"Finally I've got you in my hand."
Ironwood was face to face with Ruby Rose. They were in his office and the girl was sitting in front of the desk, unarmed but not tied up.
"You're not going anywhere. The prisons we have are made on purpose to weaken the prisoners and prevent escapes; the electric walls of these release special particles that drain the aura of the inmates, so they cannot use their Semblance to escape. Your aura will regenerate very slowly and until then you will be vulnerable, so don't get any strange ideas. You lost."
"I haven't lost yet, General, my sister and my friends are still out ready to do what you failed to do: protect the people."
"And why are you here? Do you want to take revenge for what I did to Ozpin? "
"And what have you done to him?"
"I killed him. I killed the man who manipulated me for all these years."
Ruby was shocked for a moment, she would never have expected such cruelty from Ironwood, but she knew that Oscar had managed to survive and so she thought that maybe she could use the General's ignorance against him and so she said:
"If it's true that you killed him then you're worse than Salem. Killing a boy is an infamous, cowardly act."
"Yeah, in a completely different situation I would've said the same thing… but that wasn't a boy. That was a millennial man with the features of a baby. He was a manipulator, a liar and an evil man disguised as a brat. I would never have killed that boy if he hadn't had Ozpin inside him. "
"Do you think this justifies you?"
He sighed.
"Can I ask you a question, Ruby? Please answer me honestly, though: why did you lie to me the first time we met?"
"Because we couldn't trust you."
"And why? When we first met, what took you away from me? My fear of losing to Salem? My attempt to unite the whole world? The fact that I command an entire army? Or, just like Ozpin, did you just decide to lie to me because you don't respect me? Did you, like him, think you could use me and then leave me behind when I couldn't help you anymore?"
"No, I didn't want to imitate Ozpin ... it's just that ..."
"Except that you ended up making the same mistakes. And you too, like him, treated me like an object."
"But in the end we told you everything!" she exclaimed, feeling guilty.
"Now you're insulting me. You decided to tell me everything just because you didn't want to be wrong. And just like Ozpin, you ignored the feelings of those you lied to. You just worried about yourself. "
"Maybe you're right, I was wrong ... but this doesn't justify the harm you're doing to Mantle."
"It's not an easy choice but someone has to make it."
"No. Mantle can be saved. You just have to trust the abilities of your allies- "
"Trust? You all talk about trust as if it's candy, but trusting a person is a sacrifice that is made. Trust cannot be bought with promises, smiles and cute faces. Trust must be earned. You have to prove that you're trustworthy and only in this way you can get loyalty. I've always been loyal to Ozpin but the moment he lied to me he lost my trust and will never get it back. And for you it's the same thing. You are just presumptuous children who think you can play with the feelings of others without suffering the consequences; you're immature and irresponsible and don't deserve trust. I feel like throwing up at the very thought that I was foolish enough to give you licenses."
"Don't you want to trust us? It doesn't matter. However you're wrong and we'll stop you. I will do everything in my power to prevent you from abandoning hundreds of thousands of people."
"Good." Ironwood stood up. "As long as it's just words, no harm will be done to you, but when those words become facts then I can swear you'll all keep Ozpin company."
After Ruby Rose's interrogation, the girl was returned to her cell.
"Did he hurt you?" Qrow asked, concerned.
"No, I'm fine. But General Ironwood is completely insane."
"We already knew that," Blake commented.
"He's not going to abandon his plan, he's determined to let Mantle burn. Plus he has no intention of trusting us, he sees us as his enemies. But that's not all …"
"What else?" Weiss asked.
"Apparently he believes he killed Ozpin."
"But it doesn't make sense!" Weiss exclaimed, confused.
"It makes a lot of sense, because he shot him."
"But he's just a boy! How could he have been so cold and cruel as to shoot a little boy?"
"He doesn't see it that way… apparently he's convinced Oscar is Ozpin and that's why he shot him. I kept it from him that Oscar is still alive. It's better that he doesn't know."
"James… you've really become like Salem…" Qrow muttered after learning what had happened to Ozpin.
"To be honest ... we should've expected it," Blake said.
"What are you talking about? Are you stupid?" Weiss was shocked.
"I'm just saying that Qrow didn't pay much attention to Ozpin's appearance when we found out the truth about Salem and he hit Oscar without thinking. After all we're talking about the group loyal to Ozpin, I think it's normal that they felt manipulated."
"Are you really justifying what he did to Oscar ?!"
"I'm not justifying him, Weiss, I'm just saying I understand him. General Ironwood must have felt used by Ozpin and, like Qrow, he gave vent to his anger. I know that feeling… and maybe Yang and I made it worse when we told him we had lied to him."
"What are you implying? That he's right?"
"No, I'm saying he's acting like he's surrounded by a pack of hungry wolves. He doesn't trust anyone and believes that everyone is his enemy. He's probably in such an advanced state of paranoia that he can no longer be helped."
"There's a way to help him," Qrow said "we have to kill him."
Everyone present was shocked to hear those words.
"Don't pretend you haven't thought about it, after all, that's how Yang and you solved that guy's problem ..."
"Adam ..." Blake was visibly shaken and one could tell from her expression that she didn't want to talk about it anymore.
"Exactly, him. We have to do the same with Ironwood."
"Uncle Qrow… are you kidding? We're not murderers, we don't kill people."
"If you don't want to do it, I'll do it. After all, I'm a murderer apparently, I might as well get my hands dirty with the blood of that bastard autocrat."
"He was your friend ..." Blake murmured.
"He was my friend, but now he's not anymore. Now he's just a monster."
"And do you think you have the courage to break the life of a man who, like you, felt betrayed by Ozpin?"
"You did the same thing with Adam."
"It's not the same thing ..."
"It is."
"You're wrong-"
"No, I'm not wrong. You too are a killer."
"You're wrong!" Blake yelled, punching the electric wall.
"Stop it! Shut up!" Robyn exclaimed nervously.
"What's the difference?" Jacques Schnee asked in a frivolous manner.
"What do you have to say?"
"Well, Miss Hill, for a start it's useless to fight over these trifles, we'll never be able to get out of here. General Ironwood has us in his grasp and none of us will ever get close to him. However, I find it ironic that a so-called 'criminal' like me should share the same situation with a girl who wanted to play the hero."
"Nobody asked for your opinion, dad."
"No, certainly no one asked my opinion, especially not you, Weiss. If you had listened to me you probably would never have had me, your mother and your brother locked up in prison. You have discredited your family name because of your irresponsibility, I hope you can take pleasure in this situation."
"Leave our daughter out of this," Willow said, crossly.
"Why should I do such a thing, woman? Are you implying that Weiss is not the accomplice of a gang of criminals who entered Atlas to fight the army?"
"Don't pretend you're innocent, Jacques."
"I was deceived by Arthur, but she collaborated with those criminals. It's different."
"You weren't deceived, you did as you always do: you only thought of yourself."
Weiss felt relieved that she had just been defended by her mother but then, without warning, Willow added these words, looking at her daughter with two eyes filled with disappointment:
"Something your daughter has definitely inherited."
"Mom …"
"I asked you to take care of your little brother and you not only abandoned him with your father but now you have also sent him to jail. I hope you're proud of yourself."
"I didn't want to-"
"Don't say another word. I'm tired of your apologies. If you want to forget about your family like your sister did, that's fine, but I ask you not to pester me with your little girl whines. Take on your responsibilities, you're no longer five years old."
At that moment the door opened. Six soldiers entered along with Winter Schnee. The girl positioned herself a few steps from the prisons to be able to take a good look at all the prisoners, especially the members of her family.
"Father, mother, brother, sister ... this situation is as embarrassing for me as it must be for you, but that's the way it is ... you're all, in one way or another, complicit in helping wanted people. Weiss, General Ironwood has specifically requested to speak with you."
"Why?"
"Thank me for that, I'm trying to help you."
"Winter ... I ... I don't think I-"
"You will, Weiss. Whether you want it or not. I'm giving you the chance to save yourself. "