In response to Emiliano733 there is no need to fear, I will not be sticking Midas onto an existing team as a fifth member, while I have nothing against stories who do it just seems a touch forced to me. I will not be making a team of OC's either, trying to write one compelling character is hard enough without trying to write four of them. What am I doing for his team? Well you're just going to have to keep on reading and find out. Anyway without further ado here is chapter 3 of A World Full of Grimm, enjoy.
I shouldn't have gone along with it. It seemed like a solid plan at the time, pretend to leave the area and lie in wait to see if the bandits took the bait. It even worked, without a Huntsman in the village they had attacked within days. Of course, the Schnee plane went and fucked it all up.
"What a disaster" I didn't bother turning to look as Leo's old second in command, Pine I think his name was, walked up beside me. "We just finished clearing the last of the buildings, no new survivors" I didn't need to see him to know how he looked, the tightness in his voice gave everything away.
"What's the final count?"
"Out of the four hundred and eight residents and sixteen travellers who were here yesterday eighty-seven remain. Would have been less if you hadn't come when you did and for that the entire town, what's left of it, owes you a huge debt Rusty."
"Just doing my job" I hated being complimented. People thanking me while we stood in the ruins of their homes always made the words ring false in my ears, no matter how much they meant them. Finally turning to look at the older man next to me I noted how gaunt he looked, face taunt beneath the soot. This had to be the part I hated the most, talking to the victims. "Lose anyone?"
"No" he shook his head "Old bachelor for life I'm afraid. I've seen too many people die to try and start a family."
I grunted in agreement, it was a sentiment many Huntsman shared. After seeing the horrors of the world it seemed cruel to bring a child into it.
"Mayors dead, Leo's dead, makes you the leader now doesn't it."
"Seems that way. Speaking of Leo how's Midas doing."
"Still asleep, Aura depletion takes it out of you."
"To be frank I'm surprised he survived at all considering how close he was too the blast. I'd sent him a fair while before the explosion so he must have been practically next to it." There was guilt mixed with concern in his voice. Must have felt bad that his order nearly killed the lad.
"When I dragged him out he felt heavy, more than he should have. I'd guess he unlocked him semblance and it saved him. Don't worry about him, kid's tough, he'll be fine." He didn't respond and I could see him surveying the area out of the corner of my eye.
"What's the plan, rebuild?" I asked. Some towns try to rebuild on the ruins of their old one, after all, land safe from the Grimm was a rare and valuable commodity, not something that can be given up just over respect for the dead. He shook his head.
"Others might but not us. I just got off the scroll with a representative from the Schnee Dust Company. The fact their people had a hand in this has made them nervous and they're sending planes to collect the survivors and take us to Vale to meet some big wig from the company. In the meantime, we've been advised to not talk to anyone outside the company until it's been properly "investigated"."
A sound of disgust left my mouth. Dust companies destroying settlements was not uncommon, made sense considering how volatile their cargo could be. Whether it was a mining accident or cargo breach the plan of containment was always the same. Scoop up the survivors, make a show of how sorry they were, compensate them for their losses, and all the while subtly make threats that their goodwill would be retracted if anyone talked to the press. The cost of resettling a few survivors was nothing compared to the bad publicity that would come if the incidents were leaked to the public. No one had much of a choice either. Mostly the people left after the accidents had lost everything and needed the company's money to survive, something the companies knew and exploited ruthlessly. There were few things more disgusting then dust companies in my opinion.
Pine nodded besides me. "I know but we really don't have a choice, the most valuable thing to survive the fire was that and even it's ruined." He said pointing to the long bundle tied to my back. At the thought of what it contained my already low mood plummeted. Taking a glance at the setting sun I sighed.
"Time for me to take over guarding the pass. The Grimm are going to be active tonight."
"Planes should be here mid-day tomorrow. Are you coming with us?"
Nodding, I turned my gaze to the small shelters which had been erected to house the remaining residents of the town.
"I will be, I have a promise to keep."
Not giving him time to ask what I moved off. In the distance a Beowolf howled. It was going to be a long night.
Vale seemed... dull. I thought when I finally arrived at Vale it would be a triumphant moment, seventeen long years of hard work culminating in my successful entry to Beacon academy. Now all the grey stone and white walls did was make me long for the greenery of my destroyed home. The fact we were in a Schnee facility probably didn't help, for a company which sold coloured crystals they seemed oddly against anything not white.
I couldn't bring myself to listen to the man in the, you guessed it, white suit drone on about how sorry the SDC was about what had happened and how we could all rest easy now that they were going to take care of everything. Even barely paying attention I could tell how rehearsed and false his words were, to give them my undivided attention would have been an insult to everyone we lost, including my parents.
Losing them had been hard, but not as hard as it could have been seeing as, as morbid as it was, I had practise mourning dead parental figures. My previous life wasn't exactly a happy one, the fact that I had died so early was a testament to that, and since coming to this world I'd made a conscious effort not to dwell on it, however, I will admit that it did give me a certain emotional resilience that came in handy on occasions like this. I couldn't claim to be unaffected, the tight throbbing in my chest every time I realised I would never see them again could attest to this, but knowing what I was feeling was normal and that things would get better eventually made bearing it a bit easier.
Pulling my attention away from my thoughts I turned to face the man in white as he finished his speech and made his way through the crowd, stopping and offering what was no doubt heartfelt personal condolences to each and every survivor. The sincerity of his actions was slightly dampened as between each person his assistant would consult her pad before sliding up and whispering in his ear, probably supplying the personal information of the next person in line. I couldn't help but shake my head in disgust, they really had this down to a science didn't they. As he neared me I tried to school my features into a neutral expression, after all no matter how much they were helping us out of self-interest they were still helping us and it wouldn't do to bite the hand that fed you.
Of course, this sentiment went out the window a moment later when he walked in front of me, crouched down (I was only a few inches shorter), put on what he no doubt thought was a reassuring smile and said "Hey there buddy."
Let me run you through a few items from my list of top ten things I dislike. In no particular order it goes:
Bandits (Newly added).
People who treat me like a child.
Anddddd
People who call me buddy.
It was irrational, I knew they were just trying to be friendly, but I found the word buddy to be incredibly condescending. You didn't call your friends buddy, you called people you were talking down to buddy.
A part of me was impressed he managed to hit two of the list within the first second of meeting me but the majority was filled with irritation as any chance I had of getting along with this person shrivelled up and died. Oblivious, the man charged on.
"I just want you to know you're being very brave and I'm sure your parents would be proud of you." Come on man I was thirteen not three. Letting a little of my irritation bubble to the surface I replied.
"I guess we'll never know, seeing as they are dead and all." My mood improved dramatically watching his face go from phony comforting smile to genuine discomfort in an instant. Seemingly lost for words for a moment his assistant came to the save, leaning forward to whisper in his ear. Once she was done his fake smile oozed back onto his face and he leaned towards me once more.
"Your leader told us you fought with them to protect your people" he said, motioning to where Pine was standing. "That was very brave, you must be strong for your age."
"Obviously not strong enough seeing as my home was destroyed. If I'd managed to kill a few more of them then maybe this wouldn't have happened." I will admit watching his smile go brittle and his assistant actually recoil was morbidly funny. It was wrong, I knew, but everyone had their ways of coping and apparently, mine was fucking with people attempting to comfort me.
Trying to drag the conversation back into more comfortable ground the man tried again.
"You know we at the SDC have a lot of ties to various combat schools throughout Remnant, perhaps we could see about getting you accepted into one of those, what do you say?"
That was... actually very tempting. I hadn't really put any thought into what I was going to do between now and Beacon, and between the move to Vale and all the activity I hadn't had a chance to discuss it with any of the other towns people or Rusty. I could probably get into any combat school easily enough on my own but having SDC backing would go a long way in making the process quicker and smoother. Opening my mouth to reply I was cut off by a familiar rumbling voice behind me.
"Before he answers do you mind if I borrow him for a minute?"
Standing straight the SDC man smiled. "Of course not Huntsman Lock." Turning back to me he said "When you've finished come find me and we can talk about your future, ok buddy?" Turning away before I could reply he missed me flipping him off but from the scandalized look on his assistant's face I'd say she didn't.
Ducking under a smack to the head from Rusty I spun around to face him, noting the signs of amusements I had come to recognise in the time I had known him.
"What's up?" I hadn't seen much of him since I woke up, me being busy casing the town for anything of value to take with us when we left and him guarding the pass to keep out the Grimm drawn by the tragedy.
"It never really came up but your dad made me your godfather before you were born, I'm kind of responsible for you now."
"Wow Rust, no need to sound so thrilled." I deadpanned.
"Shut it. You've got a choice now. Either take the SDC's guy offer, get a scholarship, got to combat school or you can come live with me in Vacuo." I tried to get a read of his face. If I were him I would be wanting me to go to combat school, after all he lived the life of a Huntsman and couldn't afford to be tied down by having to look after a kid. Voicing this I asked.
"Aren't I going to interfere with your work?" Shifting on the spot he replied.
"I was thinking of taking you on as an apprentice."
"Apprentice?" I hadn't heard of this before.
"You'd be allowed to receive personal training from me as well as come along on some of my easier missions. I can't train you unless it's made official, the council like to keep track of everyone receiving Huntsman training." I'd made up my mind before he even finished speaking. Personal training from an experienced Huntsman and the opportunity to go on actual missions trumped anything a combat school could ever offer me by an enormous margin.
"Well then look like you're stuck with me Rust. So, what do I call you now, uncle Rusty? Godfather? Goddad? Big G?"
"I wouldn't get too mouthy brat, you belong to me now. Get your stuff and say your goodbyes, we're heading out later today."
"You got it Big G, I'm going to go tell that SDC guy to shove it and I'll be back in a few." Laughing as I walked away I couldn't help but laugh harder when my Faunus hearing caught him muttering "I'm going to regret this."
A dull thud rang out as my head impacted another low hanging sign. Inheriting even a fraction of my father's immense height had both its perks and its drawbacks but as I navigated my way through a street clearly made for people at least a foot shorter than me I couldn't for the life of me remember what any of those perks were.
"I fucking hate this place" I growled to my companion as he hurried along beside me, passing under the signs with ease. I truly did. It wasn't just the low signs which earned my ire, a lot of things about the slums of Vacuo pissed me off. From the narrow, filthy streets, to the loud, pushy merchants who were still trying to peddle their wares even as the sun sank below the horizon, the slums were not a pleasant place to be. This would make most wonder why they were here but unfortunately, I had a physical reminder in the form of an old man puffing alongside me, struggling to keep up with my long steps. It was because my stupid, big, soft heart, couldn't turn away a person in need even if they couldn't FUCKING PAY ME. Yes, I was in a bad mood, and I knew it, but sue me, I was working pro bono for a job which could have made me thousands. I deserved to grumble a bit.
"Mr King, Mr King, that is the place." My companions voice pulled me from my thoughts.
"Again, Mr Dan, you don't have to call me Mr King. I'm sixteen, call me Midas." I already knew what his reply would be, he had been doing this since I agreed to take the job for him.
"I can't do that Mr King, I owe you far too much!"
People from Vacuo were weird. While they seemed like a wild bunch on the surface they all shared a deep sense of community, loyalty, and respect for those who helped them. If I had to guess I would say this came from the days when they wandered the desert in nomadic tribes, where they had to work together to survive the harsh environment and the kindness of a stranger could mean the difference between life and death. Regardless, while most of the time I found this admirable at this moment it was beginning to irritate me so I decided to move things along.
"Are those your friends down there?" I asked, motioning to a group of men and women huddled together further down the street.
"Yes that is them Mr King!" The dark-skinned man answered eagerly.
"Alright, you all stay out here until I've finished clearing out the building. Once I'm done I'll call you in. Don't come before that." I ordered.
"Yes Mr King I understand." Sparing him one last glance to make sure he wouldn't follow I strode towards the door of the building that he had indicated.
As I neared the man who had been leaning next to it rose and walked a couple of paces towards me.
"Fuck off kid before you get hurt." He snarled in what he no doubt though what an intimidating manner. Having decided my patience had officially run out I shot forward and slammed my fist into his face. Now I'm no sadist but I will admit there is something immensely satisfying about breaking a bad guys nose. It's even more satisfying to watch them go flying backwards and, in this case, smash through the door they were meant to be protecting. Following the thug I had just used as an impromptu battering ram through the now open doorway I was greeted by the sight of four men sitting on a couch gawking at their unconscious friend. Upon seeing me they began scrabbling for their weapons, clearly taken off guard. In the interest of ending this as quickly as possible I picked up their friend from where he lay in the ruins of the door and without warning hurled him at them. Predictably, two of them stopped reaching for their weapons and instead tried to catch my human missile. Capitalising on this I leapt forward, this time letting lose two quick jabs which had them joining the man they were holding in la la land. Ducking under a clumsy swing from one of my two remaining targets I caught him in the jaw with an uppercut, taking him off his feet before delivering a crushing back-kick to the now only remaining conscious member of the four, winding him badly.
Pausing to congratulate myself on clearing the room in under ten seconds I walked over and pulled the last thug to his feet. His scream made it clear my kick had hurt him pretty badly, maybe broken a few ribs, but unfortunately for him I was fresh out of sympathy for kidnapping scum.
"Where is your boss?" I demanded, making sure to keep my voice calm and even. I'd come to find that yelling only freaked them out and made it harder for them to answer.
"I don't know who you're tal- ahhh!" His reply changed into a scream as hammered a quick blow into where I had kicked him.
"Wrong answer, let's try again. Where is your boss?"
"Please, he'll hurt m- ahhhhh!" Again, I struck his chest, harder this time. Was what I doing wrong? Yes. Was it necessary? Also yes. Making sure to stare right into his eyes I asked once more.
"Where. Is. Your. Boss?" Through the tears I could see the fear in his eyes. As much as it disgusted me it was actually the desired effect, the only way he was ever going to rat his boss out is if he feared me more than him.
Pulling back my arm to deliver another strike my instincts suddenly screamed at me to get down. Having learned to trust them after long years of training and missions I ducked just in time for something to whistle over my head. Ditching the guy I was interrogating I rolled to the side, grabbing one of the thugs discarded weapons as I went. Coming out of the roll I straightened and caught the incoming cleaver like blade on the club I had just acquired.
"Ah" I said in satisfaction, seeing the wielder of the blade to be my target. "There you are."
He backed off wearily, clearly less confident now he couldn't take me by surprise.
"Who are you" he asked, voice rough. Ignoring his question, I stared him in the eye.
"Where are the children?" I asked in return.
"What childr-" I shot forward, swinging my borrowed weapon at him with blinding speed. Clearly he had training as he was able to put his blade between himself and the club, but clearly it wasn't very good training as a moment later the club ploughed through his blade, shattering the cheap metal and impacted him in the side. Dropping the now unnecessary weapon I stalked over to where he lay gasping for breath.
"The children you kidnapped when their parents refused to pay you protection money. Remember, those children." I pulled him to his feet. I knew he was only winded as I had caught the distinctive flare of exhausted Aura as he impacted the wall. At a guess I would say this guy had attended a combat school and flunked out before turning to a life of crime using the few skills he had picked up. Pushing the issue from my mind I lazily leant back to avoid his last-ditch attack before responding with a kick to the knee, shattering the joint. Putting my hand over his mouth to muffle the screams I waited until he returned to silence.
"I'm going to let go now and here is what is going to happen. You're going to tell me where the children are or I'm going to break your other knee. If you refuse than after that I'll break your arms. If you still refuse than I'll just have to continue until I've broken every bone in your body, then I'll break them twice. Understand?"
He remained silent, staring up at me with huge, terrified eyes. Shaking him roughly I demanded "Nod if you understand."
A frantic head nod followed.
"Very good"
My hand had barely cleared his mouth when words started pouring out.
"They're in a room under the hatch in the room behind me please don't hurt me anymore plea-" Slamming a fist into the side of his head I knocked him out and tossed him aside. Walking into the room I quickly located the hatch and, seeing it was locked, tore it from the floor. Turning on the light of my scroll I peered down into the hole to see seven tiny faces staring up at me. That was them all right. I called down.
"I'm going to get your parents I'll be right back."
Hurrying outside I called to where I had left Mr Dan and the rest waiting, motioning for them to follow me in. Leading them to the correct room I left them alone to help the children out while I went and stood guard over the unconscious bodies of the kidnappers. I hated dealing with children, hated it when I was one, hated it now.
After many tears and cries of Papa! and Mama! which I'm sure would have warmed the heart of anyone not me, the parents left with many promising favours I never intended to cash in, leaving me with the guy I only knew as Mr Dan and a tiny girl that must have been his daughter.
"You have done us a great service Mr King" he said softly, patting the head of his daughter. "I wish there was some way to repay you."
Contrary to what I felt I answered.
"Your thanks is payment enough. Now go, I've got to get these guys to the police."
"Thank you, thank you, you are a true hero." With that he hurried out the door, daughter in his arms.
I watched him go, waited for the night to swallow him before snorting softly. Gathering the unconscious criminals I dragged them into the back room and closed the door behind me. The five thugs I would let go. They were just poor people in a bad situation, most likely they would take this as a warning not to take up a life of crime and go back to doing whatever it was they did before they'd been recruited into this little scheme. The head honcho however...
Picking up the shattered remains of his blade I walked over to where I had thrown him on the floor. When the others awoke they would probably stuff him down the hole and run for it, not wanting to get the police involved. In the end, it didn't really matter as long as it never came back to me, which I knew it wouldn't. As I raised the blade over his bare throat I couldn't help but snort one more time.
"Yeah, I'm a real fucking hero."
Being accepted into Beacon academy was a lot easier than I expected it to be. A completed application form, a few good words from my trainer/master/godfather and a two-week waiting period was all that was required for me to receive my acceptance letter and instructions on when and where to go. I used to think that there was no way Jaune had managed to fake his way in on his own, that Ozpin must have seen some potential or some rubbish in him and accepted him anyway. Now I thought they just had a really terrible screening process and a particularly crafty dog (Zwei I'm thinking of you here) could trick his way in. I shouldn't be too surprised though, with the mortality rate of the job they couldn't exactly afford to be picky about who they let in, not when more Huntsman and Huntresses were always needed. And I suppose that was what initiation was for, to weed out the weak and unskilled.
I'd decided to come to Vale a few days early for a few reasons. The first was that it probably would have been sad to say goodbye to Rusty so I decided to skip it all together by running out a few days earlier than planned taking only my clothes, weapons, money, and a sizeable chunk of his alcohol cabinet. He'd probably already followed me here, if not to kick my arse for leaving without saying goodbye than to get his booze back.
The second reason I'd come ahead of schedule was currently strolling down the street in front of me. I wasn't entirely sure how you manage to make walking look arrogant but somehow Roman Torchwick nailed it. Surprisingly looking almost spot on from the show (I'd thought the mascara had to be fake), Roman and his band of Rent-A-Goons were approaching a shop rather cleverly named From Dust Till Dawn, which, if my memory hadn't failed me from all those knocks to the head I'd received from Rusty's 'training', contained a little girl wearing a red hood. Pausing as I watched Roman walk into the store I couldn't keep a small excited smile from coming to the surface. Seventeen years of fighting, training, surviving, all would start coming together in this moment.
Drawing my weapon from where I kept it on my back I gave the mechanism's one last inspection before shifting it into its extended form. As a suit clad goon came flying out the window followed by a red blur I couldn't help but let the excited smile slide into something a bit more vicious. This was going to be fun.
"- and as much as I'd love to stick around -" The world blurred as I shot towards him. Having spent my life training under two immense men for whom speed had always been a problem I'd come to have a healthy aversion to purely power and strength based fighting styles. My height and choice of weapon would have most people assume I was some kind of tank, capable of massive damage but slower than dirt, however while I came in just over 6.6ft with some growing left in me I'd spent countless hours training making sure I would never be lacking in terms of speed. Muscular but not bulky, I had the strength necessary to wield the immense blade I'd built while long, powerful legs and finely honed speed and flexibility gained from my faunus heritage meant that I could move with the best of them. Topped off with foregoing any armour besides bronze coloured bracers on my forearms all in all, when it came down to it, I was fast. Something Roman Torchwick was learning right now.
Closing the distance between us in an instant I bought my sword down in a crushing overhead blow, hoping to score an early hit and put him on the defence. Unfortunately, it seemed like he was expecting another person to enter the fray as without a moment's hesitation he threw himself to the side, leaving me to turn the spot he'd been standing into dust and shards of concrete. Catching a glimmer of red moving through the dust in front of me I lashed out, battering the red Dust crystal to the side just in time to catch the shot which had been following on the flat of my blade. The world lit up as whatever he fired exploded on my guard, however without the added power of the crystal all it could do was push me back slightly. When you'd been trained by a man who could split an Ursa Major with a single strike you learned to take a hit.
Hearing a shrill battle cry, which could only be Ruby's, followed by a loud bang I dug my feet into the ruins of the sidewalk and shot forward again, exiting the cloud of dust and smoke only to stop and twist my body in a dodge which would have broken a less flexible man's spine as an enormous red and black scythe flew through the space my head had previously occupied. Making a split-second decision I reached out and grabbed the girl attached to said scythe, halting her impromptu flight. Dropping her back on her feet I didn't even get a chance to open my mouth before she shot away with a cry.
"He's getting away"
He was. Already he'd scaled the fire escape of the building and I knew we only had seconds before he boarded the Bullhead waiting for him there. Getting ready to give chase a splash of colour lying against the grey concrete caught my eye. Ah, I thought, perfect.
Have you ever done something you thought was awesome and immediately realised it was a terrible idea. Because as I clung to the outside of a Bullhead cockpit as it spiraled towards the empty street below I couldn't help but think that my so called perfect plan was not quite all I had imagined it to be.
Following Roman and Ruby up to the roof I had been met by the exact sight I'd been expecting. Ruby and Ms Goodwitch duelling a shadowy figure in red as Roman piloted the plane. I knew if I didn't intervene than within seconds he would get the unstable craft under control and make his escape. Not on my watch. I'd already holstered my sword on the climb, leaving my hands free as I extended my claws and sprinted towards the Bullhead. Passing Ruby and Goodwitch I ignoring their surprised and annoyed cries respectively and, not pausing to consider the insanity of what I was about to do, jumped off the edge of the roof. Metal screeched as the claws on my right hand dug into the frame of the cockpit glass, anchoring me in place. Inside, Roman looked both confused and smug, no doubt knowing that the glass separating us was strong enough to block bullets and that there was no way my claws could ever shear through it.
My claws sheared through it.
Heh, my semblance was pretty bad ass.
Carving away chucks of glass with every strike of my left hand I eventually managed to make a hole big enough for my purpose. Still holding on I pulled out the object I had scooped off the ground earlier; the red Dust crystal he had stolen from the store.
"Hey Roman" I called, speaking for the first time during the fight. "I think you dropped this".
In that moment, I knew that the expression of pure panic on his face as he scrambled to exit the cockpit would remain one of my fondest memories until the day I died. Dropping the crystal through the hole in the glass I whipped the collapsed form of my weapon off my back and lined it up with the hole, revealing, in the words of Ruby Rose, "It's also a gun".
A muffled whump followed by the screeching of metal was all that could be heard as the crystal detonated. The glass felt hot beneath my hand but thankfully held, something that could not be said for the control panel or any other part of the cockpit. I'd seen Roman exit a moment before the crystal exploded so he was probably fine but the Bullhead was toast.
The Bullhead I was currently on...
That was in the middle of Vale...
I'd screwed up.
Almost as if sensing my thoughts, the right engine cut out and I suddenly became a lot less concerned about the fate of Roman Torchwick and more concerned about the fate of Midas King. I'd live for sure but letting a Bullhead crash on top of me would hurt like a bitch. Oh, and property damage blah blah.
As I spiralled towards the ground I could nearly hear the telling off I would get when the entire craft began to come to a shuddering halt.
"Destroy the engine!" A voice called over the high-pitched whirl of the Bullheads remaining jet engine. Tracing the source of the voice I saw Ruby and Goodwitch standing at the edge of the roof I had just leapt off. As I saw Goodwitch's crop/wand thing pointed at the Bullhead and the strained expression on her face I realised what was happening. She'd caught the plane but the weight of it plus the force of the still operation engine was too much for her to handle. Digging my claws in I launched myself at the remaining engine, extending the sword still grasped in my left hand as I flew threw the air, before swinging it through the engine, cutting it in two.
Landing on the ground I spun and ran back to what was left of the plane just as it reached the ground. Tearing open the door I was greeted by an empty compartment, the occupants having fled during the commotion just as I expected them to do.
Sighing, I closed the door again. While it would have been nice to stop this here and now it had always been unlikely. I'd specifically gone after Roman in the encounter because I knew despite my years of training I was no match for Cinder and wouldn't be for a while yet.
The sound of footsteps pulled me from my thoughts as I turned to face the two women walking up behind me. Ruby looked worried but also excited, probably still riding that adrenaline high. Ms Goodwitch on the other hand, well she was probably what Ruby looked so worried about. Furious would be a good way to describe it. Deciding to high tail it out of there I went to take a few steps back only to have a force grab and lift me from the ground before I could move.
"Hold it right there." Wow she somehow managed to sound even stricter then in the show, that's impressive. "You're coming with me."
"To get a reward?" I guessed weakly.
I sighed as she ignored me and instead turned away to address the police officers who had only just arrived. Truly Vale's finest they were. Turning my head as much as my current bonds would allow I addressed my red hooded partner in crime.
"Hey Red, be a pal and help me get loose, I'll give you anything."
I sighed again as after an uncertain look she opted to emulate Ms Goodwitch and ignore me. As I hung in the middle of the street surrounded by cops and ruined pavement I couldn't help but think back to my thoughts earlier in the evening. So much for a fun night.
"Ahh what the hell Rusty that hurts."
After my godfather appeared Ruby had been escorted into a different interrogation room, leaving me alone with my clearly displeased mentor who'd spent the last couple of minutes trying to 'discipline' me.
"Good, I'm trying to slap some sense into you and maybe the pain means it's working" He said as he cuffed me on the back of the head again.
"This is cruel and unusual punishment, I'm calling police brutality." Stupid handcuffs meant I couldn't even dodge as his enormous hand impacted the back of my head again. To tell the truth it didn't really hurt, Aura could stop bullets after all, but it was super annoying.
"I'm not the police dumbass."
"But it's happening inside a police station so I'm pretty sure it counts"
"If I'm not a police officer than it can't be police brutality. This is just normal brutality."
A calm voice cut through our arguing.
"You're correct, Mr Lock, but it is still illegal so perhaps you could stop it while I am in the room."
So far, the show had been a great guide to this world. While it glossed over some of the darker, more gory details, the models and information it had provided were pretty much bang on. And while they had nailed the way Professor Ozpin looked and sounded they'd failed to convey his aura. Not his Aura, but the presence of the man, an overwhelming feeling of calmness and wisdom.
Of course, the effect was lessened on me because I knew just how badly he would screw up in the future but it was still impressive.
Taking a seat across from me I noticed he brought cookies for me too. Not seeing anyone moving to undo my cuffs I shrugged and with a quick application of my semblance I shattered them, freeing my arms. They'd only put normal metal handcuffs on me, not the special reinforced kind that was required for some Huntsman. Rubbing my wrist to help get the blood flowing I noted that Ozpin didn't look surprised by my sudden freedom.
"That's quite a semblance you have there, anyone not paying too much attention would mistake it for increased strength but it's not, is it."
I shrugged. No smart person explained exactly how their semblance worked, especially not in such a public setting. Sipping at his coffee he pushed the plate across. "Would you like a cookie?"
"Yes, thank you" I was pretty hungry, taking down planes could make you work up quite the appetite.
"So, Mr King, I understand you are to become a student of my school starting tomorrow." Munching on a cookie I nodded.
"Well you've certainly made quite the impression on one of your teachers, it's been a long time since I've seen Glynda that worked up before the school year has even begun. She even asked me to reconsider your application after the trouble you wrought."
That bitch. I know I'd made a bit of a mess but come on, no one even died. Seeing he was waiting for my reply I swallowed my mouthful of food.
"And are you, sir?"
I could feel Rusty's incredulous expression tunnelling through the back of my head. Respect wasn't really my thing but there was a lot on the line here.
"I am not, Mr King. While your execution could use work you ultimately tried to do the right thing, which counts for a lot in my book. However, if you don't mind, I have a question I would like you to answer."
Knowing I was off the hook helped me to relax a little and I leaned back in my chair.
"Shoot."
"Very well, it's been a long night so I'll be brief. Why do you wish to become a Huntsman."?
I asked without hesitation.
"To stop bad guys."
"Not to save people?" He asked.
"Stopping bad guys will save people." I shot back.
"There is an important distinction between the two and I feel like you know it."
I did, but it didn't change my answer.
Silence filled the room as Ozpin's eyes stared into mine. If I didn't already have a rough idea of what his semblance was I would have been worried he was reading my mind, but as it was I stared back unafraid.
A sigh broke the silence, followed by the scraping of a chair as Ozpin rose from his seat.
"It was a pleasure meeting you Mr King, I look forward to seeing you at Beacon tomorrow."
"The pleasure was all mine professor, I look forward to being there."
Nodding his head to Rusty he proceeded out the door, leaving me to think about what just happened.
"You idiot"
"Ahh bloody hell cut it out Rusty!"
Now I thought I had better clear some stuff up. While this chapter may have made him seem like a bit of a blood thirsty savage I'm not trying to make him like that, I'm just trying to convey that my iteration of the RWBY universe is a bit more brutal than other usually portray. In a universe where some people have super strength and a shield which protects them from harm it is not hard to imagine some would use that power for crime and stuff. Look at the DC and Marvel universes, 50% of the people who develop superpowers instantly become villains. And in such a universe were crime and negativity can draw the presence of blood thirsty monsters it would make sense to do away with such people permanently. Anyway let me know what you think and whether you agree or disagree in the comments. Seeya next time.