Ch12: A day in town

(Saturday, D+23)

Yang and Ruby were busy with schoolwork and studying, so I decided to spend the day in Vale.

Most of the day had been spent wandering around the city and visiting various shops, not really buying anything, but just trying to get a feel for the culture and the world itself. And (figuratively) drooling over the massive range of weapons and ammunition available to the general public.

Currently I was walking towards Tuckson's store; I had a new project in mind and wanted information on Dust.

"Hey! You! Freak!" I hear, as a large man jumps out in front of me, interrupting my thoughts on my new project. "Gimme your money!" He says threateningly, brandishing a large knife.

'Are you mugging me?" I ask innocently, 'Time for fun, comrade.'

"Of course I am you stupid animal! Now gimme your money!" He says, irritated by my nonchalance.

"There is one thing you should know, comrade." I say, using a VERY bad Russian accent, "In Soviet Russia," *BAMF* "I mug YOU!" I shout, bamf-ing behind him and drawing Marxman, flicking off the safety. "Now run along and I won't call the cops." I say, my voice suddenly quite commanding.

"A-alright man, please don't kill me man, I got a family!" The man stutters, afraid for his life.

"So does everyone else. Remember that. Now leave before I change my mind." I order the man.

He does the smart thing and runs, knocking over a few of the stunned civilians who had gathered nearby.

I dramatically holster the pistol after flicking off the safety, returning Marxman to it's place on my hip.

"Move along, nothing to see here." I say, moving on towards the book store.

"That took courage, not many of our brothers and sisters tend to stand up for themselves." A man says from next to me.'Waitaminute.' I think, 'I know that voice from somewhere.'

I look to my left to see, 'Well then.' A bull faunus in a black suit with red accents.

"It doesn't take much courage to bamf behind a guy and draw a gun. You just have to stay calm and analyze the situation. Plus, he brought a knife to a gunfight. that doesn't usually work out well." I say.

"But you stood up for yourself. That's what matters. show them we're not just spineless animals. Where are you headed to?" He asked. 'Alert! Alert! Paranoia senses tingling!'.

"Who wants to know?" I ask, bemusedly.

"Adam Taurus."

"And Blake Belladonna." someone says from right behind me.

"ACH!" *BAMF* I shouted out in surprise and bamf'd about three yards behind where I was.

"Nice job Blake, you scared off a potential recruit. Again." Adam said jokingly, although with a hint of irritation.

"What do you mean 'recruit'?" I ask from about five feet behind them.

They both whirl around, with the speed of those whose reflexes have been honed by combat.

"Nothing." Adam says. ' :I '

"Alright then." I say, before whipping out Anne, striking a dramatic pose with Anne pointed towards Tuckson's, "ONWARDS!" *BAMF*
"Where'd you come from?" Tuckson asks, surprisingly calm about my entrance to his shop.

"I can teleport."

"Alright then, anything you need?"

"Anything on Dust manipulation or explosives?" I ask.

Tuckson lists off a few titles and points me towards them.

I put on earbuds, take out my scroll and select one of my favorite authors.

*Cue Piano Man by Billy Joel*

"So sing us a song you're the piano man." I sing along under my breath, inspecting a book detailing the combat uses of Dust.

A few minutes later, still humming along to the music of Billy Joel and skimming a book on explosives, I barely made out the ringing of the bell above the door to the shop. I turned my head to see who it was entering the store.

'And theeeeyyy'rreee heeeerrrreee.' Blake and Adam walk in, chatting away about some topic or other. 'And now they've seen me.'

"Why hello there. Long time no see, eh?" I say after about a second.

"You know each other?" Tuckson asks, slightly confused.

"As of a few minutes ago." I say, leaving my earbuds in but turning off the music.

"We saw him fight off a mugger." Blake expanded.

"Are you alright?" Tuckson asks, slightly concerned.

"It wasn't much. Nobody got hurt." I said.

"Still, good job Kurt."

"So that's your name." Adam mused.

"Kurt Wagner, at your service." I said, bowing while removing my hat.

"A gentleman." Blake said.

"Not even close." I chuckle.

"So, what are you reading?" Blake asks.

"Book on the topic of explosives, utilizing dust and non-Dust substances." I say, coming across something familiar. 'When in doubt.'

"Why? Planning on building a bomb?" Adam asks, entirely serious.

"In a sense." I say, closing the book and picking up a couple of others I think will be helpful in creating a wonderful, wonderful… thing.

"So, Kurt, what are your opinions on the White Fang?" Adam asks me. 'Suspicious much?'

"Quite frankly, I can sympathize with the anger, the goal of ending Faunus discrimination is a noble one, but I can neither condone nor support their means for achieving those goals. All terrorism does is kill people." I say, as if I had no idea that literally every other person in the room was, by my definition, a terrorist.

"And here's the money." I tell Tuckson, grabbing my purchases and walking out, leaving no room for further conversation.

I walk a block or so before noticing a slight tingling sensation in my palms. 'That's never happened before.' I walked a bit further, before putting my HUD glasses on, having recently modified them with micro-cams designed to give me a view of what is behind me. 'Hello there. Seems a little kitty's decided to hunt.' I proceeded normally until I reached an intersection, before turning the corner and going flat against the wall. The sun was low in the sky and shadows were beginning to creep across the ground.

I did my best to use the slight shadows as concealment, aided by my usual black and darker-blue clothes.

As Blake walked past the corner, I took no small amount of pleasure at the look of surprise on her face when she saw me leaning casually on a wall.

"Fancy meeting you again." I say, twirling the C-100 in my left hand.

"Oh." Is all she manages.

"Why were you following me?" I ask, more bored and tired than angry.

"Adam wanted to know where you were going. To make sure you weren't a threat. You left in a hurry."

"I'm going home. Big hint, by the way, whenever a guy that can teleport is deciding to WALK somewhere after a conversation with three... dangerous individuals, DON'T follow him." I say, ostentatiously sheathing the C-100 while emphasizing Marxman. *BAMF*

"Hey, Ruby, how'd your day go?"