Slightly shorter chapter this week, ~4k words, but this is most likely going to be the usual chapter length in the coming weeks, I'm about to be really, really busy with college, at least for a while. Enjoy the chapter, though!
Stealing from Glynda Goodwitch was a daunting prospect. It wasn't as if Jaune could just waltz inside her office and search through her documents until he found what he was looking for, and then just waltz back out, waving a goodbye to the professor on the way.
He needed to be smart, careful, and plan for every possibility.
Or, he could wait until a significant enough distraction was caused that drew the professor out of her office, quickly sneak in, and search for the document.
There would have to be plenty of physical evidence concerning the locations of the drop points, of course, from Bullhead requisition forms to information concerning the local density of Grimm, so it wasn't like he would have to break open a safe.
"This is Jaune, I'm in position," The blond said quietly, his scroll at his ear.
"Understood. Beginning phase one," Blake replied through the scroll. "Prepping the distraction."
Their plan was quite simple, but there was a hefty chance that it wouldn't give Jaune all that much time.
It also involved relying on Cardin to be his typical self, but unless the teen had suddenly had a miraculous change of heart, Jaune wasn't too worried.
Blake kept him informed of the goings-on, verbalizing the scene as it played out in front of her.
"Cardin's arrived. Pyrrha's moving in… Contact established, Cardin's mad. And he's made the first swing. Goodwitch will be notified shortly, Jaune, be patient."
Jaune just nodded to himself, keeping his back to the corner, around which lay his target.
"Pyrrha's yet to take a hit, unsurprisingly, but I've seen a few students headed your way. Three minutes out," Blake continued.
"Gotcha. Going silent," Jaune replied, hanging up and pocketing his scroll, keeping an ear out for the office door.
It didn't take that long before he heard the door open, and the telltale sound of the professor's heels along the floor. Jaune waited for the woman to round the opposite corner before he made his move, Sneak activated as he gave the door a test.
The handle rattled, but the door did not budge. Locked.
This wasn't unexpected, and Jaune and his team had prepared for something like this. Jaune reached into his pocket and withdrew a hairpin, and with his newest skill, courtesy of Blake, he knelt down, and began to pick the lock.
[Skill Learned!]
[Lockpicking (Active): Thanks to the System, you are now capable of picking locks of varying type and difficulty, using certain tools. Level 1; XP 0/12.]
It took a good couple seconds, nearly hitting the double digits, but finally Jaune heard the telltale click of the door unlocking, and he quickly and quietly opened the door, before closing it behind him.
[Lockpicking has reached Level 2!]
Now that he was inside, he took a glance around. He'd never actually been inside Goodwitch's office before, but now that he was, he could tell why the woman always seemed so stressed.
Paperwork was stacked in towering pillars, threatening to topple at the slightest provocation, and the desk, weighed down by even more paper, looked as if it was about to buckle under the pressure.
Jaune only had minutes, so he got to work.
Luckily, the reason they'd chosen Jaune to break in and not given the job to their more experienced teammate was due to one of Jaune's rather useful skills.
He didn't read any of the paperwork, just hitting each and every piece with a quick Observe, trying to track down the right sheet.
It took nearly two minutes, even with the extreme advantage he possessed, but he eventually found what he was looking for.
A form, detailing the supply requisitions for fuel for the Bullheads. Each Bullhead was listed with a rough location, but whilst there wasn't a list of teams assigned to Bullheads, it was still useful.
Jaune quickly slotted the paper into the small photocopier that sat on the desk, and waited a second. He took the copy, placed the original back where he'd found it, and moved to the door.
He didn't have much time left, and the longer he waited, the more danger he was in, so he opened the door, closed it behind him, making sure it was locked, and turned to leave.
He walked with purpose, heading back towards where the distraction had gone down.
"Mr Arc!"
Jaune spun, slightly panicked, but doing his best to maintain an outward expression of calm. "Yes, Professor?"
"Please, try to keep your team in line. I understand that Mr Winchester can be aggravating, but there are still rules."
Goodwitch looked a little more frazzled than usual. "I will, Professor. I'm sorry."
The woman nodded, thankful that she didn't have to go into any more detail, and unlocked her office door, stepping inside.
The moment the door closed behind her, Jaune let out a breath, fists unclenching.
Even just that was too close for comfort. He didn't think he was cut out for a criminal's life. How Blake had ever managed to do things like this, Jaune had no idea.
Now all he had to do was get back to his dorm, and figure out the details of the document, all before they had to leave in the early evening.
Easy.
"Jaune, have you actually looked at this?" Weiss asked, from her seat on her bed, staring at the document.
"I took a glance at it, yeah. Why, what'd you find?" Jaune stepped over to the heiress, peering over her shoulder.
"The locations are rough, but they're all pretty close to one another, in the grand scheme of things. That's not it, though. Look at how much fuel has been requisitioned."
Jaune did, reading the figures. "I'm not exactly familiar with how much fuel is needed for a Bullhead, Weiss."
Weiss had her scroll out and was running calculations. "Gods, this is… The Bullheads are going to be covering a massive distance!"
That managed to capture Jaune's full attention. "How far?"
Weiss finished her math, paling. "Across the entire continent."
"Wait, we'd be headed to Vacuo?" That had Jaune concerned.
Weiss shook her head. "No, not quite. We could feasibly go that far, but the Bullheads have to remain on standby for the two weeks. Hold on."
She ran a couple more calculations, before coming up with an answer. "I think, according to everything I can see, we're headed south-west."
Jaune pulled out his own scroll. "It's mostly Grimmlands out there, barely any settlements. Dust, I doubt we'd even see living people for at least a week. I don't know how they expect us to get back in two weeks, the travel time would take nearly that long with a vehicle."
Weiss shook her head again. "True, but I doubt they'd send us that far. It'll still be Grimmlands, sure, but we won't be more than a fortnight out from civilization. They want the assignment to be fair, otherwise there would be no point to it."
Jaune nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Still, it's going to be a tough fight, even if we know where we're going. The Grimm out there are probably going to out-level us by at least a couple levels."
Pyrrha looked over from her own bed, equipment half-packed into her bag. "With four of us, though, it does nullify that advantage. Besides, even with increased Grimm numbers, we aren't going to have any spectators. You should be able to use your semblance fully, Jaune."
That brought a smile to Jaune's face. "It does feel like I don't get to let loose all that often. Is it weird that I'm looking forward to being stranded in the wilderness for two weeks?"
"No more weird than you usually are," Blake remarked from behind a book, her deadpan expression not giving anything away.
Jaune rolled his eyes. "Funny. You should stop trying to be a Huntress, get a job as a comedian."
"So long as you don't ever consider it."
Jaune knew he'd rarely get an opportunity to get the final word in a battle of wits with Blake, so he resolved himself to another loss. "Anyway, I'm going into Vale to pick up my shield. Is there anything we need while I'm down there?"
The three shook their heads in response, busying themselves with what they had been doing previous to their conversation, and so Jaune stepped out of their room, closing the door behind him. He took three steps forward, and bumped into someone.
"Oh, sorry Jaune-Jaune!" Nora apologised, as she stumbled backwards.
"No, that was my bad, I wasn't watching where I was walking," Jaune hastily apologised himself. "You and Ren headed down to Vale?"
Nora shook her head. "No, we were going to go distract Professor Goodwitch!"
Ren placed the palm of his hand ever so gently against his face, letting loose a quiet but ever-suffering sigh. "Nora, what was it that Ruby said, under no circumstances, to let Jaune and his team know?"
Nora thought for a second. "Not to mention what we were really doing?"
"And can you see why what you just said is contradictory to what Ruby wanted?"
Nora placed a single finger against her chin, thinking hard. "Ooh. Right." She turned to face Jaune, with a sheepish smile. "We're not going to distract Professor Goodwitch?"
Jaune gave the ginger a conspiratorial smile. "I didn't hear it from either of you. Good luck."
Stealth and subtlety weren't AWBN's speciality, but Jaune took comfort in the fact that they were still better at it than RRYN.
It seemed like Vale was sporting a rather pleasant breeze today, and Jaune relished in it, appreciating the way the wind kept him cool as it passed through the streets, blowing his hair and coat-tails back in a way that he was unaware was surprisingly visually appealing.
The peace Jaune felt was relaxing, though he suspected it would be the calm before the storm of this coming evening, but he was willing to ignore that to enjoy the breeze.
His enjoyment lasted about two minutes, until a bug wound up in his face, crawling onto his lip and making him sputter and rub at his mouth, an uncontrollable shiver running down his spine as he tried to spit out the foul taste of insect.
It was honestly like life was actively trying to make Jaune suffer mild inconveniences as karma for having the System.
Another few minutes passed, Jaune now unable to enjoy the breeze due to his traumatic experience, until he reached 'Roust's Weapons and Armor', stepping through the door, chime sounding out as it tended to.
"Just a sec!" Came the voice of Roust, over the sounds of machinery, at odds with the pleasant surroundings. Jaune didn't reply, simply taking a seat in one of the chairs.
It was longer than a second before Roust stuck his head out of the door, that wide grin of his on his face. "Ah, Jaune, wasn't it! I've got your shield all ready, let me fetch it for ya!"
Roust emerged once more, this time carrying Jaune's sheath in his hands. "Here you go. Marvelous craftsmanship on this thing, even before I got my mitts on 'er! All repaired and ready to go, though, no thanks necessary!"
Jaune shook his head. "Thanks, though. You got this done really quick, that helps me a lot."
"Ah, no need to stroke my ego! Go thank that pretty redhead partner of yours instead, she's the one who showed you my place, and got it repaired for free, mind you," Roust exclaimed with a booming laugh. "I needed the work, gotta stay in practice now that most places are licensing out to Atlas!"
Jaune scratched at the back of his head. "I can pay you if you want…"
"What? Are you daft? That'd just make you poorer! I made a deal, and I stick to my word! Go, have fun killing those beasties, showing off and making a fool of yourself, you're young! Don't be all piteous!"
Jaune winced. "Oh, sorry."
Roust shook his head. "Gods above, boy, you are daft. Stop apologising! You've got nothin' to be sorry for! Just like that partner of yours, I swear. Go on, shoo. You've got places to be, and unless you got some business to take up with me, I've got things to work on! I'm halfway through this crossword!"
Jaune felt himself effectively verbally escorted out the door as Roust ushered him out, that massive smile still on his face.
The man's cheer was infectious, that much was clear, and as Jaune stepped out into the streets of Vale, Crocea Mors back where it belonged, the teen could barely suppress the feelings of anticipation and excitement he held for the upcoming assignment.
There was also nervousness, a tinge of fear, and a healthy amount of worry, but Jaune felt, finally, ready for whatever was going to be thrown at him.
With all that floating around in his head, it was fair to say he barely noticed the trip back to Beacon, and even if he had, he would never have noticed the green-haired figure that discreetly watched him all the while.
"I don't know."
The woman in the red dress rounded on him, her face the most furious he'd ever seen it. "What do you mean you don't know, Roman!"
Roman, for once, actually went on the defensive. "I'm telling you everything I've found out. I'm not keeping anything from you because I think it'll serve me better in the future. For once in my life, I'm being completely honest!"
Cinder swore under her breath, stepping back from the thief.
"He's good. Whether or not he's concealing some mystical voodoo shit, I don't know, but I can say he's got all of them looking to him. They follow his lead, and as far as I'm aware, most of them aren't on his team."
"Tell me again, exactly what he used," Cinder ordered, a frown gracing her face.
"Some kind of Aura blast, bigger than before, and something that acted a lot like Lightning Dust. I couldn't make out the second one, they threw up a smokescreen, but it locked me up pretty quick," Roman explained.
Cinder's frown deepened. "Then it is still up in the air. Frustrating. You may leave, Roman."
Roman was more than happy to oblige, leaving the maddened Cinder to her lonesome.
Once the thief had stepped out of the room, Cinder stood and fetched a glass from one of the cupboards, retrieving a bottle of bourbon from another, and pouring herself two fingers worth, taking a seat and mulling over the drink.
Stress was getting to her, but she would never admit it, never show it. She was supposed to be the daunting, intimidating figure of power that she presented herself as, but everything was growing more and more complicated. The potential for this boy to be a threat was becoming more and more apparent, and if what he'd done so far was any indication, he'd be a pretty significant threat were he to dedicate his time to hunting down not only Roman, but all his associates.
Or, in this case, Roman's employer.
Emerald was surveilling him, something she'd made sure to order when Roman had stumbled into the hideout covered in little bruises and scratches, muttering under his breath about meddling brats. So far, though, Emerald had reported nothing out of the ordinary for a typical Beacon student.
Which was even more frustrating. It appeared that this 'Jaune Arc' wasn't the kind of student to broadcast his power, and whilst that led credence to the theory that he had something to hide, it also meant it was all the more difficult to find evidence that supported the theory.
Without evidence, Cinder couldn't report back an affirmative, without taking serious risk.
A knock sounded at the door, and Cinder quickly downed the remaining drink, before standing and opening the door. "Yes?"
Emerald stood despondent, not meeting her employer's eyes. "I have nothing to report again, Cinder. He hasn't done anything noteworthy."
Cinder's hand tightened into a fist behind her back, teeth gritted beneath her closed lips. She would not show weakness, she would not show frustration, but she'd be damned if it wasn't starting to get to her.
"Understood. Maintain surveillance, keep me updated."
Emerald shook her head. "I can't, not for the next two weeks. The Beacon students are undergoing an assignment, they're being sent somewhere."
This perked Cinder's interest. "And you can't follow them?"
Another shake of the head. "No one knows where they are being sent, and even if we did, it'd blow my cover."
"A shame, then. Keep an eye out on Beacon, and keep an eye on the two Haven students that were seen with the others. I want to know everything we can find out about all of them. Family, friends, what they value. We need something, Emerald, I'm certain you understand."
Emerald nodded. "Of course, Cinder."
Cinder turned away from the door, leaving it open as she stepped back to her seat.
Everything was in motion, all her plans were underway, and yet Cinder knew that she'd barely even started.
And, even with the reputation Jaune Arc was building up, Cinder felt confident. He was one man, no, one boy, and he couldn't be everywhere at once.
"Oh, Emerald?"
The greenette looked up, finally meeting the dangerous gaze of her employer. "Yes, Cinder?"
"Tell Roman he has two weeks to get set up. If he takes any longer, I may not be so forgiving."
Even Emerald was afraid of what that meant.
It was time.
Six in the evening had arrived, and AWBN had filtered out of their dorm room, and were now standing at the Beacon dock, alongside the other first year teams.
Bullheads were warming up nearby, the sound carrying over the wind, but Jaune was barely paying them any attention as Professor Goodwitch closed the distance, approaching with what was either vengeful wrath or passive indifference on her face.
It was difficult to tell between the two, due to the Professor's default face being almost indecipherable.
"Students, attention, please!" Glynda called out over the sounds of the engines. "Each leader, step forward when your team is called, and you will be given your Bullhead identifier. Get you and your team aboard, it will leave when you are ready. As of right now, the assignment has begun!"
Jaune shared a glance with his team.
"CRDL!" Goodwitch called out, and Cardin swaggered up, though a fierce glance from the Professor swayed the attitude somewhat.
Jaune waited, not paying attention as Cardin and his team were given their identifier, CRDL maintaining their confident attitude as they headed towards their Bullhead, the identifier reading 'VA76T'.
Weiss appeared interested in their group, though, and Jaune turned to question her. "What's wrong, Weiss?"
Weiss looked lost in thought. "Nothing, something just seemed… off."
Jaune nodded. "If it comes to you, let me know."
"RRYN!" Goodwitch shouted over the sound of CRDL's Bullhead taking off.
Ruby stepped up and listened, nodding as Goodwitch finished, before stepping back, closing the distance between where she had been standing and where Jaune stood, waiting to be called.
"Good luck, Jaune! You're going to need it!" Ruby teased.
"Might want to save your luck, Ruby, you may need it more than I do," Jaune replied.
Ruby's response was to stick her tongue out at Jaune, who simply shrugged, watching the younger leader and her team climb aboard 'VA58L'.
"Jaune, we may have a problem," Weiss began, but she didn't get to finish, as Goodwitch called for Jaune.
Jaune nodded to Weiss, before he too stepped up to the blonde Professor.
"Team AWBN has 'VA16F'. Good luck, Mr Arc, and it was an admirable try."
Jaune scratched the back of his head, nonplussed. "Thanks?"
Jaune stepped back to his team. "We're in 'VA16F'. What's the problem, Weiss?"
Weiss looked worried. "The document had the flight numbers listed."
Jaune nodded. "And?"
Blake seemed to realise it too. "Oh no."
Now, Jaune was getting a little frustrated. "C'mon, guys, don't leave me in the dark here."
"None of the flight numbers were the flight numbers we've been given," Weiss answered.
Jaune's mouth formed a perfect 'O'.
"Either the document was old, or it was a fake," Blake muttered.
Jaune paled slightly. "Well, at least I know what Goodwitch meant."
The four of them clambered up into 'VA16F'. "What do you mean what Goodwitch meant?" Weiss asked.
"She said 'admirable try'."
Pyrrha looked nervous. "Do you think she knows what we did?"
"Yes," Jaune sighed. "And it went so well, too."
A common theme with Jaune's life, or so it would seem.
Jaune kept a wary eye on his map as they traveled, the air rushing past him far faster than the breeze had been in Vale. Less insects, though.
The Bullhead door was open, and Jaune had an arm wrapped around the handle, feet dangling out over the ground as they flew across Sanus, Pyrrha sat next to him, marveling at the sights.
"Alright kiddos, we're five minutes out!" Their pilot called out.
The leader placed his feet against the lower rail of the Bullhead and clambered up, motioning for his team to close in for a quick briefing.
"Okay, I've kept my eye on the map. We're really close to the coast, and we're a little less than a week's walk from the nearest village, so we shouldn't be too far. As long as we pay attention to our surroundings, don't get surprised, and make it to the village, we're pretty much guaranteed to make it back. Get ready for the landing, we'll set up camp and set out early tomorrow morning."
His team nodded, and Jaune stepped over to the cockpit. "Let us know when you're landing."
The pilot snorted. "Landing? Nah kid, I've got special instructions for you lot. I don't know what you did to piss off the vice-headmistress, but you're getting special treatment. Hope you can swim."
Jaune paled. "Wait, what?"
"Alright, we're here! Jump, jump, jump!" The pilot called, and as Jaune stepped back and peered out the door, all he could see was ocean beneath him.
The coast wasn't too far, maybe a couple hour's swim, but Jaune really didn't want to jump.
"C'mon, kids, Nickel International has a hefty deadline, and limited fuel! Jump now, or you fail the assignment!"
Jaune shared a glance with his team, and with a sigh, jumped out of the Bullhead.
And Gods, was it cold. It wasn't just regularly cold, it was oppressive, like it was invading his body itself.
He spluttered as he surfaced, spitting out salt water, and heard three subsequent splashes as his team joined him in the freezing water, Blake letting out a very vocal hiss when she surfaced.
As Jaune and co. floundered in the open water, the Bullhead flew off, headed back the way it came in, with a hum that decreased in volume as it increased in distance.
Jaune quickly searched around. "Over here! Land!"
The four quickly swam up to the nearest land, nearly a five minute swim away, and as they crawled onto the sandy beach, spitting out saltwater, Jaune took in their location.
This was, unfortunately, not the mainland.
This was a small island, in the middle of the ocean, an hour's swim away from the continent they needed to be on.
And they were cold, wet, and very uncomfortable.
"Well, I guess we'd better set up camp," Jaune said, as his team murmured their discomfort, Blake a little more vocal than the others as they all attempted to shake the excess water from their bodies.
And let it be known, Jaune thought, that Glynda Goodwitch had a cruel sense of humour.
[Quest Created!]
[Huntsman: First Steps (Part 4)]
[Survive the Beacon Assignment.]
[Rewards: 60,000 XP, 2 Skill Books]
Well, that's that. Next week we get to camping with AWBN!
You'll notice the 2 skill books as a part of the reward for the quest. One of these skill books will be a new element for Elemental Infusion, and that element will be decided by a poll that will be up just shortly after this chapter goes live. Go vote for which element you want to see Jaune use!
Now, onto reviews!
Guest: Yeah, Sleight Of Hand is going to have a lot of uses, it's just dependent on whether or not Jaune actually uses it. Also, I'm torn between saying you forked him up or saying weird flex but okay. Decisions decisions.
dirtrevor: Jaune could definitely use more luck, especially considering what happened this chapter. And next chapter, but shh. No spoilers.
Adro-Sama: I actually didn't mean to imply White Knight so heavily, but it did kind of turn out that way. It also seems to imply Knightshade, and even a little bit of Arkos. Honestly, that's the great thing about Jaune, he's a flexible, malleable character, and convincing in a lot of roles. Does make it a little bit harder to imply female friendships, but I guess that's the price you have to pay.
Trapdere: Aww, okay. If you don't like it that's fine, but at least leave constructive criticism, otherwise there isn't much point. I've mentioned it before, but 'A gamer fic without being awful' isn't me taking shots at other peoples work, its me taking shots at my own work. My older work is much worse than Systema.
jedimasterb10: Oh god, don't start me playing MGS again. I only just stopped replaying Phantom Pain for the third time. I have way, way too many hours in it. Jaune with a Fulton, though... eesh.
dwramsey99: Aww, thanks! Will do!
Slenderbrine: Jaune has a knack, what can I say.
Xerzo LotCN: If we're going to talk weapons, there actually isn't much point in Jaune getting a medium or high caliber weapon. His spells cover range well enough, but there is a chance he will get a sidearm, for emergencies. Jaune, canon and otherwise, is most recognizable with Crocea Mors, and I like the spell-sword kinda thing I'm working on. You do present quite a few interesting ideas, though, and when it comes to a point where I exceed the canon story, which at this rate should be within this year, I'm going to have to start making original villains, or at least weapons for them to use, so thanks for the ideas!
Zathol: It's only cheating if there are rules against it. Otherwise, it's creative problem solving. :P
Guest: Hey, thanks! I was kinda iffy on Pyrrha's fierceness, but I pretty much came to the same conclusion you did, I'm glad that came across!
Guest: I understand where you are coming from, but as someone who not only knows people who know how to fight with and without weapons, there is a considerable difference between armed and unarmed combat, at least as far as I'm aware. Some things carry over, of course, but most techniques are completely different.
And that does it for reviews this week! I have a Pa Treon, and a twitter, AFatFlyingWhale and fat_flying, so if you want to support me or just chat, come on down!
Don't forget to vote for what element you want to see Jaune use next!
And, as always, see you next chapter!
~AFatFlyingWhale