AN: In no way am I connected to Rooster Teeth
Mercury didn't know if Weiss meant this as a punishment, but if she did, it was a very good one.
At first, Mercury had thought he was going to be dealing with a hall full of Weisses for the evening. That would have been fine. He was actually dealing with worse than Weiss was when he first met her.
Although, I should have expected this when Weiss wanted the expensive jewellery in sight. It should have taken less than half an hour to click.
The only other expensive thing was the ring and that was hidden under his glove. To be fair, he wore it on his left ringer finger and that normally meant marriage. It was more of a loyalty ring to his three siblings than anything else and they all wore the same. Weiss obviously didn't want that topic brought up.
He was also going to assume she didn't want certain topics such as Whitely or Beacon shenanigans brought up.
Which brought him straight back to the question of what he was supposed to talk about.
Then there was Weiss' comment to bring up the advanced course if he got asked. Why did people feel the need to prove themselves to these idiots who had never seen the real world?
I don't think Weiss thought this through well.
How am I supposed to avoid an argument with this lot?
Mercury had already decided he wasn't going to go looking for conversation. He stayed away from people against the wall. He had picked the side of the hall that had the most obnoxious people ever, so he wouldn't be bothered by most that could see him.
"Mr Crawford."
Except for him. "General Ironwood."
"You don't seem to be enjoying yourself."
Mercury looked at him. "I was under the impression this was a wake for Whitely. Why would someone be enjoying themselves?"
"…You shouldn't settle down in Atlas."
Seriously?
And I thought the magicals were bad. They were in living in a state of delusion. Are these guys living in a state of narcissism?
Still, it was his experience with enduring magicals that would see him through this evening.
"I've no interest in Atlas, even before today."
Weiss wasn't really socialising. She stuck to her sister and her butler. Jacques Gelé (control freak) certainly didn't have any problem getting into a conversation with everyone. He also didn't seem to be discussing fond memories of his son.
"I see." Ironwood followed his gaze. "Has he interrogated you yet?"
"Not really. He made a few comments when I first arrived, but I'm sure...Klein ran interference later. I haven't spoken to the man at all since then. I'm trying to avoid him before I wind up causing a scene." Because there was no way that conversation wasn't descending into an argument.
"A smart idea." Ironwood was taking this a little too well for Mercury's liking. He expected him to be angry or defensive. He was acting more like Ozpin that Ironwood. "He can be very trying, but the Dust business is too vital to ignore."
"I'm not complaining about his business, but his parenting skills need work."
Ironwood gave him a very searching look then. "That is not for me to say. I trust that you do not intend to cause trouble here?"
"If it were up to me, I wouldn't be here at all. I'm just counting down the hours."
"Understood."
He might as well ask now. "I intend to take my final exam in two months. While Ozpin is happy for me to do that, he commented another headmaster needed to oversee the tests. Are you available then?"
Ironwood didn't like Mercury. He knew that and was fine with it. It was smart. But Ozpin had already proved he was sentimental and often acted with an agenda. Mercury wanted a more neutral person or even a negative one.
Headmaster Ironwood turned to look back at him. He considered for a moment. "I'm sure I can find time in my schedule."
"Thank you." He was supposed to be on his best behaviour.
Mercury had also learned by now that kindness and respect could get bonuses that confrontation and fear couldn't. Causing problems at a major event in Atlas was only going to cause problems down the road.
Ironwood nodded and moved off, now satisfied Mercury wasn't going to be a problem.
This time, Mercury wasn't going to complain about him showing up for the next Vytal Festival. Pepper being chased off by Talaria was something Salem couldn't have predicted. The heat sensors were something new as well. She just wasn't too bothered by that loss as Mercury's capture had been a nice consolation prize.
But a possible Spring Maiden right next to the Relic of Knowledge? That was just begging for trouble.
It might be best if we remove it from its resting place without anyone noticing. If Ozpin's predecessor was the one who built the schools, he probably knows where the Relic is held.
Maybe it was because Ironwood had spoken with him, but someone else came to him to talk. Mercury didn't recognise him but judging by his age, he was probably an heir to some business. He was dressed well, yet seemed to lack the same over the top clothing most adults here had.
"I haven't seen you at one of these before."
This was seeming more like a common meeting for important people and less a gathering for the dead. "I attended Beacon with Heiress Schnee before I started with the advanced course."
"Ah. I am Pedro Kindling."
'Kindling' did ring a bell, but Mercury couldn't place it. He'd look it up later. "Mercury Crawford."
"Crawford? I don't know that name." Not surprising as Mercury made it up. "Do you have a family history containing Huntsmen?"
"Not officially. My paternal history contains many strong fighters, but they were never proper Huntsmen. They mostly lived outside the Kingdoms and never bothered going in for their tests. A lot of people owe their lives to them." As the majority of his clients wanted the Blacks to eliminate an opponent and they did very well for themselves with the competition gone.
"So what made you different?"
"Honestly? The travel and the freedom. Isolation from the Kingdoms does come with downsides." Now he remembered Kindling. They were in charge of most of the trade routes between Atlas and Mistral. Which would make him vital for the company mining Dust.
"Yes, I can think of a few." Kindling Jnr glanced at Weiss, who was talking with someone. "You must have seen Weiss before your advancement. What is your opinion of her?"
Mercury thought about his answer. Then he thought about how to phrase his answer for this situation. "She is committed and a fine warrior. She is at the top of her class academically and only under one in battle." Officially, Emerald was lower in the rankings and Nora was about par. "However, she has a strong sense of responsibility and determination that is inspiring."
Kindling Jnr turned back to look Mercury in the eye. "Do you think she is suitable to run the Schnee Dust Company one day?"
Mercury almost shrugged, but caught himself in time. Again, he rephrased his comment before he said it. "I think so. She has earned my respect and the respect of many that tried to hate her when they first met her. She has the mind and drive to be a powerful asset or enemy."
"…An interesting answer. I think you have a bright future also." With that, Kindling Jnr walked away.
How did he get that from that response?
Mercury didn't think more on it.
Some other people were becoming curious about him. This was not good for his being left alone.
So maybe, I need to get into a long conversation with someone else. And I have just the someone in mind.
As it happened, one of the men with her noticed him staring and he whispered to her. Penny looked over, smiled and waved at him. She almost trotted over to him. The two men, obviously bodyguards, came with her.
"Salutations Mercury."
"Hello Penny. Haven't seen you since the Festival. How'd you find it?" Mercury had never had a proper conversation with her other than saying 'hello', but he knew she was a good friend of Ruby's.
"Oh, it was fantastic. I learned a lot and Vale was wonderful. I would have loved to stay at Beacon though, even if Father wouldn't have allowed it."
Mercury tried to think back. Who had knocked Penny out of the tournament?
"I think Ruby would have liked that. What was your favourite?"
She bounced a little. "So, so much. I could talk about it all day."
Mercury chuckled. "Well, how about we find somewhere better and we do?" Because he was very sick of this place and if they wanted a long conversation, it would be better away from the party goers.
Penny's grin grew before it dropped. She glanced at the red helmeted guard. "Please?"
The guards exchanged a glance. Then they turned to her and nodded in unison. The blue one spoke. "Let me talk to the General and we will move."
That was a fair point. "Yeah, I should tell Weiss too." Weiss had invited him here, so she was probably responsible for him.
Weiss wasn't difficult to find. She was still with her sister and butler. Winter frowned a little when she saw him, but the butler gave him a respectful nod. Mercury returned it.
"Is there a problem, Mercury?" Weiss asked. Her eyes went across the room before returning to him.
"No, nothing's wrong. Me and Penny want to have a longer chat, so we're going to be going somewhere else for a while."
"Okay. There's a conference room down the corridor. Third door on the right."
"Thank you." That was a thanks to both the room and not complaining that he was ditching the 'wake' for a while.
Winter was giving him a very searching look, but Mercury didn't comment on it. He barely gave her a glance.
In Mercury's opinion, she couldn't really complain he was here, especially if she didn't know why Weiss had really invited him. After all, there was no reason for Penny to be here.
Not one Mercury knew anyway…
Who was Penny's father actually?
None of my business. At least it gets me out of here.
Obviously, Penny's guards were going to be tagging along, but that worked in his favour. No one could complain he was up to no good. He needed to stay neutral in case he returned to Atlas for whatever reason.
It would be just his luck that something happened and something was putting him on edge. This evening was just unreal.
And I thought I had no conscience.
It felt good to be back in the field properly.
Tai wasn't going to deny he had missed this. Being a teacher, especially at a pre Combat School, was a heavy responsibility and his charges were very impressionable. He never took a job that was too dangerous and they were always local.
Of course, his idea of dangerous was a little different to most. STRQ had been the best team around once and Taiyang Xiao Long was their powerhouse.
The job was simple. Griffons had moved into the woods near a small village just outside Vale. It was thought there were far more than reported. That wasn't counting the small things.
There was a graduated team from Beacon that had taken this mission five minutes ago. Having read the brief, Tai was sure they would need help. He wasn't going to disengage, but maybe he would supervise.
"Children? That's what we have?"
Even if they didn't need help with the Grimm, they would need help with the mayor that ran the village.
The leader folded her arms. "We're capable."
Tai read the mayor's body language and decided to step in. "Is there a problem here?" He casually glanced around, noting the town hall was well maintained. He didn't see many leaflets or posters for village activities. Interesting.
The mayor looked him up and down, obviously not impressed. "And you would be?"
"Taiyang Xiao Long. Huntsman and teacher at Signal."
One of the boys from the team had opened his mouth, but at that he looked to his companions. They shifted and exchanged a significant glance. As one, they returned their attention to Tai.
Their mood changed fast.
"Then I leave this in your hands."
Tai shrugged. "Not sure I want to. I mostly gave up that life for teaching."
The man glared at him.
The leader of the kids spoke again. "Look, we know the job and where to go. You can't stop us, so don't try. We'll be back later."
I like these kids.
Taiyang shrugged and followed them out.
They hadn't gone far. They were consulting a map.
"This is the straight path. Quickest and easiest way."
Taiyang spoke up. "Also home to a pack of wolves." The team jumped and turned around, hands on weapons. "They keep the basic Grimm populations down, so no one goes into their territory. There's a path around that they steer clear of which most people take."
The four looked at each other. They looked at Tai.
"Are you Yang's dad?" One of the boys asked.
"Yes."
Again, they shared a look. Tai remembered those days well.
Only him and Qrow now.
He would have to tell Yang someday soon.
Tai returned his attention to the graduated kids when they turned back to him. The leader spoke again.
"Can you show us this path?"
"Sure, but I'll only help in the fight if you truly need it." No better teacher than experience. These kids would have been in the classroom when first year Mercury defeated four fourth years, so they would remember the danger of overconfidence.
"Thank you. We'll be fine on our own."
Mostly. "I don't doubt it."
Tai was going to be the one smoothing over things with this mayor though.
The sole reason he needed to be out was because he would drive himself mad worrying otherwise. Mercury wouldn't tell him why he was going, only that he needed to. Tai had pressed, but he hadn't budged. All he had said was that it was a meeting and not at all dangerous. That was all and it worried him.
Ironwood had messaged him that Mercury at arrived in Atlas fine and that he arrived at the meeting hall fine but…
Taiyang trusted Ironwood with a lot of things.
He just didn't trust him with Mercury.
Two hours passed.
Winter fielded most of the conversations, for which Weiss was grateful. These afternoons and nights had been taxing before, but tonight was even worse than normal. Was it because of Whitely or because her patience had thinned due to her enjoyed time at Beacon?
Mercury re-entered the ballroom. He might be her guest, but she was content he wouldn't do anything worrying. She did note that something was different, but when she realised that it was that the cufflink had been moved out of sight, she paid it no mind.
"Heiress Schnee."
Winter was standing right next to Weiss, but that address no longer applied to her. Weiss looked at the speaker, but didn't verbally acknowledge him.
"Young Miss Schnee."
"Yes?" Good manners were the main reason rivals could meet in these civilised discussions after all. She didn't like Stygian Tortuga, but he was someone she would likely have to deal with when she was older. It didn't help that he was only a year older than her, but acted like he was far superior.
"What did happen to Whitely? Information has been difficult to come by, so I'm starting to think there's something more to it."
Weiss scowled. But before she could sternly tell him what she would say to that, Winter put a hand on her shoulder. "Go talk to your friend Weiss. Myself and young Mr Tortuga will continue."
Gladly.
He sneered at Winter. "I was talking to the Schnee Heir."
"I was part of the team searching for him and General Ironwood himself conferred details to my satisfaction. Would you like to ask him?"
"Hmph."
Weiss turned her back on him and walked away with her head held high.
She was biting her tongue quite literally, so she couldn't be sure what she would have said to him. Whatever it would have been, it would have been very poor judgement.
That said, Winter wasn't wrong that she had been neglecting her guest-
Something was wrong.
Mercury was talking to someone Weiss didn't know the name of, but knew she was the wife of someone very influential. That was odd, but it wasn't the problem.
The problem was what happened next.
The Kindling Heir offered a wine glass. Mercury took it with a thank you. He then had a sip from it.
What.
Frowning slightly, Weiss had a much closer look at him. The cufflink wasn't in view, but seeing as he hadn't wanted it in view in the first place, he might have just got sick of people using it as a reference. His gloves might be a different shade, but then this was a different light and Weiss hadn't looked since her initial assessment. His hair was a little different when she could see the side of his head, but that was where his coyote ears would be so maybe he had done something because it was uncomfortable.
Something was off here, but Mercury drinking alcohol was plain wrong. He had once tipped a very expensive drink over Sage's head because he kept buying him rounds.
But had his experience as a captive changed that? According to BRN, his stepfather was an alcoholic. Perhaps the explanation was as simple as he picked up bad habits. If so, he needed a better coping tactic.
She didn't believe so though.
Mercury had always been fine. It had been his teammates that had changed before they began to return to their old selves.
Weiss' eyes found General Ironwood. Recalling what he said at the airship, she approached him. He was alone, which was very useful.
"General."
"Miss Schnee. How is your evening?"
"As expected." Weiss had not expected it to go well. "However, I have a question."
He smiled. "Very well. Go on."
"Why did you ask about people behaving oddly? Why wasn't a security check enough?" This led credence that she wasn't placing too much emphasis on something so simple.
His smile faded a little then. His eyes left her and scanned the room. He was on high alert. "I am not looking for forged documents, Miss Schnee. I am looking for forged people. Do you understand?"
Forged…people?
"So someone acting out of character might not be that person at all?" Was that possible?
"That is classified Miss Schnee. I'm sure you could see some problems that would occur if that information was broadcast."
"I understand." Her gaze went to Mercury. Could that not be him at all? "May I ask you where Penny is right now? I can't see her."
"…Indeed. Excuse my poor manners for a moment." General Ironwood dialled a number on his scroll. "Where are you right now?"
Weiss was close enough to hear, but her confusion only grew at the reply.
"In the conference room three doors down sir. Is there a problem?"
General Ironwood's eyes went to Mercury now. "How is Penny?"
"Fine sir. She and her friend Mercury are discussing attractions in Vale."
How was Mercury both in the conference room three doors down and in the meeting hall within Weiss' sight?
"I see. Thank you. I would prefer it if they finished their conversation soon and returned."
"Yes sir."
General Ironwood hung up.
"I don't understand," Weiss stated again.
He was silent for a moment. "It is possible. Has he done anything unusual?"
"Yes." She didn't want to 'rat out' a friend, but if there were two Mercurys, one had to be a fake. The one she met at Beacon had to be real. There were too many individual factors to consider. This Mercury was strange in appearance and act. She believed this one was the fake.
"Very well. I am expecting trouble Miss Schnee, so be careful."
"General?"
General Ironwood moved away from the wall. Now tense and still confused, Weiss followed. She sensed trouble also.
"Mr Crawford."
It took a moment for 'Mercury' to answer to the name. "General Ironwood." He sounded like him, but it was his normal casual, almost condescending tone.
"I've found that some of my latest prosthetics have been having a certain problem with the core. May I check yours? It won't take a moment and there is no mechanic in Vale that is suitable."
'Mercury' didn't respond for a moment.
"I can hold your drink for you," Weiss offered. It was actually a question of what he was doing with it.
'Mercury' ignored her. He didn't spare her a glance. "I've had no problems."
"This is your first extreme temperature change, but it is possible to have a response in Vacuo also. It won't take a moment."
'Mercury' gave that cocky smile then. "And if I refuse?"
"I have to insist." Before anyone could stop him, General Ironwood grabbed his right arm. "I also insist you tell me your real name."
"Real name?" The trophy wife asked. "I am beginning to think there is something wrong with you General."
The glove was ripped off.
The right arm was normal; not a prosthetic.
The door opened then. Penny and one of guards were the first ones through. Mercury was next and he pushed the door open enough for the second guard to enter behind him.
"What?"
Variations of surprise were drifting around the room.
Mercury ignored all of that. He walked without a care straight up to his doppelganger. "That's interesting. I wasn't expecting this place to have this kind of entertainment."
That was Mercury.
Weiss sighed. He was no longer on his best behaviour, it seemed. She would allow the situation called for it.
"What? No one ever told you about a twin brother?"
Mercury hummed. "No." Then he punched him across the room.
By the time Weiss realised what just happened, the man on the ground now looked nothing like Mercury. He had black hair, was in his thirties and had the tell-tale black glow of shattered aura.
"But stranger things have happened." The real Mercury didn't look the slightest bit surprised.
Weiss was having words with him later.
General Ironwood held up a hand. He didn't take his gaze off the changeling, but Mercury visibly put his hands in his pockets. He backed up to Winter. She guided him in the corner with an unspoken 'stay there'. When Mercury nodded to her silent command, she approached the downed man.
Obviously they had been searching for a changeling for a while. How had they learned of it?
The building shook.
Weiss managed to keep her balance, but she was one of the few.
The changeling went for the door. Winter summoned a Beowulf, but one stab with a blade caused it to disappear. He vanished.
"I'll follow," Winter reported. She went after him.
The building shook again. There was a short but jolting drop.
The General was listening to a report on his scroll. Then he put it away. "Mercury, with Winter. Weiss, get to the base of the building. Stabilise it until everyone is out."
"On it." Mercury ran out.
"General-"
"Penny, stay with Weiss."
Weiss thought. She needed to be on the ground. The quickest way was through the window. They had already shattered, so that wasn't an issue. Stabilising the building might be a little difficult without Myrtenaster.
"Weiss, you are staying here."
"Father, I'm a Huntress. It is my duty." She didn't spare him a glance. "Come on Penny."
"Affirmative Weiss."
They were only on the tenth floor, so it wasn't a long drop.
When she landed, Weiss immediately saw the problem. The whole ground floor had bomb blasts within. Many of the supports were destroyed and those that were left would be destroyed soon.
"We need to strengthen those supports," Penny pointed. "But…I can't help there."
"You're not here to help with the building. My focus is on this, but that man might have friends or he might attack himself. I need you to protect me."
Penny saluted her. "Affirmative."
Penny had been knocked out of the tournament by Orion Shard's team. His teleportation had been vital against Penny, but everyone had focused on the rest of the teams. Ruby had spoken highly of Penny and Weiss was happy to have her as a guard.
Weiss turned to her problem. She didn't have any Dust so she couldn't just freeze it. However, she was a Schnee. Her Semblance was varied and she was intelligent enough to make use of it.
The damage done was extreme and the building would fall within a minute.
Okay. I know how to do this.
It wasn't difficult tracking Winter Schnee.
She hadn't held back and there was a lot of damage to the walls. However, he saw glyphs along them so they would hold until the place went down.
There was no doubt in his mind that the changeling had already left the building. He just needed to find the exit point before he could follow.
And there's the exit point.
Mercury jumped out and onto a neighbouring rooftop. He could make out a battle a few roads away and headed that way.
He wasn't surprised that the changeling still had his blood. Blood was quite easy to store and it took years to 'go off'. Zephyr had told him that there had been a thought of the changeling replacing him with a believable story of having escaped, but the Animin bond put an end to that. Ruby and Emerald would know it was a fake and, obviously, he hadn't learned any of his habits to fool anyone who had spent ten minutes in his company.
Seriously though? An alcoholic drink? Idiot. Why did he show up here though?
A better question was going to be how to explain this to Tai and Qrow. Mercury really had the worst luck. They were going to stick him on a leash at this rate.
The prey he was tracking didn't have aura anymore. Mercury had seen to that. However, he had managed to destroy a Schnee summoning with a weapon Mercury was at the wrong angle to get a good look at. That was something to keep in mind.
An airship was holding steady outside one of the windows. That would be the safest way to evacuate.
Why's he looping back?
For some reason, the enemy was heading back to the demolishing building. It hadn't fallen yet, but it would soon.
And a lot of influential and politically powerful people are in there tonight.
Mercury might dislike a lot of them, but they were necessary. Atlas might be quite isolated, but it was also quite important to the current state of affairs around the world. It would be quite inconvenient if they all died.
Me being there was quite a convenience for them actually. They probably would have ambushed whoever left first, but it was me. If that's the case though, why wait so long? If Ironwood called when he thought something was off, then what had they been doing for two and a half hours? Planting the bombs?
Mercury hopped along. Winter was following him directly, but she couldn't try to attack long range as these were houses. There would be a lot of collateral damage. Mercury had left Pandora (his newly built, multipurpose weapon) in Patch, but he still had knives, his aura and his training.
So many options. What to do?
There was no doubt in Mercury's mind he had accomplices. How many and where were they? He caught movement in the opposite windows, but he couldn't get a good look.
He needed to kill the changeling. He was far too dangerous for Salem to keep.
Mercury waited the corner before the meeting hall. As his prey came around, Mercury leapt down and spun. The axe kick took his head off. No one could have seen that.
Winter was only a second after. She wasn't surprised to see his work. "What do you think? You must have been our source for him."
"I don't know much except what I've already told. What I do know was that you wouldn't have got any info out of him."
"Perhaps, but this is rather final. Nothing to be done now. Let us return."
The airship began to pull away from the wall. Then Mercury saw a problem.
"Grimm hybrids."
He had been told his Guardian Form could kill them, but he didn't want to start a panic here. The Grimm might not be able to get into Atlas easily but in his opinion, civilians were far more annoying and he honestly didn't have the patience tonight. Though with how dark it was and how unlikely it was for a Faunus to be on that ship, he would probably be fine.
A single leap and he was back on the rooftops again.
These hybrid Grimm didn't ignore him. The ones with wings went for the airship and those without went for him. His response was to create the winged fox and send it after the hybrids in the air. He battled the ones on the roof.
Got to give them points for stubbornness, but this is just disappointing. Must not have been fighters when normal, but Salem or whoever organised this probably wasn't expecting much resistance.
The silver Dust knives made very quick work of them.
The winged fox took a little longer, but they were all dead before the airship touched the ground. Maybe he had put a little too much aura into it, but no harm done.
Then he saw exactly how Weiss was holding up the building. "Well. That'll do."
Mercury had been told of Schnee summonings. It was very impressive to see it in action.
There were two white Boarbatusks balancing beams and supports. For those that needed more, there were three white Beowolves. Weiss was sitting in the middle, eyes closed and meditating.
"Salutations Mercury!" Penny waved. He was honestly more interested in the three people he didn't recognise unconscious near her, but he would let that slide for now. Qrow would keep him in the loop.
"Hey Penny. I can see your evening has been productive."
"Oh most certainly."
Winter made a glyph in her hand. Two white Boarbatusks and three white Beowolves appeared. She walked forward and put a hand on Weiss' shoulder. Weiss opened her eyes and looked at her.
Mercury could see she was shaking.
The white Grimm began to switch places.
Seeing Gelé approach them, Mercury immediately got in his way. Just to annoy him a little more, Mercury didn't talk to him. Ironwood had moved away from the crowd at the sight of him and Winter.
"General? We'll be leaving soon."
Ironwood had his gun. Looked like Mercury hadn't been the only one to bring weapons to a wake. "I understand and agree. Thanks to your efforts, this airship hasn't been damaged, so it will return you home."
"Thank you."
Gelé didn't like that. "I'm going to have a word with my daughter."
"No you're not." Mercury still didn't look at him, but waited until the Schnee sisters were clear of the building. Weiss looked exhausted and he didn't want her to deal with her father right now. "I'm being selfish and deciding to head back now."
"That is a good idea," Winter agreed. She guided Weiss to him, who was a little unstable on her feet. Mercury was going to guess she had never summoned before and had drained herself. He couldn't sense her aura as he gently took her arm.
"I'll see her back to Beacon safe."
"Make sure you do."
"That is not how we do things in Atlas." Gelé sounded furious. Mission accomplished.
Ironwood looked very unhappy about this fact. However, he still spoke calmly. "I am a personal friend of Mr Crawford's stepfather," usually, "and both are registered at Beacon. They have committed no crime and are beyond our jurisdiction. I have no want or reason to delay them."
"I have reason to."
"You would trust the word of a face-changer over actual evidence Mr Schnee? I would take that personally."
So the changeling had had a chance to talk to people. What had given him away so soon?
Weiss glanced at him, a question in her eyes. He tilted his head a little, but didn't move otherwise.
The changeling did know that Mercury had killed Whitely.
Weiss nodded properly in return. "General, we are ready to leave."
"Excellent. Good luck for your exams at the end of the year. Mr Crawford, I will liaison with Professor Ozpin for a suitable time, if that is acceptable with you."
Mercury shrugged. "Just let me know in enough time that I can change my schedule if I need to."
"Of course."
"And nice to meet you properly Penny."
Penny bounced on her heels. "It was good to meet you too Mercury. Say hello to Ruby for me."
"Will do."
Ignoring everyone else, Mercury guided Weiss onto the airship. The pilot then took off immediately, leaving Ironwood to sort out the political mess of the night.
No problems with me killing a guy that can mimic people then? It did take months to find him.
Weiss fell asleep before they even reached the ocean.
Interesting. Did they plan to kill everyone there? Rather unlikely as Winter, Weiss and Ironwood would have been enough even if there would have been more damage without me there. What then was the goal?
There were no guards at the wake save those who stuck with Penny, so they were stationed elsewhere. Numbers are a powerful asset alone and no Huntsmen appeared to help or hinder, so they may have already had assignments. Especially with most working in the military. The would be in key positions around Atlas.
So. What did they get from tonight?
Ironwood can debunk any ideas about me killing Whitely. He can prove I was in no condition to. He wouldn't believe it even if I told him. That story is not going far.
He's probably going to get taken to task by Tai too. At least it's not just me.
The changeling could have tried the Faunus route as his ears would have been fine like the arm was. He chose to run immediately rather than try and sow discord. It was the smarter move short term, but not long term.
They couldn't have known I was there as Weiss herself only made the decision last week and only told her Father and the General on Thursday. So I'm not a factor which means he had been carrying my blood on him for quite a while. Wonderful.
No White Fang there. They would have been the perfect scapegoats and I think Adam would have enjoyed it. So where are they and what are they doing?
The pieces were there. What was the plan and what was opportunity?
I have a plan to deal with Tyrian. Hazel and Watts might be a little trickier. I get the feeling Watts isn't a fighter and I didn't get a good read on Hazel. There's also the question of who, if anyone, normally sat in those empty chairs.
The war might be with Salem, but did she ever go to Remnant? Ozpin had said she remained in her domain which was part of the reason this war had gone on so long. Salem herself wasn't the problem. The problem was the lieutenants.
When they landed in Beacon, Weiss still hadn't woken up.
Mercury gave her a gentle shake, but she didn't stir.
Oh well.
He picked her up carefully, looking for any sign she would wake. He didn't find one. Fortunately the dorms weren't far and he knew JMP would have waited up for her.
Then he decided he was going to sleep in the dorm room. The way his luck was going tonight, someone would try to mob him on the way back home. He couldn't be bothered with that.
JMP opened the door at his gentle knock with his shoe. Mercury lay Weiss down carefully on her bed. Jaune patted his shoulder and the others whispered goodnight. He did the same.
Not even Emerald stirred when he entered their dorm room.
Seeing the girls curled up in the double bed, he took one of the singles. He would be gone before they woke up anyway. He sent a message to Qrow and settled down for what was left of the night.