Okay, so there's going to be no updates next week from Sunday 2nd May – Saturday 8th May.

I mentioned yesterday in Relic that I've been feeling really burned out lately. I was initially worried it was being bored of writing and unable to do more, but I slept awfully last night and woke up 3am furious about something completely unrelated to my writing and I had an epiphany. That was the issue. I still enjoy writing, but other issues are weighing so heavily on me that I'm thinking on them even as I write and it's dragging me down. Case in point, this chapter (which is still shorter than usual) took me almost twice as long as usual to write, and that's ridiculous.

Don't want to go into the specifics because it's personal issues but things around me here are driving me nuts and it's bleeding into my writing, making it hard to get anything done. I'm going to take a week off to take care of these issues and rest my eyes, hands and brain.

Cover Art: Z-ComiX

Chapter 86

Blake dragged a near catatonic Yang into their new home in the Merchant's Quarter, closing the door behind them to cut off the horribly sounds of grief and nightmarish howls. Their new home was untouched by the savagery of the attack and it wasn't lost on her how if Ruby hadn't rented it but a week ago, they'd likely be dead now.

Lugging the girl to a nearby chair and pushing her down, Blake went and poured some water from a barrel, then came back and held it to Yang's lips to force her to drink. The other girl's eyes were vacant and hazy, and Blake hoped to whatever gods were out there that she hadn't snapped. She wasn't sure she could handle that. Losing everything in Menagerie was bad enough, but if she came here and lost the person she'd reluctantly gotten used to spending time with, it would feel like a repeat of it all.

Ideally, she'd have liked to do some scouting, see if the Grimm were really all dead and take stock of the damage. I can't leave Yang for now though. There's no telling what she's do. Instead, Blake moved to rummage for a blanket, draping it around Yang's body and intentionally trapped her hands under it, tucking the edges into the cushions around her.

"It's…" Blake trailed off. It was what? Okay? It really wasn't. There was nothing she could say that would take away what they'd witnessed and trying felt like an insult to everyone who died. "We tried our best," she said. "There was nothing more we could have done. We did more than anyone else to try and save them, Yang. We tried our best."

It was small comfort. Blake sighed and stood, wiping sweat and some dried and sticky tear tracks from her face. She couldn't ever say she'd bonded with the slums here, that hideous, cruel and violent place, but she had for a moment understood what it meant to be on the lowest rung of society, to be a peasant. That hadn't been right. The people of the slums hadn't been peasants like those at Menagerie, because even the lowest of the low back home wouldn't have been so casually used as bait for the Grimm.

A dark part of her questioned if that wasn't why Menagerie fell. What would she feel if this horrible plan of Vale's worked? What if sacrificing all these people to stop the Grimm assault really did save the city? If so, it would be termed a necessary sacrifice and Blake wasn't sure she could accept that. What was the point of Arcanists having so much power if they had to throw lives away like this?

"Ruby…"

Her head snapped in Yang's direction.

"Ruby…"

"Ruby wasn't down there." Blake came up to touch Yang's shoulders. "She wasn't down there, Yang. Ruby is safe. She's fine."

"S-She was outside…"

Shit. Yang had realised. Blake didn't know what had happened to Ruby or if she was okay, but the fact the attack had come at all suggested she might not be. If things weren't so dire, she might have gone out to investigate but leaving the city was all but impossible now.

"Ruby is a Wildmage, Yang. She has power few others do. If anyone could survive the Grimm, it would be her. Have some faith."

/-/

It was too dangerous heading back to the city, or so Qrow said, so they instead found their way to a small and secluded cave set back against the steep ground. Her wild magic was peaceful now, the explosion of violence she'd unleashed earlier acting as a surge and draining all the excess power dancing beneath the surface. Now, it was calm like a tranquil lake and Ruby didn't think she'd ever felt so in control.

"We'll stay here for the day and move back under the cover of night," Qrow said. "That should give us a chance to catch our breath." He noticed her wary eyes on him. "And to talk. I already said I won't hand you in, Ruby. You don't need to look so suspicious."

"Wouldn't any Arcanist say that to prevent me killing them?"

Qrow laughed in the face of the brazen threat. "You have a temper like Summer's, that much is for sure. Sit down. I'll tell you a little about her."

Ruby couldn't quite help herself doing so. Her memories of mom were so far and few between. Yang had more time with her, but Summer had died so early into Ruby's life. Even then, they clearly hadn't known everything there was to know about mom.

He's trying to make me let my guard down, warred with He knows more about mom and ultimately led to her taking a seat on a rounded rock by the entrance. From there she could cut him off if he tried to run or run herself if he had any nasty surprises in store.

"Where to begin?" Qrow mused. "Well, you've heard the story of how Summer and I met so I suppose I'll jump ahead to when she finally told me she was a Wildmage."

Ruby's eyes widened. "She told you!?"

"Sure did." He smiled. "Summer and I were close. She trusted me. I…" He sighed. "I'll admit it was hard for me to take that. She took me out to that rise I showed you before, off to the south of the city. I didn't know what she wanted but she told me she had something to show me." He grinned suddenly. "I'll be honest, I thought we might have been getting it on."

"Ewww!"

"Ha ha! We were young. What do you expect? But no, there was no sex there for me. Summer showed me her power instead. I was afraid of it at first," he admitted. "The usual Collegium dogma was already in my head and telling me she'd kill us all if she wasn't put in the Sanctum. Summer begged me to keep it a secret though, and I could never go against her. By that point we'd been friends for almost ten years."

"Were you part of the White Arcana then?"

"No. I joined the White to try and help her. Information is so closely hidden on Wildmages." He nodded her way. "As I'm sure you've noticed. I also thought that if I joined the Arcana responsible for hunting them then I could better keep her safe."

"You betrayed the whole Collegium for her?"

"Heh. What can I say? People do crazy things when they're in love…"

Ruby gasped. "You-?"

"Hmhm. A few years later," he said. "We grew close looking for information on Wildmages together. I'd help her out the city and hide her while she dealt with her surges. There was a lot of time spent together." He smiled awkwardly down at the floor. "We were the best of friends. Inseparable. I guess it was inevitable."

Inevitable? Ruby's head was spinning at the news, even if it didn't mean all that much. No one had ever said dad was mom's first love or that you couldn't have past experiences. Still, to know mom had slept with a lord of all people. Why did they live in squalor if she had Qrow in her back pocket?

"Why didn't you help us?" Ruby demanded. "If you loved mom so much and you're so rich then why did we have to live in the slums? Why did mom and dad die?"

"Because we got caught." Qrow hunched his shoulders and linked his hands between his knees, scowling down at the floor. "Do you remember the story I told you about facing a Rogue at those stones? The ones with the ambient magical energy in the air? That wasn't exactly true. That magic, it belonged to your mother…"

Ruby's heart skipped a beat. "How?"

"It was where we would meet to bleed off her surges. Our secret spot. Looking back, that was stupid of us. Of course the Collegium would notice and try to trace such large quantities of magic. I was followed by another member of the White. They saw Summer in the midst of a surge and thought they had their moment to kill a Wildmage while she was distracted."

Ruby had a feeling she knew the answer but asked anyway, "What happened?"

"I killed him. He never saw it coming, didn't for a moment believe a fellow member of the White would turn on him."

"Then everything was okay, wasn't it?"

"Investigators don't go out without leaving notes for others to follow in case something goes wrong. The Collegium knew there was a Wildmage within Vale. Much like with you, it sparked a manhunt, and I was slap bang in the middle of the list of suspects thanks to that bastard's investigation." Qrow gritted his teeth together angrily. "It was only a matter of time before they found me and dragged the answers out of me. They wanted Summer in the Sanctum or dead. I couldn't let that happen, but there was no chance we'd have been able to flee. Summer wasn't in the right health for it."

Ruby's brows drew together. "What does that mean?"

"Nothing you need worry about…"

Was he implying…? Ruby's hair was a darker shade than Yang or Taiyang's, but she'd always assumed that came from Summer. The magic though, no, there was no way to tell. She could have inherited everything from Summer. Ruby swallowed and looked away, suddenly uncomfortable with the conversation.

"That still doesn't explain why you never looked after us. Was it jus because you thought the Collegium would follow you if you tried? You could have found another way."

"I couldn't," he said. "Because I made sure there was no information I could possibly give on Summer to the White Arcana. I made sure that no matter how hard they interrogated me, I would never – could never – give her away. They did find me," he said. "The White tracked me down and did their best to crack me." He smiled grimly. "But it was too late. I didn't know where Summer had gone. I didn't know what she would do with her life. I only knew that she would be safe." He laughed. "To think she stayed in Vale. I'd say I can't believe it, but she always was gutsy."

"You say you made sure you couldn't reveal anything…" Suspicion crept through Ruby's voice. "Are you saying you wiped away your own memories?"

"Found out about that already, have you? That's right. It's a bit of a secret of the White, something we don't like to use often." He scoffed. "Or so they say. There's a reason I live alone in the city away from them all. Eccentric they call me. Ha. Eccentric for putting the White second to the love of my life. The only reason I escaped the Sanctum myself was because they couldn't prove I killed the Arcanist, or that I knew about Summer being a Wildmage beforehand."

The mind altering serum was real then. Not that she had much doubt after what happened to Emerald and Ren. They really are using it to control people. And Qrow used it on himself to make sure mom wouldn't be found.

That was a big sacrifice, wasn't it? If he loved her half as much as he said he did then he'd given up all of that to keep her safe. Ruby wasn't sure she could do the same for Yang, send her away and never see her again. It was just too painful to imagine.

And mom never mentioned Qrow. Or maybe I was too young to know about it. Maybe, if Summer lived, she would have noticed that she was a Wildmage as well and helped her cope. Maybe she'd have told her about Qrow or even taken her to meet him.

Did mom ever go look out for Qrow? Did she ever see him in the street from afar and remember what they once had? Did she ever wonder if things could be fixed? Or had she moved on with dad. Taiyang. No mater what, Taiyang was her dad. He'd raised her.

"This is… This is crazy…"

"I had a choice to make," he said. "And no time to think on it. I did what I felt was right and I never stopped wondering what happened to her. I told myself she was happy wherever she was." He watched her with a small smile. "Looking at you, I can't help but think that must have been true. Is the other one another of hers? The blonde?"

Ruby tensed. "You've been spying on them?"

"Keeping an eye on them," he countered. "As Summer would have wanted me to. I'm sorry I couldn't do that sooner. The faunus is an Arcanist, that much I can tell. By all rights I should be handing her over to the Collegium."

"Don't," Ruby begged.

"I won't. Otherwise I should be handing you over as well. The White does not falter." He snorted. "How ridiculous. To falter is to be human. Anything else would leave us little better than dolls."

"What happens now?" she asked. "With us…"

"I'm not sure what you mean. I was able to kill the Grimm that followed us and subdue the Rogue Arcanist. Alas, he died in the process." Qrow flashed the Arcanum they'd taken off him. "They don't need to know anything else. Whatever they believe they saw was the work of our Rogue. It's as simple as that."

Ruby finally allowed a small smile. "Will they believe that?"

"I doubt they'll have much time to question it with the Grimm attacking." Qrow peeked toward the entrance of the cave. "Hopefully, it'll be safe for us to return once night falls. We need to find the ones behind this. Nothing else matters, certainly not the White finding you. Once I show Glynda this-" He held up the Arcanum, "-she'll be too focused on locating these people to care about how we survived."

"And if she doesn't?" Ruby asked. "If she finds out?"

Lord Qrow Branwen met her gaze head on. "Then I'll remind them what happened the last time they interfered in my life."

He would kill again? For her? No, for Summer. Still, it felt strange.

"There's a lot I'd forgotten about her," Qrow continued. "Some things returned despite the serum, but more remains hazy memories of her face, her smile and the moments we had together. Tell me of how you grew up. Tell me of all the things I missed, and in return I'll tell you of how she was at your age. We can both of us put the pieces together and remember her."

Ruby nodded, wiping away the tears in her eyes.

/-/

Weiss was swept back through a far gate into the Collegium of Magic. The speed at which they entered left her shocked, but she supposed that the dire situation called for it. They barely had the time to catch a glimpse of the Upper District. Even then, Weiss could swear she'd heard sobbing and weeping from further down the city, but that was impossible. The sheer volume of it would have required so many people.

And besides, who wouldn't weep knowing the Grimm were coming? It was only natural if the people were afraid. It was their duty to help them, to defend them.

"You've done well, Weiss," Lady Goodwitch said. "I can see in you potential I haven't seen since I was young. In many ways you remind me of myself. Carry on your studies and I believe you will rise high among the White."

"T-Thank you!" Weiss gushed. "I only wanted to help."

"You have helped. Go now, but do not leave the Collegium. We need all our Arcanists now more than ever. A curfew will be in place the moment I can get it up. All Arcanists within the city will be recalled. We must prepare for the possibility of a second attack."

"A second-?" Weiss had thought, perhaps naively, that there would only be one. "Can't we use the same method? If the water drains, we could break the banks of the River Vale again. The Grimm are mindless, aren't they? They wouldn't be able to see they're walking into the same trap."

"This won't work twice I'm afraid. We cannot draw them in as we did this time." Lady Goodwitch pinched the bridge of her nose and breathed out harshly. "Forgive me. I can feel a headache coming on. Leave the planning to us. I will call on you if I have need. Rest for now. You've done well."

Weiss bowed and took the dismissal for what it was. Her own head was pounding since the vast use of magic up in the mountains. So much concentration had her wanting nothing more than a hot bath and a long rest, but first she had to make sure Ruby was okay and deliver the good news.

Ruby wasn't in their room.

She wasn't with Pyrrha either, as the redhead was coming back from training and regarded the question with surprise. "I thought Ruby was outside the city?" she said. "Do you mean to say she hasn't returned?"

"She must have! The Grimm are everywhere."

Pyrrha looked back to the walls. "I'm not sure she came back. You don't think-?"

"No. No. I don't believe it. Ruby has an experienced Arcanist with her. They'd have seen the Grimm coming and gotten out of their way long before they hit the city." That, at least, she had to believe. "Did you have a chance to see our gambit in action?" Weiss asked Pyrrha. "I was up in the mountain when it happened. The water we released was so much. I bet it caught them by surprise."

"I'm sure it did," Pyrrha said with a faint smile. "But no, I wasn't able to see it. The Crimson were all called back to defend the Collegium. I thought there was something suspicious about that. We're the combat Arcana, so we should have been defending the outer walls. I guess the White were that confident in their plan working."

"A confidence rewarded, Pyrrha."

"I didn't disagree. I'm pleased it worked. Still, I can't agree with us being assigned here. Or me anyway," she added. "I know you're new to being an Arcanist, but they've called back every member of the Crimson. It simply doesn't make sense to not have us on the walls. If nothing else, it should serve to improve the morale of the soldiers. Show the city the Collegium is doing its part."

Weiss hummed her agreement. There had to be a good reason for it, but she couldn't decipher it. Then again, she hadn't predicted the floods being weaponised, so it wasn't that hard to believe there was some reason in place. Perhaps it was to avoid panicking the populace or it was to be a prelude to them being sorted and given more specific tasks in the defence.

"They may want to see exactly how many Crimson we have," Weiss suggested. "I'm sure you'll have more combat related orders soon."

"You're probably right. It's not like they can keep us cooped up here if a second wave comes. Everyone will be expected to take part. Do you want to go and look for Ruby?"

"We can't."

Pyrrha raised an eyebrow.

"Lady Goodwitch said she's going to enforce a lockdown on the Collegium." Weiss explained, recounting the story quickly. "She made it clear that would apply to me as well, so I expect it will for you."

"A curfew now? Why?"

"It's probably to make sure every Arcanist is on hand."

"I understand that but… no, there's probably a good reason." Shaking her head, Pyrrha sighed and looked back to the walls. "I hope she managed to avoid all this. Have you checked the Azure Archives? She might be there reporting to Lord Merlot for all we know."

Weiss bit her lip. "I hadn't thought of that."

"Let's go check now then."

/-/

As night settled over the outskirts and the stars came out, Ruby peered up over the forests toward the city in the distance. It looked unusually still, the plumes of fire smoke and lights from lanterns she was used to seeing absent. Some existed further up, telling her the city hadn't fallen, but the slums were unusually dark.

No fighting, she noted. Is the battle already over? Did we win?

Qrow grimaced as he pulled himself out beside her and dusted his coat down. "It looks like the coast is clear. Grimm may have good eyesight, but we'll still be safer moving under cover of darkness. It'll help if we don't use any magic. With any luck, the magic that must have been used in the defence will have drawn their attention by now."

"Wouldn't there be a second attack if that were the case?"

"Yes." His eyes narrowed. "Which goes to show that this first one wasn't planned. The Grimm acted on their own, likely drawn by us."

Ruby swallowed. "Does that mean it's our fault Vale got attacked?"

"No." He shook his head. "No. In fact, we may well have saved lives by forcing an early and unprepared assault. Those Grimm weren't gathering for a celebration. They would have attacked sooner or later with or without us."

Right. That made sense. Stepping further out the cave, Ruby waited for an attack that never came. If the others behind the Grimm knew of their ally's death, then they must have assumed Ruby and Qrow had fled or been killed by Grimm. Or they were cutting their losses, but she doubted that. They obviously wanted something with Vale.

But why would someone from the White Arcana attack the city?

Why would anyone? The answer might as well have not existed because she couldn't figure it out. In her defence, her head was still spinning from learning so much about Summer. She couldn't wait to tell Yang, maybe even to introduce Qrow to her if he proved himself honest. Yang deserved to hear all the stories first-hand.

They moved together through the outskirts and down the steep slopes to the valley floor. The farmland was quiet and still in the distance – that made sense; they must have evacuated everyone inside the walls. Would the slums be even more crowded than usual? Ruby couldn't help but snort at the idea of the proud farmers complaining at how dirty things were.

It was only when they got closer that Ruby noticed something wrong. The torches that usually lit up the gates weren't lit, and while not seeing any fire from a distance was fine, there didn't appear to be any firelight in the slums at all. In fact, it was still. Something flickered, something reflective that caught the moon's rays like moonlight on the surface of a pond. It carried on further, out the gates and into the lower farmland turning it into a swamp.

"W-Why is it flooded?" Ruby stammered when they crested a rise and she could see clearly. There were no fires because the slums was underwater, only the tallest buildings poking out above. "Why is the city flooded? We already had the floods?"

Qrow stared out from beside her, body shaking. "They can't have…"

Ruby let out a strangled sob and hurled herself forward.

"Ruby!" Qrow shouted, reaching out for her. "Wait!"

Going to cut it there for now. How did it take me this long to write? Gah!

Next Chapter: 9th May (TWO WEEKS)

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