Chapter 12: Sparking Flame

XxX

Blake

Blake's eyes widened behind her mask. Her eyes darted over the crowd, analyzing her options. Planning the quickest escape. Did he know? Was it a coincidence? It wasn't like they could say no now, too many eyes were on them. The only way out was through. She and Sun stepped slowly up to the stage as Roman gestured expansively.

"Now, I'm going to need to give these two volunteers some introduction to their roles for tonight's show. Talk amongst yourselves and get those eyes ready. Because, this? This is where it starts. Now, who's ready to watch some humans burn?"

The crowd roared. Torchwick turned back to Sun and Blake, motioning them behind the curtain. They exchanged glances, then slowly followed.

"I knew Vale'd been getting desperate, but first-years? Really?" He flicked his cane towards Sun. "And you don't even go to Beacon. Did the Council send a fucking civvie? They really don't respect me at all, do they."

Blake's eyes widened slightly, hand subtly creeping to her scroll. If he thought they were part of a sanctioned Beacon operation, he might expect fire support. She could work with that.

"You don't want to do this, Torchwick. If Beacon doesn't get our call in on time, you'll find three more teams on your doorstep in minutes. Just let us go."

He grinned.

"You don't understand the position you're in right now, do you? See, unlike you, I did my homework. After all, who would work with an organization without knowing the big names?"

Blake froze. Torchwick continued.

"Now, there's this guy in your organization who's been getting all uppity with me. Saying I'm too slow, that I'm too dramatic," he grimaced at that. "And that he's not sure he wants to continue working with me. See, I can't have that. And I figure that, if I bring him a little gift, he'll be way more... assured, of our partnership. Now, that's one option."

He went quiet. Blake could feel the blood rushing in her ears. If she were brought back to Adam... the outcome wasn't worth considering. Torture was bad enough when it wasn't her. She saw Sun stumble against a locked door out of the corner of her eye, his face frozen in calm anger. Torchwick eyed the stumble with a smirk.

"Civvies don't have the stomach for this business. Anyway, as I was saying. That's one option. Option two is you go out there, you follow my instructions, and generally act like a good little guerilla fighter. Then we both walk away, and nothing more has to happen."

Blake paused. Why would he make an offer like that? She could link him to- her eyes widened.

"Of course, I'll have to take a video of the whole thing. A little... incentive. So, what's it to be?"

"You sell me or you own me, is that it?" Her voice was cold. Worrying was for later. Now she needed to get out.

Torchwick laughed.

"That's about the size of it. So, which is it?"

Blake closed her eyes. Before she could answer, she heard Sun take a step forward behind her.

"She picks option C. Run like hell."

Torchwick grinned, spinning his cane to point at them.

"Oh, the civilian speaks!"

Sun smiled back, hand coming to rest on Blake's shoulder, motioning her subtly towards a window to their left. Blake inclined her head.

"Sun Wukong. Shade Academy. Nice to meet you." He winked moments before a massive explosion echoed from the doors. The lights above their heads flickered out. "Tell your 'government drones' you suck at this."

XxX

Weiss

Ruby's voice washed over Weiss's ears, calming her racing thoughts. She had stopped paying attention to her partner's conversations a few minutes back, but the fast rhythm of Ruby's voice kept her grounded. It was like white noise one played to fall asleep-familiar, and so, calming. It kept her from focusing constantly on the fact that she had been in the same room with someone who would have seen her dead in a second. Or, worse, in the same room with someone who wouldn't- lived in the same room. Weiss inhaled for a moment. She'd seen what the White Fang did. They weren't the good guys.

"...Weiss? You with us?" She refocused to see Ruby facing her.

"Yes, Ruby?"

"I was just wondering if you had met Penny before. After all, you both came from Atlas, right?"

Weiss paused, train of thought efficiently switching rails. The girl in front of them didn't look familiar, no. Weiss would have remembered her... idiosyncratic personality. And occasionally glowing eyes.

"I had not, no. Then again, I spent my time preparing for control of the Schnee Dust Company and training. I didn't have time to... Socialize."

Ruby nodded.

"Makes sense, I guess. I didn't really have friends besides Yang for the same reason, yknow?"

Weiss shot Yang a quick glance. Yang nodded meaningfully. Now wasn't the time to dig into that ball of insecurities.

"Of course, of course."

Penny opened her mouth to contribute before stopping and turning to face the warehouse. As she did so, every light in the building simultaneously went out.

Weiss froze. She reached for her hilt, eyes darting through the gloom.

"Blake and Sun?" Ruby's hands blurred to her scythe.

Yang grimaced. "I'll give you three guesses." A window to the side of the warehouse shattered, black and white humanoid forms flying out. "The first two don't count."

Moments later, the entire wall exploded outwards, a massive mech sprinting forward followed by hundreds of White Fang. The white form seemed to halt midjump, a tail hooking around the corner of a building and launching itself back at the crowd. Weiss's eyes widened.

"That's a prototype Paladin - Atlas has been sitting on that technology for months! How do they have it?"

"That's a question for later, Weiss! We gotta stop it from killing Blake and Sun!" Ruby closed her eyes for a moment. "Weiss, Penny, what do you know about this Paladin thing?"

Weiss closed her eyes, filing through her brain for information. Penny answered before she could speak up.

"Atlesian Paladin Mark II Prototype. Intended as mechanized armor and troop support. Ground-based. Defenses: high-agility movement combined with limited manned Auric Defenses. Defenses are cycled on strong hits to preserve integrity. Primary armaments: Dust gatling cannons, firing speed classified. Secondary armaments: full complement of Dust missiles, specifics classified. Recommend reinforcements."

Weiss's eyes widened. "That's...exactly right. How do you know all that? Who are you?"

Penny's eyes widened. "I am Penny! And I'm merely well-read!"

Weiss's lips thinned. "That's not information you read about."

Ruby hummed and nodded. "Doesn't matter, does it? I know what to do. Penny, can you hold off the White Fang for a bit? The other guy looks like he needs help."

The other girl saluted, blades humming out of her pack.

"I can certainly try! I'm combat ready!"

Ruby grinned.

"Good. So, Weiss, Yang? With me. Time to kill a giant robot."

XxX

Penny

Objectives selected.

Directions optimized.

Projecting route instructions.

The cacophony of whispers faded as a green arrow overlaid itself onto Penny's vision. She paused, bearings slotting into place.

Engaging transit.

The Gravity dust reservoirs in her legs pulsed with aura as she blurred forward along the arrow, automatic compensators keeping her on track. She snapped her swords out into combat formation as she hummed to a stop besides - Identifying, Identifying...Aura Match: Sun Wukong - Sun, who looked over his shoulder and grinned.

"Come to give me a hand, eh? You sure Blake doesn't need it?"

Penny tilted her head, swords rising into Combat Form A101: Nonlethal takedown, Crowd, Mixed Auras as the whispers of her Auric programming grew in volume.

"Her team is going to help her. They seemed combat-capable. You seemed outnumbered."

Sun shrugged, still grinning, hands unstrapping his staff and spinning it into a ready stance.

"But do I seem combat-capable?" He winked, then turned back to the mob. "So, how do you want to do this?"

Penny tilted her head, blades glowing with green Aura. She twitched the strings in her back, locking the blades into a circle.

Overlaying primary targets onto vision.

The sword-circle began to spin.

"Penny?"

She smiled.

"Like this."

Her hand snapped out, sending the aura-blunted circle of blades spinning into the crowd, knocking the first row backwards and out cold. She twitched a finger downwards, detaching the blades and sending them independently to finish the stragglers. The next row of White Fang skidded, slowing down,, uncertain if they wanted to charge into the metal storm.

Targets neutralized.

Sun's eyes widened.

"Well, that's impressive. Guess I've got to show off a little too, now."

He dropped into a lotus position, three glowing clones shimmering into existence, unsnapping their weapons. Auric Duplication. Likely Semblance-based. They all turned towards Penny.

"Most knockouts wins?"

She smiled.

Enabling Scorecard.

"Sensational."

XxX

Blake

Another volley of bullets chewed through the air, cutting down Blake's clone as she dove behind another building, sending another clone to distract the mech. That had been too close. Another set of volleys like that and she probably wouldn't be able to dodge - a gauntleted hand stuck itself out into her vision. Blake's eyes widened.

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" Yang's smile was strained, but it was there. It was still a smile.

"What are you doing here, Yang?"

"Ozpin sent the team out to get you. You're not going to be rid of us yet."

Blake opened her mouth, her words failing her. Yang pulled her into a one armed hug.

"Look, we're going to have to talk about...well, everything. But, right here and now? We're a team, and there's a bad guy to fight. Let's go kick some metal ass."

Blake stood, hand blurring back to her blade.

"Let's."

They turned back to face the street as a red blur flew past them, slamming into a wall before resolving into Ruby. Weiss followed soon after, pausing to raise an ice wall behind them. Her eyes bored into Blake's before she shook her head, motioning back to the mech. The message was clear. For whatever reason, Weiss was willing to put Blake's old life behind her, at least for the time being. There would be a reckoning, but not this day. Not when everyone's life was in danger.

"Look, guys, this whole heart to heart is great, but can we focus on killing the giant metal robot that's shooting at us?" Ruby's voice was unexpectedly calm.

Yang saluted.

"Of course, Rubes! What've you got for us?"

Ruby grinned, absentmindedly flipping her rifle over her shoulder and firing a shot.

"He's got firepower. We've got maneuverability. Do I need to fill in the holes?"

Yang smiled back, chambering a new set of rounds into her gauntlets.

"Nope. Run circles around him -"

Blake unsheathed her blade.

"Keep him off balance -"

Weiss chambered ice dust into her rapier.

"Corral him, and -"

Ruby's scythe clicked open.

"Finish the job."

She turned around to face the cracking ice wall.

"Weiss, pull it down. You, me and Blake run interference. Yang, pick your shots carefully. We'll need to use the power cycling."

Weiss nodded, spinning her rapier before stabbing it into the ground, a white glyph shimmering under the ice wall and melting it to pieces. Torchwick's mech stood there, clapping slowly.

"Well, isn't this just the sweetest little children's crusade?"

Ruby nodded at the others. Blake tensed, ready to leap. The mech opened its arms, cannons spinning up.

"Now, before we get started, White, are you the Schnee heiress?"

Weiss paused slightly before a glyph materialized under her feet. The mech raised its hands defensively.

"Hold up, hold up! It's just...well, it's hilarious, is what it is. You are going to have some awkward family conversations ahead of you."

Weiss's voice could have frozen diamonds.

"What are you talking about?"

"Why, isn't that the question of the day! Maybe if you take me to your Atlesian prisons I'll spill my soul! After all, a man's at his most open around friends!"

Her rapier wavered.

"What?"

Torchwick laughed.

"Oh, you don't know? Well, since you're all just the best bunch of detectives, have a clue! Where would I have gotten tech like this?"

The mech lowered its arms and opened fire. They scattered, Weiss's movements unsteady. Blake inhaled, running towards Weiss. She couldn't believe she was about to comfort the Schnee heiress. Over a betrayal of her ideals, no less. Weiss turned back towards her, glyph forming under her feet.

"What is it, Belladonna?" She launched into the air.

Blake followed underneath her.

"I'm not going to try and guess at what all that was. But, if it was about false flags in the White Fang? If there's something wrong in what you believed in? You fight to fix it. Otherwise Torchwick wins."

Weiss paused, black glyphs swirling into space in front of the two of them.

"You're right. Don't count this as me forgiving you."

Blake smiled slightly, launching herself through the momentum glyph.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Schnee."

XxX

Ruby

"Lead! High!"

Her scythe spun as she blurred, the mech's cannons tracking her in a circle as she stayed one step ahead of the flash of bullets. Finish out the circle, then - she leapt towards the mech, Crescent Rose hooking around an arm as she fired directly into the cockpit. The glass face remained unscathed, Auric Shields flaring up to take the blow. Those shields looked no weaker, even after minutes of harrying. They wouldn't break them uncycled. Not like the team had been hit either, but they couldn't keep up like this forever. Disengage, Fire dust 3 bullets down - she spun away, firing twice more at the mech to accelerate herself before firing once more at Yang's hiding form to push herself back into her circle. The bullet slammed into Yang's side and she flashed Ruby a thumbs up, eyes glowing a dull red. Almost there.

"Monochrome! High-low!"

Blake and Weiss sped in from opposite sides. Weiss's rapier smashed into the cockpit with a picture perfect lunge. Blake spun through the legs of the mech moments later, blade a quickly moving shadow. Ruby caught sight of a small scratch in the armor plating of the mech. Perfect.

"Iceflower! High-low-high!"

Weiss twisted in midair, leaping off a glyph to spin back towards Torchwick. Ruby fired underneath her, launching up to Weiss.

"Ice dust. Meteor next."

Weiss nodded slightly, spinning the chamber of her rapier. Go. Ruby blurred into roses, spinning back into reality as her partner lunged at the arms of the mech, ice forming over the joints. Immobilize. Ruby fired twice at the ground, bullets glancing off the shielding as she locked her scythe blade against the 'neck' of the mech. Weiss dropped to the ground, ice flaring up around her, locking into the mech's lower joints. Ruby flashed Torchwick a grin before firing, over-balancing the mech and sending it toppling. Disengage. She and Weiss jumped back as Yang strode out from behind the building, grinning at the mech, eyes bright red. She dropped into a steady jog, firing once behind her to pick up speed. The mech raised a fist, cannon barrels spinning up.

"Was this your big plan? Honestly, I'm disappointed." Torchwick's voice had regained a mocking edge. Yang sped up, raising a fist. Ruby tensed slightly, readying her semblance. She saw Weiss and Blake do the same beside her. Wait for it... Yang accelerated. Wait... 10 feet away. 7. 6. 5. Now! She spun into her semblance as a glyph snapped into place under Weiss's feet, blurring behind Torchwick as Yang's fist met the mech's. The shields flared up, tanking the fully empowered blow without damage. Crescent Rose and Myrtenaster, on the other hand? They carved through the mech's exposed armor like a scythe through Grimmflesh. The mech detonated, throwing Torchwick clear of the wreckage. Ruby blurred over to his body as he sat up, coughing.

"How do you like our 'big plan', Torchwick?"

He shrugged.

"Pretty good, for a bunch of kids. I have to salute you for that misdirection, though. Beacon's stepped up its game."

Ruby's eyes widened slightly.

"That's it? You're about to get arrested and that's all?"

Torchwick tipped his hat.

"Arrested? Oh, Red, you crack me up! See, people like me? We don't really get caught."

With those words he closed his eyes and... shattered. His body fragmented into pieces and just... vanished.

Just like that.

Gone.

Ruby stood stockstill as the rest of the team caught up to her.

"Ruby, what just happened?" Yang's eyes were back to a dull red, Semblance fading as her Aura recovered.

"I...I don't know? He was there and then he just... disintegrated."

Blake sighed.

"Semblance. It's probably how he's avoided getting caught."

Ruby nodded.

"Yeah, but... ugh! We actually had a bad guy! I was so sure we were going to bring him in!"

Blake inhaled slightly, but Weiss cut in first.

"Ruby? I'm...not sure that would have been the best idea."

Ruby turned towards her.

"What do you mean?"

Weiss paused, standing up a little straighter.

"You heard what he said about Atlas. I think he has friends in higher places. This whole thing runs deeper than Roman Torchwick."

Blake nodded.

"He said something similar during the White Fang meeting. Said he had 'government drones' that were giving him supplies because they supported the Fang's cause."

Ruby's eyes widened into saucers.

"Does that mean... Atlas and the White Fang...?" She let the question hang. It just seemed too absurd.

Weiss closed her eyes, shoulders shaking.

"I don't know, Ruby. It might still be a deception, but... we really don't know. The headmaster needs to hear about it, for sure. We need to get back to Beacon."

Ruby nodded before turning towards Blake. Sheheld her voice as steady as she could

"Are you coming with us, Blake? We could use you."

Blake inhaled, eyes closing for a few moments.

Come on, Blake. Please please please please please please.

Finally, Blake spoke.

"If you'll have me back. Ruby, Weiss, Yang... I'm sorry I lied to you, and I'm sorry about what people have done in the name of the Fang. But I'll never apologize for what my people need to do to survive and win back equality."

Ruby smiled.

"Blake, you're a member of RWBY. You always will be."

Weiss stepped forward slightly, spine straightening.

"I... Blake, you lied to us all. For months. I don't know if I'll ever be able to trust you again fully after that. Nor should I be expected to. But you pushed me forward today when you could have focused on Torchwick. I... you might have the best interests of your people in mind. I suppose. It's possible."

Blake smiled slightly. Yang stepped forward. The smile sped from Blake's face.

"Blake... I don't understand how you could have kept this from us. It hurts that you hid yourself. But, when all's said and done? You stayed back to fight. You didn't run. So I'm glad to have you with us. With me. Just... make me a promise? No secrets." She pulled Blake into a one armed hug. Blake nodded, blinking back a few tears.

"No secrets."

Ruby smiled. The team was back together. Maybe they were facing terrorists, murderers, a government conspiracy? Didn't matter. Team RWBY would face the darkness and teach it to fear them. That was who she was. That was who her team was. She snapped her fingers once and the others turned.

"Weiss, mind calling us a bullhead? We should get back to school."

XxX

James Ironwood

The door unexpectedly opened. Something in the entryway shimmered slightly, vanishing as James blinked away his tiredness. Gods, it had been a long day. He sat up as Jacques Schnee walked in, slamming his hands on the desk.

"Another mining station was taken today. The damned Faunus even left a mocking note! How long are you going to sit on your hands?!"

James inhaled, standing up.

"What do you want me to do, Jacques? Make war against Vale to get to the White Fang?"

"If that proves necessary, yes. You swore an oath to the people of Atlas when you took your position. Honor it."

"Jacques, war against Vale isn't necessary, it's suicide!"

"Sometimes last resorts need to be used. We can't let ourselves be slowly bled dry."

"Last resort? Last resort? Jacques, you're proposing war against a sovereign ally! It's not a last resort, that's the prelude to another damn Great War. If the council authorized this I'd damn well mutiny!"

Jacques's eyes widened.

"You forget your place. Do not take airs above your station."

James inhaled, raising his palms.

"I'm sorry, old friend. My answer will not change. If you meant to convince me, you may as well leave now."

Jacques stalked out of Ironwood's office.

XxX

End of Arc 1

A/N: And so closes Spark. Next arc, Flame, will begin in a couple of weeks(I need to get some plotting stuff set up so it's compact and well-written.) There will hopefully be an interlude chapter ('the world according to peter') next week or the week after.

Nonstory: College orientation is finishing up, class selection week('shopping') begins Wednesday, time to bury myself in CS, math and psychology and hope I don't die ^^.

Story:

Sun, Blake and Roman: To be clear, Sun's leaning against the door was him summoning a clone on the other side of the door, which then snuck back to and overloaded the power supply. Also, Roman is a bastard and every second of writing him is joyous.

RWY and Penny: not much to say here.

Sun and Penny: every scene with these two on it is terrific to write. Also, pay attention to Penny's perspective and word choice! There's weirdness there purposefully.

RWBY vs. Torchwick/the reconciliation: I hope I did a good job of differentiating between 'midfight is not the time to argue', 'deciding that there are more important things to worry about', and 'actual reconciliation'. Changed the fight itself a bit to emphasize teamwork and tactics more than just 'hit it til it dies, and some ice i guess'. Also... don't assume Torchwick is just blindly revealing things. He's too good at his job for that. The ending reconciliation is hopefully not rushed-the point here isn't that things are good, but rather than they're good enough.

Ironwood: ~foreshadowing~ and more foreshadowing. Pay attention to every detail. Who gains?

Please review!