Setting: Ebony's Airship
Ebony and Zinnia stared at Clair curiously. The young woman walked into her cousin's airship and requested to speak with her, doing so with none of her enforcers by her side. The charming Vantablack remained silent as she gawked at Clair, after hearing her demand.
"I said I want to talk to you. Is that okay?" Clair asked a second time, snapping Ebony back from her lofty state.
"A-ah sure. What would you like to discuss?" Ebony asked, composing and bracing herself for whatever comes next. Clair flicked her eyes over at Zinnia and Ebony understood what it meant. "Zinnia, could you be a dear a give us the room? This is a family matter."
"Very well," Zinnia answered and walked out of the common area. She gave them the room, but Clair and Ebony could guess the Underland known as the Paragon was nearby in case, she was needed.
Clair took a seat on a chair on the other side of the coffee table and facing Ebony. Her face was still unreadable to Ebony and she didn't like being unable to assess the situation and plan out the outcome: a true Vantablack trait.
"You work for the kingdom now? Congratulations," was the first thing Clair said to her cousin and it was genuine. "It's rare to find people who find work like that so quickly. I'm very impressed."
"…Thank you," Ebony responded, "It means a lot coming from you." She smiled and Clair smiled back.
These two were trying to speak with one another on a familial level. This appeared to be a normal conversation among cousins to some random stranger, but the smallest bit of tension still lingered in the air.
"Though, I wouldn't say I'm working for the kingdom. It's more like I'm working alongside them for the time being."
"A temporary partnership?" Clair asked.
"Can't stay here forever," Ebony retorted with a sly smirk before sipping her drink.
"If you plan on leaving, does that mean you'll be taking Blood along with you?"
"Ah… That's the reason you're here."
"It's one of the questions I've been wondering about," Clair admitted.
"I see. First off, the answer to your first question is a complete unknown. I don't know how long I'll stay in Vacuo nor what happens between that time. There is a condition to break him from out agreement, but I won't tell you," Ebony said the last part quickly when she saw Clair about to ask. "It's cheating if I tell you." She smiled coyly.
Clair silently agreed to that and asked her second question: "We had the same goal today, but that won't be the case forever. What do you plan to do with me?"
"Nothing," Ebony answered quickly.
"I have a hard time believing that after what you did to Fortuna and what you did with Violet. It's hard not to see you as a potential enemy," Clair answered back with a slight edge in her voice.
"We both know I'm not the reason for Fortuna's end, but I'm also not blameless. Please remember this: I am not Carabosse. I have no desire to seek your misery or to go out of my way to harm you. And I took Violet away to protect her, the rest of her team, and you. If word got out that VRSZ was still with you after the destruction of Fortuna, Grayson and his Ravagers would search for them and try to kill them, not caring who dies along with them. During the time VRSZ was in Atlas, did you ever encounter the Ravagers before today?"
Ebony answered the first question truthfully, but she was partially lying about the second part. Mixing fact with fiction made the lie harder to discern, even for Clair. The Lady of Nexus believed her cousin's answer because it made sense to her.
"When I was in Atlas, I met with the other members of my family. They had nothing but praise for you. After hearing about everything you've done, you've earned my respect."
Clair looked into Ebony's silver eyes and could tell her statement was true. It was…unexpected. She was not prepared to hear that.
"I want to make sure you know this because we're going to be butting heads in the future. Our jobs are going to force us to butt heads, so I needed that out in the open, okay?" Ebony said and it seemed like she was a little embarrassed saying it out loud. Her face was a little red and she refused to look Clair in the eye. This behavior actually made Clair chuckle a little bit.
The little tension remaining in the room was vanishing. The Vantablack cousins were having a nice time together. Neither of them knew how many of these moments they'll have again.
"It's my turn to ask you a question. What do you plan to do about the Ravagers?" Ebony asked.
Clair's smiled shifted to a flat line in an instant. Just mentioning the name seemed to be a taboo. "I plan on killing Grayson. That's all." Her answer was very brief and simple. Too simple for someone like Clair.
Ebony arched an eyebrow at her answer. This was a very different way of thinking Clair was known for. The charming Vantablack was about to speak against her plan, but her eyes widened and she stopped herself.
She just thought of a plan. A meticulous plan that would ensure her goal, but it would anger Clair greatly. It didn't take her long to decide to accomplish her dream was more important than Clair's temporary anger. It had to be done.
"Please be careful. Grayson and his team have become a real threat to everyone," Ebony said, choosing to let Clair have her vendetta. Her cousin nodded and they were silent. What else was left to be said?
"Can I ask you one more thing before I go?" Clair asked.
"Anything."
"Why are you trying so hard to be remembered?" This question made Ebony visibly uncomfortable. She squirmed a little bit in her seat and scratched her head before saying anything. Clair watched her and wondered if she shouldn't have asked. It didn't seem like a hard question.
"Before our aunt found me, I had no idea I was part of the Vantablack family. My parents wanted to leave their past behind them and start a new life. During that time, I read about legends of Huntsmen and Huntresses and how people praised them. Death couldn't stop them from remaining in this world. I want that. No one can't stop themselves from dying and I want to be forgotten. I want my life to have an impact strong enough for people to keep me in their minds. I can continue to live on through them."
Clair was surprised, but she kept it hidden behind a neutral face. She reacted this way because she found Ebony's motives to be true and very common. A lot of people are afraid of dying and being forgotten. This was a natural fear and Ebony was trying to overcome it. Clair had a better understanding of her cousin.
"Please say something," Ebony was blushing from embarrassment again, "You're making my dream sound kind of lame when you don't respond."
"No… there's nothing wrong with what you want. I'm just realizing that" Clair chuckled. She rose up from her seat and said, "Thanks for taking the time to talk with me, especially after everything that has happened today. My heads a little clearer now."
"Happy to hear it," Ebony said then smiled.
With their conversation over, Clair walked out of the common area. It was time for her and her party to return home.
"Clair," Ebony called out when her cousin was at the common area's doorway. "Our titles are going to force us to sometimes fight each other." Clair understood that well.
"And because of that, there's I need to tell you,"
The Lady of Nexus looked at the charming Vantablack, waiting to hear her parting words.
"…Be ready," Ebony told Clair with resolve and a smile. Her face showed she meant it and was prepared for whatever outcome was laid out for them. To say Clair was astounded by Ebony's bravado was an understatement, however, it didn't scare her one bit.
"I welcome the challenge." Clair smiled back at Ebony before leaving. Both parties departed Corona to return to their respective homes.
Clair de Lune Vantablack. Ebony Vantablack. The rivalry between them begins now.
Setting: City of Thieves
The fractured moon was in the night sky, illuminating the vast desert, making the ruined city almost look beautiful. It was around nightfall when Grayson and Shiranui returned to their base. The two entered the destroyed building of Concordia and Grayson kicked a rock out of anger. The small stone flew across the room and smacked into a wall. The fox faunus glanced over at his friend, noticing how angry he was with today's outcome. Not only were they forced to flee, but Alexandrite abandoned them with ease.
"Grayson," Shiranui called out, hoping to find a way to calm him down. Grayson was still fuming and threw his grapple sword in rage. It stabbed into a stone pillar and remained there. He turned to Shiranui with a scowl.
"We're going to kill that backstabbing bitch! Sooner or later, she's dead."
"Maybe we should take a step back first and-"
"Alexandrite betrayed us and we ran away! Alexandrite and Royal are going to get what's coming to them!" he said furiously, but Shiranui wasn't standing down.
"I'm aware. I'm not saying we let it go... we take our time and make a plan. It's already proven that we can't go in and start attacking. We'll find a way to take them out, just not now." Shiranui's words didn't quell Grayson's anger completely, but he was more composed than before. He realized that his partner was right about favoring strategy over being rash.
Before Grayson could say anything, someone entered the building. Shiranui had his lantern whip ready and Grayson believed he found someone to unleash his remaining anger on, but that changed when he recognized who walked in. The person of interest was Vago. This was someone Shiranui didn't know and he was someone Grayson wasn't expecting to see again.
"This is a surprise," Grayson said. His familiar tone told Shiranui that Grayson knew this person. He lowered his weapon as they resumed their conversation.
"I told you I wouldn't come back unless I got something you want," Vago bragged, strutting toward Grayson like he was untouchable. This didn't go unnoticed by the others.
"And it better be worth my time. I've kind of had a bad day and I don't have time to deal with nonsense." What did you get me?"
"Information," Vago answered. "I learned about something that'll interest you greatly." Vago was clearly milking this and Grayson had enough of it.
"Are you gonna say it or am I gonna-"
"Team VRSZ is back," Vago interrupted, "I ran into a few of them earlier today." Grayson was silent after he heard those words. He never imagined he'd hear about them again. They've been gone for months and now they're back. How long have they been back? Were they coming for revenge? These thoughts and several others plagued his mind while he was visibly unnerved.
Shiranui watched how Grayson reacted to this news and wondered what he was thinking. He always had a fixation on VRSZ, especially Violet, which could alter his decision making. He told the fox faunus weeks ago that he planned to return to Mistral and work as a professional mercenary after cleaning up some loose ends. Team VRSZ was Grayson's biggest loose end. There was no way he was going to leave while they were still around. It would look like they ran him out of Vacuo which would ruin his reputation once he reached Mistral.
Vago just observed Grayson, waiting to hear if he was part of the Ravagers. He couldn't care less how Grayson felt. He just wanted to be a part of the team. "Can I take your silence as a welcome? Am I in or what? I went through a lot to get this information."
Grayson was still quiet, but he was on the move. He was walking to a random chair in the abandoned office building. "Congratulations. You are officially a member of the Ravagers, he said as he walked to a chair. Vago grinned to himself. Shiranui was weary of the recent recruit, but he also realized they are in need of more members. Even with Alexandrite, they were understaffed now that they controlled a city and they need more, much more. Grayson sat in his chair and looked grimly at Shiranui and Vago.
"Where is VRSZ?"
