Chapter 6: Diamond Dust

While he could never be sure, due to the memory loss that plagued him so much since he woke up, but Farran was as close to sure as he could be that he had never felt as anxious as he did today. Every minute seemed to last an eternity, and he found himself staring more at the clock throughout the day than he did at his notes. A fact that was not missed by Weiss who, after the first hour or so, started to elbow him in the ribs every time he looked away from the notebook in front of him. He would never admit it, but he was impressed by just how accurate her aim was becoming. At lunch, Ruby pulled him aside to remind him that until they were ready to bring any of their teammates into the Metaverse with them, they couldn't afford to act abnormal and risk them catching onto the fact that something was up. He knew she was right, and made it a point to keep calm and act normal. Not that it made the day go any faster.

Finally, Professor Goodwitch ended their class for the afternoon, assigning them homework and allowed them to leave. Team RWBY returned to their dorm room to change out of their uniforms. Now in their usual attire, Weiss, Blake and Yang bid Ruby and Farran farewell as they departed for their previously made plans, leaving the two of them alone. It only took a shared nod between the two for them to grab their weapons and prepare. Once they were sure that the coast was clear, they left the dorm room, heading for the alleyway where they first entered the Metaverse.

The alley was just the same as it had been the week before, save for the appearance of a large pile of shipping containers in the far right corner. Since their last trip, Farran had learned that this alley was meant to be a storage area for these containers, which he had grown far more used to them than he would ever care to admit in such short time. Wherever the professors of Beacon would spend a large amount of time, these containers were sure to be bunched together, waiting to be disposed of. Each Professor had their own interests and hobbies which would be satisfied by these packages, whether their own order or sent by friends and alumni. Professor Oobleck, for example, was a connoisseur of coffee from all over Remnant, and would always be willing to share a cup with curious students, whereas Professor Peach had near daily deliveries of weapons parts and magazines. Had Farran not seen it himself, he would not have believed Professor Port to be a man so infatuated show tunes. Even Professor Goodwitch received regular packages, although the contents and even the sender were a closely guarded secret, one which remained a highly debated topic between student and staff alike. No one would even know she received a package until it was left outside of her office, all shipping information carefully blasted off the container.

Unfortunately, the alley was meant to be cleaned every Tuesday afternoon, with all these containers being sent to disposal, which meant they needed to work fast. Farran pulled out his scroll, opening it and activating the app. To his surprise, it didn't immediately start playing the video as it had before. Instead, it opened to a screen with a number of tabs, the top of which displayed a still from the video that had played previously. The top right corner held a blue button, with a stylized "M" emblazoned on it. Farran thought to try pressing the video tab first, which caused the video to replay.

"I guess that means we can watch it over again…" He muttered, "Not that I really would ever want to."

Ruby nodded, "Then that 'M' button must be how we get to the Metaverse from now on. We'll have to make sure we keep the app open, just in case we need to get out in a hurry."

"Right…" Farran lowered himself onto one of the sturdier plastic containers, "You know, you don't have to come along, Ruby. It's gonna be-"

"Stop." She put a finger over his mouth, promptly shutting him up, "We went over this already. I'm coming with you, dummy. Whether you like it or not. I'm not gonna sit here and let you die alone."

"I know, but-" She bopped him on the head, giving him as much of a glare as she could muster, "Fine. I get it. So, are you ready to get going?"

She nodded, taking a seat on the container next to Farran. Back on the home screen of the app, Farran pressed the blue button, but before the bright light could envelope them, he heard the sound of footsteps charging from around the corner, into the alleyway and right at them. He tried to stop the app, hammering the exit button and even trying to close the scroll in general, but nothing worked and the scroll wouldn't budge. Right before the light covered them completely, he felt someone grab his arm and try to yell something, but by then, the gales of wind were already whipping by them, the transportation process started. It wasn't long before he felt their world fall away around them, leaving them to the void of light between their world and the Metaverse.

Once he felt the ground rematerialize under him, and the light from his scroll faded away, Farran was immediately dragged face to face with the stowaway, their purple irises mere inches away from his face. Yang Xiao Long stood in front of him, gripping him tight by the collar, snarling up at him. Her hair started glowing, and her eyes started turning red, which Farran had realized in recent days were the warning signs of her semblance activating, which meant pain was certainly soon on the way.

Ruby zipped over between them, forcing the two apart, "Yang?! What are you doing here? Were you following us?"

"Of course I was! You're not exactly sneaky Ruby, especially when you're excited. I needed to know why the hell my new, male teammate was setting up private meetings with my baby sister in the library and some alley where… where…" Yang's look of fury quickly devolved into one of fear and panic as she took in her surroundings, "…Where are we?"

"Yang, just stay calm and-"

"Stay calm? Stay calm?! How can I stay calm?! What happened to Beacon?! To Vale?!" She spun around, looking at the devastation that was this new world, "Was there a Grimm attack?! Then what the hell is this factory?! We were just in that alley, and that light came out of your scroll and… and… Farran Park, what the hell did you do?!"

"Yang, just be quiet for a second!" Farran hadn't meant to raise his voice so much, but it had the intended effect, as the blonde quietly sunk to her knees, "Just calm down and I'll explain everything."

Farran started from the beginning, from his first meeting with Igor after he had just woken up. He explained everything they knew about this world, about Richards and Cardin, about Shadows, and about Personas. He told her about how he had faced his other self, awakening to his Persona, and how Ruby had done the same. In the middle of his story, Viola appeared by them out of the same blue fire she had come from the other day. While it did add to her shock and confusion, seeing the girl with yellow eyes from his story seemed to help Yang accept what Farran was saying. To drive it all home, Farran opened the app and showed her the video that started it all, showing her definitively why they were here. Finally, once he had explained everything they had knowledge of to this point, Yang finally seemed to calm down.

She took a deep breath, "So… I'm not entirely sure I understand it, but you're saying this world is inside that creep's heart? And that these Shadow things and how messed up this place is… They're all due to how he sees the world? Cause his desires make him see it this way? And by defeating his Shadow, you'll change his heart and save Velvet…"

Farran nodded, "That's right. Remember last week when Cardin came over to our table and apologized? That's because I defeated his Shadow the day I went missing. If we can do the same to Richards's Shadow, the same thing will happen to him."

"Then why didn't you come to us, Farran? We're your team! And it's not like any of us like Richards, or the way Vel gets treated, any more than you do."

"I know, and I'm sorry Yang. But really, would you believe a word I just said if you didn't see it all for yourself? I mean look at this place!" He shot a hand over towards the destroyed town in the distance, "Besides, this place is dangerous. I didn't want to bring any of you guys in here until we had a clear place where you wouldn't have to worry about Shadows."

"Oh, so this place is so dangerous that you wouldn't tell three of your teammates about it, who are training to be Huntresses, yet you would go ahead and bring in my baby sister like it's no big deal?" She growled up at him.

"Yang, please!" Ruby pleaded, "It's not Farran's fault. He had no idea what was going to happen the last time. Neither of us did. But now that I know just what this place is, and what's going to happen to Velvet, I can't just sit by and do nothing! I've awakened to my Persona, and I'm going to fight, whether you or Farran like it or not."

"Then why don't you go to Ozpin, then! You guys can apparently play that video as many times as you want, so just show him! He's the Gods damned headmaster! I'm sure if anyone can do something about it, he could."

"Excuse me, Miss… um?" Viola, who had been standing silently off to the side, stepped in.

"Oh, I'm Yang. Yang Xiao Long."

"Excellent. My name is Viola, one of the residents of the Velvet Room our dear guest spoke of earlier." She bowed elegantly, "Miss Yang, I know it must be difficult to comprehend all this in such short of time. However, if showing the video to your headmaster was an option, we most certainly would have had them do so already. As we learned last time, the ruler of this Palace knows a very important secret of his, one that would cause him to allow all these illicit activities under his watch. Even if we showed him the video, he most likely would be unable to act."

"I suppose you've got a point…" She muttered, thinking, "What about leaking it to the media? If there's enough of an outcry, he'd have to fire Richards!"

"I doubt it. Shadow Richards said whatever it was is 'world changing'. Ozpin would probably do whatever it takes to keep his secret, even if it meant keeping someone so toxic around. Hell, he's kinda doing that already." Farran frowned, "All leaking it to the media would do is make people lose faith in Beacon. Anyone looking to become a Huntsman would go to the other academies, and worse, all the negativity would cause more Grimm attacks. Besides, it would throw Velvet right into the spotlight. And that's even if anyone did believe the video was legit."

"Yea… Ok, but what if-"

Farran cut her off, "Look Yang, I'm not any more of a fan of all this than you are. I've spent all week looking for any other way to stop this, but there isn't anything! I don't want to drag any of you guys in here. Hell, if Ruby wouldn't fight me tooth and nail about it, I wouldn't bring her." He rubbed his neck nervously as Ruby glared at him, "Anyway, now that you know, what do you plan on doing? We'd really appreciate your help, but obviously you don't have to."

"Well, if you put it that way…" She stood up with a cocky smirk, "Obviously I'm gonna help you two! Are you kidding me? Now that the cat's outta the bag, you really think I'm just gonna sit around and do nothing? Hell no! So, what's the plan for today?"

Ruby looked at Farran, then back to Yang, "Well, for today, we're going to send you back home."

She frowned, "No, I'm staying right here. You guys just got done talking about how dangerous this world is. I'm not going to let you guys handle all of this on your own!"

"Yang, that's the whole reason we're sending you back!" Farran put up a hand to stop her, "I get where you're coming from, I really do, but you didn't bring Ember Celica with you, and you haven't awoken to your Persona yet. I don't care how strong you are, you don't stand a chance against the Shadows right now. I promise, the next chance we get, we'll bring you with us so you can get your Persona, once we're sure we have a safe place for you. Until then, we don't want you getting hurt."

She stared at him hard for a few seconds, "You promise you'll bring me with you? No more lying to me and trying to hide all this?"

"We promise, Yang!" Ruby gave her a small hug, "We didn't want to lie in the first place, but we couldn't think of any other way."

"…Alright. I'll go home, but just for today." Yang let out a small laugh, "You know something? I thought you were lying about what happened when you disappeared. After Ruby went missing, I checked that alleyway like five times. I just didn't say anything cause it was possible that might have been after she took you to the infirmary. Then she gets all excited the other day and sneaks off to the library to meet you. I thought I was going to have to break up my little sister's first make out session." She sent Ruby a wink, much to her chagrin, "But when I got up there, I overheard a bit of your conversation through the vent. Not much of it made sense, but I did hear the part about you meeting in the alley today. So I made sure to hide out nearby, and jumped you when I got the chance. Had no idea you guys were involved in anything like… this. But yeah, I'm done snooping around. Just be careful, alright?"

Ruby and Farran nodded, as they prepared to send her to the real world. Viola instructed Farran to activate the app while it was facing her, which would send her back without him having to make two trips. She explained that the only reason Yang was brought with them is because she was making contact with Farran when they left. He did as he was instructed, and when the light faded from his scroll once more, Yang had disappeared back to their world, as if she had never been there at all.

"Alright," Farran turned back to the two remaining girls, "What's the game plan here? We just need to get a keycard from one of the Shadows, right?"

Viola nodded, "Correct. I did a little looking around on my own earlier, and it seems after our last trip, the Palace ruler has holed himself up in the top of the tower, with most of his guards staying up there as well. There is a small contingent patrolling the factory, but nothing we need to worry about, so much as we don't raise too much alarm. We will probably have to take on a few of them, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem. Farran, when we do get into battle, you're going to need to add some of those Shadows as Personas. The more diverse your skills, the better off we'll be."

"Alright, great! Just one thing…" He ran a hand through his hair, "How exactly do I do that? You guys never really explained it."

"I… honestly have no idea." She smiled sheepishly, "Each user of the Wild Card has done things differently. I have a feeling once the opportunity presents itself, your instincts will show you the way. I'm sorry I can't be of any more help. If Elizabeth or Margaret were here they could probably help, but…"

"Hey, don't worry about it. We'll just have to cross that bridge when we get there. So, how about we get going before anyone spots us out here?"

Ruby and Viola agreed with his sentiment, and the three proceeded through the metal doors into the factory. The lobby inside was just as vacant as it had been the last time, phone still ringing off the hook on the receptionist's desk. Farran started to wonder just what would happen if he were to answer it, whether or not there would be a voice on the other end. Before he could entertain that thought any more, Viola directed them through a set of doors off to the left. As she explained, the doors to their right would lead to a corridor heading into the main floor of the factory, while the path they would take was a designated passage for guards, leading to a catwalk that overlooked the factory floor. While there might be more guards at the start, she elaborated, walking through the factory floor would raise the alarm far more.

The doors opened up into a dull, gray hallway the length of which was lit up by panels of tube lights. Various paintings, motivational posters, and cork boards covered in memos had been left plastered every few feet on the walls. For as warped and twisted as the world outside had been, the inside of the factory, at least that which he had seen, seemed eerily similar to the usual office fare to Farran, almost as if he could walk into any place of business in Vale and find a hallway that was almost an exact followed the hall down to a flight of stairs leading up, which in turn led to an outcropping with a set of double doors in front of them, a keypad much like the one by the elevator hung next to it, and a small office to the left. Viola ordered them to post up outside the office, taking a peek inside.

"Ok, here's the plan." She whispered to the two of them, "Those doors lead to the catwalk, but unfortunately we'd need a keycard to get through it, just like the elevator. Thankfully, there should be another way through in this office, but there's a Shadow standing guard right inside. Farran, I'm going to need you to take point. When the Shadow turns its back to the door, run in and rip the mask off its face. That should dispel the distortions around it, and transform it into the real forms of the Shadows that make it up. Ruby and I will come in after you do that, just so we don't make too much noise and alert it. Any questions?"

They both shook their heads, and started moving into position. Farran kept watch over the Shadow, which paced back and forth in the office, muttering about production being slowed. After a few minutes, it finally turned its back to the door, taking a look at a monitor on the far wall. Seeing his chance, Farran bolted into the room, and before the Shadow could turn around, he reached over its shoulder, grabbed its mask, and pulled. Despite not having any sort of binding to the Shadow, pulling the mask off felt like trying to free something from hardened concrete. Still, after a bit of effort, the mask finally came off with a horrifying tearing sound. His first goal accomplished, Farran took a few steps back as Ruby and Viola rushed in to join him, watching the guard collapse into a pile of black ooze and transform.

The pile of ooze stretched and shifted, turning itself into a group of four Shadows, three of which were the same Slimes they had fought the previous time. The fourth, however, was one that had not seen before, transforming into a small, floating, cartoonish humanoid, almost completely covered in a purple robe. The robe had a small hole around the Shadows face where two beady red eyes leered out, the rest of its facial features blocked by the shadow of its straw conical hat. This new Shadow seemed to be in charge, as when it swung the wooden oar it held in its gloved hands, the Slimes started to attack.

The first charged directly at Farran, forcing him to dodge. Having been in dire straits the last time they fought, Farran had completely missed the fact that these Shadows stunk to high heaven. As he moved out of the way, the wind that rushed past him was filled with the odor of spoilt milk and sulfur. Ruby summoned Lupa, who reared back and struck it with a gale of wind, tearing it apart. The wind whipping by Farran carried the smell, forcing him to cover his nose and mouth. He turned to see one of the Slimes preparing to charge Ruby, but before it could move, he summoned Abel, who launched a spell of his own, nuclear energy exploding from the side of the Shadow, and crackling outwards. With two of the Shadows down, Farran started to feel confident, only for a chill to fall over him, as if the hands of Death itself were wrapped around him. He scanned the room, looking where this might be coming from, but Viola called to him, telling him to dodge. He moved away just as a wave of dark energy surged from the ground beneath his feet, a spell from the remaining Slime, before fizzing from existence. Ruby summoned Lupa, sending the wolf charging at the Shadow, and cleaving it in two with its scythe.

With just the leader left, Farran spun to face it, only to find the Shadow lifting its oar above its head. Before he could react, he felt a burst of cold rocket into his chest, followed by searing pain along his chest and arm, as if he was being prodded with needles. He looked down to find a large ice crystal expanding by his collarbone, the chill deepening for a few seconds before it disappeared. Ruby brought forth Lupa again, who charged the Shadow, only for it to smash its oar across Lupa's face with a mighty crack. Despite her Persona being the one who was struck, Farran could see Ruby flinch back, holding her jaw as if she had been hit. The Shadow flew towards her, bringing its oar hard against her ribs. Ruby fell to a knee, but summoned Lupa again, who reared back and howled, sending a burst of wind at the Shadow, and knocking it back several feet. The Shadow brought its oar above its head again, looking to send another ball of ice at Ruby, but before it could do so, Farran called out Abel, who swung his spear, striking the Shadow, and knocking the oar out of its hands. Now in between the two Persona users, and its weapon clear across the room, the Shadows eyes darted around in a panic, looking for some way to defend itself.

With the Shadow now defenseless, Farran tried to finish it, but froze, feeling almost like he had déjà vu. He looked down at his right hand, only to see the manacles that normally appeared when he would summon Abel had manifested themselves, however they were only connected to one wrist this time. He looked at the Shadow, then back to the chains, then to the Shadow, when an idea finally came to him.

"Shadow!" He called to it, startling it, but it turned to him nonetheless, "You're not some slave of this Palace's owner. You are not bound to stay and fight for him. Please, remember what it is you truly are." The Shadow tilted its head, blinking at him, "You are a being that exists in the souls of everyone. We'll spare you, but I ask that you fight with us from now on. Do we have a deal?"

The Shadow brought its gloved hands to its face, as if it were in pain. After a few seconds, it looked up at Farran with a serious look, as far as he could tell at least, and nodded. Farran tossed the free end of his manacles to it, which bound itself around the Shadow. Soon, both were enveloped in a bright light, then disappeared. Despite no real signs to tell him so, Farran could feel that it had worked. He had gained the strength of a new Persona.

After Lupa had finished healing her, Ruby zipped over to Farran, "So? Did it work? Did you get a new Persona?"

"It sure feels like it. I can't really explain why," He looked at his wrist, "but I just felt like I knew what I was doing."

"Why don't you try bringing it out?" Viola offered, "Just picture it in your mind, then summon it just like you would Abel."

Farran did as she asked, closing his eyes and picturing the purple robes, straw hat, and wooden oar of the Shadow he had just defeated. When he opened them again, he noticed the chains had once again appeared around his wrists. He took a deep breath, and snapped them apart, "Come forth! Charon!"

Just like every time he had summoned Abel, a circle of blue light appeared in front of him, and when it had vanished, the Shadow he had forged a contract with, Charon, floated in the middle. Its beady red eyes scanned the room, then hovered over to Farran with a look of confusion. Almost as soon as she saw his new Persona, Ruby dashed over to it, and Farran could see stars in her eyes.

"Awww, it's so cute! Hi there, little one!" She cooed, as Charon took refuge behind Farran, shaking, "Oh, it's ok! You can come out. I'm not gonna hurt you."

Charon shook its head and started chittering in Farran's ear. Despite not being able to speak, Farran realized he could somehow understand it, "Charon says they're afraid you're mad that they hit you, Ruby."

"Oh, don't worry about me! I know you weren't yourself. Come here little buddy!" Charon looked at her, then started tentatively floating forward towards her. Once it was within arm's reach, Ruby lunged for it, wrapping her arms around it and petting the back of its head. After a few seconds of struggling in panic, Charon calmed down considerably, and started softly chirring and snuggling into Ruby's hug. She giggled, "See? Everything's alright little one. I'm jealous, Farran. I think they like me!"

"It's no surprise they've taken a liking to you though, Ruby." Viola drifted over to her, "Charon is a Persona of the Death Arcana, the one you represent. Meaning, little Charon here is a representation of the bond you two share!"

"That makes sense. Of course you'd get a cute little Persona to represent me." Ruby finally let go of Charon, beaming. With one last chitter, it vanished in a blue light, just as it came.

"In any case, I must commend you two. Considering our last visit was rather chaotic, this was your true first battle together on this side. You both performed rather admirably, all things considered. Therefore, I think it's best if I give you a reward!" Viola extended her hands towards them, producing a bundle of Lien.

"…You're paying us? What for?" Ruby furrowed her brow.

"Well, I'm not paying you, per se. These were dropped by the Shadows after they were defeated. I hardly have any use for them, so I only see it fitting to give them to you."

"Wait, hold on." Farran stopped her, "What the hell were Shadows doing with Lien? What do they need money for over in this world?"

"I think it's quite simple. For better or for worse, money is the driving force for most desires in your world. When you dispel the distortions around the Shadows, they reform into the base form of those desires." She handed the bunch of cards to Farran, "In any case, it's all as well, since you can use these when you're strengthening your bonds!"

Ruby nodded, smirking, "She's right, Farran. I'll let you hang on to the Lien we get here, at least for a while. You are broke after all."

"Hilarious. Anyway, Viola…" Farran scanned the office, "How exactly are we going to get through to the catwalk. I don't see any other doors in here."

"Isn't it obvious? We're going through there!" She pointed at the top of the far wall.

Farran followed where she was directing, seeing a metal grate hanging loosely, "An air vent? Really? This isn't an action movie, Viola."

"Hey, it's not my fault! This is the world of people's cognition, remember? Well, it's a common enough idea in your world that air vents act as secret passageways. Probably because it's so prevalent in movies. Besides, didn't you come through one to get to that maintenance platform?"

"That was a crawlspace. There's a difference."

"Farran, we're not having this debate right now. Just go pull that grate off, ok?" She deadpanned.

Knowing there was no point in arguing, Farran activated his semblance and flew over to vent. The pulled the grate off without much trouble, letting him see into the vent. Thankfully, there wasn't much in the way of cobwebs or dust, and he could hear the soft hum of machinery, no doubt coming from the factory floor. Farran looked back to the two girls on the ground, "Alright, so how exactly are we going to work this?"

Viola looked at Ruby, then back to Farran, awkwardly twirling a strand of hair, "Well, I don't exactly like it, but you're going to have to lift us up, then come in after us. If there were any desks or counters in here, we could just climb up on our own, but…" She shook her head, blushing, "Just don't look forward, ok?"

Farran sighed, lowering himself down to the ground. While lifting the girls into the vent wasn't exactly strenuous, both girls were actually quite light, there were other reasons for his frustration, especially when he followed Ruby into the vent. It's bad enough that I'm stuck living with the four of them, and that Yang thinks jokingly flirting with me is the funniest thing ever, but now this. I'm trying not to make things super awkward for all of us, but come on! How exactly am I not supposed to notice how nice Viola's legs are, and how criminal it is she hides them behind that dress all the damn time? Or just how good Ruby looks from this angle? Or- No, brain, stop! I'm not thinking about this! He brought a closed fist to the side of his head, the dull, throbbing pain forcing himself to focus on the mission at hand. As they crawled through the vent, the hum of machines started growing into a roar, the metal underneath them vibrating slightly. Finally, he saw a light start to grow ahead of them as Viola, and then Ruby, fell out of view.

Soon, he pulled himself out of the vent, lowering down to the ground next to them. They stood in the middle of a metal catwalk that hung close to the factory's ceiling, steel handrails raised to waist height on either side of them. From what he could tell, they were about halfway through the factory. Farran strode to one side, peering down to the factory floor below. Large vats of noxious, green liquid sat at the far end, producing crystals that looked much like giant, bastardized versions of the dust crystals Weiss had shown him. The liquid seemed to be piped in from another area, which was probably the cause of the fumes that blotted out the sky outside, as the smell of the factory was much like that of the clouds. The crystals were dropped onto conveyor belts, which hauled them off to machines that crushed them into the fine, white powder they had seen in the video, which in turn was hauled off into another portion of the factory he was unable to see, most likely for distribution.

What stood out more to Farran, however, were the various workers that littered the floor. Humanoid robots sprinted to and fro, checking the various points of the production process, checking for imperfections among the crystals and the dust. Every so often, they would find a lump of crystal amongst the powder, or a whole crystal that wasn't the pure white of the rest, and they would pull them from the line. Disturbingly, their means of disposal seemed to be what looked like Faunus, who were strapped into harnesses that forced them onto all fours, with large containers secured to their backs. The robots would place the imperfect crystals into the containers and, once they were full, whip the Faunus to get them moving.

"How horrible…" He heard Ruby gasp to his side.

"So, he sees the people under him as nothing but mindless slaves, and worse, he sees the Faunus literally as beasts of burden." Farran suddenly became aware of his hands hurting, as he had subconsciously started gripping the handrail tight, "This asshole is going to pay. This… all of this is just straight up bullshit! Viola, what even are those Faunus anyway? They're not from our world, I hope…"

She shook her head, "Thankfully not. They're just parts of the Palace ruler's cognition. Essentially, you can think of them as extremely lifelike dolls. Not that it makes any of this any less disturbing."

"Farran…" Ruby started tugging at his shoulder, trying in vain to get him to move, "Farran, please. I know this is awful, but we can't stay here. We need to get going. Richards is going to get his, I promise, but we need that keycard first, and if we stay here, we could get spotted."

"Ruby's right, Farran." Viola pulled his wrist on the other side, her calming voice relieving the tension somewhat, "It's not any better for either of us. Trust me, I want to see this man brought to justice just as much as you do, but we need to keep moving."

He finally let go, allowing the two girls to slightly guide him. After a bit, they let go of his arms, and he roughly ran a hand through his hair, "I'll just never understand this mentality. Not towards the Faunus, not towards anyone. It's all just bullshit!" He growled, "Our world is infested with Grimm, which are drawn to negative emotions. All the anger and sadness and everything else that all this crap produces just draws them in more. I just can't stand it!"

Ruby grabbed him by the hand, giving it a squeeze, "I know, Farran. It'll all be ok. We're Hunters, remember? In a while, we'll go out on missions and help fight the Grimm, so we can help on that end. AND we're fighting in here, so we're working on both sides of the problem. I just need you to calm down so we can get through this, alright?"

"I know, Ruby. You're right. Sorry, it's just… There's something in my mind, behind all the haze of stuff I lost when I fell. It makes me irrationally angry whenever I see stuff like this. Not even just racism in particular, just people bullying or abusing other people… I felt the same way when I saw Cardin messing with Velvet. I can't really explain it better than that." He chuckled, "Maybe I'm really a Faunus? I have my wings, although I don't think it works like that for them."

With Farran finally having calmed down, the group proceeded along to platform to the far end of the factory. The catwalk ended in a small flight of steel stairs that led down into another outcropping, with a long hallway extending past that. Much like the platform at the top of the tower they had visited previously, this section of the factory started to branch off into its own labyrinth of hallways, however compared to the barren steel of the platform, one could genuinely confuse where they were walking as a typical office building. Small offices, meeting rooms, and lounges jutted out from their path, their various phones and computer terminals providing the only sound as the din of the factory started to die down behind them. Every so often, they would encounter a lone guard Shadow on patrol, forcing them to sneak by, or in some cases they had to fight. It was through these fights that Farran had been able to acquire two new Personas.

As they walked, Farran had to admire Ruby's fighting ability. Even without Lupa, he had been amazed at just how competent a fighter she was, and at such a young age too. Not to mention she was able to control a weapon that stood taller than she did with such dexterity. She even seemed to do better against the Shadows than she did in the practice rounds he had seen her fight in class, as if she held back against human opponents. One fight in particular, in which he had gained his first of the two Personas, stood out to him. Not long after they first started through the offices, they had encountered a guard Shadow that transformed into a troop of rambunctious Shadows that took on the appearance of large, leafy gourds with human hands and feet sticking out. During the ensuing battle, the Shadows resisted the wind spells of Lupa, forcing Ruby to switch to the offensive herself. It was almost cruel watching this girl slicing down the Shadows, which soon realized they had been outmatched. The last remaining one sprinted to Farran, almost begging for its life. It was then that he forged a contract with the Shadow, which he found out was named Kijimuna, a Persona of the Star Arcana.

Granted, he was also finding that he wasn't such a slouch in his own right. The more he continued to fight, the better he kept getting, as if he were shaking off more and more rust each time. His bad knee still continued to be a problem, his movements were slowed more than he would have liked, and the cramped corridors they were stuck fighting in made it almost impossible to use his wings instead, but the brace he had received the other day kept the pain to a dull minimum, rather than searing up whenever he took a step like the last trip. Even so, he found his mettle being tested quite consistently, as the Shadows continued to grow faster and stronger as they continued, demanding he and Ruby continue to grow better as a team, and forcing Farran to the limit of his reflexes, both with his blade, and switching between his growing list of Personas. His second new Persona came from a battle against a guard Shadow, this one more feminine than the past few, that transformed into a woman wearing a white gown, the hems lined with the symbols of card suits, as well as a black blindfold. Her haughtiness was only matched by her lightning speed, forcing both Farran and Ruby on their heels with blistering strikes from her rapier. On top of her speed, the Shadow tried to force the two apart by summoning a number of card soldiers to block their path. Still, the Shadow could not fully keep track of both Persona users, and as her reinforcements dwindled, due to their weakness to the wind attacks of Lupa and Kijimuna, it slowly but surely returned to a two on one fight. In the end, Ruby was able to disarm the Shadow, and Farran recruited her to fight with them. Thus he gained a new Persona in Lady Luck to match his bond of Fortune with Weiss.

Finally, they found the place they were looking for. At the very top floor of the office building, they found another lobby lined with couches, with a door sitting behind a secretary's desk with a placard next to it labeled "Company President". The door itself had been left cracked a bit, and from what small amount they could see through, they were able to see a guard Shadow in a gaudy golden suit, much bigger than all the rest, sitting behind a mahogany desk, its hands tented in front of its face, almost as if it were waiting for them. From what Viola could sense, this was certainly the Shadow that held the keycard they needed to access the elevator, as well as any other doors they would need to pass. She could also tell that it was very strong, much stronger than any they had faced so far. They all agreed that it would be for the best to rest up for a few minutes, as Ruby had Lupa heal their wounds. In the end, it wasn't much, as Lupa's healing spells drained Ruby considerably, but it was still enough to get them patched up well enough to fight. After they had rested a bit, the three crowded near the door, preparing to take on this next challenge.

At Beacon Academy:

From the moment she had been returned to Beacon from the Metaverse, Yang sped around the campus, trying all her usual methods to vent her frustration. At first, she returned to the dorm, clambering up into her bunk to try to sleep it off. Instead, every time she closed her eyes, she pictured that other world: the purple skies, the destroyed town, the sickening factory with the tower standing above all else, and the video. Just the thought of the video was enough to rouse her anger all over again. She tried taking her mind off of it by playing video games and listening to music, hell she even took one of Blake's books and tried reading, but nothing could get it out of her mind. Thinking about the smile on Richards's face as he took over and ruined Velvet's life, and then started talking about doing the same to someone else almost caused her to snap her scroll right in half.

Ultimately, Yang left the dorm and was on her way to the airstrip, thinking about jumping on Bumblebee, cruising down to Junior's club, buying a drink, and maybe smacking around a few of his goons when she finally stopped to take a deep breath. While she couldn't deny it would be a blast, and a Strawberry Sunrise sounded fantastic at the moment, messing up the club again would only create more problems for her to deal with. Instead, she changed course and headed for the school's gym, heading straight for the training rooms. Working up a good sweat always made her feel better, even on the worst of days, and she planned on doing just that.

After changing into her workout gear, she spent the next while mauling the stuffing out of one of the gym's heavy bags. She jumped about, pounding out a rhythmic beat with a flurry of punches, picturing the bag as a stand in for Richards. Once I get a hold of you, Richards, I'm going to do this to that ugly, greasy, overweight, perverted face of yours and… She had to take another calming breath. She couldn't really afford to have her Semblance activate subconsciously while she was hitting the heavy bag. Yang still wasn't sure if Goodwitch had forgiven her for the last time, and she was fairly certain the answer was no. After all, while the looks she gave Yang were no longer quite at death stare level, they were still remarkably cold, even for Goodwitch's standards. Not to mention that had been the last time she saw Goodwitch at the gym, as well as the last time she saw her covered in feathers. Which really is a shame. She looked fantastic like that. In her gym clothes, not the feathers. That wasn't the greatest. Although if anyone could pull off that look, she could. Thankful to finally have her mind on anything else but what she had seen earlier, she continued the rest of her workout in peace, the video and the Metaverse long forgotten.

Two hours later, Yang followed her extended workout up with a long shower. She had always had an issue with the showers at Signal's gym because whenever she stayed in for more than five minutes, the hot water turned almost to ice. With as well funded as Beacon was, however, even the extended showers Yang sometimes treated herself to would stay piping hot from start to finish. Content and clean, she dried herself off and got dressed in some not sweaty clothes, then headed to her locker, only to be stopped by the sight of two brown rabbit ears peeking over the lockers, causing all of the memories from earlier to come flooding right back. Frowning, it occurred to Yang that she had never actually held a conversation with Velvet in the past despite having crossed paths on numerous occasions. No time like the present, I suppose… She curled around the corner to the next row of lockers, only to see Velvet sitting on the bench, wearing nothing but a towel. A sight she wouldn't have minded seeing if the rabbit Faunus wasn't staring gloomily into an open, empty locker.

"Hey Velvet." She gave the Faunus a small wave, "How's it going?"

Startled, Velvet whirled around to face her. When she saw Yang, her face dropped back to its previous depressed state, giving her a nod, "Oh, hello… Yang, right? Ruby's sister?"

"Yep, that's me! The 'Y' in Team RWBY. Or whatever we are now that we have Farran." She plopped down next to Velvet, "So what's up? You look really down. Everything ok?"

"Oh… Yes. Everything's fine." Velvet rested her chin on her hand, letting out a sigh.

"Really? Cause from where I'm sitting, it looks like you're sitting there practically naked, staring into your locker like someone drowned your goldfish." Yang nudged her in the ribs, "Look, you're friends with Ruby and Farran, right? And I know you talk to Blake a bit. You know you can trust me too, right? If for no other reason than all of them would kill me if I caused any problems for you. So seriously, what's the matter?"

"No… You're right. Sorry." She handed a piece of paper over to Yang, "I found this when I opened my locker."

"'You're nothing but a filthy animal, and it's time you started dressing like one'? What the hell?" She stared at the note in disbelief, "That is so wrong on so many levels…"

Velvet's breathe hitched, "I came here today to train with Coco, the leader of my team. It was actually a nice day, and pretty relaxing… But when I got out of the shower, I realized someone stole my clothes while I was washing off. From the stall and my locker. So I'm sure you can understand what they meant by that… Apparently they threw them all in the pool. Coco's running back to the dorms to get a change of clothes for me, and throw my wet ones in the dryer."

"Oh Velvet, I'm sorry to hear that! Do you have any idea who did it? If so, I'll go give 'em a piece of my mind, and-"

"N-No! Really, it's ok!" Velvet waved her hands nervously, "I think it was this pair of second years that live across the hall from me, they don't like the idea of me getting fast tracked a year. They're one of Richards's favorites, so there's really no point… And besides, it's better than the time they stuck a giant puff ball on the back of my skirt with rubber cement. Walking back to the dorm past everyone with a cotton tail was horrible, not to mention I had to buy a new skirt. At least Coco thought it was cute…"

"The nerve of some people… And Richards, that asshole!" Yang's hair started glowing slightly, "Why does he feel the need to go solely after you, of all people?!"

"Well, it's not like it's just me. He's not particularly fond of any of the other Faunus here, and I heard he even has plenty of human students he regularly targets. He's just been doubling down on me after Cardin stopped working for him. I guess he blames me for it, for whatever reason."

"Yea, Cardin has been differently lately. I heard a rumor that Richards had him selling Diamond Dust here at school too."

Velvet nodded solemnly, "I heard the same, but I've been hoping that rumor isn't true. It's a nasty drug, and I've seen what it can do to people. I really hope it isn't anywhere near Beacon.

"Wait, you know people who take Diamond Dust? Seriously?"

"Yes. Don't get me wrong, I've never tried it myself, and I have no plans on ever going near the stuff. But apparently, it's made from chemicals and byproducts from refining dust, hence the name. There are a lot of dust refineries by where I live, and a lot of my neighbors and family work at them. Naturally, there's a lot of people that make and use it in an area like that. One of my good friends when I was a kid… I watched her dwindle away a little bit every day after she started trying it..."

And that asshole is planning on forcing her to go through all of that herself… Not going to happen. "Hey Velvet, I'm sorry for bringing it up. I didn't realize it was such a sore spot for you."

"Oh, no. It's alright, really. If anything, I'm glad to have someone to listen. You and Ruby, Blake and Farran… You're all really kind."

"Well, I'm happy to help when I can. Actually, I'm sorry to cut things short, but I gotta jet. We're having a team meeting in a bit. I'll tell you what though, I always keep some spare clothes in my locker. You can wear them until your teammate gets back, just so you're not stuck here in a towel. Sound good?" She flashed Velvet a thumbs up.

"That would be great, actually! How should I get them back to you, though?"

"Eh, don't worry about it. I can just have Farran or probably Ruby pick them up for me some time. Just gotta remember to bring some more next time I'm here."

Yang bolted back for her locker, fishing out a white shirt and shorts, as well as Ember Celica. After hearing what Velvet had to say, she was going to go back to that alley and wait for those two to come back, and force them to take her back in. She couldn't just sit around and do nothing until next time they wanted to go in. As she closed her locker, she noticed a strange notification on her scroll. She opened it up to find a new app had been downloaded on it, one with a blue butterfly as the thumbnail. Once it opened, she realized it was the same app Farran had used to get them to and from that other world. Well then, maybe I won't have to wait after all! Yang handed the bundle of clothes over to Velvet, who seemed much more chipper than when she found her, and bid her farewell. Minutes later, she entered the alleyway where Farran and Ruby had left her, fully dressed in her usual combat gear with Ember Celica loaded and ready to go.

"Think I can't handle myself, Farran? Well, we'll see just how much those Shadows like getting a piece of me!" With a smirk, she pressed the button on her scroll. The light from earlier enveloped her and, within seconds, she was gone.

Author's Notes

"Hey Yang, if you were stalking those two, why didn't you just hide in that pile of containers?"

"Are you kidding me? They're way too small for me to fit! Besides, I wouldn't be able to see or hear anything Ruby or Farran were saying!"

"…But you still could've hid behind them or something, right?"

"Shut up, Inferno. Nobody asked you."

Hey Guys!

Just want to give a huge shout out to lightninglink4. After the last trip to the Metaverse, they gave me some tips on writing combat scenes. I know the Charon fight wasn't much, but I hope I improved. Not to mention, they've been doing these awesome reviews in the Fan Fiction Fridays threads on reddit for the story. Thanks again Lightninglink!

Got some more Links to go over because the winner of the contest to name Farran's weapon is jordanlink7856! They were the only one who I received a submission from, but it's cool since I actually really like the name they picked. So congrats, and we'll be naming the weapon soon.

I don't really have anything other than that, so I figure I'll go over the lineup of Personas we got today.

Charon: In Greek mythology, Charon is the ferryman that carries souls across the River Styx to the land of the dead. I ended up using its design from the Shin Megami Tensei Demikids series. Pretty much, I thought it would be a funny role reversal for the representation for Death to be a tiny cute thing that was initially terrified of Ruby.

Kijimuna: A goblin/fairy from Okinawan myth. It loves fish, is terrified of octopi, and can bring wealth to people it likes. I used its design from SMT: Devil Summoner.

Lady Luck: A Persona of my own design. Also known as Tyche in Greek myth, and Fortuna in Roman myth, both were the goddesses of luck from their mythologies. I know I could've just used Fortuna, since it already is a Persona, but I kinda want to use Personas/Demons that haven't really been used much, if at all, in the series so far.

Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!

Inferno :D