The Ashes of The Chosen (RWBY x OC) (Arc 3)

Out With The Old, In With The New (Volume 7 Chapter 3)

The sounds of snores and mumbles echo throughout the bedroom as sunlight starts to blare through the window.

First awake was Jake as a ray of light crawled up his body. He sits upright and shakes his head before examining his surroundings, remembering the events that took place the day before.

Wordlessly, he gets to his feet and walks over to the window, eyeing the view that lay before him. The campus of Atlas Academy was vast and beautiful, clear steps ahead of Haven or Beacon in terms of its design.

"Awake already, eh?"

He turns around to the voice of Qrow Branwen, who had woken up moments ago as well. His voice was raspy and coarse, yet it sounded oddly different than usual.

"Would've liked to get some more shuteye, to be honest." He responds.

Qrow climbs down the ladder of the bunk and gets to his feet. Stretching his limbs, he looks over to the other two sleeping boys. He then glances over to the clock.

"Hey."

Qrow's attention was snapped back to Jake.

"Last night, what do you make of it?"

Qrow rubs his head and raises a brow.

"Eh? Wha...? What do you mean?"

Jake glances out to the window.

"About General Ironwood's plan, doesn't his plan fully go back on what we've been trying to do throughout this whole journey?"

Qrow remains silent. He couldn't deal with such a heavy question, especially after had just woken up.

"Well... let me ask you that question. What do you think of the General's plan?"

Jake glances at the ground momentarily before looking back to the view below him.

"He's narrow-minded."

Qrow's eyes widen slightly.

"Calling back his military for the inevitable panic, his actions towards Mantle, it all seems like one massive gambit. One wrong step, and everything falls apart."

...

"Has he factored in sudden potential errors in his plan? Has he factored in Salem's acquaintances? Cinder may be gone, but Salem still has a plethora of tools up her sleeve, waiting for the perfect moments to utilize them to her advantage."

Jake faces Qrow.

"He's bold, he's daring and firm, but there is a reason why Ozpin has kept the existence of Salem behind closed doors for as long as he's lived. This plan of his has caused him paranoia; this whole thing is shaky."

Qrow hums under his breath. He looks over towards Apollo and Heath, the two still deep in their slumber.

"You don't trust his plan, is that what you're saying?" Qrow asks, to which Jake shrugs.

"I'm simply pointing out its potential flaws. I'm sure he'll have some ways to patch in those holes."

...