Let's go!
Individual System
The Argonaut was a Pelias-class cruise ship. The first of its kind.
It was over one thousand feet long and had seventeen decks. It could house two thousand passengers and over three hundred crew members. In addition to the human crew, there were four hundred domestic bots on board, most of them cleaning bots. Usually, it would be impossible for something so large and heavy to fly through the skies, but the ship's strong engines powered by Gravity Dust managed the task with ease.
The Argonaut was also equipped with a Hard-Light Dust barrier that could be turned on at a moment's notice should Grimm be detected. While keeping the barrier up at all times would be safer, it would also be far costlier, astronomically so as Hard-Light Dust was notoriously hard to manufacture. In addition to its barrier, the ship had several weapons on board to protect the passengers from Grimm attacks.
That day, it was with many awed looks and excited cries that the people of Atlas bid goodbye to the Argonaut. The pure white ship looked majestic as it rose into the sky, white fluffy clouds all around it. The people waved, and the cameras rolled until the ship vanished into the horizon.
Inside, the passengers had already started settling in. Usually, the trip to Argus took no more than a few hours, but the ship was deliberately taking its time. It was scheduled to arrive just as the sun set, which was when the party would begin. In the meantime, the passengers were free to enjoy the many amenities offered by the ship.
Some passengers were already resting in their cabins. Some were taking their kids to the pool. More than a few were already enjoying a first-class meal in one of the many five-star restaurants onboard.
Jaune Arc was not doing any of those things.
The young Arc was deep inside the hull of the ship, far away from the passengers. He was sitting on a chair and leaning against the bulkhead, his face a sickly shade of green.
Along with the many famous people onboard, a small delegation from the military had been allowed into the ship and had been given an area near the cargo hold all to themselves. After all, keeping an android like IXA working required lots of technicians working around the clock.
At least, that was the excuse Ironwood had gone with.
IXA wasn't an android. IXA was an armor that was currently mechashifted into a stylish belt around Jaune's waist. There was no need for a team of mechanics to hover around it 24/7.
So, they had all gone to the upper decks to enjoy the sun, the pools, and the delicious food.
Jaune cursed them from the bottom of his heart.
The Argonaut used Gravity Dust to fly and was moving at a deliberately slow pace. That meant the ship barely rocked. In fact, Jaune had been on car rides that were more hectic than this. There was no good reason for him to be motion sick.
Yet here he was. Fighting with all his heart to keep his breakfast inside his stomach.
Sometimes the universe just wants to have a laugh at us, his father had once told him when asked about their dreaded family condition.
Stupid universe.
Stupid motion sickness.
Groaning, Jaune barely managed to get up. The action caused him to sway on his feet for a couple of seconds. A burp escaped his mouth, and his hands quickly flew to cover it. Luckily, it stayed as just a burp. Jaune took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.
He needed to get some air, and he needed to get it fast.
The faint hum of the engines and the lack of open space around him was not doing his motion sickness any favors. If he got to the main deck, well, it wouldn't cure him, but hopefully, the fresh air would help him last until they reached Argus. He'd get someone to buy some pills for him then.
To think he could fight Grimm yet the slight rocking of a ship still rendered him useless. Talk about embarrassing.
Jaune wondered what all those reporters from last night would say if they could see him right now. He snorted. Probably nothing good.
Using his hands to steady himself, Jaune slowly walked out of the room. He made his way up one ladder. Then another one. For the blond, it was a titanic effort. He'd take running through four feet of snow back at Fort Grey over this.
Really, why did people like ships so much? Whether by air or sea, it was always ships!
Trains, in Jaune's opinion, were infinitely better. They ran on tracks which meant they could never lose their way. You could stare at the scenery from the window or sleep in your cabin. They were also fairly fast, which was a bonus. Best of all, they didn't trigger his motion sickness.
Land transportation never did for some reason.
Regardless, the world would be a better place if there were rail tracks all over it.
Yeah. Jaune nodded to himself. That was what people should be putting their money into. Trains, not ships with way too much stuff crammed inside them for their own good. If something wanted to be a five-star restaurant, it should be one. If something wanted to be a pool, then it should just be a pool! Why mix the two!
Who could enjoy a five-star meal if the restaurant moved?
That was just crazy.
"Hey!"
Jaune blinked. Did someone talk to him just now?
Very slowly, Jaune turned around, mostly because moving in any way that was remotely coordinated was simply beyond him at the moment.
Jaune's breath got caught in his throat.
In front of him was, without a doubt, the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Snowy white hair, crystal blue eyes, and beautiful pale skin without a single blemish. It was like a fairy tale princess had stepped right out of a book and decided to grace him with her presence.
She also reminded him of Winter.
A lot.
Jaune mentally pulled an image of Winter and placed it next to the girl before him. Same white hair. Same eyes. Same fair skin. The main difference between them was that while Winter was beautiful in a distant, highly intimidating way, the girl in front of him had a more fragile beauty that seemed to beckon him.
An entirely teenage part of his mind couldn't help but notice she was also not quite as… developed as Winter.
Wait! Her mouth was still moving.
"Are you even listening?!"
"... of course," Jaune lied. "You were saying that you want… to…"
Think, Brain. Think.
"Ask something?"
Nailed it!
The white-haired girl looked at him the way one would look at a particularly slow kid that just ran into a window.
"You are from the military, are you not?" The girl asked, looking at him dubiously.
"Of course, I am," Jaune said, patting the insignia on his chest. For this occasion, Jaune was wearing grey coveralls with the logo of Atlas on the front, denoting his status as a mechanic working for the military. "Warrant Officer Arc. Special Dispatch Unit."
That part wasn't actually a lie. General Ironwood had informed him that, due to his involvement in the IXA project, he technically counted as a non-commissioned officer of the Atlas military. Ironwood had even implied that if Jaune wanted to, he could start taking officer courses. That way, he'd be ready to receive a commission by the time he got his Huntsman license.
Of course, the white-haired girl knew none of this. She looked at him with clear doubt in her face.
"Are you really?" The white-haired girl leaned in, narrowing her eyes. "You look too young to be in the army."
Being in such close proximity to a pretty girl didn't fail to make him blush, but the combination of motion sickness and the comment about his age countered it somewhat.
"Young?" Jaune echoed, his eye twitching. "I am probably older than you."
Jaune drew himself to his full height as he spoke, trying to appear taller than he actually was. Unfortunately, his full height was not all that impressive, a fact he had always been sensitive about. With one exception, his sisters had always been taller than him.
All other kids had been taller than him.
This girl was not.
It was with no small amount of glee that Jaune noticed he was a little over an inch taller than the white-haired girl, and she was wearing heels to boot!
"I am sixteen," she said.
"S-So am I," Jaune lied. His birthday was still a few months away.
"And they let sixteen-year-olds join the army?" She prodded, hands on her hips.
"They do if they get in through an internship," Jaune said, panicking only for a second before reciting the cover story Winter had drilled into his head. "Different rules apply for the Special Dispatch Unit."
That part was true.
"Besides, it's not like I see combat. I'm just another mechanic."
That part was a lie.
"I see," the girl said, not looking convinced. "Well then, if you're part of the military, then what are you waiting for?"
Jaune blinked. "What?"
The girl looked impatiently at him. "You cannot possibly tell me you don't know who I am."
Jaune stared blankly at her.
"Are you serious?" She asked, glaring at him. "How can you not know who I am?!"
"Sorry, am I supposed to know you?" Jaune scratched the back of his head even as another wave of nausea hit him. "Look, I'm a little busy right now, but if you want a peek at IXA, then I'm pretty sure I'm not allowed to do that."
"That's not what I-"
"Or if you're just scared and want someone to guard you, then I'm pretty sure you have nothing to worry about. This ship has a lot of defenses."
The girl loudly stomped her foot and pointed a finger at him. "How dare you even imply I'd be scared of a simple trip. Who do you think I am? I am-"
"Over here! I think she went this way."
"I'm right behind you."
"Drat!" The girl's face went from angry to annoyed as two voices came from above. She looked to the ladder leading to the next deck then to Jaune and back again.
"Quick. Follow me!"
"What?"
Jaune barely had time to protest as the girl grabbed him by the wrist and, with far more force than he expected, dragged him away.
xXx
The cockpit of the Argonaut was quite spacious. It had two large comfortable seats with many panels, buttons, and screens in front of them. If either the pilot or co-pilot wanted it, they could stand and walk around the cockpit to stretch their legs. There was also a minibar loaded with snacks in the corner.
Now, it should be noted that a complicated piece of equipment like the Argonaut was not something that could usually be piloted by merely two people. The ship had way too many systems for two people to keep track of, flight control being merely one of them.
Indeed, the ship wasn't controlled by just two people.
The ship's onboard computer automatically calibrated most of the ship's other systems, decreasing the pilots' burdens by an order of magnitude. That way, the pilots only needed to focus on getting the ship to its destination. Should the computer fail, a secondary control room crewed by a competent staff would enter into action to help them.
Of course, that was all very unlikely to happen.
All it meant at the moment was that the pilots had very little to do.
"What's our schedule?" asked one of them. He was a dashing man with black hair, green eyes, and high cheekbones.
"You already know," replied the other, an average-looking man with brown hair and eyes. "We keep course until we reach Argus. In about half an hour, we'll start descending for a water landing. We'll stay on the sea for a few hours then go up."
"Do we need to do that? It's not like it makes a difference to the passengers whether the ship is flying over the sea or sailing on it."
His partner rolled his eyes. "It's not about that, Finn. It's about the novelty of it."
While there were certain safety benefits to a ship that had no problems landing on the ocean should the need arise, the truth was the function had been added mostly for the novelty of it. In fact, some people had criticized the Argonaut for it. By deliberately putting itself on the sea, the ship left itself open to attack from aquatic species of Grimm in addition to flying ones.
Of course, those criticisms had been countered by pointing out the many defenses installed on the ship.
"We'll open the upper deck once we reach warmer temperatures, the passengers will sunbathe or whatever," he continued. "All as scheduled."
"And here you were all worried about having to pilot this thing," Finn teased.
"Well, forgive me for being nervous about flying the multi-million lien ship owned by the richest man in Remnant."
"Can't argue with that," Finn said, leaning back into his comfortable seat. A moment of silence settled over the cockpit. "The weather sure is nice today, huh?"
"Warm to temperate climate. No clouds. Just as predicted."
"..."
"..."
"Okay," Finn said, slapping his hands together after ten minutes had passed. "I'm going to say it. This is boring. Argus is a four-hour trip under trying circumstances. We're deliberately trying to make it there by evening. With the computer handling most of the job, we could literally get there sleep-walking. Whose bright idea was this?"
"Jacques Schnee."
Finn clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"If you're so bored you can go grab me something to eat. It's not like both of us need to be here. Like you said, this is a simple trip. We won't have much to do until we leave Argus."
Finn raised an eyebrow. "Grab you something to eat? From where? The minibar over there?"
"From the restaurant," his partner replied. "I'd really like an omelet right now."
"Seriously?"
"What?" his partner fired back defensively. "I was so nervous this morning I didn't eat a thing. I need my breakfast."
"And the reason I should go instead of you is?" Even as Finn asked that question, he was already getting up.
"Well, you're the one who's bored. Figured you'd appreciate the chance to stretch your legs," replied the co-pilot. "Also, I introduced you to your wife."
"Is that how you want to call it? We were at a bar, and you said, and I'm quoting you here, 'Check out those knockers!'"
"It counts if you married those knockers! Plus, I had to flirt with her fat friend all night. You have no idea how bad that got."
"That's the godmother of my kid you're talking about! She's a great person."
"And a lousy date. Seriously, you owe me."
"You know," Finn said, shaking his head. "One day, that whole 'I introduced you to your wife' thing is going to stop working."
"Probably," his friend admitted. "But not today."
"Not today," agreed Finn. "Mushrooms, bacon, and spinach, right?
"You know it."
"I'll be back in a while," Finn said, opening the door. "I might walk around a bit."
"Take as much time as you need," the pilot said as he waved at his friend without turning back. "Take as much time as you need."
The door closed behind Finn.
Ashton White released the longest sigh of his life. He almost seemed to sink into his seat. It was as if he was a balloon slowly and pitifully deflating. He rubbed a hand over his forehead to wipe the sweat he had been certain Finn would have noticed.
But he hadn't.
He hadn't noticed anything strange at all.
Even though he had known Finn for years, his friend hadn't noticed anything unusual about him. Was he a much better liar than he thought he was or had Finn been that bored? The faunus passing for a human didn't know, and to be honest, that didn't matter right now. There was only one thing Ashton cared about.
He had gotten Finn out of the cockpit.
Ashton looked at the clock and sighed in relief yet again. It was fine. It was still time. He still had time. Everything was still proceeding as scheduled. He had been counting on Finn wanting to leave the cockpit out of boredom, but for a moment there, he had started to doubt that would happen.
If Finn hadn't left on his own accord, Ashton would have had to…
No. It didn't matter. No anymore.
Finn had left. The plan could proceed.
Ashton unfastened his seat belt and knelt down. He quickly opened one of the panels, exposing a multitude of colorful wires. With a determined look on his face, Ashton took a set of pliers from his pocket.
It was okay, he told himself.
He could do this. Just like he practiced.
Most of the Argonaut's systems were centered on the cockpit, and the ship's radar was no exception. Ashton just needed to turn off the alert system. That way no one would notice the White Fang's ship approaching. No one would be able to activate the ship's defenses in time, allowing the White Fang to board the Argonaut with ease. With the element of surprise on their side, the White Fang would quickly assume control of the ship.
This was fine, Ashton told himself.
It was fine.
There was no one worth anything in this ship anyway. They were all privileged rich assholes. That was it. There was nothing more to these people.
It was fine if they got hurt.
"Hey! I almost forgot! I wanted to ask if you… wanted…to..."
Ashton turned back in horror. Finn's confused face stared back at him. He had been so focused on his task, he hadn't even heard Finn opening the door.
"Ashton… what are you doing?"
Ashton lunged.
xXx
Communication was a constant problem in Remnant.
The CCT was the only reliable way to communicate over long distances. Through the four main towers and the extensive network of support towers, it was possible to broadcast a signal all the way to even the most remote villages.
However, that was only the case when broadcasting from the main towers.
Sending a signal from the middle of nowhere all the way to civilization was a completely different matter. Those who lived away from the main towers were at the mercy of whatever support towers happened to be nearby.
Beyond that, people were forced to rely on scroll-to-scroll connections, which were notoriously weak when not near a tower to boost their signal. Even the latest models could not connect to each other once they were more than a thousand feet away.
This not-so-little detail made long-distance travel a very complicated affair. It meant that once a ship or train was far away enough from civilization, it would be able to receive messages, but it wouldn't be able to send them.
In other words, there was no way for Ashton to communicate with the White Fang ship hidden in the clouds about twenty miles away from the Argonaut. If they got too close and the radar wasn't disabled, the ship would engage its defenses. In the worst case scenario, they'd be shot down.
Adam Taurus sat in the cargo hold, his sheathed blade at his side. He was leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees. The parts of his face not hidden by his mask were blank, utterly devoid of anything but intense concentration.
Around him were his subordinates. They were performing last minute checks on their weapons, but really, they were just nervous. Adam couldn't blame them. The attack on the Argonaut would be the most public in the White Fang's history. They had devoted a lot of resources towards making this work.
Now, their success was at the mercy of a single man.
Adam subtly looked at his watch. Things were still within the allotted time frame. Thirty minutes. They had thirty minutes until their time ran out. Thirty minutes until the plan failed.
"Sir," a particularly brave grunt asked, "do we-"
"We wait."
"B-but-"
"We. Wait."
And that was that. No one else dared to voice their doubts. However, as much cold resolution as Adam tried to project, even he felt doubt brewing inside him.
Timing was crucial for this plan. They needed to attack right when the Argonaut was between Atlas and Argus. If they attacked too soon, the army would be mobilized right away. If they waited too long, the ship would be too close to Argus and the Atlas military base there. For this to work, they needed to attack right when the ship was unable to communicate with both cities.
Timing and location. In the end, a good hunt was always about those things.
"Sir!" cried out a White Fang grunt as he burst into the cargo area. "It's him. Yuma's back."
Adam stood up.
"What are you waiting for? Open the gates. Everyone, grab hold of something!"
At once, the hold became full of motion as everyone grabbed what was nearest to them. The gate opened, and wind rushed in, causing everyone to hold on tighter
A bat faunus flew in.
He was tall with brown, spiky hair and pale eyes. He had an unkempt goatee and was wearing a black bodysuit which protected him from the cold. His faunus traits were the two large bat wings that grew from his back, a rarity among their kind. Even among bird-type faunus, flight was almost unheard of.
For Yuma, it was as easy as walking.
If the White Fang had tried to get close to the Argonaut while the radar was still on, they'd have doubtlessly been detected right away. However, if the person getting close to the ship was Yuma, that was a different story. At worst, he'd be mistaken for a lone Grimm.
Yuma could fly close enough to the ship to receive a message.
"So?" Adam asked once the gates closed, aware of the anticipation building up inside the ship. "Do you have the answer?"
"Aye, boss," Yuma replied. He held up his scroll.
"Radar's down."
Adam's lips curled up.
It was time.
xXx
Two teenagers entered a supply closet in a hurry. The girl threw the boy against the wall and quickly closed the door behind her. It sounded like the beginning of a scene that wouldn't be out of place in a romance novel, but the circumstances couldn't be more different.
"That should do it," the girl said, not looking the least bit winded after all that running in high heels. "They'll never think to look for me here. Now you can just… are you alright?"
Unlike the girl, Jaune had placed his arm over a couple of boxes to steady himself. His chest heaved dangerously as he tried to get his nausea under control.
"What?" Jaune asked, looking at the girl while covering his mouth. "Oh. Me? Yeah, I'm fine. Just dandy. It's just… flying doesn't really agree with me."
Neither did sailing, for the matter.
"I'm okay now," Jaune said, taking one last deep breath and straightening himself. "I'm okay."
Deep breaths. Deep breaths kept his breakfast down and his pride intact.
"Sooo… why did we run away from those guys?"
"Because I did not feel like having bodyguards watching my every move today," the girl said, dismissively. "The very thought of me needing a bodyguard is ridiculous."
Jaune blinked a couple of times at that.
"Bodyguards? Why would you-No, wait. I almost forgot everyone in this ship is super rich."
The girl stared at him.
"You really have no idea who I am, do you?"
"Should I?"
"Of course you should, you dolt!" she said, closing the distance between them with angry stomps. Having such a pretty girl get so close to him was enough to make him blush, and her angry glare did nothing to change this. "Can you not see my hair? My face? Do you live underground? My picture is all over the CCTnet. The tickets for all my concerts this year are already sold out!"
Jaune wisely stayed quiet. If he started speaking now, he didn't trust himself not to mention that her breath smelled like mint.
It occurred to him that he really needed to ask his dad for dating advice one of these days.
"Weiss Schnee," the girl, Weiss, said at last when it was clear Jaune was no closer to realizing who she was. "I am Weiss Schnee."
"Schnee?" This time, realization did flash in Jaune's eyes. "Oh, like Winter"
"Yes, like Winter Schnee. My sister," Weiss said, her eye twitching. "And Schnee as in the Schnee Dust Company. The company who built and owns this ship!"
"Ah," Jaune said, feeling somewhat foolish. He scratched the back of his head, sheepishly. "In my defense, I really don't have much free time."
"Clearly." Weiss placed her hands on her hips, one of her feet tapping impatiently as she stared at him. "Well?"
"Well, what?"
"Aren't you going to take me to my sister?!"
"Wait, so that's what you wanted all this time?"
"Of course it was, you buffoon! What else could I possibly have wanted from someone like you!"
Sheesh, talk about rude. Pretty, but rude.
"Yeah, well, I don't think that's going to be possible," Jaune said, grimacing in preparation for Weiss' outburst.
"Excuse me!" Yep, there it was. "Who do you think you are? I am Weiss Schnee! The only reason you people are even here right now is that the SDC agreed to give your toy some publicity. You should be scrambling to follow my orders as compensation!"
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it doesn't work that way," Jaune said, raising a finger. "Also, even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to take you to Winter. She's not on the ship."
"What?"
Jaune winced at her volume. With lungs like that, it was no wonder she could sing.
"What do you mean she's not here?"
"It's like I just said," Jaune said, rubbing his ears. "Specialist Schne is not here. She's not in the ship."
"B-But she told she'd be here." Weiss took a step back in shock. "You're in her unit, are you not?"
Weiss' crestfallen expression actually made Jaune feel bad for her. It was like the wind had been completely taken out of her sails.
"I am," Jaune said. "And if it helps, she was supposed to be here with us, but something else came up."
It had been weird. Originally, Winter was scheduled to be in the ship as well, something she hadn't been happy about. According to her, these parties were an absolute bore.
However, a day before the ship's launch, Ironwood had called her to his office. Jaune wasn't sure what happened there. All he knew was that there was an emergency that required Winter's skills. She had left right away after that.
"Something else came up?" Weiss echoed as her gaze dipped to the floor. She seemed smaller now, less confident. It was hard to believe this was the same girl that had been yelling at him before. "And she didn't even tell me. I see. I thought we could… No, nevermind. It was foolish. Winter is always busy. What was I thinking?"
"I'm sure she meant to let you know," Jaune blurted out. "It was just all very last minute."
Weiss may have been mean and rude, but it wasn't right for someone to look so lonely.
"You must be right." Weiss smiled a fake smile. "If you will excuse me, I believe I have imposed on you enough. I'll retire to my cabin."
Weiss moved to leave. Jaune raised his hand, wanting to stop her but not knowing what to say.
At that moment, the entire ship shook. The room moved left and right, sending both Jaune and Weiss tumbling down. Training kicked in, and Jaune managed to grab Weiss while pulling them both to the side. Jaune's back hit the wall with force, but it stopped them from falling.
"What was that?" Weiss asked.
"An explosion," Jaune said, frowning. "Something's gone wrong."
Something had indeed gone wrong, and for Jaune and IXA, this would be a turning point.
AN:
It's funny when you think about it. Jaune's motion sickness only appears once in the entire show, but it rarely fails to show up in fanfics. It's kind of like Yang and puns.
Anyway, communication. The way I see it, there are three main types of connections in Remnant. Device-to-Device (usually Scrolls), Tower-to-Tower, and Device-to-Tower (or the other way around). Without Towers nearby, it's possible for Scrolls to connect to each other (as seen in the Vol 4 trailer and Vol 6), but the range is not ideal. Also, it's easier for a Tower to reach a Scroll than for a Scroll to reach a Tower, which can create problems (at least, that's the way it works here. Feel free to lambast me for it).
Also, Weiss appears! About a year and a half younger than her canon self. She has a bit of an attitude problem, and she was really looking forward to spending some time with her sister.
It's a bit sad when you think about it. Winter is about 5 or so years older than Weiss. That means she basically left for boarding school when Weiss was about 12 and then she joined the army.
Loneliest of all indeed.
Anyway, till next chapter!