Mortals Above, Gods Below: Prologue

We are a light shining out in the darkness. Or the darkness snuffing out the light?

It all started with war, as is most proper in the world we inhabit. From the ashes of war came a new understanding, a new ideal to strive for. No longer about the simple act of survival or trying to dominate the people for their own safety. Instead, those in power lifted the harness of oppression and let those under them enjoy the comforts of civilization. A tradition of color, cornerstone of human expression, was put in place as the people replaced ancient names with simpler, more virtuous ones. They basked in peace and tranquility, gazed at the titans that protected them from within the Huntsman Academies.

Forty years after the treaty of Vytal was signed a new discovery was made. Dust had long been part of the tapestry of human invention, but it remained a minimal power. Far in the north, in what once was Mantle and was now Atlas, a particle was discovered and harnessed. The Oum Particle, a simple combination of infused mineral with high levels of energy, it revolutionized the world. When introduced to Dust the Oum Particle magnified its effect one hundred fold, a single crystal able to ignite an inferno or whip up a hurricane. It terrified the old men in charge, and they hid it.

Thirty two years after the discovery, the eave of a tournament at Beacon Academy. It was a joyous time, even though the Atlesian military had taken it upon themselves to provide the security. The tournament proceeded, but at the last in a string of unfortunate events a student was murdered. The culprit, a Valean student. In the chaos of the moment the systems were seized, panic bringing Grimm in droves as the perpetrator incited further madness. Death, mayhem, the utter breakdown of the peace that had held so tightly for so long.

"And from the heights came our twin saviors, the first model Core units designated B-00 and B-01. Or as most people call them, Brave and Bold." The voice over the monitor droned out the final phrase before pausing to let the lesson sink in. "Who can tell me what became of our Kingdoms?"

A buzzer rang off in his office, a familiar voice piping up over the shared speakers. "They were dissolved into the five Corporations for Resource Management," she answered, the smooth voice of Velvet Scarlatina of team CFVY ringing out clearly.

This is boring, I want to get to the good stuff. She slammed a hand on her buzzer, shocking the two other girls in her room. The sound echoed on the screen before the intercom switched on. "Instructor Oobleck, can we get back to the Beacon Incident. Like, why did Atlas have Brave and Bold in the first place?"

The face on the monitor straightened upward, taking a long draw from his coffee cup. "Very well Miss Rose, we'll continue with the Incident."

The twin Cores were dropped from an airship far above the ground, landing with a grace unbefitting such large machines. They dwarfed the then state-of-the-art Paladin drones that had been seized, but moved with a grace and majesty unlike other machines. The rampaging androids and drones were toys in comparison, Huntsmen standing back in awe at the precise work of these two goliaths. Immense weapons spat fire and death, shredding the lesser Grimm as easily as tissue. In the same breath the entire mechanized army Atlas had brought was quashed, reduced to a smoldering heap.

As quick as the battle had started, it was finished with a flurry of cheers and celebration. The aftermath was anything but joy, the headmaster of Beacon revealing the purpose of the attack. A woman, gifted with power beyond power had such stolen. Secrets poured forth in droves afterward, a secret order among the Kingdoms, the Oum Particle that had proven to be the people's salvation. Mistrust was rife, the twin gods from on high seen for what they really were. Weapons of war, built in secret.

Still, there was good to come from these revelations. Even as the pressure mounted on the leaders of the Kingdoms, they resolved to solve the world's pressing problems. Grimm had infested the land below long ago, and it was a mad dream to escape them. A test was planned, and a rousing success in the form of the high altitude airship. The mad dream was hatched to leave the surface, and escape to the clouds above. But where a single warship carrying a crew and a pair of Cores was easy enough, the idea of housing humanity was not.

The disbursement of the Oum Particle technology proved to be the solution. Within a year scientists in Vacuo, long renowned for their conservation and efficiency technology, produced a new variation. By inducing a ventilation of the OP infused Dust, a molding effect allowed for infinitely higher efficiency. And so the dream of mankind among the clouds was revived. But not before the dissolution of their Kingdoms, and the establishment of the mines. The worthy went onward to the skies, while those left behind were forced into the gritty job of digging up the precious crystals.

As part of the plan to defend these vital lifelines, the Cores were also given freely to the other Kingdoms. The Huntsmen immediately wished to use this new found weapon to exterminate the Grimm, a plan that proved fruitless. The creatures seemed never ending, and the people soon clamored for safety rather than war. Like towering gods, the Cores were left to protect the few places left on Remnant that held people. And a fifth Corporation was formed in response to the growing distrust of the individual Academies. Nexus, a meeting point for the four Corporations of the Kingdom and control of the Huntsmen who were now bound to a single entity.

A dull klaxon sounded within Instructor Oobleck's office, the official end to the lesson. The screen flickered off as he finished his sentence on the definition of the new Core models. Armored Core NEXT. That was what I was going to be piloting now? For the rest of my life even? Ruby got up from her small desk, grabbing the tablet she used for note taking. Crescent Rose weighed on her belt like an awkward rock, still dragging her down as she walked. Why did dad make this for me? At least uncle Qrow taught me how to use it.

Yang and Weiss followed her, the two people assigned to team RWBY with her. The last person was being... difficult it seemed, a mining Faunus who happened to be a candidate and owned a NEXT. It didn't matter, the teams were just for collective contracting now. Another relic of the past, like the weapon she had. Ruby waved goodbye, turning to walk down the corridor toward the docking bay. The inside of a Cradle always felt so cramped, but it was home now. A relatively peaceful place, free of Grimm and the inevitable conflict with them.

She traveled down through the aircraft's maze of ancillary corridors, bursting out into a park that lay between the admin and docking areas. Ruby loved to look up at the faint blue sky, relishing the fact that she was just barely within the atmosphere. We're so close, yet so far. She passed through the park, entering a wide hallway. People glanced over at her, ogling the tight suit she wore no doubt. It's for syncing up with the Core, not anything else. At least she wasn't as endowed as Yang, her sister had it rough.

Ruby walked throughout the airship, watching the myriad people come and go in their own way. Happy faces always faced her, even when she could only reflect back the grim countenance she had earned. They wouldn't know strife because of her, a generation growing up now in the clouds. Ruby had finally reached the docking bay, stepping into the glass observation deck. She walked down the long walkway, past a triple set of bays before finally reaching her own. Waning Petal, a juggernaut of red paint and high powered rifles.

"It's time to do it again, time to go down there with the rest of them," Ruby whispered to herself, looking out at the immense machine before her. They called them gods in jest, but something about ten meters of metal did speak of divinity. "I'm sure being able to soar through the air and vaporize a Grimm in one shot has nothing to do with it either."

She turned toward the control panel, pressing several buttons to begin the deployment process. A placard was hung at her end of the hall, Ruby read it last time she was sent out but it was good to remember history.

We are divine, wielders of the particle of god.

From the particle we intuited the Core, gave life to our arms.

But our enemies were deadly, our foes relentless.

So we Armored our creation, shielding it from the rigors of this world.

And our hated foes grew stronger still.

So we sought out our protectors, the old guard.

And beseeched them, become the NEXT shield for us.

Ruby knew it well, she was one of the few who were chosen to be the shield. The NEXT was special, it integrated to a user's Aura for nearly perfect control. Unfortunately it required a sizable amount of Aura for the link to be made, on top of learning to manipulate the link. Adult Huntsmen were too set in their ways, too finely honed to learn such a skill. Which meant it was left to children. Ruby hated to think of herself as a child, but it was true. It had only been ten years since the Beacon incident, since...

She shook her head, trying to forget the past in favor of the present. The airlock opened, and she stepped through. A simple guard job. Enough pay to make it worth it, and another chance to learn about this thing. Ruby Rose walked toward her machine, intent on living up to the divinity those below saw.

AN: Unlike previous works that I've done this is going to be updated on a purely sporadic and nonsensical schedule. If you like the premise I highly suggest you follow/fave/whatever the truck to keep tabs on this insane thing I call a plot.