Chapter Text
Passing through the doorway Jaune let out a wordless yell of surprise as he fell into a dark, seemingly bottomless abyss filled with glowing green balls of light. Almost as soon they’d begun falling however, the descent slowed, gently sinking as if in water.
Soon his feet touched down on the dark, reflective bottom, ripples spreading out on contact. At that moment, his migraine instantly flared up. Falling to his knees in agony and clutching his head, Jaune and The Cat screamed in mutual pain. A flash of blinding light enveloped them and and suddenly The Cat and Jaune were separate once more.
Immediately the pain was gone, leaving behind only a slight throbbing .
“Well that was quite the unpleasant experience.” The Cat commented, after they’d shaken off the lingering feeling.
Silently agreeing, Jaune stared up into the endless darkness above him, peering at the now distant doorway. He thought he saw a fleeting shadow in front of it, but it was too far up and bright to see anything clearly. He wouldn’t be able to go back through the door if anything went wrong.
He was torn from his musing when the Curious Cat jumped onto his shoulder suddenly. Before he could tell the annoying being to get off The Cat hissed in his ear, pointing ahead of them. “Look there!”
Looking forward Jaune was surprised as out of nowhere appeared a strange arrangement of objects resembling a blacksmith shop. A large, strange figure stood by the glowing hot forge and seemed to be hammering away at something. Standing up and gripping Crocea Mors’ handle with one hand firmly, he strode cautiously towards them.
On approach the glowing light of the forge’s fire revealed a feminine yet strong looking figure made of metal parts, like an Atlesian Battle Robot if it had been designed by an artist with a penchant for cubism. More noticeably she was quite tall, easily double his own respectable height.
“I have been waiting for you, weary knight.” The metallic woman spoke without turning around, intently hammering away, making Jaune stiffen in alarm. “And for you as well.” She added finally glancing over her shoulder at the Cat. “Welcome to my workshop.”
Jaune was unnerved at the empty iron sockets with an infinite darkness in them. He could feel the fathomless gaze look not at him but within. Yet there was no malice he could feel, and her echoing contralto voice was soothing. However The Cat, normally unstoppably talkative, was unusually silent, seemingly wary.
“Wha- who are you?” He asked, voice raspy from the tension in his throat.
The living statue of a woman did not answer at first, instead stopping her hammering and pulling out the object she’d been beating into shape with a pair of equally enormous tongs, and quenched it in a pool of liquid for a minute. The fluid smoked and steamed on contact, with the oily looking substance lighting up in bright colors until the thing inserted lost its red hot glow and the blacksmith withdrew it and set it on the table in front of Jaune and The Cat, revealing it to be a metal comedy mask.
“I am The Blacksmith, a manifestation of The Tree.” She finally stated, sitting down at the table before them and resting her hands on the surface. “I create and recreate all that lives here, big and small.”
“I thought as much” murmured The Cat, but didn’t continue, intently studying the iron giantess instead.
“Recreate. You mean ascension, right?” Jaune questioned the primordial being, challenging it. “Erasing their memories, erasing who and what they are or were?”
“Yes, what is called ascension is to recreate and rebuild those that have completed their purpose or when they are broken beyond repair. To let them start anew, fresh and better than before.” The Tree kindly explained. “The memories of the past are a burden that cannot not be carried on to the next life, or else it will not be a new life, but an old one continued.”
Jaune was taken aback for a moment, The Tree undenying of its actions, yet justifying them so rationally. It felt perhaps worse than if he had been entirely wrong. His mind briefly flickered over The Paper Pleasers, a seed of doubt niggling in his mind. Either way, it was too late now.
“And what if they wished to keep their memories?” He asked, despite knowing the answer.
“They cannot. To repair them is to remake them, and nothing can ever be duplicated perfectly, so they will inevitably be new. And to truly be new is to start from a clean slate.” The Tree replied.
Jaune’s worries about himself were assuaged by the fact that The Girl Who Fell Through The World existed, meaning that perhaps memories from Remnant would remain. Thinking of the book caused his thoughts to flicker over Lewis and Alyx and the mystery that had haunted him since they’d disappeared. Perhaps now he would get his answers.
“Alyx and Lewis reached here, what happened? Did she sacrifice Lewis to you?” He asked directly, ignoring The Cat suddenly tensing.
The Blacksmith spoke again, after a brief pause. “Do you know what the role of the Curious Cat is, Jaune? It was meant to be curious, to care about everything and anything, to fix the broken in the Ever After, or send what it could not fix to The Tree to be remade. However, a living being changes over time, over experiences, and The Cat has lived a very long time and experienced very much. Developing desires and wants and feelings. So when Alyx promised to take The Cat to Remnant, and then decided not to leave The Ever After, it was a betrayal, a broken promise, a broken heart. So The Cat’s care and affection became hate and cruelty, lashing out uncontrollably, and in doing so, sending Alyx here to ascend. But the injury to the heart remains and there was nobody to repair broken The Cat nor send them to me to be fixed. And thus only Lewis left The Ever After. He wrote the story as he wished it had happened, to preserve the memory of his sister.”
Quickly understanding what The Blacksmith meant, Jaune’s hand flew up to grab his shoulder, but the feline had already jumped onto the table, teeth bared and tail lashing angrily in his direction.
“You monster, I knew you’d done something to them! I knew I couldn’t trust you!” Jaune seethed in fury, Crocea Mors extended up and in front of him, ready to strike down.
“This is why I didn’t tell you.” The Cat hissed angrily at them. “I knew you wouldn’t understand, you wouldn’t take me otherwise! I do not wish to ascend, I wish to see Remnant, to find something new and live! After all I’ve done, after everything I’ve been through, don’t I deserve that much!?” The rant’s tone shifted quickly from indignant anger to a wretched torment.
“Indeed. Not too dissimilar to yourself, wouldn’t you say Jaune?” The Blacksmith intervened, startling him with her words.
“You- I... I’m nothing like this creature!” he shouted up at her in denial, outrage boiling up. His eyes grew wide and manic, face twisted by hatred.
“Yet you are both suffering; betrayed, lost and alone, are you not?” The Blacksmith replied, remaining unruffled by the outburst.
Taken aback, Jaune could find no retort in the face of such blunt rationale. Unbidden The Cat’s words resonated in his mind, and Jaune found his weary heart unwillingly sympathizing. How could he moralize to The Cat when he had killed Penny and let or led others to their deaths? Perhaps he really wasn’t all that different, wasn’t all that blameless. They’d only gotten this far working together...
“I suppose you’re right.” Jaune muttered, sheathing the broken blade and looking at The Cat. “I guess we aren’t so different after all, and I was too quick to judge when I shouldn’t have.” He said, extending an open hand. “Let’s start from scratch. Truce?”
Although suspicious, eventually The Cat grudgingly placed its paw into his hand and they shook. “Truce it is then.” Leaping back onto Jaune’s armored shoulder.
“Alyx did speak with me, before I remade her.” The Blacksmith said to them. “She left a wish behind, to right the wrongs she did, fix the things she broke.” A dimly glowing simple dagger appeared in her hands, floating towards them with a gesture.
Taking it gently in his gloved hands, Jaune’s eyes were wide, recognizing it. “This was Alyx’s knife.” He whispered.
The Knife glowed brighter at his words and teal light enveloped him and The Cat, a visage of Alyx appearing with a regretful smile. “I’m sorry” whispered past their ears. Then the light and Alyx disappeared, leaving him feeling strangely lighter than before. Blinked away the stinging sensation from his eyes, he looked again at the now normal-looking blade sitting in his palm, its magic apparently all spent.
Jaune looked back up, confused. “So what did that do?”
“Alyx’s wish was to heal what afflicted you both, the time you lost as the Knight and the heart she broke in The Cat.” Explained The Blacksmith. “She returned some of your lost years to you, and took some of your pain away, from you both. However there is only so much her spirit could do to fix your hurts.”
Ears flattened, The Cat seemed equally shocked. “Why would she do that for me!? After what I did to her? That-It, it doesn’t make sense! She-she lied to me, betrayed me! Why?” Distraught turned to anger and denial and back again.
Jaune looked down, heart squeezing, “Because she understood your pain, and forgave you.”
“...Thank You.” Whispered through the workshop.
Pocketing the dagger and sighing, Jaune looked to the Blacksmith once again. “Okay then, I- We want to go back to Remnant, so how do we get there?” he asked, exhausted by all the twists and turns of the conversation, cutting straight to the chase. “We’d thought the doorway of the tree would lead straight there, but instead we’re here... inside it still. What do you want from us?”
The Blacksmith nodded, still pleasantly smiling in the face of the outburst. “Yes, you are here, within me. The moment you entered you became part of me and through me lies your paths, Jaune Arc. I will send you to when you are needed.” Her gaze shifted slightly. “And you too shall get your wish granted as well, Curious Cat.”
Before the duo could feel relieved The Blacksmith continued, “Before you go however, things cannot be left as they are.” She stood up, towering over them. “All things must be balanced, an exchange must be made.” The metallic woman stated and raised her hammer over them.
Alarmed at the suddenness Jaune grabbed the hilt of Crocea Mors, but the hammer was already swung down before he could block, leaving him to only brace for the pain. Instead a clang resounded and he felt no impact. Looking down at the chest plate, blue eyes widened as they saw that the rust, soot and grime it and all the rest of his armor had collected over the years, was sloughing off into an enormous pile of dust. While it didn’t shine, the armor was cleaner than it had been in a long time. Still, rusty colorations and minor dents still marred its surface, retaining the well-used appearance.
The debris suddenly flowed into the air and flew into a large, humanoid mold that appeared in her hands. Placing it deep into the forge behind her, a wave of the hand made the flames roar up, white hot. Jaune’s eyes watered from the sudden brightness and heat. A moment later, faster than any mortal forge could be expected to work, she pulled out the mold and doused it in liquid.
When her metal hands pulled it out of the bucket and split open the mold, Jaune was taken aback at the rust-red suit of knight’s armor that now stood before him, similar to his own. It did not move, nor show signs of having life.
“And a payment must be taken from you as well, Curious Cat.” The divine smith spoke again, and before the Curious Cat could voice a question, a flowing diamond was plucked from its body with tongs and dropped through the armor’s visor.
The Cat snarled, growing in size until it was more like a tiger than a cat, it’s colors again desaturating into white and black. “You took one of my lives from me!”
“That was the payment” she smirked, taking her visitors by surprise with her first change of expression since they’d entered.
At that moment the armor glowed, cyan light within it shining from between the chinks and joints. Then it moved. Raising its arms, its gauntleted hands came up to its helmet and removed it.
Jaune found himself looking at a young man’s rather familiar face with feline features. Large, glowing cyan eyes with slit pupils gazed into his own curiously. A pair of large cat ears poking through a mop of blonde hair, perking up as the youth tilted his head slightly.
After a moment he straightened and grinned at them, revealing sharp pearly whites. “Hello there!” He greeted with boyish cheer. “Who are you? Are you my parents? What’s my name?” he asked brightly in quick succession, unheeding of lacking an immediate response.
Jaune blinked several times, mouth opening and closing speechlessly.
Instead The Cat, form returned to normal proportions and coloration, spoke up from Jaune’s shoulder. “Well, since you’re made from both a part of me, The Curious Cat and my dear Rusted Knight, it seems one could call you our child, right Jaune? And as this is within The Tree, that would make her The Mother as well.” the varmint commented mischievously, all traces of previous anger in its tone having vanished, replaced with amusement.
A shiver down his spine from The Cat’s phrasing shook Jaune from his daze. Throwing a disgusted look at the now chuckling cat, he turned back to the new being in front of him unsurely. The innocent joy before him cut off any harsh retort he wanted to give. “I... I suppose so.” He grumbled, giving into the logic, still supremely uncomfortable.
“Then you are my Fathers!” The armored cat boy jumped in place cheering excitedly and with a clank of armor on armor, grabbed Jaune and The Cat in a unexpected bear hug, and rubbed his cheek into Jaune’s chestplate affectionately, much to his discomfort. To his envy The Cat seemed unperturbed.
The boy then whirled about and hugged the tall leg of the enormous woman behind him. “And you’re Mama!” he declared.
She smiled her gentle smile, and her gauntlet-like hand reached down to ruffle his hair, the action jarringly human.
After a moment the boy finally let go, stepping back and turning towards Jaune again with a curious expression. “But are you Jaune or Rusted Knight?” he asked, head tilted once more.
Faced with the frank question so unexpectedly Jaune found himself unbalanced all over again. Who was he now? Was he Jaune Arc? Was he The Rusted Knight? Memories swirled through his mind as he earnestly sought to answer the heavy question that had been a phantom weighing on his subconscious for so long.
He had began simply as just Jaune, another ordinary child, just another name of the Arc family’s long, heroic lineage. He became Jaune Arc, Huntsman in training and wannabe hero who lied . He grew into Jaune Arc the Huntsman for whom nobody was too small or unimportant to save. He fell and became The Rusted Knight, Hero of The Ever After. He’d been a nobody, a fraud, a failure... Why was he still here? Because... because, no matter how much he failed or how far he fell, he stood up again and his core grew yet remained the same because he couldn’t walk out on his story, because he was... he is...
“...Jaune... Jaune Arc. That’s my name and family name.” He started, trying to put his ratiocinations into the best words he could think of. Finding them, he looked into the earnest gaze of his unconventional ‘child’. “But I’m also The Rusted Knight. That is who I have become.” He concluded, hoping his ‘son’ – what a concept – would understand.
Privately Jaune was surprised The Curious Cat didn’t have a snarky comment to add on. In fact remaining silent, almost even contemplative.
“And what is a knight?” the youth asked after thinking for a bit. He looked down at his own armor. “Am I a knight too?”
Jaune smiled warmly. “You could be. A knight is someone that fights to protects and helps others. If you do that you can be a knight.” He told them. “Though the armor certainly helps.” he chuckled.
“Then I’m going to be a knight!” the youth excitedly declared, pointing a finger in the air in declaration, “The Curious Knight!” Then they stopped and frowned. “But what is my name then?”
As Jaune considered a good name the wry thought that he hadn’t been expecting a child today, let alone picking a name for them, such a twisted turn of events...
Then it came to him. “How about Gaius” he offered.
“Gaius, Gaius Arc” The new Knight tried out thoughtfully. He smiled. “I love it! I AM Gaius Arc, The Curious Knight!”
Jaune blinked at the use of his family name, but smiled all the same, feeling warm at the sincerity.
Then The Blacksmith spoke, “It is now time for you to go out into the world my Knight. But Before you do, take this.” She held out from the palm of her hand a sheathed sword towards the lad. “A knight must have his weapon as well as his armor. May it serve you well and earn itself a name.”
Wide-eyed he tucked his helmet under his arm and carefully accepted the proffered gift, looking it over with fascination, then looked up to her. “Thank you, Mother.” Sincerity and awe in his voice. “Now I think I’m ready to go.”
The Blacksmith nodded and gestured with a hand. With a hum a doorway opened up nearby, its translucent golden light revealing a blurry picture of the lands beyond.
As he stepped towards the gate, Jaune called out to him. “Find the cabin near the Paper Pleaser Village. It can be your home until you find somewhere else you want to live.”
The young Knight smiled once more and waved. “Thank you all. Until we meet again!” And stepped through to the other side, the gate vanishing immediately after.
Another gate opened. “And now it is time for you two to depart as well.” The Blacksmith said, lowering her hand.
“I guess this is Goodbye then.” Jaune said, looking up at The Blacksmith.
“For now.” She replied simply.
He nodded, accepting the words and turning to the gate, the way home. “Ready, Cat?” He asked his unlikely companion.
Looking unusually somber The Cat replied. “Yes, I think I am”
Nodding once more Jaune sighed and stepped forward, vanishing through the portal in a flash of gold, onwards to Remnant.
The Blacksmith turned back to her forge, raising her hammer once more, but paused and gazed up towards the glowing doorway and the shadows beyond it. For the first time in millenia, the ever-smiling metal lips turned down...
Juniper stood watching the spot where Jaune had disappeared for a long minute, but he did not return. She hung her head and trilled mournfully.
Then a screech disrupted the quiet. Juniper whirled around, facing the sound. Suddenly it appeared.
The Jabberwalker tore out of the bushes, muttering loudly. “Find, Find! FIND! Catch. Catch! CATCH! Break. Break! BREAK!” It’s guttural, echoing voice harsh and unnerving.
Juniper lowered her antlers and widened her stance. She couldn’t let this monster get to Jaune, she wouldn’t let it through!
It seemed to notice her then and with another ear-splitting screech charged, claws digging furrows into the wood. Juniper met it head on. With an echoing ‘CLACK’ antlers met horns and the two pushed against one another for a while, dark against light, each trying to overpower the other.
As Juniper’s strength and size began to push it back, the Jabberwalker broke off the clattering clash of heads and jumped to the side, causing her to unintentionally lunge forward. Before she could recover, claws flashed out and its cruel talon of a hand swung up and under, digging into the jackelope's soft belly. Her Aura flashed, protecting her from being carved into, but the sheer strength of the uppercut blow threw her aside, knocking her over and sending her skidding away on her flank.
The monster did not pursue however, and instead charged forward, ramming into the golden gateway with immense force, but was repelled.
Undeterred, The Jabberwalker rammed its head again, and clawed at the light. Blackness began to seep from its claws and suddenly it tore grooves into the barrier. Screeching in triumph it pushed harder as the doorway’s protection began to give way.
It was at that moment that Juniper rammed into the creature from behind, smashing it into the damaged barrier as fast as she could charge. In the moment, a series of cracks ran across the injured section and a shattering noise was heard. A swirl of black mist and shattered golden shards, like pieces of a broken mirror all around her, left the jackelope disoriented as she felt herself falling and then sinking, despite not feeling herself hit any water.
Then the golden light seemed to zip back up and away, taking most of the black mist with it, and Juniper could see again. Her gaze tracked the golden shards and she saw them reforming the barrier, now far above her, and before the last piece reformed and resealed the gate, she saw the Jabberwalker’s head, now with a broken horn, being knocked back.
Looking down towards where she was descending, she felt herself land on a surface that felt like the ground, yet rippled like water. Ahead she saw an unfamiliar construction around a raised flaming pit. And an enormous figure, far larger than anything she had seen before, stood by the fire, hammering something. The metallic appearance reminded Juniper of Jaune, but it was obviously not him.
The figure turned around and faced her, the expression upon its face was what Jaune would call a frown. She’d seen many frowns on Jaune.
“I was not expecting to see you so soon, Juniper, it is too early for you.” The iron woman spoke. “Nor did I expect the Jabberwalker to overcome the barrier and split like it did.”
Her frown eased into a gentle smile that untwisted her metallic features. “So do you wish to return?”
Juniper, strangely understanding the words and meaning clearly hesitated, thinking.
“Or perhaps you wish to join Jaune in Remnant?” The giantess continued, appearing mildly thoughtful.
At Jaune’s name she perked up, comprehending the offer, she bowed her head lightly towards the woman, antlers dipping down.
“Very well then.” She said. Then she reached down and Juniper felt a mild pull from her head. Looking up she saw in the giant woman’s hands were golden antlers, her golden antlers. She realized they’d been plucked from her head, unusually painlessly, as if it was time to shed.
Then she waved a hand over her and Juniper felt a ruffling sensation along her fur, seeing some of it fly from her body into a waiting palm, which then placed the hair and antlers into a bowl. A stick appeared and began crushing the bone and keratin into powder. Soon it was ready and the lady poured the dust into a mold and placed it within the nearby pit of fire.
Despite the strangeness Juniper was calm, patiently waiting for what would come next.
Appearing to be done for the moment, the giantess turned back to Juniper, smiling gently. “Now I can send you to Jaune.” A wave of her hand later and a golden gate appeared, a smaller version of what Juniper passed through before.
Giving the strange woman a final look over her shoulder, Juniper walked through, enveloped by blinding gold light once again.
Squinting behind the visor of his helmet, Jaune tried to see past the spots in his eyes, hand gripping his sword cautiously. A moment later and with vision cleared he looked around. He was no longer in a black void, nor the strange multicolored world of the Ever After, he was in a subway tunnel, a human subway tunnel. He almost laughed from absurdity, feeling joy at seeing something so mundane. It felt familiar, though no particular memory of it came to mind.
“Well this isn’t very promising if this dark hole is what Remnant looks like” the Cat commented, perching on his shoulder like a colorful, exotic bird.
Jaune rolled his eyes at the transparent provocation. “I don’t remember promising you a wonderland here, you’re the one that wanted to come along.” He snapped back, continuing to trudge along the rails, cautiously staying well to the side.
Soon Jaune reached a train station. And on the platform were people. Well dressed and clean, they stood, patiently waiting for the train while reading newspapers or listening to music, alone or with companions, all completely at ease, as if the world hadn’t been plunged into chaos. It had been so long since he’d seen another human being since the fall and this was not what he was expecting; he felt detached and alien, observing them from the shadows.
“Look Jaune, more humans like yourself!” The Curious Cat pointed out to him unnecessarily and garnering surprised and even scandalized looks from the bystanders who seemed to only just notice their presence.
“Yes, I’m aware. Leave them alone, Cat.” Jaune growled out in response, shoving down the rising nervousness within himself.
When he jumped up onto the terminal’s concrete island the people looked at him with curiosity and mild apprehension, whispering to one another. Now able to get a closer look, Jaune took more notice of their clothing; it was hardly fitting for the desert or anything like what the people of Vacuo wore to his knowledge. In fact their apparel was more fit for colder weather like in Vale or...
Jaune glanced up the staircase leading above ground. “Only one way to find out for sure...” he muttered to himself.
Reaching the top of the stairs, he raised an arm to shield his eyes, blinking out the brightness that suddenly blinded him again.
“There’s been a lot of that” he mumbled in irritation as the blurry lights and shadows quickly came into focus.
As they did he froze, staring out at the image before him. Pulling off the helmet, he rubbed his eyes thoroughly before looking again. The scene didn’t change. Snatching a knife off his belt he stabbed it into his hand without hesitation, aura grinding painfully in response. However the image still didn’t waver, it was real!
Jaune stumbled, collapsing backwards onto a bench behind him with a dull crash of his armor. His mouth opened and closed soundlessly, his gaze rapidly shifting from the polished white buildings of glass and metal, to the flying bullhead transports. It was far from unfamiliar, he would never - could never - forget them. Never forget how they’d burned and fallen, even after over a decade in the Ever After. He had returned... to Atlas.
As he gazed at the staggering sight, a purple shooting star flew across the skyline and fell over the darkened horizon.