RWBY Through Worlds (End)

221: Justify

"We ought to punish you with them anyway," the god of darkness said nastily. "Go ahead, then. It won't matter. They will not pass. We all know that they have not fulfilled their missions."

Salem looked as if she'd have flipped him off if that was not too unclassy a move for her.

"But, Shine," Wally hissed, "I'm down to stand with them and all, just like with GL that one time, except I have no more clue than I did before how to break Ozma's curse."

Shine put a hand on his shoulder. "His quest was to unite the world, honey," she said seriously. "This is perfect for you. Your League is the best preparation anyone could ask for for answering this riddle. If you think carefully and you listen to your instincts, I think you can answer it."

"You can't just tell me?" Wally said.

"Of course not. Now that we agreed to this, if I help you, I'm doing it for both of them, and it will not be allowed, I think, not now. The gods are too strong here," Shine said. "One of us each is sparse enough protection for so many people. But I have to help Salem figure this out, and she's the most stubborn woman in the world, so..."

"Right... well... good luck, or whatever we do," Wally said nervously. "Just gonna go solve a riddle that's thousands of years old... No problem."

"We're trained for it, Wally. Let the Spirit help," Shine said. "You've been doing it already, you just didn't know it. I don't always know it either, but I believe."

Wally rubbed his hands together. "This is the riskiest thing we've done so far. I have a feeling if we don't do it, they'll kill us both... Well, I love you."

"I love you too... and thank you... and I'm sorry for whatever I did on this mission that was unfair," Shine said.

"And I'm sorry for whatever I did that was unhelpful," Wally said, "but no hard feelings."

"Me neither... Well, better just get it over with." Shine walked over to Salem and nodded at the others.

"What are you doing?" Salem asked her.

"Perhaps the stupidest thing I've done since we got here, which says a lot," Shine said. "I'm actually trusting you to work with me on this. I just tied my fate to yours... Well, a true model of the Lord to the end, I hope."

Wally moved over to Ozpin. "I hope you won't take this personally, but I wish Oscar was more alert right now," he said.

"And I hope you won't take it personally if I say I wish the same thing," Ozpin said uneasily. "What have you done?"

"Oh, the usual, put our lives on the line to help our friends save the world." Wally rubbed his neck. "Just another Friday for us... or any day."

"Then it is done," the gods said. "Let the trial begin."

"Trial?" Raven repeated.

At once the landscape changed again.

This time there was a dais, and on it sat the gods, in serpent form.

In front of  them, in the style of Eastern old courts, the plaintiffs were standing on two smaller sections of floor each, but they were shut in by burning lines of fire or shadows hat looked as if they'd stop any rash attempt to escape.

The rest of the team were standing back, watching but unable to get any closer.

"Okay... if I'm following this," Neptune, the son of the lawyer, spoke up, "Shine and Wally both just agreed to share the punishment of Salem and Ozpin or to share their freedom if they were cleared, and they will now have to answer the riddles of the gods."