, throwing his leg down on her. Yang raised both her arms to block the attack and pushes him off
As Yang tries to kick him, Mercury jumps away to dodge it. Yang tried to anticipate his land and fired a round from Ember Celica. Unfortunately, she misjudged the distance and Mercury ducked to avoid it. Mercury then kicked Yang upwards, and she recovers as she lands. Yang fired Ember Celica behind her and throws a barrage of punches at Mercury, firing Ember Celica after every moment of impact
Mercury managed to block most with minimal damage. Mercury then spin kicked the back of Yang's leg, forcing her onto one knee. Mercury then tried to kick down on Yang, but she dodged. Yang slammed her fist into the ground and Mercury was sent slightly above the ground. Mercury then lands on his hand and kicks Yang's guarded side
Both of them stand up and Mercury tries to kick Yang's head, only for her to avoid it. Mercury changes momentum and throws his leg down on Yang who moves back to dodge it. Mercury attempts a third kick and Yang retaliates with her own. Both of their attempted kicks miss, and Mercury tries again and Yang dodges again
Mercury follows his attack with another spin kick that knocks Yang back a few steps. Mercury charges in again, but Yang knocks his attack away then uppercuts his jaw. Yang then sends two clean punches to his stomach, sending him back and onto his chest. Yang fired more rounds from Ember Celica, and Mercury was forced to jump backwards continuously to avoid the attacks
Mercury accidently pushed himself off the arena, but quickly fired from his boots to send him back onto it. Mercury lands in front of Yang and delivers a series of small kicks against Yang's legs. He then transfers to kicking her upper body and Yang blocks it all. Mercury's series of kicks gives an opening to Yang's back and he quickly kicks it. Yang recovers quickly and continues to block
Yang then fires two rounds from Ember Celica, Mercury dodges both and rolls over her back. He then kicks Yang as he lands, and Yang is sent back. Mercury fires a projectile from his boot and Yang rolls out of the way. Mercury smirks and continuously spins around while firing more and more projectiles
Yang dodges two more that was sent her way, then jumps in and interrupts Mercury's barrage of shots. Mercury then kicks her leg and then kicks her up. He then jumps up to meet her and bicycle kicks her down. The previously fired shots all collapse onto Yang as Mercury lands. A large smoke cloud covered Yang as Mercury stands up proudly
The crowd around them cheered as Mercury confidently patted himself down and brushed off some dust from his shoulder. Mercury continues to walk away until a large explosion causes him to stop in his tracks. Mercury turns around to see a barely damaged Yang with red eyes. She punches her fists together and charges in at a speed Mercury wasn't ready for
Yang throws a powerful punch at Mercury, and even though he blocked it, Mercury was sent sliding back several feet. Yang then charges in again and Mercury attempted to kick her, but Yang dodges with ease. She then punched his face with a left hook, then again with a right. Yang continues to throw punch after punch towards Mercury, firing Ember Celica upon impact each time
Yang then throws an extra powerful punch to Mercury's gut, his aura flickered. In that same moment, Yang threw one final punch to Mercury chin, sending him back to the ground, his aura dissipating. The buzzer sounds, signalling the end of the match. The crowd burst into loud cheering and clapping for the fight
Port (over intercom): what a way to kick off the finals!
Yang stands up and takes a deep breath, her eyes return to their normal lilac colour. Yang then grows a wide smile and holds a fist up in the air. The lifted arena lowers back down, the scoreboard shows that Mercury's aura was at zero, while Yang's was at sixteen
Oobleck (over intercom): Yang Xiao Long wins!
Up in the stands, the rest of team RWBY stood up from their seats in excitement
Ruby: yeah! You did it, sis!
Blake: way to go, Yang!
The other members of team WNGD all looked to each other with concern
Natsu: you guys smell it too?
Gajeel: yeah, but why now? The fight's over
Ruby: what's wrong?
Wendy: there's a Semblance being used. But we don't know why now and not during the fight
Back down in the arena, Yang turned to face Mercury and wiped sweat from her brow
Yang: better luck next time
Yang turned and began walking away. Mercury pushed himself from one knee to stand up
Mercury: there's not going to be a next time, Blondie!
Yang turns around to see Mercury jump at her, attempting to jump kick her. Yang's instincts kicked in and she punched Mercury's leg before his attack landed. Mercury was sent to the ground screaming in pain. The crowd gasped collectively and Dakkon and the other fighters looked on in shock. Dakkon began mumbling under his breath
Dakkon: Yang? What are you doing?
Back out on the arena, Yang looked down on Mercury as he held his leg in pain. Professors Port and Oobleck ordered the video feed to be cut. The crowd had turned against Yang. A long distance away from Amity Colosseum, Grimm traversed through a broken and abandoned city. They all then turn their heads to face the floating colosseum that seemed small in the distance
Back at the arena, members of the crowd were now getting up from their seats to show their anger towards Yang
Mercury: ah! My leg! My leg!
Yang that's what you get you little- huh?
Before Yang could finish her sentence, two Atlesian guards and several Atlesian robots surrounded her. All the Atlesian guards and robots aimed their guns at Yang
Atlesian guard: Yang Xiao Long, stand down!
Yang looked around in complete shock
Yang: what?! Why?!
Emerald: Mercury!
Emerald ran onto the arena and knelt down next to him
Mercury: why'd she do that?! Why'd she attack me?!
Emerald glared at Yang, and she looked down in sadness. Yang then looked over to the screen to see herself walk in front of a knelt down Mercury. Mercury then stood up to be met with Yang's punch to his leg. Yang then looked around to the crowd to hear all the crowd's anger towards her. team RWBY, JNPR and WNGD all looked down in either shock or disbelief at Yang's actions
Yang herself was in distress. It became clear to her that what she had seen was different to what everyone else saw. Yet what she saw, felt real. Yang began questioning why this was the case, why everyone saw her attack Mercury first when she saw him attack her first. Regardless of the answer, Yang was forced out of arena by the guards
When passing the other fighters, Yang only looked to the floor to avoid eye contact. Dakkon looked to her, worried about what she was going through
Student 1: that's what she gets for being an idiot
Student 2: yeah, she's probably the type to be all high and mighty. The real arrogant type, you know?
Dakkon: stop it
Student 1: huh? Are you sticking up for her? You saw what she just did, we all saw it
Student 2: there's no use even trying to, everyone's already against that bit-
Dakkon: I said stop it! Yang isn't that kind of person, something was wrong I know it
Student 2: dude, calm down
Atiass, who was standing in the corner with his arms crossed, smiled. Knowing how to turn Dakkon against him
Atiass: you're making such a big deal out of a small problem
Dakkon: small problem? Small problem?! This isn't a small problem, something wrong happened. Yang isn't the kind of person to do something like that. Trust me, I've trained with her all year. If someone was to know the kind of person she is, it would be me
Pyrrha and Sun walked next to Dakkon
Pyrrha: I agree with Dakkon, I too have known her all year. She's not that kind of person
Sun: yeah, trust us
Student 1: well, if you say so
Student 2: I don't know, people can change pretty quickly. Or maybe she just tricked you into thinking she wouldn't do that
Dakkon: I'm sick of all of you insulting her like that. How many times do I have to tell you, she's not that kind of person
Student 2: why are you defending her so intensely?
Dakkon: because she's my girlfriend
Student 1: oh uh, I'm sorry. You must be pretty distressed about what happened then
Atiass: she's a clod, an imbecile. Just an idiot who thought she could get away with doing something that will undoubtedly get her disqualified
Dakkon: you... you shut your mouth! Don't talk about her like that!
Dakkon tried to walk over to Atiass but was held back by Pyrrha and Sun. Atiass then walked away and Pyrrha and Sun let go of Dakkon after he calmed down. Dakkon sighed and turned to face Pyrrha and Sun
Dakkon: do you think I have time to see Yang?
Sun: I mean, we have to be ready at any-
Pyrrha: I'm sure you'll have time, go see her
Dakkon nodded and ran off to where Yang had been taken