Prologue: Divided
"War twists good hearts and makes them cruel. You will not escape unscathed. I only hope you can save your soul, lest it decay and turn you into the very thing you fight against."
Two Years After Beacon Initiation Day
It was a stormy afternoon in Vale. Dark clouds loomed overhead and rain poured while lightning cackled. Most inhabitants of the proud city had taken shelter indoors, hoping to pass time with idle chat and hot coffee. Even the cities' illustrious gangs were nowhere in sight. Still, the streets weren't completely empty. A few stragglers ran through the rain with their books, newspapers, and even weapons held above them in a vain attempt to keep dry. More than a couple newspaper kiosks were still open, hoping someone would come by and pick up a sopping newspaper before bolting home.
Among the few remaining poor souls, a young man stood still on the corner of a sidewalk, wearing his black leather jacket. It offered no protection from the rain, but it kept him warm. For the first time since he returned from Atlas with Weiss, he wished he still had his old grey hoodie, though it would offer no more protection from the rain than a sheet of paper.
Richard Prey absentmindedly tugged on the single leather glove that encompassed his left hand. Though nearly three months had passed since the "accident," his shoulder still ached from time to time. Richard reveled in it though, for it was the only feeling he had left in his arm.
He rolled his shoulders, hoping the movement would grant him some warmth. It didn't. He turned his head to look down the street to the right. It was large enough for three lane traffic moving in two directions and was lined with buildings ranging from three to six stories. Normally, the traffic was so heavy that people would form lines on the sidewalks, waiting quarter hours just to cross the street. But now it was empty and lifeless, a trait that made Richard shudder. Or maybe that was the cold.
'I should have done this alone.' He thought, 'I am not waiting on you any longer.'
As if on cue, a loud clicking noise resonated from behind Richard. He immediately spun around to see a gorgeous young woman in front of him. She wore a black quiver strap over a violet leather jacket over a black v-neck with blue skinny jeans and black high-heeled boots. In her right hand she held a large black umbrella and in her left was her trusty metal longbow. She had deep violet eyes and wore dark eyeliner and red lipstick. But her most defining (and most beautiful in Richard's opinion) characteristic was her straightened onyx hair that went to her collarbone. On inspection, Richard noticed something new; she had a violet streak running through her hair on the right side.
"Yes Richard, I'm beautiful, now will you close your mouth and stop ogling me?"
Richard frowned at her words, but only because he hadn't been ogling her at all. His mind was occupied with another girl, the one he had been searching for. He looked her in the eye and tried to speak, but was cut off immediately.
"Oh Dust," The woman would have face palmed if her hands had been empty, "Can't you take a joke anymore? I swear, you've changed so much in the past few years."
"Sorry," Richard said with a scowl, "Jokes just seem in bad taste."
"I don't see why," Viola deadpanned, "It's been a pretty good day."
"For you it has."
Viola ignored him and motioned to his gloved hand with her bow, "How's the replacement?"
"It impairs my swordplay, but I can still channel my Archon lightning through it."
"Is that why you went with that old relic?" She asked, this time pointing to the simple one handed blade hanging from his belt.
He shrugged, "It's hard to fight with a two handed sword when you have no sense of touch or pressure in one hand. That and I haven't found a suitable replacement for Kidamonas."
Viola went wide eyed and Richard spotted a clear look of sorrow on her visage. It was just as beautiful as her normal glare, but it tugged at his heartstrings a little. Her face suddenly brightened, and she held her bow up in front of Richard's face, hoping it would get a reaction out of him. When he didn't respond, she shook it a little. The only reaction she got was a shrug from the soaked man.
"This is me saying I'm here to help." She said exasperatedly.
Richard raised his eyebrows, "You could just say it next time."
She huffed, and Richard shook his head and continued.
"The intel Weiss and I recovered revealed the address of a safehouse in the Industrial District. If these 'Inquisitors' are still around, that's where they'll be. Maybe they can help us find her."
"Are you sure she's one of them?"
"The last time I saw her, she had white hair and blood red eyes. Those are the tell-tale signs of the Inquisitors."
"Well I'm sure the Inquisitors would love to help their mortal enemy track down one of their own," Viola said sarcastically.
Richard turned and said, "They'll help an Archon whether they want to or not. I'll shock it out of them if I have to."
"You mean torture?" She asked, looking slightly alarmed.
Richard turned his back, facing the direction they would be heading.
She didn't say anything else, but Richard could feel the disapproval rolling off of her. Of course she disapproved. No one really condoned torture, but Viola hadn't seen the Inquisitor's brutality firsthand. A little bit of electricity was a mercy compared to their sins.
Without warning, Viola walked past Richard, umbrella above her head, and bow strapped to her back. Richard shifted his left shoulder one more time, feeling the pinch of the metal, and caught up to her stride. Side by side they silently walked down the soaked sidewalk, their feet splashing in puddles as they grew ever closer to the bridge that connected the Residential District to the Industrial District.
Despite the fact that they were walking side by side, Richard knew Viola wasn't walking with him. She was following him, trusting him to choose the right path that would lead them to the answers they needed so desperately. He felt proud that Viola had learned to trust him and accept his role as the leader of team RAVN. He remembered the days of their shared childhood, where she would reject to ever letting him take the lead. He remembered botching all of the practice mission back at Signal, where his favorite teacher, Taiyang Xiao Long, would intentionally appoint him leader of a random team. He remembered Viola's fury when he decided to take charge during Initiation day.
Those days seemed more like fantasy than memory. Richard could scarcely recall the boy he was then. Happy and full of hope for humanity, for the future. He once had strict morals, and stuck to them, unwilling to compromise for any reason. Once, he had pride, as a Huntsman, as an Archon, and as a Prey. He used to hangout with his team, not because they lived together and fought together, but because he loved being with them. They were his best friends.
But the war changed all of that. When Arian Schnee usurped the Kingdom of Atlas, and declared war on all of the remaining kingdoms, Richard was forced to take the tyrant head on. He quickly learned how disgusting war was. The history books painted a false image of great heroes valiantly defeating the evil forces and being praised for their successes. The truth was that war has no good or evil. Atrocities are committed by both sides, and the heroes are often as fickle as the villains. The once serene hills of Mistral could attest to that. The flames were still burning, even months later.
And nothing would ever wash the blood from Richard's hands.
The Industrial District of Vale looked nothing like the Residential District. The Residential District was made up of large apartment buildings built from clean brick. Specific areas had been cleared to allow grass and trees to grow. Even the largest of the apartments had oak trees sprouting from the front lawn. Every few blocks there was a small park, where children could play on the jungle gyms, and adults could lay down a blanket to have a picnic. Every street in the Residential district was paved to ease the flow of traffic. They were spacious and allowed clear visibility. It was never difficult, or time consuming, to get to a specific place.
The Industrial District was a sharp contrast. Buildings were constructed out of cracked mortar and were often covered with dirt and grime. No vegetation outlined the streets, and the only park in the entire district was covered by the debris of a fallen building. The streets were bumpy and poorly paved. Some ran right into buildings and had to be closed off by metal railings and signs. The streets that were open for traffic were narrow and took sharp turns, limiting any type of navigation.
Richard and Viola stood on a corner of such a street, trying to figure out where they were headed. The rain had since let up, and Viola's umbrella hung from her waist. The two scoured Vale's map of the Industrial District, but it was ancient, and as such, didn't account for the buildings that were built right on top of old roads.
"Why hasn't anyone taken the time to redraw the map?" Viola asked with an irritated sigh before lowering her scroll.
"The Industrial District is crawling with thugs, Vi," Richard said, still examining his scroll, "Dangerous thugs. Remember Cinder Fall?"
"Yeah, crazy bitch nearly bombed Vale into dust, with a lowercase 'd'," she said, reluctantly returning her attention to the map, "Though I'd call her less of a thug, and more of a diabolical mastermind."
"Her associates came from here though, and she had quite a lot of them."
"So why not send the Police in?" Viola asked.
"The council has sent the Police in several times," Richard replied, "They never find anything. The degenerates of Vale know exactly where and when to hide."
"Ugh," Viola moaned, finally putting her scroll away, "I wish Alea was here. She knows this district like the back of her hand."
"She needs to move her family somewhere safe. You know that."
"I know, but to Vacuo? They're military is smaller and much more incompetent than ours!"
"But Vacuo signed a Non-Aggression Treaty with Atlas two weeks ago."
"Don't even start with the political crap. Do you know how annoying you are when you talk about politics? You'd think you were a councilman."
"Technically I am. I may not have a vote, but I sit on the council as the Archon Representative."
"Speaking of Archons, can't you do some magic voodoo crap to point us in the right direction?" Viola asked hopefully.
"Archons have control over specific primal elements, Viola. I don't think electrokinesis came with the capability to turn me into a living GPS," Richard deadpanned.
"Can't you, I don't know, like trace the electricity in the power lines? Maybe find a place that uses a lot of power?"
"There are about a thirty full sized factories in this district. Everything here uses a lot of power."
"Maybe the opposite then? Try and find a place with low amounts of power usage?"
Richard blinked. It was actually pretty good idea.
"Give me a minute."
Richard tucked his scroll into his coat pocket and kneeled onto one knee. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and placed his gloved hand on the pavement. He instantly tuned into his senses. He could feel the electricity flow through the underground power lines, and diverge onto into several hundred strands, all flowing to a different place. He took note of the larger power flows, and instantly 'muted' them, focusing only on the smaller ones. He then sorted those into 'small' and 'large' and cut himself off from feeling those 'large' flows. He continued to do this for several minutes, until he had systematically narrowed his options down to three miniscule power flows. Two of those, Richard was sure, lead to light posts. The third one was even smaller, and might have ran some sort of air conditioning or heating unit. Whatever it was connected to, the rest of the area must have some sort of generator, or else it was abandoned. But why run the heat if the building was empty?
"I think I have it," Richard said, "Small power draw, about two miles NorthWest of us. Probably running some sort of conditioning unit. Can't be powering anything else."
"Generator?" Viola asked.
"Generator," Richard affirmed, "I'm gonna Flash after it. Use my scroll's beacon to locate me."
"Wait! You shouldn't-"
Richard pivoted to the right and was instantly gone. His body rocketed forward at a lightning fast speed, before he ultimately became the lightning itself. His body dissolved; first his legs became lightning, then his torso, before his head finally vanished into a bright blue arc of lightning. All he was was a large blue lightning bolt, propelling itself down streets. Richard used his lightning body to anchor himself to the small electric flow beneath the ground. He followed the line all the way across the Industrial District, leaving a blackened line in his wake.
He was nearing his destination. At about roughly a block away Richard let the flow of the electricity in his body, in his arc of lightning, slow down. He began to reform. First his head grew out of the slowing arc, then his torso, before his legs finally reformed and made contact with the asphalt of the sidewalk, drawing him to a halt.
Richard spasmed in pain, and clenched his teeth as he fell onto his hands. Lightning spasmed around his body, searing at his flesh, and tearing him apart from the inside out. He let out a string of coughs, and blood spattered the ground beneath him. He felt his arm and legs grow heavy, and the strain on his body was enough to kill a normal person. He took a deep breath, and raised his left arm. He slammed it into the ground and the asphalt cracked underneath his blow.
Richard picked himself up. His body screamed in retaliation, but he ignored it. He rolled his shoulders, and stretched his legs. The strain on his muscles was unreal, but not something he wasn't used to.
It wasn't smart of him to Flash to his destination. It was a new technique he had learned in Atlas, but the amount of energy required to transmute his flesh into pure lightning was taxing on the body, like all Archon abilities. If his Semblance relied on his aura to power it, like normal people, he might have made it ten feet. But Archons were special. Their Primal Semblances did not draw power from their soul, rather, every use of it physically strained the body. Which meant that it was very possible for Richard to kill himself if he pushed himself too far.
Still, he had to get here before Viola. He didn't want her to see what he was about to do. He didn't want her to see how twisted he had become. Richard would slaughter every damn Inquisitor in the city if it meant tracking her down. And he didn't care what methods he would have to use. If he had to electrocute someone to death, he would. If he had to dismember someone, he would. If he had to consume someone's electrical energy, a very painful and sinister technique, then so be it. He had thrown his morals out the window a long time ago.
A large metal cargo door loomed before Richard. The power line lead to a very large garage, one he was sure had a secret basement of some sort. Either way, there was definitely a generator in the area. Richard closed his eyes, and knelt to the ground again. He could feel the excited movement of electricity directly below him. This was definitely some sort of safe house.
He got back up. The metal cargo door looked reinforced. Not even a truck could drive though it. Good thing it was made of iron. Richard reached forward with both hands. He felt the positive magnetic pull of the iron, and used his electricity to create a large web of negatively charged ions, or anions.
They heavy metal door creaked, and dents began to form from the inside, as if someone behind the door punched it forward. Richard took a deep breath and increased the pull of his electromagnetism. His back spasmed and his legs nearly gave out.
The door finally lurched from its position, and clattered to the ground with a massive bang. Three men with red eyes and snow white hair starred Richard down. All of them were armed with swords.
"It's the Archon of Lightning!" The first Inquisitor exclaimed.
"Let's get the others!" The second one yelled.
"Nah we can take him ourselves! Think about the reward we'll get when we bring Schnee the head of Richard Prey!" The third one boasted.
'So they know me by sight? I must have really pissed Schnee off.'
The man closest to Richard charged. His blade swung down on Richard, who raised his left arm to block it. There was a ring of metal hitting metal, and the man's eyes widened in surprise. Richard grabbed him by the throat with his right hand and electrocuted him to death by pumping 300 milliamps into his body. His heart nearly exploded.
The next two were smart enough to charge Richard together. The first one attempted a diagonal slash, which Richard blocked by unsheathing his sword. The second one moved to his left side, and attempted his cut at the back of his knee. Richard sidestepped to the right, and forced the first Inquisitor to pull his blade away.
Inquisitor Two followed his missed strike up with a stab, that Richard once again sidestepped. The man was unable to stop his momentum, so Richard kicked his foot out and tripped the him. Inquisitor One jumped forward and came down with an overhead blow. Richard simply jumped back and the Inquisitors sword clanged harmlessly on the ground. That was when Richard made his move.
He shot forward, and thrusted his sword out in front of him. It buried itself in the first Inquisitors gut.
"Tell me, why do you Inquisitors sacrifice your aura? I bet you feel like an idiot now."
Richard taunted the man, before ripping his blade out of the man's gut.
Inquisitor Two screamed in rage. Back on his feet, the man gripped his sword in two hands and swung furiously at Richard.
"I'll kill you, you Archon bastard!"
Richard parried the sword upward, and quickly slashed in front of him. The tip of the blade cut right through the neck, and Inquisitor Two was dead before he hit the ground.
"To think I can kill three of you effortlessly, even as drained as I am now," Richard softly spoke to himself.
He looked forward into the dark garage. Many more Inquisitors were going to die today.
Richard was done getting kicked around.
He would find her, and she would answer for everything.
Whatever the cost.
So, that's the first rewrite. Sorry it took so long. I don't have much else to say this time around, except I'm getting started on the rewrite of the second prologue.
Thanks for reading guys!
