"We're sorry Mistress, the girl escaped and has disappeared," Emerald said, her head bowed as she knelt before Cinder.

"She's not as weak as we thought," Mercury said, kneeling beside Emerald. Cinder paced slowly in front of them,

"Yes, she is no longer ignorant of our ways. I am disappointed that she managed to evade you, but it makes little difference now, she will come to me."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Emerald said, daring to look up into Cinder's eyes. Cinder smiled softly,

"No, you will let her come to me. Then I shall let you destroy her, only after she has realised the folly of her ways." Cinder waved her hand, dismissing her two acolytes. "James, send word to Winter, tell her to expect an attack on this facility. I want her here orchestrating the defence, hopefully she is up to the task."

"I believe she will be, whatever the Rebels throw at us will be easily destroyed. I doubt they will even try, it would be suicide."

"Yes, well, no matter what you think," Cinder said, an edge to her voice, "You will pass on this message and help prepare the defences." Ironwood nodded with a sour expression on his face, but left to follow his orders. "Soon, nearly all my greatest threats will be here, in one place, and soon I will be without equal." Cinder stared out at the shipyards, watching as the star destroyers drifted into defensive positions.

"Sadly I cannot authorise this mission Captain Schnee," Ozpin said from behind his desk. Weiss stood her ground, refusing to show any sign of irritation,

"Sir, it-"

"I do understand however, that you and Ace squadron are owed a substantial amount of leave time. I also understand how much it must pain you that all of Ace squadrons fighters were destroyed at Mistral." Ozpin said giving Weiss a suggestive look,

"But sir, the fighters-"

"Yes, new ones are indeed on the way to fill the empty hangar of your ship, in the meantime I suggest you and your fighter team take some time off." Weiss nodded, finally understanding what the General was saying. Her fighters were not on record, so they technically could not be stolen to be used in an unauthorised mission, due to them technically no longer existing. "Thank you sir, I'll see you after my vacation,"

"I hope to Captain Schnee, I sincerely hope to."

Qrow watched with pride as Ruby raced around the hangar, giving orders to her squadron and helping them prepare to leave. "Not a bad little operation you have running here," Qrow said as Ruby ran up to check in with him.

"Yeah, it's a lot better than when we were the Rebellion, a lot cleaner, a lot less snow."

"Your folks would be proud," Qrow said, ruffling her hair. Ruby smiled, but looked eager to continue her preparations. Qrow let her go, focusing his attention back on his ship.

Weiss strutted into the hangar, an excited look in her eye. Ruby raced over to talk, "Did he say yes?"

"Essentially, the ships are ours and we won't get court martialed."

"Excellent, now all that's left is too pull this thing off," Ruby said with a confident smile, betraying no fear.

"Well, you're in command of this mission, so as a fellow commander and possible casualty, I really hope this goes well," Weiss said with a smile.

Ruby hugged Weiss, whispering a few comforting words before heading over to get in her X-wing. Weiss turned now to face Qrow, as she would be copiloting his HWK. "Saddle up," Qrow said as he waved her over.

Weiss strapped into the seat beside Qrow, quickly familiarising herself with the ships controls. "Ruby says you have a clone working against us, and that you want to help her?" Weiss nodded,

"Yes, while Ruby and yourself go after Yang and Blake, I'm going to try and find my… sister," Weiss said hesitantly, as if testing to see if the word felt wrong in her mouth.

"Ruby said I'm to help you, apparently she cares quite a bit about your safety," Qrow said with a smirk. Weiss blushed,

"I feel the same way,"

"Well I hope you do, that kid is my family, you hurt her you'll have to answer to me." Qrow said firmly, starting the ships engines. Weiss rolled her eyes,

"Never imagined I would be the one getting this speech, especially not before a suicide mission."

"These things tend to sneak up on you," Qrow said, eyes flicking over to Ruby's X-wing, now slowly drifting out of the hangar.

Behind her, came the rest of Ace squadron, their ships now functional, though not fully repaired. "Alright everyone, Weiss is sending over the jump co-ordinates now. It's probably going to get a little hairy out there, so be careful."

"Roger that Ace leader," Jaune responded. Ruby nodded once, the numbers flashing onto her screen. Zwei beeped, giving Ruby the signal that the course was set. Ruby exhaled, hands finding their comfortable grip on the fighters controls. Pushing down the lever, the stars blurred and she jumped.

Winter stood in the control room of the shipyards defence systems. Rather than an independent defence platform, Atlas had theirs built in to the artificial ring that served as the ship building facilities. This way the shipyards benefited from the shielding capabilities of the defence platform. TIE fighter squadrons, assisted by the few Defender class fighters that Atlas was in possession of, stood at the ready to destroy any fighter attack.

Today the base was on high alert, Cinder having warned of an incoming attack. "Admiral, we have detected a small group of fighters jumping into the system,"

"Launch fighters, they have permission to destroy the craft." Winter ordered, deciding not to call on her star destroyers just yet. They waited around the other side of the planet, and could easily move to assist in a matter of minutes should the need arise.

Ace squadron and Qrow's HWK exited hyperspace in attack formation. Without the order being given everyone set their S-foils, Ion turrets and blaster cannons. Weiss was greeted with the familiar view of her home planet, the mostly ice covered world of Atlas. Last she had been here the shipyard itself was still in production, only half complete. That had been years ago, when she had left for the academy. "Their fighters have already launched, they knew we were coming!" Jaune said in a panic,

"We can't be sure, it might just be a patrol," Pyrrha said in an attempt to keep Jaune calm.

"Not in those numbers," Qrow said, adjusting his ship's shielding.

"It doesn't matter, we can deal with the fighters," Ruby said as she aimed directly for the TIE's. The odds were against her, it was unlikely her fighter could survive a direct attack on so many fighters. Yet she had something they didn't, something she was keen to try. Calling on the Force, Ruby felt her sense heighten.

Behind her the rest of the team tried to keep up, though hesitant, they couldn't let Ruby fight alone. Ruby fired first, nailing a TIE with a single shot. When the enemy fired back she juked, dived and rolled seamlessly, as if dancing through the storm of laser fire. She didn't turn around to engage the multitude of fighters she shot past, instead she aimed for the defence platform. In tune with the Force she could feel Yang. Surprisingly it was a familiar feeling, the warm sensation of simply knowing that her sister was near, now though she understood what that feeling had always been, could feel it to a greater degree.

Weiss watched Ace squadron engage the fighters, Qrow pulling the ship away from the main fight and chasing after Ruby.

"We got a pair of Imp's after us," Qrow mentioned offhandedly. Weiss got the hint and took control of the underside turret of the ship. Staring into the targeting computer in front of her, Weiss spun the turret to face behind them. The TIE's had expected the three-sixty degree angling of the turret, and were unprepared when the red bolts streaked towards them. "Nice shot," Qrow mumbled.

"Admiral they are coming directly at us,"

"Fire all cannons, if they manage to get through there will be demotions for everyone involved." The officer nodded, confident in his chances. Winter though was unsure, time and again the Rebel fighters had proven to be troublesome. Analysing their flight pattern Winter guessed at their intentions. "Send down two squads of stormtroopers to the main hangar."

"We're right behind you Ruby," Weiss said over the comms as they entered firing range of the defence platform. The turrets opened fire, creating a veritable maze of green spears. Qrow matched his nieces manoeuvring, sticking close. His larger ship however was not quite as agile. The HWK's shields busted as it was glanced by a pair of hits. "Are you guys okay?" Ruby asked anxiously.

"Go for the hangar, full speed Ruby. We might be a bit slower, but we are comign in right behind you" Qrow said

Ruby reluctantly sped up and dived for the hangar. "Hold on Weiss, this will probably end in a crash," Qrow admitted as he desperately avoided the stations attacks. Weiss sighed,

"It wouldn't be my first."

A bolt lanced through the wing of the HWK, sending into a spin. Qrow pulled ont he controls trying to even out. "Here we go!"

Ruby sprayed the hangar's entrance with laser fire. The turrets surrounding the hangar absorbed her blows and were destroyed, leaving the hangar undefended and easy to enter.

Drifting inside she was met with two groups of troopers pelting her fighter with blaster fire. Ruby fired back, her lasers blasting through the hull, and through the troopers. Managing to set down Ruby tore off her helmet and popped the canopy. Leaping down amid the remaining stormtroopers laser fire, Ruby whipped out her lightsaber. Before she had a chance to activate the blade, Qrow's HWK smashed into the hangar, sliding along the floor. Sparks flew, metal tore, and the rest of the troopers were squashed.

Winter's fists clenched and quivered. The holo feed of the hangar infuriated her. "Freeze it," she spat out angrily, the hologram freezing on the image of Weiss Schnee climbing down a broken ramp. "Stop them, stop those Rebels now!" Winter cried, stomping out of the command center.

"You guys sure know how to make an entrance," Ruby said as she grabbed Weiss' hand, helping her down from the crashed ship. Qrow stepped down by himself, looking reasonably grumpy,

"Lost my damn ship."

"I'm sure the Republic will compensate you," Ruby said comfortingly. Weiss grimaced,

"I doubt that, this is an unauthorized mission after all." Qrow glared, but shook himself out of it, hefting his blaster.

"We'll talk compensation later."

The three moved quickly and quietly through the station. Constantly they were forced into hiding, squads of stormtroopers hunting through the hallways. "The detention centre should be three floors down," Weiss whispered form behind Ruby, the pair peaking around the corner of the hallway.

"How hard will it be to get them out?"

"Not too hard, especially with that thing," Weiss said, looking at Ruby's lightsaber.

"Good, I'll go get them out, you two go and find Winter." Weiss leant down and kissed Ruby on the cheek, before her and Qrow dashed out and around the corner.

Ruby headed for the elevator, luckily not encountering any groups of roving troopers. Stepping inside Ruby keyed for the detention level. In the heat of the moment, with tensions high, the Force was harder for Ruby to grasp. When she did, Ruby was able to feel Yang's presence, now very close.

The door behind her slid open, Ruby spinning around to see the detention centre. The detention staff looked up at her, all stunned by her sudden presence. Ruby ignited her saber, running forward before the Imperials could draw their blasters. She flicked at the firsts wrist, stopping him from drawing his blaster, and disbanding his hand. The next, having successfully drawn their blaster, fired. Ruby's blade flashed before her and reflected the blast into his chest. The last of the Imperials dropped their weapon, raising their arms in surrender. Ruby threw as hard a punch as she could, knocking the Imperial down and out.

Yang heard a blaster go off outside her cell. A second later the door slid open, the exterior glowing with a blue haze. From behind the light came the face of Ruby. "Ruby!" Yang said in a panic, not sure whether to be relived or scared for her sister.

"It's alright Yang, I'm here to rescue you," Ruby said with her usual enthusiasm. Quickly she cut through Yang's bonds, "Ruby you shouldn't have come, Cinder is too dangerous, she set this up as a trap."

"I figured as much, but I wasn't about to let my sister rot in a cell, or worse." Or worse was right, though Yang didn't say it. "Come on, we have to get Blake," Ruby said, pulling her sister out of the cell, lightsaber guiding the way. To Yang, Ruby felt different, she sensed the same energy that she did in Blake, in Cinder and Neo, in herself. "You got my message then… You know about it," Yang said as Ruby keyed the controls on Blake's cell.

"Yes, I know about the Force, I don't know much, but I can control it now." Ruby rushed to Blake's side, the Faunus unconscious. Yang moved to her partners side, lifting her out of the bonds, Blake's eyes slowly opening.

"Yang?"

"I'm right here Blake, we're getting out of here."

Helping Blake to her feet, the three made their way out of the cell. "Ruby, I can feel…"

"Yeah, she figured it out," Yang admitted, shying away from Blake's smug smile.

"Now we have to figure out a good way out of here, my X-wing can't carry all five of us," Ruby said, stopping in the detention area's hall to think.

"Five? Who else did you rope into this?" Yang asked as she let Blake stand on her own.

"Weiss and Uncle Qrow, there in here with us. The rest of Ace squadron are outside making trouble."

"Qrow's here? And Weiss, oh hell, does she know about Winter?"

"Yes, that's why she came with us, to try and help Winter," Ruby said, finally picking a path out of the detention level. The elevator was too risky, they would have to take the long way out through the service tunnels. The three moved down the hall, Blake and Yang picking up the discarded blasters from the Imperials that Ruby had dealt with.

Jaune destroyed his third TIE fighter. "They're pulling back," Neptune reported as he went to chase down the remaining TIE's.

"Leave them, they're just fighters, let's trying hitting something big now." Jaune ordered, searching his scanners for something that seemed a plausible target.

"How about the shipyard itself, lot of exposed elements," Pyrrha suggested forming up on Jaune.

"All the better to blow up!" Nora said as she switched her controls over to her proton launchers.

"Alrighty then," Jaune said, targeting a half-finished star destroyer. "Standard bombing run, Ace two and three, cover our backs, there are bound to be more TIE's."

Qrow leapt into the group of stormtroopers, shoving two to the ground and disrupting the rest of the group. Weiss fired her pistol at the ones that remained standing, easily picking them off in the confusion. Qrow kicked hard at the helmets of the men on the ground, knocking them into unconsciousness. "Let's keep moving, that clone is bound to be around here somewhere," Qrow said as she stepped over the bodies. Behind him a blast door opened, revealing more troopers, and a very angry Winter.

"That 'clone' is right here, kill them," Winter commanded with a wave, troopers piling into the room and firing. Weiss pulled Qrow into a storage room off to the side, red blaster bolts painting the walls around him.

"Well, we found her." Qrow mumbled, ducking out to take a few shots.

"We have to separate her from those troops, I need to speak with her!" Weiss shouted over the sounds of blaster fire. Qrow sighed,

"I'll figure it out, good luck." Before Weiss could protest, Qrow dived out of the room, screaming obscenities and firing at the stormtroopers. Weiss heard the pounding of boots as the troopers raced after Qrow.

"I know you are still in there Weiss," Winter called from the hallway. "Stop hiding, it is unbefitting of a Schnee." Weiss scowled, stepping out from the storage room.

"I'm not hiding. I'm here to help you,"

"If you have come to turn over the Rebels, to stand trial for your crimes, then I will accept your help. Otherwise, I need nothing else from you."

"Winter, you need to listen to me. What you are doing, everything you have been told, is a lie. It's a lot to take in, it was for me, but if you continue following the Empire, you'll regret it."

"Is that a threat?" Winter asked, amused by Weiss' confidence.

"No, only a warning. I killed my father, I don't want to kill any more of my family," Weiss dropped her blaster as a sign of good faith.

"You betrayed and murdered our father, why do you think I would listen to you?"

"Because our father was a corrupt, power hungry monster. If he still lived you would have been subject to his games, and you would have hated him," Weiss said bitterly, the scar over her eye stinging with the pain of memory.

"So you did me a favor then?" Winter said sarcastically, walking over to retrieve Weiss' blaster. "Everything I do, is in his memory, in the memory of the once great Empire," Winter said softly, much closer to Weiss now.

"Then you serve the memories of an evil man, you are nothing but a tool," Weiss said in resignation. Winter slapped her, snarling at Weiss,

"I am no tool,"

"So father created you because he wanted another daughter to love? He didn't create you for his own purposes? Then you rise through the ranks to Admiral, under a new leader, one with no real claim to any remnants of the Empire?"

"You know nothing," Winter whispered, barely containing her rage. Weiss' head sunk,

"Please Winter, I can help you, I can tell you the truth." Winter stuck the blaster into Weiss' ribs, pushing her forward.

"You can meet my leader, and be judged for your crimes. Then we will find the truth."

The station shook as Ruby, Yang and Blake made their way through the dark service tunnels. "Sounds like your squadron is having fun," Yang commented as she scanned the tunnel for any more Imperials.

"Hopefully not too much, we are still onboard the station they are attacking," Blake said as she followed behind Yang. Ruby tried one of the doors exiting the tunnel, only to have a ray shield spring to life before she could open it. She tried again with a door a little further down, another shield appearing before her. "They are funnelling us somewhere," Blake said as she studied the doors on the other side of the tunnel.

"I have a very bad feeling about this," Yang said double checking her blaster was on the lethal setting.

"If Cinder shows up, Ruby, just run, get out of here," Yang pleaded with her sister.

"No Yang, I'm ready, I'm not going to leave you behind." Ruby was firm, unyielding. Blake and Yang shared a worried look.

Eventually, after several attempt to try and cut their way out of the service tunnel, Ruby, Blake and Yang were forced through the last door. The door slid open, the three stepping out into a tighter hallway, walls covered in technical equipment. It was dark, the only lights coming from Ruby's lightsaber and the glow of the control panels on the wall.

It all ended in another door, which opened to reveal a much larger room. Stepping out Ruby could see the back wall was a large reinforced window, looking out into space. Before it on a raised dais, sat a chair, surrounded by obscured figures. Everyone around the chair turned, Ruby recognizing Emerald and Mercury. Yang and Blake recognized Neo, and could feel the overbearing presence of Cinder. Off to the side they all saw Winter, holding Weiss prisoner. "Weiss!" Ruby cried out, moving towards her partner. Yang moved quickly to grab and stop her sister. Emerald and Mercury ignited their lightsabers, ad stepped down from the dais.

Cinder turned, smiling at her guests. "Welcome Ruby Rose, I have been eager to meet you."

"Let her go, then we'll leave and no one else has to get hurt," Ruby said, staring into Cinder's eyes and pointing at Weiss, ignoring Mercury and Emerald. The two acolytes tossed Blake and Yang their lightsabers.

"Sadly I cannot let any of you leave, I need you here to help test my apprentice. Take your Jedi weapons, and fight." Cinder said crossing her legs and watching with interest.

"We both know they are not your apprentices," Ruby said challengingly, "You don't want anyone else, any other Force user to oppose you. How long until you simply kill them," Ruby nodding towards the approaching acolytes. Cinder's smile faded, becoming a frown. Despite the accusation, Emerald, Mercury and Neo didn't react.

Yang ignited her lightsaber now, Cinder's disciples now within striking range. "Kill them," Cinder ordered.

Mercury lunged at Ruby, clashing blades with the fighter pilot. Yang swung at Emerald before she could attack Ruby, pushing her away. Blake joined Yang in fighting Emerald, the two working in tandem.

Weiss watched nervously as Ruby fought with Mercury. For Ruby, the fight proved to her the progress of her skills. She easily matched Mercury, the Force bridging any gap in swordsmanship.

Emerald was forced further away from Cinder, her mind wholly focused on defending herself from the pair of attacks that constantly rained down on her blade. Cinder looked to Neo and made a quick gesture, receiving an excited look in return.

Yang felt a tingle on the back of her neck, spinning around to see Neo leap forward with lightsaber in hand. Whipping up her own blade she was forced to the knee as Neo pushed down. Yang grit her teeth trying to push back, staring into the glowing eye of the rebuilt Neo.

Cinder turned away from the battle, "Winter, kill this traitor, she is no longer of use to us." Winter hesitated,

"Mistress, she deserves a trail, a public declaration of what happened to my father, she could have useful information."

"We have no time or need. She is not important, kill her and free yourself. She killed your father, helped destroy everything he stood for. When she dies, you will be the last true Schnee."

Cinder turned her attention back to the fight. Winter raised her blaster to Weiss' head, "How long before she no longer needs you?" Weiss asked, looking into Winter's eyes. Winter didn't relent, blaster still aimed at her head. Weiss sighed, "I'm sorry Winter,"

"I can't forgive you for killing our father,"

"Oh, I'm not sorry about that, I'm sorry about this." Weiss punched Winter, snatching the blaster from her hand. She spun as Winter reeled from the hit, aiming at Cinder. Before she could fire Cinder flicked a finger at her, sending her flying across the room, her shot going wide.

Ruby looked past Mercury as Weiss was sent flying. "Weiss!" She cried again, slamming her blade into Mercury's and shoving him to the left. She ran past him, heading for Weiss. Mercury jumped forward to stop her, Ruby snarled, swiping back and forth at Mercury. The fast swipes passed under Mercury's saber, slicing through his legs. He dropped with a scream of pain, lightsaber rolling form his hands.

Cinder grinned, feeling the power emanating from Ruby. "Very good Ruby, you can feel it now, the real strength of the Force." Ruby glared up at Cinder, only now feeling the power coursing through her. It wasn't like before, it was a hunger, a lust that tried to overtake her. She was a second away from leaping up on the dais and cutting down Cinder. "Ruby! Stay calm!" Blake shouted as she duelled Emerald,

"Remember… Who… You are!" Yang shouted from under Neo's barrage of attacks. Ruby let out a breath, letting her grasp on the Force slip.

"Oh, how disappointing, you were so close to impressing me." Cinder said with a frown, raising her hand as Weiss scrambled to her feet and tried to shoot again.

"No!" Ruby cried out, rushing towards Weiss as she was thrown by Cinder, only to have Weiss hit her and knock her down. The two fell back and tumbled across the cold metal floor.

Yang fought with herself, trying to contain her emotions as she saw Ruby fall to the ground. Neo held her back, playing with her, Yang unable to truly match her in her state of exhaustion, not yet recovered from her imprisonment. Her panic for her sister held her back from fully being able to immerse herself in the Force, less she tap into the darkside.

Blake glanced over to Yang, Emerald proving to only just be able to keep up with her. "Surrender, you can't beat me," Blake said as she ducked under a desperate swing. "I was an Inquisitor, like your master, she's manipulating you, like I was manipulated. I can help you." Emerald ignored her, swinging her blade down on Blake's defences. "Shut up, you're nothing compared to her." Blake disengaged, understanding what she had to do, now fully committing to the fight. After a few shaky blocks, Blake slipped in behind Emerald and sliced up her back. Emerald crumpled, Blake's blow intentionally strong enough to disable her, but light enough not to kill her.

Ruby got to her feet, reactivating her lightsaber. Weiss stood beside her, slightly battered but still standing. Ruby rushed forward, blade raised. Cinder stood up from her chair swiping with her hand and throwing Ruby across the room. "Honestly Ruby, you think you can stand up to me?"

Ruby wiped the trickle of blood that fell down her brow, "You bet I can." Cinder chuckled, taking a step forward to avoid a shot from Weiss. The blaster was then pulled from her hand, bouncing over towards Winter.

Weiss was unarmed, and Cinder needed something to push Ruby further. Cinder's hand formed into a grip, Weiss immediately arching her back and gasping in pain. She felt as if she was being crushed, but with the air being pushed out of her she couldn't scream. Ruby growled and went to attack again, only to be thrown back. "Come on Ruby, I know you can do better than this. All you have to do is give in, you can save Weiss. Maybe I will let you join me, maybe even Weiss here could return to her duties as an Imperial captain. I could even make her an Admiral, if I had a real Schnee I wouldn't need the clone."

Cinder heard the gasp and realized she had forgotten about Winter. Weiss looked to Winter in desperation, tears falling from her eyes as the pain threatened to overcome her.

Blake and Yang set upon Neo, trying desperately to finish her off so they could help Ruby. "Just die!" Yang screamed as she bashed at Neo with her saber. In this state she couldn't trust herself to use the Force, but she was still physically strong and quick enough to be a threat.

Neo was stronger than before. Her mechanical replacements let her challenge Yang directly, and her new training in the Force let her keep Blake busy. She threw what objects she could to keep Blake back, fighting Yang with her lightsaber.

"I won't join you," Ruby said softly, staring at Weiss in her helpless state. Cinder shrugged,

"Then your friend here will die, and so will you." Winter picked up the blaster at her feet, firing at Cinder, the bolt taking her in the thigh. Weiss dropped to the floor, no longer held, and instead Cinder flung Winter away. Ruby took her chance and charged again. Her blade arced towards Cinder, forcing her to roll away. Ruby didn't let up, and swung down again, Cinder only managing to force Ruby back slightly with the Force. When Ruby came at Cinder again she pulled Mercury's discarded lightsaber to her hand to block.

"Surrender," Ruby ordered as their lightsabers crackled against each other. Cinder focused herself again, drawing on the darkside and throwing Ruby off her saber.

Neo twirled past Yang's strike, then slapped aside Blake's stab. With the flourish of her blade she cut into one of the wall panels, spraying sparks down onto both Yang and Blake. Blake dashed through the sparks, lunging at Neo. The blade slid over Neo's and cut across her robotic leg. Next Yang charged her, her shoulder knocking Neo into the broken panel. Arcs of electricity coursed over her body, her mechanical limbs sparking as they shorted out. Slumping against the wall, Neo's robotic eye faded, her robotic limbs still twitching.

Now Ruby, Yang and Blake stood unchallenged before Cinder.

Jaune fired his last pair of proton torpedoes, this time at one of the attacking star destroyers. They were in a lot of trouble now, the full defence fleet of Atlas had come to destroy them. "Stay close to the station; we just have to wait until Ruby is ready to go." Jaune repeated, praying that Ruby would hurry up. The star destroyers guns couldn't fire at them without damaging the station, so all they had to deal with was the TIE's. There shields were damaged, energy low, stress building. "Come on Ruby, don't let me down."

"Not bad, you have defeated by servants. I had hoped you would have destroyed each other, but it is clear that I underestimated you." Cinder said, pulling Emeralds saber into her other hand. Ruby leant down to check that Weiss was still alive, breathing a sigh of relief as she found her pulse.

"It's over Cinder, you're no real Sith, while we are no real Jedi, we outnumber you," Blake said. Cinder store daggers at the former Inquisitor.

"Numbers, size, physical strength? You think these can beat me?"

"Yup," Yang said loudly, gripping her saber in both hands. Cinder rolled her eyes,

"I let you escape, I even gave you your weapons back. I wanted you and my apprentices to wipe each other out. There can be only one of us, that rule would have saved the Emperor. I let you come here, because I knew you could never defeat me."

"You underestimated us before, and you're doing it again," Ruby said as she moved first, slicing upwards at Cinder, who easily blocked with one of her sabers. Before Yang could intervene, Cinder brought down her other blade, slicing across Ruby's eye.

"No!" Yang yelled as she swung at Cinder. Blake jumped, flipping over Cinder and swinging her blade as she came down behind her. Cinder caught both their baldes, pushing them both back with the Force. Ruby, despite the pain, thrust again, Yang and Blake also attacking in synchronicity. Cinder deflected each blow from the trio, pushing and pulling where she needed to throw them all of balance.

It became a dance of blades. They crashed and crackled against each other, the wielders of each blade pushing themselves to their limits.

Cinder growled, she had seen Vader do better than this, easily cutting down whatever Jedi he faced. Maybe it was true that she was no Sith, not yet, but she was still more powerful than these three could ever hope to be. She lashed out, slicing through her chair and sending it crashing into Blake, knocking the girl of the dais. Yang didn't let her concentration slip, she knew Blake was alright, and that more than anything she need Yang to stop Cinder. Cinder's attention turned to Yang next, now using the Force to drain the energy that poured off of Yang. Yang's blows weakened, allowing Cinder to send her reeling and tumbling with a Force fuelled kick.

Now only Ruby stood, barely keeping up with Cinder even with Yang and Blake's help. Now, all alone, Cinder forced her back with blade work alone. Ruby faltered under the pressure of a duel wielding opponent. "It's over, you'll die just like your mother, and your father," Cinder said with an evil smile. Ruby looked shocked, before her rage flooded into her and she attacked blindly. Cinder laughed at the girls feeble attempts, easily knocking the girls weapon aside and severing her hand. The pain overcame Ruby and she fell, her eye and hand shooting electrical jolts of pain through her.

Cinder had won. All her enemies lay before her, her ascension truly complete. Now she could think of facing Skywalker, then she would be unrivaled. Unstoppable.

"You bitch," A gruff voice said from across the room. Cinder looked up to see a scruffy looking man charging at her. Cinder reacted on instinct and jabbed at him with her blades. The man dodged easily, throwing a punch and hitting her chin. She swiped now, the man stepping under her blade and upper cutting her. Before he could throw another punch, Cinder stabbed him. The blade passed through him, earning a grunt of surprise. Licking the blood from her lips Cinder let out a single laugh, "Not bad, you're very brave, but very stupid." Cinder looked into his eyes, expecting to see pain, fear, sorrow. She found none in his familiar eyes. "This is for Tai, for Summer, and for Raven." He flung something from his belt onto the large window behind them. Cinder turned her head quickly to see the grenade clink off the window and explode. The transparent wall shattered, the vacuum of space sucking her, and the man, out into the cold.

Before any of the others could fly free and join Cinder and Qrow, the blast shield activated and slid over the viewport.

Weiss had watched Qrow, had managed to grab Ruby before she too was pulled into space. Her body still hurt, but she was alive, and had to help everyone escape. Winter too stood on shaky legs, her head still aching from hitting the wall so hard. She watched as Weiss scrambled, crying, to help Ruby. The girl cradled in Weiss' arms was barely conscious and in a lot of pain. This was the monster who killed her father, crying over the woman she loved.

Winter grabbed Yang, shaking her awake and pulling her to her feet without question. She then went to Weiss, helping lift Ruby. The two exchanged a look, Weiss' one of thanks, Winter's one of shame. "It's not your fault," Weiss whispered, "They tricked and corrupted so many of us." Winter nodded, she had been a tool. She saw in Weiss' eyes something she had never seen before. She looked at Winter like a real person, not a clone, or a means to an end. She didn't know how much she had needed someone to look at her like that before.

Yang and Blake leant on each other for support, and together with Ruby, Weiss and Winter, they made their way to the hangar bay.

"Jaune!" Sun cried out in shock.

"What! What's wrong!" Jaune replied in a panic,

"There is a shuttle leaving the station,"

"So what!" Jaune said as he fired at another TIE. Sun groaned,

"It has to be Ruby and the others!" Jaune smacked himself for not thinking, too focused on fighting for his life. With a few flicks on his control panel he commed the shuttle, "This is Ace squadron, please tell me you're on our side and we can leave."

"Ace squadron, form up on us, we are going to need cover to get out of here," Weiss replied. Jaune let out a deep breath, pulling his X-wing towards the shuttle, Ace squadron soaring beside him. Ruby's X-wing drifted out of the hangar, Zwei sending a message that he was in control over the squadrons comms.

"Everyone, set deflectors too double front, we're going to have to run another gauntlet."

The shuttle made the jump to hyperspace, the occupants all visibly relaxing. Yang strode over to the medical bed that Ruby was propped up on. What little bacta the ship had was being used to treat Ruby's damaged hand and eye. "Hey there Rubes,"

"Hey… Yang," Ruby said softly, exhausted. Yang stroked her hair tenderly, trying to ignore Ruby's wounds. "Yang, I get it now," Ruby whispered,

"Get what?"

"The struggle, the thing you talked about on the datachip. I felt it, the darkside, I had never really felt it before now, so I thought I was fine but…" Yang brushed the hair from Ruby's face,

"It's a constant struggle, but you did well."

"Yang I nearly…"

"Don't think about it. I failed, Blake did as well, but we kept going. You're new to this, we all are."

"I don't think I should use it again… If I hurt someone…"

"You won't," Yang said confidently. "I'll teach you a trick, one I'm still learning myself, but it's helped me. Close your eyes, think of all the people you love. Me, Weiss, Qrow," Yang saying her uncle's name a little shakily. "Dad, Summer, me," Yang referencing herself a second time caused Ruby to smile. "That feeling, it's the only thing I have ever found that truly drives away all the darkness. You can't stop being who you are, and the Force is part of that."

Ruby shut her eyes, an expression of serenity coming over. With a happy sigh, she fell asleep. Yang got up and went to sit next to Blake, "It's really over then,"

"Yup, we won." Yang said, pulling Blake towards her.

Three months later…

It was hard to believe, that her journey had just begun. After all the trials and tribulations that had landed her here, to think that this was the beginning, the start of something new. The wind rustled the trees that sat behind Ruby, sending leaves flying out and off of the cliff. Qrow Branwen, Taiyang Xiao Long, Summer Rose. The names were carved into the stones that sat on the cliff. They were not real graves, just reminders of the people that had sacrificed themselves for Ruby, and for the betterment of the galaxy.

This was Ruby's first proper visit since Yang and her had placed the stones. She had spent the last few hours regaling them with the tales of her life. Ones they knew, some they didn't. Most of all she spoke of the future. "Weiss and I are thinking of getting married, though we are still arguing on whether we have a big wedding or a small one. Oh, that and who is going to propose, we haven't decided who gets to do that either."

"Yang and Blake have gone off to adventure, she said she would visit often, help out if we needed it. She changed after the fight with Cinder, she's happier. For her and Blake, it means there truly free now."

"Winter has joined the Republic, she even helped bring Atlas into the Republic, and is like a senator now."

"Jaune and the others? They're great, we all got a very nice extended leave, they might even start paying us the backlog we accrued while with the Rebellion. Now all I have to worry about is Nora gambling it all away."

Ruby flexed her robotic hand, reaching up to adjust the cloth she used as an eye patch, that hid her wounded eye. She was still unsure, uncomfortable about getting a replacement. They were her mother's eyes, she had been told, and couldn't bear the thought of ever replacing one of them. "Me? Well, I'm not sure. I'm still worried about my own power, worried I might be tired of fighting." Ruby sighed, looking down at the grass. She stood quickly when she heard the sounds of someone approaching, hand reflexively going for her lightsaber. From the woods behind her strode a hooded figure. "Who are you?" She asked thumb sliding towards the activation switch on her lightsaber. The figure raised his hands to pull back his hood, one of which was gloved. "I'm looking for Ruby Rose, I heard you might be out here" The man had blonde hair and a relaxed face. Her wore black underneath his brown cloak, and appeared to also carry a lightsaber. "I'm Ruby, but you still didn't answer my question,"

"Oh, sorry, I'm Luke Skywalker." Ruby's eyebrows raised in surprise. She clipped her lightsaber back onto her belt,

"Oh, uh, it's a pleasure to meet you, what can I do for you?"

Luke smiled and walked over to inspect the grave stones. He grew solemn as he looked over the names, "I'm sorry for your loss." Ruby nodded, looking back at the stones.

"They all died heroes; sacrificed themselves to save me." Luke smiled softly, thinking back to those he had lost. "Is it true, that you're a Jedi?" Ruby asked, turning to look at Luke. Luke nodded,

"Yes, I'm a Jedi Knight, like my father." Ruby smiled, looking up at the sky, wondering if this was her chance.

"I was wondering if maybe… Maybe I could be one too, my father was a Jedi as well." Luke smiled, resting a hand on Ruby's shoulder,

"I have heard a lot about you, and everything tends to suggest you would make a fine Jedi. If you are sure it's what you want, then I would be happy to help." Ruby looked down at her father's gravestone, a tear rolling down her eye. She thought back to the promise she had made to herself, to follow the path of her father. "Yes, I would be honoured."

THAT'S ALL FOLKS. Thank you all so much for reading, it has truly been one of the best experiences of my life (so far) writing this and being able to share it with everyone. Fear not though, whilst this story ends, I have plenty more I cannot wait to tell you. Now more than ever I would love to hear what you guys thought, of the story as a whole or maybe just this chapter, or anything you guys liked or disliked. So until next we meet,

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU...