Ruby's eyes went wide with disbelief. "Lily, don't talk like that." She said. "I'm being serious. I want you to kill me if I start attacking you, Yang, or anyone else." I warned.

"Lily-"

"You have to promise me!"

Tears began to swell in my eyes. "Please... You have to promise me that you'll kill me if I turn on you," I begged, my voice shaking. "I can feel the urge growing stronger. The urge to lash out, to crush something within my palm, to tear something with my teeth... The feeling is so overwhelming. It feels like I'm going insane. If I were to hurt you or Yang, or Ash... I couldn't live with that guilt."

Ruby wrapped her arms around my neck, hugging me. "I won't let it come to that. I won't let you turn into a Grimm," She assured me. "If you do, I promise, we'll do everything we can to bring you back."

I quickly sat up the same time Ruby broke the hug when we heard a crash come from outside. We look through the window and saw Penny had jumped through her bedroom window.

"I can no longer be delayed." Penny said, her eyes glowing red. Ruby used her semblance to get to Penny and got in front of her, trying to stop her in her tracks. "Penny, please!" She begged. 

"I-I must open the vault! I-I do not want...!" Penny grabbed her head as her eyes flickered from green to red. "Argh! Ruby! Stop me!" She pleaded. 

"Penny!" Ruby hugged her waist, and Penny's eyes turned red again. "I must open the vault and self-terminate." She repeated. 

Penny started to take off with Ruby in tow. I leaped out the window and latched myself in front of Penny's waist to weigh her down. 

With the help of Ren's weapons and Weiss's glyphs, we were able to momentarily ground Penny. "What do we do?!" Nora asked. 

I yelped when Penny started to use her Maiden Powers to break free as she began to hover. "I must... open the vault! And self-terminate!" Penny said again. 

"Guys, do something!" I shouted. Jaune boosted Weiss's aura and grounded Penny again. "Penny, please! Tell me how to help you!" Ruby begged while hugging her. 

"Kill me..." My eyes widened at her request. "Kill me... and I can make sure the power goes to you." She said, looking at Ruby. 

"Penny..." I whispered. "Please... Please! I cannot fight it!" Penny cried out. Her eyes began to flicker between red and green again. 

"Yes, you can!" Ash called. "You're not a machine, Penny. It's just a part of you. If you were only a machine, you wouldn't have fought back the virus for this long." 

"Wait, he's right... That's it! Jaune, boost her aura! Hurry!" I called. He ran to Penny's side and used his aura to amplify Penny's. 

After a few seconds, Penny returned to normal, and she didn't need to be restrained anymore. I hugged her in relief. 

"Did... Did I stop the virus?" Jaune asked. "No..." She answered. "It's still there, but..."

"You've got an aura, Penny. A soul. That's who you are. Our friend, not a machine." Ruby said, hugging her once more.

"I think you're wrong, by the way," Emerald said. "I highly doubt you're in the same place you started. I mean, yeah. You guys have been getting your asses kicked. Some of that... my fault, but, like... You're at war. You're gonna take hits."

"And...?" I said. "Look, I'm just going to be super pissed if you all finally decide to give up the moment I switch sides!" She said. 

"Switch sides, huh?" Oscar repeated. "Aww..." Yang said while we all shared a small laugh. "Or, like... Whatever." Emerald mumbled, embarrassed. 

"So... What now?" Ash asked. "Jaune can't keep amping Penny's aura, and we can't keep Ironwood waiting. We have to take Penny to the vault." I said. 

"The vault..." Ruby repeated. "There lies the Staff of Creation." Ash reminded.

Creation, huh? Wait...

"That's it!" I gasped. "I know a way we can save both Penny and Mantle!" 

"How?" Blake asked. "We take her to the vault!" I said. Everyone looked at me with confusion. "Gonna need a little more, sis." Yang said.  

Before I could explain, my stomach let out a loud rumble and my face turned red with embarrassment.

We sat in the dining room as Jaune sat beside Penny so he could keep boosting her aura. I hungrily ate the sandwiches provided to me by Klein as I started to explain my plan. 

"Okay, so remember when we summoned Jinn, and everything stopped as if we were frozen in time? If Penny opens the vault, we summon the being inside the staff, and time will stop just before Penny can self-destruct," I explained. 

"We can make Penny human by removing the part of her that's a machine, and with that side of her gone, that just leaves... Penny!" I snatched another sandwich before shoving the whole thing in my mouth, swallowing it after a few chews.

"Penny's already real, so we're practically making her whole! It's like filling a hollowed cupcake with whipped cream! Okay, not exactly like that, but you get what I'm saying, right?" I said.

"That might actually work." Weiss informed. "But what about Ironwood and the people trapped in the Crater?" Ash asked. "We can use the staff to create a backdoor to get everyone, both Mantle and Atlas, evacuated to Vacuo." I suggested. 

"There's something else to consider. Once the staff creates anything else, the city drops. Atlas has enough natural gravity dust to keep it from plummeting immediately, but... Well, nobody's going to want to be around when it touches down." Oscar explained. 

Oscar's eyes glowed, and he switched places with Ozpin. 

"Not to mention, the spirit inside the staff. He's like Jinn, but uh... He's a character. He can build you anything, but only if you can explain to him how. Like any craftsmen, he'll need blueprints. Some sort of reference. It'll help if we have real-world examples to show him."

"I've already gone through the city layouts for the SDC evacuation. Maybe I can help." Whitley volunteered. "There's still Ironwood's bomb to consider." Ash mentioned. 

"Oh, I've got a plan for that." Weiss informed.

*****

Emerald will use her semblance to make Ironwood think Penny shows up alone when, in reality, it's actually Jaune, Ren, Nora, and Winter there. 

Meanwhile, me, Ash, Ruby, Blake, Weiss, and Yang will be taking the real Penny to the vault. As soon as we open it, we go inside, grab the staff, and use it to stop Penny from terminating. 

Ash and I will stand guard outside the vault so there won't be any interference. "This might actually work. I almost don't believe it.

I uttered a small growl of pain, the discomfort in my arm returning. Just a little more time. All that matters right now is saving Penny. I thought.

I looked at Ash, noticing he was staring at me with a frown of concern. "Hey, come on. Wipe that worried look off your face, Ash," I giggled. "Everything's going to work out in the end. I promise."