Merendinoemiliano – this started out as filling in the backstory for my earlier story "Learning to lead, learning to follow" As far as Winter is concerned it is not designed to change canon, but to flesh out why she was as she was in the first three volumes and to flesh out the antagonism between Jacques and Ironwood. I hope also to use it to give more substance to Adam's backstory.
I made a small amendment to chapter 1 to deal with a timing inconsistency on the introduction of regulations. There is no substantive change, but it irritated me.
Winter had woken early and decided to have an early breakfast in the officer's mess at 6. She hoped that this would allow her to speak to Magenta before he set off back to the mine. The flight was due at 8 and she anticipated that Umber Raddock and the chief inspector would arrive in plenty of time for the flight.
She was sipping her coffee when she heard a rumpus at the door. She turned around and then strode towards the entrance before the debate got more heated. The mess steward had only recently arrived from Atlas and no one had warned him about Professor Rumpole.
"Marina, I can vouch for Professor Rumpole and will sign her in as my guest. Professor, would you care to join me for breakfast?"
"Captain Schnee, I believe. I am glad to see someone at this base has some manners."
"Perhaps a little advance notice would have helped. It is rare to see such a distinguished member of Shade academy visiting us here."
"I thought it safer to ensure that the airship does not leave without me. I gather you have been throwing a dead cat on the table to upset your father."
"Professor. I have merely done my duty and offered support to a junior officer."
"The two are not mutually contradictory. I see there is hope for you. Is it you or Magenta who will be overseeing the first stage of the cover up? Sorry, I of course meant the in-depth investigation into Atlesian hypocrisy."
"Major Magenta will oversee the investigation into the issues raised by the inspection. It is considered that it would involve a conflict of interest for me to be involved in the investigation."
To Winter's relief, Major Magenta arrived at that point. She had forgotten how bracing the Professor was and had had to bite her tongue. She made a mental note to add some of the Professor's act to her own repertoire. Bluntness could be a surprisingly effective weapon. She had already decided after having encountered Professor Goodwitch when she had been at the Vytal festivals and later as a junior aide to General Ironwood that a judicious use of irritation and competence was a good model for her to follow.
The Major said "Professor Rumpole, the ambassador and the General both told me to expect you. The flight will leave at 8 or perhaps slightly before depending on when the embassy and inspection contingent arrive. Are there any questions you have me or the Captain at this time?"
"What is the real reason you and the ambassador want me here today? I can see why you may want at least one institution in Vacuo to rubber stamp the decision you take, but why me?"
This point had puzzled Winter. Shade Academy notoriously emphasised self-reliance amongst its pupils and took the view that if people entered into bad contracts with people they could not trust, that was their look out. One of the reasons Atlas had such a large military presence was that Shade had discouraged local huntsman and huntresses from working for the multi-kingdoms by expressing the view that they could not be trusted. The headmaster and his staff did believe that if you entered into contracts you kept to them.
"To do what you have just done. You do know what Umber Raddock's semblance appears to be?"
"I have heard rumours. He does not have dealings with Shade. I would be interested in your opinion."
"He makes people agree that the facts are what they want to believe even though the evidence is virtually non-existent. I do not believe that he can target it on individuals in large groups and he makes people nauseous when he tries and pushes a lie which goes against their beliefs. I believe that it can be weakened when people are reminded of their other beliefs. After all we are all the sum of our contradictions. You are quite right that nobody from Atlas will want to publicise what the captain and her team discovered yesterday. This includes me. Umber will play on this feeling and talk the others into accepting that a few cosmetic changes and a vague promise to learn for the future will suffice. However, I know that if we simply ignore this and pretend nothing wrong happened, then Atlas is merely a set of gangsters talking about honour only when it suits us."
"You are an officer in the Atlas military. You have sworn an oath to protect Atlas and to obey orders. Your standing orders include protecting the interests of the Atlas multi-kingdoms."
"Yes, but I have read the commentaries which say that I should not obey clearly unlawful orders. In addition, the reputation of Atlas is more important than the short-term financial interests of the multi-kingdoms."
"So, what do you want of me?"
"To be your forthright self and force Raddock to limit the use of his semblance or to use it in a manner which will induce vomiting among the honest attendees. You can remind people of the inconvenient facts which they know to be true but wish to ignore."
"While no doubt I will enjoy doing so, my experience is that telling people that they are hypocrites tends to encourage them to believe bigger lies rather than accept that they are corrupt."
"Often true, but we are talking diplomats and inspectors here. The first prides itself on seeing the world as it really is and not how they want it to be. The other set do mostly have a sense of duty and will be open to changing things for the future even if it involves whitewashing the past. I have also heard that you are also talented at disguising your insults as compliments which make people feel uneasy."
"We will see. I assume that you want me to alert you if I believe that he is using his semblance."
"That will be helpful. It may be informative to see when he thinks it needs to be used and what he believes that he can get away with."
After breakfast, Winter met with Magenta in his office. He briefed her on the routine business which she should expect today. She was de facto base commander until Colonel White returned and there were some things which needed action today.
At the end of the briefing, he looked at her and said, "Clover Ebi will be arriving from Atlas today together with two teams from APM 12 and APM 6 and I suspect a few more people. You will need to check that we have enough quarters for them and liaise with the embassy on booking hotel rooms for some of the civilians accompanying the flight. You will probably need to think about you brief the other lieutenants and captains as I imagine that they will not enjoy explaining what the payments they received were for or that they will no longer be receiving them. I understand that Lieutenant Beamish will say that the people who dealt with him were particularly unsubtle. In the past the payments were linked to unspecified consultancy services which at least gave a fig leaf."
He paused, "My guess is that the multi-kingdoms will use the payments as a veiled threat that if they are named and shamed they will retaliate by listing all the payments made to officers over the last ten years and hint that they were demanded by the officers involved. One officer can be made an example of as a bad apple. Eighty plus suggests systemic corruption which will need to be hushed up. I have no doubt that the inspectorate has a similar concern."
"Sir, this clearly bothers you. Why did you not do anything before?"
"Have you ever heard of a whistle blower prospering in the Atlas military? With luck you will have a boring day, Captain, but I doubt it."
Winter sat and thought for ten minutes after the Major left. Clearly the position was more complicated than she thought. She wondered how much Ironwood had known or suspected before sending her here with instructions to see if the swamp needed cleaning. She was conscious that although she was doing her best to carry out her duty, she did have secondary objectives. Some such as covering the backs of her allies were laudable. Others were more career focused - proving to Ironwood that she was first and foremost a loyal member of the Atlas military rather than a member of the family Schnee fell into that category.
/-/
Marrow woke early the next morning to a knock on the door of his room. Specialist Ebi was there.
"Sorry, Lieutenant, your leave has been cancelled. You are flying back to Vacuo with me and the rest of the Ace-Ops. We will be accompanied by members of the AML team and APM 6 and 12."
Marrow thought to himself, frack that report must have been worse than I though. They were sending out members of the Atlas Military legal team and the provost marshal teams dealing with corruption and contractor fraud. It was just as well that he had delayed contacting friends and family last night to tell them that he was on leave.
His alarm increased when he saw that there were three airships leaving for Vacuo and that General Ironwood was talking to the leaders of the AML and APM teams. The legal team was accompanied by the professor who taught military law to the trainee hunters. He was strictly an emeritus professor who was on the reserve list and was a partner at one of the leading Atlas commercial law firms. The APM teams were led by Majors so General Ironwood was clearly taking it seriously.
Clover introduced him to the rest of the Ace-Ops. There were currently four of them. Clover had just taken over from the previous leader. Normally there were five, but the selection process was tough, and they did not promote someone unless they were considered to have outstanding ability and loyalty.
There was a meeting room on the airship and Clover invited him to join the Ace-Ops during the briefing meeting. Ostensibly it was so that he could supplement the briefing on the duties of the military contingent in Vacuo by reference to recent developments and outline where practice differed from theory. It quickly became clear that Clover was well informed and indeed Marrow felt he now understood better why things were the way there were. He wondered how much information Clover had received from his uncle RSM Ebi. He found it hard to imagine the RSM volunteering some of the analysis Clover provided.
"There are two main bases. The colonel and the senior major are based at the one nearest base to Vacuo. For the last twenty years the aim had been to ensure that the senior major is known for organisational skills and an eye for detail. Their performance reviews are heavy on words such as practical, reliable, dependable, unflappable, and good at improvising. The junior major normally shares these qualities but has less responsibility. Half of the officer corps in Vacuo are long termers who tend to be solid plodders with good fighting skills. They rarely apply for a posting away from Vacuo. The other half tend to be short termers at the early stage of their career. They will stay for between one and two years. The general has drawn my attention to an odd statistic. Out of the one hundred and twenty secondees over the last ten years forty have left the service at the end of their posting, thirteen died in Vacuo, another ten volunteered to stay in Vacuo and another thirty-three stayed with the service but have not been promoted. The remaining twenty-four have done well. The proportion of deaths is high and in part reflects the fact that Vacuo is a hazardous place to operate because of the high level of Grimm, the treacherous weather, and the nature of the desert. However, five have died in bar fights or muggings gone wrong."
Marrow must have reacted with surprise as Clover looked at him and said, "I can assure you that the figures are correct."
Marrow replied, "I do not go that often to bars in Vacuo, but my impression is that they are one the whole safe. Fights tend to involve punches only and the bartenders are good at defusing them."
"That was also my understanding. However, the records show five officers died, but otherwise no serious injuries in ten years."
Harriet asked, "Could it be the White Fang?"
Clover replied "I doubt it. The deaths are spread throughout the decade and not just during the time the White Fang have been more militant. Also, traditionally Vacuo is not a White Fang supporting area."
Marrow felt encouraged to say, "Most of the inhabitants take the view that humans and Faunus have enough problems dealing with the Grimm, the desert, the wildlife and the weather without fighting each other."
Vine said, "That seems logical."
Elm said "The numbers leaving the military seem high over a ten-year period. Do we know why they left?"
Clover said, "I have been looking into it recently as General Ironwood was concerned about the waste of lien in training them. About 12 have joined the multi-kingdoms as executives with security responsibilities. Eight left because they were given a choice between resigning and a dishonourable discharge. Four resigned and joined Robyn Hill's organisation. When asked their reasons they refused to comment. Four because of injuries incurred fighting Grimm, four because they said that they had lost their nerve after fighting Grimm. The other eight had review assessments at the end of their posting which made it obvious to them that they would not be considered for promotion and left of their own accord. About twenty of those who have stayed on had mediocre assessment reviews but have decided to stay."
Elm asked, "Are there any theories as to why the burn out level is so high?"
Clover said, "One hypothesis was that the conditions are harder, and the Grimm are more common. Actually, the wildlife is almost as frightening as the Grimm. However, the deaths on duty and the stress related departures have reduced over the last ten years. The local commanding officers say that recruiting local scouts has reduce the times patrols are taken by surprise and alternating officers and men between patrols, garrison duty and inspection activity has reduced the stress levels. However, the average loss of officers at the end of their initial posting has not reduced."
Marrow nodded, it made sense of why the major rotated duties in the way he did. He gathered from the NCOs that the major was always tinkering to find the right balance as the first few days back in the desert where always stressful, but you got used to it until after between two to three months one became exhausted. He also knew that when the guides were as good as Corkran it made the officer's job so much easier.
Vine asked "How is it decided which officers go to Vacuo? Do they send people who they are doubtful about and see if they sink or swim?"
Clover paused, "That is something we are thinking about and the analysis is ongoing. It is true that few people volunteer for a Vacuo posting. At the margins there is some reason to believe that the selection committee prioritise sending people with strong auras and semblances to give themselves an opportunity to prove themselves. For example. Lieutenant Amin here proved he had the right stuff recently when the ambassador was attacked."
Harriet said, "Yes, I read the after-action report again while waiting for the airship. What the frack were those bandits smoking anyway?"
Clover looked at Marrow and said, "Lieutenant Amin, I would be grateful for your input. Ace-Ops whatever the lieutenant says now is not to be attributed to him in any conversation we may have about that incident. I would like him to speak freely."
Marrow said "First, we were lucky. We had heard rumours that the ambassador would be targeted, and our local guide spotted some suspicious activity and reported it to me. If we had not had the warning and if our guide had not spotted the clues than they could easily have taken us by surprise and overrun us. They attacked in a way which allowed me to use my semblance with full effect. The ambassador's nephew is a first-rate sniper and could target their leaders. The local scout improvised impressively, while the captain understood immediately the bluff which we were playing and played it to the hilt."
Elm said "So they were unlucky rather than incompetent? However, how on Remnant did they think that could kidnap the ambassador for ransom?. The risk of killing him was huge."
Marrow looked at Clover who nodded at him to answer.
"I do not believe that they intended to kidnap him. The aim was assassination."
Clover put his hand up to stop further questions been asked. "The General and his intelligence advisors agree with the Lieutenant's analysis."
Harriet said, "But why would bandits want to assassinate the ambassador?" She paused and said, "Oh frack - they were not bandits."
Clover smiled and said, "That does seem likely. Unfortunately, that does leave the question of who wanted to assassinate the ambassador?"
Vine said, "Do you want to tell us what the intelligence advisers think?"
"They do not want to tell us and certainly do not want to put it in writing. However, when I asked whether the answer I least wanted to hear was correct, they replied "You may very well say that. I cannot possibly comment."
/-/
Adam was sleeping next to Blake. Well to be accurate he was lying awake next to Blake in a jeep on the way to Vacuo. There was still fifteen minutes before he would need to wake her and check in with the advance team in Vacuo. It was odd returning to the desert. It had been seven years since he had left Vacuo, eight years since he had lost his father and his eye and three years since he had first met Blake.
She, Illia, and Julie had flown to Vale from Mistral yesterday. They had gone to Tukson's bookstore and he had driven them out to meet Adam. He was annoyed by Tukson. While intellectually he understood why the White Fang kept themselves to peaceful demonstrations in Vale, the man did not understand that peaceful protest would never work in Mistral or Atlas. He did not believe that either Atlas or Mistral would properly negotiate unless the White Fang stopped fighting with one hand tied behind its back, but he could see why it had been worth trying.
He did not like Vale as much as most of his comrades. He could not move freely there because there was an arrest warrant out for him and it was hard to disguise Adam. An eye patch attracted too much attention and wearing sunglasses indoors or on planes suggesting either that he was a prat or had something to hide. He also did not want to show the eye to strangers. The fact that most people preferred to believe the Atlas lie that he had done it to himself to discredit the SDC and Atlas made him angry. However, there was no need to fuel that anger – it burnt away inside him and was one of the reasons he did not believe that a deal could be done with humans.
Tukson also gave Blake books to read and talked to her about them. In some ways it was good, reading the facts fuelled her anger at the way Faunus were treated. They had also helped him convince others of the rightness of the cause. They had given him a sense of the historical background and by carefully choosing which facts to emphasise he could enthuse others to believe that change was possible. Blake's discussion of history showed him that the Great War and the Faunus War had led to the only grudging improvements in the way Faunus were treated and many of these gains had been theoretical only. The only way to change things was to break the current system and then make certain that the gains were not lost.
However, her reading made Blake more reflective and worry about the consequences of everything she did. It confused her. She still enjoyed reading fiction but had decided that real life was messier. He also did not like the enthusiasm in Blake's voice when she talked to him. He told himself that it was merely an intellectual enthusiasm and that there was nothing more to it. However, she was the first person who he had let get close to him after the incident and he was terrified of losing her or finding that she had let him down.
Anyway, the information which the trio had obtained was useful. It opened up the possibility of using the SDC's own ships to raid remote mines in Vacuo where military assistance would take two to three hours to arrive. It also indicated which mines were most valuable to the SDC. While he would obey Sienna's command not to participate in the attack, he hoped to find reasons to target the Rising Sun mine. He was also gratified by the fact that Beige was returning to Vacuo and that there would be a good practical reason for targeting him a second time.
They were a few days from Vacuo. They were trying to hide the number of White Fang members who were going to Vacuo and were staggering the arrivals. The advance party had been there a few days now preparing for the raid. Adam would need to change their instructions now, but they were used to that. One of Blake's books had contained a quote which he had taken to heart. Plans are normally worthless, but planning is essential. The more you knew and had thought about in advance, the easier it is to improvise when real life does not go according to plan.
He checked the time and nudged Blake "Time to get up my darling." Her cat ears twitched, she yawned and stared lovingly into his eyes. She drowsily asked, "Is it time to speak to Perry and Bruno?"
"Yes, my dear." Another way in which Blake helped him was in understanding the virtues of Perry. Someone who understood instinctively that logistics was hard and important work, especially when you are operating on a shoestring. He knew what needed doing and was good at dealing with honest people. Bruno was a good person to ensure that people realised it was in their best interests to remain honest.
The call started. While Vacuo had no government to speak of, there was an Atlesian military presence and a sizeable embassy. The assumption must be that while they would not be expecting trouble and would not be obsessively monitoring communications, some care in talking over the airwaves was needed.
This made it rather surprising when Bruno started the call with a rather panicked sentence "It was not us, boss."
Perry intervened, "He is telling the truth. There was an incident yesterday." Perry took a deep breath and said slowly "Brand had a fatal shooting accident yesterday. The rumour is that it will be blamed on the staff."
Blake scribbled down a translation which confirmed what Adam thought had been meant. Someone had killed Bruce Crimson and was blaming it on the White Fang. He decided that he had better call Sienna Khan before she heard the rumours. He smiled to himself. If the Atlesians were going to blame their own score settling on the White Fang then they may as well commit some real atrocities of their own.
/-/
Winter was sitting behind her desk when she received a call from the front gate announcing that the ambassador and Mr Corkran had arrived, and the Ambassador was asking to see her. She was not entirely surprised as she had been notified of the incoming transports from Atlas. She could see that the ambassador would want to greet them and make certain that he was kept in the loop. Still the transports were not due for another hour, so she had to assume that he had a reason to see her. Still, she wondered what was Corkran doing with him.
The Ambassador went straight to the point. "Thank you, Captain Schnee for making my life interesting. No doubt you only meant t' blow the expletive deleted doors off, but you have potentially set off a small earthquake. I have a favour to ask of you."
Winter was alarmed but said to herself that she had merely been doing her duty. "It is of course part of my duties to lend aid to the civil authorities. Perhaps you could let me know what you want, and I can decide whether I can assist or need to refer it to the Major or the Colonel."
"Neither of whom are currently here nor indeed easily contactable. This is an urgent matter, and you are expected to show initiative in such circumstances. Still, I Will leave it t' your judgement."
"As I said Ambassador Campion, please let me know what you would like me to do."
"You will recall my interrupted hunting trip. At the time I thought it expedient not t' turn over too many stones. I now believe that it is the best interests of Atlas t' find out where the bodies are buried, who buried them and why they were buried upside down wearing a tutu."
"I am puzzled to see how I can help you. You have an intelligence function at the embassy, and I am not in the chain of command in relation to any military intelligence operations in Vacuo."
"I would like you t' second Mr. Corkran and Lieutenant Amin t' me for a week t' assist me in carrying out my duties."
"I am mystified at the connection."
"We all know that there will a cover up. I want t' ensure that you and I have the leverage to ensure that the multi-kingdoms put their houses in order and punish at least some of the guilty. If we can prove that the multi-kingdoms tried t' kill me, then the foreign ministry, the Council and General Ironwood will be more inclined t' decide that the multi-kingdoms need to be put in their place and examples made. Currently the SDC supported by the rest of the multi-kingdoms are preparing to play the cards that the military knew what was happening and took money to ignore it. They are also saying that any changes will involve giving succour t' terrorist movements."
Winter thought about it and decided that the Ambassador was right although she should not say so too loudly. "I hear what you say, Ambassador. What use would Mr. Corkran and Lieutenant Amin be to you in the investigation?"
"First, the spooks at the embassy operate on a need t' know basis and take a different view of what I need t' know than I do. Second, their knowledge of the Vacuoan criminal classes is limited and so it is plausible that they will not find evidence of collusion between the Multi-kingdoms and criminals. Third, there are no Faunus operatives. Your Mr. Corkran seems to have an excellent network of acquaintances and has already suggested t' me a few lines of enquiry. Lieutenant Amin has a useful semblance which may ensure that Mr. Corkran survives his investigation."
"I can lend you Mr. Corkran. Lieutenant Amin is currently on leave."
"He is on his way back to Vacuo accompanied by the Ace-Ops. Both me and the trade attaché asked for him to be sent back. My colleague did not want the provost-marshal's office talking to him at an early stage. I anticipate that he was worried that he knew payments had been made to fellow officers and would be embittered by the fact none had been offered to him."
"I gather that you have discussed his proposed role with Mr. Corkran already and that he is agreeable to it."
"Correct."
"Do either of you think that there are any smoking guns to find? We took no prisoners and I gather than there have been some disappearances in Vacuo."
"Mr. Corkran thinks that there are a few survivors keeping a low profile who may be happy t' enter the witness protection programme. Some were close t' Mr. Crimson and may worry that the SDC will wish to remove them from the chessboard. If nothing else you can regard this as an aptitude test in deciding whether to recommend that the General offers him a commission in the intelligence corps."
Winter decided to grant the Ambassador's request at least as regards Mr Corkran. She suspected that General Ironwood would approve. If successful then it would give him a weapon to reduce the influence of the multi-kingdoms in the government of Atlas. She also knew that in the long term the General wanted to increase the number of Faunus intelligence operatives and infiltrate the White Fang.