Thanks to TehGramerPolise for helping with this chapter.
Riding the elevator top side with what remained of our team was like waking up from a dream. It was depressingly more roomy than it had been on the way down, with Madam Bianca and Conner standing on one side, Neo and myself on the other, and Cola standing in the middle with Kuroi in front of him.
When Cola had said that Kuroi had been injured, he had neglected to mention the extent. The Faunus man had entirely lost his left eye, and the rest of his face was covered with bloody lacerations.
True to form however, he had a wide grin on his face as he chatted non-stop, "Boy, I should groove with you cats more often, I mean wow!" He looked around at the rest of us with his remaining eye, the other covered with what appeared to be a strap off a pair of suspenders that he had wrapped around his head. "After all of this, I'm gonna have to find a way to entertain myself."
"Maybe go die somewhere, do us all a favor." Conner growled.
"Ah, c'mon," Kuroi slapped Belmorzh's man on the back, "Don't be such a sourpuss, we just took down the big baddie! Let's forget about our spats in the past and swing together tonight!"
Conner growled slightly under his breath, and turned away. Kuroi shook his head and leaned over to whisper to me.
"Some people are just tone-deaf," He told me, "This is a time for jazz, not drums or organs."
"He did lose a comrade on this raid," I pointed out, "No doubt he's concerned for how the rest of Belmorzh's forces fared."
"I too lost a comrade," Kuroi reached up and pulled up the fabric covering his eye, revealing a sunken, bloody pit. It said much for how horrific some parts of the last twenty-four hours had been that I didn't even feel a twinge. "Life-long and dear to me he was." Kuroi continued, "Poor Benny…"
"You name your eyes?" I asked him.
He shrugged, "Feels only right now that I've only got one left."
"That's an interesting point of vi- logic…" Neo glared at me, as though daring me, "Point of logic."
"Can't say that I can explain it myself, but then again, how many stories are there where someone gains otherworldly knowledge after losing an eye?" Kuroi winked with his one good eye. "I can play the mad seer… so long as I don't have to be a hermit. Not enough sake."
"If you desire a prosthetic replacement, I can recommend a good fabricator." Cola rumbled.
Kuroi looked at the large man's still sparking shoulder, and the sight seemed to strangely perturb the Faunus, "No thanks, the only thing that should be electrical about me is my personality. Besides…" He adjusted the suspender belt back over the hole as the elevator finally came to a stop, "I now have so many choices… eyepatch? Sunglasses? All-natural? The accessorizing world is my oyster!"
The elevator doors opened, allowing a nearly blinding rush of light, I glanced aside at Neo who gave me a nod and we stepped out into a brand new world.
It turned out that our forces above had taken minimal losses. Serroi's reinforcements had mostly come in the form of light airships and a couple of individuals with stealth and illusion Semblances. However, fairly soon after they had arrived, they had all been forced to surrender or be killed.
Almost immediately after reaching the top, each of the crime lords had split up to be met by their lieutenants. Even the joking Kuroi had turned serious as Hana whisked him off, whispering rapidly. All of them would be assessing their strength and the gains that they had made after the simultaneous strikes. Crime in general fell to nearly all time lows as they all consolidated their gains and rebuilt their forces.
If you're well-versed in recent events, this would be known as Cleaning Night… or the Night of Justice, depending on the source. Because as you can guess, the High Nobility and the other powers that be did not like the idea of the public finding out that there had been all-out war between crime lords one bit. So they had cooperated with the police force to make it look like they had been behind the wide-ranging, simultaneous strikes against Serroi.
For the most part this was eaten up by the public; it was a story of shining heroes that protected them. Not the rag-tag Huntsmen and Huntresses of the other kingdoms, but their great protectors of old. It might be hard to believe, but back then Solitas looked up to the High Nobility much like they do the military now. Go back far enough, and the target of their affection and reverence would have been the King or Queen. Solitas is like that; at any given point, they have to have an authority figure that they can look to as their shining paragon. The problem is that their affections are incredibly fickle, and as you probably know from their attitude towards the King and the High Nobility now; it can flip right around at any time based on which way the wind is blowing.
Anyway, why I say 'for the most part' is that there was a sort of conspiracy theory that made the rounds in which the truth was out. Of course, it got twisted and warped over time, and at this point I'm pretty sure it's unrecognizable.
Where we're going to pick up on my story again is about two month afterward, with how that particular conspiracy theory came about.
"Whew," Begonia Evengard leaned back, the notepad in front of her covered with scrawling text. "That's a hell of a story."
"I thought you'd like it." I replied.
Begonia had called me a couple of days ago to demand a scoop on just this story; when I had asked her why she had waited so long; she had sighed. "Kiddo, you don't get the alternate story right when the other one is blazing along. You wait until people get just bored and used to all of it that they're ready to hear something else. Also that way you know just how to spin everything to start poking some holes in the narrative."
We had then arranged to meet at Premiere Parte, in the room that was quickly becoming a familiar haunt of mine. It might be horribly cliche, but there was something to having clandestine meetings while eating fine food
"Oh man… I love it." The Faunus woman adjusted her glasses, "First, the High Nobility will absolutely hate it, second, it's gonna absolutely fly off the presses, people eat this kind of conspiracy stuff up, especially in the Faunus community."
Oh yeah, all that stuff I said about people in Solitas looking up to authority figures? Scrap the 'authority' part and try 'rebellious' or 'anarchistic'; for obvious reasons, they tend to not be huge fans of authority figures in Solitas.
I leaned back in the booth, the story I had given to Begonia was pretty much the broad strokes; obviously I left out the more… personal… information. It attested to how fantastical the whole raid had been when that still left it having crime lords fighting each other with tanks and small fleets of airships.
"Alright, so you got your scoop." I said, tapping her notebook with a finger, "You said you had some information for me?"
Begonia nodded as she slipped the notebook off the table and into her trenchcoat, "Sure do; it's about the Atlesian Emergency Council."
I lifted an eyebrow, "The AEC? You've got to be joking."
The Atlesian Emergency Council was a leftover from the Great War. For about a week after Mantle had surrendered due to the defeat in Vacuo, Atlas had attempted to continue the war. Therefore, it had created a governing body whose mission was, quote: 'To operate the affairs of state in the case of the governing bodies of Mantle be otherwise indisposed.'
The people had then foisted three very reluctant members of their community onto that council; who had promptly surrendered as soon as Atlesian and Vacuan forces landed on Solitas. The funny thing was, since as soon as that was over; everybody turned to reforming Mantle's government away from a monarchy; meaning nobody actually bothered to disband the institution; attesting to how absolutely inconsequential and ineffectual it had been
Of course, the people of Atlas, being the cheeky bastards that they were, kept voting for new members for the Council, as a way to spite the new government. Of course, the Atlesian Emergency Council didn't actually have any power, so eventually people just got bored of the whole thing. In the last decade or so, people had begun to even do things like elect statues to sit on the council, as well as a cat.
"I know, but hear me out, first off, this year's council vote had an unusually high turnout. Not so much that the news would be interested, what with all of the aftermath of the raid to chatter about. However, it is enough to be significant."
I frowned, "I'm assuming you have an angle on the reason?"
She reached into her trench coat and pulled out a scroll, which she slid across the table,
"Here are the three new members of the council."
I glanced over the names and then my eyes widened, "Ah… I see what you're getting at."
Begonia nodded, "Sienna Khan; member of the White Fang; more to the point, she's extremely popular among the more radical portions of the organization. Also commonly seen in the company of one Kuroi Akita."
"I've met her, she doesn't seem like the kind of person to hob-knob; in fact, she's hardly diplomatic at all."
"You'd be right there." Begonia allowed, "More to the point, everyone thinks the AEC is a joke. While it's a feather in her cap to gain political office in Solitas; she's not the kind of person with the patience or political guile to use this as a rung on the ladder. Someone's advising her."
"Kuroi." I mused.
Begonia nodded, "That was my thought as well, it would need to be someone she would respect… or fear, enough to listen to."
"Still… it does leave me at a loss," I admitted, "Why bother with such a low position? It's hardly going to teach her how to politic."
Begonia shrugged, "Still looking into that, my guess would be that Kuroi wants to help her move up in the White Fang. For those outside of Solitas, Atlesian Emergency Council sounds like a pretty big responsibility."
I nodded, "True, in addition, as a member of a governmental body, she does receive stipends as well as the capacity to hire government workers. Perhaps the play here is to get more Faunus involved in government." I considered that for a moment, "In any case, thank you for the information; please keep me informed of further developments."
Begonia grinned, "No problem kiddo." She stood up, "Now if you'll excuse me," She patted her trench coat where she had tucked her notepad away, "I have to get this ball rolling. People to see, stories to write, papers to sell, you take care now!" And she walked out the door to the private dining room, closing it behind her.
After she had left, I tapped on the scroll and considered the names once more. There at the top was Sienna Khan, but truth be told, the other two other names had interested me far more.
They were Albmorsa Zheleznaya… Belmorzh's pseudonym, and Blaze Untara, current member on the board of Atlas Academy… also known as Cola Malaika.
Having just one unusual member on an otherwise useless governing body was odd, and perhaps a political move. This… this was something else… perhaps Cola was attempting to create something out of the AEC. Certainly having a distinguished person from Atlas Academy would already give far more credence to the position than it otherwise possesed. Knowing Cola there would undoubtedly be new responsibilities and powers given to the council and thus greater importance.
My mind cast back to Kuroi and Cola talking before the raid, about how Kuroi had a "condition" that he had pressed Cola to accept. Was this it? Was Sienna going to be given an otherwise defunct position in which she would receive credit for bringing it out of irrelevance? It would certainly give her a good measure of clout.
I shrugged before putting the scroll away; I would have Begonia keep an eye on it. Sienna's rise seemed to be the primary goal anyway, so the Faunus reporter would be best suited for the task. No doubt Sienna's position after her term on the AEC would be far more interesting; and I wondered idly just how far she would rise as I stood up from the table.
Of course reader, if you've been keeping track, it turned out that position on the AEC was about to be of the greatest importance. After all, it was only three months after the Night of Justice that another event took place. One that ranks amongst Mountain Glenn as one of the greatest tragedies of the modern era.
One month to go… tick-tick.
However for the most, those three months after the raid, were kind of… well… rather mundane, save for one event in particular.
I mean, granted it's hard to follow up an event like the attack on Serroi's fortress, and to be honest, a part of me was grateful for the period of rest.
For the most part, things began to fall into a routine. I began to fully delve into the workings of Laisren Aerial Manufactory, working with Sunil and his team of engineers to upgrade our designs and production lines. At this point, I had more or less pruned my board of directors such that they were at least competent and, if corrupt, at least in a way that didn't damage myself or the company.
This increased focus brought back to the fore an issue that I had always viewed more as a curiosity than as a hindrance. That issue was my uncle, Gavin Laisren.
Understandably, the man seemed determined to thwart my every effort, and at times he was even mildly successful, pulling out brilliant maneuvers and schemes that made me almost admire the man. He would find out closely guarded information out of the blue, present a problem with a design or change, and then bombard me with leading questions and lines of reasoning that would have me grasping at straws. All of these successes meant that some members of the board, still smarting from my treatment of them or their peers, would naturally follow his lead. To the point where I would feel like at times that I was almost drowning.
Then he would make a mistake.
It would often be a small mistake, one that to anyone else would be almost inconsequential; but to me, it would be as clear as day. I would seize upon it, grasping at it and taking advantage of it to its limit. The effect was usually that all of the momentum would be lost, with my uncle floundering and blustering. His followers falling silent as they saw their champion go down in flames. It meant that as long as I beat my uncle, that everything else would fall into place.
Was it drugs? Some flaw in his temperament? Just a bizarre form of incompetence? I had no idea, but I had to admit it provided a kind of fun diversion from my usual work.
After all, while I could admire airships, enjoy the efficiency of the production lines, and could find stimulation in creating new innovations. I just simply wasn't my mother; whose greatest joy had been such pastimes.
Upon reflection, she had probably done so because she was incredible at them. I like to think that the emotions of elation that I feel after a well conducted criminal or political act are the same that she would feel after constructing a new airship.
Anyway, to continue the story...
"You sure you're doing okay up there Lusban?" Neo called from the backseat of the car, "I know my night vision is completely shot with this spotlight beside me."
I scowled fiercely, "I told you, this outfit is at the peak of fashion right now."
"That has never been a good excuse and you know it." She shot back.
I grumbled a little, I was wearing a verdant green suit with a pair of brilliant purple slacks; it was a ravishing ensemble that went perfectly with my hair and complexion.
"I am fine ma'am, however, I thank you for your concern." Lusban responded solemnly, "Besides, I have learned that it helps greatly to not to look into the rear-view mirror, as your own beauty would blind me."
He wasn't wrong there, Neo as usual was wearing a simple white dress, with strings of pink pearls around her neck, brilliantly accentuating her naturally colorful hair and eyes.
We were currently on our way to the Spring Mantle Ball, a party that was one of three hosted each year by the High Nobility Electors: one in the spring, one in the summer, and one in the winter. While the Summer and Winter Balls were open to most of the nobility, the Spring Mantle Ball was far more select, being a more of a 'who's who' of both the Merchant and High Nobility.
Lusban slowed the car down as we came up to the walls of the Royal District.
Right, so before the events that will be occurring pretty shortly in our story, there were three districts in Mantle, the Common, High and Royal Districts. At the time, there were massive stone walls and checkpoints that divided each District from each other. While the divisions between the Common and High Districts were unmanned and were mostly just relics of a time before the Great War, the one between the High and Royal however, was a different story.
"Invitation?" The guard demanded.
Lusban handed over the document that we had received and the guard scanned it with his scroll, which let out a loud beep.
"Very well, follow the signs and please enjoy the party."
The very stone itself shifted and warped, revealing the causeway into the district, and Lusban continued on down the road. In the back, Neo and I took a moment to simply gawk and stare.
The Royal District was the home of buildings that had stood for centuries, leftover from a time where kings and queens ruled in Mantle. All were masterpieces of architecture, ranging from the solid tall walls of the Rustkammer, to the soaring edifices of the Turm der Magier, and the granddaddy of them all and where the party itself was traditionally held: the Palast Der Konigs.
No doubt you've seen pictures, models maybe even, but seeing it in person is something else entirely. To say that its large is laughable, to say that it was grand and imposing is somewhat underwhelming.
There are simply no words to describe adequately the towering minarets at its corners, the fantastic murals and statues that lined its gigantic stone walls. No expressions that can convey how its very existence seems to warp its surroundings. Confronted with it, one can easily imagine the very world, no, the very solar system revolving around its edifices.
Before I knew it, I was standing next to Neo on the long, purple carpet that stretched down the central avenue up to its front doors, still gawking slightly, the enormity of the situation seemed to hit me all at once, and I felt slightly queasy.
Because tonight, the Rashin had not been invited.
I don't think that it's an understatement to say that this was the moment I had been striving towards ever since I had taken over my mother's company. When I had just started, the Rashin had finally managed to wrest control of the Electorship from Laisren Aerial Manufactory; due mostly to a combination of politicking from the family and my uncle, as well as the company's fall to mediocrity.
Now however, due in part to a series of incidents, not limited to but including my successful break in to Fulsom Vault, Lasiren Aerial Manufactory's rise, and the Rashins' precipitous fall from favor with the influential Faunus on the continent. Their own political and economic power had plummeted, as, like my own company, their initial meteoric rise had been due to a single individual. Akuma Rashin had been a genius robotic manufacturer, political mastermind, and a stupidly powerful fighter. At various points in his career, each had been vitally important in advancing the company. However, with his death, his naturally scheming family had begun falling upon one another.
The fact that I had been invited to such a prestigious party held by the High Nobility Electorship while the Rashin had not in my mind could only mean one thing. That the time to truly reclaim my mother's legacy might be upon me.
However, this would be a party filled with the most devious political animals in Solitas, and thus all of Remnant. Just one little misstep here, and all of the financial success in the world wouldn't save me. I could go from top of the world to a nobody with money in an instant; and likely less than that shortly afterwards.
Neo seemed to sense my unease and gave me a nudge, "Hey, c'mon, this'll be a piece of cake, what was that motto again?"
I gave a weak grin, "Lie, cheat, steal," I let out a long, slow breath, "Survive."
She lifted an eyebrow, "What that's it?"
I turned to her and frowned, "Yeah, why?
"It's just that you normally do that thing where you put it onto something, you know… like adapt it to the situation."
I winced, "Oh, yeah, right um…"
I looked back up at the colossal building, "Uh… it was always a lie that my mother's company and thus I wasn't fit to be an Elector, I was cheated out of that position. Thus the only recourse left is to steal it back…"
My mind went blank and Neo chimed in, "And at the end of this party, come hell or high water, we'll survive, just as we always do."
I let out a slight chuckle at that, and instantly an invisible weight seemed to vanish from my shoulders, "Together, nothing can stop us."
She grabbed my hand and squeezed, "That's the spirit. Now c'mon, the sharks are waiting."
And with that, we strode forth to meet them.